Tonight

Tonight was an interesting night. After water polo I was feeling very productive and was planning on finishing up my 6 page reflection for service learning for the semester, which isn't due until Friday, however, I have class with my professor tomorrow and thought it would be good to get it over with now so I can focus more time on my other finals later on in the week. Instead, I ended up having an intense, hour-long conversation with one of my ex's. It was good. I got some things off of my chest. While completely confusing Nick, I'm hoping he will take to heart what I had to say and maybe we can talk about it some more once he has done some processing. Hopefully in the near future. I teared up a bit but nothing to crazy. I'm lucky to have friends around me for hugs and encouraging words. I hung out with my roommates for a bit afterwards, doing homework and listening to worship music. A good ending to a tough conversation. And now it is 2:18 AM and I'm going to still try and bust out as much of this paper as I can before I have to get up at 7:40AM to lifeguard.

On a side note, I did manage to pack my all my kitchen stuff up. Yeah for being productive this afternoon!

Traci's Calendar

I'm copying Traci's Calendar idea. Thought this would make things easier.

April 29: Breakfast by Moonlight
April 30: Reading Day, Student Employee Awards, Staff Dinner. Buy graduation gown and post graduation party info on facebook and myspace.
May 1: Phone conversation with Nike and Floor Meeting
May 2: Service Learning Paper due, Lewis & Clark Final, and Lit Final all due
May 3-5: Pack
May 6: MK 343 Final
May 7: MK 402 Final due - that is already completed, Senior Laptop Checkout
May 8: Resident Check Out
May 9: Senior Ball
May 10: Move into the Trees
May 11 - 15: BAHAMAS!
May 16: Baccalaureate, Majors/Minors meetings, Service Learning and Ethics meetings
May 17: GRADUATION! And graduation party with family.
May 18-28: Cross Country Road Trip with Dad
May 29: Traci's Bday
May 31: OR Graduation Party - details coming soon!

Productive Last Night

Last night I was very productive. Which is good and helps with the whole freaking out about college thing. I spoke at church yesterday as per my previous posts. But I also finished my MK 402 final group project as well as my individual project. Some of which I posted here on my blog. I also watched Crash (which is an amazing movie if you have never seen it, I would encourage you to) for my Monsters and Madmen in Lit and Film class. Our final "text" for the course. Hopefully today in class we will get our final questions so sometime this week I can write two essays and finish up another course. I also spent sometime yesterday wrapping up my college life. Writing thank you notes for all the super presents I got after speaking at church as well as thank you presents for my extended family that I am planning on giving out after my graduation. Today I have 3 final classes. My last meeting with my RD. Water polo practice and maybe a nap. Should be a good day.

If anyone has seen Crash, please share your thoughts! Thanks!

Jenna Forstrom Video Resume 2008

Does this seem like me? Thoughts? Comments?

Speaking @ Church Today

So I didn't play the Godtube video. But encourage all of you to check it out. And we only sung "To the Ends of the Earth." But all in all it went very well. I still think I need to work on my public speaking skills, I tend to talk too quickly and job around a lot. But I believe my testimony is very chaotic - goes along well with my life but also very open and personal. Also like me. Some things I got out of it listening to other speak was very interesting stuff about love.

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails." - 1 Corinthians 13: 4-8

Then Manny (another speaker) went on to talk about love for everyone:

"But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you.If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' do that. And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' lend to 'sinners,' expecting to be repaid in full. But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful." - Luke 6:27-36

I think these are very important words that we should all focus more one. Rather then spending so much time and energy on being mad at others.

Speaking today and hearing the other students speak made me realize how lucky I am to have such an awesome support group here on campus. From my roommates, to my friends, to my Bible study, to the staff here on campus both in and out of the Spiritual Life Center. God was truly looking out for me when He sent me to Bentley College.

Speaking @ Church Today!

Today I am speaking at my church here at Bentley College. All the seniors get the opportunity to speak today at a service called "Cloud of Witnesses". It is a pretty big honor and a lot of my friends (even my non-Christian) are coming to listen to me speak. I wrote up a basic outline about what I am going to talk about. Thought I would post it here so everyone could see. I'll let you guys know how it really went later on today. Let me know if you have any questions/thoughts. Thanks!

I picked my top three worships songs (I was really tempted to do Papaya song since that was the first song I ever heard at church. However, it isn't that mature.) I did choose Indescribable, Ends of the Earth, and The Stand.

I'm also tempted to show the Godtube video about the play with the girl. Still debating that one.

Anyways, here is my speech. Enjoy and COMMENT!

Introduction – Jenna Forstrom, Beaverton, Oregon

Major/Plans After College – Marketing with a minor in Management and International Studies. No real plans for after college, but I hope to working in either corporate social responsibility and ethics or at a non-profit doing marketing.

How did you become a Christian – In 8^th grade after attending a membership class at my church. Did not really take it to heart until sophomore year of high school, grew from there. Story about my ear. Exodus 21:6 “Then his master must take him before the judges. He shall take him to a door or the doorpost and pierce his ear with an awl. Then he will be his servant for life.”

How the Lord helped me through Bentley – How didn’t he help me? I was in a really serious relationship and that ended, He was there. My parents announced their separation He was there. I owe Him a lot.

Words of Wisdom – Get involved on campus. You own it for 4 years and then it is gone. Do not worry about jobs/internships, Bentley is the only place I know that cares so much. Remember, if things feel weird or uncomfortable, that it’s okay we are not from this world. Hebrews 11:13 “All these people were living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted they were aliens and strangers on earth. It’s okay to take it slow. Psalm 46:10 “Be still, and know that I am God.” And it’s okay to be mad at God. Don’t hold that anger in. Let it out – you heal faster when you are honest.

Spread the Bread

I got an unusual email from a lady who has been reading my blog and is involved in an organization called Spread the Bread. She sent me an email about getting involved. However, I am super busy right now and can't. But I thought I would post a link to their website so other people can get involved. Let me know what you think.

Stressed!

Here is what I have to do between now and May 8th:

1. Finish all my finals and group projects
2. Work 20+ hours/week
3. Pack up my entire life and make sure it fits in my Volvo station wagon
4. Pack for the Bahamas and graduation
5. Wrap up all my extra curricular stuff
6. Keep my sanity

So I'm a bit stressed out. So most of my blogs will probably be complaining or sharing pointless information that will make me feel better. Hope you enjoy it. Comment too please - makes me feel like the world is okay. Here is what I did today:

1. Wrote my BCLP reflection paper - posted most of it on my blog. That is good. The final certificates and such I get are presented on May 16. My parents should be there with me....hopefully (just other thing to stress out about).
2. Wrote my final service learning reflection journal - I still have to write my final 6 page paper for that - hopefully I will do that this weekend.
3. Went shopping and got my thank you presents for my family - I still need to wrap them and write notes - hopefully doing that this weekend too.
4. Almost finished my MK 402 final - emailed it to my professor she is going to send me comments tomorrow. I still need to add a Youtube resume and a generic cover letter. Hopefully I will finish that before 1PM tomorrow (before work) so I can turn it in on Monday and be done with MK 402 so I can focus on my other three finals.

Ah, that feels better.

Bentley Civic Leadership Program

Want to know what I have been doing with the last four years of my life. On top of going to school. Here you go. Here is the basic paper for my reflection for the Bentley Civic Leadership Program. Let me know what you think.

1. Campus Involvement: Being involved here at Bentley Campus is something that has always been important to me. I was on the Varsity Swim Team for three years, my sophomore year, a group of friends and I decided that Bentley would benefit from a water polo club and went through the formal recognition process, I became the Co-Founder and Vice President of the Bentley Water Polo Club, which now scrimmages against other local colleges and sponsors Float-A-Boat on Spring Day. My junior year I became the marketing and public relations e-board chair for Bentley Christian Fellowship, an organization I have been involved with since my freshman year that offers weekly Bible studies, fellowship and the Annual Easter Banquet. Also during my junior year, I applied and became a resident assistant working in Kresge, providing peer support and programs for the past two years. I have also been a work study student since my freshman year working as a lifeguard down at the Dana Center Pool and as an Event Staff Supervisor, working at the 1917 Tavern and various events put on by Greek Life, CAB, and ISA.

Civic Engagement: Service-Learning was introduced to me during my freshman year in my IT101 class with Professor VanderClock, when I was working with students at a local elementary school with the America Clicks program. Since then I have done a service-learning project almost every semester of my collegiate career. From doing an alternative spring break with Habitat for Humanity with Lynne Johanson and other Bentley students, to working with a local Y.M.C.A. on how to better run their programs in an embedded management course, to working with local elementary school students again with ELL Learners. Finally, my senior year, I have had the opportunity to work at the Watertown Boys and Girls Club for the entire year in their Homework Help Room. Also has a resident assistant I have had the chance to work with various organizations on campus to plan and encourage my residents to attend many cultural events happening on campus.

Ethical and Socially Responsible Behavior: I believe that acting ethically and being socially responsible are very important characteristics to have in a human being. While we all make mistakes, learning from those mistakes and growing is the more important thing. As a resident assistant it is very important to act ethically and show social responsibility, since you live in a fishbowl where your residents, other students on campus, fellow resident assistants, head residents assistants and resident directors are watching your every move. After I leave Bentley I hope to set a good example of what it means to be ethical and a socially responsible role model to the community in which I live and work.

2. Other than surviving college on the East Coast, 3,000 miles away from my family and graduating. I would have to say my biggest accomplishment here on a campus would have to be becoming a resident assistant. After a long application process and tough interviews, I made it! I became a resident assistant because my sophomore year I had no idea who my own resident assistant was and that worried me. I wanted to create an environment like a home on my floor where everyone knew one another and felt welcomed to be there. I believe I have achieved that over my two years of being a resident assistant. Being involved in many organizations on campus has thought me how to manage my time well and how to get more involved in my community. When I graduate and start work in the real world I plan on becoming very involved where I work. I do not want to be one of those employees who shows up to work, does their job, then leaves. I want to be engaged, have the chance to meet other people in different departments and make a difference. I also plan on doing more community service activities when I graduate. I did them before I came to college, as a care group leader at my church working with 8^th grade girls and doing various service projects. Therefore, I plan on doing more after school. Hopefully, I will be making more money than I am now and will have more time to spare and therefore make a bigger impact.

3. For me, as a civic leader, I think my biggest challenge will be to get too involved in too many projects. I have a big heart and I want to save the world. In earlier years, I struggled with over commitment something I believe I have gotten better at over my four years of here at Bentley. But I know I’m not perfect. This also goes along with knowing which battles are worth the fight and which ones are not. Sometimes you need to pick and choose, something I am not very good at. Another challenge I can foresee is having the courage to speak up. I know now as a senior I am at the top of the food chain so it is easy to have a voice here on campus. However, once I graduate, I will probably have some entry level job where I will be back at the bottom and while I am a very outgoing person, in new environments I tend to take my time to figure out how things work before getting involved.

Website

I have to create a website about my personal brand. My goal is to get it done by Monday so I can be done with this class before the final. Ideally, I could get it done tonight that would be great. I'm not holding my breath though.

This is what I have so far:

I'm graduating from Bentley College in May, so I feel like I do not have that many profession experiences. However, I do feel like I have some experience (check out my resume and previous work for examples). This is what I am looking for in a future job:

1. A marketing job (back up management job).
2. A job outside of New England (West Coast or International preferably)
3. Something in Non-Profit (or Corporate Social Responsibility/Sustainability)

In a dream world I would like to work for a foundation that focuses one the needs of pre-teen girls in developing countries. I would like to have a home (with a lot of land, near a river and the ocean) in the United States but have the chance to be abroad for long periods of time, about 3 to 6 months at a time.

"I like Geography best, he said, because your mountains & rives know the secret. Pay no attention to boundaries." - Brian Andreas

Thoughts?

Life Update

Haven't been in the mood to blog for awhile. It's getting down to the wire with graduation just around the corner. This weekend was super nice 70ish degree weather and a long weekend. MA residents have this crazy Monday holiday called Patriot's Day. No school and Marathon Monday! So I had a nice 5 day weekend and only two days of school this week. Hopefully I can get some work done since finals start next week. Anyways here is a brief update on my life.

Saturday I went to the Boston Beer Summit - learned a lot, got to try a lot of beer, and won some cool prizes, stickers, pint glasses, shirts, etc. I'm such a college student - free stuff and I am there.

Sunday was Bentley's Senior Club night, we went to Club Felt in downtown Boston and I had a great time. Danced for like 4 hours. And I wore a new dress (shocking) and got a lot of compliments. The down side was I decided it would be a good idea to lift Sunday morning, in which I did lunges and squats add that to the high heels and dancing that night - my legs are now killing me! Oh well. I'll live.

Here are some updates about graduation:

1. I'm speaking at my church on Sunday for Senior Recognition's "Cloud of Witnesses." I wrote out my speech on Thursday night and will post it up after my talk - my roommates read my blog and I don't want to spoil it.
2. I am getting a Service Learning Award thing (120+ hours of community service) for graduation. I still have to update my hours, write my final journal entry, and final paper for this.
   
3. I am also getting a Bentley Civil Leadership Award thing at graduation too. Thus I need to write a 3-5 page paper about my experience here for the past four years.
4. I still have to finish up my 5 classes so I can actually graduate. Crazy!
5. Plus, I have to pack up and move and prepare for my cross country road trip with my dad.
6. And I have to get ready for the Bahamas - I leave in like a week and a half.

That is basically my crazy life. I could go on longer - but I don't want to bore you or sound like I'm complaining. I love working under pressure.

Free Book

Yesterday in my Marketing and Social Media class we had a guest speaker, Mike Proulx, VP of Social Media at Digital Influence Group, who talked to us about what real marketing companies are doing with social media. This gives me hope that I can find a job I will love. Another important thing is that he gave our entire class copies of his boss' book "Marketing to the Social Web: How Digital Customer Communities Build Your Business" by Larry Weber. Can't wait to start reading it. However, this will probably not happen until my road trip. But if you have read it or want to borrow it from me later. Let me know.

Religion Paper Update

I am writing a paper on religion for my managing diversity class. I had to interview one person from my religion, my roommate Jackie, and one person from a different religion, my friend Shekib who is Muslim.

One of the paper's questions is: What did you learn about yourself, related to diversity (from both your self-interview and your conversations)? This is what I came up with:

"While doing this assignment I became very aware of all the messages I have acquired over the years from my church, my friends, and my community. I was really surprised at the number of messages I had acquired compared to those that Jackie and Shekib had heard. While interviewing them, I shared what I had learned during my self interview and they seemed to be surprised as well. I began to wonder why I had received more messages than my interviewees and my conclusion is that this was because I had spent so much of my middle and high school years in the church. Not only did I go to church on Sundays, but I went to the student church service, Bible study, camps, mission trips, and was a leader in my church. Through these experiences I was exposed to so much more aspects of religion, aside from the Bible, I was taught what my church believes a good Christian woman is above reproach. Not until doing this assignment did I come to this heightened sense of awareness."

Thoughts?

It Never Gets Old

Amusing thought for the day. So the Bentley pool, where I have been lifeguarding at for four years now, ladies locker room just got a make over. One of the new installations is a machines that almost completely dries your wet swim suit. Most "nicer" gyms have this little contraption. You put a wet swim suit in. Hold down the lid, there is a bit of rumbling and then 10 seconds later - Wa-la! Dry suit! The wrung out water falls out of the machine into a little bucket at the bottom. I usually sit there and watch the water fall out in complete awe. But this morning I was walking into work and this old lady (around grandmother age) was watching the fall into the bucket and she dried her suit! I love it. No matter how old you get the simplest things still amuse us!

What amuses you?

The Last Lecture

Today was RA Appreciation Day. So I woke up to a balloon tied to my door. My RD, Erin, made a delicious dinner for our staff. At the end of our RA meeting, Erin showed us a video called The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch, a Carnegie Mellon professor who is dying of pancreatic cancer. It was a really moving lecture and I thought you guys would enjoy it. Please take a couple of minutes, watch the video, and let me know what you think.

Twitter

I was thinking I should post my twitter account info here so that people could fine me easier. I plan on using Twitter a lot for my cross country road trip with my dad since I doubt I will have internet access most of the time. Let me know what you think. Or if you have Twitter so I can follow you!

My Twitter Page!

19 Classes Left

My friend pointed out today that I only have 19 class left in my collegiate career. Grad school anyone?

Breakfast:

• 2 pieces of whole wheat toast with hummus and cucumbers
• 1/2 grapefruit
• bowl of Life cereal (I should have skipped this)
  
• 1 glass of water
• 1 glass of apple juice
  

Weekend Update

This weekend was pretty busy:

• Thursday I worked all night
• Friday I was on duty and had a friend who graduated last year sleep over
• Saturday I went to Sam Adams and did their brewery tour with some friends!
• Sunday I chopped off all my hair again - back to the old school high school pixie cut which I love. I don't think my rather conservative business school friends will like it. But I LOVE IT!

I decided last night I need to start keeping a food journal to keep track of the foods I'm eating. In hopes of becoming more healthy. I'll try to keep you guys posted on how that goes. Today I eat:

• 1 small, Currito Soy Smoothie, with mangoes instead of strawberries
• Couscous w/veggie mix of carrots, bell peppers, garbanzo beans, and pine nuts
• Turkey wheat wrap with lettuce, tomatoes and pickles

I'm trying to drink more water and keep better track of what I do for excersize. Today I:

• did an ab workout
• swam for an hour
  

Unmotivated

Feeling a bit unmotivated today.

1. It could be because I did not get that much sleep last night due to a sleep over party with my friend Jade. Whenever her boy friend is gone she sleeps over. She called me "her full time friend and part time lover". I just enjoy the company.
   
2. It could be because my knee is hurting - not really sure why that is. But it is definitely swollen though.
3. It could be because it is super warm and sunny out right now. (I'm currently sitting on a picnic table attempting to do work).
   
4. It could be because I'm two weeks away from being done with school and have senioritis... most likely.

I do have some work to do. However, it is simple everyday homework, so I'm not ready to do it just yet.

I have 9 minutes to kill before I need to get back to work. I'm working a lot today - surprised? 10AM - 2PM - lifeguarding, 3:30-4:30PM - lifeguarding, [dinner meeting @ 5PM], 7PM-1AM event staff. But it's good cause I'm poor and need to pay the bills.

I'm going to try and do what Kristin and Traci do, write a long list of things I'm thinking about:

• I need lotion for my legs
• I need a nap
• I need a haircut
• I love the sun
• I love flip flops
• I need to buy more flip flops
• I love my friends who still call/email with me even though I'm 3,000 miles away
• I hope I can do a roadtrip with BK this summer to her new home
• I hope Jade figures out her life
• I'm excited to go to Beer Summit next weekend
• I should be doing work
• I wonder what will happen after this summer
• I should care more about what happens
• Every time I watch trees sway it reminds me of Phenomenon - it really is relaxing
• I should work out more
• But my knee hurts
• I'm sad my softball team lost last night
• I wish Traci could come visit
• But I'm excited that we might have future baseball plan

Not very exciting stuff. I'll try harder next time. Back to work!

God Knows

God knows when you need a little personal pick-me-up. He knows that I really needed one today after a rough weekend and little sleep last night. It came in the form of a long time best friend and older brother, Jon Grotz (the one on the right), whom I haven't spoken to in a couple of months. He made my day today and put me in a mood way better than I ever expected to be in today.

What God is Teaching Me This Week

I've been spending a lot of time reflecting on my life, due to some unusual circumstances that have arose. Long story. But here is what God has revealed to me this week:

1. I really need to work on loving myself more. I had a long Google chat conversation with my friend Traci and while I will be the first one to admit I have huge issues with love. She really opened my eyes to the fact that I need to work on loving myself better. I've already forgiven myself for stuff in the past, now I need to work on acting like I love myself. I need to work on treating myself better:

• Not overworking myself at the gym
• Eating healthier
• XXXXXXXX XXX XXXXXX XX XXXXXXXXXX X XXX XX XX XXXX
  

1. The second thing I've learned this week is that I really need to work on remembering to call upon and rely on God's power and strength when I'm going through harder times in my life. I did pretty good this week - but there is definitely room for improvement.
   

Diversity Identity Paper Assignment: Religion

I'm taking a managing diversity class and we have to write a paper on diversity identity on a topic of our choice (race, sexual orientation, nationality or religion). I'm choosing religion, since it is something that is a huge part of my life. I have to interview myself, which is weird, a friend who shares the same religion as I do, (future shout out to Jackie, my roommate, for letting me interview her) and my friend and fellow RA Shekib, who is Muslim.

I'm currently working on the personal interview and some of the questions are interesting to answer, because, for the most part, my time here at Bentley I have felt like the only practicing "real/good" Christian among my friends. So I wonder how my professors are going to take to reading my paper. The way it is structured it seems as though they assume you were born into your religion. Which I wasn't, so that is slightly odd for me to write from that perspective (although I can see how you are born into other things like race).

There was another question that was interesting to me: How would you describe the current climate in the setting you share in relation to you religion? What does that mean? I wrote, "good, a little worried for what God has in store for me after graduation." However, I do not feel as though that is a collegiate paper response.

Just my thoughts for now...

6 Weeks And Counting...

Just thought I would make a quick little post. My life is so crazy right now with school work, work work, friends (and drama) that is hard to find time to actually post thoughtful and insightful stuff. I am having a hard enough time finding time to stop and process my life as it. Not to mention writing about it. Although, on the graduation front this week I received:

1. My first alumni newsletter - that was shocking, I'm not yet out the door and they are already sending me stuff about my Year 0 reunion in October....
2. My paperwork for my cap and gown

Interesting life stuff has come up the past week. If anyone is really interested call me. I don't think I'm ready to actually post it up here yet.

LinkedIn

Haven't posted in awhile. Been caught up catching up on homework and working a three day celebration of the inagoration of our 7th president here at Bentley. Kirk's visit was very insightful. While I loved spending time with him, I also became aware how separate we are from one another, and how much we are still healing from our parents separation (although in very different ways). But it was great to see him. We had a blast going to basketball games and just hanging out on campus.

Side comment. Does anyone use Twitter or LinkedIn?

Kirk is Coming Today!

My "little" brother, Kirk, is coming to visit me for his Spring Break. I say "little" because as many of you know he is over a foot and a half taller than me. However, I am three years older than him. I'm super excited to have him visiting. Hopefully, he will get a better idea about what college is and have some fun. He seems to be struggling (as I think a lot of freshman do) so please pray for him. Here is our agenda for the week.

Saturday: Hang out/dinner.
Sunday: Celebrate Easter and my mom's sister's (Auntie M) house with her family.
Monday: Go to the Celtics v. 76ers game with my two friends Dave and Adrian.
Tuesday: Nothing "fun" planned. I need to work on that.
Wednesday: Go to Springfield, MA (1.5 hours away) to watch Bentley play in the NCAA Division II Elite Eight Game.
Thursday: Kirk heads back home in the AM.

How Blogging Has Hepled In Africa

First of all I finally figured out how to add a title. Hopefully, that will make things more easier. Second, I posted this blog for my MK 402 class, but loved it so much that I decided to post it here as well since most of you guys are interested in humanitarian work. I encourage all of you to check out all the links within this article - very cool stuff happening in our world.

I found that Israel’s article “A Talk on Kenyan Violence, Hope, and Social Media” to be very interesting. Not only does it talk about international social media, but as how social media is helping NGOs. Something we have been spending a lot of time in class discussing. In this article, Israel interviews Erik Hersman, an American who grew up as a missionary kid in Sudan and Kenya. Hersman works as an application developer and web consultant at Zungu. More importantly, I believe, for this article and humanitarian efforts globally, he was the principle developer of Ushahidi, a history-makin wiki that allowed Kenyans to generate geographic information on where violence was occurring in their county. Ushahidi, meaning “witness” in Swahili, was created after a blog post by Ory Okolloh, who stated how useful it would be to have a citizen-generated report of the violence in Kenya, since normal news sources were not report all that was going on. Kenyans can send in reports via SMS, email, or through the website and they are plotted on the map. Additionally, images, video links, and additional information can be added to the system. All the information first goes through a verification process, conducted by volunteers at Ushahidi. I believe that the most important aspect of Ushahdi is that it has created a new type of website within the humanitarian sphere for crisis events. Kenyans and NGOs are hoping to duplicate this type of tool in other areas of the world that are dealing which crisis.

Other things Israel and Hersman discussed was the role of social media during the violence. Hersman mentioned how Juliana Rotich used Twitter, Flickr, and her blog to keep everyone in Kenyan updated. Other bloggers, including Ory Okolloh, Daudi Were and Joseph Karoki, provided the service of keeping the world updated with images and news.

While Africans struggle with producing decent websites, social media is helping them in two ways, one, it allows individuals to circumvent ineffective government and social regulations. And two, it allows companies a chance to leapfrog past their competitors who are unaware of the feedback loop provided by social media. As for international companies who want to do business in Africa, social media helps them monitor information through blogs and old-fashioned message boards. Additionally, organizations are contacting African bloggers, who are experts in a particular field, for direct input on specific issues. (This sounds a lot like the same stuff that is happening globally).

Additional social media sites in Africa include: Afrigator, Mzalendo, Muti, and Mxit.

I found this article to be very interesting. The only way would have improved it was maybe by adding specific facts about social media in Africa. How many bloggers there are? How many cellphone users are in Africa? How many internet cafes? I think Ushahidi sounds like a great program and I would love to hear more about it and how it will be used in a different place in the world for dispensing information about a crisis. As someone who is thinking about going into the Peace Corp, or planning on working with NGOs at some point in my life. Information about bloggers and crisis assistances would be extremely important for not only me, but my family living in the States to be able to track where I am in regards to crisis.

Has this ever happened to you? I had a phone conversation with someone who I used to consider my best friend and brother. But our lives are at completely different places and our futures aren't very certain. And as I hung up the phone, I realized, that this was probably the last time I would talk to this kid again. Strangely enough, I wasn't upset. I don't know which is worse, knowing I probably won't talk to him again or not feeling bad about it. Anyways, has anyone else experienced this, or part of it? Let me know.

I was tagged (by default - but whatever)! Teehee!

A. The rules of the game are posted at the beginning.

B. Each player answers the questions about themselves.

C. At the end of the post, the player then tags 5 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know that they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

What was I doing 10 years ago?

• I was a 6th grader at Meadow Park Middle School
• Figuring out what it was to be a Middle Schooler
  
• In "A" Hall - the Spanish Immersion Program
• Playing Rec. Soccer
• Staring in Meadow's "Becomes a Rose" Play
• Starting to get involved at Sunset Pres.
  

4 Things on my To Do List today:

• Finish being in this class
• Maybe skipping out and going to the Men's Bball Finals - Go FALCONS!
• RA meeting (and I'm doing a culture share)
• Study a bit for my two finals tomorrow
• Attempt to get a lot of sleep so I can handle my two finals tomorrow
  

Snacks I Enjoy:

• Chips and salsa
• 10 cent wings
• Trail mix
• Popcorn

Things I would do if I were a Billionaire:

• Save/Invest
• Pay back my parents
  
• Travel around the world
• Then go back to school
• Support some charities that I enjoy, Nike Foundation, Habitat For Humanity, etc.
  

3 of my Bad Habits:

• Swearing
• Being OCD about petty things
• Watching TV instead of sleeping/reading
  

5 places I have lived:

• Portsmouth, NH
• Beaverton, OR - Joscelyn St.
• Beaverton, OR - Kevin Ct.
• Waltham, MA (2 different dorms, 4 different rooms in 4 years)
  

5 Jobs I have had:

• THPRD Lifeguard
• Nike Global Womens Fitness Intern
• OIA Global Logistics Marketing Intern
• Orphans Overseas Summer Intern
• Bentley College Resident Assitant
  

People I am tagging: Carrie, Traci, and then LOCC's blog

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I went to South Boston "Southie" yesterday to watch the annual parade and had a blast hanging out. I've never done it before and since it's my last year (more like last couple of months) here in Boston I thought I should go check it out. Some of the highlights include:

• watching people wait 20 minutes to get into a liquor store because the shops were at capacity
• there was a whole Star Wars section in the parade - I'm not sure what Star Wars has to do with being Irish or St. Patrick's Day but it definitely made my day!

I also attended Palm Sunday service. Started getting me in the mood for Easter. I finally figured out how the make crosses out of palms, which was interesting. I made a couple during the day for some friends as well.

I've been really struggling to read my Bible the last couple of weeks. I feel like it is more of a chore than anything. However, last night I decided to read all four "Triumphant Entries" from Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. And came across one of my all time favorite Bible verses: "I tell you, he replied, if I keep quiet, the stones will cry out." Luke 19:40. I think I need to focus on that more throughout my daily life. Good verse to keep by my heart during Holy Week.

Spring Break: Update! This picture is from Xcaret Park (see below).

I'm back from Spring Break - very relaxed and tan. I want to do a couple of blogs but here is the general overall one. Things I need to talk more about:

How much I hate American Airlines

And thus barely made the cruise - the boat left at 4PM - we got there at 3:48 (they had to re-open the gate to let us on)

Reading Naked Conversations by Shel Israel and Robert Scobl
I also finished Grendel by John Gardner (which I was supposed to read two weeks ago...)

Going to Xcaret

Swimming with Stingrays in Grand Cayman

I'm also very curious to hear what other people did/are doing for their Spring Breaks? What about after college - are they just called vacations? I don't know what I am going to do. I'm already planning post-college vacations!

I'm back! And tired. Will write more details tomorrow or Sunday. Enjoy this picture of Julie and I hanging out with a sting ray.

Spring Break:

Tomorrow starts my Spring Break journey. However, first I am going to attend NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Championship - NE -10! Which is taking place here at Bentley - and Bentley is set to win! GO FALCONS! Then:

1. I'm driving to Manchester, NH to meet up with Julie, my fellow Spring Breaker.
2. Take a Greyhound bus from Hartford, CT to NYC at 12:30 AM.
3. Taxi to the airport.
4. Airplane to Miami.
5. Taxi to the port!
6. RELAX for the next 5 days!

Please pray for me and my friend Julie, for safe travels and a fun time. I also tend to get wicked anxious right before I fly so please pray especially for that.

My goals for Spring Break:

• Catch up on sleep!
• Read my book for class
• Fun read
• Hang out with Julie
• Get a good tan
• Have fun exciting adventures
• Meet some cool new kids
  

I haven't been in the mood to blog for awhile now. Which is weird. I usually have tons of stuff I want to get out there. However, I've been working a lot AND been trying to get ahead of my school work so I can really enjoy my spring break. Which started yesterday! But I do have a couple of announcements:

1. My younger brother, Kirk, might come to visit me for his spring break (in like two weeks)!
2. My senior portraits arrived today! Graduation is getting closer. I have wallet sized photos if anyone wants any - let me know.
3. My spring break cruise is so close, yet so far. I head down to CT on Saturday then leave really early Sunday morning.

Today, my goal is to get ahead in 3 classes (I've done 2 so far!) And get my laundry done. I am also working 4 hours today, driving students t0/from Service Learning, getting my car oil changed, watching Bentley play in the NE-10s semifinals, and attending Senior Pub Night. Busy girl I know!

Also, today my best friend, Beckie Kruse, is supposed to find out if she got a GA position and University of Florida. Her number one pick for grad school. She already got an offer from Auburn (her number 2), which isn't that bad. But she would still rather go to Florida. So keep her in your prayers.

Please pray for:










My mouth (more importantly - my tongue and my mind to control my thoughts and thus my tongue as well).

I don't like that I:

• Swear
• Exaggerate
  
• Belittle people
• Brag

Instead I want my mouth to only:

• Encourage
• Give blessings
  

Unproductive Day:

Elan would be proud of me. Here was the break down of my day:

1. Woke up at 12 noon. I was supposed to work at 10AM at the pool, but I was on duty (RA thing) and didn't get to bed until 3AM and completely spaced on setting my alarm.
2. Ran errands with my friend Jade and went tanning.
3. Went to Harpoon Brewery to celebrate my friend, Ally's, bday. Got drunk at 2PM because I hadn't eaten anything since yesterday afternoon. But had a great time hanging out with friends and joking. I guess I should review the beer. I'm having a lot of fun trying out different breweries and learning about beer. To me it's almost the same as wine tasting. Anyways, here is what I tried (in order):
4. Harpoon Ale
   
5. Hibernian Ale (Seasonal)
6. Harpoon Cider
7. 100 Barrel Series (Cast) - #22 Steve Stewart's Firth of Forth Ale
8. UFO Raspberry Hefeweizen
9. Took a 2 hour nap 4:30-6:30PM.
10. Grabbed dinner with my friend, Claire, who I went to Greece with last Spring Break and studied abroad last semester so it was good to catch up with her.
11. Am now working at the pub - which is completely dead, due to the fact that tonight is the Bentley Ball - thus I'm writing this slightly pointless blog about my day. Will probably go watch my friends do a case race later tonight.
12. Then attempt to fall asleep at a decent time.

I hope everyone was slightly more productive than I was today. But had a good time as well.

Review of the Greg Mortenson:

Wow! This man's life is amazing. From growing up in Africa, attempting to climb K2, to building schools and promoting peace in Pakistan and Afghanistan. What I loved most about his lecture is how much he focused on educating girls. He shared an old African proverb that states: "If you educate a boy, you educate an individual. If you educate a girl you educate a community." This really spoke to me because at some point in my future career I want to work with girls in 3rd world countries. It is a passion of mine that I have yet to officially discover (aka I've never done it before but I believe that is why God put me on this planet). I have the entire lecture on my computer. However, I can't figure out how to post it. So if you would like it I can email it out. Just let me know. I also got a signed copy of his book "Three Cups of Tea". I can't wait to read it on my Spring Break trip (I officially bought my plane ticket tonight!)

Road Trip Update:

Got another place for my list. Four corners!

The Navajo Nation cordially welcomes you to one of our most unique landmarks - The Four Corners. This is the only place in the United States where four states intersect at one point: Arizona, New Mexico, Utah and Colorado. This location is very remote as you will experience when visiting.

Anyone been there? Any more suggestions?

MoNdOtEk - aLiVe (Vidéo Clip TeCkToNiK)

Something I need to learn how to do the next time I'm bored.

It's Official:

Spring Break will be spent with one Miss Julie Mantius on Norwegian Cruise Line on a 5 day cruise from Miami to Cozumel, Mexico to Georgetown, Cayman Islands!

More details to come - but for now, Lost and bed are calling my name. Busy day tomorrow!

Things I need to Do (not in any real order):

• Buy a water bra (cleavage = free drinks ;)
• Go tanning
• Order new charms for my flags bracelet
• Pack
• Figure out plan tickets
• Figure out excursion
  

Wikipedia Timelapse - VT Massacre

Cool little clip that shows the time lapse breakdown of Wikipedia's Virgina Tech Massacre page.

For Extra Credit Today:

I went to a lecture by Gerald C. Kane on "Knowledge Management in a Web 2.0 World: Wikipedia and the Virgina Tech Massacre." I learned some really interesting stuff. Including:

• The NY Times stated the article was better written than their articles on the event (and this was done by 2,652 contributors)
• Wikipedia is run by 7 employees and operates on less than $1.5 million - yet it is the 5th (I believe) most visited site on the web
• The 5th highest rated editor on wikipedia is "WhisperToMe" and he is a 15 year old high school student
• The VT Massacre page is the 3rd most vandalized article on Wikipedia (after Germany and Cannabis)
• Wikipedia has "bots" that automatically fix most problems caused by vandals such as swearing, !!!, CAPS, and completely deleting a page
  
• Overall motivations why people write on wikipedia are:
1. Emotional motivations: way of coping with the tragedy (VT example)
2. Psychological motivations: Many contributors suffer from Asperger's Syndrome
3. Ideological motivations: single-issue editors (gun control for example)

See the video above to check out the break down of the creation of the actual article. Pretty cool.

Spring Awakening (The Review)

First off, it was AMAZING!

Second, it was very provocative (a teen age boy motorboats his piano teacher and they actually simulate sex on stage - bear butt and all - a lot of swearing too!)

Third, I loved it! I loved the songs! I loved the story!

Oh the story, I can finally tell you what it is about because I've actually seen it now. Taking place in the 1890's in Germany its about a group of young teenagers who parents refuse to believe they are growing up and tell them about the birds and the bees. Left up to questioning, researching, explaining, and experimenting. Each of the kids ends up in different places, reformatory, dead, pregnant, living among gypsies, etc. Brilliant! The play deals with aspects of abuse, finding one's self, sexuality, love, abortion, masterbation, and suicide. There were some funny scenes, sad scenes and definitely a couple awkward growing up scenes. Here is the wikipedia description (warning spoilers).

Overall a very good first ever Broadway show pick.

Graduation Announcements/Senior Portraits

I meant to write this on Friday but I was trying to beat a snow storm in MA to get to CT...but...
I BOUGHT MY GRADUATION ANNOUNCEMENTS AND SENIOR PORTRAITS!!!

I am so excited, can't you tell? After my graduation, I am going to have a mini party with my family and extended family here before my cross country road trip. (Don't worry I am going to have a real one in Oregon that you are all invited to). I'm so close to being DONE it's not even funny!

More to post about my Broadway adventures... LATER!

Spring Awakening!

This weekend, my friend Julie and I are going to NYC to see the Broadway Musical Spring Awakening! I'm super excited. I have never seen a Broadway play before so I'm ubber pumped. This ties into the whole "doing-everything-I-said-I-would-do-on-the-East-Coast" theme. I'm just making up for lost time. Anything else I should add to this list?

Like I posted a couple of days ago, Paul Gillin spoke to my class today. Check out his blog - he actually wrote about us! If anyone wants to borrow the book he wrote, the New Influencers, let me know I have a copy you can borrow. Pretty interesting stuff. He encouraged us to learn the program Twitter. Does anyone use that? He also talked about using Google's Ad Sense to make some extra money. I'm debating putting in the LOCC blog to see how it works. I don' t think it really pertains to my blog. He also liked my definition of a "hi-hall-friend." Does anyone else use that term or is it just me? Another cool thing, I checked out Gillin's blog today and he was writing about Shel Israel, the social media blogger I am following for class. It's crazy how interconnected this all is. Yup, I know, I'm a dork.

Bible Study Ideas?

I'm looking for a new book of the Bible to start reading. I started reading Psalms a couple of months ago and just finished. I really enjoyed it because it constantly reminds me to praise God. I also read Amos (short) and did some research into Job, for a Bible study I am involved with on campus, but more for research rather than personal growth and I've read it a couple of times already. So basically, I need something new. Any suggestions? Anyone want to join me?

On that same note, Tuesday, February 26th, Greg Mortenson will be speaking at our school. He is the author of Three Cups of Tea. Since our campus' Spiritual Life Center is hosting the event I have been asked to help out and escort Mr. Mortenson around campus. So if you have any questions you would like me to ask him please let me know.

Melinda Groth already wants me to ask him:
If he feels an the impact on his work, since Bhutto was assassinated last month?

Paul Gillin, who wrote the book The New Influencers, is speaking to my class next Tuesday. So if anyone wants me to ask him any questions let me know. He writes about new social media, which relates to my MK 402 - Marketing and New Social Media class. Pretty interesting stuff!

Grown Up Make Believe:

I wonder, do adults still day dream about make believe? If so, of what? If not, when did they stop? And why? I feel like I'm never going to stop day dreaming or making believing.

Since I have no Thursday or Friday classes I have a 4 day weekend all semester long, which gets even better when you have Monday off for President's Day. Yup, you got it 5 day weekend. I decided I would go visit my grandmother who lives on Cape Cod in a wonderful beach house (although it is freezing here) to get off campus and spend some quality time with her since I haven't seen her since Sept. or Oct. Since she goes to bed around 10PM, and I don't fall asleep until 2AM, I found myself being very productive, but relaxed at the same time.

I can't wait until I'm like 35, married with kiddies, and have this wonderful, awesome job, where I can take a month off from work, come to the Cape to my grandparent's house (which I now own in my dreams) spend all day playing with my hubby and babies during the day, reliving my childhood through my kids and at night after movies and ice cream sundaes, stay up and super productive and get tons of work done. Now is this my own determination or just a grown up version of a day dream?

Road trip Update #1:
Basic Outline:
1. Fairfield, CT -> Topeka, KS = 1,311 miles
2. Topeka, KS -> Keystone, SD = 708 miles
3. Keystone, SD -> Grand Canyon, AZ = 1,060 miles
4. Grand Canyon, AZ -> Las Vegas, NV = 277 miles
5. Las Vegas, NV -> Beaverton, OR = 1,065 miles

We are leaving 5/18 and need to be in PDX by 5/27. My dad also wants to do 500 miles a day, thus we need to figure some things out. But hopefully everything will go well.

100 Days...

When I was in kindergarten we had a big celebration for our 100th day of kindergarten. We collected 100 pennies, 100 buttons, looked how far we could go taking 100 steps, etc. It was a pretty big deal let me tell you. Tonight is senior pub night (our school does this once a month) and the theme is 100 days until graduation. 100 days from today (including weekends), it will be May 17th and I be done with my continuous college education (I might do grad school at some point but not for a couple of years - thus the continuous part). So before heading to the bar to celebrate being so close to being done. I'm sitting here thinking back to how long 100 days was to me when I was 5 and how short 100 days seems now that I'm 21.

Lent:

So, Lent starts today. And my friend and I are going to give up swearing for the next 40 days (hopefully longer since it is such a bad habit - this will make my parents happier too). My friend and I agreed to be accountability partners (funny thing was I didn't even know she was religious and I bunked with her over doubles last winter for two weeks). But we are going to be praying for each other (more importantly our mouths for the next 40 days). And are joking that if either of us ever feel the urge to cuss we would call the other anytime and place.

I said, "I will watch my ways and keep my tongue from sin; I will put a muzzle on my mouth as long as the wicked are in my presence." - Psalm 39:1

Career Fair Tomorrow:

Tomorrow is Bentley's career fair. I'm going to go check it out see if I can get any leads for a job. What I'm looking for:
1. A marketing job (back up management job).
2. A job outside of New England (West Coast or International preferably)
3. Something non-profit (or Corporate Social Responsibility/Sustainability aka not driven by money but will make me feel like I'm actually making a difference in this world)

Things I need to do before hand:
1. Fix my resume
2. Update my Optimal Resume
3. Print out like 20 copies of my resume
4. Look over the list of companies so I can pin point who I want to talk too
5. Straighten my hair

Cross Country Roadtrip?

I really want to drive my car back to Oregon after I graduate. Can anyone say Cross Country Roadtrip? I'm starting to create a list of things I want to see. But I would really like to hear other people's suggestions. So share away!

The List Thus Far:
* Grand Canyon National Park - Arizona
* Las Vegas to see some Cirque Du Soleil shows and learn how to gamble (not a ton though)
* Topeka, Kansas - check out Dad's motorcycle that is getting redone
* Sturgis
* Mt. Rushmore
* Badlands
* Yellowstone
* Grand Tetons

God Moments vs. Impatience

I always feel like I need to work on praying more for guidance. I seem to struggle with that a lot internally. Maybe just cause it's in my nature to be very strong willed, impatient, driven, and I think that I have pretty good street smarts that makes me this way. But I have never been the one to stop and pray about what God wants me to do with anything, which classes I should take, what I should do with my life, who I should invest time with, etc. But them I feel like for most of my life, things just seem to fall into perfect place for me. My God moments I call them. Where things could not have a lined up so perfectly without His divine intervention. Not to mention I feel like God made me this way for a reason. Should I just go with it? I'm pretty sure most of those personality traits aren't sins and I like them for the most part. But I do know that God wants us to strive always for our best - so maybe I just need to improve on some of those things. I'm not sure. Just looking for thoughts or comments today. Should I just accept that God made me this way and our relationship is pretty strong, and I love and respect His "God moments" in my life. Or should I start spending more time in prayer asking Him what He wants me to do - rather just going with the flow that is my nature?

Changing my Major:

So I'm officially on my way to changing my major. Technically I'm double majoring - but the school doesn't give out double majors, but I can prove I've taken 24 credits of marketing and 24 credits of management. So whatever. I just added into my 5th class, but its on Tuesday nights so I still have Thursday and Friday off. Tomorrow I am meeting with the management minor chair to change my management major to a minor. Then on Wed. I am meeting with the marketing major chair to change my marketing minor to my major. Crazy, crazy life I live - I know. But what else would you except from Jenna?

MLK Celebration

This morning I had the opportunity to hear Morris Dees speak at my school in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. This guys is pretty amazing. He is known for his dedication to suing hate groups and discrimination controversial cases. Because of his line of work he has become a target for criticism for many of these organizations, receiving death threats and strong accusations against him. There are currently over 30 people in jail in connection with plots to kill Des or blow up his Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC). All in all a great honor to hear him speak and he was an amazing speaker. He talks about all hate crimes, not just those involving race, but also religion and sexual orientation. He also talked a lot about the Bible - which I found interesting (I need to do some more research on the prophet Amos now). And also compared the 40 years since MLK, Jr's death to that of the 40 years the Israelites spent in the desert waiting to cross into the Promise Land.

Changing My Major

Yes, I do know I'm a second semester senior. Yes, I do know it is incredibly last minute. Yes, I know it might not work out. But I was looking over my DAS (degree audit summary) on Friday and realized I have taken 24 credits of management courses (current major) and 24 credits of marketing courses (something I realized I am way more passionate about). So hopefully I can either change my major or double major. I'm not sure, but I have a meeting with my academic adviser tomorrow at 1:30PM to find out. I think I'll be able to do more with a marketing major than just a plain management one. But I do know that it is incredibly last minute so I know it might not work out, which is fine with me. But I am going to try. Would you expect anything less of me?

On a side note, MK 402 class we have to follow a blogger who write about social media and write about them on our classes newly created blog: http://marketingandnewsocialmedia.blogspot.com/

And my blogger, Shel Israel actually wrote on my blog and we have been emailing back and forth. Which is incredibly cool (or at least I think so). Or I'm the biggest nerd ever.

Okay - so my roommates found a copy of Juno online so we had a bonding experience watching this movie. (Not that I condone illegal downloading - but it is really convenient. And I'm poor, and I hate movie theatres (that is for another blog)). Plus, I was on duty and I couldn't leave the building. Anyways, the movie is really cute. The lingo is fun and funky and easy to follow if you are a hipster.

Juno MacGuff: Oh, and she inexplicably mails me a cactus every Valentine's Day. And I'm like, "Thanks a heap coyote ugly. This cactus-gram stings even worse than your abandonment."

For example.

I dunno, maybe I'm just super emotional about teen age pregnancy/babies from spending a summer working with teen age mothers and/or ex-boyfriend's previous (aka NOT me) relationship ending due to a pregnancy. But these types of movies always make me tear up (okay - so the only other movie like this I've seen in Saved - but I cried in that movie too and I AM NOT A CRIER and I teared up in this movie). Either way - the movie was great. I loved it - will probably get it on DVD when it comes out. Which BTW, Across the Universe comes out on DVD Feb. 5th. Hello early Valentine's Day present to myself. So if you like cute, witty, finding yourself movies (ie, Donnie Darko, Garden State, and Empire Record) chances are you are going to like this one too.

Last semester of college.

It's official. Tomorrow, Tuesday, January 22nd. I start my last semester of my college career. Crazy huh? I think it is slowly seeping in. Although I do need to get up early tomorrow morning and go to the Registrar's Office to find out a couple of things:

1) Why I can't register for my 4th class - long story I can't add my 4th class (which makes me a full time student and thus a RA and can stay on my dad's insurance) because of a financial hold on my record - however, there is no financial hold on my record - confusing huh?
2) When I become a full time student I need to get the paperwork confirming this for my mom to send to my dad's insurance company so I can still get benefits.
3) Figure out if the Registrar's Office actually figure out that little jinx in my Marketing Minor - I talked to the Academic Center and they told me it was nothing to worry about and I'm all set to graduate on time. Yeah for being an overachiever and double minoring. Causes problems left and right.
4) I need to actually sign up for my 4th class - I'm hoping to get into a class called LIT351 - Monsters and Madmen in Media - sounds interesting and fun. Plus, there are 6 books needed for the class that are all classics like Frankenstein - so I'm willing to invest the money into those books (and they are available used at the school bookstore for less that $10/book, which equals roughly a $60 class).

Other classes I am taking this semester:
* MG228 - Managing Diversity in the Workplace - sounds pretty simple - plus it is co-taught by a lady from Academic Services who used to be a RD (Resident Director) and she loves me.
* MK 402 - Marketing and the New Social Media - I believe we are studying about the affects of blogging, YouTube, Facebook, and MySpace have on the marketing world - pretty exciting stuff and it is taught by one of my favorite marketing professors, who had to pull some strings to get me into this class, which I really appreciate.
* NMSC 303 - Coastal Zone Management - taught at Brandies another school in Waltham, so that is exciting that I will get to meet other students from another school, and learn about the coastal ecosystem.

I also need to sign up for another Service Learning Project - I think I have about a week before that is due so I can get my Service Learning Certificate (120+ of community service in the 4 years I have been at Bentley).

I'll update you more on my classes as they come around. And how my attempts of getting things organized at the Registrar's Office goes.

Sorry - I know this is long. I have more things to add to this day. I went to the book store (anyone who has been to college know how much of a rip off this is) for the usual blowing of hundreds of dollars to find out at that a. MG 228 doesn't have a text book, and b. MK402 only has two books, but they aren't text books - they are actual best sellers that only cost $25/each and I would have probably bought them anyways - cause I'm a nerd like that.

And I got home from this exciting shopping trip to find an email from a student wanting to buy a boring textbook I posted online on ibeatmybookstore.com for $40 bucks. I only paid $60 so it seemed good since I wasn't going to EVER use that horrible textbook again.

Also, did I mention that I only have class Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday? Oh the life of a senior, 3 days of school, 4 days of weekend. I think I'm gonna get another (I already have 3) job. I need the money anyways.

Adventures in Key West
While overall I have a great time in Key West with Sam, we decided that Key West is the reminds us of Pleasure Island from Pinocchio. The place where all the boys go to drink, smoke, play pool, gamble and oh - turn into donkeys. Key West is everything that your parents tell you is bad, yet they do while there. There were no kids there, and we were probably some of the youngest people there.

Things we did:

• Snorkeling - saw a Nurse Shark, Barracudas, and Parrot Fish
• Scootering around the island
• Getting hit on/free drinks from older men
• Riding a trike around Duval street ending in an accident and Sam getting a "Trike Burn"
• Almost getting suckered in to joining a cult
• Tanning - A LOT
  
• Other unmentionable things - you will have to ask me about that personally
  

Other than the fact that I have no idea where I am going to be living post my May 17th graduation date. Here is my post-college apartment (house?) wish list. Just for fun and I will probably add to this as I get distracted constantly.

Post College Living Wish List:

• KitchenAid Stand Mixer - in ice (up for color change)
• Ultimate Sack - bean bag chair (the 6 footer one) in black or navy
• Cool Starbuck's Coffee/Tea maker (do those exist even?) - what ever is on sale when I graduate/move out
  

One thing I look forward to do after I graduating and moving out of my mother's house would be going to Goodwill/Ikea and getting a ton of really cool/funky bookshelves painting them and fixing them up then taking all my books out of my mom's attic and finally having a place for them. Sorry I'm in a reading craze this past week and I'm just totally pumped about that.

I am currently reading:

• Eclipse
• The Kite Runner
  
• Eat, Love, Pray
• Keeping Faith
• Eragon
  

I hate finals. They stress me out. I can't focus and they seem quiet pointless to me. Every semester I just want to get them over with and get home as fast as I can. It seems like everyone gets all stressed out and turn into walking zombies - which just makes me want to get out of here even faster. Plus we are being hit by snow storms - which makes me nervous about my flights home. But I know I just need to buckle down and get my work done. Lucky for me, I only have 2 more finals and 4 more days here in Boston until Jan. 17th!

Tomorrow/Today/Saturday I have, hopefully, an easy final. From 2-4PM, then a party celebrating at 10PM.

Sunday, I have to work from 4-6PM lifeguarding, hopefully writing my 4th credit, service learning paper on "How organizations, like the Boys and Girls Clubs of America, help assimilate international children to the American culture." Exciting I know. Then I was planning on going to my aunt's house to get a nice dinner, do some free laundry, and pick up the Christmas presents from her family for my family. But its supposed to snow all day - so I'm not sure if this will actually work out. I could always go Monday and just veg there while everyone is at work/school, or go and sleep over.

Monday is my roommates and I's OCD cleaning party. In which, our common room, kitchen, storage room, and bathroom will be cleaned for the break. And hopefully, I will be motivated to clean my actual room (and maybe start packing).

Tuesday is my study/packing day.

Wednesday, I have a final from 10AM-12PM. Then I'm leaving for the airport at 2PM to catch my 5PM flight home! AND I CAN NOT WAIT!

Thoughts on purity.

Today our pastor at my school's church was ill so I went to Catholic Mass. While everyone else was reciting some memorized quote that I had no idea about what I was bowing my head in prayer and I noticed a line across my right hand ring finger and that is when I had my most recent epiphany.

Friday, I decided to take off my promise ring because the stone is really loose and I don't want to loose it so I'm saving it until I get home for Christmas and can get it reset. I usually don't make a big deal about my own choices. But it seems to be a recent topic these days. I was really surprised that there was still a mark 2 days later. Granted I've had it on that finger for over two years, I guess that make sense. Now there are a whole bunch of metaphors I can make about this like purity is permanent and always there until you loose it. Stuff like that. But there are two recent events that were insightful to me.

One, over Thanksgiving break I attended a sex toy party with one of my friends. Which I wasn't sure how I was going to react. It was very educational and I got a lot of good, tasteful present ideas for my friends that are getting married. On the other hand, it was really uncomfortable and sad being there, there was like 6 other girls there (I was clearly the youngest and the only virgin) only one women was married and all the girls where there looking for ways to spice up their sex lives. These girls were 22-26 years old. I thought it was really sad to be that young and that bored with sex. I'm working on a new life goal of finding more joy in my life and I guess this is one thing I'm really joyful about. That I'm not bored of sex yet (granted you actually have to have sex first to get bored of it - but you get my point).

Second event, this week. A girl that I go to school with, had sex with one guy on Thursday night and another different guy on Friday night. While I'm not going to judge this girl, we do share a lot of friends and have spent most of the weekend being the listener of all of our shared friends comments about her decisions. Another thing I am joyful for, that my decisions not to have sex doesn't lead to public discussions and insights.

That is all for now.