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