One component of our floor this year is to provide residents the chance to participate in an Alternative Breaks trip. My Co-RA and I researched numerous different organizations and finally decided to work with Essential 2 Life in Atlanta, GA. We are really excited about customizing the trip to fit everyone's interests and to spend the week with 12 of our residents!

And, in order to prepare for that awesome week, we had to spend this past weekend at the Shawnee Inn in PA at the NYU Alternative Breaks Site Leader Retreat. There were about 50 students there and we received training in diversity, fundraising, education/orientation/training, and reorientation. We also played some team building games outside in the gorgeous weather. Saturday night we had a campfire where we made s'mores and then played Capture the Flag and then on Sunday we canoed with our co-Site Leaders along the Delaware River. It was an amazing weekend. I met some really great people, had tons of fun, ate lots and lots of (yummy) food--everyone knows that's my favorite part, and got even more excited about my trip.

Just wanted to give a quick plug because it is definitely worth checking out and providing yourself with this rather eye-opening experience!

This past weekend I went with three friends to visit someone at Penn State. I had been wanting to go for a while and had particularly wanted to see a football game. My friend was able to get tickets and walking into Beaver Stadium on Saturday was literally, as my friend said, "insta-smile"! My three friends and I were mid-conversation as we got to the top of the ramp--the entrance to the bleachers--and completely stopped, smiled, and took in the insanity that is PSU's 110,000 capacity Beaver Stadium. We proceeded to enjoy the football game as PSU destroyed Temple. And what would a Penn State game be without being thrown up in the air a few times...59 to be exact (after 21 points and 38 points)? I spent the rest of the weekend hanging out, relaxing, eating deliciously unhealthy food, and taking in the experience that I definitely do not have here at NYU.

While I know this is an NYU blog and it would probably be wise of me to speak highly of the school, I think it is important to point out that regardless of how amazing NYU is and how much I have truly benefited from being a student here...it is VERY different from other institutions. I feel that is something to be considered in making college decisions because NYU isn't for everyone, but neither is PSU. So once you decide on NYU and get here and make the most of the experience, take a weekend or two and visit friends elsewhere and be an honorary "real college kid" for a weekend--then come back and enjoy all that NYU and Manhattan have to offer!

I finished my BASE conversations for the semester this evening. I really enjoyed these meetings and having the opportunity to just sit down and chat with the freshmen on my floor. I have had numerous interactions with them in passing or at programs but being able to catch up without having distractions and needing to be somewhere was great. I am so fortunate to have such amazing residents this year. I really hope that they continue to be as positive and enthusiastic as they are now because I definitely think we'll have an awesome year! My Co-RA and I, and our Faculty Affiliate, have some fun plans but our residents have also suggested some ideas that I hope we can put into action as well.

I am definitely looking forward to this year and continuing to build my relationships with my residents!

Fortunately for me, being an OL opened up the door to another opportunity to become involved in the Steinhardt community. This morning was a Prospective Student Open House and I was able to serve as one of the students in attendance to speak with prospective students and families and answer any questions they might have. Upon arriving at the Kimmel Center and making my way up to the 4th floor, I began to "meet and mingle" with some families. I shared stories and experiences and any information I had that might help them in the decision-making process. Afterwards, I was speaking to one of my bosses and half-jokingly said that I should come back and work for Steinhardt after I graduate, as a recruiter.

After everyone heard Deans Carey and Brabeck speak, as well as one of my peers, we gathered together as a department to share information and answer more questions. My earlier comment resonated in my head as I continued to enjoy being a resource for these families. I love doing this (which is also why I am a blogger for Steinhardt) and hope that I can keep as many people as informed as possible...so keep the questions coming.

And if anyone from NYU is out there reading this, and you're hiring...let me know! :)

The show is so incredibly well done and truly something I think people need to pay attention to and take to heart. I went with a close friend of mine who I was speaking with about the history behind AIDS and the revolutionary era that the story speaks of. Toward the end of the show I began thinking about the fact that, when I have children this will probably be a show that they come to see the revival of. The strange thing about that is knowing that there is such a historical context to the plot and wondering what the status of HIV/AIDS will be like at that point. Kind of crazy to think about.

If you are unfamiliar with the story of Rent, since you won't be able to see it on Broadway I HIGHLY recommend you rent the movie. I actually was fortunate enough to go to an advanced screening of it my freshman year at NYU and have watched it multiple times since then. I think it was pretty well done and actually clarifies some things, especially set wise, that may be difficult to understand because only a few props change throughout the live performance.

And don't forget: no day but today...think about it and live it!

I was a participant going into my freshman year then became a leader and coordinator, and then just maintained the role of coordinator for the follow two years. Basically I have helped to organize and run the entire program which I absolutely love. However, this year I did much of the behind-the-scenes work but was unable to attend the program because it overlapped RA training. I was really upset about it but tried to get over to as much of OutReach as I could.

I attended the guest speaker (who is also the Faculty Affiliate of my floor), their big Saturday project which was a carnival for children in the Starlight Children's Foundation hosted on our campus, as well as the tail end of the Saturday evening wrap-up. I heard some really great feedback from this year's OutReach participants and leaders and am so excited because four of the participants are actually living on my floor this year!

Essentially what we do at OutReach is divide the 75 participants up into 12 groups, each run by two leaders, that participate in three different community service projects (the third being the big final one on Saturday with the whole group) during the day and then engage in reflections before going out with their group to explore NYC at night. It's a truly phenomenal program and certainly an amazing way to kick-off your college experience. Almost everyone walks away from it a changed, more enlightened person, and says that their closest friends from college are the ones they met at OutReach--and my situation is no different. I just wish I could continue to be a part of the program in the future because it feels like it has become my baby since I've been here and it was really hard for myself, and all the other seniors in the program, to accept that it is our senior year and we do have to pass the torch and watch the flame grow! But I am certainly excited to do that because I know I'm leaving OutReach in great hands!

All week my Co-RA and I have been taking our residents to various Welcome Week events to help them get involved in the NYU community. Wednesday we went to an interactive workshop called Theater for Social Change which was facilitated by an Educational Theater faculty member who demonstrated to us the effectiveness of using theater (games) to open up dialogue about diversity and social justice issues. It was a very powerful session that my Co-RA and I are hoping to bring to our entire floor community this year.

That evening we brought students to a Spoken Word Poetry Slam which everyone seemed to really enjoy. We then learned about the Hip-Hop Theater Festival taking place September 23-October 11. This event was reintroduced to us last evening when we went to a screening of "On the Outs"--an extremely powerful film that follows the lives of three teens who get caught up with drugs, teenage pregnancy, and violence, and end up in and out of juvenile detention centers (definitely watch it). Following the screening, our Faculty Affiliate joined us for a discussion about the issues addressed in the film and it was incredible to see the open dialogue that my residents had. Our conversation touched upon many things and everyone contributed something very valuable to it. My Co-RA and I are extremely excited for this year because after only 5 days of knowing these wonderful people, we see the interest, intellect, and curiosity they are bringing to our floor and we can only what we will be able to learn this year.

I can't wait to see what this year has in store for me (and my residents) because social justice and community service are things I am very interested in and passionate about learning more about and I really think that I will be able to do that this year. But perhaps more importantly, I will be able to do it with a group of students who feel similarly and I (along with my Co-RA and Faculty Affiliate) get to be the person who provides them with this experience.

We still have a LOT of training in store for us, and a lot of eatting at Palladium, and a lot of icebreakers and team building activities, but it should totally be a fun, interesting, educational week. I'm really excited about working here this year and especially working with everyone else on my staff.

Just wanted to give a quick update on back to school and my SENIOR year but there will DEFINITELY be more where this came from in the next few weeks :)

I have been incredibly fortunate to have such a great summer job. I worked at the Long Island Spectrum Center -- an alternative treatment center for children with disabilities, primarily Autism. I have learned so much in the just three months of employment there. The approach that LISC takes is different from any I've seen. The office is run like a doctor's office so all our work is done one-on-one with the children so I have been extremely fortunate to have gotten to know so many amazing children. The children who come in are very different from one another but they are all so great and have each taught me a ton! And, their families are such terrific people who have enhanced my summer experience more than I ever planned.

Needless to say, I have had a great summer and loved going to work. The small staff gets along great and we're always having fun, laughing, and working as a team. If that doesn't make leaving difficult, I don't know what does. Oh wait...how about walking out after treating my last client to a cake, a plaque, flowers, and a gift?!!! I was never expecting all of that but it means the world to me! Some of the parents also gave me hugs and kisses and thanked me and all of that makes my job even more rewarding than it already is.

Now that work is done, I have two days to finish packing and getting ready to move back on the 15th to begin my RA training and then my final year as an undergraduate...how quickly life goes! Fortunately, mine has been filled with so many unique, amazing experiences :)

Shocker...he knew about the show...and had purchased 6 tickets, the maximum allowed per person. He told me two were for he and his wife, two were for my parents as my dad's birthday present, and two were up in the air but likely for some combination of myself, my sister, her husband, and my brother's sister-in-law. Well my offer was quickly made to purchase one of the tickets, not even knowing the price at which he bought them (impulsivity isn't always the best route to go). So a few minutes later I was "in possession" of a ticket to my fourth Billy Joel concert for Wednesday, July 16 at Shea Stadium. Well when I came home to celebrate my birthday, I was surprised with the ticket as a gift (which meant some money that could be saved in my bank account for a little bit longer...phew!).

Anyway, it ended up being my brother and his wife, my parents, my sister and I at the show a week and a half ago and it was INCREDIBLE. Billy Joel had such an amazing performance and was even humble enough to invite Tony Bennett, John Mayer, John Mellencamp, and Don Henley onto the stage to perform with him at various times throughout the night. It was awesome to see multiple generations present at the show and even better when everyone knew all the words to his songs. Seeing as my brother is such a big fan, I have grown up listening to Billy Joel--singing his songs in my brother's car when I was little, talking to friends about him in school, learning the historical context of "We Didn't Start the Fire"--only my favorite Joel song ever!, and seeing four of his shows with my family (yes, this was possibly better than his Millenium concert at MSG). I've also heard about how my brother and dad got to meet him and chat with him for a few minutes while I was in Spain last summer.

I guess the coolest part of the whole thing isn't the fact that as musically-illiterate as I am, I still know a little something about one of Long Island's biggest icons, but that my family--the people who mean so much to me--has this little bit of excitement and commonality that we can share together time and time again. Being with my family all together last week and seeing everyone with smiles on their faces, forgetting about the burdens of everyday life for those 4 hours, can only put a smile on my face and remind me of how fortunate I am to be a part of my family and to have these people in my life to share memories like that with.

Anyway, take some time to enjoy the little things in life, become a Billy Joel fan (hehe), spend time with the people who mean the most to you--and remind them of how special they really are, and most importantly (and I have to continually remind myself of this) don't take things like this for granted!

We got down to Tampa on Friday where my cousin picked us up from the airport and we went to meet my aunt for some lunch. Shortly after my friend and I were lying out by my uncle's pool enjoying the great Florida weather (that was apparently only great while we were there as it's rained before and after our trip). We then proceeded to go for a little joyride in my uncle's "spare car"--a Mustang convertible. We basically just spent an hour driving around and enjoying the Florida life before going home for dinner with the fam and going out with my cousin and his friend.

Andrea and I went to bed planning to wake up at 9, have my uncle's delicious pancakes, and head out to Busch Gardens for a day on the roller coasters. But instead, we were woken up to my cousin's 7:40am phone call inviting us to the Red Bull Flugtag with a bunch of his friends. By 9:00 we were picking up some people and heading to Tampa...along with 100,000 other people who decided to spend the day outside in the 100 degree weather. Well we only lasted an hour and a half and by 2:00 we were having some lunch at Hooters before heading home for some more lounge time by the pool and another yummy family dinner and some hang out time with my cousins at their house.

Sunday was AMAZING!!! My cousins have friends who have boats so 15 of us took 2 boats out and spent about 5 hours in the water hanging out, tubing, and just having fun. We had SUCH a good time! And of course, what would a day be like without spending some time in the pool before the family dinner? Then it was out with my other cousin and some of his friends for our last night there. We ended up at a bar where the bartenders hula hoop on the bar and my friend and I got a chance to hula hoop too...but not on the bar. We even got free t-shirts. It was a great end to an incredible day and such a good weekend!

I can't wait to get back down there and spend some more time with the fam and their friends :)

That is, if I pass all my certification exams. Yesterday I took my first of four New York State Teacher Certification Exams. I took the Liberal Arts and Science Test (LAST) which is comprised of 80 multiple choice questions and an opinion essay. I had spoken to a few people who previously took the exam but still was a little uncertain as to what to expect. Fortunately, though, it was not as difficult as I had anticipated. Surprisingly, too, I finished the exam in a little over three hours although four hours are allotted to take it.

Something that was interesting though was that almost every time I told someone that I had to take a Certification exam on Saturday, people asked me "for what?" I have come to learn that many people are unaware of what goes into standing at the front of a classroom with 30 sets of eyes looking at you for all the answers. Anyway, I just hope that all went as well as I think yesterday and that I only have 3 more exams to take...keep your fingers crossed!