I Will Forever Speak in "Interesting Fact"

I can't really explain why, for confidentiality purposes, but pledging turned me on to interesting facts. So out of curiosity, boredom, and perhaps some procrastination, I Googled "interesting fact of the day." My results were pretty generic, but my favorite is FactMe.com. It has everything under the sun. The following are my Top 10 favorite "Random" interesting facts.

1. There are only four words in the English language that begin with the letters "dw": dwindle, dward, dwell(ing), and dweeb

2. In the 1500s, houses had thatched roofs-thick straw-piled high, with no wood underneath. It was the only place for animals to get warm, so all the cats and other small animals (mice, bugs) lived in the roof. When it rained it became slippery and sometimes the animals would slip and fall off the roof. Hence the saying "It's raining cats and dogs."

3. Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosnt mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.

4. o.k. stands for "oll korrect." In the late 1830's and 1840's, the abbreviation fad began with many of the abbreviated expressions being exaggerated misspellings. One predecessor of OK was OW, "oll wright," and there was also KY, "know yuse," KG, "know go," and NS, "nuff said."

5. Starbucks Corp. spends more on health insurance for its employees than on coffee beans.

6. The average person sheds million of skin cells each day -- even during sleep. Dust mites in your bed feed on them; so much so that the weight of a mattress will double every ten years because of the dead bugs inside! (Eeew!)

7. There is a Superman picture or statue in every episode of Seinfeld! (what!?)

8. "Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia" is the fear of long words. Ironic, right?

9. There is a seven-letter word in the English language that contains ten words without rearranging any of its letters, "therein": the, there, he, in, rein, her, here, ere, therein, and herein.

10. US Airways makes $10 million each year from ads on tray tables and napkins in their airplanes.

Hope you learned just as much as I did today! Next time you're bored and don't feel like spending hours on YouTube...hit up FactMe.com.

Getting back to normal.

I'm just realizing that it's been far too long since I've told the world what's new in my life...

I've been back at school for about a week and a half so far; unfortunately my break came to a fast and bittersweet end. I was pretty "under the weather" mood-wise due to finding out that I have PCOS (a fairly serious health problem that will be with me for the rest of my life) and also from losing my cat. And it didn't really help that I was home alone for the last week of my break and then alone at my apartment at school for almost 4 days. But now that I'm back with my friends (who I've missed like crazy), back to a schedule and starting a new healthy lifestyle to better my health, things are looking up!

My classes this semester seem like they are going to be very interesting:
-Rock & Roll from the 1950's on
-HRIM Finance
-HRIM Marketing
-Advanced Hotel Management with computer simulations
-Intro to Psychology
-HRIM Human Resources
Also, now that I have a better work schedule and I'm not pledging, I will actually have time to study and learn!

The diet that I have to follow to control and potentially reverse my PCOS is pretty strict. I have to stay away from sugar and processed foods and it's important to eat little to no gluten. That means no bread or pasta for the most part. Brown rice and oats are okay...so is the occasional piece of high fiber whole grain bread. I've been doing okay, eating a lot of veggies, chicken, tuna, etc. But I think I'll get sick of these things soon. So if anybody has any good snack ideas or recipes...fill me in!

My Baby Girl

A few months ago, we found out that my cat Fichi has a tumor. My parents wanted to try to help her so they tried feline chemotherapy, but it turns out not to be working. When I picked her up from the vet today, the Dr. told me that it will proably be time soon to say goodbye. So I'd just like to take a moment to say how much I love her. This might sound crazy to some because she's "just a cat," but in my eyes she's much more than that. She is a little person, with so much personality, spoiled to death, sarcastic, dramatic, a little princess....Fichi knows how to take care of people when they're upset or not feeling well and is very independent at times, but can also be your shadow when she needs attention. So right now, I'm just spending time with her and giving her loads of hugs and kisses. We'll see how things turn out...

"Making the Most of Your Break..."

Yet another college semester has come and gone. I had planned to leave State College immediately after my last final on Friday at 12:00. But as luck would have it, we got an ice/snow blizzard in...the one day that it decides to snow in State College before February!!! I was extremely bitter, because I was already stuck there until the last day of finals...a lot of my friends were done on the previous Friday. So, I was determined to go home. So I packed my car and hit the road (driving approx. 15 miles an hour, of course). Long story short, I made it home safely and now I'm completely bored.

I have absolutely no money and my one friend that still lives here is in the same boat. So my options are....nothing. Ugh. Oh..I can live at the gym (which is much needed)...that's about it. I found an article that is supposed to help me "make the most of my break." A lot of crap it is....basically it tells me to work (I don't have a job at home anymore), volunteer (Um...why would I work over my break to NOT get money?) or travel abroad (soo...spend money that I don't have?). Looks like I'm in for a boring break. But I'll keep my fingers crossed and maybe something amazing will happen...hmmm....

Formals and such...

This weekend was great...especially since it started on Thursday.

Thursday was the Initiation "celebration" for us lovely Alpha Pi's. It included an apartment stop for each pledge class (Alpha-Lambda's, -Mu's, -Nu's, -Xi's and -Omicron's) that is still together at Penn State. We then ended up at K9...a PGN apartment that is frequented a lot. Crazy night and so much fun...we deserved a night just for us after the long pledging semester! I brought my camera to take pictures...but certain activities led me to forget. I did manage to take one with one of my pledge sisters Rachel. She then went on to steal my camera and take about three thousand pictures of herself...this is one of her many quirks!

Friday was great for more than one reason. First, it was the last day of classes for the semester from Hell (woo!). Secondly, it was the Redifer Semi-Formal!!! Redifer is where I work and every semester there are HRIM interns that work there. Their "final exam" is to plan an event and it always turns out to be a semi-formal for all of the students that work there. This semester, the theme was "Starry, Starry Night" and it was so hot! A bunch of us got together before at my friends Lindsay and Jill's apartment. Then we walked over and had a blast! Photo shoot...

Saturday was probably the best. It was Phi Gamma Nu's Winter Formal...soo much fun! We rented out Pi Lambda Phi Social Fraternity for the night, had dinner catered by Clems (although they ran out of food so I got to eat a bun...mmmm), socialized, danced, etc. I also got initiated into one of the many secret societies in PGN (shh...I can't say anything else)! Great times! More pictures...

After such a great couple of days, I am in no mood to be studying for my five finals (ugh!) Only 5 more days to go...

It's finally over!!!

I made it through the semester of pledging and can now happily say that I am a brother (or sister, if you will) of Phi Gamma Nu Professional Fraternity!!!!!!!!!!!! Woooooooooooooooooooooo!!!! I had the hardest but at the same time the best semester so far. I have met 106 of the most amazing people (19 of them being my fantastic pledge class) and am proud to say that I am part of their family. I can't wait to spend the rest of my time at Penn State getting to know them even better! I love them all and.....

Alpha Pi's raise your glasses to the sky...brothers and sisters till the day we die!!!

Taking a moment...

As you know, this past week was my Fall/Thanksgiving break from college, so naturally everybody was home spending times with friends and family. On Saturday, my pledge Dad, his best friend (another Phi Gamma Nu brother) and two of their friends went out to eat and on the way home, they were hit head on by a drunk driver. The 21-year-old pre-med student, driver and owner of the car-one of their best friends is now dead, and Eric (the other PGN brother) is in ICU. So far, Eric suffers from a broken hip, he has had two surgeries due to a punctured diaphragm, and also had a bypass heart surgery.

It breaks my heart and brings me to tears to think of the loss and pain that these families and friends must be going through. Only two weeks ago, I was in a severe (no injuries Thank God) accident where we hit black ice on the interstate, spun many times and slammed into the guardrail twice. Myself and the other passengers are so fortunate to be unharmed. These situations are such an eye-openers. When I think of these situations, I am reminded to not take life (even the "bad" times) for granted. I am reminded of the amazing love that I am surrounded by from my amazing friends and family who are there always to support each other. I'm just so very thankful for everything.

Please pray for the Garrett (my pledge dad at home recovering), Eric (in ICU), Mike (at home recovering) and most importantly for the lost--Jason's family and friends.