Mind the (Education) Gap

Headlines

2012-01-06T16:31:00.003-06:00

"I pray that enterprising educational leaders around the country take the lessons that we've learned from the finest charters and apply them to their schools and school districts. And I pray that their efforts lead to the beginning of the end for that latest incarnation of school prayer that worries me most, the prayer of families whose best hope for their children's future is the random chance of a lottery."

Took the words out of my mouth. Check it out:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dan-ross/a-charter-school-prayer-f_b_1189125.html?ref=education-reform

I promise I'll legit blog soon. :)

American Pie

2011-12-28T10:22:00.004-06:00

On the occasion of the Commission's first meeting, President Reagan noted the central importance of education in American life when he said: "Certainly there are few areas of American life as important to our society, to our people, and to our families as our schools and colleges." This report, therefore, is as much an open letter to the American people as it is a report to the Secretary of Education. We are confident that the American people, properly informed, will do what is right for their children and for the generations to come.

... yeah. About that.

More to come, One of my New Year's Resolutions is to blog better. ;)

with love

American Dreamin'

2011-12-08T16:04:00.004-06:00

It scares me that so many of my friends have shown this week by their staunch support of certain statements in the media (political and not) that in the 50's or 60's when it was my people being attacked instead of homosexuals, they surely would have been leading the riots. At least if they were being held on Facebook.

Surely people have Biblical backing for that hatred too, right? Do not be unequally yolked and all that. All I'm saying is that Mr. Perry should probably have a video about fornicators and drunkards in the military also.

Don't even get me started on the Muppets.

Oh and Christmas isn't real.

Remember to love this holiday season.

I Believe

2011-09-15T21:20:00.004-05:00

Today I almost quit. Seriously. I was standing in my classroom, while my adviser and her boss sat in the back, raising my hand in the air and shrieking "show me five" while Ch continued to taunt and whisper to another girl in the class, Ma stood and began to catdaddy (sp? I've never been faced with spelling that before), Cl laughed uproariously at something utterly unrelated to the reading we were supposed to be completing, and Da contentedly drew on his desk with a red marker.

Week 4.

And I was standing there, while chaos ensued, wondering how this happened, what I had done wrong, what I was continuing to do wrong despite my relentless pursuit of the correct teacher behaviors, the best lesson plans, the perfect consequences... and I thought

'I'm done. I'm not giving my kids anything they couldn't get from any other teacher in the Kansas City school system. In fact, I wasn't even that great of a leader in college... really I was good at planning events and being at the right place at the right time. Those things don't fly in the classroom and I've liteally taught a lesson and a half this week, and those were super mediocre despite how much I try to make them engaging and rigorous. I'm tired of failing and tired of being frustrated and tired of being tired.'

I really don't think there was a single time in the day that everyone was sitting in his or her seat. My table points started backfiring today when one group erased all of the points I had on the board while my back was turned. and Ma took my cell phone in hopes of keeping me from calling his mom. Hey achievement gap. I knew you would manifest yourself in the form of low test scores and low self-motivation. I didn't realize you would be so apparent in me... I am as much the achievement gap as my kids are because right now I basically don't understand how to get to their side. It's awful. Today was my breaking point.

Then I went to V's house to help her aunt with some of our homework, so aunt could help V. V ran up to me and hugged me the second I walked in the door. Her aunt offered me a drink or food about 30 times. Tears swam in her eyes while she told me about V's last school with a teacher who called V a crybaby and gave everyone A's while V continued to read below 1st grade level. She looked me in the eyes and said, "my baby prays to be able to do the work at school and to make me and her teachers proud. And I just listen to her and I tell her I'm already proud." We practiced parallelograms and trapezoids and collinear points and I went on my way, with an assignment for V to practice a list of 220 sight words over the next two weeks. V hugged me good-bye and the screen door shut behind me. I walked onto the porch and looked out at a laundromat where a group of men sat out front looking at me (they probably liked my jacket), a liquor store that also sold cigarettes and possibly groceries, and a street with holes and cracks, on the wrong side of Troost. They live less the 5 minutes from my trendy hipster neighborhood, complete with bike riders, a World Market, and PBR billboards (still baffling). But it might as well be a different world.

Tomorrow I will go to school and I will teach for V. and for the other 24 scholars in my class. Because maybe I'm still incompetent and behind the other new teachers and truly just trying to make it from day to day. But I'm the best those kids are gonna get tomorrow and even without the perfect lesson plan or the right number of worksheets or the foolproof management system... I'm the teacher who cares about those kids. Even when they make me furious or devastated. I still believe. Here's to tomorrow.

With love,
Ms. Brown

Smile Like You Mean It

2011-08-26T22:17:00.002-05:00

At 4:45 today I left my school carrying three bags, two laptops, 26 paragraphs about "the best weekend ever" and the kind of maturity that only comes from being responsible for the safety, well-being, and (most importantly) education of the 26 scholars in room 309 at Pathway Academy. It's the end of week one and I survived. And it's weird because you'd think I'd be prepared. Most of my friends in Kansas City started last week so I had already heard the stories about children being handcuffed after fights in the hallway and high schoolers reading on a 5th grade reading level. Plus, no one gets into TFA without being utterly convinced of the reality of the achievement gap.

But today I gave my first assessment and I gave a rousing speech about how we'll be taking some sort of assessment every week all year and how important it is that we can show people and ourselves what we know. We sang our classroom theme song:

We are Ms. Brown's 4th grade STARS
We're Scholarly so we'll go far
We are Thinkers, Attentive too,
And Respect we'll show to you,
We're Sincere (that means honest)
We are STARS and
WE'RE THE BEST

And everyone started their assessments. Within 15 seconds five hands were in the air.

"Ms. Brown, I don't get the first question."

"Ms. Brown, what are we supposed to do?"

"How do I answer this?"

The question said: what does the M in M.E.A.L. stand for? We've been reciting it all week long. I think 5 of my scholars got that question right.

So we've got a long way to go. I definitely have a lot to learn still about how to teach 9 year olds and how to give explicit directions and how to help 4th graders get organized. But most of all I see that, though my kids are so smart, they haven't been given so many tools that they need to be successful after 4th grade.

Some days were bad. Some moments were good. My favorite moments include Marquan walking up to me during recess so he could sing "Man In the Mirror" for me; A'Keila hugging me before she left Wednesday and saying "usually my teachers are white." Dae'Toine telling me today that I was "the meanest teacher ever" and then a few hours later DeMarion saying I was the best teacher ever. Reading my childhood favorite poem "Honey, I Love" for the class... and having them beg to hear it again the next day. In the midst of counting down for silence 15 times a day and taking away 5 minutes of recess time and sending Cheyenne back up the stairs to show me how we walk appropriately ("Cheyenne, this is not an argument. You will do what I say and I will be calling your mother so we can talk about what we can do to make sure you are following directions at school") and Latrell getting so angry he cries once a day... In the midst of all of that, I am falling in love with my 4h graders.

There was one moment, yesterday when we were working on a short math practice work sheet and everyone was on task and I was able to walk around and check for understanding, answer questions, fulfill my core teacher duties... and I could see just a glimpse of how exceptional our class could be. It was a great moment and one I'm trying to hold on to. Now the real work starts.

With Love,
Shelli

We Looked Like Giants

2011-07-14T19:09:00.003-05:00

or
TFA Induction / Institute update.

Her name is Destiny. She sits on the second row of my classroom but when Kimbo isn't there (I somehow became cool enough to call Kimberly by her friends only nickname), she moves to the front row. She has little issue sitting next to our special students with autism during class, though she sometimes falls into the class habit of treating his as though he has an infectious disease. She wears a purple lumberjack / hipster-esque hoodie to school everyday to handle the subfreezing classrooms. She's in seventh grade. She reads at a fifth grade level. She hates math - when she feels like she can't understand math equations, she shuts off. You can see her eyes checkout of class and hear in her sigh when you ask her to solve a multiplication problem that she just doesn't get. But in reading class, I ask her to tell me a point of view and describe it. She proudly sounds out om-ni-scient, just like we practiced as a class. She says it means "all-knowing." "Is Kevin all-knowing," I ask her, referencing another student in the class. Kevin reads at a 3rd grade level. He is 12. "No!" several students call out. they're breaking one f our class rules, but I let it slide because last Thursday, no one answered any questions. This week generall at least 4 raise their hands every time I ask for a fact or a thought.

Destiny and the other scholars at Room 33. They're why I teach for America.

But that's my class at the middle level. They're compliant and on task... if I don't count Marco, who let's his hair swing over his eyes and refuses to read out loud in class. Or Nadia who needs to be reminded to read instead of coloring in the pictures ("I know you can do it Nadia, let's answer the questions together"). Or Ricky who says at least four times a day that this is all "too hard..." even though he can list off the step to find theme in his sleep. He can tell you how, but he can't execute. And so far, I haven't figured out how to help him. I've got 11 more days.

Teach for America so far has been a whirlwind. I've met people that I know will be some of my best friends for a long time. And I've met people who irritate the crap out of me (i.e. the girl who draws unicorns on everything. Really, why are you doing that?). And I've met a precious few, like maybe 2, that I'm not really sure I trust to teach America. I've had a million and a half conversations about politics, social activism, personal belief systems, and a ton of other things that fill the minds of the "type" that TFA attracts. Oh there is definitely a type. Idealistic, naive, smart, goal oriented, type-A. I've never sat in a room with so many people that I immediately felt camaraderie with. And now that we've all lived through three weeks of Institute (an exerience like no other), there's a bond that we'll never be able to explain to others. Yeah, it's partly about staying up until 2am to finish a lesson plan (or 3). But it's also about the feeling you get when a kid writes a summary to a story about weaving... that he's been reading for about 15 minutes... and writes about waving goodbye to a friend. Its an immeasurable sadness and a sense of frustration and definitely being overwhelmed that, like, this kid made it to 7th grade without so many basic reading comprehension skills. And then its a sense of urgency that, like, maybe we're not outstanding teachers yet, maybe we're not even really sure what we're doing on this rollercoaster out in LA, but we have a duty to every student we encounter to help them as much as possible in the time we have left together.

Angel wrote at the end of his assessment today: "I hope you like it Ms, I did the best I could" (with a few more spelling errors). It definitely made me cry, because I know he's being honest. I just want to help his best be at an ability level that will let him succeed next year in middle school. I'll be honest - I'm not entirely sure that's going to happen for Angel this summer. But I do know that everyday we're both learning a lot. That's a start.

So, yeah. That's just such a small small part of my story since I left Alabama. I love Kansas City (based on the week I was there) and am so excited to move back. I don't particularly like LA, though the weather is fantastic. Santa Monica is pretty awesome. I don't sleep nearly enough. Today was TFA Day which is why I suddenly have time to blog lol. And my English class of 17 is awesome. :) As for updating again, I shall try... but it might not be until August. There are many lesson plans to write and many assessments to grade. :)

With love,
Shelli

Quelqu'un m'a dit

2011-05-30T22:22:00.003-05:00

Salut!

I'm guessing the people who read my blog already know this, but just in case: Next Sunday I start the training process as a corp member of Teach for America.

For the next two years I will be teaching high school French in Kansas City, Missouri.

I am...

excited

terrified

overwhelmed

unprepared

nervous

and so so thankful for all of the support from my friends and family.

If you were wondering about the law school thing, lol, I deferred my admission to Notre Dame and will start there in Fall 2013. Go Irish! ;)

Adult life is flying towards me and I have never felt so young and so old at the same time. In about seven weeks (seven!) I'll have a classroom of students who will probably look older than me and this incredible responsibility to teach them.

But I'm sitting on my (Andie's) couch in the Maisonette and I'm still finding it very hard to believe that I'm not going to wander around in Haley Center for a class in the fall. That I won't wear pearls to football games (well, ok, I probably still will, but you know what I mean) and that I won't learn any choreography for a Singers show. Craaaazy.

I'm thankful to have no regrets and no real longing for the past. I'm glad for my fond memories of the past four years in Auburn and the past 19 in Alabama. But I know in my heart that these next few years and whatever follows them is going to be exactly God's plan for me.

So with that, I'm going to try to blog while I'm in LA for training, but I probably won't get to much. Follow me on twitter, skype me, force me to stay in touch. :)

<3
With love

Shelli

Thnks fr th Mmrs

2011-05-07T09:58:00.004-05:00

Thank-you

for the nights in the Harper Hall lobby watching youtube videos and "studying" for calculus and chemistry

for flag decorations and watching the OC instead of studying

for the Freshman Forum meetings when Amanda was there... and we ignored her

for progressive stories in Chem and at Steak N Shake

for the first time I saw the eagle fly

for the Little Lovers socials

for Harper Hotties

for the lemonade debacle of 2008 O-Days

for unplanned trips to Tuscaloosa

for the 3am crisis calls

for choreography parties

for Greg and Kenneth parties

for 603 parties

for night's at Stuart and Paul's

for ridiculous warm-ups and Elijah Rock for the 3rd time

for Little Shop rehearsals (and the semester of I can't, I have rehearsal)

for failed attempts to have a youtube show

for successful musical scripts (if only we'd finish those last 2 monologues)

for Greased Lightning and Chattanooga Choo Choo... both better the 300th time around

for the nights in the SGA office... even when I wasn't in SGA

for creativity nights with fiction writing, painting, and John Mayer

for photo shoots at Samford and in Opelika

for the 2am drive back from Georgia. "You know what they say... give a man a fish"

for impromptu lake trips

for Crawfish Boil 2008, it'll never be better

for lunches at Toomer's

for breakfast at Big Blue

for study dates at Toomer's Coffee

for post-show Buffalo Wild Wings

for campaigns and campaign t-shirts and concourse dances and billboard painting

for days in the office that were utterly unproductive but so fun

for karaoke with the CWE cult

for successful fundraisers

for failed fundraisers

for every service event

for every meeting (well, most of them)

for listserve emails

for not telling me in advance about Taylor Swift

for standing outside the hotel and conference center until she came out

for the West Virginia game

for mornings in the President's Box

for Beat Fiji Year, Beat ATO Year, and Beat Farmhouse Year

for lemon drops

for dancing and drink specials

for jokes about making out with 15 year olds (never gets old)

for weeks in Gulf Shores, trying to find dance clubs

for art museums in DC

for catch phrase

for band parties and toga parties

for Dr. Troy's fiction class

for Dr. Burkhart's into to the psych major class

for Dr. Mattson's lab meetings

for every game day date, every road trip, every Tuesday night at 6:00

for singing the alma mater at the end of meetings

for singing the national anthem at the end of meetings

for every time I wore a blue suit and pearls with 24 of my best friends

for every time I put on sequins and poufed my hair

for Winter Song

for alto sectionals where we got nothing done and everything done at once

for party dress jokes

for Shoney's... twice.

for awkward small shows

for formals and weddings and socials

for letting me be one of the blacks and part of the black caucus

for Sundance Sundays at the Maisonette

for Twitter and #superlonghashtags

for iron bowl victories

for rolling Toomers and loving Toomers

for Toomers for Tuscaloosa

for a National Championship

for the music

for believing in the human touch

for blessing me with the Auburn family

for the perfect college experience

War Eagle.

For Good

2011-03-06T16:18:00.005-06:00

[disclaimer: I have never done anything this cheesy in my life and probably never will (until I have to leave Singers of course). So no making fun. haha.]

I've heard it said that people come into our lives for a reason, bringing something we must learn and we are led to those who helped us most to grow if we let them... and we help them in return.

Well I don't know if I believe that's true - but I know I'm who I am today because I knew you.

Like a comet pulled from orbit as it passes the sun. Like a tree that meets a boulder halfway through the wood... Who can say if I've been changed for the better?

But because I knew you... I have been changed for good.

It well may be that we may never meet again in this lifetime, so let me say before we part - so much of me is made of what I learned from you... you'll be with me like a hand print on my heart.

And now whatever way our stories end, I know you have rewritten mine by being my friend.

Like a ship blown from its mooring by a wind off the sea. Like a seed dropped by a skybird in a distant wood...

Who can say if I've been changed for the better? But because I knew you...

I have been changed for good.

And just to clear the air I ask forgiveness for the things I've done you blame me for...

But then I guess we know there's blame to share. And none of it seems to matter anymore...

Who can say if I've been changed for the better?

I do believe I have been changed for the better...

Because I knew you I have been changed for good.

Thank-you for teaching me more than I ever learned in a class. Thank-you for being the most amazing people on an amazing campus. Thank-you for accepting me and loving me and challenging me to be the best person I can be every day for the past two years. And thank-you for the best years of my life. War Eagle.

In The Waiting Line

2011-03-05T01:52:00.003-06:00

Tonight I tried planned to work on my thesis and plan my law school visits and generally get things accomplished.

But I went and bought my secret P gift and accidentally bought myself a double feature: Garden State and Say Anything. So I watched them both instead of being productive. I'm watching the end of Say Anything right now and I've learned a few things in the years that I've been watching both of these films.

* I need a boy like Lloyd. Seriously. He's probably the most perfect 80's film boy ever. I love how awkward he is about Diane and how he humor her basically the entire movie, when they're talking on the phone, when they're at the party. If more guys humored more girls by just agreeing with what they said the world would be a better place.

* Other movies are not nearly as realistic as these are. Even as I wrote that I thought about how stupid it was. Because movies are never realistic and real life is cinematic sometimes (that is, sometimes things happen that are truly unbelievable). But its the little things in these that make them believable. Like when Lloyd asks Diane if she's there because she needs him or because she needs someone. And then he says, "I don't care." Cause in the real world we rarely hold our moral standards and our ideals. Clearly in a perfect world everyone does everything for the right reasons and in the right way and we all live happily ever after. In my world sometimes I don't care why you came back... I just care that you came back.

* I wish more people were honest like Sam. My friends and I could definitely use a nice dose of honesty sometimes.

* I've basically my entire life fancied myself Diane Court. Except for the awkward relationship with my father, I've just kind of seen myself as being a little separate from the crowds. Which is fine... and possibly a little conceited.

* Zach Braff has the best taste in music ever. Seriously. I could listen to the garden state soundtrack every day.

* People should sacrifice for the ones we love more often. Sometimes love is worth a leap of faith, right? Who needs jobs in California or in Seattle when they could be in New Jersey or England with the person they love more than anyone else in the world? I think we're a generation plagued with the idea of "timing." What does that even mean? If we all sit around waiting for the right time to come along for everything - for crazy life decisions and for love and for the things that create a life... we'll end up looking back when we're old and seeing a lot of waiting and a lot of missed opportunities.

* Planes are awesome for scenes. In books also, which is a little counter-intuiative since nothing is really "happening" in a plane (unless it crashes but, seriously, no one should ever write plane crashing movies). Planes are a great place to consider your life though and to be aware of how small you are and (for me at least) how big God is.

And that's all I got.

In other news... I'm not ready for senior speeches tomorrow night. I thought maybe I would be... but I'm not.

With love,
Shelli

When the Sun Goes Down

2011-02-22T22:53:00.001-06:00

I'm reading my guide to compositional pedagogy (which is a fancy way of saying teaching writing) and the essay I'm reading is talking about critical pedagogy and democracy. In reading it I have become painfully aware of 2 things. Well, maybe more, but 2 right this second.

1 is that I am one of very few students who are in school just because they want to learn. I find that comical because I've gotten by with straight B's and no real dedication to being an overachiever in the classroom. But the book suggests (I think correctly) that students at the university level are in school as consumers and their expected output is a job in their chosen field. I'm having an incredibly hard time making decisions about what I want to do next year in part because I never expected college to necessarily give me the skills I need for one certain job. Partly because I've always planned to go on in my education beyond a BA, but also because I just like school. So I readily accept whatever my professors purport to be imparting upon me in a class because I have no real expectation beyond gaining some kind of knowledge from the past four years.

2 is that I have readily accepted the idea that education was a means to escape without really thinking about what that really means. What do people escape from and where do they escape to? Really education is just another system, an institution that is as flawed as the government and every other man made institution. What are we promising students, especially students that are perceived as repressed or disenfranchised in some way when we tell them education is the answer? Especially when there are so many dissenting examples, examples of people who follow the path and earn degrees and still fail. people who never graduate and are wildly successful. Varying opinions about success and various exposure to success just make it very difficult to truly believe in the so-called power of education.

So maybe I'm finally having that whole freshman year of college sudden disillusionment with the world around me. Or maybe I'm thinking too much.

With love

One Less Bell to Answer

2011-02-21T00:30:00.004-06:00

I've been writing for hours but I haven't written anything worth reading. But isn't that the life story of the English major? This sounds conceited, so take it at face value. I know I'll get an A on this paper. It's pretty good, and undoubtedly way better than most of the other papers that will be turned in tomorrow at 2:00pm. But I know the truth - it's mediocre at best. With time and a little more concern from me, it could be great. Right now, at 12:30am, if I have to write one more sentence about perfume I'll kill someone. So I'm taking a break. And writing something else. But isn't that the life story of the English major?

I haven't been much of anywhere. I fancy myself really cultured because I took art history in elementary and middle school and because I listen to NPR and because I read... but the sad truth is that I've spent most of my life tucked away into a corner of Alabama in a corner of Southern America in a corner of the world.

What I have done is driven down highway 280 about 100 times since my freshman year of college. Sometimes I talk on the phone, sometimes I listen to music. But tonight I rolled down my window and turned off my radio and I rode with my thoughts and the wind that rustled between assaulting my cheekbones with cold sharp jabs and gently brushing the front locks of my hair across my nose. I was somewhere between Dadeville and Alexander City when I saw a baby deer standing on the side of the road. I've heard that there are lots of deer in Alabama on the roads and such, which explains those deer crossing signs, but I don't think I have ever noticed one just standing on the side of the road like she was. I say she. Maybe he. But something about deer and her eyes that looked mournfully at me as my squeaking Nissan glided past and probably the American partiachal tradition of the powerful man and the innocent woman, with a dash of a childhood viewing of Bambi all make me think she was a girl. Although now that I think about it, I'm not entirely sure if Bambi was male or female. She was just standing there and by the time my heart jolted at the prospect of this deer escaping whatever made her eyes look that way by dashing in front of my car and dashing the rest of my semester... she was just a reflection in my 'objects may be larger than they appear' mirror.

The rest of my ride was uneventful, unless you count being tailgated by a Lexus SUV. I drove the speed limit. I tried not to text. I shed a few tears that I'll blame on the sting of the air as the time grew later and Mother Nature remembered that it's supposed to be February, even in Alabama. I sang a little, maybe outloud, maybe to myself, because it's all the same when the wind is covering your voice and only the occasional deer is around to listen.

Now I'm going to finish my paper. It will be done before 2am, at least the content. If not, there may be an addition to this post in an hour.

With Love

Reflection

2011-02-12T10:43:00.008-06:00

My future career / life plans, according to Disney.

If you feel the need to ask me about my plans for next year or the next few years or the rest of my life, please reference this blog.

I look once more just around the riverbend, beyond the shore. Where the gulls fly free, don't know what for. Why do all my dreams ascend just around the riverbend? Just around the riverbend... Should I choose the smoothest course? Steady as the beating drum? Should I marry Kokoum? Is all my dreaming at an end? Or do you still wait for me, dreamgiver... just around the riverbend?

I want adventure in the great wide somewhere... I want it more than I can bear. And for once it might be grand to have someone understand... I want so much more than they've got planned.

A whole new world. A hundred thousand things to see - I'm like a shooting star. I've come so far. I can't go back to where I used to be...

I have often dreamed of a far off place where a great warm welcome will be waiting for me. Where the crowds will cheer when they see my face... and a voice keeps saying this is where I'm meant to be. I am on my way, I can go the distance. I'll be there someday, if I can be strong. I know every mile will be worth my while. I will go most anywhere to feel like I belong.

I remember Daddy told me fairytale's can't come true. You've got to make it happen, it all depends on you. So I work real hard each and every day, now things for sure are going my way. Just doing what I do, look out boys, I'm coming through! And I'm almost there. I'm almost there. There ain't nothin gonna stop me now cause I'm almost there.

Bright young women, sick of swimming, ready to stand! And I'm ready to know what the people know; ask them some questions and get some answers. What's a fire and why does it, what's the word? Burn...? When's it my turn? Wouldn't I love... love to explore that shore up above.

Nothing like a few Disney princesses (and one prince) to allow for the melodramatic. ;-)

And I've gotten into Penn State, Vandy and Pepperdine for law school so far. I'll try to keep you posted, but I have no clue where I'm going or what I'm doing.

Oh, and I couldn't make Aristocat's fit. Sadly.

With Love,
Shelli

Best I Ever Had (Glee Cast Version)

2011-01-26T20:49:00.004-06:00

My normal week, Glee style.

** note: this post is significantly less awesome if you don't click on the green words when they appear. Trust me. With love!**

I woke up Wednesday morning later than I intended, as I always do, and went to work. I still managed to get there before my boss and when he got there he called me into his office so we could talk about how things are going to go the rest of the semester. After about 5 minutes, I fell into a daydream about a boy I am friends with but may or may not harbor less than platonic feelings for. The daydream started splendidly, with us talking over some Toomer's Lemonade, but then he started telling me how he could Count on Me which translates into friend zone. He did have a cool guitar and hat on. At the end of the song my boss sat his coffee cup down particularly loudly, breaking the spell and sending me back to my computer.

Meanwhile, my roommate was leaving the apartment, coffee cup in hand, to go to one of her super hard classes that I could never understand if I tried. While she was waiting at the light, a boy in a rather large truck rolled down his window and made some semi-inappropriate comments to her. Roommate looked him square in the eye and said, "Shut Up and Drive." The song continued while she walked to class, including a montage where she walked down a hallway and ignored several boys who tried to dance with her until she got to one at the end of the hallway, whom she stood uncharacteristically close to and whispered into his ear at the end.

Roommate and I met in the lunchroom later, along with a few of our friends: pretty but mean blonde girl, token Hispanic boy, single black guy, tall awkward dark haired boy, and dramatic brunette. We discussed the latest issues in life, namely the fact that red haired frenemie got in a nasty bicycle accident, and is now in a full body cast, but there are no handicap ramps in the school and even if there were, there's no assistance for a girl in a full body cast. Usually we wouldn't care, but we all happen to be in The Greatest Show Choir in the World and she's one of our best back-up singers and snappers so we need her safe and sound.

We decide that the best thing to do would be to have a $5 party to raise money for red-haired frenemie, which work great because it's Wednesday, the first day of the weekend in a college town. We run around the town buying things for the party, including streamers, cookies, and beverages. While we're shopping, decorating, and preparing we sing a fun acapella version of Raise Your Glass (because we're really too school for cool). Plus we invited all of the misfits and outcasts to the party because the cool kids would be spending their $5 on covers.

I am at the party location before anyone else until single black guy comes in. He didn't know I was the only one there. He asks me how my day was and I tell him about my daydream and the disappointment in the outcome, which makes him sad because he wanted me to fall in love with him based on his charm and style. In a voiceover he sings It's Gonna Be Me in a failed attempt to show me what I'm missing out on... at the end of the song I thank him for listening and kiss him on the cheek. Slowly everyone else gets to the house where the party will be happening and then everyone else shows up, which is great because we're making money and making a statement all at once (statement - not cool kids can have fun too). Except for pretty but mean blonde who stands in the corner and sings about how Big Girls Don't Cry (you need to have seen previous days to understand this... but you can probably guess).

Meanwhile, the boy whose ear roommate was whispering into shows up, with a guitar, and sings to her, much to her confusion. But she doesn't complain and sways to the Rhythm of Love.

The party goes well and at the end of the night we count the money - $3000 smackers! Just the amount needed to hire someone to assist red-haired frenemie until she gets out of her cast! The next day in rehearsal, however, an administrator comes to us and says they cannot hire anyone because it shows favoritism towards red-haired frenemie. We're all very upset about this, so much so that we have to sing about it. Thankfully, tall awkward dark haired boy offers us some perspective when he reminds us that we get by With a Little Help From our Friends.

We go to the president's office in protest, sending dramatic dark haired girl in first while the rest of us filter in slowly. We explain to the president that we understand, but we refuse to go down without a fight. He is cold-hearted and mean, so we appeal to his emotions with 21 Guns [slight side note, really you need to listen to this one. It's incredible].

At the end of the song, the president is in tears and agrees to let us use the money. We go to class a few days later and explain to red-haired frenemie that, even though we still don't like her much, we always stand up for one of our own. Cause baby, you're a Firework!

Fin.

Once Upon a December

2010-12-18T01:26:00.026-06:00

I am blessed beyond belief.

I have the habit of complaining a lot on the internet (call it a side-effect of being part of such an unbearably self-centered generation), so I thought now would be a great time to talk about how blessed I am. So blessed.

So here's a list of 10 things, in no particular order, with which I am blessed.

* Music.
* AU Singers.Basically the world's greatest combination of music and awesome.

* Best Friends.
Andie. Kaley. Kasey. What would my life be without y'all? I don't want to know. :)

* Auburn.
Especially Auburn football... especially National Championships (please please let us win)
while I'm making random requests, can I also marry Cam Newton? Oh, and thanks for the float competition win. ;)

* WEGP.
Yeah, we're cool. haha.

* My parents.
* Books.

*My habit of meeting celebrities... (Okay, mostly I stalk them. Same diff)
David Henrie and I are besties.

Brian McKnight is awesome in real life.

Corbin Bleu and I are in love.

Gavin Creel. Seriously one of the most incredible performers ever. and I love his t-shirt.

The DJ had us fallin in love again.

* Coffee.

* Christmas movies.
(without which I surely would not make it through the break)

And of course (this makes 11, sorry) the people who read my blog (all four of them!)

:)

Happy Christmas everyone! Remember our many blessings!

With love,
Shelli

Hero

2010-11-18T00:59:00.002-06:00

People I want to be more like:

* Majora Carter

* George Watsky

* Marian Wright Edelman

I think I'm starting something soon. But I'm not ready to talk about it yet. If you have a chance, you should check out those three people though. They don't really do similar things, but the point is they all do something. :)

With love,
Shelli

Send in the Clowns

2010-11-05T09:23:00.003-05:00

I'm angry.

I'm angry and disappointed and frustrated and irritated beyond belief.

In the past two weeks I have been utterly disillusioned about kindness, responsibility, respect, and integrity left in the world. Particularly in America. Particularly in my corner of America.

I'm usually not one to think that things were "better" in the past. Generally I think that there is always change and that every generation has good things and bad things. But in the past few weeks I have been forced to admit that there are a lot of things now that used to be "better."

I wish people would respect others opinions.

I wish people would take responsibility for their actions.

I wish people would not hide behind anonymity to be rude and hurtful.

I wish people would be aware that things typed or texted exist in people's minds long after they are read.

I wish people would let things be simple.

I wish people would read. I wish they would educate themselves. I wish they cared. About anything.

I wish people loved.

With love,
S

Spark of Creation

2010-10-17T16:59:00.004-05:00

I've got an itching on the tips of my fingers. I've got a boiling in the back of my brain. I've got a hunger burning inside me, cannot be denied. I've got a feeling that the Father who made us, when He was kindling the pulse in my veins, He left a tiny spark of that fire smoldering inside... The spark of creation burning bright within me. The spark of creation is blazing in my blood. A bit of the fire that lit up the stars and breathed life into the flood; the first inspiration. The spark of creation.

I see a mountain and I want to climb it. I see a river and I want to leave shore. Where there was nothing, let there be something, something made by me. There's things waiting for me to invent them; there's worlds waiting for me to explore. I am an echo of the eternal cry of let there be! The spark of creation flickering within me. The spark of creation won't let me rest at all until I discover or build or uncover a thing that I can call my celebration of the spark of creation.

The spark of creation - may it burn forever! The spark of creation. I am a keeper of the flame. We think all we want is a lifetime of leisure, each perfect day the same... endless vacation. Well, that's alright if you're a kind of crustacean, but when you're born with an imagination sooner or later you're feeling the fire get hotter and hotter.

The spark of creation.

I have never known a song that I could relate to so strongly. "What are you doing next year?" "I suppose I'll go to law school." And I suppose I will. But what I want is to create and to change and to explore and to discover and to make a difference, key word make. I think what I'm discovering is that to be a pawn in someone elses plan other than the Lord's is never going to be enough for me. There's a fire in me that I recognize from my father to be the one that makes the changes other people talk about. I need that. I want that. I think I'm called to that.

So where am I going now? I honestly have no idea. I've been praying about it, as I've said in past posts, but now that I am "done" with my law school applications, I plan to spend a lot of time looking into service opportunities for next summer, next year, the next few years. Funnily enough, I've had a ton of people say things to me like, "I see you in the Peace Corps" or "Have you looked into the Children's Defense Fund?" I think it's time for me to look more into those things. I have complete faith that God will lead me to the right thing. I know I've talked of nothing but going to New York and working in New York for years... and I still want that. But I want to do His will, and I'll get there. Eventually.

That's where I am. Nothing too exciting to report yet. I imagine those days are coming though. Otherwise, senior year has been a dream. I have the best friends and the best family (and the best football team ;)) and just the best life ever. Which makes me that much more determined to work to give other students the same opportunities that I've had. What is the purpose of being blessed if we never give anything from those blessings?

With love
<3

7 Things

2010-08-21T20:17:00.005-05:00

I blog on Saturday nights a lot. I should probably work on having cooler things to do on the weekends. Oh well.

I haven't made a list in a while, so I thought I might do one tonight. :-)

I started my senior year last week. My senior year. My last year. No more undergraduate institution after this year. What? It's completely shocking and fun and terrifying and exciting and stressful all at once. I've bled orange and blue for the past three years and will for the rest of my life... but after this year it will never be the same.

But I'm trying not to think about all of that. I'm not dwelling on the never ending what am I going to do with my life scenario and I'm trying not to focus on all of the lasts that are approaching. Instead I am thinking about my classes, and my social life and, of course, boys.

I'm not a Miley Cyrus fan, but I'm not a hater either. I did always really like her cute little song 7 Things though, and I've had just the slightest bit of boy drama in my life lately. No details, but I think her list is pretty accurate right now. The grammar in the list is terrible though.

You're vain
Your games
You're insecure
You love me, you like her
You make me laugh, you make me cry (this is actually 2 different things Miley)
Your friends are jerks
You make me love you

Love might be a bit strong. The rest is a bit legit. Is it ridiculous that I relate my relationships to songs written about / for / by 15-year-olds? Absolutely. But it could be worse... it could be The Bachelor. ;-)

Otherwise, about my life. Taking some freaking awesome classes this semester that are going to kick my butt. Lots of reading and writing in my future. But, hey, no big deal. Its cool. It's also going to be a semester of impromptu day trips, dinner parties, coffee dates, lunch dates, and Maisonette parties.

Oh and football. Lots of football. :-)

With love,
Shelli

Never Enough

2010-08-06T22:15:00.004-05:00

Today I read an unbelievably insightful and honest speech given by a high school graduating senior. It was a brave statement, especially since he must have known that the speech would be publicized and that he (his person and his thoughts) would be subject to the ridicule, hatred, and general lack of respect that is commonplace in America today, particularly in an age where we can all hide behind user names and profile pictures. But if Justin intended on making the people who encounter his speech think long and hard about the state of the American educational system, he succeeded. After I read it I want to cry thinking about how dreadful the school systems are and how impossible it seems to fix them.

I wish there was something I could do. Well, I know that there must be something I can do and I'm praying about it and trying to figure out what that something can be. I've been drawn to law school because it seems true that working with the American legal system is the best and most effective way to evoke any kind of change. Eventually I want to work in education reform, but I have no idea how I'm going to get there.

The thing is... I'm no better than any of the other black girls out there. I won the genetic lottery and ended up with parents who understood how important it was for me to be educated and were willing to sacrifice for me. But I could have easily been born to a single parent household with a mother than simply didn't have time to invest in my education because she had to work two jobs. And if I were as "smart" as I was as a kid, but got dealt a bad hand, I might not be graduating this year. I might not be in school. I might be completely and totally lost in a way that those of us working on college degrees with goals and dreams and future plans do not understand. And it breaks my heart that another girl who was in the same kindergarten class that I was in might be floudering and stuggling in a world where life can be so so hard... just because her mom didn't read to her before she went to bed, so she couldn't read in 1st grade and wasn't put in RTC and was forever labeled and stigmitized as dumb.

Because we all know its the teachers that decide who is smart and who is not. I don't mean for people who have like crazy awesome IQ's or the handful of kids who honestly suffer from some kind of disorder that makes school difficult for them. I mean the rest of us. I'm pretty average. Possibly slightly above, but mostly average. But once a teacher choose the smart kids and the not-smart kids, that sticks with you for life. Partly because of self-fulfilling prophesies, and partly because the teachers will give you more attention, more help, and better feedback if you show more "potential." I hate when people say "potential" as though some people have it and some people don't. By definition, do we not all have potential?

Okay, I'm rambling now. I was just feeling so... touched by that speech and by my own mind and imagination that I needed to write about it. I'm really excited for God to show me what I can do to help the education situation.

With love,
Shelli

Faithfully

2010-07-20T22:18:00.003-05:00

Last week I worked at my Maywood Christian Camp as a counselor. I got the 10 year old girls cabin, which was a huge jump from the 8 year olds I've gotten every other year) and they were absolutely wonderful. It was an incredible week, with I think 22 souls baptized into the church and numerous others that rededicated themselves to the Lord.

But I also had quite an awakening last week. I realized two really important things, and I felt compelled to write about them here.

Over the past year I have been compromising myself and everything I believe in because it is so important to me to be liked. By everyone. Even people I don't particularly care for and who I know have habits I disapprove of. Two years ago I would have never thought that I would push aside my love for God, my belief in His word and desire to fulfill his commands, and even parts of my own personality to compete in a non-existent popularity contest. To everyone who has witnessed this over the past year or so... I'm sorry. I'm working on staying true to myself and to my God, and part of the reason I'm writing this is to hold myself accountable for that. It makes me so miserable that I let one this weakness of mine take such control over my life. But my priorities are back on track, and you can expect quite a few differences in me now.

Second, I realized how much I've been trying to control my own life. Constantly stressing over law schools and graduate schools and what's going to happen over the next two years and whether I'm going to be single forever, and... you get it. I've been trying to do everything on my own, and I need to stop that. I need to let God help me and I need to let the people around me help me. I'm afraid this point will take me a little longer to deal with, but I'm praying about it and making a point to not spend more than an hour a day on anything related to law school or applications or anything like that. Being a control freak is not at all productive and not how God wanted His children to be.

So, yeah. Those are my recent awakenings. I'm also making time for fun things like reading and writing and stuff. That's been great. Loving Water for Elephants, which I started yesterday, and HATED Catcher in the Rye. I know that's a disgrace to every writer in the world. Saw Inception - it was incredible. Absolutely Incredible. And I have fun plans throughout the week.

I guess I'm really learning how to live by my motto: Live to serve, serve to live. I just forgot who I was serving. Now I just need to let Him show me how I can help the people around me too. That's too much for me, but not for Him.

With love,

Shelli

She Cries

2010-06-30T19:31:00.002-05:00

Lesson of the day: Don't steal sheet music. It really is cheap-ish to just buy the piece you want and download it off the internet (ps: my personal favorite "new" composers are Ryan Scott Oliver and Kerrigan and Lowdermilk. If you were wondering...)

And don't argue with Jason Robert Brown. Or you might get humiliated. Ouch.

http://www.jasonrobertbrown.com/weblog/2010/06/fighting_with_teenagers_a_copy.php

Summer Skin

2010-06-28T20:51:00.003-05:00

Summertime and the living is easy...

A little too easy.

I hate to admit it, because I'm sure I complain more than anyone else in the world about being
"too busy" but... I'm bored. It's week 6 of the summer I chose (i.e., staying in Auburn and continuing my internship instead of working in Memphis). Today I have

Worked from 9 - 3.

Went to a meeting with the Layman Group and visited two businesses to ask for their support.

Read 15 pages of Catcher in the Rye (yes it's my first time, yes I'm 21, no I didn't have to read it in high school, get off my case. haha)

Took an hour nap.

Watched an episode of Gilmore Girls (season 5, hands down the best season).

Sent about 7 emails (outside of work emails).

Chatted with my fab roommate for about 30 minutes.

And now it's 9 o'clock. and I'm out of things to do. Well, that's not exactly true. There are tons of things I could do. I could read a psych article in preparation for working on my thesis tomorrow. I could work on the Singers alumni database. I could work on graduate school admissions information. I could write (not blogging style, but real style). But... eh. I'm just not motivated to do any of the above.

It's curious, how one can feel like she needs to do something, but not want to do any of the things that are available to do. Blame it on the culture of busy, one that breeds anxiety and hurried actions. I'm part of an unfortunate generation that feels like we need to go go go every second, but only when something needs to immediately be fulfilled. Perplexing.

What do people do when they have nothing to do? I mean, I have hobbies, I read and write and make baskets out of magazine paper. I blog. I crochet. But once I've done all of these things as much as I can possibly do them... then what?

Sadly I don't have an answer yet. I'll work on that. Meanwhile, I'll try to have something more entertaining to write about next time. :-)

With love,
S

The Long and Winding Road

2010-06-21T22:10:00.005-05:00

In the past two weeks I have thought about myself more than I have in my entire life. Not because I'm generally super humble - I'm actually fairly self-centered, at least as much so as every other 21 year old female. No, because I have been working A TON on law school applications.

That's right ladies and gentlemen, it is that time again. I started my law school notebook last week and have been working on resumes, curriculum vitas, personal statements, supplementary personal statements, and more non-stop over the past week. Call it a coping mechanism (as in I'm drowning myself in the aspects of my law school applications I can control, since I can't do anything about my LSAT score now). Call it an obsession (you'd probably be right). Call it a waste of time... but nevertheless it's been my every day for the past 12 days.

Upside, I really like the first paragraph of my personal statement and the format of my resume.

Downside, I'm already tired of applications. And I haven't actually filled any out. Yes, it's partially my fault because once I start doing something (except possibly blogging) I do it obsessively. But still. The application process sucks.

Dear NYU, Will you just let me in? I promise I'm smart, smarter than my GPA makes me seem. And I'm a hard worker and I'm organized and... oh, let's face it. I'm exactly like every other applicant. Great.

Sooo here are my top 5 things that every future law student THINKS is his or her strength:

"I really want to help people." Because it sounds bad to say 'I really just want to be able to make money someday, but also to prove to people that I'm smart enough to get a post-graduate degree.
"I'm highly competitive, but also personable." Sure, say that to the guy whose self-esteem you slowly broke down each day in gym class by staring at him as he ran around the gym. No one ever knew why he dropped out of the races for class president, mu alpha theta historian, and LAX captain. But you do. Write about that in your personal statement.
"I add diversity to the campus." Sorry people, there are only about 4 things that truly add diversity. And unless you immigrated from a land where only 6 people spoke English, saved an entire school building worth of seven year olds from the fire that your local government set to eliminate all education, AND went to Princeton, Harvard, Yale, and / or Stanford... no one cares where you volunteered or what kind of neighborhood you grew up in. And absolutely none of that counts if you're white. Or Asian.
Academic Achievement. Okay. That's probably fair. Rock that 4.0 and 175... you're golden.

As for the rest of us... let's just pray for that 14 point curve and / or really low application rates. Here's hoping.

With love,
S

Summer in the City

2010-06-07T23:21:00.002-05:00

Today I took the LSAT. It was hard, but perhaps not as hard as I thought it would be. I'm trying not to think about it, because I don't want to convince myself that I did really well and then get like a 152 in three weeks. So I'm going to try to distract myself until I get scores back.

Of course, that's way easier said then done. Everyone who knows me knows I thrive on being busy. And though I have my internship where I work about 5 / 6 hours a day (at a cubicle no less... crazy) and a few good friends hanging out in my college town for the summer too, I knew I would have a hard time filling in the extra time without classes or LSAT-studying.

But God must have known that I would feel that way, because he put the Layman Group into my life. The Layman Group is an organization that exists simply to spread the fine arts. I was impressed by their website and I loved their vision, so I sent the contact person my resume and said that I would like to get involved. In a whirlwind I met with their director, who was a really incredible and dedicated artistic presence, and he basically offered me the opportunity to help. I'll be working with fund-raising / development (naturally) and I'm unbelievably excited about having an opportunity to really use what I've learned working in development for the past 9 months to help a cause that I'm passionate about. The Layman Group is right on in their deduction that in our area the arts are thought of as unattainable and unnecessary. But as I tell my dear engineering friends, no one recites math equations to themselves in the showers. They don't make museums for theorems and you don't cry at the end of a live performance of a thesis.

Art is what we live and breathe for, and our area isn't immune to that. And I'm psyched about helping start a movement to show people how important the arts are to our lives. If nothing else, it's one of the few things that crosses all boarders; there are no cultures, no people, no souls that have no expression of art. So let's make it available here too.

I love New York. And I want to move there next year. But I hate the truth that to experience great art (as in theatre, visual art, music, etc.), you pretty much have to be in New York or a comparable metropolitan area. Or, worse, that the art in our communities is more or less ignored. I would love for middle-school students near my college town to be as culturally educated as students in Manhattan. It's possible. :-)

So, yeah. There's my soap box for the summer. Oh, and I'll probably work on my Honors thesis a little bit. Maybe. ;-)

With love,
Shelli

My Conviction

2010-04-16T11:37:00.004-05:00

Wrote this for my Personal Essay class, and I kind of like it. Since it reads like a blog post (though no lists, sorry!) and I haven't updated this in SOO long, I thought I'd post it. :-)

I was born in 1989 and consequently never had the opportunity to see Galt McDermott’s cultural phenomenon Hair in its original controversial glory. I had heard ‘Aquarius’ a few times from our local radio station (edited for questionable content, per the tradition in Alabama) and seen snippets of the movie on television (again, edited for content), so I figured I got the gist: hippies and free love and drug trips and peace signs.

I was born in 1989, so I’m a child of the 90’s and early 2000’s. That could mean a lot of things, but I would argue that being a new millennium kid means that you really have nothing of your own. All of the trends have already happened, all the ideas have been thought of, and you’re destined to read books about better times and try to reenact them all the days of your life. It kind of sucks. Still, if as a Y2K child I had to look back in time and choose a decade that I wanted to reenact, the sixties would always be my first choice. I was pegged in high school as the rebel with a thousand causes, from arts in public schools to hunger in America to psychological health care. For me, the sixties were about passion and dedication and standing up for what you believed in. I would trade that a million times for my peers who cared about nothing and were content to recreate fashion statements of earlier times. My discontent with and disapproval of my generation compared to the hippies of the sixties left me ready and willing to embrace Hair when I discovered the musical.

I saw the revival of Hair in Manhattan’s Hirschfield Theatre the summer of 2009 only weeks after the cast won the Tony Award for Best New Revival. But I had already fallen in love with the musical when I first encountered it a few weeks prior to seeing the show. One Friday morning I had woken up before the sun and hailed a taxi up to Central Park to see the cast perform on the television program “Good Morning America.” Armed with my new camera and limited knowledge about the musical, I joined throngs of other twenty-something’s in line. I was there for about 15 minutes before I noticed something unusual: everyone surrounding me was dressed like they were in the musical. There were hemp bracelets and long hair and bell bottom pants everywhere. I thought that seemed a little strange, but then I started listening to the people around me. “Yeah, I saw it for the fourth time last week.” “Gavin didn’t perform last night, I heard he was sick.” “I hope they perform ‘Don’t Put It Down.’ It’s my favorite song.” I realized exactly how in to the musical the group was, and I’ll admit, I felt a little left out of the excitement. Once inside the gates, we waited for at least 2 more hours, and the longer we waited, the more I realized how passionate the anxious crowd was about Hair. There were signs that said “peace now, freedom now, equality now” and “make love, not war.” People were throwing flowers across the crowd. From a distance it would be difficult to distinguish us from real-life protestors; in Alabama we would have been subjected to many-a disapproving glare.

The band began to set up around 7:00. The sun was lazily drifting up behind the stage, and the cameramen were rubbing bleary eyes and smoking cigarettes (interestingly enough, there didn’t seem to be any illegal substances in the crowd, but I may have been unaware due to my general naiveté). The band warmed up, playing notes that sounded like chaos, but I associated with the beginnings of ballets, operas, and selected Bugs Bunny cartoons. And then they played the opening notes to “Aquarius,” arguably the most famous song in the musical.

When the moon is in the seventh house / and Jupiter aligns with Mars / then peace will guide the planet / and love will steer the stars! / This is the dawning of the Age of Aquarius, the Age of Aquarius!

The voices around me mingled and swelled as the faux-hippies belted out the lyrics. They weren’t just singing tunelessly. There were harmonies and melodies and the long haired boys beside me sang the male parts while the earnest-looking girls sang the female lines. I was absolutely blown away. It was a completely normal thing for me and my musical theatre buddies to suddenly break out into Broadway show tunes; it seemed like a dream when the entire amphitheatre began to sing along fervently.

The young cast of twenty-five virtually unknown performers came on to the stage at the end of the song and sang along with the crowd. They then performed the opener, and the title song, ‘Hair.’ And I got it. For about 15 minutes, I felt suspended into a world that I had never encountered before. The people on the stage weren’t just newly discovered actors wearing costumes and playing pretend. To me they were real people singing about their pain and love and beliefs and fears. Yes, part of it was Central Park and the added authenticity of performing out of a theatre. And part of it was the fervor of the people around me and their leather headbands and flower pins. But that spring morning, when it started to rain and the green-eyed soprano started leading us in a chant of “hell no, we won’t go!” it could have been 1967. I could have been an anti-Vietnam protestor. I could have burned my true love’s draft card and run away with him to Canada. I could have been the true story of any number of characters from movies and literature.

I saw Hair on June 30th, 2009. I like to say it changed my life, and it sort of did. It gave me a greater understanding of some of the issues with the Vietnam War (somehow none of my history teachers ever quite got around to teaching that). It inspired me to be a bit more active with regard to the hot topics of today, like recycling and global warming and marriage equality. And it definitely changed my wardrobe: I now own more peace signs, hemp necklaces, flowered tunics, and crocheted tops than the most nostalgic flower child. My friends explain my eccentric wardrobe choices (I use eccentric loosely, because in Alabama anything beyond blue jeans and a t-shirt is considered outlandish) by saying “she’s a hippie.” Which I love.

I didn’t know very much about hippies, so once I decided I might like to be one, I started doing my homework. I delved into Jack Kerouac books and the more obscure Beatles songs. What struck me the most was the love that hippies exhibited. I don’t think we (meaning me and my peers) really know how to love. I mean, we know how to love our Michael Kors purses and movie stars and Lost. We don’t know how to love each other. Hippies loved each other and they loved their country and they loved life. My favorite line from Hair is “I believe that now is the time for all good men to believe in love; I believe!” But we don’t. I don’t. Fifty percent divorce rates and a solid division in the county over party lines and constant reminders through the news and social media make it difficult to believe in love. The love we believe in is the love of fairy tales, and when we discover that love is virtually unattainable, we refuse to fight for love. After years of trying to use our heads to guard our hearts, it’s difficult to love in an innocent and earnest way. It may be impossible to love like the hippies.

Despite what my yuppie parents try to lead me to believe, hippies were far from useless rebels and they weren’t looking for excuses to be lazy. They were passionate in the most sincere way; they expected nothing in return from their fellow man except for love. They were often disappointed. The hippies of the sixties loved America, and loved mankind unceasingly. I’m not sure my generation is capable of that. We expect a return, tax, emotional, or otherwise, and we consider gifts from your wallet the one’s worth giving. It’s sad. And I may wear flowers in my hair and flash peace signs when I cross the street, but I am every bit as victim to those flaws as my peers. I’m perfectly willing to get on my soapbox and rant about the sad state of education in America right now, or the incredible amount of people who go hungry every day in a country that proclaims to be the greatest country in the world. But those are just words. I’m not staging a sit in or marching on the capital or doing much of anything outside of giving fifteen dollars twice a year to a cause. I’m just as bad as the generation that I complain so much about because, at the end of the day, I’m not doing anything to help mankind either.

It took my seeing Hair to realize that I really was searching for something that money and success and even philanthropic work cannot give me. I’m terrified that if what I’m looking for is passion and love, I may never find that. Not among my peers. Not in 2010. The lead character in Hair, Claude, closes the first act with the poignant words, “Where do I go / follow my heartbeat? / Where do I go / follow my hand? / Where will they lead me / and will I ever / discover why I live and die?” I couldn’t get those words out of my head for weeks. Because I couldn’t answer those questions. And I was sure that the people around me, despite their plans and their goals and their accomplishments, could truly answer either. We’ve lost a lot in fifty years. We don’t even ask those questions anymore. It’s devastating.

I’m not actually a hippie. I’m a pseudo-hippie at best. I can walk the walk, and talk the talk, and vote democrat, and use reusable grocery bags. But in reality, I understand that I’m playing the role of a hippie, not actually being one. I’m passionate about some things, but I rarely act on them. I am virtually incapable of the self-less attitude of the hippies. I’m blinded by my desire for success. I am crippled by my inability to love. I’ll never be a hippie. I try. And I mostly fail. I hope in time, maybe when I have kids, and a fresh group of actors are performing in the third revival of Hair, they’ll be able to truly believe in, and to have, love.

With love,
<3

Don't Rain on My Parade

2009-12-12T15:21:00.003-06:00

Two or so years ago my friend Hilary facebook-ed me with a link to a video on youtube. We had been talking about Disney princess movies in our choir class, and I had been lamenting the lack of a black Disney Princess. I knew that Nola was supposed to be the one, but still. A real princess would be nice. So imagine my surprise when her link took me to a first glance at Disney's The Frog Princess!

Cut to two years later, after TONS of controversy, several storyline changes, and probably come very discouraged Disney executives. Finally, Disney's The Princess and the Frog came out, and I honestly believe the entire country (naysayers and supporters) was holding their breath to see if it would work. I'll admit, I had serious doubts. I was disgruntled by the fact that it seemed like she would be a frog the entire movie and I did think the prince could have been black, plus New Orleans did seem like a controversial place to set the movie. Still, opening night came and my best friend and I joined a theater full of 20-and-up students at the 9:35 showing of what was being hailed as "the best Disney movie since The Lion King." We agreed to count racist elements of the movie as it went. Roll camera.

The racist count was 4 by the end, but maybe not because there weren't more things that could be construed as "racist" but because the movie was soooo wonderful, we stopped counting and started falling in love. The praise was completely deserved, and I'm willing to add this movie to my infamous Top 10 Disney movie musical list... that's a big deal for me.

But this post isn't about the movie. You have to see it yourself, and I think if you have a soul at all you'll love it. It's beautiful and fun and touching all at once. I just want to address all the people who have written negative posts about the movie.

Dear Ms. Dargis, Mr. Morris, and countless other reviewers that have written similar responses to the Princess and the Frog,

I'm black and I live in Alabama. I would say that makes me pretty well aquainted with anything and everything to do with racism. But here's the thing. I've never related to The Color Purple. Or Hotel Rowanda, or Crash, or Cooley High or any other black reaction movies. I don't watch Good Times or the Jeffersons or even Everybody Hates Chris. I watch Gossip Girl and Glee. I love the Cosby Show and Fresh Prince of Bel-Aire. You know what those last two have in common. They're about black people. But they're not about being Black. Yes, I'm black and yes sometimes things happen that force you to remember the color of your skin. And that sucks. But that's certainly not every day of my life or even the majority of it, and it's certainly not my choice of entertainment topics. You don't see white people making movies about the Great Depression or various European hardships (you know, wars, famines, etc.). Because who wants to deal with those things all the time? I certainly don't, and I DON'T need another movie shoving down my throat that it's "not easy being black."

Fact: The Princess and the Frog is a Disney princess movie. About a princess. It's a fairytale. Of course it ends happily ever after. I just don't understand walking into this movie expecting Tiana to end up alone and fine because she's a strong black woman. You can be strong and black and fall in love, and, again, this is a cartoon movie. Forgive me for wanting the young girls in my life to believe in true love. What's more is that Tiana isn't even the kind of heroine that only cares about love. She's not Ariel. She's not Sleeping Beauty. She is a hardworker, and she gets what she worked for in the end. What more do you want from a movie?

I'm just so frustrated that reviews like you insist on tearing apart a movie that I believe served its purpose. If you walked into this movie expecting enlightenment on racial roles in Southeastern America or the plight of the Black woman, Precious was playing right around the corner. Please just do us all a favor, and spread your negativism to other movies. As for me, I'm going to encourage every little girl I know, red, yellow, black, and white, to go see this movie. It's exactly the kind of story I was looking for as a child, and that I found in the classic Disney movies. It just happens to have a princess that looks a little more like me. As far as I'm concerned, that's just an extra perk to an amazing movie.

With love,
<3

White America

2009-11-21T21:32:00.003-06:00

Today Ole Miss beat LSU. SEC football is a huge concern for me, so I'm super excited about that. :-)

But before the game, Ole Miss suffered a small embarrassment. Some members of the Ku Klux Klan showed up to protest. My understanding is that Ole Miss traditionally sings a song called Dixie-something or another, and at the end fans have started chanting "The south will rise again!"

But some of the administration of the University don't like this tradition (can't imagine why...) and they requested that the fans stop adding that phrase to the song. Because it's offensive. And they didn't care. So then the University made the band stop playing the song all together. Like a punishment for an entire football stadium. Funny. lol.

Anyway, this information was very interesting to me, not because of the actual story (which is just stupid and annoying) but because of the information about the Klan. And how the articles about the protest have, like, little quotes from the Klan as though they simply found their statements in a press release packet. I thought they were like a big secret. Apparently not.

Cause I googled (or, actually, binged them) them and found their official website... which was a terrible website, production value-wise. I did find a lot of enlightening information though and decided to share with my loyal reader a list of my favorite points from the Klan's platform (yeah, they have a platform. oh dear).

The recognition that America was founded as a Christian nation. As James Madison, known as the "Chief Architect of the Constitution" stated; " We have staked the whole future of American civilization, not upon the power of government, far from it. We have staked the future of all of our political institutions upon the capacity of mankind for self-government upon the capacity of each and all of us to govern ourselves to control ourselves to sustain ourselves according to the Ten Commandments of God."

So... this is almost true. Of course, if you look up what other fathers of the constitution say about the founding of our country, you can pretty much find a quote to support anything. Plus this only gets funny later.

The recognition that America was founded as a White nation. America was born as an extension of White European heritage. Those who formed the very ideals that we cherish such as freedom of speech, trial by jury, innocent until proven guilty, free enterprise, etc. were of White European heritage. All of the early laws of the United States from its very inception restricted citizenship to White people and all of the early charters, laws, compacts, etc were signed into effect by White people.

Riight. Never mind that whole thing about the Great American melting pot. Or the fact that the stregnth of the country was (and still is) due to minorities. As in not whites.

Abolish all anti-gun laws and encourage every adult to own a weapon. The cure for crime in America is not take guns off the streets but to put more guns ON the streets. Violent criminals should be punished, but law abiding citizens should be allowed to defend their homes, business and families with out fear of the federal government treating them as the criminal.

Don't even get me started on how much I disagree with this. I can sometimes I can see where people think that gun laws should be abolished, even though I don't agree. But I fail completely to see how having more guns will cure crime in America. Ay yi yi.

Put American troops on our border to STOP the flood of illegal aliens. America is being over run by illegal immigrants mostly from nonwhite countries who do not share the Christian European values of our nation's founders. Immigration should remain open to all White Christians throughout the world . There is not one single country that does not persecute it's White Christian citizens such as in South Africa where the violent crime against Whites is at an all time high. The entire reasoning behind the forming of America was to allow one place in the world where White Christians could live together in harmony without any outside interference from those of other religions or races.

I honestly don't even know what to say about that. Really? South Africa? That's your argument?

Actively promote love and appreciation of our unique European (White) culture. We must recognize it as the bedrock of American liberty and self government.

The thing is, European culture is a lot of different cultures. Not unlike America. The only thing that really links Europeans is proximity and skin color. And they all don't have the same exact skin color. This is just silly.

Drug testing for welfare recipients. We recognize that not everyone receiving assistance is on drugs, but those who are should not be receiving your tax money. Welfare should be for those who need it - not those who abuse it.

Plenty of people abuse welfare on things that are not drugs. And plenty of people do drugs that are not on welfare. This just smacks of discrimination. And it's such a sort of random thing to include on your list of assertions.

Rehabilitate our public school system. We must remove the humanist influence in our schools and teach fact based curriculum to further the students knowledge not someone's opinion. Parents should have the option of private or home schooling if they prefer and students should be free to practice their Christian faith in the classroom.

But I don't understand. If America is founded on Christian principles, then shouldn't people be allowed to learn Christian beliefs in the classroom? Just like they should learn that America was founded for White people and we should all be so thankful that they even allow any other people into the country?

We support a national law against the practice of homosexuality. This is a Christian nation and the Bible condemns homosexual activity and the perversion of our society which it encourages.
We support the placing of all persons HIV positive into national hospitals. While the AIDS virus is almost inclusive to homosexuals and those not of European ancestry, many innocent people have contacted the virus. Despite the moral character of a person, the virus is still highly contagious with new and deadlier forms coming out constantly. Everyone who gets it dies! Aids carriers should receive proper medical care while a cure is being researched. This is the only way to stop the spread of the disease. They should be kept from coming into contact with uninfected people.

Two for one. If education shouldn't be related to religion, then neither should laws. And that whole thing about HIV being highly contagious and everyone who gets it dies... well, that's just plain ridiculous. Open a book sometime.

Restoring individual freedom to Christian America. People should be allowed to hire who they want, live where they want and practice the Christian faith as they please. Likewise people should be able to sell to whom they want , rent to whom they want and socialize and conduct business with who they want. The government should not interfere with the everyday lives of white Christian Americans.

As I understand the whole constitution thing... everyone does have the right to do those things. The thing you don't have the right to do is discriminate based on color. Which I'm guessing White American's wouldn't like either.

We support the voluntary repatriation of everyone not satisfied with living under White Christian rules of conduct back to the native lands of their people. The brightest and best minds of all races will be able to run their own affairs without outside interference. To support their efforts we should provide the financial and technological resources needed for a limited period of time in the building or rebuilding of their independent nations. After that their success or failure is totally up to them.

Kay. Thanks, I'll just go to Africa and live there. It'll be just like my life in America I'm sure.

Gotta love extremists groups. Oh Southern America.

With love
<3
Shelli

PS: just for the record, I don't support the Klan nor to I condone their actions or beliefs... anything I said that seemed in agreement... tongue in cheek. And if you agree with any of it... I really don't care. :-)

My Grown-Up Christmas List...

2009-11-19T21:58:00.002-06:00

Sort of. I love that song, and I love any and all simple idealistic wishes for peace on earth and goodwill towards men. More than that, I love when people make real actual efforts to promote peace and are good to other men. But that's neither here nor there. This is a different kind of list.

Top 10 Christmas movies.

I love Christmas. It's my second favorite holiday, and I am pretty obsessed with it. I buy tons of gifts and decorate my apartment as though it's the white house or something. :-) Buttttt what I really love are Christmas movies. So without further ado, my top 10 list.

10) I'll Be Home for Christmas: Jonathan Taylor Thomas (aka everyone my age's childhood crush) is a privileged little jerk that travels across the country to try to win the affections of Jessica Biel (before Justin). Best scene: when the trucker woos his waitress lover. "Oh Marjorie! Oh baby, oh baby, oh baby!"

9) Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas. One of very few sequels I think Disney got right. Except, of course, it's not so much a sequel as a "between"-cle. Anyway, Belle discovers the angry organ and teaches him and the Beast (and the rest of the castle) the Magic of Christmas. Best scene: "As long as there's Christmas, I truly believe that hope is the greatest of the gifts we receive..." great song. Further proof that Belle is the best Disney princess ever. Plus fun new Piccolo character. hehe. One negative: Computer animation for the organ. creepy.

8) Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. Yes, I chose 2 and not the original one. Both are amazing. I'm just partial to New York. I love the Plaza and the whole ordeal with the house and the ridiculous coincidence that the same creepers from the first movie happen to be in NYC at the same time Kevin is there. Best scene: the pigeon woman and her love of the opera. Priceless, and so moving. negative: nothing quite as funny as the brother in the first movie "One... b... and 4." plus no Carol of the Bells.

7) A Christmas Carol (with Patrick Stewart): I just love a Christmas Carol (although not as much as my mother, who owns 4 versions of the movie, and watches at least 9 every year), and this one is the most classic to me. Clearly Patrick Stewart is the best Scrooge ever and of course the story is the ultimate Christmas moral: don't be greedy or a creepy dementor looking thingie will threaten your life. Best scene: "Are there no jails and poorhouses?" "Some would rather die than go to those places" "Well, if they're going to die, they better go ahead and do it and decrease the surplus population." Oooooh.

6) Elf: Some people don't like Will Ferrell. They suck, I love Will Ferrell. and this is my 2nd favorite Will Ferrell role (after Stranger than Fiction). So funny, and featuring the lovely Zooey Deschanel. Another wonderful Christmas moral, and lots of hilarious one liners. The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear. I definitely believe that. :-) Best scene: tie between when he runs into the lockers in the bathroom (haha) and the Santa encounter.

5) Miracle on 34th Street (1990's version). I'm a sucker for Mara Wilson (whatever happened to her?), and for the American court system. And the guy from the Practice. Best Scene: the proposal and unseen marriage. I'm a romantic.

4) It's a Wonderful Life: If you don't love this movie, you haven't seen it. Every time I watch it, I cry. Jimmy Stewart is amazing, and the entire story is just so classic. Best scene: Of course, "every time a bell rings, and angel gets its wings." I totally believe that.

3) Christmas Vacation: So so so so funny. There's a reason it's on everyone's list of favorite Christmas movies. Chevy Chase at his best, for sure. Best scene: the rant after Chevy Chase's breakdown. One day I'm going to learn it by heart. For now, I'm just going to laugh during it. haha!

2) A Christmas Story: Ralphie!! It's like the Wonder Years, but longer and cruder. Well, it has a voiceover like the Wonder Years. Plus the boy from Toy. "He had yellow eyes!" hehe. If you haven't seen this one, then you need to stop whatever you're doing and watch it. Immediately. Best scene: meeting Santa. or Christmas dinner. Or the f dash dash dash word. Or the tongue to the pole. Or the whole movie. Whichever.

1) A Muppet Christmas Carol. BEST. MOVIE. EVER. It has everything. Kermit as Cratchit. Gonzo narrating. Rizzo the rat. Michael Caine. and singing. Soooo good. Plus my favorite Christmas tale, as I've already said. Best scene: could never choose. Buuuut I really like the sad song that randomly shows up in the middle. "And yes, some dreams come true, and yes some dreams fall through."

That was too sad to end on.

"It's true that Christmas has never put a penny in my pocket, but I believe it has done me good and will do me good, and I say God bless it!"

With love
<3
Shelli

Where Do I Go

2009-10-16T08:38:00.005-05:00

"How to avoid being like our mothers."

I love my mother. We're basically best friends, and yeah sometimes she makes me crazy, but mostly I love her more than basically anyone in my life. I just wanted to add that disclaimer. I also want to remind everyone that I am 20 years old, and I am well aware that I couldn't really understand the thoughts and lives of women 20 or more years older than me.

But.

Most of our mothers aren't happy. They may be sort of happy, but they're not the over the moon, completely dizzily happy that I think most people want to be. I'm not the only one who thinks that, writers for the nytimes and various blogs have mentioned women's growing unhappiness in the past month. The question that no one really seems to be able to answer is, why?

Haven't we gotten everything we ever wanted as a woman? [Almost] equal rights, and the ability to wear what we want and do what we want. I have never felt like I can't do anything the men around me can do, and it's thanks to the pioneering women of decades before me that I haven't felt that way. Women have done basically everything a man has done, and in most cases done it just as well if not better. So what is wrong? Why are men getting happier and happier and we're going the opposite way.

Well, there are many things I could blame. X-box, which is a safe haven for boys of all ages, while there is no socially acceptable outlet for a woman's childlike behaviors. The fact that women are working as many hours or more than the men in their lives and are still being expected to take care of the children or meals or basically everything else. The destructive images being pushed to us every single day of impossible standards to live up to. No one can look like a model, follow all the tips to "make your man wild" from Cosmo, work 50 hours a week, get dinner on the table, take kids to school, and be a minx every single day.

But we've been trying. I think that's the problem. Our mothers and grandmothers fought for us to have the ability to do more than vacuum in pearls, and we don't want to let them down. At the same time, we're being told by television and advertisements and even our friends that we have to be beautiful and sexy and perfect. Plus we're in the post divorced families era of women who are desperate to make their marriages work, because we all saw only failed marriages when we were growing up.

Times are hard. But I have a few ideas of things that the twenty-somethings can do to try to be a little happier than the average woman today. Enjoy!

* Follow your heart. Cheesy, I know, but I think a lot of 80's and 90's powerhouse women got caught up in being successful and ended up in jobs and lifestyles they weren't passionate about. I tell my residents, don't think that the only thing worth doing is going to medical or law school. If you love photography, be a photographer. If you love clothes, work in retail. There are no rules about what jobs are okay, and which equal failure. Who really wants to be a pharmacist anyway? Probably some people, but probably not all of the women in pharmacy school. Do what you love.

* Talk to your mom. Or another woman in your life. Ask her what she did when she was your age, what she might do differently, what advice she has. We all have this 'do everything yourself' attitude, so we don't tap into the valuable resources that the women around us could be.

* Accept yourself as you are. I have long since gotten over the fact that I'm never going to be Jessica Alba. Most of us aren't going to be. So embrace the beautiful things about yourself. Psalms 139:14 says "I praise you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made." You are. Never forget that.

* Take time for yourself. My mother gets her nails done once a week. I watch Glee every Wednesday. It is so crucial that everyone has something she does just for herself. To detox or to laugh or to do anything at all, if it makes you happy. You can't live for other people all of the time, and everyone deserves that alone time.

* Be realistic about your relationships. Fall in love. Don't fool yourself into believing your relationship is perfect. I firmly believe that everyone deserves the best possible love in their lives, and I think you know when the person is The One. If he's not, don't pretend like he is. You deserve someone who treats you like a princess, as cliche as that is. Being happy in a relationship and being willing to work to keep those relationships is key.

* Spend time with friends. Sex and the City had this right, I usually feel best when I'm having coffee with a few friends, or just hanging out at people's apartments making cookies. Again, no one can work all of the time.

* Don't feel guilty about your choices. Wanna know a secret? It's okay to stay at home and take care of your kids. Every woman doesn't have to have a career, and if it will make you happiest to be with someone who wants to take care of you and you can stay at home, do that. By the same token, if being in the PTA will make you crazy, don't feel guilty about working. Women are generally people pleasers but at the end of the day it's really only me and God, and I don't want to be miserable. That's not to say that women should be totally selfish...

* Give back. Whether it's through donations to a charitable cause, or volunteering at your local food bank, helping other people really really does make you feel better. Just take an hour out of your week and volunteer at a non-profit afterschool care, and I promise within two weeks you will feel a ton better.

* Don't be self-destructive. Ladies, we have to stop these habits of binge drinking and sleeping around and everything else. I think that these became the norm as a way of escaping the unhappiness that women feel sometimes, or possibly to full a hole that no one or nothing else seemed to fill, but they really just make things worse. I have never in my life met a girl who got wasted every weekend that seemed truly happy with her life. Try maybe substituting a Saturday night at the bars with a night of going to late night diners or something. I know that my average college students are rolling their eyes as they read this, but let me remind you that college doesn't last forever, but habits are hard to break. And if you're used to drowning your sorrows in jack and coke, you haven't developed a positive way to deal with them... no good.

* Don't be a victim. This is where our mother's got things right. You are strong. You are capable. Take things into your own hands sometimes, and make your life better. Maybe you hate every idea I've given, that's cool But figure out a way to make yourself happy. Decide that you don't want to turn 40 and wish that you knew what it was like to be happy.

I'm not saying you have to be perfect. Or that you can't change things in your life as you get older; of course you can. I'm only saying that we all deserve to be just as happy as the men in the world. And our generation can make that happen.

With love

Shelli

A Diamond and a Tether

2009-10-07T00:20:00.001-05:00

Pity, take pity on me
Because I’m not have the man that I should be
Always turning to run
From the people I should not be afraid of
And darling, you should know
That I have fantasies about being alone
It’s like love is a lesson
That I can’t learn
So I make the same mistakes at each familiar turn

Chorus
I know you can’t hold out forever
Waiting on a diamond and a tether
From a boy who won’t swim
Who won’t dip his toe in
Just to keep you here with him

I’ve got this habit I abhor
When we go out, I’m always watching the door
As if there’s someone I’m going to see
Who could out do the things that you do to me

Chorus
I know you can’t hold out forever
Waiting on a diamond and a tether
From a boy who won’t fly
Who won’t take to the skies
If he thinks you’re about to say goodbye

Pity, take pity on me
Because I’m not half the man that I should be
And I don’t blame you, you’ve had enough
With all these empty promises and countless bluffs

Chorus
I know you can’t hold out forever
Waiting on a diamond and a tether
From a boy who won’t jump
When he’s falls in love
He just stands with his toes on the edge
And he waits for it to disappear again

Give Up All Desires

2009-09-10T21:10:00.006-05:00

Hi!

Like I already said, I'm back in Alabama, and back to normal life. I left New York on July 3rd, which was super sad (but rode a plane for the first time, so that was super exciting! also, classic southern girl, never been on a plane. haha!). I seriously had the most amazing summer of my life, and cannot wait to go back next summer with Singers (!!) and again when I graduate. :-)

But back in the heart of dixie I spent the rest of my summer with my boyfriend :) and my best friends. I went to Maywood (a Christian camp I've gone to for the past 17 years) and had another incredible year there. Then I came home for about 4 days lol and then headed to the beach with my favorite girls. Thennnn I came back to the plains!!

Okay, so enough boring journal-ing. Auburn is nowhere near as exciting as New York (although I love them equally), so I will stop telling about my every activity. Instead I'll talk about Ramadan fast-a-thon!

Last week my friend Shainur (who is totally awesome) asked me if I would be interested in participating in Ramadan fast-a-thon. It's an event the Auburn Muslim Association puts on each year, and it raises money for the East Alabama Food Bank. Basically, you agree to participate for the day (that means abstaining from any food or drink, along with impure thoughts and actions and sexual activity) and someone sponsors you, then that money goes to the food bank. I agreed to participate because it seemed like a novel way to support a good cause, plus it didn't involve my buying a t-shirt. So, win.

Except it was AWFUL. I mean, half way through the day I was wondering why on earth I had agreed to this. I would close my eyes and see chocolate pies and Pringles. I was counting the seconds until 6 o'clock when I would go to the event that the AMA was hosting and get the free food. My friend Andie and I went and discovered that there were some speakers before we could get the food, which wasn't ideal seeing as we were both ready to eat our own arms.

Then the woman from the food bank started talking. And she talked about how people that you would never expect to be going without food often come to the food bank for help. She talked about how much people depend on those sources. And how important it was that we continued t support the food bank, and other endeavors that help others. I was starting to feel a little ashamed, because while I was complaining about not being able to eat during the day,my refrigerator was full of food that I eat probably too much of, and my checking account had my grocery money just waiting for me to use.

The keynote speaker was next, and although I missed the finer details of what he said because the other two women at our table apparently never learned that it's rude to talk straight through a speech in normal speaking tones, I caught the gist. He talked about how Ramadan isn't just about not eating. It's about controlling your impulses and being thankful for what you have. It's about the fact that God would never ask us to do anything that we physically couldn't do, and how blessed we are to have a God who provides for us in every way. And the fast-a-thon was about helping the people around you, just as God helps us.

Just as a disclaimer, I don't believe that we are called by God to fast. And I wholeheartedly believe that if you personally believe that, it needs to be an act between you and God, not something to boast about. Nor am I Muslim. But today did remind me how blessed I am and how thankful and humbled I need to be to serve an awesome God that cares for me.

And if you're not a Christian, I sincerely hope that you consider the blessings that you do have, and how little God asks in return from us. If nothing else, as Americans (I think most of the people who read me are American) I think we should all remember the call to action that one of our landmarks... "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Shend these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door.

So, yeah. That's my spill. I don't know if this made any sense, but if you get nothing else from this... be thankful for everything we are blessed with. Give back to others; it's one of the best ways to give back to the ultimate Giver. Ohh and don't be afraid to discover new cultures.

With love
<3
Shelli

PS: the title is from Hair. :-)

Alma Mater

2009-09-04T11:49:00.000-05:00

Hi!! Yes I'm still alive and no I haven't forgotten how to blog. :-)

I'm back in semi-sweet home Alabama. I'm thrilled to be back on the plains, and even more thrilled that FOOTBALL SEASON starts tomorrow!
However, I'm also missing New York like crazy. Oh well. Missing it has been a huge motivator for me to do well in my classes so that I will get into grad school in New York and be able to move there in two years.

I'm just doing a short posting now to point out the obvious... I moved to a blogger account. Sadly. I was staying with msn because I already had an account with them and I HATE having multiple email addresses. Buttt, I ended up having to make a gmail account anyway because of the ridiculous amounts of email I get from school and the need to keep it all organized in another account. And then I decided to go ahead and switch all my blogs to blogger since it really is a better server.

And the rest is history. So all future postings will be here, and all my old one's are there too!

Later I will give a real entry, probably a non-exhaustive wrap up of my summer, lol, and ohhh, a list of reasons I lovee living in the best college town in the world! :-)

with love
<3
Shelli

7/03/09 - Bittersweet Symphony

2009-09-04T11:42:00.001-05:00

Well, it’s my last few hours in New York City. I’m feeling pretty conflicted about it. I do miss my family and friends at home (especially Tommy) but I really don’t want to leave New York ever. :-(

This past week with kaley has been super fun, full of pictures (haha) and shopping and sightseeing. Plus two of the most amazing Broadway shows ever written. But I’ll write about all of that another day. Right now I need to pack and get ready for my flight home tomorrow morning.

Today I went to the New York Public Library one last time, and when I left a man at the door said “leaving already? Come back soon…” I almost cried at that… ridiculous, I know. But I’m already counting the days until I can move up here. Meanwhile, I’m missing Auburn, lol, so I’ll be glad to get back there.

I suppose I’ll stop rambling now and finish packing. Just wanted to let my many adoring blogfans know that I was alive. ;-)

Peace, love, and nyc. haha.

With love

Shelli

6/27/09 - I'll Be There

2009-09-04T11:41:00.002-05:00

So, I just finished what I hope is the first draft of my communications survey, yay! And to celebrate, I thought I’d update my blog. haha. I know, you’re probably thinking ‘real cool way to spend Saturday night…’ Well, yeah, it is cool and also my bestest friend Kaley will be here to spend my last week in the city with me tomorrow, sooooo I’m resting in anticipation of our busy-ness. Plus, I really need to clean my room. lol.

But, anyway, okay I can’t start my blog without mentioning Michael Jackson. I was in Washington Square Park when my mom called me and told me that he was in the hospital and reportedly not breathing. Then a few minutes later she confirmed that he had passed away. I immediately did what everyone else in the park was doing, and started texting people to see if they knew. My poor mother was practically crying (she was quite in love with him when she was in, like, middle school so it’s understandable), and I myself was in shock. We are a Michael Jackson loving family, as anyone who’s been around my house at Christmas time and heard our constant “Jackson 5 Christmas Album” playing can vouch for. So we were all pretty sad. We’ll always remember the gift that Michael gave by entertaining, and how he really did change music. Just think, without Michael Jackson there would have been no boy bands. Sad, sad. But, seriously, his music was amazing and he’ll be missed. I’m just sad that his last several years were so complicated. And I think he definitely needed a better therapist during all of those times. :-/

:-( Before this week turned horribly sad though (Farrah Fawcett… never again will the world see such perfect hair. She was such a fighter though, till the end. very sad), I was relishing the amazing time I had with Tommy here. he was here from Thursday till Monday and although we had a minor (or major, whatever) fiasco at the beginning of the trip, it all worked out and he arrived at Newark airport around 8:30. We did a lot of awesome things and I won’t bore you with every detail of his visit, lol, however I willl make a list. Surprised? lol

So, without further adieu (haha) top moments of Tommy’s visit to Manhattan. hehe.

Dessert at Serendipity3. Sadly there were not celebrities there that night, but it was still ridiculously awesome. I think it was called Broadway… something. haha. But it was like chocolate cake and ice cream and chocolate sauce but it was like the perfect combination of everything and… you’ll just have to taste it. haha. I loved Serendipity3 anyway, it was adorable. It looked the way that I would imagine my mom’s attic looking if my dad had no say. ;-)
Riding the Staten Island ferry. Sounds lame, yeah, but it was pretty cool. Great view of the city and it was free so win-win.
The Museum of Natural History. The dinosaurs are legit even though my nerd boyfriend informed me that all of them except the one in the case are fake. Like, how do they know that they really look that way then? Annoying. I saw many things that reminded me of an Apologetics Press pamphlet. Kyle Butt would have been proud. haha! Anyway, it was cool.
Seeing the clock chime noon at the zoo in Central Park! Tommy didn’t think it as nearly as cool as I did, but it was soo cute. :-) And just Central Park in general. It really is awesome.
Lunch at Big Nick’s. Okay, so Nick’s is this hole in the wall joint on the upper west side, and the menu rivaled Cheesecake Factory’s. The food was really good and huge portions, but the best part was our server. She was a lady that look about 55 and rocked black heels (she’s a stronger woman than I am) with false eyelashes and a strong New York accent to boot. She was soo cool, haha. She kept coming by our table and saying (you’ll have to imagine my imitation of her accent) ‘you’re not ready? There’s a lot there, take your time Ill come back…” :-)
F.A.O. Schwarz. Tom Hanks would have been proud of Tommy’s performance on the Big Piano. And the Lego statues there are a million times cooler than the ones at Toys R Us.
wandering in the Village. We ended up at the Hudson river, after checking out Bleeker Street Records and walking past places like Cafe Wha? I love the village (as I’m sure you’ve figured out) and that was maybe my favorite part of Tommy’s visit. We also dropped into a random French pastry shop with a tiny old lady who rambled about the pastries at about a mile a minute and served us the best sweets I’ve had yet in the city. yum.
Campbell’s Apartment. A pseudo speak easy at grand central station. It was very very cool, with dimmed lighting and faint sophisticated chatter. Someone very rich was having a wedding party there and we just chilled there with them all. haha.
Walking across the Brooklyn Bridge. Okay, well we only went about 1/2 way across, but it was still gorgeous. It started to rain while we were there (cause it rains all the time in New York. haha) and there was a fog over the city and it was just… really really awesome. One of the perfect moments of my time here. :-)

So, yeah. This time next week I’ll be back in Clay, Alabama. I’m have very mixed emotions about that. lol. Thankfully, I’ll leave right after that for my favorite place in the world, Maywood!! and I’ll be able to keep working on Psychology21C while I’m home. I’ll be fine.

Kaley arrives tomorrow. Yay! I WILL see Hair before I leave if it kills me. ughhhh. haha. and I’m auditioning for The Color Purple on Monday so wish me well. Also, I’ve been trying to upload my pictures from my whirlwind day on yesterday (which I will write about… later. possibly tomorrow. haha) for about 24 hours straight on facebook and have failed each time. Sooo what’s up with that? Could be because the internet connection sucks in this building (the downside to staying in a rustic old hotel) or because of all the middle aged people cluttering up facebook. Either way, it’s annoying. But soon enough the pictures will be there. :-)

With love,

Shelli

6/24/09 - Another Rainy Day in New York

2009-09-04T11:41:00.001-05:00

I think I’m suffering from seasonal depression disorder. :-( I’m used to 100 degree summers, not rainy, cloudy days. I knew everyone was lying that said that it go hot here in the summer. It hasn’t been over 79 degrees since I got here.

Even still, I’m dreading the day that I leave. 6 weeks seems like a long time, but its really not long enough. Now I’m definitely sure I want to live here, and I’m counting down to graduation and saving every penny I make to pay for a crappy apartment in Manhattan when I do. lol. Seriously though. People keep saying that New York is a nice place to visit, but not to live. I one hundred percent disagree with that. I think visiting New York would be miserable. Because what I love about New York isn’t the attractions (although the museums are awesome) or the crowds or the movie shootings or the tall buildings. I love the fact that there’s always something new to discover, from block to block and neighborhood to neighborhood. I love the sweet little old French ladies who run the pastry shops and the foul mouthed ones that pass you on their bicycles. I love the various styles on different people and the fact that people don’t pretend to like you when they don’t. I love the lack of confederate flags and constant smell of pretzels and roasted nuts in the air. I do love the theater, but not just Broadway, the off beat stuff too. And the jazz trios that play in Washington Square park, and how people grudgingly put up with the tourists. I love how the fog rolls over the city from the river and how the city always seems cleaner after the rain… and yet not quite clean enough. I love how the man at the bagel shop knew my order after two trips and how when celebrities do walk by, it’s not a huge deal and they just get to live their lives (not that I ever see any good celebrities lol). I love how you can pretty much wear whatever you want and no one looks at you twice. And how there are super trendy places complete with techno music and multicolored space age booths, but around the corner there are comforting diners with jukeboxes. For me, New York can be anything I want it to be, and that’s just something you don’t get many other places. Its exhilarating and inspiring and I just know that I can be one of those people who make it. Hopefully I won’t have to do it alone… but I can.

So, yeah. Only about a year and 10 months (oh, and hopefully at least one acceptance letter to a graduate program in the city) till I can pack up and begin to call myself a real New Yorker. :-) Meanwhile, I’m just going to try to enjoy my last bit of time here for now… Kaley will be here in 4 days to stay with me until I leave. yay!

Oh, and don’t think that I just hate Alabama. Let’s face it, I was never meant to be there in the first place lol. Even the people I’ve met here think that I fit in wonderfully in the city. I will miss southern accents and sweet tea and Sonic. :-)

Okay. I’ll write about my wonderful weekend with my wonderful boyfriend… later. haha, this is turning into my journal already! Oooh, two more things. 1) Got a new camera today, and its boss. I mean, okay, it’s basically my old camera, just newer. But I’m still psyched. haha. and 2) TRANSFORMERS 2: REVENGE OF THE FALLEN. Tonight. Yes!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hey, just cause I’m in New York doesn’t mean I’m not still movie obsessed. I do miss seeing them with a certain boy though… ;-)

With love,

Shelli

9/17/09 - New York Minute

2009-09-04T11:40:00.001-05:00

Suddenly it seems like my time in New York is slipping away from me faster than I’d like. 6 weeks seems like a long time, but it’s really not… it’s true what they say about a New York minute. :-( I feel really good about my research though, so that’s good. And when I get home I can go back to blogging about randomness. I feel a blog about marriage coming any day now. haha! But, for now, New York is still on my mind. :-)

Sunday was great, I came right back after church and worked on my survey a bit. I think, eventually (hopefully soon!) it’s going to be just right…ish. lol. Anyway, then Sunday evening I went and got dinner from a little hole in the wall Japanese steak house on 16th street. Mmm, it was sooo good. :-) Then I came back to the dorm and watched the last half of the Lakers-Magic nightmare. What an awful basketball game that was! But it was fun watching one last game with the guys… now we watch movies instead! haha. Last night we watched Transformers in preparation for the sequel next week (even though John won’t get to go with us… sad day). But, yeah, Tuesday the Psychology21C group had a meeting here in Rubin which was… fine. I just felt super frazzled about the whole thing, but it was definitely productive so that was great. So Tuesday afternoon I wandered a bit in the village and just chilled.

Oh, I almost forgot. Had a bit of a run-in with a man working in the food court Monday. Ugh, he was soo creepy, with his gold teeth. ick. Anyway, he just said some inappropriate things to me, so I spoke to the manager of the dining hall about it and I suppose it’s been taken care of. Still, I felt pretty unsettled over it.

Tonight I went with some people from the Church here to see the Wiz at City Theater. It was pretty good. I have friends who hated it, and yeah it did kind of feel like a high school production sometimes (and a poor one at that) but the music was good and most of the singers were good. Oh, I thought Ashanti was pretty bad though. Her vowels are just sooo spread, she sounds like she’s screaming or straining everything. I mean, she’s alright for R&B, and she sounds basically the same live, but there’s no depth to her voice and its.. just not my favorite lol. But, with the production, I feel like they were trying really hard to be innovative, but were lacking in the funds to really back up the ‘good ideas’ they had. Plus, there were so many different creative themes. Like, was it African based or urban based? Not really sure, because both elements were there and the actors didn’t really seem sure either. Everything just felt a bit forced on the creative side, at least from a production standpoint. Some of the individual talent was good though. Loved LaChanze, and the girl from Martin. Not Gina, her friend. haha. All in all, I thought it was a good experience. Especially when they did No Bad News and I was doing choreography in my head… and okay in my seat a little too. And Everybody Rejoice (I did the choreography to that one too… never mind the fact that I wasn’t in AU Singers when that song was done. haha).

I also fell in love with the Greenwich Village library this week. It’s sooo amazing. I know you’re probably thinking, ‘does Shelli do anything but go to libraries in New York.’ Well, yes I do, but when I want to look up information or work quietly I go to the library. I’ve been going uptown to the 42nd Street building (which I still love) but now that I’ve been to the neighborhood one, I think I’ve crossed over.

And reasons why I love the Greenwich Village Library are…

It has a clock tower. A legit one, with an entire tower below it. Look up a picture of it, its awesome.
The research materials area (and wi-fi area as well) is downstairs in like a dungeon. Seriously, there’s a wooden door down there that just looks like a maiden is being held captive behind it. Pretty cool.
The workers there are soo nice. It really feels like a neighborhood library. And they say New Yorkers are rude. Bah. ;-)
It’s one block from my dorm. I think that desrves to be on this list. lol
The fiction section is upstairs in the tower part, lol, and you have to walk up stairs that go in a circle… I feel like there’s a real name for those stairs but I cannot think of it right now. But, the stairs themselves are cool but what’s cooler is the marble along the walls with a keystone boarder and carving that has a quote about law and human rights in old English script. And then, oh look, another cool wooden door. haha.

So, yeah. Oooh, broke down and bought some straight leg jeans at Urban Outfitters today. and a ridiculously cute hat, and sunglasses. hehe. I have to stop buying stuff, I’m not going to be able to bring it all home! haha

TOMORROW TOMMY WILL BE HERE!! I’m a little excited. :-)

With. love.

Shelli

9/14/09 - Miss Sobriety

2009-09-04T11:39:00.000-05:00

So, this week has been pretty awesome, as always. Monday night Allie and I went to Birdland for Cast Party. It was super awesome, there were a ridiculous number of amazingly talented people there. But the main reason we went was to see Natalie Weiss and Miranda, both of which are awesome… in their own way. haha. They performed What is this Feeling from Wicked, and were hilarious. There’s probably a video on youtube of it by now, so check it out. After they performed together they each did another song (but Miranda performed as her “real self” the amazingly talented Colleen Ballinger) and, yeah, it was so great. I didn’t get to talk to either that night which was really sad, but since I’m an expert Facebook stalker, I’ll probably get another chance to at least see Natalie. :-) But, yeah, a bunch of other people performed too and it was bacially a great night of music. Oh my goodness, and Allie and I sat with this couple that was really nice, but… I dunno, they were just like bragging about themselves the entire time we talked. “yes, I’m in Sweeney Todd” (in Jersey, like that counts. lol) “and I’m auditioning for Avenue Q, and why yes, it did take me two weeks to learn the songs, but I’m classically trained.” hehe. They were just kind of funny… in a socially awkward way.

Overall, fun night. Some other people from the Tony’s were there too, which was awesome. Gotta love running into people I know, even in New York! haha. But Tuesday I had to do some catch up work before Wednesday’s meeting, Wednesday I went downtown for another Psychology21C meeting, and then Thursday I went to the library and ended up working for a long long time on the biographical section of my survey. I got stuck on the race/ethnicity question (thanks US census bureau for that one, lol) and then on social class distinctions. Super interesting (in my opinion), but not necessarily exciting. haha. Then Thursday night I sat through the worst basketball game in my life, lol. But, seriously, it was so frustrating! Then Friday I tried to catch up on sleep again, went to Washington Square Park and read for a while (one of my favorite things to do!), and then went to the Grant Hyatt at Grand Central Station to see people from Auburn’s Chamber Choir!! They’re singing in Carnegie Hall on Sunday, which is soo awesome (how do you get to Carnegie Hall? Apparently have an awesome choir director and he’ll get you in. haha) but they got here Wednesday. So I went there and went to dinner with some of them at Juniors (yum) and then they went to see Guys and Dolls (which sadly closed today, so I won’t get to see it. Oh well… I would have liked to see Lauren Graham though).

Today was… interesting. lol. When I finally woke up it was really pretty outside so I was going to go to Central Park and chill for a bit. But then it was raining when I got out of the subway, lol, I went to a Starbucks instead and curled up with a vanilla latte. ;-) Then I trekked back to my dorm before leaving again for dinner. haha! At around 9 I met with Byron, from my dorm, and we headed out on the town. We wandered down to Bleeker Street and people watched a bit, counting the sushi bars and novelty shops (lol) we passed. Then Byron said that we should go to Times Square, cause he’s never seen it at night. I said yes, even though I don’t love Times Square (which I know I’ve said enough times in this, lol) and we headed up 7th Ave. From then on our night was hilarious. haha. So here’s my top things that happened tonight in midtown…

We were walking down 56th when a guy calls out to Byron “hey man, can we take your girl on a tour?” which sounds a little like code for rape. As though he was gonna say ‘yeah, sure man, take her.’ lol
In Toys R’Us I was told that I couldn’t play DDR without my shoes on, and that I could fight with the swords. Geez, they don’t want you to have any fun!
Walking up 7th towards Central Park we passed a homeless man with a sign that says “need money for beer, drugs, and hookers… at least I’m not bulls****ing you.” hahaha, I almost gave him money, cause the sign was hilarious. But then as we passed he reaches towards me and says “YES! REAL hair!!” (… which is even funnier because my hair is so not real. lol)
Shortly after we passed this man, a shady character in a long black coat walked past us and literally muttered “Cocaine, marijuana, check it out…” and kept walking… we both burst out laughing as soon as he passed, like, that really just happened. Soooo funny!
On our way uptown we ended up walking behind this awkward white couple, and the male part kept drifting his hand down to the girls butt, and then he would move it back up like every few seconds. It was so so awkward, I felt a little sorry for both of them. lol. But, really, who walks like that? weird… haha.
Passed one of those pass it on signs and it was Helen Keller. The tagline said “Could only see possibilities: foresight.” I started laughing hysterically when I saw it, and Byron told me I was a bad person. But, c’mon, that’s funny. Plus it caught me totally off guard. foresight… hehe.
A comedy club promoter walked up to us and said “Black people,” (he was black… ish. Carribean or something. haha) “Do you want to come to a comedy club tonight? Just us n****rs, no white people.” we both started laughing, and then he turned to the white people next to us at the crosswalk and said “Do you like white people? No n****rs, at the comedy club.” Those poor people looked soooo uncomfortable, and it was so funny. The light changed so we started to walk as he cried after us “Do you want to come? $10. And there will be fried chicken…” ah, gotta love racial stereotyping. Especially since Byron almost turned around. ;-) haha.

So, yeah Fun night. haha. and now I shall sleep, I am le tired.

Ooh, I added a guest book so now anyone can leave comments I think? Try it out. ;-)

**edit: you still have to sign in to comment. lame. but I’m working on it…

5 more days till Tommy comes to visit me!! I’m sooo excited. Okay, sorry, just had to get that out for everyone to see. Cause putting in my Twitter would be so high school (or John Mayer-esq, whichever)

With love

Shelli

6/8/09 - Let the Sun Shine In!

2009-09-04T11:38:00.000-05:00

Well, this has been a crazy awesome few days. :-) I'm sorry first of all if you've asked me for details about things and I've been like "oh, I'll tell you later" and then haven't. It's just been a whirlwind lately, and today has been my first kind of "chill" day... probably because i haven't gotten very much of the work I intended to accomplish done today. Haha! I will though, don't worry.

So, lets see, when did I last write? mmm, well, Thursday morning I got up and went to Times Square. I happened across an article on, like, Broadway World or something that said that for the first time ever the Tony's were selling "student rush" tickets for the show. Student rush tickets, fyi, are usually sold right before shows for a discounted price, and only for students. It's a pretty sweet deal, and the only reason I'm getting to see any shows while I'm here haha. But, the Tony's did a lottery for the chance to buy them. So the first 200 people in line at the Times Square information center got to put their names in a bucket, and at 3 o'clock they drew about 25 names. Mind you, they didn't tell us how many tickets they were offering, which made it so much more nerve-racking! But, I stood in line for a bit (they let us in early thankfully!) and put my name in. I met some nice people in line, particularly Chad and Allie, who were super cool. :-) So we all came back later (including this really creepy old guy, ick! Like, dude, it’s a STUDENT rush. lol), the people from Rock of Ages (they were annoying) drew names… and I was one of them!!!! Ahhh, I was soo soo sooooooo excited! So, I paid my $40 dollars (great deal, the tickets are really super expensive) and got my ticket. 3rd mezzanine, 3rd aisle, seat 305. It was awesome!

Friday was super icky, so I didn’t do much. By about 10 I was in and watching a movie, lol. Saturday I got up in the, er, afternoon and went on a quest to find a dress for the Tony’s (because it was a black tie affair), just in case the dress my mom overnighted me didn’t arrive. Geez, I went through, like, the whole city and didn’t find a single thing that wasn’t ridiculously expensive until I got to my last two stops Macy’s and Lord and Taylor. At Macy’s I found a great dress, all black and slinky, and at Lord and Taylor’s I found a wrap to go with it. and the dress was only 39.99, because apparently if a dress is made in a junior’s size, it drops the price almost $200. :-) So, after that I was set.. Then I went home, walked in on my roommate in her bed with some guy, no big deal. haha, omg it was sooo mortifying!!! Seriously, it was the most awkward thing that has ever happened to me, ever! So I went and got Chinese food and went to the common area to watch tv. After a bit John, Byron, and I went to the movies to see The Hangover (soooo freaking hilarious!) and, yeah, then it was Sunday. :-)

So, gah, these always end up sooo long! I’m sorry, I’m used to journaling for myself. I’ll try to make them shorter for real after this one. haha.

Anyway, Sunday I went to church and to brunch afterwards with a few people which was really great! I’ve met sooo many cool people here, and the people from Upper West Manhattan Church of Christ are all really really nice. After brunch, though, I went home and got ready for the Tony’s! The doors opened at 6 and you had to be in your seats by 7 (unless you were rich, apparently. haha) so i caught a taxi around 6 o’clock (I was of course running late. When I got to Radio City Music Hall (!!!) I wandered over to where the red carpet was, but I didn’t try to get close because there was a line to get in. So, I went and stood in the line, and every tourist that walked past me stared at me as though I might be someone famous. lol. The line took about 20 minutes, which was fine because I got to stare at all the people around. Some of the outfits I saw were ridiculous. One girl was wearing a pink nylon wig. Really? Is that black tie to you? lol. When I finally got in the security people said no photography was allowed in the hall, which I promptly ignored. It was sooo beautiful in there, and there were about a million people in the lobby and in line for drinks. I wandered up, and up… and up to my seat (haha, it really wasn’t that bad.).

The show itself was amazing. Before the telecast, they presented the “creative arts awards,” and that part was hosted by two actors. they were really funny though, and Billy Elliot won like 6 of the awards. It was a little ridiculous lol. And right before the show there was a short clip of “rules for the audience” about when to clap and how to accept your awards and when to use the lighters they gave you.. The opening number was amazing, although I heard there were some difficulties for the tv version. That’s sad, because it was blow-your-mind awesome from our seats. Especially when the guy from Poison got knocked over by the backdrop. hehe. But, the rest of the show was just as incredible, all of the performances were great. (gotta love the Wicked shout out from the Shrek scene. lol). I really wanted Next to Normal to win best musical, but it went to Elton and the Billy’s. haha. During commercial breaks there were some commercials for coming shows (Spiderman? The Adaams Family? Really?) and for past shows (Timbuktu and Hair! hehe), plus NPH did some magic tricks for us. haha.. And a Russian guy gave away watches, but only to the rich people, which seemed a little pointless. haha. And a disembodied voice would say “we need 5 seconds of clapping, now.” before the show returned. lol. Oh, and Neil Patrick Harris rocked the last song! hahaha. I wonder how many versions of those they wrote ahead of time? Check out the video if you missed it before:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYjSwbte3G4

After the show I fought my way downstairs and saw my favorite Billy (the one with curly hair!).I told him I liked his shoes, red converse, and that he was great. he said “thank you very much.” Very polite, haha. Then I saw Yasmina Reza and told her how awesome I think her plays are. :-) And I saw Constantine from Rock of Ages (and American Idol, best season ever. haha) and said how good I thought he was… and he said I looked pretty. yay! lol. So, after that I wandered out of Radio City Music hall and ran into Chad from the student rush line. I ended up tagging along with him and Allie and some of their super cool friends to attempt to get into some after parties. We finally decided to try the Hair party, thinking we might just blend in with the young cast. But when we got to Tavern at the Green (recognize that Gossip Girl fans?) they were totally lame at the door and insisting we had tickets. So, we hovered for a little while, but eventually we (me plus a few other people. really them plus me, haha) just went to McDonalds at Times Square and got Mcflurry’s. haha!

All in all it was a completely ballin’ night! I’m pretty sure my entire life is downhill from there. I haven’t done a list in a while, so I think I’ll do one now and then let you rest your poor eyes… if you read it all. ;-)

My favorite moments of the Tony Awards 2009. ;-)

every joke about the Hair cast being naked. Seriously, everyone made one. haha.
Karen Olivo’s speech when she won best featured actress. It made me cry, no lie.
the star power in general: Liza, Dolly, Angela. awesome. :-)
after party: seeing Bette Midler. awesome
“after party” - “look they jut got back from prom”
Billy Elliot: holy crap those kids can dance!!!
Aaron Tveit (from Next to Normal) and the guy from Guys and Dolls (I don’t know his name, lol) – the two best voices I heard there!!!!!!!!!! soo good!
Kristen Chenoweth, Lauren Graham, and Audra McDonald… three women I absolutely love!! They were there. haha.
did I mention the closing song?
or the guy getting knocked down by the drop? lol
just being blessed to get to be there when the lights dimmed.

Cliche, I know, but what do you expect?

“and suddenly I’m flying, flying like a bird. Like electricity, electricity sparks inside of me and I’m free!”

With love

Shelli

6/3/09 - Ave Maria

2009-09-04T11:37:00.000-05:00

My first week in New York has been absolutely amazing! Well, really first week and 1/2. I've already had some awesome experiences, and basically fallen even more in love with New York than I already was. "I've found heaven on earth...."

Anyway, like I said last Tuesday I really started the research project I'm working while I'm here. I feel like I've described it to everyone about a million times, but just in case people haven't quite gotten it yet, I'll do a brief recap. I'm working on a project called Psychology21C with some local psychologists, and it's basically a web-based project that intends to bridge the growing gap between modern technology and psychology: both as a study and as a part of everyday life. The doctors I work with are amazing, they basically let me and the other students (mostly graduate students, although one other undergrad from BU is working on it also) do what we want within the project. We each work on a specific project and they all come together for the future website. My project is about communication through modern technology and what can be considered effective within those mediums. I'm really excited about it, and hope to have the bulk of the work for the survey I'm working on finished by the time my 6 short weeks are up. But last Tuesday we all met and talked about our ideas and worked on general plans for the summer and for getting the site up and running. Our meetings are really interactive and collaborative, which is amazing. To my ends, I so far spend a lot of time reading other people's works and figuring out what has already been discovered about written communication and modern technologies (not much haha). I've been to the New York Public Library twice now and I LOVE it. haha, that's the one with the lions and its seriously the coolest place I've ever been. That could be because I love libraries so much, but it's definitely my favorite place in the city so far. lol.

Other than research (which, by the way, is mostly tedious work haha), I've had a lot of fun just wandering the city. Thursday I hung out with the doctor that basically got me this internship and her two children. We went to the Met (which was awesome, especially since I got in with her membership and got to save that $20), and to the Industrial Design museum. Ooh, and on the stairs of the Met there were real life private school girls, it was hilarious! First we went to Sarabeth's for brunch, across from Central Park, which was yummy. All in all, that was a great day, taking in some New York classics, including Grand Central Station. I bought fudge at the Grand Central Market haha. Oh, and her two kids were like the smartest kids you've ever met... probably because they're homeschooled... just sayin'. ;-)

Then Friday I got to have lunch with an old friend, Martin. He shared with me his glamorous tales as a future Broadway Star (no, seriously, look him up: Martin Landry. He's so so awesome), and made me incredibly jealous haha. Saturday I got to hang out with Kayla, who brought me delicious chocolate treats that she made. She's basically going to be a famous chef one day (she studies at the French Culinary Institute), and I'm working on inventing reasons for her to make me cakes (weddings, birthday's, etc.). We went a got Chinese food at a hole-in-the-wall joint in Chelsea and then went shopping for a bit. We went to the Family Jewels, a thrift store near the Chelsea Hotel (which neither of us understood the appeal of, btw) and had a blast looking through their clothes and patterns. We went on a grand quest for ice cream and then headed to our respective homes.

My nights last week, by the way, were filled with watching the NBA play-off's with some guys from my dorm. We would meet in the common area each night and watch the game, but Saturday we were beat to the chase by some hockey fans so we ended up going to a burger place and watching the game there (boo on the Cav's losing!). That was actually a lot of fun, despite the game itself, haha.

Sunday I went to the Upper West Manhattan Church of Christ for worship services. The congregation there was great, really friendly and diverse, and the lesson was a powerful one, all about having a relationship with God and how that relationship needs to be based on communication and trust and time invested, not on emotions. I really liked it there, and met some really nice people too.

Also, as a side note, like everyone there went to an Ivy League school. Why is everyone in this city smarter than me? haha.

and, yeah. This week has been pretty busy for me. Monday I worked really hard on my project, getting an outline of how I want it to go exactly. Then Tuesday we all met downtown to talk about the future of the project. After the meeting I went to Century 21 and was unimpressed (sorry Linnea!) so I went back to the flatiron district and shopped there instead. I actually bought something this time though, lol. Today I saw my first Broadway play (ahhhh, yay!!) Reason to be Pretty. I attempted to win the In the Heights lottery, but didn't (sadly) so I got student rush tickets to Reason instead. I really really liked it (the girl from Coyote Ugly was in it, Piper whatever...) but the rest of the audience didn't really seem to. I sat next to three young professional girls and they were really cool. One of them was apparently a reviewer and she was really angry with the management because they wouldn't let us move to the floor seats that were still empty when the show started. She said she was going to write them a terrible review because of that (or at least write terrible things about the management). But, yeah, I can totally see why it got nominated for Best Play. :-)

Tomorrow I'm going to attempt to win the chance to get tickets to the Tony's on Sunday. wish me luck! haha.

Sorry these are always so long. I just never find time to update, and when I do I want to say everything. I know, though, that people respond better to more frequent shorter updates (haha, thanks psych) so I'll try to do that from now on.

I love you all and hope everyone is having adventures of their own... hey, maybe you should start a blog?! ;-)

Oh, and by the way, you'll notice I haven't done much of the big touristy stuff yet. haha, I'm getting to it, I promise. But if you have any super awesome suggestions, leave 'em on my facebook (if we're already friends) or email me. It's a-okay to live vicariously through me!

With love

Shelli

5/26/09 - Don't Stop Believin'

2009-09-04T11:36:00.000-05:00

You know that terrible show on VH1, with that idiot girl from flavor of love? Well, it's really dumb and makes black women everywhere look bad (thanks for that), but the title is totally accurate... I LOVE NEW YORK!!! :-)

Sorry, I couldn't resist that introduction. haha. Anyway, I've now been in New York City for a total of three days and I absolutely love it. I've always said that Charleston was my favorite city in America, but clearly I was just waiting to discover New York. Sunday after my wonderful parents left me in my dorm at NYU (major props to them for driving me up here. I mean, it wasn't all fun and games, but I think flying here alone for my first time in the city would've been a bit overwhelming) I just wandered up 5th Avenue a bit, checking out the stores and the atmosphere. I ended up in the Barnes and Noble, which was so so awesome. I felt like Meg Ryan might show up around the corner any moment trashing chain stores (please let someone catch that reference...). Anyway, it was awesome and I bought a new Madeline Wickham book and then went to Washington Square Park and read for a little while. There was an adorable little boy there with his dad, and he kept running over to random people and smiling charmingly at them before his dad scooped him back up. However, no one seemed available to sell me a dime bag, which was disappointing because at least 2 novels and 3 guidebooks assured me that Washington Square Park was the place to get drugs.

**note: I don't do drugs, have never done them, and have no intention of starting. I'm just commenting on the lack of sketchy drug dealers in the park and my vague disappointment in being misled. Plus I'm joking. ;-)**

When the sun started to go down, I wandered back up 5th Avenue to Rubin, my building, and unpacked my things (only after enjoying a burger from some place with the number 9 in it. it was good, lol). I met my roommate, who I think is names Kelly. She goes to NYU, works at a bank on 5th, and is tiny, Asian, and carried Marc Jacob bags like they're nothing. She's really nice, which is a relief.

Monday I went to Au Bon Pain (who knew those existed outside of Auburn? haha) and got a muffin and coffee (eh) before embarking on my great adventure: figuring out the subway system. I think i did a pretty good job, haha. I got on one at 14th and Broadway to head to Times Square, and spent most of the afternoon hanging out in the touristy part of midtown.

And now my usual blog list, haha. I'm well aware of the fact that I am not a real "New Yorker" but I feel like I've seen enough New York based movies and television shows, and read enough New York books that I'm pretty gosh darn close to earning my New Yorker-ness. And I just didn't love times square. So here are my reasons Times Square isn't nearly as awesome as Greenwich Village. :-)

1) Greenwich Village just feels cool. Everyone is cute and looks smart, but not in an Ivy League way. And the little shops are quirky and fun.

2) Greenwich Village is like a big neighborhood. It's so much less sketchy than midtown with the random people trying to hustle you and convince you to take tours or whatever.

3) It's less overbearing. Times Square attacks you, with all its lights and noise and gimmicks. Its like Disney World condensed into like 4 blocks.

4) Times Square is filled with tourists with fanny packs. And that's just unacceptable. You're in New York people... at least pretend to be cool.

But, okay, mostly I liked Times Square too (really I meant midtown in general, all te way up to Central Park. I just call it Times Square cause its easier, and people who haven't been here can picture it). Just not as much as Greenwich Village, where I already feel at home. Anyway, I went into the M&M place, and wandered into the American Girl store (awesome) and Bergdorfs and Tiffany's. The last two were so so so awesome that for the first time in my life I really wished I was actually wealthy enough to afford places like that. Sadly that's not happening for a while, but I had the guy take out some of the Tiffany's key charms for me to look at anyway. :-)

I also wandered around and saw at least 3 of the Broadway Theaters. Eeek! I want sooo badly to see Billy Elliot, In the Heights, Wicked, and... really everything! haha. But, oh man, walking past them was awesome by it self. It makes me want to drop out of school and just audition for Broadway shows until I get in one. Alas, I'm far too sensible to do things like that. Sadly.

Then I went to Central Park and sat on a bench with a hot dog and book from The Strand (oh man, I could write a whole blog on how awesome the Strand is haha). After a while I went and visited my New York Plainsman, Alvonice, in his dorm and discovered that he lives near the Starbucks where the bomb went off Monday morning (what better way to celebrate Memorial Day than an anonymous act of violence? Go America.). There were a million secret servicy type people there playing BrickBreaker and drinking Caramel frappuccino's, so I'm thinking all is well. Thank goodness, cause I don't know what New York would do with one less Starbucks.

And, yeah. After chilling at Alvonice's dorm with some of his finance friends, I came back to Rubin and watched the Lakers lose with some fellow residents. And today I started my internship, which is an entire post on its own. Not right now though, because I need to stop. My poor fingers are cramping!

Sorry this is so long. It's okay if you didn't read the whole thing... just get this part. New York is awesome. I want to live here. But I miss my people in Alabama. Bergdorfs and Tiffany's are legit, but Greenwich Village is better than the Upper East side. ;-) Broadway theaters = one hundred percent delightful, just from the outside! My days are spent half in research and work, and half in loafing around, getting to know the city. Don't worry about me, I'm anything but "a small town girl living in a lonely world..."

With love,

Shelli

5/22/09 - New York, New York!

2009-09-04T11:35:00.002-05:00

Today marks a turning point in my blogging, haha. I'm spending my summer working on a research internship in New York City, so I'm doing the logical thing: blogging about my experiences. I think there are about 3 major reasons why people blog when they spend time away from their hometowns...

1) So they have something to do when they're lonely. Man, I don't have any friends in NYC yet. Guess I'll write about what i did for the friends I do have. And pretend that I have a life here.

2) So they don't have to keep telling people about their experiences. Oh yeah, I did go to the Empire State Building. refer to my May 30th blog entry for more details.

3) So they can make the people back home jealous. Today I will brag about all the cool things I did. or maybe lie about the things I did. Either way that cheerleader I went to high school with that's working at Applebee's this summer is going to be green with envy. :-)

haha. In all seriousness, I just want to let people know what's going on with me. I can't promise that I will blog more frequently, but it will be more like a journal-ish thing than my previous "insights of the world around me" method.

I think there might be a way to subscribe to this. So you should do that, if you can figure it out. I'm not particularly technologically savvy, so it's Greek to me.

Today was a really long day. My loving mom and dad and I all got in the rented trendy Toyota SUV and drove all the freaking way to Buffalo, NY. That's where I was born (well, not exactly, lol but close to Niagra Falls, which is where I was actually born. Not the falls themselves, but the city), and we're visiting family and old friends until Sunday. Sunday afternoon I will check into the NYU dorm that I'm staying in, on Fifth Avenue in Greenwich Village. And then I'm on my own. Yes!! I'm soooo tempted to show up and sing a chorus of Not For the Life of Me out my window.

And that's all for now. Ah, New York. If I can make it there, I'll make it anywhere... ;-)

With Love,

Shelli

5/5/09 - Lovebug

2009-09-04T11:35:00.001-05:00

I'm slowly getting better at this blogging thing. Probably because I need to be studying for finals. Oh well...

Anyway, this is my Jonas Brother's Post. I'm pretty sure every blog is required to have one, so I'm getting it over with.

I generally love hating things that other people really like. But, I'll admit I'm a sucker for most music. And I am a self-proclaimed Jonas Brothers junkie. I'm taking my 12 year old niece to see them in the fall, and I'm not sure who's more excited, her or her 20 year old aunt. haha.

But other people seem to really hate them. Most of these people seem to be males, and I think we can all see where the jealousy comes from... but otherwise I really don't understand it. So here are my top 5 reasons to embrace the Jonas Brothers... bay-bay. ;-)

1) They're adorable. All of them have matching dark hair, adn super trendy clothes like vests and skinny jeans. America loves stylish people, and the Jo Bro's have the best sylist out there. If any of my guy friends were half as put together as they are all the time... I'd probably make fun of them, but on Nick, Kevin and Joe it totally works.

2) Their songs really are wholesome. People would like to read into them all sorts of innuendo like "Oh, Burning Up is referring to being sexually excited" and crap like that... but maybe, just maybe burning up just means that they like the girl. Everything doesn't have to be overtly sexual to mean that you have a thing for someone, and every song doesn't have to be about sex... unles you're Lil Wayne.

3) We haven't had a good band of brothers in a while now. And Jo Bro's cut right to the chase by putting that fact in their name. I mean, Hanson was about 12 years ago (man I'm getting old) and before them was... what, the Brady Kids? Point is, we need another band with added drama because of the family relationships.

4) Without them there would be no competition for Zac Efron. And goodness knows every single girl ever is already crazy about him. It's good to have healthy competition, and Joe vs. Zac in a swoopy hair or rad dance moves competition would be one for the Celebrity Death Match books.

5) Did I mention they're adorable? and they're good boys. I think we've all had enough of the bad boys, right?

So, yeah. Why spend time hating what the rest of the country (at least the tweens and wanna-be tweens aka me and my friends) hath approved? And it's not like they're most peoples favorite band, or that anyone's calling them super talented. I mean, clearly they are not the next Beatles or even a new N'sync (Cause they don't dance... though if they added Efron to the mix they could probably pull it off), but that doesn't mean they can't have catchy songs that people really like.

What I'm saying is, people, back off of the Jonas Brothers! They've only got a few more years of teen stardom, and thnk of all the better things you could be doing with your brainpower... like helping me study for my Francais final. ;-)

'Cause I'm slippin' into the lava, I'm tryin-a keep from goin' under...

With love,

Shelli

4/29/09 - Pity and Fear

2009-09-04T11:34:00.000-05:00

So, I suck at blogging. And it's really too bad, because I want so badly to be good at it... but I fail. Epically some would say (although I'm not really the type to say epic...). The only reason I'm managing to get this one out is because I should be studying for my Personalities exam, but am avoiding like the swine flu (is it too soon to make swine flu jokes? lol). I was even watching American Idol before this, which shows how little I want to study 'cause clearly American Idol should have ended... 3 seasons ago. Or after Carrie Underwood... whichever came first.

Anyway, I have a confession. I'm obsessed with youtube. It’s really quite ridiculous... I watch people sing or talk or rant all the time. I don't put videos of myself on youtube though. I don't have high enough self esteem for that. I can only imagine... I would post a video of myself, singing or just talking or whatever. And when I logged on the next day, feeling pretty good about myself and hoping that everyone liked it. When I look at it, there will be about 760 comments that read something like this...

**gEtZzZm00nEYnumba1 (32 minutes ago)

wow, tHaT wuz the werst thing I eva seen. Pleeze do u a favr and dnt sing EvA agaIn!!

pRinceSSleah72093 (3 hours ago)

So, you did a pretty good job with the first line, but around the 31st word you started to go about a third flat. I know, because I'm a masters student at the number one music school in the world, and love to post anonymous comments on people's videos and destroy their self esteem because of my expertise. Try to open your mouth a hair wider and to sing from your voice not your throat. Also, attempt to lift your soft pallet higher when you sing higher. That should open up your sound and make you almost worthy of going to the 7th best school in China. Hope this helps!!

Singstationator (7 hours ago)

I think this is a joke meybe im not sur but if its not ur really not a good singer im sorry to sound mean but someone should tell you. its good that you try to sing tho but you should probly find sumthin else totry.

CougarRRawwwrr65 (15 hours ago)

I thought you were AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You totally rock and I luv ur YouTUBEing soooo much!! and you're Beautiful!

[but that last one would be my mom].

So it's that fear that keeps me from posting videos on youtube. People are really mean. And stupid. And annoying. And they're twice as bad when they don't have to show their faces. Props to those who do post... I rarely comment on other people's videos... unless I really like them. Or feel inclined to school them on things I know more about than they do. You know, quantum physics. Musical theater. Movie Critiques. Interior design (oh my gosh, that pink on your walls totally clashes with your magenta bedspread... you should really do something about that).

But my youtube addiction really is a problem. So I started countering it by finding other websites to waste time on. Collegehumor, fmylife, failblog, oh my! Slowly my entire life (when I'm not participating in extracurricular activities) is filled with surfing the web and finding ways to waste time. Not okay. At least not for my grades. Or my health probably... yet here I am, still spending my time meandering through the interweb.

But, really, what kind of college student would I be if I acted any differently? Plus, I always pull it together and make good grades. :-)

With love

Shelli

2/1/09 - Pretend to be Nice

2009-09-04T11:32:00.000-05:00

I love hour long drama's. I started with Gilmore Girls in 6th grade, and my current favorite is, naturally, Gossip Girl.

Now, I was one of those pre-teen girls that read the books and I give major props to the author of the series for being way ahead of the curve as far as the use of the internet for gossip. Because they were written way before blogging or facebook. Crazy. Anyway, the books were and are awesome; all superficial and insipid and ridiculous... exactly my kind of book. :)

on a random note, I just saw a preview for The Pursuit of Happyness... why hasn't Will Smith gotten an Academy Award yet? I just love him. But, I digress...

I say all of this because my life would be soo much better if I existed in Gossip Girl world. I would wear fabulous clothes all the time, and not be surrounded by people who literially roll out of bed and leave their apartments (ew), and we would have a constant source of all the best news about people we really knew. There would never be any consequences for anything, and I would live in the upper east side.

I'm just saying... it'd be cool.

XOXO

With love <3

1/26/09 - Big Girl's Don't Cry

2009-09-04T11:31:00.001-05:00

I must need a new laptop, because my keyboard has started to stick. First it was my shift button, and then my space bar, and now it's the letter C. Boo.

I suppose if I was just a little cooler, I would have a mac and then have no more computer problems ever. Anyway, from here through this entry I will use K's instead. That should be fun.

My World Literature II professor is a bit of an idiot. But he's no where near as mukh (ugh, the first 'C' I need to use would be part of a blended konsenant sound. I'll probably give up on the whole replakement k thing... now.) Anyway, my lit professor is not where near as dumb as the four female athletes that sit around me in that class. Now, I have nothing against female athletes as a rule. Our women's basketball team is kicking some serious butt this season, and I really do admire the skill and strength that sports require... especially since my idea of a sport is the Parisians semi-annual shoe sale (even though Belk took over Parisians and the shoes will never be the same again). But these particular girls grate at my nerves for a few reasons.

They talk unbelievably loudly. Seriously. It's a 10 am class, and everyone else is sort of quiet and morning-ish... but these girls ramble really loudly as though they didn't notice that everyone else is practically whispering. So every morning the entire class is treated to the details of what the entire team (not sure what team, but as far as I an tell it involves some sort of ball, and there is a men's team also) did the night before and all the reasons why one girl on the team makes 100's on every test she's ever taken but refused to help any other athletes unless you suck up to her. Even after the professor starts calling role, they continue their conversation at the same volume, and it’s so annoying that he leans forward and says in his Mr. Roger's voice "Will you be quiet?"
Every single article of clothing any of them have worn so far has our school's insignia on it. Sweatshirts, t-shirts, sweat pants, socks, sweatbands, hats, literally everything any of the quartet wears is branded with the university insignia. It's really quite ridiculous, and I know it shouldn't bother me so much, but it makes me want to shake the brunette that sits in front of me and beg her to wear jeans and a polo shirt... although they would probably be under armour. And what's worse is that they glare at me when I walk in and exchange glances that I'm sure equal, "Can you believe that girl wear dresses to class? I mean, where are her school sweatpants?" Jerks.
They all cuss about fifteen times more than the average person. My repeating their conversation would end up sounding like the radio edit of a T.I. song. I know I'm old-fashioned, so I think it's unladylike to drop F-bombs, but these girls swear like sailors. I don't know if it's the athleticism that drives them to be so vulgar, or what, but I'm not a fan.
They sit on the front row and cheat during the quizzes. This I simply do not understand. There are no assigned seats, so they're voluntarily sitting on the front row, or three of them do, and one sits beside me. And then when we get reading quizzes they obviously lean over and look at each others answers and tilt their papers towards each other. I mean, I suppose that's good team work, but it just seems like stupidity to me. There's just no way that our professor hasn't noticed... I saw his lips purse the last time it happened.
and they're all white. I just felt like that needed to be cleared up. that's not one of the reasons they aggrevate me. I love white people. ;)

and I'm sure there are even more annoying traits yet to be discovered. Every class I'm reminded of why I usually take honors classes... I don't think they let athletes into those.

With love <3

Shelli

1/25/09 - There's a First Time for Everything

2009-09-04T11:29:00.000-05:00

I used to be a pretty good student. You can thank technology for ruining that one. Anyway, rather than work on my psychology paper I found myself reading blog reviews of different movies, and then found myself thinking that most of them were stupid and that I could write something just as good if not better. I would like to say that my boyfriend suggested that I do just that, and start my own blog, but when I suggested the idea he merely mocked me for my unoriginality. Thanks. :)

I start with all of this to say that I am starting my own blog. Today. And I'm not really sure what it's going to be about, probably random observations and possibly some opinions about movies and/or books. But feel free to obsessively read them all...

after all, if Perez Hilton can do it, why can't I? Doesn't everyone want to hear the thought process of a college student? Anyone can insult Britney Spears and Kanye West...

With love <3

Shelli