Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Walk. Break.

I walked to work again this morning. And then tonight I took an evenning stroll. I google mapped it and it came out to about 3 miles all the way. Thats pretty rad. It was so nice out this evenning. I love going for long walks. Typically they are better if you are with someone, but its good to think. And I talk to my mom part of half the way, as well as discovering some neat new parks.


Wait really quick.. I need some prayers for some things no joke.
1. Joyce whom I met at the bus stop today. She came over to me to hand me a packet about Jehovah's Witnessy stuff, and I sat down and talked to her a bit. She's super nice, but the things she was saying were ridiculous. I was asking her about her beliefs and how she got into being a JW, and really.. the words she said made no sense. I am going to pray that she at least comes to know what she is really doing with her life, and to be able to discern the so called wisdom that she is getting. I got her number, so maybe we can meet up later this week and grab some coffee and chat. Its interesing to learn what others believe.

2. That I make it through the rest of practicum alive. Its coming down to the nitty gritty, only 12 more days until Greece, and there is a lot of work to do. (I am not writing in my blog when I should be doing homework btw. Thanks.)

3. For greater love and forgiveness towards people that bother me. I dont want to be so bothered by some people. And I need to forgive some hard to forgive people in my life. Its hard. kinda 4. but still a part of 3. I think Im struggling with taking things too personal and being way to uptight about my relationships with people. I feel like I should guard my friendships and grow them, but at the same time... maybe I need to be more chill and let people do what they want to do without taking it the wrong way... blah blah. Maybe I am too anal about having healthy friendships and I should just accept people where they are.. yanno if they want to ignore me half the time and then pretend we are best friends half the time, I should accept that and not pressure them to not be so ridiculous? thats absurd. Im lost. can I live in a cave? that would be sweet.

Hark. time to sleep. My mind needs to shut off all the action. I think way too much sometimes. (doesnt help that I just drank 2 cups of ice coffee and walked 3 miles.) Blah ..sorry. I shouldnt write when my brain is so crazy.

Sunday, April 26, 2009

La La La

Here are some pictures from my weekend. Its been high 70-90 degrees. Oh man intense stuff.

Yesterday I participated in this thing called "Save the Bay." Basically cleaning up garbage from the Naragansett Bay coastline. We collected alot of trash, probably over 500 pounds of it, including about 7 huge tires that people just dumped. This whole thing is a part of my practicum community service time. It was super fun. I would do it again.



Saturday Night there was a mini water fire. It was beautiful out and Kevin, Melissa, Silas, Nathan, Kim and I all wandered down and watched. This is a great pic, I think Kim took it.




This is a really stupid sign that a church has on its thing out front. Yeah no joke. Are you kidding me? This church is ridiculous and should be kicked in the shins.

Yeah, if you have time for God. Its ok, just keep on living your crazy busy life, maybe one day when you can retire, THEN you can have some time for God. PFFT! What if you die tomorrow? You cant just say, "But God I was too busy to get to know you."

Ohlordy.


okey doke. I need to go find a way to get cold. This is not my kind of weather. haa.

Saturday, April 25, 2009

Hi, this is Kailey

Look! I can blog, too! I don't know how this happened.

My life is full of ridiculous adventures. Today I discovered from a nice police man that AAA does work on the 90 interstate thing, and the tow truck man lives in Batavia but delivers beer to Wilson Farms in Lockport every Tuesday and Thursday. He's my favorite.

But now I am car-less once again, but it's good because I have finals to study for and I have to memorize the location of 100 countries on a map. I know where America is.... and England and all the obvious ones, but where is Belarus? Or Myanmar, Senegal, Botswana, or Mauritania? No idea in the world. Hence the need to study

My Nose

My nose is out of control. I have sneezed more times tonight than I have in my whole life combined. Also, I cannot breathe out of my nose. And it keeps running running running.

aha I better go catch it.

This is kinda weird!!! 

Its almost 4 am right now. I should get to sleep. Good thing Im a college student and no class tomorrow =)

Friday, April 24, 2009

Leaky Leaky

Last night, Nathan, Kim, and I drove around Rhode Island for a long time looking for somewhere to just hang out. We did not want to go to a bar or a club, and the chairs in the Coffee Exchange are not that comfy according to Nathan. And everything was closed. It was sad. We ended up at a TGIFridays in Warwick. It apparently is the only thing openned past 11pm. they had good music, and I am pretty sure our waitress was under some sort of influence. She would not control herself very well.

ya good times.

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Not Your Average Joes


Not Your Average Joe's, a restaurant with locations scattered across the Boston area as well as random Virginia locations, its a place that prides itself on cruisine that is budget minded, creative, and casual. But the food is fricken amazing. Let me just say. Its fricken amazing.

They start you out with Focacia bread and oil parmesan mixture. My favorite bread in the world is Focaccia bread people, and if its not yours, then you need to try some no joke. There is plenty to go around, and the cheesey mixture is a great dipper.

Dang then there is the food. They pride themselves on their pizzas, and they are also willing to take anything on the menu and alter it in anyway that you want. I would describe their food as Americana, but times one hundred in the taste department, made creatively. Crazy mac and cheese, intense sandwiches and salads. I personally had a spicy hawaiian chicken pizza that they turned into a calzone. Its huge too. And pretty reasonably priced. It was tasty and perfectly cooked.

I would recommend going there right now.

Happy Earth Day

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Just Another Tool in My Quest..

I added this thing on my blog here called Google Analytics, and it is really cool. It keeps track of the visitors I get, and a bunch of other information. Everytime someone visits it logs their location, operating system, time on site, browser, internet speed, social security number, and a camera view of their house. No Im just kidding about those last two, and dont worry, it doesnt like give exact locations or times, just general cities. So I know that in the last 24 hours someone from Rochester NY, Tonawanda NY, North Tonawanda NY, and Pawtucket RI looked at my blog, (oh gee wonder who those people are.. haha)  and that Firefox and Opera were popular operating systems that these people used.  Its a really great tool, and I am kind of obsessed right now. 


Today at AAA, we had our Five Diamond Customer Service training session. Let me tell you, after that thing I am the master of customer service (also got a fancy little pin, see above). It was super interesting, and the CS trainer, Nancy, was super awesome. She was so passionate about her job, and you could tell she enjoyed every second of it. They taught a lot of things about communication, how to work in a team, and how to treat customers, or members as AAA has. I kinda wish that everyone in the world was required to go through that training. It should be a mandatory class in High school pretty much. 

An interesthing thing that AAA has as a part of their cirriculum is the idea of "sure, we should treat others how we would want to be treated," but to take it to the next level, "we should treat people how THEY would want to be treated." I mean I think it is kind of the same thing, but more intense. She shared a story about this woman in the office who is a big hugger. She hugs everyone, loves to be touchy feely, all that kinda thing. Well, there was a newly hired employee and it was his birthday, so she went up and gave him a huge hug! He lurched back and furiously told her to never touch him again otherwise he would file harassment charges. Now, that man did not want to be touched. He felt it was unprofessional in that type of office setting. Of course, Nancy loved to hug, but if she had gotten to know him a little better, she would have seen how he wanted to be treated. Something to that affect. It's an interesthing way to view things I suppose.

Last night my friends Matt and Eileen came over and we made hummousous, which is essentially hummus and couscous mixed together with a dash of seasonings to taste. We invented it a while ago, and get together to make it as often as possible. We had to go to Bennys to buy a potato masher for a dollar because ours is missing. They were flimsy so we bought two just in case. haha gotta mash up them chick peas! Yum.

Otherwise life is good. Aside from reading a lot of Ecclesiastes, I've been listening to a lot of Mark Driscoll and Andy Stanley sermons lately, just getting a grip on some things. I have hesitation with the idea of listening to so much, because I would rather listen to one podcast 345 times but have it sink in and take affect, rather than just keep filling and filling my self up with them and not put them into practice. But I am erring on the side of multiple because I also think that you can never hear too much wisdom. 

Oh the woman at the well. How you have crossed my path so many times lately. 

Later

-Alissa-

Sunday, April 19, 2009

So the Irony is..

Last night I stayed up so late listening to those sermon podcasts, that I fell back asleep after turning off my alarm and missed church this morning. Haha. Dang that stinks. Right now Im listening to Mark Driscoll from MarsHill in Seattle. He says "gals." haha. 

Man oh man. Life is intense right now. Its great. God is so good. He is so faithful. He is so amazing. I feel this ability to just let go of all my problems and stresses, because I know that everything will just work out. He has the whole world in His hands. 

I need to sleep in order to function at Practicum. So Im going to sleep right now. Night.

-Alissa-

Charlotte.

One of the girls from the Union Missions team posted this little story on Facebook. I think its amazing and like BAM.

Imagine this. A girl – somewhere around your age – walks into an office. It’s a simple room, but well kept. Behind the desk is the man she’s come to see. He runs an agency which provides opportunities for “selfless” work to those who wish to volunteer. This girl, I’ll call her Charlotte, is excited. She hopes to get placed in some glamorous non-profit, a place whose name she can casually drop at dinner affairs; a place people recognize and know; a place with a reputation for doing great work and enriching lives and advancing the kingdom of Christ.

As she greets the man – Mr. Smythe – the phone rings. Answering it quickly, he informs her that a very important meeting has just arisen; he will need to leave. He tells her that her assignment is in his bottom drawer; should she have any questions, she should feel free to call him later in the week.

Gratefully, Charlotte thanks the man and then rummages through the files, finally finding the one with her name on it. She opens it, and finds a single piece of paper inside. It says, simply:

“Name: Charlotte Taylor. Assigned to: Daily life. Mission: To advance the kingdom of Christ in the everyday routine of life. Period of time: unknown.”


Link to original here.

A lot of Meat and Cardboard.


Cardboard Testimonies - Christ's Church from Christ's Church - Jacksonville on Vimeo.

Please if you have a chance, then you need to watch this. Its amazing. Taken from an Easter service somewhere.




This weekend has been pretty good. Last night was the openning night of the Pawsox baseball team and a bunch of us went. After the game, I went with some friends to this beautiful park in Providence which over looks the city. Ive heard so many things about it, and everyone always talks about Prospect Point Park, but Ive never seen it! I totally recommend everyone to go there. Holy moly.


Feel free to look at some of my pictures here:
PawSox Game and Park Pics


I slept in this morning. What a relief.


Holy moly, Im listening to this podcast from Breakaway Ministries called "First Things First," about relationships and people and God. Its interesting.

The most interesting things about John 4, the woman at the well. Mmm. Man.
"I need to get my tank fixed."

Now is the time that I am ready for school and everything to be over to have more time to devote to just devulging myself in reading the bible and books and breaking out my concordance and just doing some resting in the Son. I remember when I was in tenth and eleventh grades, I had that great recliner in my room next to my bookshelf, and I would just sit and read and think and create things and write for hours every night. Those were some of the best times in my life.

Lately, Ive been thinking more and more about going to Bible school. Or hitting up some sort of training program for a few months. Not really sure what the deal is. Im kinda leaning more and more towards ELIChina, because its a Masters degree in TESOL, and you are also getting the whole deal of missionary stuff, working with a church over there in Asia somewhere. Also, TeachOverseas gives you come good ESL experience with a team of believers. Nothing is for sure yet, just praying about it intensely and seeing where God leads me. 

Hummm. This podcast is so interesting. Ok, I'm gonna go finish listening.

Here are some links for podcasts including the one Im listening too, as well as others from the series: 

First Things First, The Particulars, and one on Singleness these are from Breakaway Ministries at Texas A&M.


God Bless,
-Alissa-

Friday, April 17, 2009

Whiney.

So, Im waiting for my laundry to get done to go to bed. And Im back again, even though I just posted something ten seconds ago. I just realized how kind of lame and self centered this blog is sometimes. Blah. That sucks. Sorry. =(. The world is full of sarcastic comments about the stupidity of life. I should be bringing life and joy and love to peoples minds, not wow, she is a whiny little girl.

I know this is a ridiculous statement to say right now, but I love my school. I love JWU and I know that I am meant to be here. I love that it is hands on and the things we learn are absolutely applicable to the job force. I love that there are so many opportunites to learn and grow and engage in the community. I love that they are generous with their funds for clubs and orgs. I love that there are many ways to be involved, and that I dont have to take any more math class. I love my travel practicum and that we are going to Greece. I love my professor, and I love meeting people from all over the world. I love my workstudy job and the people in CBCSI.

Dude. Did you know that St. Paul was an intense trooper. He went through beatings, ship wrecks, haters, lashings, imprisonment, yet do you know what he says?

Do all things without grumbling, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. Phil 2:14-16


Thats pretty sweet. Thats pretty hardcore and challenging. Do all things without grumbling and complaining. Cleaning up dog poop. Making 3450435 copies. Working a ridiculous shift at the buttcrack of dawn. Yeah thats right. All things.

Man I need to really work on this.

Thursday, April 16, 2009

I refuse to be a slave. Except thats practically what I am.

Im ready to start dictating my own schedule again. Yanno, when I do what I want to do, when I do what I have to do, when I do what I have to do for what I want to do. This whole slavery business is exhausting. I suppose that aside from 8-3:30 I do dictate my own schedule, but, I kind of suppose its then that I live the life that I want to live, doing what I need to do, and what has to be done. Its kind of like I work an 8 hour job, and then get back and practically live the day over again, except on my terms. So a double day? It's intense. Only 4 more weeks of this, and there is a payoff to the madness-- aka Greece. But its still challenging and absurd. Im bad at being tied down to things that are inflexible and time consuming. (Well I mean in this instance...) If I had a car my time would be drastically refined and less wasted. I know there is no way to obtain one right now, but Im praying and hoping that one just kind of appears. heh.

I walked to AAA again this morning, and it was a really nice walk. The day was so beautiful. I also walked to the McKays house with Kim today, which was nice. Thats about 2.5 miles all together today. Sweet. Hey maybe if I did not have a car, but had my bike here, that would be sweet too. The Biking Vikings revisited.

This day was out of control generally. Some nasty things were done, and now probably no one believes me about the dumb paper even though I did everything I could to make it work and to get it to my professor, but I am at the point now where I am accepting a 0 for it. I feel like I am at the point now where explaining any further circumstances are just going to seem like baloney, and I would rather just accept the fact that I did not hand it in on time, and deserve a 0. And thats why I think I should get a 0. I failed to wake up and print it at the library. Im taking responsibility for my actions. Done.


Blah blah. Im pumped about this weekend. Its going to be great. Pawsox game tomorrow night, game night at my house on Saturday, and just some time to think and relax in between it all.
Goodnight folks.
-Alissa-

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Chapped Lips


This is gross, but I keep loosing my chapstick and then soon after I get chapped lips and cant do anything about it.

Today at AAA we spent the whole day watching travel marketing videos about pretty much every destination you could think of. Starting right now I am saving up for a trip to Antarctica. No joke about it, if you saw the footage that I saw today you too would be enamored. The Hawaii video was disapointing at best, and hardly showcased all the islands had to offer. The Asia one was hardcore, and the Eurorail movie was borderline ridiculous. Someone, maybe me, should start a travel movie consulting firm that helps kick tourism bureaus in the face when they come out with these crappy ones. haha. It was a fun day, quote tiring, but fun.

I had a big meeting today that practically determined the destiny of a friendship, a friendship that would be super crappy to lose. As we all know, I stink at communication, but I work pretty hard at doing a decent job. Obviously I epic fail, and need forgiveness, as well as to forgive and work on things. So my goal at the moment is to have more clarity in the words and tones I use, as well as communicate exactly what I am trying to say. Im not perfect, and thats one of the things I am clear at presenting, haha, but hey, at least Im working at not sucking at life. As for what went down in the meeting, I prayed super hard before hand that whatever needed to be said was said, and that whatever the outcome was, that I trust in God because He knows what is best for me in the long run, and as that Ginny Owens song goes "...Im sticking to the promise that He's not through with me yet." As of right now, Im delighted with the outcome (we are still friends) and I'm still praying about everything, and I have a lot to think about. So thats that.

After that whole shenanigan, I went over to my friend Taylors house and we ate pizza and played this monopoly game with his cousin. Fun times and Im obsessed with his dog, because I miss my own I think.

APARTMENT: FOUND! btw. Its great, just signing the papers and getting everything situated. It will be a good time.

So If I dont go to bed right now, I will be a zombie tomorrow. So peace, love, and all that junk to yall.
-Alissa-

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Back into the Swing

I was on the plane from Buffalo to Newark and I had the privilege of talking to a 9 year old named Marissa who was going to Disney World with her family. We got to talking about school, she was in 3rd grade and learning about measurements. I told her I went to school far away in Rhode Island. She couldnt believe that I took the plane to school everyday, and thought that would be quite a bit more fun than taking the bus where "everyone just screams." I explained that I just take the plane sometimes, not everyday, and that I live far away from my family and that what you can do when you are in college.

Marissa was very inquisitive and even though she did not really grasp some things I was saying, she made an obvious effort to keep thinking up questions to ask me about everything. At one point her mom looked over and told me that Marissa was a handful and loved to talk 24/7, but I said that I completely did not mind at all. Then Marissa looked over at her mom and said,

"Mom I feel like Im talking to a friend."

I knew that girl for about 45 minutes, and I became glad that we had gotten that opportunity to talk. She is bright eyed and full of interest and fervor for life.

I asked her what she wanted to be when she grew up, and she matter of factly told me that she was not sure, but maybe a teacher, because her mom was one. I told her that she had a long time to think about it, but whatever she did I could tell she would do well at it.

Just thought I would share that little story. It was sad when we had to get off the plane and I saw Marissa waving to me as we walked to different gates.

Im back into the swing of things. I ended up walking to AAA this morning, and it was a great walk, quite enlivening and energizing. Hopefully I can walk from now on. As the months and the weeks come to a quick end, I hope that I live for the greater purpose and dont get caught with routine and exhaustion. Pray that I do what I need to do, say what I have to say, and make a difference in any way possible.

Later folks.

Thursday, April 9, 2009

Oh, incurable you, my teeth chattered rhythms...

I should be writing a paper right now about the Hyatt Hotel in Newport. We must pretend that we are a meeting planner looking to book a hotel for our conference or meeting. And we had the tour that one day we went down to Newport, and took notes, got the whole shebang about everything they had to offer. It was pretty interesting, but Im not in the mood to write this right now. Ive known about it for a week or so, so its probably my fault that Im leaving it until this moment.

Im thinking about a lot of things right now. Im thinking about how I am going to lug all my luggage to work tomorrow in order to catch a bus straight there and not going home in order to catch the plane. Its going to be interesting. Im not bringing much home, but its enough to be a hassle.

Im also thinking about apartments and living and how this is all going to work out. Im a little worried that people arent seeing my side of things. I need to be somewhere. And I need to do it at the end of May. or right now if that works, but it probably doesnt. I am thankful to have two great people probably living with me for the summer while the real two roommates are home this summer. I cant live alone. I am hopeful that that will work out, it will be great for everyone. 

Im also thinking about being HOME sweet home. When I think of it I cant really handle the barrage of things that come to my mind along with it. So many emotions of happiness to see them, sadness that it cannot be for longer, and wishful thinking that maybe they would pack up and come live in Rhode Island with me. I long to be near my family and friends in New York more than anything, but I know that I cant. I need to be here. I need to be where God wants me to be, and I need to be learning and living and growing in this way in this place. Ive grown alot in the last year you know. Ive learned alot too. Im thankful that God sticks with me through so much. When I am weak He is strong. Sooo strong. 

Homeeee. I also know that Rhode Island is my home. Maybe for a long long time. 

Right now I am drinking some Russian tea. Its pretty great. How about you? Whats your favorite thing to drink while you sit and think about life? 

Haha.

Ok gonna go write that dang paper now.
-Arissa-

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Your Little Hoodrat Friends


What a day. 

First of all I want to give a special shout out to my grandma, who I heard was reading my blog. Im flattered=) Hope you enjoy. haha.

I love my practicum team. 4 of us have been together since the beginning of our rotations, and we have bonded so well. Chimene, LaToya, Vivien (Yuan), and me! We are a crazy awesome ethnic mix too. I absolutely love it, and am learning so much about other peoples cultures. Such a good time. Today at the Airport we passed out surveys behind security to people who were waiting for flights and whatnot. I thought it was fun. I seriously love the part of my job where I get to interact with the general public, which is the better part of it thank God.  Sometimes, people are rude, but generally its awesome. I met a guy from Russia today, and we talked a little bit in Russian, very limited though. He was so impressed that I have been to Russia. He told me to go to St Petersburg next time. Will do my friend, will do. I also met this rhody native who now lives in Texas with "alot of land and a little house, but gotta visit Rhode Island atleast once a year, little lady." Its an exhausting but great trimester.

Kailey recommended that I write a book entitled "How Not to Be a Stupid Fool."

Haha. I think that would be funny.

If I could just write random stuff and have it count for a grade, that would be great by the way. Im great at it.

Things IM obsessed with right now:

  • 1. Stove top popped corn. Old school. Im obsessed.
  • 2. Drinking Russian tea. I have boxes of it from Russia. It calms me.
  • 3. Looking on Craigslist for apartments and free stuff. Want a free hamster cage? You got it.
  • 4. Singing old kiddy gospel songs a la:                                                                                                I may never march in the Infantry,
    Ride in the cavalry,
    Shoot the artillery.
    I may never zoom o'er the enemy,
    But I'm in the Lord's Army.
    I'm in the Lord's Army,
    I'm in the Lord's Army,                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              
    Or wait, this is even better, me and this girl were waiting for the bus today and we started singing, "Dont let Satan blow it out, Im gonna let it shine. Dont let satan blow it out, Im going to let it shine..."   And this other girl walks up and says "Dont let satan blow what up??!!" I think that is hilarious. 

  • 5. TIE DYE!!!! My partner, LaToya, and I are going to make some tie dye shirts for when we will be the tourguide in Greece. We will be stylin.  

Ok. I think thats all for now. Im done mumbling. Good night.

"One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six. Individuals. Interesting."


Today. What a day. Me and Kim found some winners. Apartments that is, not.. umm. yeah. So apartments. Oh em gee. I hope everything works out with those. Dang they are nice. Right across from Whole Foods, on the 99 bus route which I love, and closer to down town. Laundry is mad cheap. The landlords are great. I dont want to jinx it by saying anything too crazy. We will see.

The airport was interesting. Wait let me just say it rained like a BEAST all day today and my shoes are ruined and I started off the day with really nice pretty curly hair and by the end of the day I look like a dying rat. So thats always good. But yeah, we took a taxi to the airport this afternoon. Which was a glorious experience. We met a new bff taxi driver friend. I love taxi drivers. And some lady flipped out on us. CLEARLY since we are Airport information we are supposed to know EVERYTHING about the world and every single airline, especially because WE ARENT affiliated with any of them btw. Thanks lady. You are obnoxious. haha. Found out some interesting things about TA's today. I didnt feel like doing hard work son today but I tried my best and got good marks overall I think. Blah blah.

Im counting down the days until home, and that would be three for the record. This week doesnt really count in my life because I am an outcast from the real world due to my schedule. So I just want to get home, see the people I love more than anything, and see my little doggy friend. 

Im also thinking about buying a car. Its a huge committment at this current moment, but if I dont buy one now, I might kill myself this summer. You dont understand. It needs to be done. I just need a way to get around the world without RIPTA being my only option. And there is no way I am walking to frekkin South County, nor taking RIPTA. Wait.. does it go there? Summer will bring me money and adventuresomeness.

MMk. nighty night. aka laundry time. bye

Monday, April 6, 2009

Epic Thoughts About Leadership

I have been involved in many organizations and clubs throughout my short life time and have seen leadership either blown to smitherines, carried out with great skill and capability, or just apathetically struggled through.  Here is my crappy common sense list of what I think is Good and Bad leadership. I think it can be applied to a bunch of areas, whether you are in charge of a 350 member sports organization, a 10 man team of student government, or a 50 person church group or organization
You Should:

Remain strong through the end of your term. That is, if you have a term. Most leaders do. I feel like its how able and into it you are after you have weathered all the storms that really proves what kind of leader you are. 

You should not:

Fizzle Out. You start strong, but end up getting distracted with other things. Awesome. no not really.

You should:

Meet often with your underlings, whether other e-board members, second tier leaders, or just members of your group in general. You always want to know how things are going with them, what they are thinking, how they are relating to each other.

You should not:

Not care about your people. Your people are what make or break you. Every leader has crappy people under neath them, but they are the ones that set the pace for the rest of the group. Ya cant leave em behind, but if you can get them to work with the group, you are golden. If people feel like you care about them, they will care about you, or hopefully, the organization.

You should:

Be clear and specific. People want to know how they are performing, either individually or as a group. Tell them what you expect, set clear goals and clear deadlines. Tell people if they are failing or doing wrong. Praise them when they are doing great, and then tell them what could make them even greater.

You should Not:

Be willy nilly. "Well, maybe we can meet then," or "umm hmm yeah I will talk to you about that sometime." NO. Commit. Do it. Be straight up. If you say you are going to talk to someone about something, DO IT. Otherwise people will lack faith in your ability to progress and promise.

You should:

Understand that everyone's feelings are important. Even if they are not. If someone has hurt feelings, or unrest in a situation. Get to the bottom of it, listen to what they have to say, and care. Sometimes, just someone caring about something soothes it over. 

You should not:

Dismiss someones feelings. Dont ever say to someone who has any sort of hurt feelings or issues, "Oh its not that big of a deal, just work it out by yourself." No. You have EPICALLY failed at life. Your leadership is down the drain. As a leader, if people dont think you care, then they are going to not give a crap about anything you say, and will probably talk crap about you or revolt. Just saying. 

You should:

Delegate. Delegation is key here. In order to delegate helpfully, you must get a grasp of people's strengths or weaknesses. If Susie is great at making design and loves art, then let her make the posters, if Billy is going to school for Accounting, and needs practice, then by all means, assign him the task. Delegation helps people feel involved, actually be involved, and as a leader, you are doing a very important thing by helping people to mature and grow. 

You should not:

Do everything yourself. Another epic fail. If you do everything yourself than you fail to equip future leaders to run your organization or group. And if you are doing everything yourself, why are you even in a leadership position, you might as well venture out and start your own selfish club. 

You should:

Expect from others as much as you put out. Expect that if you come to every meeting, that they come to every meeting. You dont have time to waste, and neither do they. This conveys a sense of mutual respect and importance to what needs to be done. Special exceptions of course. And make every effort to go out of your way make the meetings/club time/special event a priority in your schedules. Others will soon follow suit. Also, if someone has a special circumstance where they cannot attend a required meeting, then go out of your way to keep them updated on whats going on, maybe meet with them separately. Its important. Trust me. This also has to do with delegation. If you expect someone to stamp 350 envelopes, a crappy job at best, than you better be willing to sit down with them and help out, or atleast show interested and thankfulness for that person. 

You should not:

Expect from others what you cannot bring to the table. If you do not show up on time, dont expect it from others. If you dont care about the financial situation of your club, dont expect others to care. If you are negative about certain aspects of the group, then others will be too. Just think about it. You are a leader, they are following your lead.

You should:

Be chill. Dont flip out easily. Lifes going to be ok. It will go on. 

You should not:

Be a crazy uptight fool who cannot forget anything or cannot look over anything. Get over yourself.

You should:

Have fun.


Sunday, April 5, 2009

Trust God, He knows what Hes doing.

Sometimes we cry out to God: "But that was perfect. We would have been so happy together. We would have been so happy at that job, or in that country. Why didnt it work out? Why didnt it happen? What the heck God! What the heck!"

And God just laughs.


Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind and said:


"Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?
Tell me, if you have understanding.
Who determined its measurements—surely you know!
Or who stretched the line upon it?
On what were its bases sunk,
or who laid its cornerstone,
when the morning stars sang together
and all the sons of God shouted for joy?


"Have you commanded the morning since your days began,
and caused the dawn to know its place,
that it might take hold of the skirts of the earth,
and the wicked be shaken out of it?

It is changed like clay under the seal,
and its features stand out like a garment.
From the wicked their light is withheld,
and their uplifted arm is broken.

"Have you entered into the springs of the sea,
or walked in the recesses of the deep?
Have the gates of death been revealed to you,
or have you seen the gates of deep darkness?
Have you comprehended the expanse of the earth?
Declare, if you know all this.

"Have you entered the storehouses of the snow,
or have you seen the storehouses of the hail,
which I have reserved for the time of trouble,
for the day of battle and war?
What is the way to the place where the light is distributed,
or where the east wind is scattered upon the earth?

"Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades
or loose the cords of Orion?

Can you lead forth the Mazzaroth in their season,
or can you guide the Bear with its children?
Do you know the ordinances of the heavens?
Can you establish their rule on the earth?

"Can you lift up your voice to the clouds,
that a flood of waters may cover you?
Can you send forth lightnings, that they may go
and say to you, 'Here we are'?
Who has put wisdom in the inward parts
or given understanding to the mind?
Who can number the clouds by wisdom?
Or who can tilt the waterskins of the heavens,
when the dust runs into a mass
and the clods stick fast together?

"Do you give the horse his might?
Do you clothe his neck with a mane?

Do you make him leap like the locust?
His majestic snorting is terrifying.
He paws in the valley and exults in his strength;
he goes out to meet the weapons.
He laughs at fear and is not dismayed;
he does not turn back from the sword.



And the LORD said to Job:
"Shall a faultfinder contend with the Almighty?
He who argues with God, let him answer it."   (Snips from Job 38-41)




God just looks at us and is like.. Really? Sure you think it was perfect but clearly, if I thought it was perfect than it would still be. But its not and its for a reason. It's because I love you and I want the best for you. And that thing was not perfect. Draw close to Me, find your purpose in Me. Dont get caught in someone or something. Get caught up in me. And THEN I will show you amazing. I will show you things you have never dreamed of nor ever will. Pfft.. you thought it was perfect. Haha. I'm God. I know what I'm doing.

"Can I bring Jewish pastries through airport security?"

Why ma'am the answer to that is yes, as long as they are not filled with gels, liquids, or explosives.

Oh thank God.

I am enjoying this time of my rotational life at the airport. Nights! I can sleep in until noon, then work the 2-9 or 3-9 shift. The only problem is that I dont have a life. But atleast I am catching up on sleep and rest and communication.. kind of.

Ahh yes.
Nights are also more entertaining. More people travel during weekend evenning hours than on a Tuesday at 7am. So they ask more questions. Even if some of them are dumb. haha. Today I realized that I have some work to do when it comes to academia. I rush through assignments too quickly and dont really read directions. I also dont manage my time well enough to get defined enough answers. blah blah. Sure. But I excel in presenting the destination and must sees in rhode island in a creative and targetted way. I also excel in customer service and have a full river of information. Which is all I care about. Getting things right when it comes to real life. I wish we had to make posters and designs and stuff about destinations. I would get an A++. Grades.. I supose they are important.. but.. I dont think they prove your intelligence at all. pfft.

Hmm. Hmm.
I made popcorn tonight. But I misjudged the capacity of the pot and it kind of ended up overflowing/exploding all over the stove and sink. Which is kind of funny if you ask me.

Now Im just drinking some Russian tea and zoning out. I cant focus. And no pictures today.
Bye.

Saturday, April 4, 2009

I love my life.














Oh, I really do.



We took a mini fam trip (familiarization tour) to Newport today.. aka field trip. We did a site tour of the Newport Hyatt Hotel.. which is dang luxury son. If I had cash money I would totally hit that piece up. Then we did a tour through the Breakers Mansion built by the Vanderbuilts early 1900s I think. It was glorious and fascinating. I could not take pictures inside. There was like a fountain in there, 3453453 bedrooms, 2342342 bathrooms, breakfast room, lunch room, dinner room, morning room, pool room, music room, hang out room, etc etc. Go there. Now. Ok. ya. Good times.



Thank God that you dont get arrested for bailing on taxi's or something. dang.

Thursday, April 2, 2009

Satan Hates Me Alot

Want to know how I know this? Because I feel like I get attacked alot. Blah Blah Blah.

Today was another delightful day more or less. I made some cash money in the Resource Room, as well as being able to read more of my book and doodle a bit. Thats always nice.

I made some eggplant parmesan with Kim, which was delightful and tasty and glorious. I love that stuff. Easily my favorite meal ever. No joke. We went to the Prayer meeting with Niki and Seth, which was great. Then we watched that Benjamin Button movie, but I had to leave mid way through, to catch a bus home. It was ok. Pretty slow if you ask me. And I get annoyed when marital affairs are condoned and everyone feels like its ok because "its all romantic and they are perfect for each other."  Blah Blah. They were having an affair. Dont feel bad for him because she left and didn't say good bye. Boohoo. Ok Ok Im not very sympathetic, but come on people. Otherwise, it was an interesting movie. It really makes you think about life and death. And about death. And death. and dying, which is good sometimes. Except I guess not tonight. I dont want to think about people I love dying, because I love them way too much. I would probably drop out of school if anyone I loved died. So- DONT DIE! Please. Thanks.

I am really sad that my "weekend" is over so to speak. I really want to just escape from this place for a little longer, but with somewhere more intentional, like somewhere I can go and just be by myself for a while. Im sick of always being around people. Like, I love people, but I need some Alissa Alone Time. This sounds ridiculous, but there is a monastery down in South County that allows you to rent out a room for a day and just be there. That really appeals to me. Like no joke. I miss home kind of alot right now, and while I am pumped about that like you dont even understand, I just want to get away or something. \haha. I dont even know. I need to get some sleep.

Wednesday, April 1, 2009

James 1

12 Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. 13 Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am being tempted by God"; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. 14 But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust.
15 Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death.
16 Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren.

17 Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.
18 In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth, so that we would be a kind of first fruits among His creatures.
19 This you know, my beloved brethren But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; 20 for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.

James 1:12-20



I recently read this section from James, and its kind of sticking with me. Its intense. The last part especially, The wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God. Like such an obvious statement, but its something we need to think about sometimes, when we are giving up excuses for our sin. Like oh, its not a big deal. But your not a big deal is not producing any righteousness.

Something that also struck me as pretty heavy was the description in 14-15. Each person is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then when the desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and sin, when it is full grown, brings forth death.

An easier translation would go something like this:

But every person is tempted when he is drawn away, enticed and baited by his own evil desire (lust, passions).
Then the evil desire, when it has conceived, gives birth to sin, and sin, when it is fully matured, produces death.

Now, practicaly this verse would look something like this: We are tempted, maybe by our friends to get drunk, maybe be our boyfriend or girl friend wants us to have sex, or maybe even to say something bad about someone behind their back. The opportunity arises, and we give in to it. As soon as we give into it, it is sin, aka really bad, aka punching God in the face. And as soon as it becomes a sin, it produces death. Now, maybe not literally death, but you never know. I think this death is referring to spiritual death, or emotional death. For example, sure you start to get drunk with your friends, and then you start to do it more and more, but the drinking only causes you to be lonely and unable to cope with your emotions. You dont remember what its like to feel life. You dont remember what its like to do something fun without being wasted. Does that sounds like something life enriching? Naw, not too much, atleast not to me.

According to James, the writer of this, temptation does not come from God. He is not going to tempt us. It likely comes from the fact that as humans, we are stupid evil fools and we want to do what is wrong. So when we are tempted, is it not some outside force trying to get us to sin. We are just getting a snapshot of what is inside of us. And that snapshot should send us running to God, the only One who can make us better than we naturally are.

Of course, we are all going to be tempted at some point, probably multiple upon multiple times. My favorite thing about this verse is the promise in verse 1 that The person who is able to endure temptation and not give in will be extremely blessed. Thats an awesome thing to think about. Like, dang, if I dont give into this temptation, God is going to bless me. And I will be honoring God. Thats outstanding. Its hope.

Now, of course, as humans, like I said, we are stupid evil fools who give into stuff way to easily sometimes. But thats where God's grace comes in. So pretend that we give in. And then we struggle and struggle with that decision. Now, like I said, sin produces death. But as soon as we ask God to forgive us, then BAM. No more death. He loves us. He forgives us. He gives us life, and love and He has patience with us. Its awesome.

Im glad God loves me. Im glad I know this truth. I hope you all do too.



Bothered. But Happy... and long thoughts today



This is a pic of me and my group at the Airport at the information booth. There is a huge boat in the middle of booth, it was actually built somewhere in Newport, brought to the airport location, and the front part of the airport was then built around the yatch!  Pretty interesting.
Actually, a few years ago, a hobo was found living in the boat. He would wait until the airport was closed for the night, and then sneak in and hide. Now thats hilarious.
People who talk to themselves annoy me. Especially when I am sitting in the same room as them. And I can guarantee they are not talking to me. Just saying. Today Im kind of anal about being left alone, and about not talking to anyone, especially about stupid things. I dont know, maybe I should not be so irratable sometimes, haha. I mean I want to talk to my family and people back home, and people I like. But, I dont want to waste my time talking to people who annoy me. This is probably bad. I need to get over myself. haha. Its just, when I have a day to myself, which happens every ten years, I just like to be a lazy bum and not be bothered.  Ack.
Other than that whiny paragraph, today was a great day. I did not work at all, and I was able to go to bed early last night and sleep in, and then sleep some more this afternoon. And I was supposed to do some other things, but I decided to just stay in today and rest. I made some waffles (yum!) and popcorn for lunch, which sounds weird, but I did not eat them at the same time, so dont worry about it. haha. Tomorrow is another non working day, but Im actually going to try to go into workstudy and make some money. I actually worked 5 hours so far this week, and plan on making up the rest tomorrow if possible. SWEET. MONEY!
God has provided so much this trimester for me with not working and such. Tax returns, I mean seriously, I got alot back. And JWU owes me over $500, also I am getting some money back from rent I think, but only like $20 or something. But still. Dang. It always just comes out of nowhere. Im so thankful. Still madd poor, but thankful=)
Yum I just found hummus and carrots that I forgot I had. Sweet deal.
Look at this picture I took the other day in the park. I think its kind of funny. Reminds me of that pixar animation thing with all the birds sitting on the telephone wire. haha