I hate Texas

Currently, I do not like Texas. I have begun my voyage to Columbia, Missouri from Chandler, Arizona, and my mom and I are finding out that driving over halfway through Texas is not an easy task. We are currently 103 miles from Fort Worth after driving through El Paso. Needless to say, I hate driving through Texas! It seems like we are never going to get to Dallas. So far road trip = not fun.

After about 4 hours on the road, we began to get hungry and we thought we would wait till we got to Odessa before we got gas and food. Well, after driving through Odessa on the freeway, we were not appealed by any of the restaurant options in town. We were being especially picky after having some delicious tacos for dinner last night and talking about them in the car today, and wanting more! We proceeded to Midland, only to fill up the car and not find any food. At this point, I was starving. Literally, I could have eaten anything remotely edible that came my way (anything that didn't walk my way).

Continuing on our way, we found some small town, Big Spring, and we e

xited towards the town after seeing a Sonic sign. We searched for this hidden Sonic but never found it! A Dairy Queen appeared on our path, and we couldn't wait anymore. We went inside and to my dismay, this Dairy Queen didn't have corndogs. What kind of DQ doesn't have corndogs?!? Catastrophe, I tell you. The food wasn't that good anyway.

Although

this ride isn't fun, my mom have been able to make our own fun in the car for the past 8 hours. We reminisced from when I was little and the times we lived in Oregon from 1996-1998. She preceded to tell me that, "People in Oregon were weird. You nor Alex were ever invited over to other kids' houses." Wow. I just learned that I didn't have any friends in 1st or 2nd grade. I guess I was weird.

We also also counted how many states we each had been to. I have been to 20 and my mom has been to 25... She won this round but I am quickly catching up.

Now, I have been watching tv online (possible with my new Net card for my laptop) and updating my blog ;)

Meanwhile, my mom is getting kicks from the semi-truck we just passed that had a "Show me your Hooters" bumper sticker.

"I have found out that there ain't no surer way to find out whether you like people or hate them than to travel with them." -- Mark Twain

13 days....

Till I leave for school once again. I didn't discover this until yesterday when I had a Rory Gilmore moment and found out that I misread the day I was supposed to report to Pi Phi. My mom and I had to adjust our whole plan and move up the departure by two days. That makes a HUGE difference, especially when I am interning and taking an Econ class, but while also trying to finish the whole series of Gilmore Girls and read the entire Twilight Series before we leave. Just with those latter two points alone, my life is booked for the next two weeks.

We decided that this time my mom and I will be traveling through Texas and Oklahoma to visit some friends before we get to Missouri. The trip will be very fun, but also very long. I look forward to our time in Dallas where hopefully we can sightsee a little and visit a friend close by :)

The past week

was crazy! My best friend from Oklahoma, Mollie, was in town and kept me busier than normal. Before that, my family went to northern Arizona for my cousin's birthday party. See the pictures above from the great Luau my mom and cousin put together. Be sure to look at the cake that I helped prepare. The Luau was a great party and my cousin did an outstanding job with the decorations and food... she's a great mom! Handling 15 kids at once is trying at best, and definitely reminded me that children shall not come my way for a LONG time.

Gilmore Girls update: My mom and I are finishing the last two episodes of season 4. We will begin season 5 tomorrow. While my mom was making a spreadsheet of our travel plans for the trip to Missouri, I made a spreadsheet for the episodes we will watch of Gilmore Girls for the next two weeks. We have to average 6 episodes a day to make it to the end of the series. This is crucial because neither one of us have seen the last season... and I can not go back to school without seeing it.

Twilight update: I am 3/5 finished with Eclipse, the third book. I cant put it down!! I read it whenever and wherever I can. It is kind of sick how obsessed I am with this series. I never want it to end. I'm hoping to finish the this book before I leave and just plan to read Breaking Dawn in the car on my road trip.

I want a sparkly vampire........

Sweet June

It has been forever since I have actually blogged. For one, I have been overwhelmed by my summer schedule. Secondly, I am in the process of updating my blog with another website. Hopefully it will work out. But the good news is that I have complete my Spanish class and I am finished with Spanish for the rest of my life! The bad news is that now I start my journey with Economics, which will hopefully end around December.

I have also completed my first month of Boot Camp while also finishing a digestive detox for my body. Geez, lots of stuff happened last month! One of my favorite parts of June was leading my church's annual Leadership Camp for high school and junior high kids. We all had a blast swimming, listening to talks, going to a retirement home, rockin' out to some sweet Christian music.

My internship has been going so well! I love the environment and all the people I work with. For the 4th of July, I was on site at one of the Army bases near the Airport as FS Arizona did a special called "This One's for You," a tribute to our troops overseas and fighting for our freedom everywhere. There are no words that describe how it felt to see the families of the soldiers get to see their loved ones. So many people didn't know if they would get a chance to see their husband, child, father, or mother, and it was incredible to see and make this happen.

Soon enough I will have chance to publish a press release for FS Arizona reporting on the latest addition to the production department, which will be covering high school football games Fridays this fall. So the experience has been outstanding and has furthered my love for sports and production. Now I am stuck between concentrating on politics or sports... too tough to choose.

Next week, my best friend Mollie will be coming to Arizona to visit my other best friend Hailey and me. We have an exciting week planned, full of sun, shopping, movies, swimming, tanning, yoga, and more. Look for more pictures to come from our exciting week together.

The deaths of so many stars lately has broken the hearts of America. First Farrah Fawcet and Michael Jackson, then Billy Mays (the famous informercial king for OxyClean) and Steve McNair. All were so tragic and they will be missed so much. Michael Jackson has been the death I am the most upset about because of his talent and ability to touch the lives of everyone that listened and enjoyed his music. I have become so fascinated with him and his family, and have been recording all the specials done by Dateline, CNN, and E! I'm in the process of finishing a five hour movie/special of the Jackson family that premiered in the '80s but was shown again this past weekend on VH1. It truly amazes me how the media has net let this poor man rest in peace and are continuing to tear his soul, life, family, and estate apart. I guess I am contributed to the chaos by watching and tuning in to all their broadcasts and specials.

Look out for updates on my new blog and pictures in the next couple of weeks!

Livin' the Resort Life

Today, I went with my friends Nikki and Casey to go tanning and swimming at some of the fabulous resorts in the Valley of the Sun. Our first stop was The Buttes. We picked out a prime tanning spot and Casey decided to look for a bathroom to change into his swimsuit. Nikki and I had just gotten all situated and almost all suncreened up when Casey returned to tell us that the manager had asked him which room we were staying in. Well, since we weren't staying in a room, the three of us immediately fled the scene of the hotel pool and got in our car, heading to the next hotel. Nikki and I exclaimed that "Casey got us kicked out!" Even though he didn't, it was fun to kid around with him. We were determined to have some fun in the sun on this fine Memorial Day and ended up at the Arizona Grand Resort just a few miles away from our first destination. 

Our second spot was not as grand as the first but we made it work. We got our towels, sunscreen, and books out and continued the sunbathing process that soon became a ritual to us. The book I pulled out of my beach bag was Twilight, which is the first book of a popular series that has gained a wide female fanbase. After basking in the ninety-something (or even hundred-something) temperature, I decided to join Casey in the pool. After stepping into the pool, I did a dolphin dive to go deeper under water and get relieved from the heat. After I pulled up out of the water, I noticed that when I went under, my bottom swimsuit had been filled with water and came off ... revealing my caboose to everyone around the pool. I heard some laughter and became extremely embarrassed that I has mooned little children and complete strangers around me. :(

We decided to leave the pool not too long after this incident, and when we left I noticed that I was still on page 12 of Twilight, the same page that I started on when we arrrived. Story of my life.

The three of us decided to make it our new summer goal to visit as many resorts about the valley as possible, especially in the next week before Casey leaves to go back to Middlebury for summer school. Well, I have to so we are well on our way to achieving this goal: we went to two resorts in one day!

Summer of 2009 Lesson 1: Always make sure that the swimsuit is on tight before diving down into the water. 

Summer is here!

Summer of 2009 has finally begun. The semester went by so fast and there was always something going on in the Zou. Now I am back in Arizona, ready to keep myself busy for the next three months. Today my mom and I went to Schnepf Farms to pick some peaches. Our family and some family friends try to do this every year if our schedules permit because it’s fun and we get to eat a lot of peaches! When I came home, I made a homemade peach cobbler for the family to enjoy tonight. I forgot how much I like to bake. I think it turned out okay because my friend Casey ate some and he is still alive.

I have already signed up for my last Spanish class ever at a community college and have the pleasure of attending class Monday thru Thursday from 7:00 am to 10:00 am. Lucky me! I can already tell that my bad coffee habits will be continuing this summer. Who needs to feel rested anyway when you can supplement sleep with java?

The highlight of my summer will be interning with Fox Sports Net Arizona. I will be assisting with the network’s marketing and PR for the Arizona Diamondbacks during their games in the summer.  My job duties include working in the downtown Phoenix office (which is right above Hooters; big bonus!), assisting directors with the Diamondbacks Post Game shows at Tempe Marketplace, and update the social media platforms owned by the media. The internship starts June 1^st and couldn’t be more excited. I will also get to ride Phoenix’s Metro Light Rail to downtown Phoenix and back a few times a week! 

As the internship only requires two of my days a week and a couple of nights, I thought it would be smart to look for a job to get some extra money for the school year ahead. I found that in college, it is very handy to have some cash on you for those moments when your friends decide to go get some lunch or ice cream. It is also very nice for coffee! The job search as been anything but easy; many days of waking up early, showering, updating the resume, and going out to pretty much every nice restaurant in Chandler. After five days of this, I have yet to hear back from any of them. I hoping that most of them will get on top of their game at the beginning of next week and call me. Until then, I will fill my time with Facebook and Gilmore Girls.

This is summer that I will get healthy and get in shape, according to my mother. So part of this plan is that we will be starting boot camp in June. The program is a month long, five days a week, from 5:30 am to 6:30 am. I see myself wanting to die during that time, so needless to say I can’t for June to be over. We will see how June goes between this boot camp and Spanish. You may not hear from me for a while. I might be in my bed, or in too much pain in my body and my head to open my laptop.

Hope everyone has a great Memorial Day weekend!

Analogies from a college student.

Since I have been in college, I have come to appreciate the smaller things in life. I have also been able to see these things in a different light. (The words italicized are the things I am referring to.)

1. Sleep is the prize after a long day of school, studying, and work.

2. The weekends are mini vacations. I realized that if I work really, really hard during the week, the weekends can actually be fun and not so stressful. 

3. Coffee is magic. It solves life's problems and can turn a bad day into something wonderful. 

4. Television is a break from the real world. It is the only time I get to escape my problems and watch pointless shows that I really love. 

5. Phone calls and text messages are priceless. Throughout the day, I don't know what I would do without a call or text from someone; it my connection to people. This week, I discovered I'm a people person and I need people in my life.

All of these things have a special place in my life now. I will post more later, but I have three papers to write tonight. Yikes!

Quote of the day, courtesy of www.quotationspage.com:

"Happiness in intelligent people is rarest thing I know." --Ernest Hemingway.

Good thing I'm not intelligent. 

Here I am...

I am finally here! After a three-hour flight, a run-in with a dead car battery, a two-hour car drive, and an Auto-Zone visit, I am finally back to Mizzou. I am now currently resting in my new room at the Pi Beta Phi sorority house in Columbia, MO. 

Seems like things haven't changed too much here. It is still very cold and there are still lots of things to do. I can already tell that this week will consist of me unpacking my belongings in my room (ugh, not fun). 

Tomorrow is big day... Presidential Inauguration, first day of school, and first day of work. So much to do and so little time!

Happy MLK day!

Many Goodbyes and Beginnings

Today is my last day in Arizona, until March (hopefully). I am a bit sad to leave my family and friends once again, but I am beyond ready to go back to the Zou and start my second semester of college. It has been a great break...a very LONG break, but a much needed one. Over this month of hibernation (as I like to call it), I have seen family and friends, watch lots and lots of television, recruited high school students to come to Mizzou, watched my high school's cheer team compete, babysat a girl I used to babysit in high school, cheered on the Mizzou gymnastics team against the Arizona State Sun Devils, and started this wonderful blog! Looking back, I guess I accomplished more than I thought, but I still could have been more productive. 

This semester will be another new beginning for me; I will be living in my sorority house (which will be an adventure for me in itself), I will have a new job at the TV station, and I will have all new classes (minus the dreaded Spanish 2). The only difference with this beginning is that I will have all the knowledge and experience that I gained as a first semester freshman. 

A new beginning will start in Washington D.C. this week with the inauguration of president-elect Barack Obama. This event will go down in history and I am thrilled to see the first African American President sworn into the White House. No matter what political party you choose to be affiliated with, I think it is important to recognize that this country made history when it chose to elect Obama as the 44th president of the United States of America. Seeing any one person (man and hopefully women in the future) become president of the United States is a special experience. I feel like this year is the first year that I actually am able to absorb what is happening and appreciate the rituals and ceremonies of the inauguration as well as watch history being made. I wish so much to be in Washington to watch all the events take place, but I, a long with many other Americans, will have to watch it all on the television and keep looking for updates via New York Times.

Where there is a beginning, there is an end. Obama's new beginning marks the end of President George W. Bush's eight year run in the White House. Many people happy, many people sad. It is so easy to look upon the flaws of a leader than remember the good things that came out of this presidency. I remember waking up on the morning of September 11th, 2001 to the horror of hearing the news about two planes crashing into the Twin Towers in New York City. At the age of 11, I can't say that I fully understood what was happening, but it was comforting to hear the words of the president, only a few hours after the event, reassure the country that he would make sure that our country was safe. Not everyone agrees with the steps that President Bush took for this country after that event, but I feel that no one should form a opinion of him as a president, because most of us will never be in a situation of that proportion and most will not completely comprehend the different sides and factors that must be taken into consideration. As tomorrow is his last day in White House, I wish him happiness with his family and luck in all his future endeavors. 

I will update the blog on my travels tomorrow as I begin my journey back to Columbia, Missouri. My flight is set to depart the Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport at 9:49 AM and arrive in St. Louis Lambert International Airport at 1:42 PM. Then, I will have to drive about two hours to get to Columbia. Including wait time, flight time, and drive time, that's seven hours of traveling! 

See why I call it a journey...

"All outward endings bring new and higher inward beginnings." - Laura Teresa Marquez

You can tell a lot about a person by their iTunes...

I was taking inventory of my iTunes earlier and I decided the make a list of which artists/groups from which I have the most songs. Here they are, in no particular order:

1. The Beatles
2. Blink 182
3. Coldplay
4. Dave Matthews Band
5. Michael Buble
6. Panic! At The Disco
7. Rascal Flatts
8. Stuck in the Middle
9. U2
10. The Who

The funniest thing about this list is that none of these are my absolute favorite artists or bands. I like them all, clearly by their existence in my iTunes, but I think it is so funny how much music that I have accumulated by them. If someone came to investigate my laptop and decided to make a judgement based on the music that I have, they would probably say I was a  very confused middle-aged  man or something. 

It is quite the adventure when you take a look at someone's iTunes. It is like a map of a person without all the pictures, or a very long document that tells a history. I know I love looking at other people's iTunes to see what music we share in common and what music they like the most. A person's music collection says a lot about a person and who they are. My collection says that I am a lover not a fighter, a Catholic, a Grey's Anatomy fan, someone who likes what's on the radio, a fun person, and a deep person. It probably says a lot more, but those are the top classifications that come to mind as I have my music on shuffle. 

Take a look and listen to your iTunes. What does it say about you?

Happy hump day!

P.S. Grey's Anatomy comes back tomorrow night!! My life is complete. 

"There is nothing in the world so much like prayer as music is." - William P. Merrill

New Media

Our world is slowly being run by the products of new media. Facebook and blogs are among the most popular outlets to release information via internet. One of my new personal favorites is Twitter. Twitter is slowly becoming the new Facebook, and I encourage anyone who hasn't visited the website and made a Twitter account to do so before you are behind. 

For those that have never seen Twitter before, it is easy to use and understand. Just register with the website and post updates for other people on Twitter to read. The updates can simply describe what someone is doing, a message to someone else, what they are reading, etc. It is basically just like the status element of Facebook. 

One of the great things about Twitter is that great media resources such as USA Today, New York Times, and CNN are linked to Twitter and post links to stories as they post them on their websites. As a journalist, it is important to learn and experiment with all new media outlets and use them in everyday life. Anyone can also access Twitter via mobile device and update their status, as well as check other's updates as well. 

Many of my friends and family members have Twitter and as I am in college it is nice to see what they are up and what is going on in their lives while I am on the go. I have some friends in a band, Anarbor (check them out!), and they update their Twitter several times a day, which is so cool because they keep family, friends, and fans in the know what the great things that is happening with them. I have even seem some really polished Twitter folks update their Facebook status via updating their Twitter. I think this is just so neat!! 

So, get on Twitter!!