I'm Protesting!

Friday, January 15, 2010

I'm sure most of yall have heard of the big 'Conan - Leno' fiasco. But just in case you haven't, here's a quick recap:

Jay Leno, who used to host "The Tonight Show' somehow (I'm not sure if he quit, was let go, or the contract ended) got the chance to host another interview-type show that would air at 10pm. When Leno moved, Conan O'Brien got the job of host of "The Tonight Show" which airs at 11:35pm. Well, ratings went down for Leno, local affiliates complained and NBC decided to move Leno and his current show to 11:35pm thus bumping Conan to 12:05 and poor Jimmy Fallon to 1:05. This has caused an uproar at NBC. Leno is making Conan the butt of jokes on his show and Conan certainly responds by poking fun at NBC and Leno.

Here's a clip that'll give you a taste of it:

Conan is now saying he's quitting if they move his show back. I don't blame him. It's unfair. Leno needs to actually retire like he originally said and go drive all those cars he's got.

Looking at this situation from a public relations view, this is killing NBC. Not only are their own employees insulting each other, Conan and Leno are also saying some pretty awful things about NBC. This is killing NBC's image. They now look like some thoughtless company who disregards contracts and employees' opinions. NBC better figure something out quick, because their reputation is slowly degrading and I think they're losing fans.

In my own way of protesting, I have decided not to wear the red NBC shirt I bought when visiting NY a couple of summers ago. They will get no free advertising out of me until this is all settled in a more respectable way. Shame on you NBC.

And I'm team Conan.

Spring 2010: Here I Come!

Saturday, January 9, 2010

I'm going to start my last semester of college in two days. Goodness gracious. I won't even start on the uneasiness of uncertainties that thought brings. Instead, I'm going to focus on some highlights of the past 3.5 years at Winthrop University and all it entailed. Here are some things I never thought I would do or would happen to me:

1. One of my best friends would be on the girls' basketball team. I love my girl Lacey, my LOST watching partner, and I'm so glad she transfered from Coastal Carolina! Actually, I'm friends with several girls on the team. I don't think this would really be possible at a large school and I'm really thankful for my friendship with these girls. They're awesome!
2. I'd actually become a basketball fan. See #1 on this. Coming into WU, basketball was one of the sports I knew the least about, but ended up watching the most. I'm still a loyal guys fans. Still :)
3. I'd travel the world! On two (make it three in March) separate occasions. Italy, France and Amsterdam on the first go-round and England on the second. This is the girl that used to get "sick" at sleepovers. I got myself to leave the usual and loved it. A new love for the world, its culture, people and news. By far the best experiences of my life.
4. I'd get to worship our Creator with 20,000 other college students in one room at one time. Wow. Passion- you are wonderful. Thank you for allowing me to do this.
5. I'd change my major. I thought I would beat the statistic and stay the same all 4 years. After all, I basically ended up at WU just to major in journalism (a last minute, but solid decision). There are times when I wish I would have stayed with journalism and not changed to Integrated Marketing Communication, but the two are very similar. Besides, what would I do with Jennifer Carlyle by my side, Sarow and the Frenchies!
6. I'd have friends all over the world! France, Germany, England, Ireland. Thank you WU for being so diverse.
7. I'd go to a megachurch. Haha, I never would have pictured myself at one. When I started going to Elevation there were only about 400 attending. Now there are about 6000+ I couldn't begin to describe how God grew me through this church. Whew. If I leave the Charlotte area after graduation, this will be at the top of the list for things missed. At least they have that online service now.
8. I'd go to a billion concerts. I mean, I knew I was a concert junkie, but wow, I went to a ton. Thanks to my concert buddy Aimee West, we attended as many as possible. Notables: Switchfoot, The Fray, Mute Math, Derek Webb.
9. I'd have the absolute best, most amazing, hilarious, adventurous friends in the entire world. FCA leadership- I don't know what I'd do without these guys and gals. They rock. They push me to do better. I am so glad to be on a team with them. All of my roomates- I'll never laugh as much with anyone. The most fun ever. I love them all. I keep our memories close to my heart. None compare to yall.
10. I'd find myself not wanting to graduate. I love it here. I love Winthrop, FCA, Charlotte (NODA-I will deeply miss you!), my crazy amazing friends. I don't want to leave it all. Not yet. They all mean too much to me.

So that's it for now. There are a billion more things I could write about and I'm so thankful for that.

These next few months are going to bring a variety of changes and emotions. I hope I'm ready.

Pop Quiz

Thursday, September 10, 2009

A couple of roommates and I have come up with a little test. The purpose of the test is to reveal if you are truly southern. And it all involves food/beverages. Here it is:

Do you like sweet tea?

 

Do you like boiled peanuts?

 

Do you like grits?

If you answered yes to at least 2 of the above, then congratulations, you’re southern!

If you only answered yes to one, then nope, you don’t make the cut.

If you you had zero yeses, then you fail.

And if you’ve never heard of the things in the questions, we’ll it’s time you head down south and try it because it will be the most amazing meal of your life.

 

So, who passed?

Fake Runner

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

So I've been driving/riding all around Charlotte a good bit these past few weeks and have noticed this strange little thing people do. When crossing the street, sometimes a person notices a car waiting on them when they're just about in the middle. So they then pretend like they speed up by throwing their arms in some circular motion that makes it LOOK like they are running. But in fact, they are still walking, their arms are just swinging faster.

It's so silly. I laugh out loud every time I see it. I crafted together a little video that will demonstrate exactly what I'm talking about:




Anyone else seen this? Or do this?

I'm going to go with Deni

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

I'm a little embarrassed to share the same name as this guy. Well, at least it's spelled differently. Check out this "rapper." You'll know why I put it in quotes once you watch it. I fast forwarded to the second verse, it so much better than the first, believe it or not. Enjoy!



Sad thing is, he's still making music. Poor thing. He just recorded a new song which can be found here if you feel so inclined.

Oh, and don't shoot hoops until you eat all your fruit loops.

No Place Like Home

Sunday, May 17, 2009

I grew up in one of the, if not the, prettiest places on the planet. Don’t believe me?




Yeah, I thought so.

I took it for granted while I was there. Sure I shopped downtown, layed out at Hunting Island, golfed at every possible course, found sharks teeth at the sands, went to church in a 200-year old building (yey BCOB!), ate countless shrimp burgers, had coffee at the waterfront park, wore Sperrys…on a boat, and looked at the gorgeous view from the downtown bridge while waiting in traffic because it was open. I did all of those things.

But once I went to college, I started missing it. I even began to miss that weird marsh smell. Who would have thought? When I came back home to visit I found myself rolling down the windows at the first sight of marsh.

This is my first summer away from beautiful Beaufort. I’ll miss being there over the summer, a really fun time. But I’ll be staying in Rock Hill and working in Charlotte at Charlotte Magazine as the marketing intern. I’ve already had several people at work ask me where I’m from and as soon as I tell them, their replies are all the same:

Oh! It’s beautiful down there!

And that's usually followed by:

Do you think you will move back there?

And my reply is usually:

No.

Ok, so I just went on talking about how wonderful Beaufort is and now I’m saying I don’t want to move back? Crazy girl. There are a few reasons why my answer is so quick and sure. One is that Beaufort doesn’t really have the job opportunities I’ll be seeking when I graduate. And two is that I love traveling to new places and seeing new things.

I’m really thankful of where I grew up. I loved it. I met some amazing, incredible people who have become my friends that I will never forget. It is a truly unique, one-of-a-kind place. I hope that in my future, I can discover what other unique places exist around the world!

This seems like a pointless post after re-reading it. Going on and on about how I love and miss Beaufort and then just said I probably won’t move back. Oh, well. It’ll always be home.

A LowCountry Tale

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

One of my favorite foods is shrimp, for many reasons: I live 100 yards from where you catch them, they’re delicious, my dad would physically hurt me if I didn’t, and the most important reason of all…

I got attacked by a shrimp one time

Yup. I remember it so vividly. I was about 9 years old and was taking a tour of a shrimp boat in Beaufort with some family and friends. We were out in the river, the nets were pulled up, and the shrimp was tossed on the table. I had a front row view of the table with my head just peering over it.

Then all of a sudden, with all the shrimp popping up and down, one lively one jumped extra high hitting me directly between my eyes and then back into the ocean. The shrimp used me to escape. So now, I eat all the shrimp placed in front of me in hopes that I will someday get revenge.

I think my favorite shrimp dish (and there are many - watch this video from my favorite movie, Forest Gump, that names a few) is the lovely shrimp burger.

I was able to enjoy one back home last weekend at The Shrimp Shack (the best place to get and the shrimp are from right across the street). Basically, all a shrimp burger is is shrimp beaten down and then formed into patties. Then they are usually fried, but on a bun with some tarter sauce and served. Delicious. There is nothing much better than that, I promise.

Here is a picture in case you can’t imagine the goodness I’m describing:

My "book" continued...

Sunday, April 12, 2009

I’ve previously blogged about the “book” I want to write at some point in my life. (I put book in quotations because it’s really not a book but rather just a compilation of ridiculous things).

Read here to catch up on what the book will be about and the first few stories that will go in it. This book won’t be anything close to what this guy will one day release, but funny nonetheless. Here are some brief descriptions of new stories that will definitely make it in the book:

• Being on a plane ride for 8 hours and standing in the customs line for 30 minutes right next to rapper Flo Rida. Didn’t get a picture, autograph, or anything. I’m not sure if he even made it into England- he was asked to step aside for extra questioning.
• Losing my camera in a field when the boys holding it, dropped it to start running from a bull that started running towards them. Why were they so close to a bull you ask? Scavenger Hunt. It was dark and we thought it was a horse.
• Jennifer and I got interviewed in front of BBC in London.
• Playing the cowbell (a big dream of mine) with the Winthrop Pep Band at a basketball game!
• My restaurant experience in Chinatown in NY. First of all, there was a line of about 20 people waiting on a table and when we went to put our name on the list, they just took us right back to a table ahead of everyone else. And we couldn’t understand our waiter one bit. Overall, it was sketchy and a true Chinatown experience. And really yummy.
• Having a car that doesn’t turn off. Read more here.
• Getting pulled into a funeral procession/parade/street dance by an older man in New Orleans. It was fun dancing with a random guy in the middle of the street with a band that walks right behind you.
• Spending 6 hours, yes 6 hours, in a Wal-Mart in Georgia where we got stranded on the way back from a youth trip.

I’m sure there are TONS more, but these are what I came up with for now. Please comment and let me know if you think of any others. And I’m still looking for a book title.

I Hate Cars

Saturday, April 4, 2009

A quick break from London here.

I never had any car problems while I was in high school or at home. But now that I have moved over 300-miles away, away from my dad who deals with car issues for me, I’ve had several.

Most recently, yesterday, I dealt with a very unique problem:

My car would not turn off.

Yup. I put it in park, went to turn the key to turn the ignition off only to find it stuck and not willing to turn or turn off. What does one do in this situation you may ask. After a few seconds and the realization that car dealerships and shops were closed, I considered my options:
• Let the car run out of gas and eventually turn off
• Rip the key out by sheer force (not from my wimpy self of course, but instead my friend who plays basketball for WU)
• Freak out, cry, call AAA and find another solution

I chose the third option. However, upon calling AAA they told me they could not immediately help me because my car was still in service. Exactly.

So instead, myself and 3 other girls had to pop the hood (which took a quite a few minutes) and be talked through via phone on where to find the black box that held the fuses, pick the correct fuse out of like 20, and pull it out. I now wish I would have taken a picture of all of us crowded around scared to pull it out in fear that we may get shocked or catch something on fire.

After several minutes we pulled the fuse and off it went! We were pretty proud of this great accomplishment.

So then I had to intentionally lock my key in the car (which was still in the ignition) and get AAA to tow it to the Saturn dealership the next day to fix it.

I got the car back today and it’s fixed! Woohoo! But while watching my little Saturn get pulled up on that tow truck, I told Jennifer I just wished we had trains, busses and subways that took us everywhere like in England. Then problems like these would not happen. But then she promptly reminded me that instead we would have the problem of people jumping on Subway tracks at our stop causing us to ride all over the city of London to get home. I don’t know which is worse.

6 Reason I Love Visitng with the Avant family

Monday, July 28, 2008

1. I have THE cutest cousins ever and they always give me big, cuddly hugs.

2. I always leave with something cool. Once, a lamp my uncle built for me to put shells in, and most recently, old looking bricks I wanted to use in my room at my new apartment for bookends. They always come through with some crafty item.

3. Amazing food. I’m talking broccoli casserole, macaroni-n-cheese, BBQ ribs, and always a selection of 4-5 desserts. Mmmm

4. I love listening to the crazy, somewhat strange, accents of some family members. One aunt adds –er onto every word. For example, “I put some cheese-er onto the potato-ers to give it a better flavor-er.” I love it.

5. I have some highly-skilled craftsmen in our family. The family comes from a long string of brick masons and two uncles have continued to the tradition along with one of their sons. They create beautiful fireplaces (check out Southern Living for their work which has been featured many times), decks, and houses. Along with that, one of my uncles has recreated his grandparents house completely. He moved it to his lot, fixed the exterior, and then used the family’s actual old furniture to fix the interior. It’s quite a piece of artwork. I love looking at it all. I’ve also learned this is where my love of high rise buildings and cool architecture comes from.

6. Funny stories from my Uncle Buckshot. Yup, that’s his name and can you imagine what kind of stories come out of someone named Buckshot?

I’m sure there is more, those are just a few highlights. Can’t wait until the next little family get-together.

NYC Art

Friday, July 25, 2008

While in New York City in May with my brother, we visited, and spent much time in the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA). It was packed with some crazy sculptures, furniture, photographs, and artwork. All of which, I loved. I was looking back on some pictures and one piece of art stood out to me more than before. Here it is from a small distance:



You can kind of tell that the entire photograph is made of hundreds of tiny little pictures and symbols. Here are a few parts where I zoomed in a bit so you could see the symbols:




When I first saw it, I remember thinking, wow, that’s pretty cool; I can’t imagine how they did it. But now, I see something else.

Each one of these tiny, seemingly random symbols bands together with the rest to create this giant piece of art. I kind of translated that into our lives.

Sometimes I feel like I’m making no difference in this crazy world we live in (although I have much life left to live). This art allows me to remember that God is looking from a much bigger scale. I may not feel like I’m having any impact, but with all my brothers and sisters in Christ, we most certainly are making something beautiful for God to smile upon. After all, it’s not even about me.

When going on mission trips, I’ve always heard, “we’re just planting the seed. Someone else will water, give it sunshine, etc.” So even though you don’t see the final product, just know someone else is probably working at it too.

Start working with those other “symbols” around you (even though you might not be aware of who they actually are) and make some art.

My future book!

Friday, February 8, 2008

One of my favorite speakers, Clayton King, has a book called Journals of a Madman. It’s a collection of stories he wrote about the most insane, crazy, God-driven moments that have happened to him. Some of them you will not believe unless you see the pictures that go along with them.

Anything from hearing a song he wrote for a wrestler on John Boy and Billy’s national radio broadcast to running from the KPG in Moscow to becoming a king of a country for a day. I mean, these stories are just crazy, even more so because they all happened to one man.

I have decided I want to write a similar book. Except mine won’t be as eccentric, but still filled with some silly, small stories and moments I’ve had thus far. I hope that as I start this new decade of my life (I turned 20 yesterday), that God continues to bring more of these moments because I absolutely love them.

So here are a few brief moments that I will feature in my book. No title ideas yet.
• Yesterday I was serenaded for my birthday at a restaurant. Nothing special right? Well this unique birthday song just happened to be in complete Italian and opera style. It was so pretty and unexpected that I even blushed.

• While in Amsterdam, Netherlands on a very crowded tram last summer, I met a girl that is best friends now (at Clemson University) with some of my closest high school friends. She was studying abroad for a month, I was passing through, she was wearing a Clemson shirt, and I said hello. Small world.

• Witnessing a deathly car accident in which probably changed my spiritual life forever.

• When I tried to persuade our youth minister on a ski trip that one of our “adult chaperones” actually jumped off a snowy hill into a snowy mound but actually landed on some wooden thing and crushed her heel in the process. He didn’t believe me and thought I was enticing them for a snowball fight. It took a good ten minutes to get someone out there and meanwhile the “adult” was in a bit of pain.

• I own a one inch square piece of property in North Pole, Alaska at Santa’s workshop. No joke, I’ve got the paperwork to prove it.

• When I was at an Atlanta Braves’ baseball game, during batting practice I stood in the home-run section in hopes of getting a ball hit to me. Well, I did. One came at me, bounced a few feet before the fence and I guess I judged it all wrong. It bounced up and hit me directly in the chin giving me a good scuff mark and NO BALL because the guy next to me took it!! What a souvenir. But I have gotten several, like when former 3rd base coach Ned Yost asked me if I could catch and threw me one and when former pitcher Jason Marquis threw one at me and when the big guy next to me took it, Marquis pointed at me and made the guy give it to me. Thank goodness I was a cute little girl with her face painted completely red and blue.

So those are just a few of the ridiculous, wonderful stories. I might share some more throughout the blog. :)

Clayton’s stories are so comical, but most of them (except for the moment he was mistaken for Garth Brooks) have some relation with the workings of God. Mine do not…yet. Maybe I just haven’t figured out the meaning yet.

You’ve got to read Clayton’s book, it’s just so amazing and encouraging to see how God can move in crazy ways. I hope it continues in my life!

Let me know if you have any title suggestions.