The Time Is Now!

Anybody who knows me knows that I am a huge sports fan. Growing up in Dallas it was hard to not get caught up in the frenzy. We're a city known for champions and franchise teams. People are never bandwagon fans, they're hardcore, ever so dedicated Dallas Maniacs, and I'm proud to call myself one of them. It’s probably because I’m a Daddy’s Little Girl- I always joined him by the TV to watch whatever game was on and quickly picked up the rules of each sport with his help. People are often surprised how much of a fan of sports I am and how much I actually understand. This past month alone I've counted 4 guys completely shocked to admit that I know more about professional basketball than they do. Don't underestimate me, folks!

I'm extremely excited to have just moved back to Dallas with all the sports excitement going on right now. The Mavericks are in the NBA Finals against the Heat right now- for all of you who have been living under a rock. For those who know nothing about the Mavs or the playoffs let me give you a little background…

The Mavericks were founded in 1980. Although they’ve been around for three decades, they have yet to win a Championship. This has become a bit of a sore spot for many fans and a point hounded on by Mavs-haters (I’m looking at you Spurs fans!). In 2006 the Mavericks won the Western Conference and made it to their very first NBA Finals Series. After taking a quick lead in the series 2-0, they lost the next 4 games, beginning with losing their massive lead in Game 3. I’ll always remember those Finals and watching the Mavs lose it all while quietly sitting in my basement with my dad. I was only 16. It was heartbreaking. It was humiliating. We had just won our first Conference Championship, and we were all really confident that we would win the NBA Championship too.

Nobody expected the Mavs to be in the finals this year. Although they’ve been a consistently overall good team, they’ve been known for falling apart when Playoff season rolls around. This year we’ve taken everyone by surprise, even Mavs fans! Instead of crumbling under the Lakers like everyone expected, we swept them. We’ve shown that we’re a full 48-minute team, often winning games in the fourth by surprise.

The phrase everyone is saying all over town is “The Time Is Now,” and I truly believe in it. Dallas has been waiting for a ring. If not for the fans, Jason Terry and Dirk Nowitzki, who have played stayed with the Mavs since the 90’s, deserve a ring. It’s obvious the Mav players aren’t just playing for themselves, they’re playing for the city, for the fans who have stuck beside them and have believed in them throughout the years. Like I said, Mavs fans aren’t bandwagon fans- they’re always there through the thick and thin. I think it’s amazing to see the connection the team and fans have with each other, you unfortunately don’t see that everywhere.

I’ll admit it, I was hoping we wouldn’t have to see the Heat in the Finals and I’m sure I’m not the only one. Obviously their team is stacked, they’ve been able to acquire a ‘Dream Team’ with Dwayne Wade, Lebron James, and Chris Bosh on the forefront. But honestly, it’s not the players which have me concerned the most, it’s what happened in 2006. Physical physique is only one aspect of sports and talent is another- but you should never underestimate the importance of mental play. In 2006 we lost to this team. Not just lost- but like I said earlier, we were humiliated. We were crushed. I’ve been having flashbacks to that Finals ever since the series was officially decided. Can we get our revenge? Can we finally Beat the Heat? Or are we going to crumble… again.

It’s been interesting seeing who is rooting for who. It wasn’t too long ago when the Mavs were one of the most hated teams in the NBA. It wasn’t necessarily the players who had everybody on edge, but instead it was the owner Mark Cuban. Known for his extreme opinions and loud mouth, Cuban unfortunately overshadowed the team for years. He was the only thing people chose to focus on, and boy was he hated. The Cuban from 2006 is much different from the one we see today. The biggest comment made about him nowadays is actually in regards to his habit of wearing tight shirts! He has shut up, sat back, and let the players lead the team. After the Mavs won the Western Conference Title it was great to watch him thank the fans for sticking alongside the team before handing the award to Dirk. Instead of the Mavs being the most hated, it’s actually become the Heat. Lebron upset a lot of people, actually an entire state, when he abandoned the Cavs for the Heat. It was in very poor taste how he made his career announcement an entire television special. The Heat is seen as a group of cocky players who really only care about themselves (no bias here whatsoever… I promise!). According to a poll done by ESPN, 48 of the 50 states are rooting for the Mavs to win. Cavaliers fans, still bitter about Lebron, have started their own campaign, “Cavs for Mavs.” Stories are popping up everywhere about people who don’t care about basketball rooting for the Mavs out of their own personal principle. I’m glad the Mavs, and especially Dirk, are getting the respect that they deserve.

It has been tough so far. It’s been a full out brawl on the court, and unfortunately it’s looked more like a brawl than real basketball. The intensity you see in the players’ eyes, both the Mavs and the Heat, is absolutely crazy. Both teams want it real bad, and both teams have something to prove. I’ll take a 1-1 going in to Dallas for the next 3 games.

Both teams want to win, but I do believe the Mavericks want to win it more. I hope they do. Dirk deserves it. The Mavs deserve it. The entire city of Dallas deserves it. The time is now.

Oh, and JJ- Once you get sick of Miss Universe, give me a call! K?

School's Out for Summer, School's Out Forever

Well, I’ve done it folks. I’ve finished with school… at least for now. I have officially received my Bachelor of Arts with an English major and a Feminist Studies minor. One of the longest, and fullest, chapters of my life has officially closed.

It hasn’t quite hit me yet. I guess it’s because I haven’t really been willing to let that part of me go. I’ve always attended school, and I’ve always had a goal in regards to school. Even during the summer, where I find myself now, I’ve had something to work on. Whether it be finishing summer projects, study abroad homework, or even just getting my booklist for the new semester (which I always started to ready early), school has always been there. Give me a month or two, when all the little ones still at University start posting about their upcoming classes and assignments, and then it’ll finally hit me.

I’ve been lucky to have such a wonderful academic experience, from educational opportunities to professors. I was able to be part of the first graduating class of my Ohio high school to participate in the International Baccalaureate Program which had just started up there; the ‘guinea pig’ class as we called ourselves. There were a lot of kinks to work out, basically how to run the entire program, but I feel as if I’m going to be part of a legacy that will never be forgotten. I also feel a connect with every fellow IB-er I meet, discussing which areas of focus our teachers chose for our classes, how our exams went, what our Extended Essay was on. Yes, I wrote an 18 page paper in high school which I worked on for 2 years. While compared to college and graduate school that might not seem like a lot, to a wide-eyed seventeen year old I was quite proud of my work (and I definitely did not mind listening to music from the Vietnam War era either for the project).

For college I packed up and headed south to one of the 40 colleges that apparently change lives. While I can’t speak for the other 39, my college sure did change my life. Going in to this school I knew it would be a challenge, but it was one I was ready to take on. I’ll admit, college was hard, much harder than I had originally expected. I’ve always considered myself more of a hard worker than a natural ‘genius’ when it comes to academics, and there were times where I was very stretched thin with the amount of work I had. There were no ‘easy-A’ classes, or professors for that matter, at my school. While I may not have had the perfect 4.0, I will say this: I am proud of every grade I have received from that school, because I know that I put all that I could into every class and every assignment, I truly worked my hardest for those grades. While I watched my fellow classmates transfer out, or even drop out, I contemplated leaving myself on a couple of occasions. But one of the things about me is I’m extremely stubborn, and I have too much pride to quit something; no matter what I’m going to see something all the way through. While this was occasionally a hindrance, staying in classes which I probably should have dropped (i.e. Calculus…), this is a quality about myself that ultimately I am very proud of. It was this stubbornness that got me my IB diploma too, since half of my class dropped from Diploma to Certificate after the first year. I’m extremely thankful I stuck it out, and I know I have received an amazing Liberal Arts education.

Anyways, back to my original point. If you haven’t noticed, I’ve kind of become a bit of an academic nerd, but really what else is expected when your parents have 6 degrees, including one PhD, between the two. This is why I’ve refused to admit so far that my academic career is over… once again, for now. Hopefully some day I’ll go back and get my Masters, I’m just not quite sure what I want it in yet. But that’s for another day.

So I’m back in my birth town of good ol’ Dallas where my heart belongs. It’s good to be in a place with so many memories and family. The job hunt has also begun. Which is where I’m at right now. I’m sitting in my favorite little coffee shop (the Pearl Cup drinking their famous Pearl Latte- in case you were wondering) writing cover letters to send out to various Dallas companies. I’ve spent a lot of time here in the past as a college student, reading Mansfield Park and writing about Freud and psychoanalysis. I’ve now grown and joined the rest of the masses now, working on business work instead of schoolwork. Yes, I am still wearing one of my favorite sorority shirts from college that I just couldn’t part with right now. Hopefully just me acknowledging that’s kinda lame is the beginning of me accepting that I’m no longer a college student.

Maybe someday I’ll get it through my head.

"All Children, Except One, Grow Up"

Ok- so I haven't posted in forever. Forgive me. A 40 hour summer internship kept me busy and then a full semester with an internship, part time job, and sorority obligations held me up this fall. Alas, it is break now; and I hope to get the blog up and running (for reals!) this time!

I'm finishing up with school- and while at first I was excited, I've come to realize that I am incredibly scared of what that means. Yeah, sure, I'm kind of over the whole social scene. I'm old. I can no longer keep up with those youngins out watching movies until 4 in the morning laughing and talking with excitement about the wonders college still has ahead of them. Bah humbug. I've done seven semesters worth of college, and I'm ready to put down the books and show what the world what I have to offer!

...Right?

Ok. Maybe not so much. Today at lunch my parents began talking about my graduation. Holy Whosit. I graduate college in five months. Did you hear that? I. Graduate. College. In. Five. Months. According to the world- Come May I will be a 21 year old adult with a full education who is ready to set forth on her own. That is, according to the world. Ask me how I feel about the situation and you're sure to get a different opinion. I'm more like a scared little girl who doesn't know the first thing about how to make it in the big scary world.

I'm trying my hardest to avoid the typical questions asked of seniors this time of year. "What job do you want?" "Where do you plan on living?" "What will you be doing next year?" Well, I'd prefer a job in either Public Relations or editing- but I'll take whatever you're offering! I hope to live in Austin or Dallas- but have recently received a push in the Houston direction from the parentals. Most importantly, what will I be doing next year? ...Surviving.

I'm beginning to find bits of the typical Peter Pan Syndrome popping into my own life. Named after, well, you know the story about the boy who never grew up. Many 20-something, young adults have been found to have this problem. The refusal to believe that they are grown-ups and (should be) productive members of today's society. They find ways to avoid the responsibility. They move back home with their parents. They take jobs as waiting tables or selling clothes. They are afraid of taking that next step.

The reality that next year I'm going to become independent and will need to provide for myself is terrifying. I've always had the safety net of school to guide me throughout my years, and my parents for those necessary things I need to survive. I've always been told what to do. Go to Elementary School. Go to Middle School. Go to High School. Do International Baccalaureate. Go to college. I've never had to worry about rent, paying for food nor clothes, bills, etc. I've never had to worry about what I'll be doing, where I'll be living, whether or not I will have a job to support me. Come May, I'll have no plan set out for me for the first time in my life. I'm going to be on my own. It'll be time to push out my chest and take on the world.

But I still have five more months until that happens. So I'll just keep avoiding that reality for now! I think I'll just curl up with a good book and be happy. That is, until the next person asks me what I'll be doing next year...

Futbol, Football, Soccer?

Thoughts on the World Cup: So far it's been quite fascinating! I must admit, I've never really been much of a soccer fan, but I've been trying to open up my sports mind. I've totally been one of those Americans who has never been able to appreciate the sport- how can a scoreless game be exciting? That just sounds like TERRIBLE playing, right? But after reading some articles on it, I feel like I've been able to see the art of it. How every kick can leave you on the edge of your seat, because it could be the difference between a win, loss, or draw. Maybe the Europeans have been on to something this entire time?

I also think it's kinda sad how USA is the kid that all the other kids pick on. Even though we may be bigger than some of the other ones, we're not as popular as they are, so we're still the one being ganged up on. I guess I never realized how much US Soccer (excuse me, football) is a joke to other countries. I mean, we're coming in here pretty well ranked. Within the top 15 of 32 teams- if I can do math, that is the top 50%. While we may not have as much of a focus on it within the US, with American football easily being the most appreciated sport, we're still not terrible. How big are we? What's our population? Certainly we can put together a decent team out of all those millions of citizens. I really enjoyed watching the much anticipated US/England match. Say whatever you want, I feel like the US definitely held their own against England. No one can deny that the game came down to the keepers, and I can definitely understand why England was upset over the US goal, BUT every member of a team comes together to make a whole (unless we're talking about former Dallas Cowboys from stupid Ohio State). And at that moment the team failed and the US succeeded. Enough said. And really, are y'all seriously so upset that ya have to make low headlines like "Green's Goal: One Mistake the Yanks Won't be Complaining About". YOU'RE COMPANY BRITISH PETROLEUM IS RUINING OUR GULF. How can we NOT be upset over that? One little soccer game? Not as big a deal, thank you very much.

But maybe that's because the draw was the equivalent to a win for the US and a loss for England. Suck it up; we're here to play- and we're here to stay! Although I must admit I think my favorite moment was before the game. When the US national anthem was played before both teams and countries. Seriously, our national anthem is basically another whole other screw you to England! Seriously. It is. Wonder how many of their people actually know that or think about it. I mean, I don't really think of other countries' anthems, but of course, none of them are about us! At least as far as I know?

Ok- on another sports note. I get to meet DeMarcus Ware tomorrow! I can not even explain how freaking excited I am for this! It's all part of my internship, which I think is awesome! I don't even think I can explain on here how much of a Dallas Cowboys fan I am. I used to have an Emmitt Smith poster on my wall, I chose to do a presentation on any celebrity over him, and will always remember the exact moment I was when he broke the all-time rushing yards. I still to this day go out of my way to watch their game every Sunday and get super depressed when I can't. I'm a huge fan. Just take my word on it.

So apparently quite a few NFL players came together to make a book for a good cause. It's called NFL Dads Dedicated to Daughters. It's personal stories from players on the relationship with their daughters to help bring an end and awareness to Domestic Abuse. Well, Ware is doing a signing in the DFW area (actually like 10 mins away from my house), and I was asked to go to get some books signed that we can use in the future for auctions and raffles to raise money. Although I only need to get 4, I'm going to get another one on the side for my own personal collection. Also, cameras are going to be a must. I reaaaaaaaally hope I'll be able to take a photo with him!

Anyways, hitting up the ATX this weekend! Definitely can't wait! Shall be fun!

Ale-Alejandro

Hi there guys!

So I got a lot of sleep last night! Which isn't exactly the best thing? My alarm didn't go off! I've been having a lot of problems with my phone lately for a couple of months now. It doesn't ring every time I get a text message or call, and since this is the second time already my alarm hasn't gone off, I'm starting to wonder if it's affecting it now. The last time it happened I slept in ten minutes. Today it was a whole hour. Thank goodness I woke up when I did! I didn't get any chance to check my emails or de-stress before work, but I did show up ONLY about 5 minutes late thanks to the grace of Jelly Beans! Don't ask me where that came from? I have no idea?

Today we had an interesting group of volunteers come in. My cashier from Central Market this past weekend (who I did tell him I'd be seeing there, and he ignored ME when I said hi! Maybe he forgot), and a group of probational Juveniles! I didn't know for awhile, and didn't even think anything was up when their group leader said they must go back to work as a group and wait for the others to come back from the bathroom; they were obviously minors so I just thought he wanted to be responsible. It wasn't until he said he had to go in there after about 2 minutes that I got a little confused. He then quickly explained their situation, which then made sense. I talked to a few of them during that short time. One had a nasty looking black eye who just couldn't understand how I could work an 8-5. "My 8-1 is hard enough for me!" They also expressed over and over again how much they wanted to be home instead of there. But, they had a great repertoire with their two leaders, which was quite refreshing to see. We have people come in from prison with a Second Chance program to help, which is always heart-warming. So, I hope this act of volunteerism really struck a cord with these kids. They truly all did seem to be quite sweet.

My Marketing Plan is almost complete! Right now it's at almost 4 full pages, but that last page is really only an explanation for new things mentioned in the Marketing Plan which have not been in place before. So, I'm not really quite sure if that counts or not. But, it's only a rough draft of one, and I'll get some feedback from it on Thursday, so hopefully it'll only get stronger! I have a lot of changes proposed, which sounds like they wanted. It's not like they wanted me to create a plan for a program which already existed just so I can have the experience of making a plan. That's just dumb. I'm sad I won't actually be here to watch how it'll all play out. I also have to constantly remind myself that this one program is not the entire focus of the operation, which is difficult. I kind of want it to be the main focus of all the different areas. That'll definitely be hard when talking to PR, I'm going to be asking a lot from them! But, since it's all about how to better market it, PR would definitely have to have a big role in it! It makes sense? At least to me. But, I'd rather bring too many big ideas to the table than not enough, I just hope I won't take it harshly if they don't take on everything. I know it's a lot to ask, but I think it'll definitely work! This thing is already feeling like my baby...

So, don't judge, but last night was real emotional for me. It was the Glee finale! I am a hardcore Gleek. No lie. If you're a fan of the show, then you know what I'm talking about! I didn't cry. I only shed two tears. But, after talking to friends, I'm glad to know I wasn't the only one. When the students all sat down and said how Glee club had changed them, I just couldn't handle it. I think it all happened when it was Finn's turn talking about how before Glee club he never had a father. GAH! How are you NOT suppose to cry?? Le sigh. I'm going to miss it during it's off season. What a twist of an ending though! I loved it!

Whoops. Church just came in. Saw somebody wearing a shirt of a local highschool I know. Asked him if he goes there. He was one of the leaders. Ouch. In my defense- he looked super young! How was I suppose to know?

Oh well, what the hell. Sorry for the language. Just started re-reading Catch-22 again. Had to do it.

Hope y'all have a great week/end!

PEACE!

La-De-Daaaaah

So things have picked up a bit around here... Now lets begin!

Friday night I helped with an art gallery opening! It was hosted by my internship, and therefore, I got to do some stuff leading up to the event, such as making 100 goodie bags (which was actually kinda tiring) and creating signs. The actual event was pretty cool, but also kinda boring at the same time. I stood for nearly 2 hours up at the front with the sign telling everybody to "go back past the double doors and to the left." Let me just say this. Walking around in high heels actually isn't that bad, it's not! But- standing in high heels it is. The pressure is just focused in one area. Anyways, it was fascinating to get a chance to listen to the artist speak. He's done multiple types of these collections focusing on various issues, so his passion really is to bring art and humanitarianism together. Surprisingly enough one of the warehouse employees was actually featured in it. It came to a surprise to almost everybody there, and it was much different to go through it actually knowing one of the people featured.

It's nice to see some of my projects finally starting to tie-up a bit. We're about to make a lot of purchases of items which I've collected bids for! Caps and tablecloths/runners tomorrow. Soon we'll be ordering pencils, shirts, totes, and mugs! I've also been given a HUGE project today which will be my legacy post-internship. I got kinda overwhelmed at first listening to everything I was suppose to do, but I'm really starting to get excited now! I'm even almost done with the rough draft of my marketing plan! I like the creativity in it. The fact that it's not so monotonous and, like I said, it'll be something implemented into the business which will continue to go on without me. So the pressure is on!

Today I participated in my first all staff meeting. Woot. I ended up sitting with the other intern and la hermana. Apparently every month they start off with a welcoming of new faces, including us interns (and new babies!). Probably didn't help me and Joc's cause when I included in my introduction "I'm her little sister" and theeeeeeeeen... "and we're not twins!" Except this time I was joined in by Joc... Doing the exact hand movement as each other. I know after 20 (almost 21) years it's expected we would have the same mannerisms, but really? It's never going to end.

Whelp. There's at least a little update. US versus England on Saturday! Sleeping Beauty ballet on Sunday! I already can't wait for next weekend...

Working for the Clampdown

So, I'm sitting here at my desk. 3 tabs full of pictures of Grocery Totes; and one (the opened one) on a Newsweek article on what the show 24 says about our Presidency. I've never watched 24 before. Ever. In my life. Quite frankly, I?ve already gone through the fun articles: Magic wins, Heroin kills, Queen opens up Parliament, Floptina (Christina Aguilera) cancels tour, etc.

Right now I'm just sitting here while everybody around me works on their projects. 2 more hours until I get my next one. Now don't get me wrong, I have been working- and working hard! I think that may be the problem. I've always loved logical little things to complete, so put an easy task in front of me- BAM, it's done. Yes within 2 and a half days I've gone to a hundred different companies websites, searched, and found their Community Relations focus areas, and their headquarters. Simple, just suppose to take a longer amount of time to do. Insert information from 35 business cards into a computer system? Just a couple of hours.

My big project I'm working on right now is very stop-and-go. Did a bunch of research to narrow down to 3. One day. The frustrating part right now is to wait on different places to get back to me. I hate being on other people's time. As soon as I get new information I input in and then wait some more. Gah. It's kinda killing me right now!

Check the email again. No new messages. C'mon companies! Keep up with me, please!

I just realized this morning just how short summer really is. I have my next few weekends already lined up with things to do. Lake House, art show, World Cup, ATX, 4th of July. All lined up, all busy. I can't believe it's my last summer. It honestly does break my heart a bit.

I also just can't believe how grown up my friends and I are now. Just 3 years ago I was a doe-eyed little girl thinking that because I was about to become 18 I was going to be an adult. Nope. This is the real-world, honey. I always promised myself I would never work in a cubicle, and look where I'm at right now. (Check email again- no new messages.) This here is the real world. Setting your alarm for 6:20 to wake up, take out the trash, make yourself lunch, drive to work. No sleeping in until 9, only to wake up to do your school reading until class begins. Nope, not here. By 8 you're in front of your computer replying to those emails sent AFTER you left the workplace. Just working for the clampdown (duh-dun-duh!).

The other intern began yesterday. Guess I'm no longer the intern. Kind of a shame. I liked it. Funny and true story... She walks in yesterday and we're wearing almost the exact same outfit. A simple white button up with three-quarter rolled up leaves buttoned up too, jeans, and light pink flats. What? How did this happen? As if people don't already confuse me with my sister, now I'm going to be confused with the other intern? At least we look different today. Hopefully, we can keep it up a bit.

Still. No new emails. 1:50 until I get my next project.

I must admit I'm excited for this weekend. With it being memorial day weekend, the whole clan of us is driving out to East(ern) Texas to go stay at my Aunt and Uncle's lake house. I love a good lake, and Texas definitely has the best! There's going to be 11 of us, so it should be a fun (crazy, and interesting) time for all! And of course, there'll be lots of desserts. Guess the little Suzie-Homemaker in me is going to come out. I got suckered into making something- with threats of break and bake cookies if I don't do it. But, I really don't mind. Baking is just such a relaxing thing to do. As long as you don't give yourself a second-degree burn. Just going to put another episode of the Tudors on and ravel in the amazingness of it and it's horrible historical inaccuracies. If it weren't for the fact that I love everything about the Tudor family so much, I would hate it. Seriously, it's ridiculously wrong about so much. A brunette King Henry VIII? No. One with 6-pack abs? Maybe during the Katherine of Aragon/early Anne Boleyn ages. But by Jane Seymour he was morbidly obese.

Ok, by this point I'm just rambling because I'm bored. NO NEW EMAILS.

Well, I leave you now with a video which sums up my life right now exactly. Trust me, I love the internship. I just can't believe I'm only 20 and I'm already giving in to capitalism. Aren't I suppose to be sticking-it-to-the-man right now? Guess I was never much the rebellious one. Le sigh.

Ooh! New article! Owner of chimp in mauling attack dies! I've always hated primates...