Major Decision . . . Maybe

Posted by Mitch

I think that I have finally chosen a major! This is big news, considering I almost, no, definitely shot myself in the foot if I ever wanted to pursue a business degree—accounting was a great class, just not a great GPA-builder. That's all I need to say about that. Then I considered majoring in history, because I love American Heritage, and I am actually doing well in the class. But I decided that history was too boring. No offense to any history majors.

Anyway, I think I have chosen my major, and it is public relations. Of course, I have to apply to get into the major after I complete the prerequisites, which could be fatal, but I have a good feeling about it. I think that PR is the best route for me, and I can minor in history.

Choosing a major has been a long battle, and I'm not sure it's over yet, but for now the smoke has cleared and I can see somewhat clearly. I love working for campaigns and speaking on behalf of people; what better major is there for me? And this major will prepare me for law quite well.

Advice to the future freshmen: don't sweat declaring your major! Take some classes first and feel out all of your strong suits. Choose a major you like and you can excel in. It doesn't have to be the major you have dreamt about since junior high. Those dreams are great, but they may not be a reality.

Time to Stir

Posted by Mitch

Today I participated in one of the thousands of tea parties taking place across the country. It was a blast! I am pretty conservative, and by nature I don't protest. In fact, today was my first protest experience. I've been active in many other political rallies and conventions, but never a full-blown protest. It felt great!



"When my country, into which I had just set my foot, was set on fire about my ears, it was time to stir. It was time for every man to stir." —Thomas Paine

That sums it up. I believe that our government is outspending and over-regulating. Just as I am about to embark on my journey through adulthood, I feel the present administration is paving the way to failure for me. I am just about to step foot onto the soil of American politics and I've seen the sparks of the fire being spread around my ears and I am about to stir. Today was my first step in a series of "stirs." Boy, I can't wait to get further into adulthood.

Good Steak Dinner

Posted by Mitch

Last Saturday I cooked a great dinner for two girls: bavette steak with golden potatoes and beurre rouge. It took two hours, but it was well worth it.


To top that off, one of the girls made an excellent angel food cake with raspberries. It was a delicious meal! I know that it's not typical, but it just goes to show that with a little brain power and a few extra bucks, great things can happen at college.

Study or Fly-Fish?

Posted by Mitch

I was able to go fly-fishing today with my roommate. Fly-fishing is one of my top-10 favorite things to do; after all, I come from National Geographic's no. 1–rated town to live in for sportsmen.

The Provo River is kind of dirty, but just casting was enough to make me content. Sometimes I get so tired of school. Let's just say it doesn't take long for me to wish I was out doing things I enjoy so much more. Unfortunately, school is necessary.

I think today was a grand start to a beautiful fly-fishing addiction here in Utah. I hope it doesn't take too much time away from my studies.

Getting Around to It

Posted by Mitch

Well, I don't post much. It's been almost a month since I said anything on here. It's not that my life has nothing worth recording, but I just don't think about it. Sorry for that.

I haven't been too interested in school lately, which is not good. With the election going on right now (first results just came out as I type) I just can't seem to focus on directional selection . . . debits and credits . . . and most definitely not the economic struggles of China. Yeah, believe it or not, I feel there are more important things right now. Here's a picture of some of my own supporters . . . just kidding, they don't really know me, they just happen to like my name.

In other news, I am going get all new roommates next semester, which will be fun. I am glad that my steak buddy is still going to be around. At the bottom there is a picture of us enjoying some flesh. Thursday night is steak night. I've defied the rules of the natural college diet: I eat steak, a lot. I bring my own beef from Montana, so I don't slack when it comes to protein.

It's All About Being Busy

Posted by Mitch

I haven't been terribly responsible in keeping up with these posts, for that I apologize. BYU keeps its students busy as can be, and I'm no exception.

Last night I had a four-hour review in accounting 200! The session started at 6 p.m. and got out late around 10:30. My teacher, Norm Nemrow, is awesome, so it wasn't too hard to stay entertained. Norm's enthusiasm for accounting is amazing. It really makes a difference to have teachers who actually care about what they teach. That's the biggest difference I've noticed between high school and college.

I have had my first couple of exams in the past two weeks and I plan on taking one tomorrow for accounting, which will be interesting. I don't test well to begin with and Norm mentioned that the average on the first exam is only a 77 percent, so we'll see how well I can squeak by. But I'm going to hit the books/software hard tonight and tomorrow morning and do my best.

Not to make this a discussion, but I noticed that Braden is in my Biology 100 class with Doc. Smith. That kid is amazing; he practically taught Doc. Smith last Monday on the review. Good job, Braden!

That's all I have for now. I will try to stay more in touch.

Cold

Posted by Mitch

So here I am in day two of classes. My first class today was interesting. I love history, so that class will be a thrill.

To the point. It's only day two of classes and this morning I woke up with a killer cold. I thought I was going to die last night trying to sleep. It's a good thing that BYU is so helpful with everything else so that I won't have to worry about being 100% on my game today. I guess I shouldn't have stayed in the snow back home last weekend. Fortunately, I've come prepared for this. TheraFlu and Sudafed will be my companions for a while I'm afraid.

If you see some blond kid sniffling and wiping his nose, say "hi", it's most likely me.

WOW!

Posted by Mitch

Hey, my first day of classes went well. Nothing to complain about, which is amazing. I still feel lost, but I think I will start to get it down by next week.

My Entre. Lect. series was awesome today. We had Don Watkins, CEO of Handstands, speak to us. He mentioned the "wow" factor. If your customer says "wow," then you know your product is going to be a hit. All I have to say for my BYU education experience so far is, WOW! I'm having a lot of fun and who would have thunk that Accounting would be motivational and have gospel principles.

I only pray that tomorrow is as much fun as today was.

Meet Mitch Staley (’12)

Posted by Peter B. Gardner (BA ’98), Senior Editor

Hometown and High School: Dillon, Mont.; Beaverhead County High School

Applied To: BYU and BYU–Idaho

Major Plans: Business strategy

Interests and Achievements: Hunting (deer, elk, bear, duck, geese—you name it); GOP politics (founded a high school politics club and served as a vice chair of the county Republican committee); was a page in Montana’s house of representatives; AP classes in history, English, and psychology; played high school golf; has type 1 diabetes.

Plans to Bring to Provo: A cooler full of beef

Finding His Voice: A quiet fifth-grader listened intently as his teacher bemoaned the outcome of the recent presidential elections, saying George W. Bush hadn’t fairly won. She must have appreciated the boy’s rapt attention, but she couldn’t have guessed where it would lead.

Too shy to disagree, Mitch Staley nevertheless felt something ignite inside him. This spark was kindled as he considered the political world around him, including the events of Sept. 11. “In middle school I exploded,” he says. “And freshman year I was a complete tyrant.”

His fire for politics led him, as a 14-year-old, to write letter after letter to the editor of the Dillon Tribune. His determined stances elicited spirited and lengthy responses from other readers and impressed the editor, who began interviewing Mitch when he needed a viewpoint for a political story. This gave Mitch a regular voice in the paper.

At the end of his junior year, Mitch founded his school’s U.S. Politics Club. His senior year, with state and national elections cycles revving up, he invited all the candidates for state offices to a forum at his school. Most came.

His enthusiasm landed him a vice chairman position in the Beaverhead County Republican Party, for which he was the chair of publications and a speaker at many an election-year rally for state and national candidates.

Learning Religion: Coming from a part-member family, Mitch was not a member of the Church of Jesus Christ and hadn’t thought much about BYU until he was 16. That’s when his Mormon cousin and hunting partner Kevin decided to serve a mission.

Sending Kevin off at the MTC was an extended family affair, and the clan made the trek to Provo. Mitch had respected the Latter-day Saints he knew in his family and community, but the MTC was his first encounter with a large group of Church members. “You could tell that they should be admired, looked up to,” he recalls. “That was pretty overwhelming there.” The family capped their Provo visit with a trip to the bustling BYU Bookstore. “Coming [to Provo] changed everything,” he says. “I never realized [the Church] was this big, that there were this many people.”

After they returned to Dillon, Mitch’s grandparents noticed an encouraging trend—he kept stealing a copy of the Book of Mormon from their home. They worked up the courage to ask if he was interested in meeting with the missionaries. He was, and he joined the Church a month later.

As a new convert, Mitch found that BYU quickly became part of his identity—and wardrobe. “In small towns, BYU clothes are what Mormons wear,” he says. When it came time to apply for college, he had only two destinations in mind, BYU and BYU–Idaho. When the acceptance letter came, he was thrilled for reasons academic and ecclesiastical.

“I needed the religion classes to boost my [gospel] knowledge,” he says. “I needed to grow in the Church and my religion.”