BYU/SA: Most Controversial Organization at BYU

I was always convinced that BYU/SA was the biggest waste of time and resources.  Really?  Am I paying tuition in support of the supposedly helpful organization?

But something happened last semester that started a bizarre chain of events.  One day, as I was standing in the hallway waiting for my professor, I was approached by my old Music Theory teacher, Dr. Thornock.  As we talked, he asked if I would be interested in serving on the School of Music (SoM) Student Advisory Council.  I accepted.  My only obligations?  Representing the string department of the School of Music and going to SAC meetings every other week.  No big deal.

Well, during the first meeting, I was asked to be part of the College of Fine Arts and Communications (CFAC) Student Advisory Council.  A slightly bigger obligation, but still manageable.  I would attend those meetings on the off-weeks of the SoM council meetings.  Since I didn't have much to do on Fridays, I was okay with that.

Then starts Winter semester.  I get a call from Shelbi, the other student on the CFAC advisory council.  Since one of the other students graduated, there was a vacancy that I was asked to fill on the BYU/SA Student Advisory Council.  I hesitated for a minute. . . trying to understand what exactly was going on.  BYU/SA. . .  Aren't they the guys who send me obnoxious Facebook invites trying to get me to support certain groups and people and events that I never end up going to?  Yeah. . . that would be them. . . and they want ME on their Student Advisory Council?  Hmmm. . .

I accepted the invitation.  But then I went back and thought, "Wait a minute. . . I'm part of that organization that no one likes. . . CRAP!"  But as I've gone to SAC meetings and gotten to know the people that work with BYU/SA, I've come to realize that they're just like me: students trying to do well in school and make something of themselves.  It's been good getting to know what kinds of things go around on campus and what we can do to help.  As the Student Advisory Council, we are the "bridge" between the student body and the administration.  I've been able to see what that really means since I joined BYU/SA.  I never thought I would say anything like that. . . ever.

Je Suis Vainqueur

I was in the break room on the 2nd floor of the library.  Typical activity while I'm at work.  It's the closest place to get the most amazing thing in the world: BYU Creamery Chocolate Milk.  But this was no typical trip to the break room.  At least, not this time.

What's the one thing that always seems to go wrong with vending machines?  Yep, that's it!  Whatever you're trying to get GETS STUCK.  Well guess what.  That's exactly what happened to me, keeping me separated from my beloved chocolate milk.  It's "the Man" trying to keep me down.  Well, I decided that I was going to stick it to the Man.  The problem was that whoever was the last one to fill up the vending machine didn't think to put everything in at an angle so that the items would fall out correctly.  Instead, he put them in straight up.  That means that the items to be bought would TIP OVER instead of sliding out of their places, causing them to become lodged between where they sit and the glass of the vending machine.

The first bottle of chocolate milk that I tried to get got stuck.  But there was a bottle still behind it.  So I tried to get that one as well.  But, to my GREAT dismay, that one started to slide out but stopped right on top of the one that was already stuck.  Fantastic. . .  That makes TWO stuck bottles of chocolate milk instead of just one.  What is the logical thing to do at this point?  Kick the machine furiously, swear at it and try to tip it over.  But weighing 400 pounds has its advantages: the vending machine didn't budge.  Nor did it give me the chocolate milk for which I paid.  But, after excessive kicking, I was able to get ONE of the bottles to fall.  Partial victory.

Next idea: order what is above the chocolate milk, hoping that this will set it free.  Result: failure.  But I wasn't about to give up.

Plan C: "I'm goin' in!"

I have relatively skinny arms.  Knowing this, I decided that I was going to force my arm up into the vending machine to get my chocolate milk out.  The only problem is that there is another flap that goes up when the machine's door is pushed open, making it "impossible" to reach in and grab anything.  (This is where I laugh in the Man's face.)  I reached in and pulled down that flap as much as I could to where there was a little opening leading to the vending area.  But since I couldn't reach my arm all the way up, I improvised.  Remember the other item that I got to try to knock my chocolate milk loose before?  It was a bottle of apple juice (I don't like apple juice, by the way).  So why not put it to good use?  I was able to fit it through the gap and up towards the chocolate milk.  I could only use two fingers to navigate the apple juice, so that made this increasingly difficult.  I was able to get it over to the bottle of chocolate milk, but i lost control of the apple juice and it fell.  CRAP!  So try again.  Same result.  Third time?  Yeah, same thing.  But I wasn't going to be denied.  Try number 4: I propped the apple juice up against the chocolate milk and pushed on it with my thumb and index finger. . . and to my everlasting joy, the chocolate milk fell free!  Money: not wasted.  Vending machine: conquered.  The Man: owned.

Being a poor college kid can be fun sometimes.  A word for all vending machines: I've got my eye on you.  You'd better WATCH OUT!

Winter Semester. . . BRING IT!

So the new semester started with me getting back to Provo around 1:30 in the morning after missing the first day of class.  Great start, right?  Well, since I had been travelling, the first day of class was pretty much shot.  I missed the first day of World Music and Pearl of Great Price.  But if there was one day of class that I absolutely HAD to miss, this was it.  I did make it to orchestra rehearsal though, which was good because we started reading the music for the ballet "Cinderella".  It is surprisingly difficult!

side note: Kory's speeches during orchestra... can they be ANY LONGER???

Okay, back to school.  We'll actually fast-forward to school day #2.  I was ready for class!  I got up on time, left the apartment on time, got to campus on time, walked into class on time, when suddenly!  (Dramatic pause!) The classroom was EMPTY!  I stood there for a minute, wondering, "well, if class is Tuesday and Thursday at 10... then why is no one in the classroom?..."  I wandered around for a little while and decided it would be best to email my teacher about it.  So in response, he says, "I was out of town, so we didn't have class.  Make sure you're there on Tuesday!"  Then, to make this story better, I checked on Blackboard to get my syllabus.  And what was listed for Thursday's class?  "NO CLASS!  I will be out of town!"  Needless to say, I felt like a total idiot.  Way to go, Matt Green. . .  Way to go. . .

Then work is always fun.  How does a single guy at BYU get stuck working on Friday nights from 7 to MIDNIGHT?  That's prime date time!  You'd think that a university that stresses dating and marriage so much would be sensitive to that, but NOOOOOOOOOO!  Thank you, BYU.  The only thing that makes this worth it is that I don't have to work Saturdays.  At least I have something going for me.

This is what I have to say to Winter Semester 2011: BRING IT!
Or, in a nicer way, I shall quote "The Count of Monte Cristo":  "Do your worst!  For I shall do mine!"

The End of Another Year. Goodbye 2010!

Another year has come and gone.  What has happened?  Let's review:

January: started a relationship.
March: another birthday!
April: aforementioned relationship terminated.
May: new friends move in.
June: intramural softball.  Trip to Manti.
July: family comes to visit in Provo.
August: super awesome trip to Europe! (Poland, France)
September: start new semester.  Stomach goes haywire.  Begin football season!
October: stomach still going haywire.
November: can I get another October, anyone?  Oh yeah, Thanksgiving trip to San Francisco!
December: finally finished an unreasonably difficult semester (somehow managing to keep the GPA above a 3.0 for the semester).  And, yes, the stomach issue still has not been terminated (after upwards of 10 visits to the doctor).

So, through all of this, I still managed to learn some things about myself.  I realized that I have more strength than I give myself credit for.  I've never been a quitter, though sometimes I wish I would just give up!  I learned that it's okay to ask friends for help.  I learned that if someone asks a ridiculously stupid question while I'm working at the library, to just grit my teeth, force a smile and answer politely.  I learned to not tell girls that I've lost 15-20 pounds over a span of 3 months, the reason being that they ALL want to have the same problem that I'm having so they can lose that much weight as well (no disrespect intended towards the female population).  And most importantly, I learned that, through thick and thin, the Lord does not abandon us, His children.  As many times as I felt alone and abandoned, that was never the case.

Photo review of 2010:

Playing a bass in Wroclaw, Poland.

Bailing water at 2 AM. . .

General Conference with Christine!

And Christine's birthday.

After a run-in (literally) with a guard rail on the way to San Francisco.

FOOTBALL!  Nate Dawg wants YOU to root for BYU!

Everyone wants a piece of Matt Green.

Manti pageant trip.

Bass studio trip to Poland.

Lights on Temple Square.

Intramural Softball!

2010 was a tough, taxing year.  I learned a lot, but some of the things that I suffered through I would rather never have happen to me again.  Here's to hoping that 2011 brings better times, better results, and LESS SICKNESS!

Christmas in Georgia

This Christmas was interesting.  It started with me going home for the first time since LAST Christmas (that's right, I did not go back to the Mother Land for a whole year).  Miraculously, all of  my flights/connections were on time!  And I even had a travel buddy!  Lucky for me my friend Ashton was on my flight!  Made the voyage a bit more bearable than it usually is.  But I came home to a houseful of sleeping people, since I didn't get in until midnight.

The best part of the whole break was being able to meet my beautiful niece, Alaina.  She is a whole 2 months old and SO big!  It was so nice to be able to hold her and "talk" to her.  Even though David didn't get back until the day AFTER Christmas (work complications; it happens as a musician) it was great all around.