Every two years, Alpha Phi Omega holds its national convention. Brothers from all over the country (and even from some other countries) come for four days of leadership, friendship, service and brotherhood.
This year the convention was in Boston, Massachusetts - home of the Green Monster, Cheers, Paul Revere, some killer seafood (so I'm told), Hahvahd, and a harbor full of tea. I was excited that it was in Boston because I had never been there before and it was bound to be cool because, well, it's Boston.
Unfortunately, I didn't get to see a whole lot of the city. I did get to Fenway Park (boo on the Red Sox) and Chinatown (which was more scary than cool) but most of my time was spent in the hotel convention-ing.
And that was AWESOME.
It was so incredible (I wish I could come up with a better word to express the amazingness) to see APO on such a large scale. Before I just thought about my little chapter on my little campus doing little service projects and things like that - but it's HUGE. There are chapters EVERYWHERE and it was a really powerful reminder that I am (and my chapter is), in fact, part of a VERY large whole. It was a wonderful feeling.
And it was interesting, too. One APO chapter isn't like another APO chapter and they're not like the next APO chapter. Every single chapter does SOMETHING differently. And from time to time I didn't really like or agree with their policies or the way they do things, but it was still interesting to hear about.
On the other hand, I spoke to lots of brothers from other chapters who gave me great ideas I want to take back to my own chapter and I in turn gave other brothers ideas to take back to THEIR chapters. It was really, really interesting just to talk to other people.
At the convention I was my chapter's voting delegate. Each chapter gets two voting delegates (my chaper only had one) to participate in legislation. Legislation is where various committees bring forth various proposals and resolutions to be voted on by the legislative body as a whole. There are long hours and you don't have time to run around and explore the city or go to other workshops that are being offered, but to me it was a sacrifice I was willing to make. Being part of legislation was awesome, and I was overwhelmingly proud to represent my chapter on the legislative floor. I was only one person with one vote, obviously, but I was helping change national APO policy. It was extremely rewarding.
The convention was a blur of excitement, deliriousness (little sleep was had) and enthusiasm and I loved every minute of it. It was an awesome feeling to be surrounded by 2,000 people who love APO and what it represents just as much as I do.
At the end of the convention there was an awards banquet. The convention committee took turns speaking and crying and hugging and thanking each other, various awesome chapters were recognized, and everybody was able to reflect on their time in Boston and with each other. We all tied our napkins together to represent being connected as loyal brothers in leadership, friendship and service.
Then, all 2,000 of us got up out of our seats and formed a circle around the massive ballroom that had to be the size of a football field (we had to actually make a two-layered circle), and sang the APO toast song. Yes, we have a song. That was hands down one of the coolest parts of the convention. It was like in that movie Drumline - one band, one sound. We were one massive group celebrating APO together as one.
It was great meeting people and learning new things about other chapters, but I think it was the contagious enthusiasm and love and passion for APO that I loved the most. Lately there have been some changes in my chapter and I know it's not everything it can be and, particularly last semester, I became frustrated and discouraged. But the convention put the APO twinkle back in my eye and I'm ready to take my APO high back home to my chapter and share with them everything I gained this week.
Monday, December 29, 2008
The Christmas Trick
This year Christmas went a little differently. Usually we, like, unwrap presents and, like, get the presents we unwrap.
That wasn't completely the case this year.
We looked in our stockings and pulled out some kind of random things with paper taped to them. The paper had the name of a real gift taped to it. For example, I got a "butterfly calendar" in my stocking but I really got an empty jewelry box. It was pretty funny and, honestly, really unexpected.
Then we started opening tree presents and there was a small cylindrical one that piqued my curiosity. I opened it and found a can of tomato paste with a label that said "hat" on it. I was confused. I definitely didn't expect to continue to get what my parents called "virtual presents."
My brother and I continued to open presents finding some real ones and some virtual ones that included a cardboard box with plastic bags and screws, canned food, books we already owned, and empty cd cases.
Eventually we were surprised when Mom gave us these really gorgeous santa sacks that she MADE full of the gifts we had received "virtually". Mom and Dad just got tired of us being able to guess what all of our presents were. Well, they definitely fooled us this year. Nothing was as it seemed. In the end it was fun and I liked not knowing what my gifts were. But one thing's for certain - they definitely fooled us.
That wasn't completely the case this year.
We looked in our stockings and pulled out some kind of random things with paper taped to them. The paper had the name of a real gift taped to it. For example, I got a "butterfly calendar" in my stocking but I really got an empty jewelry box. It was pretty funny and, honestly, really unexpected.
Then we started opening tree presents and there was a small cylindrical one that piqued my curiosity. I opened it and found a can of tomato paste with a label that said "hat" on it. I was confused. I definitely didn't expect to continue to get what my parents called "virtual presents."
My brother and I continued to open presents finding some real ones and some virtual ones that included a cardboard box with plastic bags and screws, canned food, books we already owned, and empty cd cases.
Eventually we were surprised when Mom gave us these really gorgeous santa sacks that she MADE full of the gifts we had received "virtually". Mom and Dad just got tired of us being able to guess what all of our presents were. Well, they definitely fooled us this year. Nothing was as it seemed. In the end it was fun and I liked not knowing what my gifts were. But one thing's for certain - they definitely fooled us.
Monday, December 15, 2008
Takin' Care of Business
Ever since I moved into Drake West Village, I've had the most annoying trouble with my internet. I'll be surfing the net, minding my own business, and then out of nowhere, my signal will break for like ten seconds, I'll get booted off iChat, and my tetris game won't load. It was really quite ridiculous. I mean, half of my ever-so-important chats with AIM buddy Ryan ended up consisting of the messages one of us missed when I was unexpectedly kicked off the internet .. again. And I don't even want to tell you how it hurt my tetris game.
Last night was beyond bad. I was being kicked off every two minutes it seemed and I couldn't get anything done. And I mean real stuff - not just my chats and tetris - I was actually working on things.
Realizing that enough was enough, today I decided to take matters into my own hands. I went out to the router box thingy (excuse my excessively complex technological terminology) and unplugged it and reset it thinking SURELY this would solve the problem.
Guess what?
IT DID!
Our internet no longer blips out on us all the time. It just... doesn't work at all.
Oops.
My roommate called her computer tech mom and boyfriend and they couldn't help us, and neither could my dad. All three gave us the same answer: call Qwest. Realizing that if I hadn't effed things up in the first place we wouldn't be in this situation, I decided that I should be the one to call.
So I called one number and finally made it through all the menus - only to talk to a person on the other end who did nothing but give me a new number to call. So I called that number. The guy needed the phone number the account was under. There was a phone number on the router box, so I gave him that. Apparently that didn't work. The phone number I gave him didn't at all match my address. Then he asked me for an account number off my billing statement which, of course, I don't have because DWV takes care of all that stuff. I talked to four people and nobody understood my living situation. I got frustrated, hung up, and went to talk to the DWV office where I got a new number to call and I was told to give the tech guy the room number ("My room has a phone number???").
I called the guy. I explained the problem. I gave him my room phone number (still kind of amazed that my room HAD a phone number...). I waited. And I waited. I was then told that there was no DSL service connected to the phone number I provided at all, and that I should probably call DirecTV.
"DirecTV? I should call them if I'm having problems with Qwest internet?"
"Yes, for the Choice TV."
"What..??? Uh... ok."
I didn't call DirecTV. Instead I went back down to the office and re-explained my situation. Apparently I'm not the only one struggling with Qwest tech support people. Drake West Village has kindly started to take care of things for me. Unfortunately, this all happened right around 4:30 and the office closes at 5, so for the night at least, my apartment (and my very agitated roomies) are without internet.
They can get over it, though. All they really need it for is youtube and flash games so maybe this way they'll actually study for finals. As for me, I DO need the internet and I'm sitting in the laundry room bumming a signal. Hey, it's nice down here. It's warm, it smells good, there's internet AND tv. What more could I ask for really?
Last night was beyond bad. I was being kicked off every two minutes it seemed and I couldn't get anything done. And I mean real stuff - not just my chats and tetris - I was actually working on things.
Realizing that enough was enough, today I decided to take matters into my own hands. I went out to the router box thingy (excuse my excessively complex technological terminology) and unplugged it and reset it thinking SURELY this would solve the problem.
Guess what?
IT DID!
Our internet no longer blips out on us all the time. It just... doesn't work at all.
Oops.
My roommate called her computer tech mom and boyfriend and they couldn't help us, and neither could my dad. All three gave us the same answer: call Qwest. Realizing that if I hadn't effed things up in the first place we wouldn't be in this situation, I decided that I should be the one to call.
So I called one number and finally made it through all the menus - only to talk to a person on the other end who did nothing but give me a new number to call. So I called that number. The guy needed the phone number the account was under. There was a phone number on the router box, so I gave him that. Apparently that didn't work. The phone number I gave him didn't at all match my address. Then he asked me for an account number off my billing statement which, of course, I don't have because DWV takes care of all that stuff. I talked to four people and nobody understood my living situation. I got frustrated, hung up, and went to talk to the DWV office where I got a new number to call and I was told to give the tech guy the room number ("My room has a phone number???").
I called the guy. I explained the problem. I gave him my room phone number (still kind of amazed that my room HAD a phone number...). I waited. And I waited. I was then told that there was no DSL service connected to the phone number I provided at all, and that I should probably call DirecTV.
"DirecTV? I should call them if I'm having problems with Qwest internet?"
"Yes, for the Choice TV."
"What..??? Uh... ok."
I didn't call DirecTV. Instead I went back down to the office and re-explained my situation. Apparently I'm not the only one struggling with Qwest tech support people. Drake West Village has kindly started to take care of things for me. Unfortunately, this all happened right around 4:30 and the office closes at 5, so for the night at least, my apartment (and my very agitated roomies) are without internet.
They can get over it, though. All they really need it for is youtube and flash games so maybe this way they'll actually study for finals. As for me, I DO need the internet and I'm sitting in the laundry room bumming a signal. Hey, it's nice down here. It's warm, it smells good, there's internet AND tv. What more could I ask for really?
Need a study break?
Stressed much? Sad that the most wonderful time of the year is shrouded with pressure and stress. Instead of going shopping or skating or baking Christmas cookies, we're stuck with our noses in books trying to memorize information we're just going to forget the instant we're done taking the exam.
If you're feeling finals a little more than you'd like to, take a moment to take a study break and check out these youtube videos. Just make sure you're taking a study break to watch videos and not taking a break from videos to study. :D
Jeff Dunham - ventriloquist extraordinaire
This one
This one
This one
They're all hilarious
Straight No Chaser - awesome a capella group. Very cool stuff.
Twelve Days of Christmas
There own personal theme song
Lion Sleeps tonight
Now get back to work!
If you're feeling finals a little more than you'd like to, take a moment to take a study break and check out these youtube videos. Just make sure you're taking a study break to watch videos and not taking a break from videos to study. :D
Jeff Dunham - ventriloquist extraordinaire
This one
This one
This one
They're all hilarious
Straight No Chaser - awesome a capella group. Very cool stuff.
Twelve Days of Christmas
There own personal theme song
Lion Sleeps tonight
Now get back to work!
Thursday, December 11, 2008
10 bad ideas from this semester
Nine days (and two papers, two exams, and a nasty apartment) and counting away from a whole month of ZERO academic responsibility. NONE. I had my days this semester where I got a whole lot of nothing done just like everybody else, but winter break is that magical time where you don't have to feel guilty about it... BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING TO DO! And thank goodness because this semester has been absolutely BRUTAL. As such, I thought I'd share with you my list of 10 bad ideas from this semester.
1. If you're picking classes and there are two English classes that sound mildly interesting, and in the course description each one lists some of the books you'll be reading, make sure you add those lists together to get a more accurate idea of how much you'll REALLY be reading that semester. Then you might want to add about 25% to that just to cover the other classes you'll have. Bottom line: taking American Lit and British Lit in the same semester was a BAD IDEA. Stay tuned for another post discussing just how many pages I read this semester.
2. If you're walking to class and think it'll be quicker to walk on top of the frozen snow that's where the grass used to be wearing nothing (on your feet) but worn out sneakers, think again. As it turns out, frozen things are slippery and the worn tread on my sneakers was no match for it at all. Theoretically I would have gotten to class faster, but in reality I was later because I had to pick up the scattered pieces of my pride after I fell flat on my butt. Bottom line: sneakers and ice is a BAD IDEA.
3. If you need to cross 31st street and there are no cars coming, feel free to cross without hitting the crosswalk button. If innocently out of habit you push it and cross, you'll be well accross campus without realizing that you stopped a whole string of traffic for no reason whatsoever. And, believe me, the drivers who use 31st frequently hate that crosswalk button and the people who use it and abuse it. More than once I've seen drivers zoom through the light before it can change, while intentionally driving too close to the curb. Bottom line: overusing the crosswalk button is a BAD IDEA.
4. If you decide, for whatever reason, that you can get away with missing the first week of class, you're wrong. Granted, I missed the first week for a reason that was totally worth it. Right around the time I would have been in econ, I was watching the first black man in history accept his presidential nomination. Kind of a big deal. Even bigger now that he actually won. So, yeah. It was worth it. It doesn't mean it didn't suck, though - missing classes, that is. The first week is always just review of the syllabus, but somehow when I got back I felt super behind and felt like I was racing to catch up weeks and weeks afterwards. Bottom line: missing the first week of classes is a BAD IDEA.
5. If you have something in a shiny wrapper, chances are high that there's going to be traces of some sort of metal in the wrapper. As such, putting it in the microwave isn't a good idea. I had a little pat of butter I needed to melt in a shiny gold wrapper and thought putting it in the microwave would get it nice and soft. After about two seconds sparks were flying and my butter practically evaporated. Bottom line: metalic-looking wrappers PROBABLY have metal in them and putting them in the microwave is a BAD IDEA.
6. If you're trying to get ahead of the game and order your books before the semester starts, make sure you're getting books for the right classes. Professors tend to teach several different classes, some of which might be similar to the one you're taking, but not exactly the same. In this situation it's easy to end up with a bunch of books you don't need, causing several last-minute trips to the bookstore for the books you DO need. Bottom line: buying books you don't need is a BAD IDEA.
7. If you get a store credit card - say, for instance, a Khol's card - keep on top of using it and paying the bill. Having only one credit card is easy because I know that around the 8th of every month, I have to pay them. I can transfer my money and pay my bill in a timely fashion. My Khol's card threw me off a little. I got the bill but simply forgot about it and ended up paying two days late and incurring a late fee of almost 30 bucks which practically doubled my original bill. Bottom line: being irresponsible with multiple credit cards is a BAD IDEA.
8. If you have a lot to do, youtube is not your friend. It wouldn't be so bad if next to every video you watch it has ten more videos related to the topic. It's part of their evil plan to make everybody fail out of school. If I could somehow get someone to block me from youtube, I'd do it. Just for the next week or so. Lately I've been watching Jeff Dunham videos. It's bad news. Bottom line: watching videos instead of studying is a BAD IDEA.
9. For that matter, if your friend who sits next to you in class brings her laptop and plays tetris the whole time, try and resist checking out tetris on your own time. You'll never stop. It'll suck you in and never let you go. I'd never played tetris before this semester and I can't get enough. It's amazing. The lines disappear and it's so satisfying. The version I play CLAIMS it only goes up to level 10, but I've made it to level 11. And that's just so disappointing because I thought if I maybe beat tetris I could conquer my addiction once and for all. Little do I realize NOBODY can beat tetris. Bottom line: playing tetris is a BAD IDEA.
10. If you pick classes and realize you have Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays off... you should also consider that that also means you have A LOT of classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Not only that, but you can't even consider Wednesdays as off days because you're so busy doing all the homework for your Thursday classes. Sure, a four-day weekend looks good on paper, but Tuesdays and Thursdays NEVER END it seems. Wouldn't it be better to spread out the classes and the work load? Yes. Bottom line: having all your classes on the same days is a BAD IDEA.
1. If you're picking classes and there are two English classes that sound mildly interesting, and in the course description each one lists some of the books you'll be reading, make sure you add those lists together to get a more accurate idea of how much you'll REALLY be reading that semester. Then you might want to add about 25% to that just to cover the other classes you'll have. Bottom line: taking American Lit and British Lit in the same semester was a BAD IDEA. Stay tuned for another post discussing just how many pages I read this semester.
2. If you're walking to class and think it'll be quicker to walk on top of the frozen snow that's where the grass used to be wearing nothing (on your feet) but worn out sneakers, think again. As it turns out, frozen things are slippery and the worn tread on my sneakers was no match for it at all. Theoretically I would have gotten to class faster, but in reality I was later because I had to pick up the scattered pieces of my pride after I fell flat on my butt. Bottom line: sneakers and ice is a BAD IDEA.
3. If you need to cross 31st street and there are no cars coming, feel free to cross without hitting the crosswalk button. If innocently out of habit you push it and cross, you'll be well accross campus without realizing that you stopped a whole string of traffic for no reason whatsoever. And, believe me, the drivers who use 31st frequently hate that crosswalk button and the people who use it and abuse it. More than once I've seen drivers zoom through the light before it can change, while intentionally driving too close to the curb. Bottom line: overusing the crosswalk button is a BAD IDEA.
4. If you decide, for whatever reason, that you can get away with missing the first week of class, you're wrong. Granted, I missed the first week for a reason that was totally worth it. Right around the time I would have been in econ, I was watching the first black man in history accept his presidential nomination. Kind of a big deal. Even bigger now that he actually won. So, yeah. It was worth it. It doesn't mean it didn't suck, though - missing classes, that is. The first week is always just review of the syllabus, but somehow when I got back I felt super behind and felt like I was racing to catch up weeks and weeks afterwards. Bottom line: missing the first week of classes is a BAD IDEA.
5. If you have something in a shiny wrapper, chances are high that there's going to be traces of some sort of metal in the wrapper. As such, putting it in the microwave isn't a good idea. I had a little pat of butter I needed to melt in a shiny gold wrapper and thought putting it in the microwave would get it nice and soft. After about two seconds sparks were flying and my butter practically evaporated. Bottom line: metalic-looking wrappers PROBABLY have metal in them and putting them in the microwave is a BAD IDEA.
6. If you're trying to get ahead of the game and order your books before the semester starts, make sure you're getting books for the right classes. Professors tend to teach several different classes, some of which might be similar to the one you're taking, but not exactly the same. In this situation it's easy to end up with a bunch of books you don't need, causing several last-minute trips to the bookstore for the books you DO need. Bottom line: buying books you don't need is a BAD IDEA.
7. If you get a store credit card - say, for instance, a Khol's card - keep on top of using it and paying the bill. Having only one credit card is easy because I know that around the 8th of every month, I have to pay them. I can transfer my money and pay my bill in a timely fashion. My Khol's card threw me off a little. I got the bill but simply forgot about it and ended up paying two days late and incurring a late fee of almost 30 bucks which practically doubled my original bill. Bottom line: being irresponsible with multiple credit cards is a BAD IDEA.
8. If you have a lot to do, youtube is not your friend. It wouldn't be so bad if next to every video you watch it has ten more videos related to the topic. It's part of their evil plan to make everybody fail out of school. If I could somehow get someone to block me from youtube, I'd do it. Just for the next week or so. Lately I've been watching Jeff Dunham videos. It's bad news. Bottom line: watching videos instead of studying is a BAD IDEA.
9. For that matter, if your friend who sits next to you in class brings her laptop and plays tetris the whole time, try and resist checking out tetris on your own time. You'll never stop. It'll suck you in and never let you go. I'd never played tetris before this semester and I can't get enough. It's amazing. The lines disappear and it's so satisfying. The version I play CLAIMS it only goes up to level 10, but I've made it to level 11. And that's just so disappointing because I thought if I maybe beat tetris I could conquer my addiction once and for all. Little do I realize NOBODY can beat tetris. Bottom line: playing tetris is a BAD IDEA.
10. If you pick classes and realize you have Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays off... you should also consider that that also means you have A LOT of classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Not only that, but you can't even consider Wednesdays as off days because you're so busy doing all the homework for your Thursday classes. Sure, a four-day weekend looks good on paper, but Tuesdays and Thursdays NEVER END it seems. Wouldn't it be better to spread out the classes and the work load? Yes. Bottom line: having all your classes on the same days is a BAD IDEA.
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