Dre the Champion of Romance!!

Have you ever read an article and paper/ anything that states an opinion and while reading it you are formulating the counter argument?

this is an assigned reading I had for my Storytelling class this week. let me tell you--the first article "Explorations and Formulas" was too much for me to not write about. The weekly discussion topic had nothing (and I mean NOTHING) to do with this essay--rather it was the role of the women in the two following stories. However, this essay was too much for me to NOT mention something.

My mom runs a blog that reviews various romance novels so--I would say that while I am no expert I feel experienced enough to look at this and want to argue against it--

so here's what I wrote--

"Before I delve into the women characters that were portrayed in both stories .I’d wanted to talk about this formula fiction essay; specifically the formula fiction that was portrayed for romance novels. As someone who reads both classics and the romance novels published today—what I feel the writer of “Explorations and Formulas” did not realize is that there are always exceptions to the rules that the tip sheet formulated. My mother is a part of a romance novel community as a reviewer for various authors—the “Do not interject murder, extortion, international intrigue, horror or the supernatural elements in the plot” was the most shocking “rule” that I saw. Especially because some of the best sellers of romance are in fact ones that have the murder, or intrigue…so on and so forth—It is what keeps the book moving. While I understand that, yes,—some women are looking for the quick read (boy meets girl, girl leaves boy to sacrifice herself, boy saves girl, and they live happily ever after) however a lot of the authors that are popular or seen as “classics” or “must reads” in the romance fandom are actually stories that do have a plot that drives the romance forward. There are whole series of romance novels solely dedicated into creating a fantastical universe of political intrigue and great action scenes.

I’ll use one of my favorites for an example, J.R Ward has written multiple books based of the Black Dagger Brotherhood, these are books that you will find in the romance section, one of her most recent books ended with the heroine actually dying. It was with the hero’s mother’s great sacrifice that the heroine still exists as a mere ghost/projection. This is not the “and everyone lives happily ever after” ending—even in following books the guilt that the hero feels in failing his “beloved” is an ongoing theme in the next few books. Or another is the Historical romances Diana Gibaldon spends 3-4 books where everything is not “hunky dory-press-the-female-character-against-studly-scots-chest”. There is sacrifice, death and even some really great historical facts.

True there are many authors of books that do follow the formula to satisfy their readers—however on the flip side, I feel that there is an equal amount of authors who don’t care what their readers want—they are going to write whatever they feel is best for their characters or their story lines. As a writer I don’t want to take into account what someone else wants in my stories—I’m writing as an art form. No one ever told Picasso—“hey, why don’t you make Guernica look a bit more realistic.”

Katie MacAlister, a romance best seller, writes as Katie Maxwell for her Young Adult books and as Katie Marsh when writing mysteries—something that many romance authors have to do since being a “romance author” has become synonymous with poor literature.

Now that I’ve proclaimed myself the champion of Romance novels—let’s move on to the actual stories that we covered."

(from here I talked about the actual assignment--I totally had to get this off my chest and post it on my classes discussion board.)

SIMPLIFY IS GIVING AWAY A QUILT!

Thanks to my T-brenda, I have been getting into looking at designers of quilts--I'm now moving into "designers in general". One of my favorite quilt designers is Camille Roskelley from Thimble Blossoms.  On her Blog Simplify she is giving away a quilt of your choosing. :) pretty awesome huh?

This post get's me 3 more entries!! :D

--signing off

dre

VOTE!

This is  your friendly Dre-approved reminder to VOTE TOMORROW!!!

This year there has been an outpouring of registrants to get to the polls on November 4th. For what some people are saying is one of the most important elections in our history. However statistically speaking, according to historical data, only 40-60% of Americans who register to vote indeed vote. 

Do you know how many people in Iraq voted? 100% of the population able to vote in Iraq did. 

People always complain about the lines and "how long it takes". Women in a country where their children can be a casualty of war just by going to school one day, in a country that doesn't view them as equals came out and stood in lines that took hours--not minutes--HOURS! 

So everyone who has registered to vote--I'm telling you a day in advance so you can mark it in your schedule!!!--VOTE!

RECAP! :)

Isn't he so handsome? lol. So since the last time I've posted my mom has visited, I had the weekend of insanity that included Nova Academy, 2 banquets, an E-board meeting and a business meeting, and last week where I traversed back to New England for the scenery, my aunt's trip to Keene's Pumpkin Festival and My best friend/sister's 21st birthday.

While mom was here we sought out some colorful foliage (Texas doesn't get the shiny colored trees we get up here). Alas--this is what we got instead. It was great to show my mom around campus and introduce her to people and places that I have familiarized myself with since she last came (Brickcity--my Freshman year).

I also had the dreaded "Parent's Dinner" with Ryan and his folks. It went painless. We ate at Edoya--yummy! and for dessert sent the men folk out for something tasty--AKA Wegman's fruit tart pastry (note to self--get one for myself at a later date).

The picture at the top is one from Phi Sigma Pi's Banquet--it was our 10th Year aniversary so people went all out! We had delicious cake from Jon John's, a local rochester bakery that makes delicious goodies, and champagne during the toast. It was a great success and I commend our Alumni Committee and Social Committee for getting this all set up. (it was great guys!)
Here's a picture of my family line. :)The Day after PSP's Banquet I had the Orientation Assistants Reunion Banquet and got my 3 years of service pin. (GO ME!)

After a hellish weekend composed of 3 tests (uuuuuuggghhhh). I left for New England.

I went to Keene Pumpkin festival with both my Aunts, cousin and grandmother and saw these cool pumpkins!!!!

So after fabulous Pumpkin viewing these AWESOME pumpkins I traversed for an celebratory 21st drink at Midnight with Jessie.

(Happy Birthday girlie!)

--signing off for now
dre

CUPCAKES!!!

So I have a tendency to love all things crafty--perchance I get it from my mom and aunt--right? I found this little do dad in search of a new blog to check out. This is from the blog Portabello Pixie--check out the cool stuff she has!!! :)

Ok--now I'm gonna get all my pictures off my camera from the past 3 weeks--wish me luck!!! >.<

I've been tagged!!!! :D

So I just got back from an IRG (International Resource Group) Luncheon, where I gave a small presentation with 3 other College of Business Students about studying abroad. It was pretty great!

I'll post a blog later today about my weekend and what I have been up to since my last post. My mom reviews books on her blog. I was catching up with her when I realized that she "tagged" me to write 7 random things about myself. So, here it goes.

1. I am an introvert. I know that for someone that is so involved in the school community this sounds insane but after a long day of E-board meetings, classes, project meetings and networking I'm exhausted to the core of my being. I don't get energy from a group of people. I love meeting people and putting myself out there--but If you gave me the choice to spend a weekend alone reading good books with no human interaction or a weekend filled with friends parties and events--I'd go for the book reading in solitude. It's probably why my best friend and I get along so well.

2. While I love anime and going to conventions--I hate the fans. I realize that I was one of those people when I first got into anime but my tastes matured and so did the way I show my enjoyment. I go to anime cons in cosplay (damn good ones too!), but I'm not running around like a 2 year old on a bag of pixie sticks. And I am most definately not asking dumb questions to voice actors as if they were the legit 2D character. >.< I can not STAND some of the people that go to anime con who are older than me but act like 6 year old, "Oh my god! like, you like (insert pairing here) well I like (insert inverse pairing here) I totally hate you and, like, we can't be friends."

3. I love to write. Limericks help me pass the time. If you look at my note books or napkins you can discern how bored I was by the quantity of limericks or poems that are written there (You should look a handout my Japanese Culture teacher gave me in Japan--the popor thing never had a chance). Now I said I love writing--not that I was good at it. My writing is pretty raw and unrefined--I think it and I write it. I refuse to go back and fix anything. On this train of though it leads to my next one...

4. I'm doing NaNoWriMo in November. Wish me luck!!! :)

5. I will listen to anything--any genre of music has a good chance of being on my Ipod. I have filled my whole entire 16gig Ipod with audio books, rap, country, wizard rock, j-pop, j-rock, emo, hard rock, classic rock...and it goes on, and on.

6. I hibernate. While I'm sure many of you thought that this was only done by bears and other wildlife--I also participate in this. I hate hate HATE the cold. This is pretty weird since I lived in New England for most of my life, and I go to school in Rochester, NY (where hell has legitimately frozen over). I will disappear off the face of the social scene starting winter quarter and not ending till the middle of spring quarter. I show up for classes, and the occasional meeting--but if it involves me walking in cold temperatures I have a tendency to skip it.

7. I have never attended a wedding, or at least I don't remember attending one (I was told that I attended my uncle's 2nd wedding). This is funnier even now because I'm engaged and besides some basic knowledge that you learn from TLC's bridezillas and A wedding story--I don't know where to start. Last year Jessie and Eleanor walked me through the whole "wedding dates" and my head spun. @.@

That's it!!!

Request for "7 random things" is to Jessie's blog (Dazed and Confused) and Eleanor (Dammit Universe)


That's it!!

: D

So this is my with my boyfriend about 2 years ago at a friend's Christmas Party.

This is the beginning of Ryan and my fourth year of dating. We met on our dorm floor freshman year and since then we've been entertaining our near and dear ones with our banter. :)

Ryan and I are pretty much the opposite in every sense of the word. But for some reason we have always been able to get along really well.

Since I'm graduating this year-- and Ryan is a five year major. We've been discussing what to do. Never in these conversations was there a hint of engagements or getting married. It was more like--if I go to school here we could drive back and forth. Or--I'm in a semester system so I can visit during my breaks.

So imagine my surprise when Ryan and I made dinner Saturday evening and over dinner Ryan pulled this out. \/



Needless to say, I really couldn't think of a reason to say no.







Ryan despite his rough exterior--is really sweet with me (as my roommate/best friend/sister said to me once). And honestly--there was no one else I could imagine spending the rest of my life with. :)

I ,of course, had to get over the initial shock before Ryan asked if it was a yes. For the rest of the evening I spent my time staring at the ring and looking back at Ryan and going "Are you sure?" "Do you really know what this means?" "Are you crazy?" "You're crazy."

The rest of the evening was me telling my roommate/bestfriend/sister the news. I have never heard the phrase "Oh my gawd" used so repeatedly in a half hour.

The next day in celebration, Ryan and I went with some friends to Darien Lake Amusement Park.

It was Fright Fest so there was a Halloween theme to the whole place. (Did I mention Halloween is my favorite holiday?) After watching everyone go on The Predator (Rollercoasters aren't my thing) while everyone else went on the Ride of Steel(no way) Ryan took me to the pumpkin patch for some pumpkin painting. Guess which one belongs to me. :)

So after fun pumpkin painting and one of our friends loosing her cell to the Ride of Steel's pond. We continued through other rides. Now, I'm pretty much a wreck whenever I think about getting on a roller coaster. I'm always jealous of people who can get on them without having a panic attack in the line. I decided I'd try this roller coaster think one more time. So I found the tamest rollercoaster in the park. Called the Motocoaster (check it out here). I got on and now have a T-shirt. I'm still scared of rollercoasters--but I found one that I'm not THAT scared of. :) we played some games, got some tasty funnel cake (yum) and then for the closing events got to watch a great "Laser Spooktacular". It was a great ending to a pretty awesome weekend.

Next weekend is promising to be just as cool too! My mom is coming up for Brickcity Homecoming. WooHoo!!!

--extatic and signing off for now
dre :)

On another note. (haha I made a pun!)

I have been absolutely gushing over my mama mia! soundtrack but I have discovered a new artist!! I used ruckus to legally download her first album Rockferry. This is some serious study music. It's got enough of a beat that I tap my foot to it but not so distracting that I can't focus on what I'm doing in the first place. You definately have to check her out! This is my favorite song (go figure its the most popular).

In an effort to delay more studying and GMAT prep

So as I've been running around finishing up or preparing for midterms I have decided to give myself a break to post here. Although if you want more upto date info on what I'm doing follow me here. (yes, I'm addicted.)

Lately I have spent my waking hours studying for my GMAT (I'm focusing on math right now), taking midterms (damn you Weeks 4-5), and doing TONS of research on Grad Schools.

I initially thought that I was not going to be able to actually apply this year as I didn't think I would be ready to take the GMAT in time for all the rounds of application deadlines that I had to fulfill. However thanks to the awesome people in the McNair's Scholar's program I have gotten all the info and support to continue my education right after graduation. (Thanks guys!) .

So without further ado! here are my 5 choices. (in no particular order)

1. University of Texas at Autin-McComb's School of Business: I REALLLY like the instate tuition for this place. Not to mention they have this really interesting Double Degree MBA program that would let me get not only my UT MBA but also a MBA from another accredited school abroad. This means I could get an MBA at a University in China, Argentina....etc. Since I'm all about the international programs you know I was super excited to read about this! plus! beautiful weather all year round!

2. University of Virginia-Darden School of Business:
So I have always liked UVA. I actually applied to UVA when I was looking for a place to study my Undergrad (I was waitlisted). So UVA was a school that IMMEDIATELY came to when I started considering Grad Schools. IT helps that I can get an MBA and an MA in East Asian Studies at the same time--did I mention that the weather in Virginia has gotta be better that RIT temperatures?


3. Cornell University-Johnson Graduate School of Management
I have a few brothers up in Cornell who can only say good things about their lovely campus. Looking into the Business School tipped me off on to the AWESOME study aboard opportunities that are specifically business oriented--the best part is that it's over vacations that these are normally happening. I could go to Prague to look at the budding economy or even do a tour of South Korea and Japan. downside--I'm sure it has the possibility of being colder than RIT. :(


4. Massachusetts Institute of Technology- Sloan School of Management: Ok, so MIT kinda sold me on the fact that it's in BOSTON! :) I decided I should look more into schools where everything is accesible to me. RIT is kinda in the middle of nowhere. I want to be able to Bike to a museum or take a bus across town with little to no hassle. MIT's business School is one of the best in the country and I think I like the environment that Tech schools have a tendency to exude. :) They also have this G-lab program in the MBA that lets me do a project over seas with a company.

5. Georgetown-McDonough School of Business:

I'm a bit concerned about this school as I realize that I am "strongly recommended" to have 2 years of experience under my belt in order to be eligible for application. I visited this school about a year ago to see my step sister. She is in their undergrad program. I really like the location of Georgetown--the opportunities to network would be endless and I really like that. So far I haven't finished looking into it since I need to talk with someone from admissions about the "2 years work experience".



I'm thinking if Georgetown is a no go I will have to start all over to find a fifth school to apply for. :(

I can't believe that it's only Wednesday! It feels like the week should be over rather than only halfway through. >.<

I shall now return to my treacherous study session (I hate reading my text books!) But I shall return with tales of my late week/weekend adventures!!

--signing off for now!
dre

Just another tool to stalk people.

Check this out!!! I've been sitting at the lunch table watching my friend Mike use his twitter account. I remember hearing about this in my Internet Marketing and decided that since I have some friends in this network I might as well join too! I've now posted twice and I can forsee tons of future "micro-blog posts". ESPECIALLY, because I can text those babies in!!!

And now....to address the elephant in the room.

So the last time that I posted was a REALLLYYY long time ago. I apologize for the lack of posts. :( I will resume my weekly postings from now on.


<--Thanks to this baby.

I would like to mark the Ipod touch the best purchase I have made for this whole school year. since it is equipped with fabulous wifi and my campus is just one giant wireless area. I pretty much get all my emails quickly. My apps range from the absolutely useless (bubble wrap) to the increadibly awesome (google maps). Not to mention I will be able to post on my blog from it. :D this is pretty much my 16 gigs of heaven

October is on it's way and I can't wait for Halloween (my favorite holiday of all time!). You can see that it runs in the family if you read my Aunt's blog. She makes the coolest halloween quilts ever!!! :)

Now I'm off to class, studying for two midterms this week and getting interpreter for Winter Rush. :)

--signing off for now
dre

My Hearts Devotion! (Let it sink back in the ocean!--jk)

I got back from Puerto Rico last Monday after a quick trip to la isla with my mom, who had not been for the past 11 years!!

It was awesome (as usual) and eye opening. I didn't realize that my Mom, Dad, Step Mom, sisters, grandparents and aunt would equate to 10 people!! And that isn't counting my aunts and cousin on mom's side of the family!

I always liked thinking that I was blessed with the best of both worlds. When I'm with my dad I get to be with my sisters and be the "older sister" but when I'm with my mom I have the whole "only child" thing going for me (or not). Since I was mostly raised with my mother, I always though--my immediate family isn't that big. This is primarily because I have never seen my whole entire immediate family in one location.

So as I sat and had dinner with most of my family I realized just how crazy graduation was going to be (everyone is coming--yay!). And then along those lines I realized--OH MY GOODNESS!! I'M GRADUATING THIS YEAR! what on earth am I going to do?.

This is a question that if I had my way I would be putting answering it off till....let's say May 2009. >.<

As much stress normally ensues when this thought occurs I have decided to focus on more present issues...Orientation...Research...Rush. (I think I've gone cross eyed).

--signing off for now!--
dre

And I'm leaving on a jet plane!!

*bows* sorry for the lack of posting last week--I've been packing, running errands, and doing that tourist thing in Dallas.

I never realized how much stuff in general I was going to need for my up and coming study abroad to Japan. holy smokes! thank goodness I've been saving for this trip for the past two years or I don't think I'd have enough money to make it there in time!!

Anyways...there are a few things that I am thankful for and I would like to give them a round of applause.

Skype <-- I don't know under what rock I have been living under but I can't believe that I never used this before! for those who had no idea what Skype is take a look at their website This is what I am planning on using for communication while I'm in Japan--my skype name is ndrea.abreu

Airplane AC adapters <-- saving me from the insanity of a 12 hour and 55 minute flight

Awesome Texas Paraphanelia <-- I have been blessed with being from or identified by states that have an exceeding about of pride in their statehood (Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Texas) For my host family I was given the job of figuring out what to get them, It should be something regional and related to where you live (think of it as a souvenir from where you come from). I give this a round of applause because there was SO MUCH stuff that I could've gotten. I opted for a small horse shoe door hanger thing with the Texas flag on it and a sampler set of all Texas Barbecues. :)

My Wallet <-- it's really put up a good fight. I don't know about anyone else but I alway find that going on a trip big or small gives me an excuse to buy exorbitant amounts of things that at that moment I "need" >.< I've been very good about this so far. *deep breaths* there were some stressful times but I believe my wallet deserves a round of applause for surviving. -yay!-

Lists <-- of which I have many.


as for now I'm signing off of this blog and posting till I get back on this one this'll be my travel blog where I'll be posting pictures and cool things I've done so far. :) see ya there til July 29th!!!

--signing off for now--
dre

It's increadible what a a Walt Whitman class can do

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So...about 2 weeks ago my room mate took me aside and asked me a question I wasn't expecting her to ask.

"so....Dylan and I are gonna get married in about a week--can you be my witness/maid of honor?"

To give my room mate adn her fiancee now husband credit she really thought things through--I watched her and her fiancee go through the required motions of getting everything set up and organized as well as their planning for the future.

I personally would not be able to do this--but you need to know my roommate and her husband to understand that they are well capable of making this decision and probably making it work.

So yesterday they got married--I unfortunately could not attend but I found my replacement in the form of my best friend (thanks Jessie). I did however make a pretty wedding cake and the reception at B-dubs was a great reunion of my fraternity brothers to celebrate (to give them credit they were only moderately shocked at the news when I emailed then yesterday afternoon).

Congratulations Kristin and Dylan. :) hope the future is promising for both of you.

Rising Tied

I was initially introduced to Fort Minor through my best friend/sister who is a big fan of Mike Shinoda of Linkin Park (big fan is an understatement). I heard what she had and agreed that it was a great job. However I came across a few other songs that I liked from their Rising Tied album. I decided that 3 years after it's release I should take a look at it. To summarize the experience in one word--WOW!.

I am not a big fan of Rap--something about most people's rhyming annoying (some things were never meant to rhyme no matter how you mispronounce a word). However I have always loved LOVED Linkin Park's ability to put forth more than just words--rather a whole mood is projected. I don't believe I have ever skipped a single Linkin Park song because it's "not worth listening to".

Fort Minor has been added to one of the few albums that I can listen to from beginning to end without feeling that I need to skip a song, joining the ranks of Alanis Morisetts Under Rug Swept, and Jagged Little pill as well as Christina Aguilera's Dirrty Album and WElcome to the Circus album to name some of the few.

If you are looking for some really deep lyrics intersperse with a great beat that has you tapping your feet check out this Album--I definitely loved it. my favorite song? a tie between Kenji and Where'd you go?

--signing off for now--
dre

To Be a Mother...

Happy Mother's Day to all mothers out there. <3

This Friday I touched on the subject of mothers with my boss and found out something very interesting about the Ethiopian culture.

There are many types of relationships that you can have in a certain degree with people who aren't your parents. there's the acquaintance, friend, close friend, best friend, brother/sister, and mother.

mother--you ask. Isn't that the woman that carried me in her womb for nine months, gave birth me be, and still to this day worries that I'm not eating my vegetables? Yes but there's more.

What my boss explained to me is that you are blessed with more than one mother.

These are people in your life that hold the characteristics of mothers. This is someone who is going to give you advice when you seek it, someone who is willing to nurture you body and soul, and displays a great love for you and who you have become. A mother in your life is someone who has contributed to the person that you are today.

It's very hard to consider someone your mother--as my boss explained using the term is usually used when someone has passed and when you mourn you cry "that person wasn't just a friend--they were my mother". It is also used in terms of you finding the perfect partner in life "You have a mother there, don't make them unhappy". The term mother is used regardless of gender.

Leaving the office that day I thought about the various mothers that I have been blessed with.

I have my actual mother who let's face it--is pretty incredible on her own. I have learned so much from her! She has raised me to know no boundaries. I have never been told I can't do anything...rather my mom makes it hard for me to quit something I have started. Without her being there I don't think I'd be the person I am today.

On top of my mother there were many other women in my life that I have to thank for where I am today; both my grandmothers, T-brenda, T-Jessy, Titi Awilda. Each of these women have continuously supported me and my endeavors and for that I'm grateful.

So today thank your mother, and all the other people who have been mothers to you throughout your life. :)

I feel like taking over the world....

(anyone like to join me?) btw...24 more days till I'm in Japan.

So, I've had a pretty insane week. 2 Papers, 2 tests, Form 110 due, Retreat, Nova Academy and a spattering of E-board meetings and dinners. Most importantly--I have been trying to get into contact with my faculty adviser.

Let's step back to get the whole picture for a second...about 3 weeks ago i received a "invitation" to take part in a McNair's Scholars Program. This is a program dedicated to helping undergrad students with background that don't pursue a higher education after their bachelors and helps fund and teach research, something that most undergrads don't get a chance to participate in until they get into grad school. The purpose of this program is to help students be more marketable to schools.

If you asked me a year ago whether or not I was interested in conducting research I would've said no way. However now that I have been doing my research about Grad schools I realized that research and a topic that I was truly passionate about was going to be important. What better time to get my researching legs running than next year? So I decided that the McNair's Scholars program was for me. I also had an idea of what I'd research--over the summer I could do research in Japan and study the effectiveness of various marketing techniques used in the age demographics of 14-22

Only on kink in the whole issue. I was studying abroad this summer and therefore wouldn't be on campus for the summer start up program required. After speaking with some people and running around like a mad woman I was allowed to apply--however I needed a faculty member to sign as my adviser and supervisor of research. In my mind there was only one person that could do this--Dr. Neil Hair.

I've taken two of Professor Hair's classes and they truly changed my perspective of what I wanted to do after graduation. I gained an appreciation of business journals and the people who were published in them. I also got real experience working with clients. All in all I thought the person I wanted to go through this with would be Professor Hair.

Unfortunately he only has an online class this quarter and no office hours. We played email tag for a while and every time I passed the college of business I specifically knocked on his door to speak with him.I understood that e was really busy and that getting time this late in the quarter was going to be hard. After two weeks I was about to give up. However after my business ethics test I decided I should try one last time...I knocked...

"who is it" answered.

YAY! He was in.

Needless to say Dr. Hair has said he will be glad to help me and in fact has already started advising me. I've lowered my target age group from Japanese students from 14-22 to 18-22. I've also been looking into focusing more on a single industry rather than a broad "marketing techniques" as a whole.

I was so excited I think I did a happy dance when I left the building. :P

--signing off for now--
dre

3 in one day...I'm on a roll--yes?

I've decided that from now one I am going to read one article from the newspaper everyday. Thanks to the fact that Pepper, my shih-tzu, was potty trained when I lived at home in New Hampshire I would end up reading an article a day just because I was always around it.

When I first came to RIT I never read the news unless I HAD to for a class. when I eventually got my Co-op last summer I also started to read the news again, this time in the mornings and during lunch to keep myself up to date. (during that time my aunt called me her personal news anchor since I would tell her about whatever had happened that day).

Upon returning to RIT the college readership program was kicked off. FREE NEWSPAPERS!! however I used this luxury for the wrong reasons--ie: sudoku and crossword when I was going into a long meeting. Today the front head line struck me and I decided for the first time that I will take one just to read.

This Article is what I read today. I found it so disheartening to see such a good cause getting such a bad name.

there have been times in my life that I believe I could make a difference and ended up only hitting a brick wall. It's upsetting to read about something like this and someone else with a bigger and greater cause not being able to succeed.

To think that If I hadn't decided to pick up the paper today I would not have been able to read about this--thus my newest goal to read an article a day.

--signing off for now--
dre

Just another reason to hate Data Analysis homework....

Create a Matrix Plot--write a few sentences summarizing the display. describe any relationships that are apparent and look for outliers.

BAH!

KAREN'S WALK!! *more shameless plugging*

Yup! it's that time of year again--the Sunday that starts are 4am before the sun is out and ends around 2-3pm. Just thought I'd share this event with everyone. XD

Karen's Walk/5K run is hosted by PSP (my fraternity). The purpose is to raise money to research cardiomyopathy (heart failure). It started about 6 years back when Karen Decker, a FoF (Friend of the Fraternity), gave birth to a baby girl named Hannah. It was a few months later that she was diagnosed with Post partum cardiomyopathy. She would need a heart transplant. Karen ended up passing away being transported to receive her transplant.

In response to what occurred, the Delta Alpha chapter of Phi Sigma Pi created "Walk for Hannah" to raise money to create a trust fund for Hannah, Karen's daughter. The year after it became Karen's Walk and the funds raised were given to researchers who are discovering new ways to cure cardiomyopathy as well as looking for early symptoms.

Karen's Walk is special to me because it was the first glimpse that I had into PSP as a non brother/rush/candidate.

My Freshman year at RIT had me volunteering through the College of Business club called Lowenthal Group. I received an email requesting assistance for this "Karen's Walk" event and decided that it sounded like fun. I ended up standing in the rain for 2 hours waving a flag for runners who needed to know how the course went. Now, I wasn't too thrilled about the standing in the rain bit but at the end of the day I watched one of Karen's Friends step up and thank PSP for the dedication and effort that they put in--in fact she started crying. I was so touched by her speech and the following one from the committee chair that year that I decided that my pre-disposition about greek life needed to be re-looked at.

The next fall I was invited to join the honors fraternity responsible for running Karen's Walk. and I go in :)

Once in I worked for Karen's Walk committee and saw how much work goes into this 2-3 hour event. Months and months, I also met the doctors that are conducting the research we pay for. It's some pretty incredible discoveries that they have found.

so If you're interested in donating or reading more about karen's walk visit our beautiful website www.karenswalk.com.

or even better--

drop by this Sunday @ 9 and walk to fight Heart Failure. :)

--signing off for now--
dre

to agree....or disagree... that is the question

I apologize for my lack of posting last week (midterms kinda blow) XP

surprisingly enough with Presentations going on in Professional Selling rather than be inspired by this class I have found inspiration outside of the classroom. (ooohhhh ahhhh)



*sigh*

This week started off with a rather tired start, especially since Midterms last week kicked my sorry bum. So imagine as I'm walking in my post-midterm haze and I notice students (as in plural) wearing obnoxiously green shirts with the white text on it proudly proclaiming "I agree with Josh"

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot?

Initially I shrug it off...maybe this is a weird frat this that greek council is doing...I didn't know and basically I was too tired and needed to get to Japanese as soon as possible to care.

Then...I saw more people....by god, they were congregating EVERYWHERE!! By Tuesday I was practically foaming at the mouth to figuring out what these T-shirts were--who's Josh? why do you agree with him? does he like puppies over kittens? if so, I gotta get one of them shirts.

So finally in Business Ethics during our break I lasso'd myself a green "I agree with Josh" T-shirt clad boy and asked what it meant.

Josh is an RA at RIT who is a very religious baptist. The T-shirts were proclaiming his testimonial that is set yo be read tomorrow behind Gracies.

Go figure that this just happens to coincide with the GLBT community's "day of silence". >.<

I believe in one true God,
Existing as three in the Father, Son and Spirit.
Sin separates us from God,
Yet God loves all.
His Son Jesus Christ lived a sinless life,
Died on a cross to pay for our sins,
And rose from the dead, conquering sin and death
To make relationship with God possible.
Humans cannot earn salvation.
It is a gift of God's grace
Through faith in Christ alone.

I almost choked when I read this....isn't this basically a "cliffnotes" of the Nicene creed?the classic "profession of faith"? what is this person going to say that hasn't already been told to me in scripture, church, and ccd? If this is it...the what is the big deal with this so called Josh movement?

I immediately became a non-fan of "i agree with Josh" T-shirts--which were being sold for the discounted price of $3.

This is when I was introduced to the "I disagree with Josh" campaign...alas...no cool T-shirt just a facebook group. However I found that I disliked what they were saying as well.

I understood that some people were upset with this primarily because of the manner this group of Christian Fellowships chose to set about "spreading the light of the lord"(quoted from a blog of the organizers of this campaign. However, as a marketing major I can only see the pure gold this group struck upon--my fraternity has been trying to get their major event as a well known name on campus, here this group managed to singly in under a week make everyone on campus wonder and eventually ask the one question "who is josh?". I cannot be upset with this since I think our PR director od phi sigma pi would kill to have thought of this shirt, first.

Some people are upset that this "I agree with Josh" was put on the "Day of Silence" supported by GLBT clubs on campus. Understandable, however as a student leader I understand that RIT's system for reservations of rooms and services can easily have overlaps--I mean there are over 130 clubs on campus--their events are bound to overlap. It just happened that two direcly opposing groups had their major events on the same day--it is not the first time this has happened (*cough* Global Union and AALANA Collegiate Associtation *cough*).

I don't like that this "I disagree..." group is filled with people who are only disagreeing because of it is hip to not be a zealous believer of your faith.

In the end I decided I would join neither group...the agree with Josh camp was too centered around what this josh person had to say rather than what Christianity is. The disagree with Jsh camp was too ignorant and only used the bits of scripture that would make the I agree campaign look bad.

I decided I'd join another cause.....

'nuff said. : P

--signing off for now--
dre

From Good to Great.

Current Music: My room mates African music (it's africa week--so she's rehearsing for the show tonight--I'll be helping the with lighting and sound.)

This musing on the last day of week 5 is brought to you by--yup, you guessed it! Professional Selling.

This Tuesday we talked about a Lou Holtz video that eventually led to me talking about my fraternity (PSP). Last year we had a president who's motto for the whole year was that we were going to go from good to great.--G2G for short. His presentation of this concept was simple and set a great pace for me as a new initiate. So, follow what I say now...

Raise your hand as high as you can.

Go ahead

.

.

.

Keep it raised!!
.

.

Ok, now go ahead and raise it a little higher.

.

.

.

.

.

see that?! you just went from good to great! I asked you to raise your hand the highest you could, but there was still that little bit that when asked for a higher hand you succeeded.

There's many people that do the "best they could" but in reality a whole lot more can be done about that . I'm well aware that I'm amongst those. However whenever this saying comes to mind (and it's a lot) I feel an extra burst of energy. I say to myself--"Dre, you're only raising your hand--you're not raising it any higher".

I don't think the president of my fraternity will ever be able to understand how important his words were to me. Especially since the saying (being said so many times) is a running joke to remind us about his time as a president.

:) I got to thinking about this saying and decided that it would be one of my motto's or words to live by. It's been added to the list of 2 other mottos:

1. Be the change you want in the world. (Inspired by Ghandi at a time in my prior E-board positions where I realized that what was going on was flawed, and needed something to be done.)

2. Bold and Beautiful. (taken from a Vogue magazine article--I can't name it anymore-- but it was a letter to the editor)

And now as a closing, here's a story my Professor came across and shared with the class.

During the course of World War II, many people gained fame in one way or another. One man was Butch O'Hare.

He was a fighter pilot assigned to an aircraft carrier in the Pacific. One time his entire squadron was assigned to fly a particular mission. After he was airborne, he looked at his fuel gauge and realized that someone had forgotten to top off his fuel tank. Because of this, he would not have enough fuel to complete his mission and get back to his ship. His flight leader told him to leave formation and return.

As he was returning to the mother ship, he could see a squadron of Japanese Zeroes heading toward the fleet to attack. And with all the fighter planes gone, the fleet was almost defenseless. His was the only opportunity to distract and divert them.

Single-handedly, he dove into the formation of Japanese planes and attacked them. The American fighter planes were rigged with cameras, so that as they flew and fought, pictures were taken so pilots could learn more about the terrain, enemy maneuvers, etc. Butch dove at them and shot until all his ammunition was gone, then he would dive and try to clip off a wing or tail or anything that would make the enemy planes unfit to fly. He did anything he could to keep them from reaching the American ships.

Finally, the Japanese squadron took off in another direction, and Butch O'Hare and his fighter, both badly shot up, limped back to the carrier. He told his story, but not until the film from the camera on his plane was developed, did they realize the extent he really went to to protect his fleet. He was recognized as a hero and given one of the nation's highest military honors.

The O'Hare Airport in Chicago was also named after him.

Prior to this time in Chicago, there was a man named Easy Eddie. He was working for a man you've all heard about, Al Capone. Al Capone wasn't famous for anything heroic, but he was notorious for the murders he'd committed and the illegal things he'd done. Easy Eddie was Al Capone's lawyer and he was very good. In fact, because of his skill, he was able to keep Al Capone out of jail. To show his appreciation, Al Capone paid him very well. He not only earned big money, he would get extra things, like a residence that filled an entire Chicago City block. The house was fenced, and he had live-in help and all of the conveniences of the day.

Easy Eddie had a son. He loved his son and gave him all the best things while he was growing up; clothes, cars, and a good education. And because he loved his son, he tried to teach him right from wrong. But one thing he couldn't give his son was a good name, and a good example. Easy Eddie decided that this was much more important than all the riches he had given him. So, he went to the authorities in order to rectify the wrong he had done.

In order to tell the truth, it meant he must testify against Al Capone, and he knew that Al Capone would do his best to have him killed. But he wanted most of all to try to be an example and to do the best he could to give back to his son, a good name. So he testified. Within the year, he was shot and killed on a lonely street in Chicago.

This sounds like two unrelated stories.

But, you see, Butch O'Hare was Easy Eddie's son.

--signing off for now!--
dre

Pictures and Shameless Plugging

Check out one of my campaign photo's! I'm really excited about the team created for Global Union elections! Meet Sayali (to my right) and Diego (to my left); vice president candidate and secretary candidate respectfully.

Global Union is a Major Student Organization (MSO) it is primarily dedicated to representing International Students on Campus as well as supporting the various culture clubs on campus.

I have actually known about Global Union for the past 3 years having known members of it's E-board since then. A close friend of mine was President of Global Union last year. 2 weeks ago I was hired as the Director of Internal Relations. I'm in the unique position of being both in the organization and understanding all the nuts and bolts but new enough to it to still bring in new ideas. XD

We just got permission to start campaigning. Posters and Flyers are in the making. YAY!

Beyond the politics but still slightly within them -- as stated in my previous post, I attended a military ball last Saturday.
One of my closest friends here at RIT is in the Army ROTC program and I was honored with being his escort. More than seeing all the guys dressed in their uniforms -- I was excited about getting all dressed up (cut me some slack--I'm a girl after all).

DM (Dear Mother) sent me my dress, I got some hair doo-dads and got the dress rehemmed (I tore it on my senior prom night).

After countless hours ironing the dress and then suckering Eleanor into finishing it, I looked great.

Check it out!

Thank you BEAUTY TEAM

How to Build a Bridge...

This weekends activities is enough to fill up TWO blogs. I had Nova Academy (dealt with angry and rude professor), a military ball (I escorted Paul), global union gala (missed because of the ball, however I did get an award--go me) and homework. >.<

For some reason my Professional Selling Class is prompting more thoughts and ideas than my Business Ethics Class.

On the First day of class I discovered that we were required to spend a whole day with a sales representative then write a report on it. Now I'm sure you're all wondering, "But Dre, what's the big deal with this?"
True, I was initially planning on just calling who ever I could get my hands on but here's the catch -- this day with a rep must "Build a Bridge to my Future"

dun dun dun

To my future? But Dr. Tyler, how does this work if I'm not sure what my future is exactly going to be? I will be 7 classes away from graduating this Fall, so a lot of my thoughts have been on this exact concern; my future.

However lets get back to this bridge building... so I was left with the task of figuring out what on earth would build a bridge to my future! Ack. So after much thought and a half hour meeting with my professor my goal in mind was one thing and one thing only... I have gotta find myself a beer/liquor sales rep. This choice came up because I look up to what my Godmother has done and decided that spending a day with a rep in this field was like seeing another perspective to it. It helps that last quarter I wrote an analysis on the online advertising of brewing and liquor companies.

So moving on, I initially had no clue where to start. My plan of action was to call my godmother, ask VERRRYY nicely if she still knew someone who could get me to not go through the insanity of finding a rep in my area. Then it occurred to me, Macgregor's is right off campus! Of course! I'll ask them who provides their beverages and get their number. They'd be local, they'd be available (I hoped). The one problem with my plan--I'm not 21 and I don't have a car to get me there. >.<

Now I just had to find the time. I JUST got the times down with Eleanor. In celebration I decided to get a green tea and rice crispy treat at the RITz, then go to my office hours in the Global Union office. As I was paying for the odd combo I looked at the sports bar. That's when it hits me.

I've spent to past two weeks trying to find time to go to Macgregors.

meanwhile...

THERE'S A BLOODY BAR ON CAMPUS. -duh-

Needless to say after a happy conversation with the Sports Bar people at the RITz I am well on my way to getting a rep to shadow before the end of April.

geez-- I was so blinded by what was RIGHT in front of me!

In other news--I'm running for Global Union President. Our Slogan? Bridging the Gaps.

I guess you can say I was inspired...huh?

signing off for now--

dre

--Giving Back--

My mission when I created this blog was that starting Spring Quarter I will post once a week about what I'm learning in class and such.

Obviously, as this is week 3 of the quarter-- I'm not up to a good start. >.<

"You can have everything in life you want, if you will just help enough other people get what they want"

For those who know me, they merely see me as the crazy girl who seems to be everywhere volunteering time that could be used for studying to help out. However, I assure people there is method to my madness--my proof is in the quote given in class shown above.

I understand that this concept was shown as a principle to Professional Selling in class. That it is in reference getting oneself out there. Basically if you believe in your product and you know it will help others then you will get those sales after going out on a limb for them. I see this as also relating slightly to CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility)--getting involved in the community or being shown as being environmentally friendly can really help companies looking to improve their image. They technically "get what they want" (business) by helping others get what they want.

Time and time again my theory of putting yourself out there and helping others always gives back ten-fold.

I'll stay awake till the wee hours of the morning of Orientation--but down the road I've got a certificate that is practically complete from the leadership institute, an experience of a life time under my belt, 28 new students who know who I am, and the ever sought-after ability to think under pressure and about 4 hours of sleep.

Going that extra mile can sometimes be exactly what you need to get what you want.

So my challenge to who ever is reading this,go that extra mile and spend that extra hour doing something someone else needs (tutoring, proof reading, stage managing) and see if later on (remember this can be WAAAAYYY down the road) if it helped you in anyway.

To me, in the end, no matter what activity, at least appreciate the new perspective you get on a group, organization or person after spending that extra time.

--signing off for now--
dre