Spring Break

It is Friday the 13th, but I am not worried at all - ecstatic, actually, because spring break has officially begun! And with that said, I am ready to knock three more states off of my list on my road trip next week. I am very excited because my mom is flying down to come with us, and she has never been to this part of the country before!

My feeble attempt at a map of our trip.

First stop: Illinois. 

Although I have been to Illinois when I had a layover in Detroit, I want to cross this state off with a little more confidence this time. Though our road trip only has us passing through the southernmost tip of the state, I am hoping that there will be a nice place to stop. A scenic overlook, perhaps, as this point marks the intersection of the Mississippi and Ohio rivers.

Next stop: Missouri and Arkansas.

I have absolutely no idea what to expect out of these states. However, we will be driving along the coast of the Mississippi river the entire time, so that should be pretty!

Final destination: Memphis, Tennessee.

Yes, we may have taken the scenic route to get to the state right below Kentucky. But I feel like the scenic route is always worth it! In Memphis, we will be visiting Graceland, the home of Elvis. Boy, is my mom stoked!

 

Detour: Mississippi

This state is like twenty minutes away from Memphis. So why not swing on in so that I can cross it off my list?

Next: Nashville, Tennessee.

Here, we will visit all things music. I have no idea what that will entail just yet, but it should be a blast!

Finally: Kentucky.

Home, sweet home! Tune in next week for all the pictures from our long, southern journey!

Snowpocalypse

It has been three months, and I have returned once again! College is chaotic, don't you agree? Between midterms, finals, traveling, and working, my free time is completely minimal. But I have a feeling that free time will be minimal for many years to come. Yay for adulthood! (Did you catch the sarcasm?)

Now, can we talk about this ice age that has taken over the entire northeastern part of the country? Let's just compare the following pictures for a moment:

Seattle, Washington (via my mom)

Lexington, Kentucky

I never though I would say this, but can I just go back to Seattle for awhile to enjoy their warm weather?

On Sunday evening, school was cancelled for the following day before a single snowflake even touched the ground. It snowed all day Monday, causing school the following day to be cancelled as well. Here we are, Wednesday afternoon:

Yet there is still school today. Not even class delays due to snow. This tweet about sums up what Capilouto, the president of the University of Kentucky, was thinking whilst not cancelling classes.

Enjoy:
TWEET

A Month of Adventure and Thanks

I just opened up my calendar and had the happiest realization. Currently, I am in Kentucky. In one week, I will be in Seattle. In two weeks, I will be in Hawaii. In three weeks, I will be in Florida.

No matter how many supposedly negative events pile up, it only takes a moment for me to truly realize all the things I have to be grateful for. I have an amazing family, once-in-a-lifetime friends, a quality education, and the incredible opportunities to travel this beautiful country we live in. A big "thank you" goes out to everyone who has endured my antics all these years, adventured by my side, and caused enjoyable trouble for the establishment. Here's to the past 20 years of no regrets, and to 80 more years of worthwhile shenanigans!

Cincinnati, Ohio

Last Friday, I took a friend to the Cincinnati airport. What was supposed to be a three-hour-round-trip-then-go-to-work day, turned into a one hour in the wrong direction, turn around, drive two hours, become in awe with the city and call off work and spend the day in Cincinnati day. Impulsive, but worth it.

Cincinnati, Ohio is like the small version of NYC, with a touch of a vintage, old-town feel. We roamed the city, got breakfast at a local bagel shop, and got lost numerous times. The waterfront was beautiful, and we headed just across the river to the Newport Aquarium (which is technically in Kentucky, but we still had a great view of Ohio from just outside). We watched the shark rays, which are a combination of a shark and a sting ray, get fed. This is the only aquarium in the world that has a thriving group of shark rays, which I thought was pretty cool! I also got to pet a shark!

After the aquarium, we headed across the boardwalk to a quaint seafood restaurant called Mitchell's Fish Market. The bacon wrapped barbeque shrimp was to die for, and my fish and chips were delectable. It all pooled together to be a fun impromptu trip that I will never forget!

Summer and a Sweatshirt

I hope everyone had a fantastic Memorial Day Weekend! The pool finally opened up at my apartments, so I spent all my free time laying out and enjoying the 85 degree weather that we've been having in Lexington lately. All in all, everything is going pretty well. Despite a job, internship, and school, I haven't been very stressed. Though I've been spending most of my free time outside, I'm going to try to dedicate some time each week to post on here.

Poolside on Memorial Day weekend!

So I just need a moment to rave about this job I have. Five days a week from 1-4pm and 6-10pm, I call alumni of the University of Kentucky asking for donations for student scholarships. Yes, it's telemarketing - but for a good cause! Anyway, I was the first new caller to reach $5,000, so I got a free sweatshirt. I was ecstatic! I knew I was doing well, and it was nice to be rewarded for that hard work. Then, over the course of the next two days, I received over $6,000 in donations, bringing my total to over $12,000. I am just so grateful for the success I have had, and that I actually enjoy going to work every day!

Hello, Kentucky

It's final - I am now settled down in Kentucky, have landed a job at the university, and will be starting my internship next week! Things seem to be slowly falling into place, except for the lack of an apartment, but hopefully that should be taken care of in a few days.

Its odd to be in a completely different place. I have to memorize the road names, how to get to school, and the local lingo. I mean, I didn't even know what brisket or Ale-8 was until I moved down here. And there's a difference between dinner and supper? Who knew.

The real challenge will be balancing my internship, job, and classes - all of which start next week. Good thing my internship only requires 10-12 hours a week. So 10 hours for that, 35 hours for a job, and about 5 hours a week for my online classes... 50 hours a week isn't too bad, right? It seems like a lot, but it still leaves about 8 hours a day for leisure time. Wish me luck!

Thoughtful Thursday | When Opportunities Arise

“Take advantage of every opportunity to practice your communication skills so that when important occasions arise, you will have the gift, the style, the sharpness, the clarity, and the emotions to affect other people.” 

                                                                          –Jim Rohn, entrepreneur and author

I aspire to be one of the greatest journalists of our time. I do not wish for mediocrity. I wish to be the best. In order to accomplish this dream, it is my job to not wait for opportunities to come knocking. It is my job to chase down these opportunities, tackle them, and claim them for myself. I do not care if these occasions are inconvenient or require a little hard work and dedication on my part – it is the experience that will help me achieve my dreams.

As this semester draws to a close, I am forever grateful for the priceless experience I have received while working for the alumni relations department of BYU Magazine, and am ecstatic to see my first story in print by the time the next quarterly magazine is released. But the time has come to take these skills I have learned and build off of them in order to expand my talents. This summer I will be picking up and moving my life. Again. This time, to Kentucky. I will be a social media marketing intern through Bloc Marketing.

At this point, moving another 1,500 miles away doesn’t seem that bad after my recent moves from Washington to Utah and Florida. I am taking claim of an opportunity that I chased down, and will use these newfound talents to further my career in the field of communications. In this internship, I will learn to communicate with audiences more effectively and efficiently. It will definitely be a change from writing for a magazine, where which it is very passive and there is not a whole lot of interaction between me and the reader. Contrarily, this internship will successfully challenge me as I actively interact with audiences in real time.

So my message to you: Chase down those opportunities and take them! Do not worry about what others will think, the inconvenience it may cause, or the hard work it will require. If it brings you one step closer to achieving your dream, do it!