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I'm not leaving today but I am going to

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I am so over the moon excited to be going (The farthest east I've traveled so far is New Mexico! Yep Arizona born and raised) and I wish it was happening already.

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While New York Is super exciting in and of itself I would probably never get around to going if it wasn't for a great opportunity and a great opportunity came my way and somehow I got accepted. In February I will be a going to the delegate meetings at the UN Commission on the Status of Women!!! I got accepted to this fantastic program and I'm so excited to be in New York in the UN!!!

One day I would love to be looking at the corporatization of development through a communication lens and next to getting into a graduate program that has a strategic communication center going to the UN is the biggest opportunity that has come my way. I believe very strongly in feminist activism and through my classes on political communication and women and social change I hope to one day use communication theory to discuss how the procedures and policies used by NGO's like the World Bank and the IMF impact development in third world countries and what that means for the labor force, migrant workers, access to resources and how those developments impact women. I'm feel like I'm just getting started on my education career (even though this year I'm a graduating Senior) and can't wait for the opportunities available at this practicum.

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Anyways I'm over the moon about going to New York. I am not so happy about flying alone or navigating subways and cabs and city streets all by myself. And while I got some funding from ASU and from the organization hosting the practicum I still have to figure out how to pay for tuition and housing for the week =/

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T-shirt, I totally feel you.

Somehow I'll figure it out so I can be singing Neeeew Yooorrrk on the plane ride there in February.

It's Finals Season

Goodness I really wanted to be able to post everyday but I had my first final today and thankfully have all my finals and classes will be done by Tuesday.

December 9 – Party Prompt: Party. What social gathering rocked your socks off in 2010? Describe the people, music, food, drink, clothes, shenanigans. (Author: Shauna Reid)

The social gathering that WILL rock my socks will be my 21st birthday. In exactly 9 days I will be 21 and you better be sure that I am going big. My birthday is one week before Christmas and it has always sucked so the past 6 years I didn't have a party or do anything really special because I knew it was really just an imposition on people's busy holiday calendars and forgetful. I was sort of saving all those missed birthdays so I could have one night that is really mine. One night where I counted on peopel to coem and celebrate my birthday with me. A 21st birthday, to me, is the last real community wide rite of passage you go through other than marriage or buying a house but this one is the most participative. I can't marry everyone on my wedding day but I can get fabulously dressed up and get pissed drunk with everyone on my 21st birthday. I plan to serve chips and dip, finger foods, cupcakes, cake, and hot chocolate before we go out to the bars. I plan to really look and listen for an amazing soundtrack for the night and I am using some Lady Gaga and Katy Perry (Firework would be perfect). I am trying to have a Hello Kitty theme too complete with hats and cake =) If you have any vegetarian appetizers and fantastic party songs send them my way!

December 8 – Beautifully Different. Think about what makes you different and what you do that lights people up. Reflect on all the things that make you different – you’ll find they’re what make you beautiful. (Author: Karen Walrond)

I had a real hard time growing up and thinking I was beautiful. Everyone I saw around me that were "beautiful" looked nothing like me and so I just never could describe myself as beautiful and instead I started to think of myself as smart and funny and creative and my identity was formed around that. I think what makes me beautiful is that I don't ever fell is (if that's not backwards thinking I don't know what is but it's true). I developed other aspects of myself other than pretty hair and a beautiful body because I never though I had those things. Now I know that I am beautiful but it's my intelligence and whit and whimsy and creative side that the most personal aspects to me and are my most treasured and beautiful parts of me.

December 7 – Community. Where have you discovered community, online or otherwise, in 2010? What community would you like to join, create or more deeply connect with in 2011? (Author: Cali Harris)

My first sense of Community in 2010 was definitely found in collegetown. Those folks I met there gave me so much that I could ever ask for and once again it was a life changing experience. You can read about it here, here, here, here, here, here and I really do miss everyone. Anotehr place I got a sense of community would be from the girls I work with at The Shoe Mill. They told me when I got hired that their coworkers are more like a family and everyday has just shown me that more and more. I feel blessed that I get to know everyone and have been given the opportunity to work there.

When I catch up

This weekend in Tempe was the Festival of Arts or a huge art fair that had our little shoe store so busy and me still aching from helping all the costumers. Anyways here is me catching up on reverb promps.

December 6th- Make

December 6 – Make. What was the last thing you made? What materials did you use? Is there something you want to make, but you need to clear some time for it? (Author: Gretchen Rubin)

The last thing I made (and finished) was a hat for my friend Ashlee. I used yarn and a crochet hook from my ever growing collection to make her this hat in navy. I hope she loves it and it keeps her hairs warm. I would love to be able to sit and crochet some more and that is what I will be doing once school is over and I can do it free of guilt. I cannot wait to wrap up presents and make Christmastime beautiful and I would love to sew up some projects and craft some decorations. Also Ross' mom is the most expert decorator and crafter I know and I would be sooo happy if I could spend some craft time with her too. She knows how to KNIT!

December 5th- Let Go

Let Go. What (or whom) did you let go of this year? Why? (Author: Alice Bradley)

I feel so bad about this one But I feel like I let go of friends and in particular a friend f mine named Liz. Once I switched jobs and moved to Tempe I didn't see her. It may have been because I couldn't drive or because I didn't try enough but I haven't seen her since March and she was the girl I told everything to. I hope she can come to my birthday party and we can figure out a way to work our lives back together so we can still live our lives but see each other.

December 4th- Wonder

How did you cultivate a sense of wonder in your life this year? (Author: Jeffrey Davis)

This may sound silly but I guess I wondered with the kitties. I have school and I have work and I spend a lot of my time on that and in those aspects I am very cynical or responsible and I can't wonder but I pick up the kittie here and they are my kitty babies and I play wit them and ponder what they think. I pretend when school gets really stressful how they would handle it if we switched places. I make up lives for them in my head when they sit and rest with me. I know that they can't really understand who I am but I know they love me now too and I'm mommy for them now.

Friday I'm In Love

check this girl to see the series

This Friday I am love with work!

There is this big arts festival down Mill Ave. in Tempe and the shore store is going to be super, super packed and I'm nervous but excited since this is my first art fair and I'm still the newbie.

I'm so excited to be almost done with school and I'm in love with already having done all my presentations and I can totally see the light at the end of the tunnel.

I turn 21 in 15 days WHAAAHOOOO! I'm having a Hello Kitty party and It will be the best celebration to bring in my birthday and end the semester GAHH so excited!

It would this date

December 3 – Moment.

Pick one moment during which you felt most alive this year. Describe it in vivid detail (texture, smells, voices, noises, colors).(Author: Ali Edwards)

I can't remember the date now or if I actually blogged about it or no but it was an early date I had with Ross back in the spring. It was a Friday night and I had come over with some chocolate hostess cupcakes I made for him. We lightrailed over to Mill Ave and started the night at an Irish bar called Rula Bula. I had the best pint of guiness I have ever had there and dark mahoganies and rosewood countertops made it feel warm and cozy. We walked out to an outside patio that was covered with twinkle lights and we found a little table and sat by the bar and looked into the restaurant where the Irish band was playing. After we finished our pints and the corners of the picture I was seeing got a tiny bit fuzzy (like one of those lomography pictures) We walked down Mill Ave. to RA sushi and got in and was blasted with the bumping of the DJ. We sat down and I had the best dinner of my life. I felt so happy to be there with Ross and with some Saki bombers and a spicy plate of sushi the entire bar washed away. I have no idea how many people where in that bar because all I saw was Ross. My leg tingled when he put his hand on it and the sushi looked like it was glowing, heck Ross looked like he was glowing because all I could do was focus on our table and our time together. The way he was looking at me and the way I couldn't stop looking at him let me know for the first time that this was for real. THis was the night that I started to really fall in love with Ross...I felt the seed get planted and it started to grow over the next couple months. When I'm 50 I'll always be able to remember that night

Hey hey

A year in reflection. I hope once the semester is over I can really start blogging and crocheting again =)

December 2 Writing.
What do you do each day that doesn’t contribute to your writing — and can you eliminate it?
(Author: Leo Babauta)

The surfing OH THE SURFING! I surf the internet like crazy and I fell like I have to take a bloggy break when even writing assignments for school. Every couple of sentences I scroll over to safari and start looking at my favorite blogs and the start internet surfing and half an hour later I've just still written those couple of sentences. I have a couple more papers to write for school and I am going to try and eliminate the bloggy breaks from the writing process.

I'm a growing girl

I have soo much homework to do and I cannot believe it's December already but give me a couple more days and I will no longer have to worry about school! I won a giveaway from my lovely gall Brittany and I am so excited and not only did she she excited me with the good news today but she started doing this Reverb10 thing and I am hooked. I am so bad at journaling and really being genuine and I'm being told all the time that time flies after you turn 21 so I would really like to remember it all.

Today's Prompt:

December 1 One Word.

Encapsulate the year 2010 in one word. Explain why you’re choosing that word. Now, imagine it’s one year from today, what would you like the word to be that captures 2011 for you?

Growth

I feel like I have grown up more this past year than any before. I fell in love with the most amazing person I've ever met. I made a dumb college mistake but learned so much from it. I'm almost done with my undergraduate career and now I know where I would like to go from here. I moved into this little apartment here in Tempe and have never looked back. I have loved 2010 for the good and bad it gave me because through all of it I really grew up.

For 2011 I would love to be able to call the year an Adventure. I'm taking a year in between undergraduate and graduate school to save up money and I hope it will be the time I can explore everything I've learned and continue growing up and hopefully do this outside of Arizona and the United States.