Hello there, and welcome to my blog!
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| Image Information: personal photo of myself; photo from October 2014. |
My name is Lynze Jones, and as of now I am a second semester
junior at The University of Oklahoma. I am a communication major, and I am
minoring in weather and climate. I began as a meteorology major until I learned
that I just really didn’t like calculus. After that, I realized that I would do
best in a social science major, and switched to communication because I have
always been good at, and enjoy writing. Also, because I have been in
competitive speech for seven years now, and the two go hand in hand.
I was born in raised in Norman, Oklahoma and chose to stay here
in order to pursue meteorology. When I changed majors, I decided to stay close
to home for my undergraduate degree. However, I plan on attending graduate
school at either Tulane in New Orleans, or The University of North Texas in
Denton. I plan to use my major and minor to get my Master’s in emergency management.
With emergency management, I plan to work with cities that
are hit with natural disasters (especially weather-related disasters) to help
make sure communication channels are functioning correctly during all phases of
the event. I would specifically like to work with FEMA or The Red Cross.
Below is an image that captures my love for severe weather. It was taken the day of the May 31st El Reno tornado. If you look just to the left of the center, you can see the dorms in the very background with a funnel cloud behind them. This was taken from the top floor of the National Weather Center.
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| Image Information: personal photo of Norman wall cloud; photo from May 2013. |
I really don't have much spare time, because I work about
thirty to thirty-five hours a week as a waitress. I also work with a company
that hosts popular culture and anime conventions around the country as a
director, which also keeps me very busy.
When I am not working on either of those things, I am competing in
forensics. And no, I don’t mean CSI stuff, but Greek forensics. Speech and
debate.
As I said, I have been in competitive speech for seven
years, and it is one of my main passions. Currently, I am ranked number two in
the state of Oklahoma in persuasive speaking, and also in the top 40 in the
nation. I hope to end this year by being number one in the state, and in the
top 10 in the nation in order to bring pride to our University!
In what little spare time that I have, I like to cook and
bake. I make gourmet cupcakes when I have the time, a talent I didn’t know I
had until about three years ago. I also really like to cook as well, and try to
make dinner and lunch for myself everyday. Of course, with my busy schedule
that doesn’t always happen. In my other spare time, I enjoy reading and going
out with my friends to eat, party, play Mario Kart, or anything else for that
matter.
The image below shows two of the kinds of cupcakes I make. They were for a Halloween party, so I used food coloring on one of the frostings to make it bright orange. The ones on the left are cookies and cream, and the ones on the right are pumpkin spice with a cappuccino icing.
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| Image Information: personal photo of cupcakes; photo from October 2012. |
I hope that this semester is an incredible one that goes by
with ease and joy.
Hi Lynze! Sounds like you are one busy girl! I am not a huge fan of math so I can totally understand why you switched majors! Meteorology was always interesting in the science classes I took so I can only imagine what studying it is like! I appreciate that I am not the only on that likes to have a plan, and it sounds like you know what you want to do when you graduate! I also love cooking and baking! Baking is normally a form of stress reflief… now I am craving cupcakes! Best of Luck this semester!
ReplyDeleteHi Lynze, I’m sorry that your meteorology major didn't work out, but it sounds like you have everything together and a firm plan for the future. Like you, I also find little free time working in the food industry. I’m not a waitress but I can imagine the amount of stress it puts on you from difficult customers to being shorthanded. Hopefully, you can get some free time this semester. Good luck with your competitive speech goals.
ReplyDeleteHi, Lynze! Emergency management sounds really interesting, as well as super important, good for you! And congratulations on your success with speech and debate! That's really impressive. Good luck with it this year! I have a lot of respect, too, for your evident baking ability. Those cupcakes look terrific! And I like that you play Mario Kart. That's the only video game I've ever been good at :)
ReplyDeleteWow, your life is so much more interesting than mine lol. I hate public speaking, I'm just so terrible at it. My hands get all clammy and I have this awful habit of blushing from my forehead to my stomach this bright red color that just really looks terrible lol. But I think it's awesome that you're good at it and I think what you want to do with your life is really cool and admirable because we really do need the communications to stay online in order to get help into those people in need. Thanks for sharing so much!
ReplyDeleteHi Lynze!
ReplyDeleteI wanted to come read your introduction since you visited mine!
I love that you are into weather! I notice that in almost every conversation I have, weather becomes a topic. It plays such a huge role in our lives; deciding what we do that day (if we have free time) or where we desire to permanently live!
Holy crap! You are busy!! You go girl (girl power)!
Also, super yum on those cupcakes. They look absolutely delicious! I have always had a dream of owning my own bakery someday, but I probably don’t bake enough to really open one. I definitely haven’t tried cupcakes yet. I’m more into cookies and cakes. :)
Good luck with your semester. I'm sure we'll cross paths on here again.
Oh, Lynze, this combination of communication with meteorology is REALLY intriguing. I will have to tell my husband about that! (He was at the meteorology school at OU — that's how we met — until he retired a few years ago.) Emergency management would be an intense career, but I bet it would be very rewarding also. And what a great way to put your many different skills to work! I did policy debate in school and loved it... although how sad to realize that here we are almost 40 years later still (!!!) having the same darn health care debate now that we were having back in the 1970s. OUCH. Are there going to be forensics events on campus this semester? If so, let me know — I would be excited to include that in the announcements! And I hope you will enjoy the class!
ReplyDeleteLynze,
ReplyDeletewhat a truly ambitious person you are! I am seriously impressed with all that you are doing right now. I'm not sure I could really ever have the discipline for all that. I really love that picture from the May 31st storm. I've seen a lot of great pictures of extreme weather and I think it's fascinating to be able to capture something that is so unpredictable and uncontrollable. I have never heard of competitive speech before, but congratulations on being ranked so highly, in Oklahoma and the nation! What kind of things do you speak about? Do they give you time to prepare before the competition or is it an on-the-fly kind of thing?
Best of luck in all of your endeavors this semester! It sounds like you're going to be doing really great things in the future!
Hey Lynze! Meteorology is definitely a tough major with a lot more math physics than most people would expect! A weather and climate minor seems like a great way to still learn a lot of the material and avoid all that crazy math. Your hobby of speech and debate is really great. I wish I could do something like that, but I get so nervous in front of people. The more I practice the easier it gets, but it's still pretty tough. Congratulations on your current rankings, and I wish you the best of luck on your goals for this next year!
ReplyDeleteLynze, just a quick note - I thought about you when I saw this item from Writing Center; it's like the "aftermath" of emergency communications. Anyway, in case you didn't know about it:
ReplyDeleteFeb. Survivors in Motion digital storytelling workshop @WeatherWriting
Hi Lynze!
ReplyDeleteI think it is totally awesome that you are so good at public speaking! I am a really shy person, which makes speaking in front of others terrifying for me. I love that you want to work with cities that are hit by natural disasters. That is so cool. I am terrified of severe weather! You seem like a really interesting person! I hope that you have a great semester and get to achieve all of your goals!
Hi Lynze!
ReplyDeleteI think it is totally awesome that you are so good at public speaking! I am a really shy person, which makes speaking in front of others terrifying for me. I love that you want to work with cities that are hit by natural disasters. That is so cool. I am terrified of severe weather! You seem like a really interesting person! I hope that you have a great semester and get to achieve all of your goals!
Lynze! I am glad that I finally got to read your introduction post. I agree with you on calculus. I dropped pre-med after sitting through one calculus class! I could have suffered through, but I would never trade my international studies major, now! I commend you on your love for speech and debate. I love it, to an extent. However, I struggle with public speaking. So I don't put myself into those types of situations. I hope that your semester is going well, and that work isn't overtaking your life. Make sure you take some time to chill!
ReplyDeleteI think it is so amazing on how dedicated you are in everything you do!! Public speaking is such a tough journey many of us have to make through our undergrad, but you are like the queen b! That is so great!! I really enjoy your writing and can see why you love it so much. I really hope that you get into grad school that best suits you! I can definitely sympathize when you on being a server. It is VERY time consuming and draining, so I definitely applaud you on doing all that you do! I hope that you can make some time for yourself at least! Good luck with your future endeavors, you are so motivated and driven and I see no problem in seeing you achieve your goals!!
ReplyDeleteHey Lynze!
ReplyDeleteWeather actually terrifies me. I think I have a complex from that movie "Twister." No I'm actually just kidding, but don't like tornadoes. I am from Tulsa so I know about Oklahoma's crazy spring weather. Luckily, in Tulsa the big tornadoes generally dissipate by the time it gets there. Also, being that my parents still live there, I pray it stays like that! Finally, OH MY GOODNESS! Bring me one of those cupcakes right this minute! That is awesome that you can bake like that. Good luck with the rest of your schooling!
Lynze!Nice to meet you! I actually first started off as a meteorology major as a freshmen but changed to Psychology! I am glad you are pursuing your degree in meteorology! My house actually got hit by the may 20th tornado in 2013 so the field of meteorology need more people like you. You sound so passionate! Hopefully everything works out for you:) Those cupcakes look amazing!
ReplyDeleteLynze! I think it's great that you found a way around your dislike for calculus, but still could do something that you were good at and you enjoy! You really do sound so passionate about this field and wanting to help in communicating with weather-related disasters! That's pretty great. You also sound super busy though! That's a lot of hours of working each week, on top of school, so props to you for staying on top of things! I hope you are having a great semester! Also, the cupcakes look AWESOME!!
ReplyDeleteHi Lynze! That’s super cool that you are a communication major! I am a communication minor and I have really enjoyed the communication classes that I have taken. I cannot blame you for not liking calculus. Math and I do not get along very well either! I admire your career goals! It is neat that you know what it is that you want to do as a junior. And those cupcakes look delicious!
ReplyDeleteHi Lynze! First of all the picture of the weather from the roof is really cool looking. Until coming to OU I've never been around really severe weather so it kind terrifies me but it's also really interesting. I had a friend who graduated a couple of years ago who went to grad school for meteorology emergency management. I think that would be a cool and very rewarding career. Also congratulations on your competitive speech accomplishments! I hope you get to the point you want in the rankings. Good luck on the rest of your semester!
ReplyDeleteHi Lynze,
ReplyDeleteYour blog is lovely! I adore hummingbirds.
I would not be willing to take calculus either, lol. Honestly college algebra would even be pushing it for me, but luckily with my major I only had to take math for liberal studies ;) That was much easier and more useful than college algebra would've been.
You have a very unique future ahead of you in emergency management and I commend you for choosing a career that will be so helpful to people in emergency situations.
My goodness you are busy! I could not handle quite that much activity all the time--I enjoy my leisure time too much. Also I simply don't seem to have the energy, but I really admire people who do :)
Those cupcakes look AMAZING!
Good luck to you and may your future aspirations turn into reality!
Hey Lynze!
ReplyDeleteYou have so much going on! Weather has always been so fascinating to me. Such huge impact can come from such a seemingly little storm! I hope you do well this semester and accomplish your goals. You seem very motivated and dedicated so I’m sure it won’t be an issue! No one likes calculus by the way it’s just a necessary evil to help us figure out if the stress is worth it. It was nice getting to know you!
Hey Lynze!
ReplyDeleteFirst off, really cool name! I'm not sure if its pronounced "Lindsey" but the spelling is awesome. Secondly, you're an anime person! And you're in charge of anime conventions, that's legit. Your major, your likes, and the fact that you can make amazing cupcakes makes me know that you must be a great person. Also, I absolutely love that picture from the top of the weather center. Tornadoes, as scary as they are, are also fascinating to me so I really love that picture. Anyways, best of luck with everything to you! You seem very hardworking so I hope all that hard work pays off and you achieve all your goals. :)
Lynze,
ReplyDeleteIts crazy that I'm only coming across your blog here towards the end of the semester, so I'm very glad that we were paired this week! You're life does sound very busy, but it seems like you find it rewarding! I also love severe weather, it's always to cool to watch natural disasters, but I don't like the cost and time it takes to clean up afterwards. Great job in all your achievements, especially in competitive speech, and good luck on your future endeavors!
Hi Lynze!
ReplyDeleteI love the way that your name is spelled! I have never met another "Lynze" before. I absolutely love baking! I didn't really know that I had a knack for it until I began making birthday cakes/cupcakes for my kiddos. I really wanted to make my son's first birthday cake and had no idea that it would lead to a passion for baking. All of the techniques that I use for decorating were learned mostly from online tutorials and teaching myself. I plan on taking a few courses to learn more skills and techniques and possibly start a small business for custom cakes.
I think that is so awesome that you have found a way to combine your passion for speech and communication with your desire to have a career in weather and climate.
Good luck with your studies!
Lynze,
ReplyDeleteI can't believe you are top 40 in the nation for persuasive speaking! That is amazing! Especially to someone (me) who is terrified of speaking in public. It seems like you really know what you want to do in the future which is awesome. I wish I could say the same. Good luck in all your future endeavors!
P.S. Those cupcakes look amazing.
Lynze,
ReplyDeleteI also changed majors due to calculus, math was never really my thing. Huge fan of severe weather too. I have lived in Oklahoma my entire life, I have not always loved it but as I got older I realized how exciting the weather could be as long as people are safe when they do everything in relation to the weather. Working in emergency management sounds like it could be very exciting.
Hey, Lynze! That’s really cool that you’re minoring in weather and climate. Oklahoma is the best place to be for that haha. A friend of mine graduated from Tulane recently and he said he loved it there! New Orleans is such an amazing city to be in. The food, the culture, the nightlife…ah, I want to visit it again sometime! UNT is a good school too. Fry Street in Denton is a lot of fun! I’m sure wherever you decide to go you’ll have a blast. Wow, congrats on being number 2 in OK for persuasive speaking. P.S. those cupcakes look amazing! Best of luck with the rest of your semester!
ReplyDeleteHey Lynze! I heard meteorology is one of the hardest majors at OU and I could definitely see that you love weather watching! I'm also surprised that you are such a persuasive speaker! I wish I could do that but I'm not good at persuading people. There are a lot of benefits to it such as finding a job. I heard North Texas is a good school. I have a friend that goes there and loves it. I see that you're passionate with baking? Those cupcakes looks delicious! and working 35 hours and in school? thats insane! but keep up the hard work!
ReplyDelete