Handbook for 2012

Today I went to work and after helping a few customers, a man came in to deposit a check. The deposit scanner was acting up, so that prompted small talk which eventually led into a really good conversation.

This customer talked about his experiences and how he has learned and wants others to learn and the ways in which he has been inspired. At the end of the conversation, he handed me two pages of guidelines titled "The Handbook for 2011". They were simple, honest, and small ways in which a person can improve their life physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually and I would like to share this "handbook" as the year is just beginning.

Health:

1) Drink plenty of water.

2) Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a beggar.

3) Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less foods that are manufactured in plants.

4) Live with the 3 E's: Energy, Enthusiasm, and Empathy.

5) Make time to pray.

6) Play more games.

7) Read more books than you did last year.

8) Sit in silence for as least 10 minutes each day.

9) Sleep for 7 hours.

10) Take a 10-30 minute walk daily and, while you walk, smile.


Personality:

11) Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

12) Don't have negative thoughts over things that you cannot control. Instead, invest your energy in the positive, present moment.

13) Don't overdo. Keep your limits.

14) Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

15) Don't waste your precious energy on gossip.

16) Dream more while you are awake.

17) Envy is a waste of time. You already have all that you need.

18) Forget issues of the past. Don't remind your partner of his/her mistakes in the past. That will ruin your present happiness.

19) Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.

20) Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.

21) No one is in charge of your happiness except you

22: Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply a part of the curriculum that appear and fade away, but the lessons that you learn along the way will last a lifetime.

23) Smile and laugh more.

24) You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.


Society:

25) Call your family often.

26) Each day, give something good to others.

27) Forgive everyone of everything.

28) Spend time with people over the age of 70 and under the age of 6. You will learn so much.

29) Try to make at least three people smile each day.

30) That other people think of you is none of your business.

31) Your job won't take care of you when you are sick, but your friends will. Stay in touch.


Life:

32) Do the right thing!

33) Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful, or joyful.

34) God heals everything.

35) However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

36) No matter how you feel, get up, dress up, and show up.

37) The best is yet to come.

38) When you awake alive in the morning, thank God for it.

39) Your Innermost is always happy, so be happy!

40) Share this with everyone you care about, I just did :)


This list isn't made to be done all at once. Just pick a few and work on them. I certainly see a few that I could really improve upon and use to better myself and my life.

I always makes me so happy to have a really good conversation, especially with a complete stranger. It is refreshing, inspirational, and it often shows some of the good in this world that can be shadowed by the bad.

I hope that you all will take this into some consideration. The parts in which "God" are mentioned don't only imply a Christian God, but whatever deity you may follow (I used "God" because I am Christian).

I feel that this is becoming a very strong and good beginning to the New Year :)

Project 366

A new year has officially begun! I have stuck to my resolutions for a whole day and actually monitored what I ate. Didn't do too bad, but it's going to be really hard to cut out those carbs!

I thought I'd try a little experiment this year. One of my bible study friends did "Project 365" last year, in which she took a photo every day to familiarize herself with her camera and to reflect on what she had done that day. I saw it as a wonderful expression of creativity, so I will take a page from her book and do a "Project 366", as 2012 is a Leap Year!

I did receive a new camera for Christmas this year, so I am going to try and figure it all out and take advantage of its features while taking the time to really observe what is going on around me and what I am doing. I think that it will be fun and I will really enjoy taking photos everyday. It will take a lot of thought, a lot of consideration, and a lot of batteries, but I believe that it will be a great experience for me.

Here's to a new year with new experiences and hopes! Happy New Year!

New Year's Eve 2011

Another year has passed and with it, both happy and sad memories and experiences. I've lost both my grandfather and my aunt, but I have gained countless friends. I have traveled, I have tried many new things, I have gained many new skills, and I have learned much. This year has been amazing and I cannot wait for another year to begin.

With the ringing in of 2012 comes my last year of college. I have less than a year at Virginia Tech, which has been my home for nearly three years. While this makes me sad, it also makes me realize how far I have come and what I have to look forward to when I graduate. I am excited for what I still have to learn and what I will have to do to prepare myself for "the real world". I feel very fortunate to begin my GIS job at Virginia Tech, which will be a nice sort of training ground for what a GIS job will really be like.

I also feel that while I am away from both my immediate and extended family for the majority of the time, this year has brought us closer together. I'm not sure if we all just had the urge to keep better contact or if social networking has made it easier, but just the love that I have felt from my family this year has been amazing and has provided tremendous support for what has been a very challenging school year.

Well, as I have found it tradition to do, I have made my annual list of New Year's Resolutions. I know that I am not the best at keeping them (then again, who really is?), but I know that I need to make some changes, both in a gradual and immediate sense. So, here it goes:

1) Better monitor what I eat (lay off the sweets!)

2) Exercise at least twice a week

3) Get my Driver's License (for goodness sake!)

4) Stay organized; don't let messes build up

5) Speak up more often

6) Ask; the worst they can say is "no"

I know, pretty general goals, but I really need to improve on these things. I realize that not have my license can be a hassle for others as well as myself. Having a job during the summer will be great, but only if I can get to it and I can't always rely on the bus.

I also gained a bit of weight this year and it is in part because I do not eat very well when I am at school and I do not exercise nearly enough. I am going to try to prepare more home-made meals instead of eating out so much and I am going to try to cook more often with meats, as horrifying as that thought is to me.

What are some of your New Year's Resolutions? Did you accomplish any from last year?

I hope that everyone has a Happy New Year, ringing it in with a new hope and an optimistic outlook for 2012.

It's Meteoancienthistoryremoteseningaladocious!

Finals are here and with that comes the lovely realization that some of them are really, awfully, terribly squished together into a very short time. Today marks the beginning of a 24 hour period in which I will take not one, not two, but three exams. I opted for this option because I honestly work better under pressure, but I think that the title of the this blog accurately depicts how I'm feeling just about now.

The first exam will be today at 1:05 and will be meteorology. Altogether not a difficult subject, but I have found that the professor isn't exactly fair with what is put on the tests, with the graduate students scratching their heads wondering if they could have passed them. I will have ample time to study for this one, but I honestly wonder if it will do me any good.

The next exam will be at 7:45 tomorrow (that is in the a.m.) and it will be Ancient History. This one I am not too worried about, as I love this topic and have had it several times before in other classes. I am simply not thrilled that it is that early in the morning.

The last exam of this round will be at 10:05, directly after Ancient History, and it is Remote Sensing. This subject I have a pretty firm handle on, but it does require a good bit of studying.

These are just the middle three finals. I have already completed French and will still have to do GIS. This is the most finals I have ever had to take for one semester, but I think I can handle it :)

Strength in Numbers

Today I experienced something that has left me both shaken and with a sense of pride in my school. Today, Virginia Tech, my home for the past three years, had a shooting. While the April 16th shooting was shocking and still moves me to this day, I was actually on campus today when the sirens started and the phone calls came in. The initial reports stated that shots had been fired on the other side of campus from where I was working on a project. Then the suspect was reported much farther away. And then he was reported just a few buildings away from me, where they had started to evacuate students into a safer area. Even though I was a in a very secure room in a very secure building, I was scared. My group and I continued to work on our project but the room was filled with the buzz of incoming news, concerned chatter, and students receiving worried phone calls from relatives, of which I received quite a few and am glad to have such a loving family.

There were two deaths today: the initial death of the officer and another victim. While tragedies like this are terrible and full of sorrow, they do prove the strength and unity of our community. The ability for thousands of different people to come together and support each other under such trying circumstances is incredible and I am so proud to be a part of such an extraordinary group of people.

We are all safe after being under lock down for several hours. I am home and happy for it. My biggest worry now is studying for finals.

I would ask that you continue to pray for the Hokie community, as I am sure that this will continue to affect us.

A World Away

Yesterday I was able to experience something that was nothing short of miraculous, overwhelming, and awe-inspiring. Through the power of technology and social media, Virginia Tech was able to have a Skype conversation with democratic activist, Aung San Suu Kyi. Aung San Suu Kyi is the leader of the Burmese democratic revolution who has spent a lifetime fighting for freedom in Burma. Living in the midst of a dictatorship, she has been under house arrest for years, only having recently been released. She is an inspiration to all and we are some of the lucky few in America who have had the opportunity and honor to speak with her.

This whole thing started with a simple YouTube video of Virginia Tech's World Regions course pleading for this opportunity. Just a few weeks later, it spread like wildfire and our request was answered. If the chance arose, she would speak with us. And she did.

Here are just a few of the clips I was able to capture of our (Virginia Tech's) conversation with her:













And, just as proof that Matt and I were there, let's play a quick game of spot the boyfriend:



Did you find him? I'm sure you did.

This was an amazing, once in a lifetime experience that I will not soon forget. It was made possible by technology that has been only developed in my lifetime and will continue to bring people closer and allow for such amazing interactions as this. We were able to talk with someone who is literally on the other side of the planet, someone who otherwise we would have never been able to talk with.

Aung San Suu Kyi is an amazing woman who has achieved so much for her people and she will continue to promote democracy until her goal of freedom has been achieved.

Surrounded by Geography

After a day of running around, completely projects, doing volunteer work with my favorite club, and representing my other favorite club at a leadership council, I figured that I could come home and relax a bit. Sinking into the couch, I suddenly came upon the realization that tomorrow is, in fact, Wednesday which means I have quite a bit to do.

Tomorrow is going to be particularly busy and fraught with geography related goings-on. The first endeavor of the day will be my first real interview...ever...in my life. I am very excited as it would allow me to work during both during the school year and during the summer while undergoing undergraduate research. I really do hope that I get this position as it would give me a lot of hands-on, real world experience.

The second item on the agenda is a remote sensing presentation. It only has to be a few minutes long, but, while I am prepared, I do not like to be in front of a lot of people. At least I will already be dressed up from the interview!

The final undertaking of the day will be my GIS lab practical. I will have 50 minutes to complete a mapping assignment. I am confident in my ability to complete this test, but I am apprehensive in not knowing what I will need to do.

I am a little nervous about tomorrow. I feel that I am going to be constantly put on the spot throughout the day, which makes me a little uncomfortable, but they are all very important for my personal progress and growth in geography.

I am heading to be now to get a good night's rest. Wish me luck for tomorrow!

Until next time!