Happy Holidays

Hello Blog Buddies!
Sorry I've been out for a few weeks. Work got crazy and then I went on vacation for Thanksgiving. Speaking of.... I hope all of you had a fantastic Holiday. I was able to share mine with some close family members. That's right I packed up the jeep and headed to a little piece of paradise known as "Rockin' Chair Farm" aka my grandparent's house.

Yes, yes... Mom and Papi (my grandparents) are doing well. I am blessed to have them in my life and enjoy every moment I get to spend with them. Along with the great time I had with them my sacrificed the warm waters of Charleston to brave the cold tundra above the Mason Dixon line! Thanks Mom! Additionally my uncle/godfather flew in from NYC. Getting to spend a few days with them was really fantastic. Here's quick play by play:

Day 1- Arrive to the farm-get greeted by the fastest tongue in the north east (Hiedi our german short-haired pointer)
Day 2- Horseback riding and vino
Day 3- Horseback riding (this time in the snow) Italian Dinner (done the right way by my uncle and I)... and more vino
Day 4- TURKEY AND PAPI'S FAMOUS STUFFING.... and the best Vino I've ever had in my life (Howell at the Moon Cab. Sav.)
Day 5- Everyone says emotional good byes and heads home... This is when I actually needed some vino.

Not to be disappointed my mom grabbed some sweet shots of the horse and me... He doesn't seem so small when your standing next to him....

The First Case of Cured HIV

It seems like this past months has been full of firsts for us as humankind. The election of the first black man (GO OBAMA!)as President for the US, the first Female President of Liberia, and now the first person cured of HIV/AIDS! Tremendous strides are made everyday by ordinary people doing extraordinary things. May we all take strength and courage from these people to continue such acts. Check out the story below. Even though it's is small step in the process; it is a magnificent breakthrough and provacator of Hope!

Twilight Series

It's getting cold outside... Check out what I've been reading as I settle in for a long winter.

Haze: A documentary on College Drinking

Do you think the drinking age should be lowered? It's an interesting idea, but I'm not convinced it would help with the current status of student culture. This film shares the devistating reality of student drinking. And take it from someone who knows... this isn't an exageration.

Celebrity Encounter...

Hello, I know it's late but I had to blog about my night.
I think I'm starting to get the hang of this video blogging thing. I hope all of you have a great night's sleep!

Video Blog Experiment

Hello Everyone!!!
So, today I'm trying to figure out how I can video blog. I know it can be done and its probably not that hard, but I have no idea how to do it. What I do know is my new Mac ROCKS, so it has the capability, I just have to get the know how. If all goes well, you'll see a little test video I made? Please comment if you can or cannot see the video, so that I can try to work out any kinks in the system. ~Ciao!

Tina Fay does it again!

Another home run... my favorite part is the direct quote from Palin's actual interview!

SNL Tina Fey and Amy Polar

I imagine most of you have seen this.  I have several times... it is probably one of the best SNL sketches of all time!  

Roots & Wings

Who says you can't talk about Politics with those you love?  Well, it doesn't matter who said it, it's wrong.  This past week I found myself shooting emails back and forth between my mom, grandfather and uncle about some recent political propaganda we were watching/reading.  And these weren't cute, fun, heterogeneous, emails about our overwhelming support for the same candidate.  

With my uncle as a fairly liberal democrat; my grandfather as an experienced retired military republican; my mom as a consistent republican with democratic overtones, and myself as a registered independent who usually falls into the democratic party over issues, but the republican party over theory... suffice it to say that there were all sorts of perspectives!  WHICH WAS THE BEST PART!!!  It is one of the things that as I have grown I have come to absolutely love about my family.  

We encourage open communication about our perspectives... We argue, we bring to the table evidence, and there's always personal life experiences... But we respect each other, listen to each other, and let our opinions grow throughout.  As a 25 year old, I find this type of interaction invaluable!  It is a time when I can come to the proverbial family dinner table as a fully respected member of the family to feast.  I am never made to feel like I should be at the kids table, or that my ideas are foolish.  I am embraced as well as challenged; given roots and wings.  I see that people can completely disagree and still Love each other fully.  This, in and of itself, is an amazing sight... and you know what?  This is where I see it. This is where I see the true answers for making our world a better place, and for restoring God's kingdom.  Right there when I notice the other-centered love that my family can display in the most secret of ways.  This is when I know I am love and so I can love.  My family is only a tiny, broken, mirror of the Love that God has shown us through his Son.  This is where my hope lies, and there is my treasure too.  

Wanna know something funny?  For the longest time, I avoided any  ideologic conflict with my family.  This meant that politics, religion, ideas about right and wrong, were off the table.  How I longed for such discussion.  I was scared that I might lose my family's love if I disagreed with them.  I'll never forget the day my Uncle asked me my opinion about a political matter.  I was shocked by his inquiry into my thinking, my ideas, my understanding.  I felt as if I mattered, I felt valid, I felt like a person.  Don't be afraid to talk to those around you; just make sure you're ready to listen.  All we need is Roots & Wings... Roots to give us support and Wings to let us fly!

Race Against Racism

    371 was the number pinned to my chest, and 30:01 was the time that I finished.  With the wind at my back, the road glistening with last night's rain, and steam rising from my sweat soaked head I participated in Penn State's Annual Race against Racism! 

    This year over a hundred people raced with the top runner wearing a pair of jeans and running a 16:12; second place when to a young man in a bow-tie and suit(16:20)---that's almost three consecutive 5min miles; which makes me sick!  But I was happy with my time and happy that I was able to aid in this worthy cause.  All the proceeds from the race go towards educational and awareness diversity programing done on campus.  It's one small way we can continue breaking down racial barriers and squashing the ignorance that damages so many people's lives.  Plus, what a great way to get a good run in on a beautiful saturday morning.    

New Home

Hello everyone!  

I hope you are all doing well.  Sorry its been a while since my last post... but lets face it:  If any of you work in higher education you can relate to the fact that the months of August and September are dead zones for our lives.  As many of you know I have started my new job and moved into my new home.   AND I LOVE IT!  

For those of you who don't, let me quickly fill you in:  So, not only did I get accepted into the number one Higher Education PhD in the country but then I also got offered a job to work in their res life.  It was far too good to pass up, so I moved about three hours away to the town of State College, PA  and started working/going to school at The Pennsylvania State University.  

That's right I'm rocking it out in the Big Ten, and man is it BIG!  Going from a school of 2,000 to a school of almost 45,000 is quite the shock, but I think I'm getting the hang of it.  So my job is similar to the one that I had at Geneva but larger and more responsibilities.  I oversee three buildings which adds up to about 900 residents.  The area of students I help to oversee with four other people is about 3,000 students.  My new boss is great, he's very supportive and expects a lot but also gives me the freedom to do my job the way I think is best!  I'm still trying to find and build a group of supportive friends, but I am deeply impressed with the people I work around and their care of me and others.  My RA staff is also amazing!  I was a little worried about inheriting a staff, but they have proven themselves to be really great.  So, that's the quick rundown on what I'm doing.  So, if you haven't checked out the trailer I posted below... you really need to!  I met the guy who is organizing this group of artists and this film... the film is great and it is something that the world needs to see.  Join me in becoming an abolitionist, and help to set free the 27 Million slaves world-wide... Because I'm not for sale. You are not for sale.  No one should be for sale.

CHECK OUT THIS TRAILER!

Freecycle: Green and Free!

Recycle, Reduce, and Reuse... a phrase synonymous with the green arrows of the recycling triangle, and you'd be hard pressed to find anyone under the age of 40 not familiar with this mantra; but the newest trend going along with this phrase involves one of my favorite words... FREE!

Freecycle is an easy-to-use system that allows us to unclutter your house, find sweet new-to-you items, and help help the environment all in the same fell swoop. So here's the basic concept: You have something you no longer want, but is still usable... instead of throwing it away-you use an online social network to offer it to others in your area. Its kinda like the Internet version of putting your stuff on the curb to let others pick it up. The best part is this is one way that you can reduce trash, while donating goods that others can use! Its environmentally friendly and a great way to donate to other who may be in need.

Want to try it? Go to www. freecycle.org; or you can just Google "freecycle". Another cool option is to check out craigslist... its basically a huge free classified online database. You can search and post free items there too!

Wondering about me.... Thanks for all the emails, comments, and facebook messages asking me what I'm doing next year. Not trying to build the suspense any longer, but I hope to be able to share the details of my move within the next week or week and a half. I just want to work out all the details before I post to the world my decision. I do know this much I will be moving out of Western PA in a couple of months.

Green Thought of the Day:

Extra! Extra!

If every newspaper reader in the United States

recycled just one typical Sunday Paper,

they could help create 212 million pounds of

cellulose insulation! That's enough to insulate 118,767

Habitat for Humanity houses; which is nearly twice as many

houses as all the Habitat homes build in America so far.

the whole WORLD is going GREEN

Its not just the seasonal change that has prompted the vitalization of my blog, in keeping with the coming spring I wanted to start sharing some cool easy information about ways that we can Go Green, in our everyday lives. I'm also hoping that having some deeper purpose than my own life's ramblings will spark many posts with some sort of regularity.

I was recently on a flight back from DC and came across a Sky Magazine (this one was Delta's) that caught my eye. The entire magazine was oriented toward everything Green. Everything I noticed except for the advertisements; but hey, I guess that have to make money some how.

As I began to read the first few articles, I found myself completely absorbed by the information. The articles really were completely green. The magazine had taken all of their normal areas of focus and concentrated everything from food reviews, to vacationing, to business and politics through the lens of energy conservation and environmental stewardship. I was captured by this adventurous move and deeply impressed with this moral move... whether a terrific PR move or an artless concern for humanities future-I like it!

So, green thought for the day: Can it!

One soft drink can recycled by each elementary student

in America would save 24.8 million cans. That would be

enough aluminum to create a 21 Boeing 737 airplane.