It would be cool to have a comic book named after me though...

I always thought, that if I was able to have any superpower, I would want to instantly be in any location in the world, just by thinking it. Believe it or not, I've given this a great deal of thought. I always thought how great that would be--just think about it, I'm running late to class (which is pretty much everyday, every class) so I step out of my building and just think real hard "Chapman Hall" and wham! I'm there, 3 minutes early. Or no more layovers in the Atlanta airport, or no more stuffy buses, or incessant car rides. Kinda like clicking my heels Dororthy-style, but a much cooler and more badass version of it. I'm not into sparkle shoes.

But then I think about all the amazing stuff thats happened via transit, the stuff I would have missed out on using my superpower. Walking through the quad on amazing days like these, chatting with a friend on the way to Weaver Street, or crazy dance parties on car rides to DC.

And I think about last summer when I lived in NYC, when a friend and I were determined one week to never take the subway or cabs--all the way from Central Park to Soho. If we had just taken the subway, or if I was generous and shared my superpower (can you share superpowers?) then we would have missed the art fair in Chelsea, stopping at PinkBerry, listening to this amazing guitarist on the street, a little Spanish and French bookstore, and this jewelry and craft expo from local artists. Where some people thought we were sisters because we were laughing and having so much fun. I never realized that similing and general happiness was a "southern" sterotype until that summer :)

I guess the ideal phrase to stick here would have been "life's the journey, not the destination," but I hate overused sayings. So instead I'm going to end this simply saying, I need to pick a new superpower.

I'd pay $4 NOT to wait in the Ben and Jerry's line

So, of course, I'm sitting in Caribou--where the two baristas greeted me by name because I'm here so often (I think that's a sign I need to lay off on the caffeine), and I have a lovely view of the hundreds of people willing to stand in line for Ben and Jerry's Free Cone Day.

Not that I don't love free stuff. Free stuff is really exciting, and regardless if I even wanted it, I usually take it...because...it's free. Or even buy one get one free, somehow that just seems awesome too, even though I'm still paying for it. I remember when I shopped at Claire's and they constantly had the "buy 3 get 2 free" earrings, which meant that every time I went to the mall, I came out with 5 more pairs of earrings, because of course I wasn't going to pass up such a great deal.

But I think that my UNC education has destroyed my sense of fun and excitement over free stuff...because all I can think of right now are the opportunity costs of standing in that line, the environmental impact of all those free promotional stuff, or the fact that you still have to pay for 3 to get 3. THANKS Carolina, you've turned me into a crazy econ nerd.

No amount of education will ruin my excitment for free sprinkles though.

I'm sorry but if you don't agree with me, then you're just wrong and I feel bad for you

I was reading something a friend had written this afternoon, and I was really shocked and offended by what it said. But I think what surprised and upset me the most was how much of myself I saw in this person's point of view.

I know that I have a very, what's the word...I guess definitive way I see the world, and when people either see it differently or have never given a second thought to something that I am interested in, I see only ignorance and perhaps a little selfishness on their part. I'm sure this can be seen on my views of religion, conservative politics, ideas on poverty, and the world in general. And I also recognize how very sarcastic I am and, while I like to make comments that are a mix of comedy and "truth", today made me aware how what I say might be perceived to others.

Take poverty issues for example. For me, I feel a strong responsibility to live in a way that allows me to give away as much as I can. I know that I will never buy a really expensive car and I am critical of those do. But looking at it from an expensive car owner's POV, I understand they work hard for their money and buying a nice car can be seen as a reward for this work and they deserve to spend their money as they wish. I know I've made some pretty scathing comments on what people choose to spend their money on, and while I still believe we should not be spending money on things like second homes, expensive cars, and luxurous trips, I've come to realize the problem needs to be addressed at the societal level and talk more about why material goods are so important in American culture, rather than attacking individual's decisions. (Hypocrisy note: my family has a vacation house on the Neuse River, we own three cars, and have lived in Australia...)

And responding to my previous posts about Africa, I also know that a lot of people do not know a lot about Africa and I shouldn't hold it against anyone. I should be excited to have this opportunity to share with other people all this cool stuff I'm going to be doing (and I am!) and not critcally judge poeple for not being very knowledgeable about the area.

And it's not like I know about everything that's going on the world either! For example, last summer I taught 8th grade history for BreakThrough Collaborative, and when I found out I was going to be teaching Iraqi history, I panicked for a second---I did't know anything about Iraqi history...even though America had been in Iraq for years and it had been on the news nightly. And thinking about places like Darfur, the Congo, Pakistan, and Lebanon, its embarrassing to admit how much I don't know about these places either.

Moral of the story: I am young and don't have all the answers to anthing. I am going to remind myself of this more often.

I really DO love humanity

So I thought I'd share this long list of things that I LOVE...just to prove that I am not always that cynical, sarcastic, and condescending. Extra points if you add things you love :)

1. Road trips
2. Buying stuff on sale
3. When a great song comes on the radio
4. Crazy wild thunderstorms
5. Text messages
6. Phone calls
7. Really good coffee
8. Really good coffee for free
9. Hair cuts
10 Making Kushari in small apartments
11. Making tortillas
12. Dancing
13. Rain Dancing
14. Coming home
15. Leaving home
16. The ice served on airplanes
17. Skymall!!!
18. Kissing
19. Hugs
20. The Daily Show
21. Green olives
22. That "bump" signaling the plane has landed
23. Finishing a painting
24. Movie nights
25. Good timing
26. When my room is clean
27. Getting "lightening" on MarioKart
28. Digging a really hard hit volleyball
29. Hitting down the line kills
30. New shoes that don't hurt my feet
31. My worn out rainbows
32. Looking through photo albums
33. Listening to my grandparent's stories
34. The feeling after a really hard workout
35. The smell of sunscreen
36. Tan lines-they tell a story :)
37. Finding the perfect gift for someone
38. Getting that really cute waiter
39. Not wearing makeup
40. Cuddle wedges
41. Seeing Carolina basketball players on campus
42. Superfine ink pens
43. The sound of the ocean at night
44. Really good food with really good people
45. Shower singing
46. Midnight cookie baking smell
47. Midnight cookie eating with Malia
48. Car dancing with the little bro
49. YouTube videos
50. Busy NYC streets
51. Naps in Central Park
52. Being ridiculous in DC with Momma Rankin
53. Catching up with old friends
54. Solving the crossword with minimal cheating
55, Farmer's markets
56. Getting postcards
57. Franklin Street madness
58. Reading in the Quad
59. Meandering
60. Discovering new music
61. Reconnecting with old music
62. When it just fits
63. That glowing light that comes up right before the sun rises
64. This American Life
65. Story Corps
66. Turkish coffee
67. Not taking life so seriously (I'm working on it, ok?!!)
68. The hissing sound when you open carbonated bottles
69. Good hair days
70. Baseball hat days
71. The feeling when I click "Print" for a big paper
72. NOT having to order swim suits online!!
73. Cooking for lots of people
74. Cooking for just you

To Hong and other readers:

the previous post does not reflect the intelligent people who know that Africa is not a country. and i promise not to use this solely as a place to bitch about people.

Warning: Danger Ahead!!

So I get a lot of questions when people find out my summer plans. The overwhelming response seems to be deep concern for my health and safety. While I have always appreciated that people care that I am and continue to be alive, I am confident that I will not be mauled by a gorilla, infected with AIDS or contract some equally terrifying African disease, kidnapped by corrupt politicians and/or gangs and then sold into white slavery. These were all REAL concerns people have expressed to me...well...except the white slavery one, but I thought it fit quite nicely in with the rest of them.

I wonder why this is. Do people not know enough about parts of Africa to mention all the amazing things I might encounter, and can only think to tell me about what they know about malaria medications? According to the US Dept Consular info sheet (gotta love this site by the way...without their sagely and Jack Bauer's 24 level of paranoia, there might be more people trekking across the world) Anyways, according to them, Italy--a common country for the student traveler--can boast of occasional episodes of anti-American violence, letter bombs, bombs outside public buildings, and a "moderate rate" of violent crime directed at tourists. (Another side note...what the hell does a "moderate rate" of violence look like?) Travelers are victims of rape and beatings, laced drinks, and carjackings. Did you know that?? Yeah me neither, that's why I looked it up and was pleased to find (I guess...) how well it made my point. Yay violence.

Because I mean, Italy sounds like a pretty dangerous place now, right? Somewhere people might be concerned for your well being and personal safety. But this is Italy!! So people will tell you how fun your trip sounds, to make sure to take lots of pictures, drink fantastic wine, see lots of amazing art, and fall in love with an Italian boy.

In the same way, I went to Washington DC this weekend--did you know it's the 5th most dangerous city in the WORLD? But don't worry, I took lots of pictures, drank fantastic wine, saw some incredible art...all the stuff you would have asked me about, right? (no Italian boys though, but thanks for your interest in my love life)

So I wonder why this worry and negative outlook on Rwanda...

The other thing I've been struggling to answer in a "polite" way is, "so how are you going to be helping the people in Africa?" Now, I understand the good intentions and general interest that this question is coming from, but reeeeaaaaalllly people? First off, Africa is not one coutnry, which I feel that everyone knows but seem to forget a lot, instead lumping it all together. It's a continent, over 50 nations with incredible variety in culture, history, language, relgion, and all the jazz.

So let's avoid looking at this trip as me going to help people. I'm going there to learn, and that's what I'm excited about (I know, I'm kinda a huge nerd) Clearly, I'm a big fan of humanitarian work, but to apporach this trip in a that way would be so so wrong. It makes it sound like I have all the answers and have so generously come to share my wealth, knowledge, and general awesomeness (still true on that last one) with these "poor African people."

And speaking of helping people, I just finished reading these two books...one by Peter Singer titled The Life You Can Save, and also Dambisa Moyo's Dead Aid. One sentence summaries: Singer thinks people should give a large and significant portion of their wealth to NGO's in order to end extreme poverty. Moyo is very critical of aid---she looks at the ways aid to Africa has destroyed local economies, created more debt and poverty, and that there are better ways to develop Africa. I can't say I have a definitive opinoin right now.

Ahhhh, yet again, this post has become increasingly more soap boxy and intense than I originally intended. I promise I don't only think about these kind of things!! Fun stuff occurs often, I promise. Ha, it seems that a lot of things lately have made that unexpected turn...next time I vow to discuss something more light hearted---perhaps some re-telling of Taylor's cross dressing experiences, a discussion on how tights are not pants, a list of Ways Caitlin Fails At Being Cool (suggested by a great friend...thanks) or hopefully! some incredible stories of the celebrations of Caronlina Basketball after Monday night!! Go Heels!!!!

Rain Drops Keep Falling On My Head

...There's something cleansing about the rain that umbrella carriers will never understand. A rain-soaked joy cannot be recreated...



That's it. I heart rain, it all its forms. I have good memories of rain, one of the many memorable ones had to be this summer with Miss Lauren during what could only be called a monsoon at BTLI. It was one of the last days when we were waiting to have our exit interviews and we couldn't contain ourselves. (and I think we loved the idea of showing our total irreverency of the BT admin by showing up to our interviews completely drenched were extra points) So fun.

yep so thats it. love rain. the end.