the new byu-i center

For one of my classes (facilities management with Brother Anderson), I was able to tour the BYU-I Center before it opens on December 17.

It was really amazing--it is almost exactly like the big Conference Center in Salt Lake.

Do you see those shiny discs on the ceiling? They actually don't give off any of their own light! They are reflecting light from the spotlights you can see on the sides. The ceiling was so high that it would have been very expensive to purchase the equipment needed just to change a light bulb, so they put up reflective discs instead. I was amazed.

This is a room that has 10 basketball courts that can be divided and also used for soccer, volleyball, and one other sport I can't remember. Do you see the raised track that goes around it? They are connecting this part of the building to the old Hart building so that people can walk back and forth without going through the snow, and that way, the designers didn't need to build whole new locker rooms.

Does that look familiar?

The design is just like the Conference Center, only smaller. The stage has all those same capabilities...and I know you're thinking exactly what I'm thinking...

See those three rows of seating areas? That first row (where we're standing) has 100 more seats than the entire Hart auditorium (which is the current largest gathering place on campus). It looks like just the right size for Rob Gardner to come up to Rexburg!!

I forgot to get a picture of the boys' bathroom...but look how big the girls' bathroom is! It's like an airport! The boys' bathroom only had four stalls, which is why we all thought this was funny at the time. The boys' bathroom had more sinks than stalls.

I really do hope that Rob Gardner will start coming to Rexburg at least as often as he comes to Salt Lake. "The Lamb of God" would be great here, wouldn't it?

beauty, quizzes, and winter

I really love Idaho! When I left my apartment to go to class, the sky was almost blue, but not quite, and you could see some dark clouds that were headed our way.

I decided to park where I could walk by the maple trees that have shed all their leaves already. I like walking that pathway; the trees seem to still be so alive even though they're sleeping for the winter. Their red leaves blanket the ground directly beneath them, and, right outside the building I'm going to enter, there is a large tree (that the squirrels really like, I must add) that has scattered it's golden leaves all over the ground. You cannot see the grass beneath; everything looks golden.

I decide that it will be a great day in class.

It is Facilities Management again. We are to come up with a quiz for each class period. A random person is called, and they give their quiz to the class (and Brother Anderson takes it, too!). Today is different, however. We break off into groups of three or so and choose our top three questions from all three of our quizzes. I was in a group with Jason and Lark.

Here is an example of one of my questions:

3. Do you recall the mandatory fee for each membership/household?

a. $1,587.27 per month
b. $335 per year
c. There was no fee; that was just a rumor
d. $20 and a jar of mayonnaise for a lifetime membership

(b is the correct answer, by the way)


Anyway, we ended up using one of Jason's questions because he makes questions that are easier than either mine or Lark's.

Here is Brother Anderson, contemplating the answer to a question.

I don't think he knows when I'm taking pictures of him.

After class, I climbed up the stairs to go outside (this classroom is in a basement kind of room). It was snowing! It was so pretty, but I couldn't get a good picture of it for you. Later, I took a picture of some of the coneflowers after it had stopped.

It almost looks sad, does it not? That's what I thought at first. But, I started thinking about how everything goes to sleep in the winter. Some things do die. In the spring, everything either wakes up, or new things grow.

While I was thinking about these things, I thought about how the disciples, all those who followed the Savior, must have felt when he died. In the tomb for three days. I don't know what I would have thought.

The Savior is the victor over death. Winter doesn't last forever, and it helps me remember who I should look to for hope. In the end, spring comes, and life grows better after the most heavy of snowfall.

I've always liked the winter, I thought of it as a time of rest...but it sure isn't that way when you have horses to care for, is it? :)

Anyway, I love you guys, and I can't wait to see you the week after next!