Multi #6 - New superhero is Muslim-American teen

I had never thought about this until I saw this article headline on CNN today.  The headline to the article reads, "Marvel's newest superhero is Muslim-American teen."  This definitely got me thinking about all of the superheroes I know.  All of them are white.  Just take a look at the picture I inserted above.  They are pretty much all white.  In fact, they are all white from what I can see.  The ones that are not white aren't exactly human; for example the Hulk and the Thing.  They are different due to the fact they are not human, not because they are of a different race.  Looking at this I am kind of appalled writers did not incorporate any type of diversity within superheroes.  Now---there very well could be superheroes of a different race that I don't know about because I'm not an expert in this area, but thinking about the major superheroes myself none of them are of a different race.  This article doesn't even really address that the newest superhero is a of a different race until the very end of the article.  It mostly talks about how they want this 16-year-old girl, Kamala Khan, who is a superhero to relate to girls who are going through adolescence.  "Like any teenager, all of her opportunities are in front of her and she is full of potential, but her parents' high expectations come with tons of pressure and has led Kamala to carve out a future that she has little interest in," (Duke, 2013).

Article can be found here.  The article talks about how Kamala is exploring many facets of her identity and is finding out who she is based on challenges that rock the core of her conservative values (Duke, 2013).  I think this can be true for everyone.  I mean who doesn't stand by their values when they are challenged?  I certainly do.  One part of the article that I did not like was how it stereotyped a group of girls.  Stereotyping is a form of prejudice and discrimination of certain groups (Erford & Hays, 2014).  The writer quoted, "High school was a very vivid time in my life, and so I drew heavily on those experiences--impending adulthood, dealing with school, emotionally charged friendships that are such a huge part of being a teenager.  It's for all the geek girls out there, and everyone else who's ever look at life from the fringe," (Duke, 2013).  Can you pick out the stereotype the writer used?  Geek girls?  Why does this have to pertain to "geek girls"?  What is a definition of geek girls?  I'd like to know his answer to that.  I feel like he could have worded it differently.  This superhero could relate to ALL girls and this superhero could also be a step in the right direction for more diversity within this area.  That is what the article should really talk about.

Article:

Duke, A. (Producer). (2013, November 06). Marvel's newest superhero is a Muslim-American teen [Print Photo]. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2013/11/06/showbiz/ms-marvel-muslim-superhero/index.html?hpt=en_c2 

References:

 Erford, B., & Hays, D. (2014). Developing multifulcutural counseling competence: A systems approach. (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education Inc.

I said YES!

It finally happened everyone and I couldn't be happier!  Jared asked me to marry him on my favorite holiday!  I was hoping he would ask me on Halloween because of how much I love it.  I was hoping he would pop the question on Halloween night and he did.  What I didn't expect was how he did it.  He had his cousin's little kids (ages three and five) dress up as bride and groom and come to "trick-or-treat" at our house.  We have babysat the two quite a bit and am glad he chose them to be his little helpers. The little boy was holding a sign that said 'Will you marry me?' and that was one of the first things I saw as I opened the door for who I thought were trick-or-treaters. It was perfect. I was excited and confused and asked if what was happening was for real about four times and it was real :)

Multi #5 - New 'Third Sex' law aims to reduce surgery

The definition of intersex, according to experts on CNN's coverage on Germany's new third sex law, is when "a child cannot be identified as male or female due to physical variations.  Another piece to this definition includes the child's hormonal and genetic makeup may also impact gender identification," (Mann, 2013).  It doesn't mean they are born with both a penis and a vagina.  It has to do with the difficulty of deciding which part they have due to the size of the private area.  The video gave some statistics on how many intersex births there are; an estimated 1 in every 1,500-2,000 births (Mann, 2013).  Now, I have heard of individuals who are born with this condition, but I never knew that there could possibly be another option used for gender identity when someone is born this way.  German lawmakers hope that this new law will take the pressure off parents to opt for surgery when a child is born with this condition.  German's third sex law gives parents the option to register their child as "intersex" at birth.

Germany's New 'Third Sex' Law video

Makes me want to ask the question....Can individuals with this condition, who are already grown adults, change their gender registration?  Or can it only be done at birth?  They should have the choice throughout their life span, I believe.  I have not personally known anyone with this condition but I believe if adults who were born with this were given the opportunity to change their gender they should be able to.  I feel like giving them the power to change their registration would be a sense of security, freedom, or choice.  Being confused about your own gender can be frustrating, scary, and just hard to deal with.  A person with this condition may have trouble with their definition of gender identity.  It may be difficult for them to pin point theirs and giving them one more option might help.  Gender identity is the belief a person has about his or her gender and that includes the psychological aspect of it (Erford & Hays, 2014).  I feel that if these individuals were given this new option that it would help them with their gender identity.  They might be more confident in themselves and would have some stress taken off their shoulders.  Although having more options can be good, it can be bad as well.  In this case I think it would be good.

Video:

Mann, J. (Producer). (2013, November 1). 'Third Sex' Law aims to reduce surgery [Web Video]. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/video/data/2.0/video/world/2013/11/01/ctw-germany-third-gender-annand-saggar-intv.cnn.html 

Reference:

 Erford, B., & Hays, D. (2014). Developing multifulcutural counseling competence: A systems approach. (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education Inc.

Multi #4 - Can low SES lead to better health benefits for Hispanics?

When Jessica Rodriguez, 39, found out she had breast cancer she was scared.  She didn't know how she was going to pay for treatment and she was afraid of what stage the cancer was in.  Article can be found here.  According to the American Cancer Society, "more often in Hispanics than whites, breast cancer is detected at an advanced stage" (Landau, 2013).  Not everyone has access to health care and that is one of the reasons why there is a later detection of breast cancer in Hispanic women (Landau, 2013).  This was the case for Rodriguez.  She did not have health insurance and was classified as low SES.  A 2013 study in the International Journal for Equity in Health found that, "among Hispanics in Texas, mortality rates for several cancers tend to be lower among those with more socioeconomic deprivation. A low mortality rate does not correspond with low socioeconomic status in whites and African-Americans. The phenomenon associating Hispanics with better health outcomes despite lower average income and education rates is called the 'Hispanic paradox" (Landau, 2013).  When the word cancer is brought up in Latina families it is considered to be synonymous with death (Landau, 2013).  When things started to look grim for Rodriguez she found an ogranization called Nueva Vida.  Nueva Vida is a support network for Latinas with cancer based in Washington.  The organization tries to address needs such as breaking language barriers that Latinas have when consulting with doctors, paying for treatment, and finding support from others who are going through similar situations (Landau, 2013).  This organization has been a great source for Rodriguez.  The organization covered her surgery, chemo, and radiation.  The support has been great and she is now clear of cancer.  She is even a Zumba instructor through Nueva Vida and is giving back to the organization that gave her so much.  "The women in this organization have a lot of need and they are my survivor sisters," she says.

Being in this multiculturalism class has opened my eyes to a lot.  I thought socioeconomic status only had to do with how much money an individual makes per year.  I had no idea it included educational attainment and occupational prestige.  Our book defines socioeconomic status (SES) as "a comparative measure of class standing, or status, based on a combination of educational attainment, income level, and occupational prestige," (Erford & Hays, 2014, p. 161).  According to the article, Rodriguez was considered to be in a low socioeconomic status, but it didn't say anything about her education or occupation.  It just talked about her struggle to find a way to pay for treatment.  I find it interesting that the research said Hispanics with lower SES tend to have better health outcomes than compared with Whites or African-Americans.  I would think the outcomes would be the same for everyone.  To me I feel there are a lot of organizations out there for all races to help those in need and have a low SES.  Not just Hispanics.  A lot of people get angry at the fact there is so much support and help out there for individuals with low SES.  I'm a fan of organizations helping out but I am not a fan of those who take those organizations for granted.  Rodriguez is one individual that did not take the extra support for granted.

Article:

Landau, E. (2013, October 10). 'sister survivors': Latinas band together in breast cancer battle. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/10/health/hispanic-breast-cancer-disparities/index.html?iref=allsearch 

References:

Erford, B., & Hays, D. (2014). Developing multifulcutural counseling competence: A systems approach. (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education Inc.

Multi. #3 - Girls CAN Play Football

I have wanted to write about this story since it came out in March.  I wanted to write about it because I can totally relate to it.  A girl, by the name of Caroline Pla, loved the sport of football.  In fact she loved it so much she played it with the boys on an organizational football team.  She didn't care.  All I have to say is.....YOU GO GIRL!  When I was younger I did the exact same thing.  I wasn't on a team or anything but I was the only girl in my neighborhood who played football and basketball with the boys.  I liked it and wanted to prove that just because I was a girl didn't mean I couldn't do the same stuff they did.  Not to toot my own horn, but I was a tough little shit and could stand my ground.  This Philadelphia girl reminds me of what it means to stand your own ground when it comes to tough situations.  The situation she went through not many girls go through.  Caroline was part of a Catholic Youth Organization football team and loved it.  She loved playing and being with her teammates (Donvan & Thorry, 2013).   After two years of playing for her team someone filed a complaint and wanted Caroline off the team simply because she was a girl.  A video of the story can be found here.  Caroline was allowed to finish the rest of the 2012 season but would not be able to play the 2013 season.  Caroline's parents didn't tell her until the end of the season and fought for her to be back on the team.  Caroline didn't understand why she couldn't play the game she loved just because she was a girl.  "My mom told me and I was just really mad, because I just really wanted to play and I wanted to be able to have other girls be able to play," Caroline said (Donvan & Thorry, 2013).

Determined to play again Caroline's parents encouraged her to try and change the rules.  And that's exactly what she did.  She set up her own public campaign giving interviews, appearing on "The Ellen DeGeneres show," and she even started an online petition that collected over 100,000 signatures.  One of the reasons given to the "no girl rule" was that it was too dangerous for girls (Donvan & Thorry, 2013).  Given the fact that Caroline was the same size and had the same skills as the boys she played against she was fine to play.  When I played sports with the boys in my neighborhood I wasn't always the same size but I definitely had the same skills as them and I proved myself.  This is exactly what Caroline was doing.  She wanted people to know she deserved to play and COULD play even if she was a girl.  It's a shame this girl had to encounter sexism at such a young age.  Sexism is defined as "the oppression of individuals based on gender," (Erford & Hays, 2014, p. 108).  This negative message that girls can't play football simply because they are a girl could have had a big impact on Caroline.  She could have actually believed this crap, which is called internal sexism.  Caroline was tough though and did not want to believe it.  After campaigning and gathering many supporters the organization changed their mind and decided to let Caroline back on the team and will be able to play in the 2013 season.

Article:

Donvan, J., & Thorry, D. (2013, March 14). Girl, 11, allowed to play football, philadelphia archbishop rules. Retrieved from http://abcnews.go.com/US/11-year-girl-allowed-play-football-archbishop-philadelphia/story?id=18732119

Reference:

Erford, B., & Hays, D. (2014). Developing multifulcutural counseling competence: A systems approach. (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education Inc.

Multicul. post #2 - Villain or Hero?

Crystal Kelley, a single mom, has been called both a villain and a hero for a decision she made about a year ago.  A video of the story is here.  Kelley was chosen to be a surrogate for a couple who wanted a baby and each party was very excited about it.  About half way through Kelley's pregnancy an ultrasound showed the baby Kelley was carrying was going to have mental and physical disabilities (Wilson, 2013).  Upon finding this out Kelley and the parents were devastated.  The parents came to the conclusion they did not want the baby to be born and suffer due to these health problems.  They offered Kelley $10,000 to abort the baby.  Kelley did not agree with what the parents wanted, even though the baby was not of her genetic make-up, and did not comply.  She refused to get an abortion, but at one point during a "weak moment" she said she told the parents she would consider it if the pay was $15,000 (Wilson, 2013).  After the parents refused, Kelley felt terrible she even considered it and packed herself and her kids up and moved to Michigan where law made her the legal mother of the unborn child (Wilson, 2013).  Kelley stayed in Michigan during the last couple months of her pregnancy and gave birth to a baby girl.  She did not keep the little girl, but found a couple whom adopted her.  Kelley still visits the little girl.

The article goes more in depth about cost and who is responsible for the child's treatment.  It also talked about a man (Peter38j) who adopted a little boy who had complex health problems (Wilson, 2013).  "He still faces a number of surgeries going forward, but he is the joy of our lives," Peter38j wrote. "He attacks the world with energy and a joy that is infectious to those around him. It is a completely different challenge than our previous three kids, but he's our son and not for a second do we look at him as anything but our son" (Wilson, 2013).  I think what this man said is great.  Yes, individuals are born with challenges and certain disabilities, but what's wrong about individuals who aren't normal?  This baby was already dealing with ableism before it was even born.  She was facing negative consequences due to the disabilities she was going to have (Erford & Hays, 2014).  A disability is defined as "mental or physical impairment that affects at least one of an individual's daily activities," (Erford & Hays, 2014, p. 9).  The little girl did have mental and physical impairments, but that didn't stop her from growing and staying on track with the rest of the infants her age.  She was grabbing for things and babbling.  She was becoming her own little person.  As a society we shouldn't focus on letting the disability define the individual, but let the individual define the disability.

Article:

Wilson, J. (2013, March 05). Surrogate mother: A new wrinkle in the abortion debate. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2013/03/05/health/surrogacy-comments-roundup/index.html?hpt=op_bn1

Reference:

Erford, B., & Hays, D. (2014). Developing multifulcutural counseling competence: A systems approach. (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education Inc.

Video:

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVEweQr2KRA

Fall, Halloween, and a baby!

Fall and Halloween
It's slowly getting colder here in Iowa and I love it! Fall is my absolute favorite time of the year. It involves football, volleyball, tailgating, bonfires, comfy sweatshirts, changing of the leaves, cool decorations, hay rack rides, picking out and carving pumpkins, spooky things, and last but not least....HALLOWEEN!! I fah-reaking love Halloween. My brother's birthday is in October and I am kind of jealous of him for it but having a birthday in April is pretty B.A. too. In a couple of days it will be October 1st which means I start putting my Halloween decorations up. Whoop whoop! I have orange lights, pumpkins, glowing eyes to put in the windows, window stickers, a skeleton, a ghost named Ghosty (Jared gave him that name because that is what they named the ghost at his house growing up) whom I put up in the second floor window that you can see from outside, and I even have those little toys that McDonald's used to give out in their happy meals during Halloween. Remember those? Yep, I still have 'em. They are cute decorations, why would I throw them away?!

One tradition that I do every October is watch the movie Hocus Pocus. "Boooooooooook." Who doesn't love Sarah, Mary, and Winnie Sanderson? I certainly do! In fact I think I may dress up like a witch this year if I end up having a party or going to a party. I think being a witch would be fun! Which reminds me....I always have dreams of riding a broom stick around this time of the year. I hate waking up after one of those dreams! Witches, ghosts, goblins, cemeteries, you name it, have always intrigued me and I don't know why. The paranormal has been an interest of mine for a long time. When I was a senior in high school I would tell people I wanted to be a Paranormal Psychologist. I just want to know how the after life works and why some spirits roam around while others don't. Or do they? I know there are a lot of skeptics out there and that's fine they can be skeptics, but look at all the evidence that has been caught or the number of people who have had experiences. Just sayin'. My point is....anything that has to do with magic, Halloween, and the paranormal is freaking awesome.

Baby Jetter!

My best friend is having a flipping baby y'all! I still can't believe there is a baby in there. She has wanted a baby ever since she was in high school. She wouldn't have actually had a kid in high school, though. She just really likes babies and being a mom was a dream of hers. She told me about it a couple weeks ago and let's just say it took some convincing me that she was actually pregnant. I freaked out. There was a lot of, "Are you serious?! Is this real life?!" Only me and a couple of other people knew and she wanted to find a way to tell the rest of our friends. Her birthday was this past weekend and her husband decided to throw her a fake surprise party. Meaning that she knew about the party and would use her birthday as an excuse to get all of our friends together to tell them she was having a baby! Cool idea huh? My friend Kenzie and I planned the party and it was SO hard to keep my mouth shut for two weeks while we planned this. Kenzie made them shirts to wear when they walked in to the "surprise". We got everyone to their house and when Hallie and Eric walked in there was a lot of surprising going on. I loved it! I couldn't be happier for my bestie and Eric. They will be great parents and I can't wait to babysit and continuously ask Hallie questions about what it's like being pregnant. Gross questions and all :)

Multiculturalism post #1

"'White is beautiful:' Why India needs its own Oprah Winfrey"

Ever since Nina Davuluri has been crowned Miss America a discussion was sparked due to her Indian descent.  I found an article that talks about the women of the Indian culture wanting to be lighter skinned because white skin or fair skin is perceived to be more beautiful (Basu, 2013).  After Davuluri, who is of dark complexion, was crowned people began to ask the question: Could someone who is of dark complexion like Davuluri win a pageant in the country of her heritage? (Basu, 2013).  In New Delhi, India, an Indian woman named Tanupriya Khurana talks about how being white is the preference.  “A woman’s complexion has been a very big deal in my native land,” she says (Basu, 2013).  For as long as she can remember being fair skinned is what women strive for and they have a problem with acceptance (Basu, 2013).  They can’t be happy with the skin color they have, the fairer the better.  They will buy creams or foundations to make their skin look lighter.  While arranged marriages still happen in the Southeastern Asian culture there will be matrimonial ads in India that read: “Seeking match for beautiful, tall, fair girl…” (Basu, 2013).  It can be easy to see why women in this culture are having a hard time accepting their skin color.  Even the advertisements and posters around stores promote a look that is not attainable for most Indians. “Many Indians feel their country’s disturbing obsession with fairness has been compounded in recent years with the invasion of European and American retail outlets and widespread access to information via the Internet,” (Basu, 2013). The article mentioned having someone like Oprah Winfrey come to their country and make them feel beautiful like she did for black women. My advice to them would be that you are the only person that can make yourself feel beautiful. Sure others can help but it is ultimately your beliefs.

The article says American culture places a lot of importance on looks and I completely agree with that (Basu, 2013).  Look at all the people who suffer from eating disorders and have a lot of cosmetic surgery.  They do certain things they believe will make them look better and our society/culture has influenced that. Things aren’t as bad as they used to be, though.  There are a lot more people standing up for what they believe is beautiful and I think that is great. I think some woman in the Indian culture are having trouble with their cultural identity because in order to have an understanding of your own cultural identity you need acceptance and some don’t seem to have that (Erford & Hays, 2014). It seems there is a little bit of rebellion going on with their culture and want to be like a different culture. This kind of reminds me of acculturation, but they aren’t immigrants living in a host society (Erford & Hays, 2014).  The women seem to be bracing one culture over another regarding the look of their skin.  Diversity is a beautiful thing and I wish these Indian women they are talking about in the article saw that.  A diversity of faces for Cover Girl and other make-up companies have been emerging and I hope that the diversity of the faces, or darker complexion, is seen as a beautiful thing not just for the Indian women but to the men as well. 

Article:

Basu, M. (2013, September 26). 'White is beautiful:' why India needs its own Oprah Winfrey. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/25/world/asia/indian-ideal-of-beauty/index.html?hpt=hp_bn2 

Reference:

Erford, B., & Hays, D. (2014). Developing multicultural counseling competence: A systems approach. (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education Inc.

Grad school talk and ring talk

Hey y'all!

Sorry I haven't written a post on here in a couple of weeks. I have been busy, busy, busy. Grad school and the reading that comes along with it has started to take over my life. Oh well! I actually really like the stuff that they have us read. Well, half of it anyway. Theories, classroom management, and multiculturalism are some of the things we are reading about now. We are also reading a lot about ethics and the law regarding how a School Counselor should act during ethical dilemmas and that book is scary! Counselors getting sued here and there. Yikes! The book gives examples of real life cases that have happened and I have to admit there are some pretty stupid School Counselors out there making dumb decisions. Know your ethics people! The book gives ethical dilemmas and it lets us think about what we would do in a similar situation then it tells us what might be the right thing to do. I like it.

I finally found out why I needed to create this blog and a twitter account for my multiculturalism class. We are supposed to find an article, something in the news, or just write about something that pertains to multiculturalism and blog about it. It doesn't matter if it's with the schools or not. The twitter account is for sharing our blog to our classmates, our professor, and TA. We blog it then copy the URL as a tweet so others can read it. To get points we then need to read and respond to at least five of each others blogs but we need to respond by using Twitter. Make sense? Seems simple enough. We will start doing that next week so if you some different type of blogs on here that is why.

Ok, now onto something that I really want to blog about. Getting engaged. I just recently saw one of my friends two years younger than me got engaged and she has only been dating the guy a year or so. I have been dating my boyfriend for almost seven years. ALMOST SEVEN YEARS!! We are both 26 years old and I have been patient for a while but my patience is starting to run out. I have seen so many couples (a lot of our friends) start dating, get engaged, and get married all the while we were dating. I am happy for all of them, don't get me wrong. I just want it to be my turn now. We have both talked about it and we have been pretty smart about it. Both of us need to be ready. I told him he couldn't ask me until I was done with my first Masters, which was Feb. of 2012. I wanted to be done with school before planning a wedding began. Well, he started dental school a couple years ago so I think that has put a hold on things. He is a smart guy and likes to think things through. One of our good friends got engaged in January and I talked to him about us getting engaged. He said he wanted to make sure we were in a good spot before getting married. He was worried about him being in debt with dental school and me having to pay back my student loans. He didn't think the timing was right for a wedding anytime soon. I was a little upset but I understood where he was coming from. As time went on more of our friends got engaged, weddings have happened, I have been a bridesmaid five times, I have caught two bouquets, and I started to become more antsy. I started to think, lots of people get engaged or married while they are in school. Most of his dental friends are married or are engaged. Why can't we be? Yes, I just started grad school once again but so what. My professors said a lot of people get engaged in grad school and they have to get used to last names being changed.  We could even have a long engagement if he is worried about getting married while being in dental school.

I also started to think about my parents and how I really want them to be there for my big day. They are getting older and I want to make sure BOTH of my parents are there. They mean the world to me. I want to plan a wedding with my mom (something she never got to do with her mom) and I want my dad to walk me down the aisle. It would kill me if something happened to them before I could get married.  All I know is that I am ready and I have told him that. I love him and know he is the one I want to spend the rest of my life with even though he drives me insane sometimes. I have never trusted anyone as much as I trust him and he knows me better than a lot of my own friends. He loves my crazy ass even when I am very odd at times and he would do anything for me. I just hope he is ready sometime soon.

My day will come one day. I just hope that day is soon.

Stadium Clean-Up

The University of Iowa Hawkeye football team play their home games in the ever-so-cool Kinnick Stadium. The stadium was named after 1939 Heisman Trophy winner Nile Kinnick.  Kinnick is a big stadium. Well, it's not as big as other college stadiums, but it's pretty big to me. Especially when I have to clean it up the morning after game days! The Iowa City Sports Booster Club was able to score a big project to help the Iowa City schools raise money for their athletic programs. The project is cleaning the inside of Kinnick stadium the day after game days. This includes picking up people's spilt popcorn, frozen lemonade (which aren't frozen anymore), pop, nachos, tiny liquor bottles that were snuck in, water bottles, tickets and programs left behind, etc.

All coaches and athletes in the Iowa City Community School District and their parents are encouraged to go. Some athletic directors make it mandatory their coaches go and rightfully so. Some coaches make it mandatory the athletes go and help out which I completely agree with. When I was in high school I did it. I hated it. Especially when it got cold. I remember not being able to feel my fingers while sweeping through the rows and just freezing my bum off! Ugh. It was not fun, but it was something I had to do for my volleyball team and for the athletics at my school. I thought the only good thing about stadium clean-up was the FREE donuts afterwards. They were good. When everyone would show up clean-up would only take an hour or so, but if people didn't show up it took longer. The donuts at the end always kept me going! Ha.

Back when I was in high school we would throw everything away. Today it is much different. I still attend stadium clean-ups because I am a coach. Once I found out I had to go to these again when I started coaching I wanted to throw a fit and stomp around like a three year old. As mentioned above I wasn't a fan of them plus they were at 7:30 in the morning and I am NOT a morning person. As time went on (as I matured) I saw the real benefit of the clean-up so they don't bother me as much anymore (the donuts are still free!). Anyway, back to what I was saying before. When I was in high school we would throw everything away and wouldn't recycle anything. This bothered my mom and she would try to keep things to recycle them afterwards. Such a good mommy. Today they have bags specifically for recycling and bags for trash. It has gotten so much better green wise and I am glad. I am a green person and love to recycle! They show people what can be recycled and what is trash. I was impressed by it. I forgot to mention they give us brooms, gloves, shovels, and leaf blowers to help with the clean-up. The leaf blowers make it a whole lot easier rather than trying to sweep everything to the middle. We usually have a technique to it. Some people have recycling bags and go around picking up only recyclable items. The rest sweep or blow the rest of the trash to the middle steps then we sweep it down and shovel it up to put it in the trash bag. We're pros at it by now.

After our second stadium clean-up of the year this morning I noticed something that really bothered me that I hadn't noticed back in the day. I couldn't believe how many parents sit in their cars waiting for the kids to get done cleaning. They drop their kids off then park the car and read a magazine or book in the car until the kid is done. Ugh! Parents are ENCOURAGED to help. By helping clean the stadium they are supporting their child, their child's school, the school's athletic department, and they are setting a good example for their child. My parents ALWAYS helped and a number of my teammate's parents helped as well. It was almost a fun social event when everyone is there and working together.

This is how I feel about those parents who just sit in their car.......really? Get out of the car and help!

Zip-lining, *NSYNC, and grad school, oh my!

Zip-lining
Last weekend I got the chance to do something I have never done before. Zip-lining! It was a fun time. Some of my friends had done it last year and asked if any of us wanted to go with them this time around. A bunch of us said yes because we had never done it before and thought it would be fun so we made plans to go.

We traveled to Dubuque, IA where the YMCA Union Park help the zip-lining challenge. There were nine zip-lines to face and wooded hillsides to hike up during the tour. During our tour the tour guides told us the park used to be a Theme Park of some sort back in the late 1800's early 1900's. Each zip-line we traveled to they would point out certain points in the woods and say, "That is where a roller coaster used to sit," or "You will be traveling over where the Mammoth Theater used to be." It was kind of neat.

The zip-lining itself was pretty easy. It was a little scary knowing that little thing that takes you across the zip-line could hold your weight. After the first couple lines the fear goes away. The guide told us how to steer so we wouldn't be twirling around, but it was kind of difficult to do. I'm not going to even try to describe how to steer so I'm just going to say it was difficult. There were two lines that I really liked. One of them they had a game for us to play. In the middle of the line there was a red bucket sitting on the ground below and we had to try and throw a beanie baby in it. If we made it we got a free t-shirt. Before we went we all grabbed a beanie baby from the tub they had at the beginning of the line. I really did not want my boyfriend, Jared, to make it in the bucket because he can be kind of cocky at times and I didn't want him to rub it in our faces the rest of the tour. For some odd reason I had a feeling I was going to make it in but I kept doubting that feeling. I asked the tour guide how many people usually make it in the bucket and he said one out of sixteen. Hmmmm. I was one of the last ones to go and no one had made it in the bucket yet. I made sure to start out slower this time so I could think about when I would let the beanie baby go. I was coming up on the bucket and I knew that if I let it go right above the bucket it would go past it because of inertia. I decided to let it go before I got to the bucket. I watched it bounce off the side and go in the bucket. "Ooohhhh!!!" I yelled and threw one hand up in the air for victory, but made sure to keep the other hand on the rope (one of the rules). I looked up to see everyone on the other side with their hands up yelling as well. It was so cool! I rubbed that in Jared's face. Ha!

The other line I liked were the dueling lines. There are two lines and you pick a person to race against. I ended up losing but it was still fun. The last line was the highest and fastest which was pretty cool. Overall it was a neat experience. We got to zip-line and hike in the woods and it was pretty scenery, but I think it would be cool to do it in another state where there are mountains and lakes around. I would recommend zip-lining to anyone who is up for it.

*NSYNC

When I heard 'NSYNC was going to reunite for the VMA's this year I was SO excited. They were my group back in the day when I was in elementary and middle school. Yes, I liked the Backstreet Boys as well, but 'NSYNC just had a special place in my heart. My room was filled with 'NSYNC posters growing up. I was a Justin lover and my best friend was a JC lover. We would listen to their CD's constantly and dance to their songs. We would stay up late at night watching the BOX (anyone remember that channel?) just to see one of their videos play. I was lucky enough to see them in concert in sixth grade and it was amazing. I'm surprised I didn't lose any of my hearing after that concert because it was so loud with girls screaming. I just remember it being loud and the boys danced the ENTIRE concert. They were awesome and are still awesome to this day in my eyes. If a reunion tour happens I am going to see them no matter what. I could barely contain myself when they performed for five seconds on the VMA's. At the age of 26 I jumped off my couch and stood in front of the TV jumping up and down with excitement during their performance. Justin, JC, Joey, Chris, and Lance, you guys rock my world and that's all I gotta say.

Grad school
After my first week of grad school in the School Counseling program at Iowa I can honestly say I am excited for what is to come. I have never seen professors so motivated and eager to teach us how to become successful school counselors. They legitimately made me feel that I am going to be a great School Counselor by the time I am done. My class is small and I really like my cohort so far. They only accepted ten into the program and all of us go through the program together. That is why we are called a cohort. We take the same classes and help each other out all the way through the program. I really like it so far. I will say that after writing all the due dates on my calendar (part of my OCD) for this first semester that October may not be my favorite month this year :( Too many assignments due. Ugh. Oh well........I can do it!

"Welcome back, welcome back, welcome back..."

First of all, I hope you SANG the title of this post. I love John Travolta so I thought throwing a little Welcome Back Kotter in there seemed fitting given the events of the day :)

Today was the first day back at school for me and the kiddos! Well, I guess it was the first day back at work for me. My first day back at school is on Monday. Blaaahhh. Don't want to think about that yet so we'll talk about the first day back at school with the kiddos. It was a satisfying one :)

During our assembly in the 90 degree gym with more than 1,500 kids, the keynote speaker said something I can relate to. To give a little background first, the speaker was a part-time English teacher who works in the building. She teaches the first half of the day then goes home to spend time with her three children. I have had the privilege to be in one of her classes with a student and she is the most entertaining teacher I have ever met. She throws out dance moves, sings, tells stories about her children being little turds, messes up her hair (which somehow always gracefully falls back into place), raps, beatboxes, and does Jersey impressions (she's from New Jersey) all the while teaching. She makes learning fun and exciting. She connects with each and every one of her students and I can tell that connection makes them feel special. I can see it on their faces and in their body language. She has a huge impact on the students in the way she teaches and her relationships with them. I can honestly say she is an awesome teacher to have around the hallways of City High School and I wish I would have had her as my English teacher when I attended City High back in the day. Dag nab it!

To get back to my point, she said something in her speech this morning that I can relate to. She said when she leaves her three kids after having a wonderful summer with them she doesn't feel bad leaving them (maybe a little) because she is going back to her second family at City High. Walking into the doors this morning she said she was greeted by so many uplifting faces. Whether it was, "Hi, Ms. Fettweis!" "Hello! How was your summer?" or "Sup?" she said it was very welcoming. She was back with her second family and I feel the exact way when I walk through those doors as well. Whether it is one of my track athletes or volleyball players saying hi, one of my coworkers, or a teacher, it just feels uplifting. The relationships you develop working at a school is just awesome. That is all I can say and I couldn't be more confident in my decision to become a School Counselor.

Newbie

As a requirement for one of my grad classes I was instructed to create a twitter account and a blog. I was a little sad about the twitter one because everyone has one and I still wanted to be one of few that didn't plus it just looked confusing and I like using facebook, but this blog thing I am actually kind of excited about. My brother has been writing a blog for a while now and I enjoy reading his posts. He mostly writes about the different types of beer he tries and the events going on in his life. In his blog he gives his friends and family nicknames. Can you guess what mine is? Yep, you guessed it. The Loud Sister. When I read a post that had 'The Loud Sister' in it I asked (mostly yelled) my mom, "Is he talking about me?!" Her response was, "Well duh. Who else would he be talking about?" I was offended for about ten seconds then shrugged my shoulders and agreed with it. His blog is called The Quiet Man so it only makes sense for me to give him his nickname of Quiet Man on here. So there!

I am excited to see what the professor wants me to do with this new blog I have created. If any of you are wondering what type of class it is for the class is called Introduction to Multiculturalism in the Helping Professions. It is a required class in the School Counseling program here at the University of Iowa. I start this fall and am both nervous and excited about it. Excited meaning I want to learn more about counseling in schools, new theories, and the types of kids/parents I will encounter. I currently work as a para educator and have dealt with a number of Special Ed kids and have loved it. They are so interesting and unique. When I say I am nervous I am referring to I already have one MA and it was A LOT of work/essay writing. Luckily I have some people to help me out in case things get rough, but I am excited to start this new journey.

Until next time!