Saturday, November 28, 2009

Why I Love Good Customer Service and Beer

As many of you know.  I'm kind of a brewery fanatic.  I tend to choose where I'm going to eat based on new breweries I've never been too.  We live in the micro brewery capital of the world.  Who can blame me?  I also have a pretty "epic" logo pint glass collection from my travels.  And this Thanksgiving weekend was no except.  My dad was visiting from China (I have him to thank for getting me into breweries) and Kirk was playing basketball in Washington.

So for lunch we stopped at Fish Brewing Co. in Olympia, WA.  They are an organic brewery (which is awesome in it's own right).  And was pretty bummed when I found out they are out of logo pint glasses...Fast forward to dinner, we decided to check out the Green Dragon, who Dad had heard about from some friend in China and I had heard about through Twitter.  And guess what?  They were also out of pint glasses!  I was so bummed and told our waiter about what had happened at Fish Brewing.  She disappeared and came back with a Fish Brewing pint glass for me!  Turns out they sell Fish Beer there and had some promo pint glasses.  She seriously made my day!

When was your last great experience with customer service?  Or tell me about another great brewery.

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

This Holiday Season, Give Gifts that Give TWICE!

As many of you know I've been doing freelance work for an awesome company call CafeGive for the past couple of months. A lot of you have been asking about it. What I'm doing, what CafeGive does, how you can get involved. So with the holidays just around the corner I thought I would pass on the love by sending you all:

Your Personal Invitation to Shop for a Cause:

In July 2009, a brand new business launched, and I have been a part of the creation process. Please spend some time on our site, www.cafegive.com, where your purchases will benefit one of the causes you choose. Help us build some momentum for this new way to shop — where causes benefit and you can support change in the world! I am so excited to share it with you.

Lots of online stores—find gifts, cards and more!
• We’ve added lots of stores and made it really easy to shop while you earn for a cause.
• Over 150 great stores to choose from...we have it all, no need to go to the mall. Choose a cause you want to support!
• You’ll find local and national causes—benefitting children, animals, or the environment. Now that I’ve told you, pass it on!
• Visit www.cafegive.com and see how easy it is to select a cause, shop, and create a widget to encourage others to shop.

Saturday, October 17, 2009

East Coast Day #2

As mentioned before I stayed up a little too late (like 2AM, which honestly is like 11PM my time, which is pretty good for me), working on my Bible Study, The Search for Significance, and my book club book, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn.  But in hopes of conquering jet lag, I set my alarm for 8:30AM, on a SATURDAY, which is really 5:30AM for me.

I managed to get up and survive quiet happily on coffee all day.  Can I tell you how awesome my day has been?  Grammie and I started our day checking out the Brewster Women's Library, where she volunteers.  We used to check out books and movies there.  I must have rented The Last Unicorn there over a hundred times when I was little.  Then we headed to Paine's Creek, home of Kate's Ice Cream, which has real bubble gum in their bubble gum ice cream.  And where I fell on the rock jetty and got my ankle crushed between two big rocks, when I was like 6.  Followed by the Thrift Shop Grammie also volunteers out that is supported by her church.  We then went to practice using an ATM machine, something that is still new to Grammie, followed by a grocery store run.

While Grammie took her afternoon nap, I took a walk up to the Brewster store, a penny candy store (now a dime candy store), I went to EVERYDAY while on the Cape.  Then walked back on the beach.  Even though it was misting out, it still was fun.  When I got back, we looked through my parents wedding album, which was fun, my mom looks freaking amazing and my dad has a classic 80's mustache...  We also looked through my baby album, which is is amusing because I'm 2 weeks older than my cousin Paul and the only way you can tell who is who is because I'm like twice the size of him.  Seriously, I was one fat baby.  Everyone used to call me "no-neck" apparently.

Did you have a funny baby name?

Friday, October 16, 2009

Almost Didn't Make It

...but I'm now in Massachusetts!  Cape Cod to be exact.

Yesterday I realized United booked the wrong dates for my trip.  Can we say freak out?  Luckily things got taken care of (or are still in the processes of being handled but I'm here so I'm not worrying).  Anyways, I stayed up most of last night.  Flew through Denver, arrived in Boston, took the bus to Cape Cod.  Had my cousin John and his wife Katie pick me up from the bus station.  It was so great seeing them, I hadn't seen them since May 2008 when I graduated from Bentley.  And headed to my grandmother's "Grammie"'s house.  It was so great seeing her as well!

There is just something about being "home" that makes everything feel so good.  So what am I doing here tonight?  The same thing I did while at college, come down for a weekend, spend the first night working on homework.  Although tonight it was "real" work.  Can't believe the last time I was here I was a college student and now I'm a graduate!

What was your worse airplane experience?

Sunday, October 11, 2009

East Coast Tour 10/16-10/25

I'm heading to the East Coast on 10/16 for the first time since graduation! I am beyond excited. I get to mix: work + family + college friends = nine days of craziness. People keep saying "oh your taking a vacation!" To be honest, it doesn't feel like it will be one. Here is my schedule:

Arrive Friday Night: Take bus to Cape Cod for the weekend. Visit with Grandmother, Aunt, Uncle, Cousins.
Sunday: Take bus to CT. Visit other Grandparents, more Aunts, Uncles, and Cousins. Plus an old college friend.
Wednesday: Head back to Boston. Sleep over with college friends.
Thursday: Watch my boss do presentation at MIT, sit in on a class, have lunch, maybe take a tour and get something from the gift shop?
Friday: Alumni Weekend at Bentley + dinner and a play with another set of Aunt and Uncle and Cousins.
Saturday: Bentley round 2 with friends.
Sunday: Fly home.

Monday: Back to work.

Which is honestly a crazy busy week:
  • Bible Study
  • Book Club
  • Roller Derby Bootcamp
  • Halloween Inspired Wildfire
  • Two Willamette Events
  • Halloween
  • CafeGive proposal
Good thing I strive under pressure!

When is your next "vacation?"

Sunday, October 04, 2009

10/4/09 2.0

  • Jon and I caught four mice in my garage this weekend. More like Jon caught them. And after every one I prayed, "Dear Jesus, I'm sorry. Amen." I tend to be an overly passionate person when it comes to mercy killings. I was the kid who would try to save the slugs after the neighborhood boys pour salt on them. Or when our neighbors had mice in their rice bin I wanted Mom to save the mice babies from the snakes in the backyard. Or when Dad ran over a rabit when we were driving to Utah and called out "Thumper" I cried for about an hour.

Floating Thoughts 10/4/09

  • I'm going to Boston in two weeks - still haven't bought my tickets. I should be doing that instead of writing this blog post. Excited to see friends and family. Going to see my boss teach at MIT, going to Bentley's Alumni Weekend and visit Cape Cod and CT. All in a week!
  • Tomorrow is my two week post-op. appointment for having my toenail permanently removed. It's healing nicely, still kinda looks like there is a nail there, but I know that its just a scab (which kinda looks like my original toenail and thus why I had this surgery). Can't wait to see what it looks like healed.
  • Had such a good weekend hanging out with Jon. It's so good to have old friends!
  • I'm officially joining the Rose City Rollers and doing roller derby. Month long boot camp starts November 1st.
  • Excited for my Bible Study to start up and the fact that we picked a book.
  • Working on my Thriller dance for Wildfire. Shall be interesting.
What have you been up too?

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Antarctica Update - TWO MORE WEEKS!

Here is an email I received today from Quark!  Just wanted to ask everyone to keep voting for me!  And help me spread the word by telling YOUR friends, family and co-workers about it.  Right now I have 112 votes!  Would love to see a couple more hundred (or thousand) votes in the next two weeks!


Thanks again!
Love,
Jenna

Who will become the Official Quark Blogger?  

Dear Jenna,

After over 600 blog entries and 46,000 votes cast, the competition to become theOfficial Quark Blogger enters its final two weeks.

For competitors, the next two weeks are vital, as there is still time to overtake the leaders or consolidate a lead. Keep spreading the word! You have until September 30, 2009.

Or…competitors may ask their supporters to vote for another competitor, if they feel they no longer have a chance to become the Official Quark Blogger. We make this suggestion, because last week, a generous competitor asked to transfer his 500 votes to another contender. He will inform his voters through a notice on his blog entry.

The rules of the competition do not allow us to change a vote. Only the voter can. So for all you voters, it’s time to decide if the blogger you chose is the best candidate for the job. You can change your vote at any time before September 30, 2009.  

Please note that voters are under no obligation to change their vote! Thank you to everyone for participating, and for making Blog Your Way to Antarctica a runaway success.

Sincerely,

Quark Expeditions 

Thursday, September 03, 2009

Personal Letter Asking For Help

Here is the letter I sent out to my personal contact list!
Dear Family, Friends, and Those I've Met Along the Way,

I'm writing to you because I need your help!  I just entered www.blogyourwaytoantarctica.com in hopes of getting a free trip there!  As many of you know one of my life goals is to go to every continent.  This trip I would be able to cross two of those off my list.  Also, my boss got to go there earlier this year and while I love her dearly.  I don't think she should get all the fun!

So, I need your help.  First of all go to: http://www.blogyourwaytoantarctica.com/blogs/view/604 and vote for me.  If you have more than one email address, use them all!

Second, tell people about it.  Forward this email, tell your friends and family, random people you are connected too.  Let's see how big of a tribe we can make!  Blog, Twitter, Facebook, etc!  If you need help or additional information just let me know I'd be happy to help in any way shape or form.

Thank you so much!  I really appreciate it and if I win - I definitely owe you all something!  Postcards, photos, penguins, shout outs.  You name it!

GO BIG OR GO HOME!

Jenna Forstrom

Want to help me spread the news?  Let me know how I can help you help me get to Antarctica!

The Natural Step Wants Me To Go To Antarctica!!

Here is a letter The Natural Step USA will be sending out!!

Hi Guys,
 
I would REALLY like to see my friend Jenna Forstrom earn her way onto an educational expedition to Antarctica this coming February but she needs your help (5 minutes, no money!) to get there. In order to address the ever increasing issues related to climate change, we look to Antarctica for information and answers. Jenna is a driven, intelligent, young sustainability professional who, full of energy and ambition, will truly make the most of this opportunity to educate and inform others about her experience there.  
 
Please take a few quick minutes to 'vote' for Jenna online :  Send Jenna to Antarctica!
 
Really want to help Jenna? Tweet the link above, add it to your facebook page, and finally pass this on to people who send you forwards and are often in your inbox. Give them the opportunity to make especially good use of their online time!
 
Holly

Did you vote for me?

Wednesday, September 02, 2009

Go Big Or Go Home!

So I just entered to win a chance to go blog my way to Antarctica and would love your vote. Below is my official entry. Let me know what you think and please click here to vote for me!

Go Big Or Go Home!

My family has a saying: Go Big Or Go Home! Which is fine for them; they’re all tall. I, on the other hand, can sleep crossed legged in coach with my head on my dinner tray like a school girl at her desk (and I’m still mistaken for a 12 year old). I also have the unnatural ability of making single-serving friends while traveling. Since I was born on the east coast, raised on the west coast, and went to college back in Boston, both these skills have served me well. I have a fearless vulnerability. My life is an open book. This honesty can break down defensive barriers and allow others to comfortably share with me.

Being 5’2’’ in a family of giants, has other advantages. I developed quite a talent for getting attention. How else is a girl to get noticed if her “little” brother towers 16 inches above her? Yes, same biological parents – go figure.

I have an insatiable curiosity, asking both profound and completely random questions. “How does carbon dating work in ice?” and “What has been the most interesting rescue mission you’ve ever participated in?” to “Why does penguin poop smell so rancid?” and “Do you guys ever meet the people from Whale Wars out here?”

If I’m lucky enough to be your blogging connection to the Antarctic, I’ll GO BIG. I’ll take full advantage of every opportunity presented and create a few of my own. Let’s be honest, if I don’t, I might as well just stay home. I’ll share details overlooked by others and keep you updated with photos and videos on the blog and Twitter. And I’ll make sure to respond to your questions of me. Vote for me as the Antarctica stowaway blogger. After all, I’d fit in a duffle.


Tuesday, September 01, 2009

Friday Backpack Project

My mom's friend, a nurse at Harrison Park School just started this awesome program and is currently looking for funding both cash and food supplies.  Here is an email explaining the Friday Backpack Project.

We started this project as a trial to see if there would even be any interest. We knew there was a need but we weren’t sure about the interest.  This particular school, Clark at Binnsmead (which since July of 2009 has had it’s name changed to Harrison Park School) has 720 students, 84% of which are at or below poverty level. This school is located at 2225 S.E. 87th Avenue off Division Street.  At Clark every student receives free breakfast.

The mission of our project is to “nourish the body that nourishes the mind”.  The Backpack project would discreetly provide children with food to take home over the weekend.  Backpacks are packed with nutritious, child friendly, easy to prepare foods.

We started off by sending information regarding the project in the school parent newsletter, with a tear off portion to be completed by the parent requesting participation in the program.  The response was phenomenal!

We had already secured the backpacks (courtesy of Columbia Sportswear) so the next step was to figure out how we could collect all the food items.  Basically the cost to fill a backpack is $12.00 (examples of items include: peanut butter, jelly, pasta and pasta sauce, fruit, juice, granola bars, and bread).  To do this we enlisted the help of staff, friends, a neighborhood church, family and families of staff.

In planning this trial we chose to just do it the last 11 weeks of the school year because once we started the project we wanted to make sure we could sustain the project.  Over these 11 Fridays we filled over 215 backpacks.  This truly was a community project because while we did receive $700 in cash donations we needed over $2,000 in food which we were fortunate enough to obtain from the community mentioned above. 

Our goal for the 2009/2010 school year is to offer backpacks during the entire year.  $384 pays for a backpack for a child for every Friday of the school year.  We hope to pack at least 20 backpacks per Friday which adds up to about $960 per month.  We know this is a huge project to tackle, but it is so great for a child/our student to take home a backpack filled with healthy food for the weekend – a great boost for their self esteem as well as having healthy benefits!

Interested in getting involved?  Leave me a note and let me know and I'll contact you.

Monday, August 24, 2009

DSWCollective.com is LIVE

Words can not express how excited I am to announce that DSWCollective.com is now live!!  I would love for you all to check it out and leave some love on our blog.  Thank you so much!

You can also tell me here what you think of the website too!

Sunday, August 16, 2009

CafeGive Blog Post

Check out this super sweet blog post I just wrote for CafeGive:


Check out the blog - comment away (both here and there)!  Hoping to drive more traffic and would love your support!

Thanks!

Thursday, August 13, 2009

My "Other" Other Job

Most of you know me.  I'm the textbook example of a type "A" person.  If I don't have something to do I'm bored, breaking something, or creating something.  Lucky for me, I've graduated and people are finding out about what social media can do for their business.  It also helps that Darcy Winslow is my biggest cheerleader in pushing my passions.  And because of this I'm happy to announce that I'm the new Social Media Assistant at Willamette University's Executive Development Center in Portland, Oregon.  While Willamette University?  Funny story...Darcy is also working there as the Program Manager of the Sustainability Enterprise Certificate Program (SEC).  Just wanted to share the good news.

And our first event is Global Professional in Human Resources (GPHR), October 8-10, 2009.  For more information on this event as well as general questions about my new job feel free to leave me a comment!

Monday, August 10, 2009

Are you the Ultimate Athlete?

My boss, Darcy Winslow has been working with a team to create an event call The Search for the Ultimate Athlete (SFUA) and their website finally went live!  Check them out here!

SFUA features 24 of the best all-around athletes competing in 20 sports/disciples.  No age category, no division, no invitation.  Lucky for us, it's taking place here in Portland, Oregon.  The only place in the world where you can bike, golf, swim, play some bball, skate, ski, windsurf, white-water kayak, climb, snowboard, surf, MTB freeride.  (Falling more in love with my state as I write this).  

Launching June 2010, SFUA will feature a one-week event including 6 days of competitions, a grand finale in PDX and a benefit concert and on-site festival.

Mainstream sports + Emerging Sports + Action Sports + Olympic Sports = SFUA Competition and THE ANSWER

Interested in getting involved as an athlete or volunteer - let me know!

Saturday, August 01, 2009

Floating Thoughts 8/1/09

It's been awhile (story of my life). I'm blaming it on the heat wave that has hit Portland. I can hardly focus at work so to write blog posts seems a bit of a stretch. But it is starting to cool off so I think I can manage a couple of floating thoughts.
  • I'm super excited my best friend, Beckie is visiting for the next two weeks. She makes my heart happy.
  • Went to WakeJam yesterday - I think they need some help with their marketing / execution for future events. But I definitely need to get back on the water soon.
  • It's August 1st - which means 26 days to my 23rd birthday. Crazy - that feels super old and yet super young to me.
  • I had a photoshoot with Sara Gray this week and can't wait to see how the pictures came out.
  • I'm attending my first black tie event for work this month. My boss is speaking at the event. Check it out here!
  • My dad is coming to visit for a couple of weeks at the end of the month. Bummed I didn't make it to China this summer but excited to see him.
  • Bummed that my Bible Study and middle school programming is done for the summer. Not sure what I'm going to do with my Monday/Wednesday nights now. I'm sure I'll come up with something...
  • Excited to be joining a book club starting in September - reading Trouble by Kate Christiansen. Has anyone read it?

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

My "Other" Job

A couple of weeks ago, my boss Darcy Winslow, told me about her friend, Sandra Morris, who was launching a new company called CafeGive, and was looking for someone who could help with the social media aspect of the company brand.  Darcy thought I would be great for the job.  Before I knew what was happening, I became the Social Media Director at CafeGive!  I love doing what I'm doing and feeling like I'm making a difference.

CafeGive helps non-profits gain more support via fundraising by allowing advocates to create widgets and posting them on their blog or Facebook.  Cool huh?  So please check them out.  Tell me what you think.  And if you have any suggestions (both for the website or for non-profits we should reach out too) please let me know.

Thursday, July 09, 2009

Floating Thoughts 07/09/09

I'm really struggling to blog lately. Between work, my contract work, my personal life and regular life it seems as though I have a lot going on and have been doing a lot of great personal reflection and yet haven't been able to sit down and write about it. Let's just summarize here via floating thoughts.
  • My Bible Study wrapped up for the summer on Monday. Had a great time learning about prophecy and Revelations. Wondering what I should focus on for the summer. Suggestions? Thinking about finishing reading Closer Than Your Skin or doing Song of Songs...
  • Leaving for middle school camp on Sunday. Super pumped about it, but praying for a good attitude adjustment, healing of my hip, preparation for my girl's hearts and general prayers of energy and safety. Care to join me in those prayers?
  • I had and awesome time camping with my "almost" family during 4th of July weekend. It was great to see everyone and catch up. And to get a reminder of what a large family who cares about one another looks like. What did you do for 4th of July?
  • I'm super pumped to announce that CafeGive finally went live. I've been working for them for almost a month now and it was good to watch them launch yesterday. Can't wait for the social media (aka my part) to go live next Friday. Please check out their website and let me know what you think?
  • I freaking love the flexibility, love and support that my boss shows me on a daily basis. I really believe I'm spoiled in this way. What is your favorite thing about your boss?
That is all I have for right now. What have you been up to while I've been gone?

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Paul Hawken's 2009 Commencement Speech

My friend sent this to me.  Pretty powerful stuff.  Thought I would share.

When I was invited to give this speech, I was asked if I could give a simple short talk that was “direct, naked, taut, honest, passionate, lean, shivering, startling, and graceful.” No pressure there.

Let’s begin with the startling part. Class of 2009: you are going to have to figure out what it means to be a human being on earth at a time when every living system is declining, and the rate of decline is accelerating. Kind of a mind-boggling situation... but not one peer-reviewed paper published in the last thirty years can refute that statement. Basically, civilization needs a new operating system, you are the programmers, and we need it within a few decades.

This planet came with a set of instructions, but we seem to have misplaced them. Important rules like don’t poison the water, soil, or air, don’t let the earth get overcrowded, and don’t touch the thermostat have been broken. Buckminster Fuller said that spaceship earth was so ingeniously designed that no one has a clue that we are on one, flying through the universe at a million miles per hour, with no need for seatbelts, lots of room in coach, and really good food—but all that is changing.

There is invisible writing on the back of the diploma you will receive, and in case you didn’t bring lemon juice to decode it, I can tell you what it says: You are Brilliant, and the Earth is Hiring. The earth couldn’t afford to send recruiters or limos to your school. It sent you rain, sunsets, ripe cherries, night blooming jasmine, and that unbelievably cute person you are dating. Take the hint. And here’s the deal: Forget that this task of planet-saving is not possible in the time required. Don’t be put off by people who know what is not possible. Do what needs to be done, and check to see if it was impossible only after you are done.

When asked if I am pessimistic or optimistic about the future, my answer is always the same: If you look at the science about what is happening on earth and aren’t pessimistic, you don’t understand the data. But if you meet the people who are working to restore this earth and the lives of the poor, and you aren’t optimistic, you haven’t got a pulse. What I see everywhere in the world are ordinary people willing to confront despair, power, and incalculable odds in order to restore some semblance of grace, justice, and beauty to this world. The poet Adrienne Rich wrote, “So much has been destroyed I have cast my lot with those who, age after age, perversely, with no extraordinary power, reconstitute the world.” There could be no better description. Humanity is coalescing. It is reconstituting the world, and the action is taking place in schoolrooms, farms, jungles, villages, campuses, companies, refuge camps, deserts, fisheries, and slums.

You join a multitude of caring people. No one knows how many groups and organizations are working on the most salient issues of our day: climate change, poverty, deforestation, peace, water, hunger, conservation, human rights, and more. This is the largest movement the world has ever seen. Rather than control, it seeks connection. Rather than dominance, it strives to disperse concentrations of power. Like Mercy Corps, it works behind the scenes and gets the job done. Large as it is, no one knows the true size of this movement. It provides hope, support, and meaning to billions of people in the world. Its clout resides in idea, not in force. It is made up of teachers, children, peasants, businesspeople, rappers, organic farmers, nuns, artists, government workers, fisherfolk, engineers, students, incorrigible writers, weeping Muslims, concerned mothers, poets, doctors without borders, grieving Christians, street musicians, the President of the United States of America, and as the writer David James Duncan would say, the Creator, the One who loves us all in such a huge way.

There is a rabbinical teaching that says if the world is ending and the Messiah arrives, first plant a tree, and then see if the story is true. Inspiration is not garnered from the litanies of what may befall us; it resides in humanity’s willingness to restore, redress, reform, rebuild, recover, reimagine, and reconsider. “One day you finally knew what you had to do, and began, though the voices around you kept shouting their bad advice,” is Mary Oliver’s description of moving away from the profane toward a deep sense of connectedness to the living world.

Millions of people are working on behalf of strangers, even if the evening news is usually about the death of strangers. This kindness of strangers has religious, even mythic origins, and very specific eighteenth-century roots. Abolitionists were the first people to create a national and global movement to defend the rights of those they did not know. Until that time, no group had filed a grievance except on behalf of itself. The founders of this movement were largely unknown — Granville Clark, Thomas Clarkson, Josiah Wedgwood — and their goal was ridiculous on the face of it: at that time three out of four people in the world were enslaved. Enslaving each other was what human beings had done for ages. And the abolitionist movement was greeted with incredulity. Conservative spokesmen ridiculed the abolitionists as liberals, progressives, do-gooders, meddlers, and activists. They were told they would ruin the economy and drive England into poverty. But for the first time in history a group of people organized themselves to help people they would never know, from whom they would never receive direct or indirect benefit. And today tens of millions of people do this every day. It is called the world of non-profits, civil society, schools, social entrepreneurship, non-governmental organizations, and companies who place social and environmental justice at the top of their strategic goals. The scope and scale of this effort is unparalleled in history.

The living world is not “out there” somewhere, but in your heart. What do we know about life? In the words of biologist Janine Benyus, life creates the conditions that are conducive to life. I can think of no better motto for a future economy. We have tens of thousands of abandoned homes without people and tens of thousands of abandoned people without homes. We have failed bankers advising failed regulators on how to save failed assets. We are the only species on the planet without full employment. Brilliant. We have an economy that tells us that it is cheaper to destroy earth in real time rather than renew, restore, and sustain it. You can print money to bail out a bank but you can’t print life to bail out a planet. At present we are stealing the future, selling it in the present, and calling it gross domestic product. We can just as easily have an economy that is based on healing the future instead of stealing it. We can either create assets for the future or take the assets of the future. One is called restoration and the other exploitation. And whenever we exploit the earth we exploit people and cause untold suffering. Working for the earth is not a way to get rich, it is a way to be rich.

The first living cell came into being nearly 40 million centuries ago, and its direct descendants are in all of our bloodstreams. Literally you are breathing molecules this very second that were inhaled by Moses, Mother Teresa, and Bono. We are vastly interconnected. Our fates are inseparable. We are here because the dream of every cell is to become two cells. And dreams come true. In each of you are one quadrillion cells, 90 percent of which are not human cells. Your body is a community, and without those other microorganisms you would perish in hours. Each human cell has 400 billion molecules conducting millions of processes between trillions of atoms. The total cellular activity in one human body is staggering: one septillion actions at any one moment, a one with twenty-four zeros after it. In a millisecond, our body has undergone ten times more processes than there are stars in the universe, which is exactly what Charles Darwin foretold when he said science would discover that each living creature was a “little universe, formed of a host of self-propagating organisms, inconceivably minute and as numerous as the stars of heaven.”

So I have two questions for you all: First, can you feel your body? Stop for a moment. Feel your body. One septillion activities going on simultaneously, and your body does this so well you are free to ignore it, and wonder instead when this speech will end. You can feel it. It is called life. This is who you are. Second question: who is in charge of your body? Who is managing those molecules? Hopefully not a political party. Life is creating the conditions that are conducive to life inside you, just as in all of nature. Our innate nature is to create the conditions that are conducive to life. What I want you to imagine is that collectively humanity is evincing a deep innate wisdom in coming together to heal the wounds and insults of the past.

Ralph Waldo Emerson once asked what we would do if the stars only came out once every thousand years. No one would sleep that night, of course. The world would create new religions overnight. We would be ecstatic, delirious, made rapturous by the glory of God. Instead, the stars come out every night and we watch television.

This extraordinary time when we are globally aware of each other and the multiple dangers that threaten civilization has never happened, not in a thousand years, not in ten thousand years. Each of us is as complex and beautiful as all the stars in the universe. We have done great things and we have gone way off course in terms of honoring creation. You are graduating to the most amazing, stupefying challenge ever bequested to any generation. The generations before you failed. They didn’t stay up all night. They got distracted and lost sight of the fact that life is a miracle every moment of your existence. Nature beckons you to be on her side. You couldn’t ask for a better boss. The most unrealistic person in the world is the cynic, not the dreamer. Hope only makes sense when it doesn’t make sense to be hopeful. This is your century. Take it and run as if your life depends on it.

Can you feel your body?  Who is in charge of your body?

Sunday, June 21, 2009

Happy Father's Day 2009


It's weird celebrating Father's Day when your dad lives in China. We talked yesterday (because it was his Sunday and thus his Father's Day) and when he wakes up today Father's Day will have already passed. There are no cards or presents being sent to China. And regardless of how much I love him it's still weird to ignore the elephant in the room. I hope everyone who's dad lives close to them remembers how lucky they are and gives their dads an extra tight squeeze for those of us who can't, regardless of the reason.

Happy Father's Day!

Sunday, June 07, 2009

Jenna Comes To Town

I've been horribly neglectful when it has come to blogging the last month. (I swear I have a lot of good reasons...my life is very exciting these days - if you want to know more about that stuff just message me...) But I did want to let you all know that the other Jenna, came to visit me this weekend from Hawaii! The picture to your right is from our roadtrp to Niagara Falls last year. Where I got my first (and only) ticket, we stayed in a sketchy motel, and got to feed beluga whales! She was in my bible study at Bentley with me and I freaking love having her here. Especially since she is leaving this fall for Baton Rouge for a year of service with City Year before heading back the Bentley to graduate. How cool is that? This is what we have done so far:
  • Eat an awesome welcome dinner of kabobs and Indian rice with Kristi and her friend Megan (and Ryan)
  • Kicked Kristi and Megan's butt at Phase 10
  • Ate dessert crepes
  • Rode Max downtown
  • Checked out my office and the Pearl District
  • Went to the Rose Parade 2009 with Kristi, Megan, another Jenn, and Ryan
  • Walked to Vivaci on 23rd for more crepes
  • Took the Portland Street car down to Saturday Market
  • Check out the Naval ships for fleet week
  • Ate sushi at Sushitown
  • Watched Milk
Today, we are heading to church and then who knows? Will keep you posted?

Who was the last person to come visit you from out of state?

Monday, May 18, 2009

Two Books!

This week I finished not one, but two books! That must be some kind of record. (Well for me at least). The first book I finished was Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code, which Josh Groth so kindly lent to me a couple of weeks ago. To be honest I did not like this book as much as I thought I would. Which is weird because I loved Dan Brown's Angels & Demons. I think I didn't like The Da Vinci Code is because I had already seen the movie. But now that I've finished both books, I can't wait to see Angels & Demons the movie. Has anyone seen it? Or want to go see it with me?

The second book I finished was Donald Miller's Blue Like Jazz, which again I wasn't a big fan of. Which sucks because everyone else I know who has read it loved it. I'm just not a big fan of Christian themed writing I think.

Anyways, what was the most brilliant book you've read recently?

Thursday, May 14, 2009

The Natural Step USA - Miles the Can

Meet my friend, Miles the Can. I was introduced to this video a couple months ago at The Natural Step Conference's Sustainability for Leadership. For more information on The Natural Step, check out www.NaturalStep.org/usa/learn.

Last Monday, Miles was featured by business author/speaker Tim Sanders, a friend of my friend, Chas Martin, and former head trainer at Yahoo. http://sanderssays.typepad.com/sanders_says/2009/05/walk-a-mile-in-miles-the-cans-shoes.html

Sander's article was picked up by ABC-TV's GreenRightNow site in New York City http://www.greenrightnow.com/wabc/2009/05/04/take-a-trip-with-miles-the-can/

And then a day later by ABC in Raleigh, N.C.: http://www.greenrightnow.com/wtvd/2009/05/04/take-a-trip-with-miles-the-can/

Followed by ABC in Chicago: http://www.greenrightnow.com/wls/2009/05/04/take-a-trip-with-miles-the-can/

See where I'm going with this...? Talk about how Miles can travel! What are your thoughts on Miles the Can?

Saturday, May 09, 2009

SoL Conference Post #1

This week I had the opportunity to attend The Society of Organizational Learning's (SoL) Leading and Learning for Sustainability Conference in Portland, Oregon. The conference was lead by Peter Senge, an MIT professor who wrote The Fifth Discipline and The Necessary Revolution. Senge was also named as one of the 24 people who had "the greatest influence on business strategy over the last 100 years" by the Journal of Business Strategy. Needless to say, this week was an awesome opportunity. Not only to learn more about sustainability and systemic thinking but also to have a chance to learn different listening and visioning practices. This conference happened one year after I graduated college and that I believe is really significant. I'm going to be doing several posts on the teachings and personal applications of this week. I hope it inspires dialoguge and personal reflection for everyone who reads it.

The program objectives where:
  1. Deepen connection to source of generative leadership through clarity of vision and purpose and personal sustainability.
  2. Appreciate relationship between interior development and external action.
  3. Balance between intiating and sustaining systemic change in the long term and building momentum now.
We talk about the difference between "leadership" and "boss-ship." Something I learned is that the original meaning of "leadership" is the ability to help others step over the threshold. Whatever that threshold may be. Over the next three days, I learned that the language we use is very important and that I need to work on selecting the right words to use. Before I had just been concerned with getting my message out there, however, now I've come to realize I need to spend more time on picking my vocabulary wisely. We talked about how the word "sustainability" is not equal to the ability to care and is just an umbrella term for a lot of different things and has a different meaning to individuals. Following that discussion, we talked about if good leaders are born or made. Peter Senge pointed out that your point of view on that question sets up your view on your own personal development. George Marshall, one of only three five star generals in the US Army once said, "Great leaders are born, then made."

We then got into small groups and did our first "check in practice." Called What Do I Stand For, in which in small groups of complete strangers shared what we stand for. Here is what I came up with for myself:

I stand for:
  • God
  • Human rights issues, particularily around adsocent girls and water rights
  • Curiosity and always asking questions
  • Social media tools and hearing people's stories
What do you stand for?

OneEarth.Org : ECO : The Power Of One

This was a video shared during the first day of the Society for Organizational Learning's (SoL) Leading and Learning for Sustainability.

As the power of one, what are you doing to make a difference in our world?

Saturday, May 02, 2009

girl meets GOD

I just finished reading girl meets GOD by Lauren Winner. Which is kind of random since I got the book in October 2005 from my college pastor at Bentley. It's a signed copy actually, I couldn't make it to Lauren's presentation so my awesome pastor bought me the book. But you know how college goes: school, swimming, work, travel, summers get in the way and I finally four years later sat down and read it. The book blew my mind. I'm usually not a fan of Christian reading or girlie book reading for that matter. But her passion for books and her geeky side comments made it totally worth it. I've learned so much about God and Jewish history from this book I feel like I could hold some serious ground talking about my faith with a Jew. I rarely feel this about authors but I would love to be Lauren's friend. For some reason I feel as though we have a lot in common:
  1. found faith / relationship with Christ on our own (minimal parental involvement)
  2. have tattoos
  3. geekily obsessed with books (take me to a Borders/Powells and you'll see what I mean)
  4. get side tracked by side comments, yet some how manage to bring it back into context
Anyways, I highly suggest the book. Let me know if you want to borrow it sometime.

What good book did you recently finish?

Thursday, April 30, 2009

Word of God?

I've been thinking about this a lot lately and would love to hear some opinions on the topic. I really believe that the Bible is the Word of God, divinely inspired. But when it is quoted in other books - is it still considered "The Word of God"? Or does scripture bound in the Holy Bible only count?

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Office Party with Thought Provoking Outcomes

Last night (before the Blazers win) our office hosted a little party to show photographs from Darcy Winslow's recent trip to Antarctica with BP.  While the photographs were mind blowing, you can't help but feel responsible.  Action must be taken.  As Robert Swan, a world famous polar explore and guide for the trip says, "The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it."  Our Green CPA, Brian Setzler wrote this awesome post about our office party last night.  Check it out!

Who do you think will save the planet?

Going Carbon Neutral With 3Degrees

Since DSW Collective is a sustainable consulting firm, we take the environment very seriously.  Not only that, but we want to walk the talk that we give to our clients.  Know your carbon and water footprint and do something about it.  Recycle, reduce, reuse.  Remember that from kindergarden?  Well times are changing, the new slogan is "calculate, reduce, offset".  Some of you might know what carbon offsets are and some of you might not.  Everything we do creates carbon: utilities, driving our cars, riding MAX, etc.  Carbon is actually the umbrella term for all major greenhouse gases.  Offsetting this, using companies like 3Degrees, helps counter balance all the carbon that we as individuals and companies dump into the atmosphere everyday.

I'll admit, when I started researching this I was a little be of a skeptic.  Run some company's calculator, get a number, send them a check, and "be green".  Kind of seems like a scam to me.  But the more research I've done, through reading, monitoring how much our company drives and flies, and doing various calculators for me as an individual and for our company has really opened my eyes to how much each of us contributes to carbon emissions.

This is why I love 3Degrees.  They are local, their office is actually kitty corner to ours, which makes meetings a breeze.  And they actually inform and allow your company to pick which projects you want to invest in.  This makes it way more tangible to me.  For example, DSW is splitting our offsets between two different projects.  One is a landfill gas capture in Neosho, Missouri and the other is a Wind Farm project in Dickey County, North Dakota and McPherson County, South Dakota.  Another great thing about 3Degrees has high standards for their projects:  Gold Standard, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), California Climate Action Registry (CCAR), Voluntary Carbon Standard (VCS), and Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX), so their projects are legit.

An interesting fact about 3Degrees, the name comes from the scientific belief that by the year 2100, the earth's temperature may rise as much as 3 degrees celsius.  This raise in temperature will result in 1/6 of the world's population becoming "climate refugees" as a result of flooding or droughts (depending on location).

What are your thoughts on carbon offsets?

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

What I'm Thinking About Right Now


My mom gave this to me last year for my 21st birthday. Today the cleaning people must have found it laying around my room and left it out for me. Just what my soul needs.

What is your perfect bliss?

Sunday, April 12, 2009

Happ Easter!

People keep asking me, "So what's it like being done with school?" The only rational answer is, "It's weird." Granted I don't think I'm done with school. I'm still contemplating going to grad school in the next 3-5 years. And I know I'm never going to be done learning. I'm planning on taking the Motorcycle Safety course at PCC and possibly belly dancing. But being back in the Pacific Northwest after being gone for four years keeps reminding me of things I have missed. The most recent one is celebrating Easter with my immediate family. Granted I was in Boston celebrating with my extended family. But there is something about being at home and going to your home church that just makes it seem more "right".

Then there is the whole, "How does it feel to be a grown up?" question. Which I NEVER know how to answer. Because I don't feel anymore grown up than I did last year and I still get asked if I'm in high school. Or as of last week, was told I look like I'm 13 in the Apple store by an elderly gentleman...bless his heart. Last night at 11:30PM, I decorated Easter eggs with my mom. Because I'm still a child at heart and my mom really wanted too. I pointed out how much easier it is now that I'm 22. No laying out newspaper, tons of stickers, rubber bands, clear crayons, and attempting to tie-dye Easter eggs. But my mom pointed out how much fun the production of dying Easter eggs, exploring color choices and creativity was totally worth the mess. Not to mention having two very hyper kiddies entertained for an hour or two was totally worth it.

Just some random thoughts. Happy Easter everyone!

What are you doing to celebrate?

Monday, April 06, 2009

Saturday Sun Adventures

This weekend I was so blessed to have my friend, Jon Grotz, come to visit from Washington.  I've known Jon since we were sophomores in high school, we both went to Westview and Sunset Presbyterian Church (and thus the Honduras mission trip) together.  Not only did Jon come to visit but he brought along some freaking nice sunny weather.  So Saturday we decided to go for a hike on Wildwood trail in Portland.  We also brought along Katie Kalk (our leader), her dog, Wilson, CJ Walters, and my dog, Dainty.  We made plans to meet up with one of Jon's childhood friends, Courtney, at Laurelwood Brewery for lunch.  I was pretty excited for the sunny weather, the chance to be outside, and the opportunity to check out a brewery I'd never been too.  Needless, to say, we got a little lost.  And our half hour hike turned into a two hour, how the heck do we went out of this neighborhood on a cliff ordeal.  We eventually walked down Burnside and cut over to Kearney in time to meet Jon's friend.  Ordered a couple of pints.  I had the Mother Lode Golden Ale and some season ale (I can't remember the name...)  Both were really good.  We ended up calling my mom to come rescue us.  More Dainty, who is getting a little old and I was worried wouldn't make it on the hike back to Jon's car.  All in all a fun, laughter filled weekend.

Sunday, April 05, 2009

Miniture Model

I'm still struggling to blog on a regular basis, but I survived my crazy week! Details to come. But for now I wanted to share one thing I did two weeks ago. I got professional photos taken for my company's website! The best part about it was my friend Sara Gray took the pictures and did a great job! I've know Sara since I was in middle school. She used to lead worship at the Underground at our church. Since then she has gone to college, gotten married, lived in Argentina and started her own business, Sara Gray Photography. I was a little nervous, since the one and only time I've had my photos taken was for senior portraits 6 years ago. But Sara was super encouraging and we literally spent two hours talking and walking around the Nike campus. It was really fun and laid back. I loved the way Sara encourages everyone to "act like their in an iPod commercial!" Here are some photos from Sara's blog. Thanks again Sara!

Saturday, March 28, 2009

Where have I been?

Apparently I've been a little MIA the last couple of weeks. I apologize, I need to make more of an effort to update my blog with little life updates. Since my last post my boss has left for Antarctica so I've been really busy at work. And my younger brother, Kirk, has come home to visit for Spring Break. Can we just talk about how painful it is to be out of school for the first time since I was 4 and not have a Spring Break? Oh well, at least I got one day of skiing in instead of my usual 5 days for Spring Break. I have a crazy busy week coming up, which I'm really excited both for work and for play. But this means that I have a lot of work to get done this weekend. Did I mention this is the first weekend I've been home in over a month? Here is what I need to do and why:
  • Clean my car - because my mom's best friend, my aunt Kathy is coming to visit from Portland, Maine on Wednesday and is going to use my car for the 11 days she is here.
  • Clean my room - because I haven't cleaned it in months, and I did some rearranging when I set up my home office downstairs last night.
  • Do laundry - because I'm attending a conference next week with Natural Step on sustainability and I need more clothing options. I have to wait until this afternoon when Kirk leaves to get access to the laundry room.
  • Clean Kirk's room - because my best friend from high school, Jon Grotz, is visiting from Washington next weekend and will be crashing in there. Kirk just got a new bed so we need to set that up as well.
  • Overall house cleaning - because my mom likes having the house clean for guests.
So an exciting week coming up, two house visitors, a conference, maybe a day of skiing, plus I'm attending an event put on by the University of Oregon called the Sustainable Business Symposium.

I'm spending my weekend organizing and cleaning, what are you doing?

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Antarctica 2009

I haven't been posting lately.  Work is a little crazy since my boss leaves for an Antarctic Expedition on Monday!  But I thought I would share this link to the site.  Check it out!  It's very cool and interactive.  You'll almost feel like your traveling with these 50 student global leaders!

If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?

Monday, March 09, 2009

Sunset Presyberian Going Green?

On Friday, I sat down with Marie Hamann, Facility Manager at Sunset Presbyterian church. Which as you most of you know, is my home church, and basically my second home. Last week, due to the economy, they announced a $200,000 budget cut, which basically means: less people + less hours = doing more. This is where I come in and I need your help! We are looking for ways that SPC can be more sustainable. I'm willing to do the research but I need help brainstorming.

"The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it." -Genesis 2:15

Just because we are not living in Eden anymore doesn't mean we don't have a responsibility to take better care of this planet. Before meeting with Marie, I did some research on what other church in the Portland area are doing. Here is what I found:
  1. St. Philip Neri has built a bioswale to filter urban run off from it's building, parking lot and the community around the church.
  2. Earth Home Ministries aims "to inspire and mobilize the Christian community to play a leadership role in building a just and sustainable future."
  3. First Unitarian Church built a LEED certified building called Buchan Building
While SPC is taking steps in the right dirrection. There is room for a lot of improvement. Here is what Marie pointed out as "trouble spots":
  • Plastic Water Bottles - people in Oregon still use these?!? My suggestion, stop ordering them, offer people water pitchers at events. People won't know the difference. And if someone has an issue invest in a Brita water filter for one of the sinks in the kitchen.
  • Disposable cups - think about how much coffee we drink as a congregation. Think we could take people into actually bringing their own coffee mugs to church? Or investing in recyable cups...
  • Recycling old technology (we just need a labor force do this) Freegeek in Southeast Portland refurbishs donated IT equipment then gives it to charities and non-profits.
  • Overprinting - how can we talk people into printing less, using recyclable paper, and recycling the excess. My suggestion, SPC should monitor for one week, how much paper gets recycled. I think thin numbers would be eye-opening.
  • Left over food - turning it into a compost. Available for the congration or maybe even a church garden somewhere on the property. I'm sure people would be interested in the coffee grounds alone + we have to have some gardeners in the congreation.
  • Changing SPC utilities over to renewable engery
  • Investing in solar panels on the roof - free real estate to anyone who wants it?
If you go to SPC, have any other suggestions or ideas? If you don't, what is some thing your community is doing to go green?

Wednesday, March 04, 2009

Oregon Executive MBA


Last Friday (2/27/2009), I have the opportunity to tag along with my boss, Darcy Winslow, to a class taught at the Oregon Executive MBA, a partnership between University of Oregon, Oregon State, and Portland State, where Darcy was a guest speaker. It was a little weird to be there since everyone was older than me and I have aspirations to go to graduate school and everyone there has aspirations to work for a successful (and sustainable) company, which is where I'm at right now. Team Evolution, a group of students, presented a Stanford Case Study about Darcy entitled "Nike's Global Women's Fitness Business: Driving Strategic Integration." I've seen one other presentation of this case, last year at the University of Oregon, and this group rocked it.

The great thing about this case begins in 2004 and I interned for Darcy the summer of 2005, right smack dab in the middle of the case. That was my first internship and at 18, I can say I honestly didn't have a clue what I was doing for Nike, but now I can look back and read a case study and see what was happening both to our department, Global Women's Fitness as well as the organization, Nike, as a whole. Pretty interesting stuff.

The presentation was followed by a Q&A session which focused on making change to an organization "under the radar".

How would you change an organization?

Young Life In Need

I haven't blogged in weeks! I'm starting to feel really bad about this. I have so much to update people on. However, this seems to be the most pressing. Yesterday I got a phone call from a former babysitter employer of mine, asking me if I knew any hip college, post-college, and adults that would be interested in reviving Young Life at Westview High School. To be honest (and I told her this as well). I'm tapped out. Between church on Sundays, my Bible Study on Monday nights, and being the "Games Girl" and a 6th grade girls leader at Wildfire on Wednesday nights. I just can't imagine adding something more to my plate. I think God is okay with that as well. But I am helping out in the search for new leaders. They are looking for three women and two men. So if you want to get involved or know someone who would be a great candidate, PLEASE LET ME KNOW!

How do you serve God?

Sunday, February 22, 2009

Weekend Get Away

My weekend started off with me passing out in my clothes (unbrushed teethed and unwashed face) at 9PM Thursday night! I hadn't gotten an uninterrupted night sleep since the Wednesday night before (that is how I roll...) woke up at 9AM Friday morning. I seriously can not tell you when the last time that happened! I got a facial from Ann at Venus Allure Spa! Go see her! Seriously she rocks! And if you mention my name you get a discount! (Contact me for details!) Then my mom and I headed up to Mt. Hood for the weekend. Friday night we checked out Ski Bowl's 80th Anniversary Celebration. I got to rock my 80s outfit for the second week in a row! Won a new pair of gloves. Which totally rocks because I torn mine over New Years and have been borrowing my brothers cause I'm too poor to buy a new pair and their WAY too big for me. Saturday was an awesome day of skiing! It felt like Spring Break skiing, sweatshirts and sunglasses kind of weather. Upper Heather Canyon was open, and there were some awesome cruisers off of Cascade. Sunday was a whole different story. It snowed! Much needed snow, but the visibility sucked, so we called it an early day and headed home to watch the Oscars. All in all a pretty sweet weekend.

How was your weekend?

Friday, February 20, 2009

God Said "No"

I asked God to take away my habit.
God said, No.
It is not for me to take away,
but for you to give it up.

I asked God to make my handicapped child whole.
God said, No.
His spirit is whole, his body is only temporary.

I asked God to grant me patience.
God said, No. Patience is a byproduct of tribulations;
it isn't granted, it is learned.

I asked God to give me happiness.
God said, No.
I give you blessings;
Happiness is up to you.

I asked God to spare me pain.
God said, No.
Suffering draws you apart from worldly cares
and brings you closer to me.

I asked God to make my spirit grow.
God said, No.
You must grow on your own,
but I will prune you to make you fruitful.

I asked God for all things that I might enjoy life.
God said, No.
I will give you life,
so that you may enjoy all things.

When has God said "no" to you?

Thursday, February 19, 2009

The Dash

My boss emailed this to me today. Just thought I would share.

The Dash
Linda Ellis (1996)

I read of a man who stood to speak
at the funeral of a friend.
He referred to the dates on her tombstone
from the beginning...to the end.

He noted that first came the date of her birth
and spoke of the following date with tears,
but he said what mattered most of all
was the dash between those years.

For that dash represents all the time
that she spent alive on earth...
and now only those who loved her
know what that little line is worth.

For it matters not, how much we own;
the cars....the house...the cash.
What matters is how we live and love
and how we spend our dash.

So think about this long and hard...
are there things you'd like to change?
For you never know how much time is left
that can still be rearranged.

If we could just slow down enough
to consider what's true and real,
and always try to understand
the way other people feel.

And be less quick to anger,
and show appreciation more
and love the people in our lives
like we've never loved before.

If we treat each other with respect,
and more often wear a smile...
remembering that this special dash
might only last a little while.

So, when your eulogy is being read
with your life's actions to rehash...
would you be proud of the things they
say about how you spend your dash?