Exciting, yes. Fun, no.

Yesterday I picked up a bar-tending shift at the Sheraton in downtown waterside, Norfolk. Hillary Clinton was giving a speech at the Norfolk NATO Festival which was being hosted at the hotel.

I work here from time to time but I haven't in awhile and I needed the extra cash. Little did I know how much of a spectacle this would be and how annoyed I would be while doing it.

When I first arrived it was chaos. We were on a very strict time crunch because we had to have everything set up before 4 so the bomb squad and secret service could safety check the ballroom. Then we had to show the secret service our ID's so we could get a pin attached to our uniform saying that we weren't crazy people trying to threaten the secretary of state.

There was one pin in particular that had a "W" on it which meant you were carrying a weapon...I was really gunning for that one, but alas I got the dreaded "T" pin which meant transportation or something (they clearly didn't really care about specifics.)

In order to use the bathroom throughout my 6 hour shift, we had to go in and out of metal detectors. When you've gotta go, you've gotta go and taking the time to go through security so you can be allowed to pee is not my idea of a good time.

I think the most annoying part about this extravaganza was the fact that I didn't even get to hear her speech. The rest of the serving staff was allowed to remain in the banquet room but the bartenders were shunned to the promenade with the doors closed to tend to the bars that weren't even open during her speech.

Don't get me wrong, I'm happy to know that our government takes security very seriously, I think its important. But when it interferes with my money making and leisurely bathroom time, I'm not too thrilled about it.

I think i'll sit out on working the next Secretary of State dinner.

D.C. Shenanigans

This weekend I drove up to D.C. with a couple friends to go see SBTRKT perform at the 9:30 Club. My friend Allen so graciously provided me with a free ticket so how could I say no?! We left Norfolk around 2:45, scooped a friend in Richmond and made it to D.C. around 8 to my brothers house. We got lost more times than I'd like to admit and I have no idea how, considering I've made that drive to D.C. over a million times.

I'm so ashamed of myself, I was never navigationally challenged until now. I'm just going to blame it on the ever-so-inconvenient GPS. Seriously, the GPS will be the end of the world's sanity as we know it; mark my words.

SBTRKT was amazing live. His voice literally gives me goosebumps. I am pretty upset that his set was only an hour long. 9:30 is generally an awesome venue, but their strict rules on shows ending around midnight really irks me.

I also saw 21 Jump Street on Sunday. It was actually pretty good. I hadn't heard many bad things about it, but people also compared it to The Hangover which I think was a little bit of a stretch.

What did you guys do this weekend?!

Oh the places you will go...

So today I made a pretty big life decision for myself. If you haven't picked up on it already I love to travel and I love to write. Engulfing myself in cultures much different from my own has become a passion that I never in my wildest dreams expected to be able to fulfill, especially at the age of 22.

I'm lucky to have already visited so many wonderful countries but I don't plan on stopping. I've been job searching these past several months and very few career opportunities have sparked my interest until today, when I decided I was going to apply to be a volunteer in the Peace Corps.

This application process is no joke. I knew it would take some time and pose to be difficult, but on average this application takes people two weeks to finish. I spent a majority of my day filling out this application and I'm about halfway through. It got to the point where I couldn't stand to even be near my computer, so I've decided to take a breather.

I'm super excited about this possible opportunity, even though I know the acceptance rate seems to be low.

If anyone has any pointers (or experience) with this application PLEASE don't hesitate to comment below! I'd love to hear anything and everything you all have to offer.

Keep your fingers crossed for me!

(also check out this really cool blog where people tell their stories from their time spent in the Peace Corps! http://www.peacecorpsjournals.com/)

KONY 2012

I've followed the Invisible Children's cause for a couple years now and its progress is astonishing. I have friends who have worked and attended events, and I have seen events myself. This cause is geared towards the young people of our generation, the people who have grow up alongside technology. We need to take advantage of what we have.

Videos like this ( http://vimeo.com/invisible/kony2012) pretty much sum up the reasons why I majored in Mass Media. A 30 minute video of graphics and dialogue can open your eyes to the inhumane struggles of those around you. 30 minutes of coverage on an important subject can reach hundreds of people within seconds. Unfortunately some people will think 30 minutes is too long and will decide not to watch this, which is fine, but what's sad is that those very same people can dedicate an hour or more to television shows about "the Housewives of who gives a rats ass."

After spending some time in South Africa and seeing the townships, segregation, and poverty it completely opened up my eyes and made me aware of how lucky we are to live in a nation where things of this nature don't happen, especially under these conditions. While South Africa isn't being directly affected other parts of Africa are and these people need the help of those who can afford to help. This doesn't mean you have to donate money but it does mean that you should open your eyes and ears and become aware of what's going on around you. You could help raise awareness for those who can't raise it for themselves. Educate yourself and inform others.

South Africa Semi-recap

Just got back last night from South Africa. Needless to say it was an amazing life experience and it took everything in me to return home. From J-Bay and all the towns leading up to Stellenbosch/Cape Town I love you.

Once I have some time I will sit down and do a play-by-play of my adventures but for now I will briefly say some of my favorite things and some of the most interesting things I learned about on this trip.

1. The people.

-I met some of the most incredible people on this trip. They were extremely hospitable, friendly, caring, adventurous, and some of the most carefree people I've ever met. I will never forget the times I had with them and hopefully I've left somesort of mark on them as well.

2. The scenery.

-Despite what some ignorant people might think, South Africa is in fact a beautiful country with some of the most breathtaking landscapes I have ever seen. Most of the time I felt as if I was living inside a postcard. We went to national parks, winery's, hiked, sat on top of Table Mountain, and visited multiple beaches with amazing surf, white sand, and clear blue waters.

3. The exchange rate.

-The South African currency is the rand. $1 is equivalent to 8 rand. Obviously I was stoked about this and in the end I didn't spend nearly as much as I thought I would. The beer and food was inexpensive and yet great. This will definitely be the hardest adjustment I'll have to make now that I'm back in America.

4. The language.

-Afrikaans to me, is a difficult language to learn. I originally went there completely blind to the language and I don't think I realized how difficult it would be going to a country where I didn't speak the native language. Thankfully almost everyone there spoke english pretty well so I wasn't completely in the dark, but most conversations I had to listen for key words so I would know what everyone was talking about. By the end of my stay they had taught me pretty much every curse word there is, some slang and certain commonly used terms. I also realized I knew some Afrikaans terms myself without knowing it (completely by accident and extremely out of context, oops.)

I'm out of time for now, but I will definitely be posting more pictures and stories later on. Happy Valentines Day to all you lovers out there and for all the cynics, cheers!

sidenote

who doesn't like food? Thats right, nobody. Food is a lot of the time the only reason I get out of bed in the morning. Unfortunately cooking isn't my strongest point but I'm learning. I will however, never be able to bake, ever. Its a fact that i've just had to learn to accept.

The good thing is my best friend Brandi is a pretty phenomenal baker. On top of that she is even more awesome because she likes to write about it (and posts pictures of it that make me want to eat my computer screen.) Please check it out, you won't be sorry!

http://brandisdozen.tumblr.com/

Bon Voyage America

In less than 24 hours I leave on my trip to South Africa. I have extremely mixed feelings about this now that the hour glass is down to its last grains of sand. Mostly excited, somewhat nervous, and a little scared.

Going out of the country for the first time by yourself is a huge deal, at least to me anyways. At the ripe age of 22, I never thought I'd be traveling around the world, much less to SA, but it makes me realize how fortunate I am to live the life that I do and to have the ability to take this trip of a lifetime with the support of my friends and family.

I didn't really do a whole lot to prepare for this trip considering I had less than 3 weeks from the time I bought the ticket to now when I'm leaving, so I suppose I'll find out if this comes to bite me in the ass later. Spontaneity can be a great thing or a very foolish one. Lets hope for my sake that it isn't the latter.

I did however, make sure I stayed up on my gym routines. After all, it is bikini season there and I wouldn't want the "fat and lazy" American stereotype to continue.

I was extremely proud of my workout accomplishments and I thought I would share them with you guys, not that you probably care or anything, but I do. These pictures are results of my weeks of cycling classes I've been taking.

I cycle 3-4 times a week and do yoga on some days in between with one or two days off every week. I've decided to also make this blog a personal workout log for myself.

(19.8 miles in 60 minutes, last 4 I didn't realize the machine was still timing)


(16.9 miles in 58 minutes)