5 AMs and Sleeping

Being a college athlete is one of the most difficult things to do. School, work, and social life is enough, then you throw in a sport with it. It can become a crazy life! A college sport is a completely different job. I am on the softball team and it is definitely a challenge at times. The most difficult part is 5 am practices. Getting used to waking up at 3:45 am is not too bad as long as I go to sleep at a decent time. The biggest problem though, is the getting to sleep. This is the worst when the hallway is very loud at night. I struggle getting to sleep when I don't have to get up at 3:45 and there is a lot of noise. I am one of those people that I am used to no random sounds while going to sleep. This is why I struggle so hard to get to sleep when other people going through the halls are loud or shut doors very loudly. Since it has been a week, most of the hallway has gotten used to being quiet sooner, which has helped. The biggest thing now is people who do not live in the hall and walk through it. They are not very aware that there are seven of us try to sleep. Like I said though, it is getting better. Hopefully, these next five weeks will go by fast, so I can get back on a regular sleeping schedule!

Audiences

We should be critical about intended audiences because not everything is intended for everyone. For example, the book/movie "Fifty Shades of Grey" is not for the audience of young children. It is for the audience of 18 and older due to its content. Another example would be an advertisement for a new toy. This gears toward the audience of small children because an adult or 18 year old is not going to be interested in a toy, unless they would get it for a child.
In the first advertisement, it talks about the iPhone. The audience intended for this ad would be non-iPhone owners. It mentions that 99% of iPhone users love their iPhones. This advertisement is basically trying to convince non-iPhone users to switch over to an iPhone.
The second advertisement is for anyone that is in the market for a TV. This would mostly be adults, and the ad gears it mostly toward male adults. This is shown by the women being in the window in not so much clothing and "waving". All the men think she is waving at them, but in reality, she is controlling the TV. This shows the audience that the TV is very different and so high-tech that they would want to buy it.
The third advertisement is for the audience of adults who are looking to buy a new vehicle. This ad shows the adults that the car is so nice that the child took a very long journey just to get a ride in the vehicle. This tells the audience that it is a very comfortable vehicle even young children could enjoy.

One Good Season

During my senior season of softball, I went on a streak. I hit a total of seven home runs over the entire season, with five being five games straight. My first homer of the season, believe it or not, was the very first game of the year. We were at North Central and we had been fighting back and forth all day. After an inning full of errors, we were tied at 3. I was the fourth batter and all of the people in front of me got on base. I had a couple pitches go by before I got my perfect pitch. I swung and It went over the centerfield fence. I hit my first home run and grand slam of the year. The next inning we got the three outs and won the game 7-3. My never five home runs were a little later in the season. The second one was on a Saturday at Delta. It was a beautiful day! The first warm day we had to play on. I got up to bat in the fourth spot, and my very first pitch I hit over the fence. We won that game 9-1. My third home run was against Edgerton on that next Monday. We played a very good defensive game that helped us win this game. The only scoring though was my two-run home run in about the fourth inning. We won that game 2-0. The fourth home run was at Holgate. We played right beside the baseball team during this game. Our pitcher threw a no-hitter, but we won 11-0. My home run was about the third inning. Even the baseball players and their parents heard us when I hit it. This was when the team started counting what number I was at. When I got on the bus after the game they asked me if I hit another one. All I did was show them the ball and smile. The fifth home run came at Patrick Henry on Thursday. This game started off very rough. It was a legit "fight" back and forth for the lead. We started ahead, then they got ahead by a few for a while. That was when I hit a 3-run home run to put us back in the lead. From then on, everyone started hitting very well and we won the game 16-10. Friday we had practice and I even hit a home run off our pitcher while we were doing live hitting on the field! Saturday we traveled to Lincolnview. It was a very rainy and crappy day, but our bats worked very well. There was a total of four of us that hit a home run that day! That was my sixth home run and the last of the streak. My last home run came later at Tinora. I played travel ball with their starting pitcher and I always hit well off of her. I hit it very high right on the left field line. It stayed fair, but just barely. Later in the game, Coach Holava and Coach Butt came to watch. They talked to my parents and asked if I hit a home run jokingly. My parents told them I did and they just laughed. Overall, I hit over .550 my senior year. I would say that my senior year was my best year of High School softball, which makes me happy because I went out on a good note.

A Very Traumatic Memory

I am going to be honest, I do not have the best memory. Because of that, my vivid memory is going to be from my Freshman year in High School. Though I do not have the best memory, I remember this particular event very well because it was a traumatic event. 

It was just like any other day. I went to school and had a pretty normal day. The softball and baseball teams got out of class about fifteen minutes early to make to to out conference game on time. We all got to the locker rooms at the park and got dressed and ready to head to Wayne Trace. Like usual, the girls fought the guys for the back of the bus. Again like usual, we did not get it. Everyone finally loaded up, and we were off. I was one of the only girls at that time that knew how to braid hair, so multiple people asked me to do so. It took me a little while to get everyone’s hair braided that wanted it, but finally I finished! We had just got over the 24 overpass passed Antwerp. I sat down, put my music in, and pulled my leg up to seat back in front of me. The next thing I remember was hearing the bus honk loudly, then “CRASH!” The bus had t-boned another vehicle that pulled out in front of it. The coaches yelled back and asked if everyone was okay. After that, I saw my dad, who was the head softball coach at the time, sprint off the bus to the car we hit. The car had spun multiple times and crashed into the stop sign and Route 111 sign on the other side of the road. My dad was very knowledgable in what to do at that moment.  On the bus, everyone was freaking out. The bus driver was trying to get us off as quickly as she could. I was on the was off when I realized I was missing a shoe. I remembered I took one off when I sat down. It had slid to the front of the bus where I found it as I got off. The coaches and bus driver had us go back across the road and camp out there until EMS got there. I called my mom to let her know what happened since my dad was busy. She got upset, but said she’d be there as soon as she could. After I go off the phone I went over to the only other freshman softball player that was on Varsity. We were best friends and I wanted to make sure she was okay. She, like many others, had hit her head and were complaining of headaches. When the EMS finally arrived, they put a total of eight softball players on stretchers and in neck braces as a precaution of their headaches. I eventually ended up being one of the girls. Before I was taken away on the stretcher in an ambulance, I got the see the life-light land in the field across the road. They were there to transport the people from the car to a hospital in Toledo. They finally stated transporting everyone to Paulding Hospital and my dad rode in the front of the ambulance that transported me. After a couple minutes of being there, my mom and sister arrived and came and stood by me while my dad went to check on the rest of the team. It took about four hours of being in a neck brace and on a backboard in the middle of a hallway to get a CT scan. Finally, I did get one and was able to go home. During about two and a half hours of that, I had to go to the bathroom. I would say this is definitely one of my most vivid memories because it was the first vehicle accident I had ever been in. It was definitely something I will never forget. In fact, I still get nervous going through that intersection at times. 

One Crazy Night

I woke up to the bright morning sun with a slight headache. My body ached from laying on a hard surface, and the first thing I saw was bars. That was when I realized I had spent the night in a jail cell. I sat up real quick and felt a little queasy. I had on a red and black plaid flannel that I knew was not mine and cut off jean shorts. There was also a little mud on my legs and my boots which were on the floor next to me. I felt a sharp object in my pocket and reached in to pull it out. It was a Redd's bottle cap. I decided to check the rest of my pockets to see if there was anything else that would help me remember the night before. I found a pack of matches, a couple corn kernels, my ID, and a key. I knew the bottle cap meant I had to have been at a party of some kind. I thought about the matches for a second and realized I started the fire with one of the matches at the bonfire the night before. I looked at the key and thought about the mud on my boots and legs. I thought about it for a second, remembering we went mudding on the four-wheeler and I must have put the key in my pocket when I got done. Next thing I remembered was sitting by the fire being cold and a cute guy coming up to me. He gave me his shirt so I would stay warm. I really had to think hard about the corn kernels though. I was completely stumped! I looked at the back of my hand and saw some scratches. I remembered being in the truck and sticking my hand out the window and getting a scratch. That's when it hit me! The cops came and busted the party. That's when the cute guy and I ran to his truck and started to drive through the corn field, until we came to the county road and a cop was right there. Some kernels must have flew in the window and wedged their way into my pocket. When the cop pulled us over I had to show him my ID since I had been drinking. I was legal, but since we ran, he had to take us in. That was definitely a night to remember.

Living on Campus

When I decided I was going to attend Defiance College, I immediately wanted to live on campus. I knew it would cost more and I only live 30 minutes away, but I wanted to have the "college experience" that everyone has when they are away from home. If I would have decided to stay at home, I would not have the friends and relationships I have today. The softball team is like family to me. I do not think I would be as close with the the girls or have gotten to do half the things I have with them if I did not live here. Also, I have such a wide variety of friends from other sports and classes. Some of my best friends are sophomores and juniors on the golf and tennis teams! Other really close friends of mine are all classes on the baseball, volleyball, football, and basketball teams. Being an Athletic Training major has also helped me to gain these friendships as well. Already, I have a large number of fun, happy, and exciting memories with all my new friends. I am beyond happy of my choice to live on campus while attending Defiance College. If I would not have chosen to live on campus, I do not think I would have the friendships and bonds I have today.