The Chocolate Box

Can you guess what we're going to be talking about on the blog soon?

Soon after, I returned home to my family, with a determination to bring them as soon as possible to live in Kentucky, which I esteemed a second paradise, at the risk of my life and fortune.
Daniel Boone

Growing up in eastern Kentucky like I did, I'm used to having a few guns around to protect me.
Loretta Lynn

Cleaning House

I believe every other post on this blog talks about how long it has been since I last posted. It's fair enough, but if I want to give this project some new momentum I am going to need a focus. Taking a cue from my prodigious twitter feed, I am going to focus my posts on a few primary interests. Some of these interests have been with me all of the my life, others are products of my time at Centre. Here's what the offering is going to look like in the future:

-Education: Dispatches from the Lecture Hall

-Southern Culture, Politics, and News: Mason-Dixon Meanderings

-Religion and Society: Interpreting Faith

-Health and Medicine: The Waiting Room

-Random Stuff: The Chocolate Box

That's all for now.

Peace. Blessings. Pembrokes. 

I'm the Quintessential American- AKA I have a lot of stuff

It's the Fourth of July, aka Independence Day here in the United States. Americans at home and abroad are celebrating our split from the mother country with food and fireworks. The American people are known around the globe for their independent spirit, ingenuity, and fondness for sneakers. We are also known for our habits of consumptions. Americans are consumers. We consume anything and everything---in large quantities. From super size slushies to McMansions, Americans believe in going big. And when you can't make something any bigger you get more of it. Big box stores like Walmart are synonymous with the American way.
Does all of this stuff make us happier? Only temporarily. There is a kind a documented high that we get when we purchase new things, but it wears off quickly. In the end what we are left with is more possessions. The evidence stands that we fill our homes, cars, and garages with all kinds of things. This has spawned an entire industry of organization. You can hire someone to come to you home and tell you what to chuck, books can advise you on the best place to leave your towels, and if the situation is really dire you could end up on reality TV! So where does this leaves us?
It leaves us in a mess. The closets are cramped, drawers are overflowing, no one wants to know what's hiding under the bed. There are a few in the psychological community who say that a messy house can cause depression! At the very least we could all use a reality check. That's what I am doing.
My room looks like a disaster area right now. It's embarrassing. Books are on every imaginable surface. Shoes have eaten the floor along with several electric cords that go to who knows what. So I challenge you to do what I am doing--- get rid of the stuff. If you don't use it, lose it. Have a yard sale or donate unwanted items to charity. Also, think before you buy. Do you really need another pair of black pants? The answer is probably no. Your house and your checkbook will thank you for skipping unnecessary purchases.

Chew on This

Don't let the fear of the time it will take to accomplish something stand in the way of your doing it.  The time will pass anyway; we might just as well put that passing time to the best possible use.  ~Earl Nightingale

It's not that I'm so smart, it's just that I stay with problems longer.  ~Albert Einstein

The road leading to a goal does not separate you from the destination; it is essentially a part of it.  ~Charles DeLint

Success isn't a result of spontaneous combustion.  You must set yourself on fire.  ~Arnold H. Glasow

What am I going to do? Live.

The first semester of my senior year of college was quite hectic. I was the Alumnae Relations Chair for my sorority, I was on the senior rep for Centre Democrats, and I was prepping to go abroad. On top of that I got mono and a sinus infection at the same time. Needless to say, I was stressed. But, the thing that worried me the most was my future. I would be graduating that year and I had no idea what I was going to do with myself. I knew that I wanted to continue my education after my bachelor's degree, but not immediately. In one of those glorious senior panics, I wound up in the office of my American Literature professor. I asked him what on earth I was going to do with myself. In a succinct and gentle manner, he replied that I would live. That was just what I needed to hear.

In my time after graduation, I have lived (despite evidence to the contrary that this blog has not been updated since June). In fact, I enjoy my life. In August, I was hired to the job of my dreams. I am the technology coordinator for the historic Pine Mountain Settlement School. In addition to working on community broadband advocacy, I am the director of the oral history project. I live in a wonderful community and enjoy a slower pace of life. I think this blog will reflect that over the next year. There is life after Centre.

Weddings

This is a strange post to come back on, but I just couldn't avoid the topic. Weddings are everywhere! My facebook feed looks like a wedding photographer's portfolio. And it's just fantastic! Like many women, I love weddings. It's not just the dresses, the flowers, or the jewelry, it's the idea that good things are still happening in the world. It's so easy to been depressed over the state of the economy, the continuous political scandals, or the atrocities of war. It is nice to see something genuinely happy; a young couple in love just starting their lives together. Societies are built on families and marriage represents the culmination of a new family. So in this post I want to wish the best of look to all of my engaged or recently married friends :). Enjoy your new life with your spouse.

While we are on the topic of weddings, I happened to be in London for what may well be "the wedding" of a lifetime. On April 29th, Kate Middleton lived every little girl's fantasy and married her "Prince Charming." London was turned upside down for momentous occasion. For months, vendors peddled "Will & Kate" souvenirs. The couple was on the face of every newspaper and tabloid. By the time the big day arrived, people were packed into the city like sardines. Several tube stops near the Westminster Abbey and Hyde Park were shut down due to high volume of passengers. A few of my London classmates and I went to Hyde Park to watch the festivities on giant screens that had been erected for the occasion. A good time was had by all. There were 150,000 people in Hyde Park that day, making it essentially the biggest wedding reception ever. It was one heck of a party. People were waving British flags, women and men dressed up as brides, and the alcohol was flowing like the Mississippi. It was a truly monumental occasion, and it was done only as the British could do it.

That's me in Hyde Park indulging in the festivities.

Life After Centre is Back in Action

Where to begin? So much has happened in the past month. First and foremost, I am proud to have officially begun my life after Centre. I graduated on the 22nd of May in the company of family and friends. It was a magical day and I did cry. President Roush got me during his commencement speech. But I am happy to report that it was a pretty cry so I didn't look like a racoon following the ceremony. So to sum everything up in a quick post here we go:
During the the month of May I ....
-Made it back safely to America with a few small hitches along the way.
-Spent a weekend with some of my favorite ADPi sisters.
-Had dinner with a professor and some dear friends.
-Became an Alpha Delta Pi alumnae on the 160th anniversary of the sorority's founding.
-Made the Honor Walk with a professor who has quite literally changed my life.
-Survived Senior Week or Senior Disorientation as it it known by some.
-Graduated from the best college in the South.
-Went on my first job interview.
Needless to say I am a bit tired, but I am glad to be blogging again. I have found that since I returned to the states, if I am not busy, I am bored!