What a month it has been since I last checked in. I have learned much about the person I hope to become. Before sharing some interesting non-honorsy details about life, I will cover some topics that will be of great interest to my fellow Colloquians and Daniel Hedden. I have completed approximately four more hours of volunteer work. This involved helping with a popular race in my hometown. I have spent three hours working toward being inducted in the National Society of Leadership and Success, which will be an excellent resource as I get closer to networking for future employment. I have spent four hours outside of regularly dedicated time to helping with Psychology Club maintenance and meetings, as well as bringing back Psi Chi as a recognized organization on ETSU's campus. I had the opportunity to go to an excellent concert in Knoxville with my roommate, UHS freshmen, and a PH freshman. This was an excellent friendship building event, and I was happy to get to know fellow Honors students a bit better.
I have come to realize that dedicating time specifically to studying body language in settings with frequent student interaction could be considered a bit creepy. I have also realized that I could count any time spent with other people as practice toward being able to recognize various cues. Attempting to find a happy medium in counting hours for my project, I believe it is fair to say that I am around 75% done. I have read back through important sections of the book that started this journey, and I will be slowly progressing through another book on enhancing environmental awareness. Finishing that book will be a successful end to a very interesting project. My life outside of school has taken some exciting turns over the past few months, and I am happy to officially share these. It has been well over a month now since I became a vegetarian, and I could not be more pleased. While a vegetarian diet is not necessarily healthier, it has led me to be more conscious of the foods I choose to consume, and, for me, encourages healthy eating. There is also the ethical aspect that is very appealing to me, and I believe time and adjustment could lead to a vegan lifestyle. Another part of this healthier lifestyle is my gradual return to consistently exercising. For those that know me well, you know this is at least 90% running. I started back at the end of September to begin training for the Pinnacle Tower 25k that was held on October 28th. School had me unexpectedly busy leading up to the race, and I went into event weekend having run twice in two weeks. Yes, to prepare for a race, I had two solid weeks of training after the better part of a year off. Somehow, I managed to survive. Not only did I survive, I placed third overall. It was a surprisingly successful and motivating return to the sport. As of now, I am paying careful attention to some irritated tendons in my foot, but when things are back in order, I will resume training for my first 50k in the early months of next year. You all will be kept informed as my life progresses, and I thank you for the continued interest and support. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving season, and may you find happiness in the ordinary. -JD
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