So I just had my stage combat final and I took some video and a couple of pics, so I thought I’d share PRONTO!

I didn’t get to tape ALL of them, but I got a lof of em! YAY! I did not however, get our salute in the beginning which is really funny. My pal Lauren Kennedy taped it, and once she slaps it on youtube I’ll make sure you’re the FIRST to know!

So here’s Andrea Green and I…XENA AND GABRIELLE! It actually turned out pretty good!

Here’s some other clips from the class as well! Take a gander and get ready to have your side split!

AND our final salute out…after our final is over! This is the last time we’re using broad swords… No more Xena, no more Link from Zelda…or any other cool character with a sword….

Hey chillins,

What’s cookin? Well this week was quite the hill to get over…and why am I talking in past tense? This week is still here, kickin’ my beeeee-hind!! It’s just paper, research paper, project, research paper, test, extra credit due….one after another…LORDY! It’s all due on Monday….

So as you can see, it’s been sorta busy over here for many SUNY New Paltzians…everyone’s trying to get those last papers done before all those finals  sneak upon us! BAH!

But ya know what? A lot of joyous things have been occuring as well! A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, which is run by Miami Theatre players, is going on tomorrow and Sunday at 8pm in McKenna Theatre.  There is also I love you, You’re Perfect, Now Change, going on through various residence halls until Sunday at 8pm. Tomorrow (Fri) I have my stage combat final with my partner in crime, Andrea Green. We’re doing a skit as if we were Xena and Gabrielle…it should be interesting. We’ve been practicing with broad swords on Andrea’s front lawn while people walk by on the sidewalk. We have a good ole’ time laughing and making Xena warrior cries. Thank god shrubbery in the front of her house shields us from some of the spectators. :-p

I have the darker hair of the 2 of us, so I was chosen to be Xena. I hope to do her justice, since well, she’s pretty bad-ass! I tried doing that Lucy Lawless stare, but I just don’t have the eyes, or the bangs, or the hottness that comes along with Xena, Warrior Princess.
While coming across some research, I found the Xena warrior cry!!! Check it!

I hope to put a video up here of us. Again, remember, we are beginners learning the craft of stage combat, so cut us some slack if we aren’t picture perfect. AIIIIGHT?

OH OH and The Sexy Pitches all female a cappella group are having an invitational Benefit for New Paltz for Nicaragua. We’re having Vocal Synergy, an all girl group form Wagner and Male Call, an all guy group that just started up here in New Paltz!

Here’s all us Pitches, giving you a wave hello and hoping to see you Friday!! We’re in 115 College Hall (Nadia & Shepard Recital Hall) @ 7PM!

Also, later that night, Midnight Theatre is taking place in Parker Theatre! Relay for Life is this Saturday, which is always a grand event full of entertainment, good eatin’s and activities!! Also, Saturday I’m heading to Albany to visit my bro and see/hear/love his a cappella concert!

So lots and lots to do and see!! It’s kinda rough, because I know myself, and I want to be involved in everything and to support everything! However, it just ain’t possible, now is it? So pick and choose what you can do ladies and gents, while managing your time with those lovely papers! HA!

Therefore, I hope everyone hits the books, but at the same time, take a break from studying and have some fun! There’s loads to do this weekend, and the week coming up! I’ll try to keep you posted. I apologize for lacking in my postings lately. Normally I’m an animal about it. However, it’s just been a little crazy!

P.S. Congratulations for the NEW New Paltz Bloggers! There will be 6 next year, coming at ya with exciting events that New Paltz has to offer!

Alright gang, I must tooda-loo for now! I hope to keep ya updated with awesome pics, videos and stories! However, papers must be done first…alas.

Nighty night! Sweet dreams! And congrats again NEW Np Bloggers!

So it’s 2:30 in the morning and it is/was Easter Sunday. I have an 8am class, but I just can’t get my body to sleep! It’s one of those tossing and turning nights. They happen, especially if you’ve been having a weird-o sleep cycle like I’ve been having the last couple-a-days. Hopefully with classes and what not, I’ll get back on track, getting to bed at a normal hour and waking up to learn a chock-full-of-knowledge!

So as I’m lying in my bed, with my little star night light (hey-if you saw it in my room, you would agree that it was COOL). At any rate, I’m lying there and looking up at my wall. Now, just recently, Thursday in fact, I decided to make a 2nd attempt at posting numerous pictures up on my blank wall. However, despite my attempt about half of them fell off! HALF! Do you know how frustrating that is? Very! All that effort, poof, gone. They’ll fall on me when I AM actually sleeping, or when I’m out, I’ll come back to find pictures scattered on my bed. I’ve tried the yellow sticky tack AND I’ve tried scotch tape. I loop the tape around on all four corners of the photo and one in the center. However, this doesn’t hold! And do you know what the worst part is? When I am in bed, all comfy, and the tape is slowly separating itself from my wall. It makes this horribly loud noise for such a small piece of tape.  The whole action of losing grip is such a depressing sound, and when it occurs slowly it’s even worse.

So, with that being shared, do I have any suggestions from those readers out there who are familiar with these residence-hall walls and/or efficient picture-sticking usages? Why is it all such a mystery to the average girl?

In case you are caught unawares, I’m a big pic-cha takah! Therefore, I like to put them in as many places as I can! So please help a sister out! I was thinking of just taping these pictures on paper and then push-pinning the paper on my wall. That could work, ey? I’ve also heard that double sided tape is a god-send, but I do not know first hand.

Let me know, and I hope everyone had lovely holidays! Mine was shared here in New Paltz with some friends and some homework! Bah! I missed the family outings, but I will see them all soon! Later!I hope you’re sleeping well at least!

Well hello there one and all!

Again, what lovely weather we’re having. Go NP Blogger Matt! You ride that bike!

You must think I’m crazy to be inside on a day like today, typing. However, I have class in a little bit, and so I figured I’d at least start writing down my thoughts/events from this weekend!

Did everyone have a dandy Friday, Saturday and Sunday?

Friday night was loads of fun. My friend Renee had her friend from home (Fresno, California) come here. So we hung out with her a little bit and went to Midnight Theatre! Ok, midnight theatre is just a bunch of laughs. I know I’ve blogged about one of these midnight variety shows before, so I won’t go on and on about it. However, lemme talk to you about the opening number!

Paper Rain Laboratory Theatre is putting on a production of the musical: Reefer Madness this Friday at 8pm (not Saturday) and Sunday at 2pm and 8pm in the Multi Purpose Room in the Student Union Building. SO, last friday the students figured they would perform the opening number for Midnight Theatre to give everyone a taste of the show and to get some practice in front of an audience! Good move! Here’s a synopsis for you guys…I know I needed one when I heard we were doing this show!

http://www.reefermadness.org/synopsis/synopsis.html

Here’s the youtube video I put up for ya guys.

Alright, so Midnight Theatre was grand, hanging out with Cara was a pleasure and then Saturday arrived. Now I haven’t gone shopping in God knows how long, so I went with Marlea to Poughkeepsie mall! It ain’t too far…bout 20 minutes or so. At anyrate, we helped each other out with outfits. I needed a red/black/white outfit of sorts for that night’s A cappella invitational, and Marlea needed a birthday outfit. Perfect! She found a couple of really cute things, and so did I at the lovely store…Forever 21! <3 Cha-ching! We both decided that we’re rather frugal gals, so Forever 21 and Charlotte Russe were right up our alley. Get more for less! I like that motto!

After that lovely adventure/bonding-experience, it was time to get ready for the invitational already!!! Wow, was it loads of fun!! As you saw, Kevin put up some lovely pictures of all the groups who came to this A Cappella Invitational. I have some more. I also have one video that I took and others I found on youtube (you were right NP Blogger Kevin!) haha

I didn’t video tape any of the songs, unfortunately, but I did have enough sense to video tape a masterful beatbox challenge occur on McKenna Stage. I think it would be in your best interest to check it out. OH YEAAAH. Wait till the last guy goes, your mouth may drop, or at least mine did when I was in the audience.  Our very own New Paltzian= Jake Moore.

I know NP Blogger Kevin already put some pics up, but I have some more. So take a gander! I mean, I could not help but take some pictures when this was such a big part of my weekend!!

Call4Backup from Nazareth (this picture courtesy of Christopher Thurston)

The Guerillas from SUNY Fredonia, an all male group

Oh hey- good news! I searched youtube and found some videos from Saturday night. So I felt I’d share!

Here’s The Guerilla’s singing Kiss the Girl, from the Little Mermaid, with a little twist. It’s really hilarious and wonderfully sung. They were definitely a crowd pleaser. The soloist is named Steve Scholtens AKA Pirate Steve. Cool nickname, right?

Oh and here’s them singing “I’ll be there for you!”

Premium Blend from SUNY Fredonia, a mixed a cappella group.

Listen to this REALLY GREAT cartoon medley that us kids of the late 80s are familiar with!

and of course here’s Absolut A Cappella, who threw this entire Invitational!!

So all in all, wonderful, energetic night!!

THEN Sunday came around and I was pretty much a slug. Haha But I did go and see a show sponsered by Paper Rain Laboratory Theatre  called The Last 5 Years. I forgot how much I loved that show. It was truly magical, with Nick Melillo playing Jamie and Allison Antonelli playing Cathy. They both did an exquisite job portraying the fragility of human relationships.  BRAVO!

So my weekend was fun, but now it’s the week (blah) and that means homework and cleaning and tests and everything not too fun. However, as I mentioned before, today was B-E-A-utiful and that ain’t too shabby then, right?

Have a pleasant whacky Wednesday and I’ll chat with ya later!

x0×0x0

Hola all!

TGIF! For starters. It’s been a while since I’ve blogged. Sheesh, last time I wrote on this here blog I was talking about ice climbing! It’s gotten a little too warm to do that!

Speaking of which, what a sunny day today was. The spring break came and went, we had some cold days sporadically throughout, but today was a wake up call from Spring itself. Now I really shouldn’t be too hasty with this “goodbye cold” attitude, because this weekend isn’t predicted to be too spectacular: rain, rain and more rain. However, you could see the spirits of us college students perk right up. So many people were running around on Old Main Quad, playing frisbee, running after each other or just lounging on the grass with some friends, chatting it up and catching some good ol’ vitamin D. Hey, studies show that most of North America doesn’t get enough Vitamin D, even if we are out in the sun, we may not be getting enough. So perhaps think about purchasing those Vitamin D pills? I know my mamma has forced a bottle upon me to bring back to campus once spring break ceased. Eh- I don’t mind. I need to be more consistent with my vitamin intake, that’s for sure.

Well this week has been a rude awakening. The word on the street once everyone returned from our one week of freedom was the same: break wasn’t long enough.  I’d have to agree. It wasn’t long enough, but hey, we have to be thankful with what we’re given, ey? I’m just glad it’s friday, because I have much to look forward to. Tonight I’m hanging out with this lovely gal Marlea Ligouri, who is going to be graduating at this semester’s end. She will be sorely missed by all us Student Ambassadors who work with her. So tonight I’m going to her suite to play board games and such. I’m such an easy person to please-  sit down with me and play cards or a board game and I’m happy as can be.  After that, there is our performance of Midnight Theatre which I’m excited for. I have a strong sense that tonight I’m going to laugh hard and in good company. So, can’t complain there. I’m charging my camera as I type this!

And tomorrow is an a cappella extravaganza! Us Sexy Pitches, Absolute A Cappella, and three other a cappella groups from 2 different schools are coming here to perform! The event is coined  “Guilty Measures.” Aw good play on words. So you should definitely come out to hear some good singing, have some fun, and the best part is, IT’S FREE!!!!!!!! How often can one say that? It’s at 8pm in McKenna theatre, and I don’t think you want to miss it. I’m kinda sad that my parents nor my brother can attend. Actually, my best friend and my roommate can’t make it either, ah, but alas, they can’t come to it all…they have lives too. It will be loads of fun, so you should come and have loads of fun with us….der! Then on Sunday I’m going to see a performance on campus of The Last 5 Years, with 2 of my friends cast in the only roles. It’s a good musical by Jason Robert Brown. It was completely student run, directed, stage managed, etc. etc. Then I gots a staff meeting and such Sunday night. Sooo…fun packed weekend right?

However, I have this looming cloud overhead reminding me of the much needed homework that needs to be completed by Monday. Ick, ick, double ick. So I’m gonna have to try to manage my time well this weekend. And this night seems quite shot….so tomorrow will have to be devouted to homework for at least a couple of hours. Oh time management is the most valued skill, I feel, here at college. Learn it well, and your life will be less stressful. Yeah, well, it’s a hard skill to master…most of us are still a working progress.

At any rate, I hope to report back to you with fun-loving pictures and such of the events I breifly touched upon. Have a lovely weekend in advance and you’ll hear from me soon.

xoxo,

Kristen

So Saturday I went Ice Climbing…true story. I woke up, layered up and walked with duffel bag in hand onto the bus. I did this on a whim too…signing up for this trip I mean. I didn’t know anyone who was going. AH! But there ended up being people I’ve known casually throughout my years here, and new people that I became friendly with.

So, we drove into town, where we stocked up on cliff bars at the Mobil gas station, and was given our ice climbing equipment at Rock and Snow. That was my first time entering that store, and I gotta say that I liked it. I may trek on back there to get a warm, stylish hat: mine is starting to meet it’s retirement phase.  Check out their site at http://www.rockandsnow.com/store/. At any rate, we had 2 instructors who gave us our boots to try on, our crampons, our ice axes, our helmets and our harnesses. Here, this will be a good visual for ya: http://www.rockandsnow.com/store/department/33/ICE-CLIMBING/. So off we went to our site, in the Catskills near Hunter, NY.  The area was called Stoney Clove (AKA the playground). It is located at Notch Lake on RT 214 N about 2 miles before the town of Hunter, which is about 45-60 minutes away. Now, when we got off the bus, we put on our helmet, our crampons, our harnesses…and we were set! Here’s a group shot of the lot of us!

Alright, so we had to hike up a heck-of-a-lot to get to the climbing site. That killed me a little. I was getting all hot from the layers and the climbing up ice, snow, rock, and mud. It was odd.

At this point we had the crampons on: those spikes attached to our boots. I’m telling ya every time I hear that word, crampon, I think of…well…that feminine product. Nuff said. Anyway, we were hiking on up which took a little while. We were high up! And we stayed up there till about 4! When we weren’t climbing we were sitting on the rocks or the snow or the mud (you’ll see some of the affects of that from the back of our pants.) Once we finally arrived at the ice climbing site, I was so nervous to go up there! I didn’t think I could do it! The day before I went to the gym and did this kinda hard workout…what happens if my legs gave out? Or what happens if I fell? Well, I found out you can’t fall! I mean, you’re on a harness and if you lose your gripping, you are suspended in mid-air. Kinda Coolio (yeah, I went there.) Anyway, I did do it, (SUCCESS!) and here are some more pictures of the day! OH YES!

<–This shot is of Justin Krzeminski, the president of the Outing Club, here at SUNY New Paltz.

Check out the Outing Club facebook group: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2200816661

<–Here’s Jen Reid turning around with a smile on her face at her accomplishment!

Here’s Schuyler Penny climbing to the top!

This is me, climbing on up. See how it’s a mix of ice and rock? I found that to be difficult, but sometimes you just had to locate small ledges to pull yourself up instead of sticking the front spikes of your crampon in the rock- that doesn’t work.

<–This shot is courtesy of Jenny Brannigan who was also on the ski/snowboarding trip to Hunter last weekend.

Here’s Jenny Brannigan, herself. This shot was taken by Schuyler Penny.

Alright, so I went on this trip for a mere 25 smack-a-roos! That’s right! I hear it’s hundreds of dollars to rent an instructor and all the equipment normally. So aren’t we lucky!! It was a great experience, a great workout, and a lovely, not too cold day. As you can see, the sun was shining brightly! So everyone check out the trips they hold at the Athletic and Wellness Center! There’s a newsletter that comes out via e-mail. Just sign up at the gym to get it e-mailed to you, and you’ll know all the whereabouts! Good deal, ey? Alright gang, stay happy and healthy…OH AND ENJOY THE NICE WEATHER THIS WEEKEND! 50s I hear!

x0×0,

Kristen

I’ve had a very interesting couple of days!

Thursday I had classes until 12:05, which is a normal occurrence for me, however for my last class of the day (at 10:50AM) I had a high school student sit in with me. Her name is Dani and she’s from Connecticut. At any rate she is auditioning for the theatre program here at SUNY NP tomorrow morning. Break a leg Dani! So she sat in my Major Authors: Sylvia Plath class, where she got a feel for “real college life.” Haha…then we went to Hasbrouck dining hall, where we met up with some of my friends Adam and Trevor. We had some laughs and ate some good food (they had a lovey lunch assortment Thursday.) Afterward, Dani and I walked into town and chatted about upcoming auditions (ooo nerve racking), about what to do on the weekends, what clubs and organizations they have and living arrangements. We were about to approach The Groovy Blueberry, one of my favorite shops in town, when we approached her mom. So all three of us meandered around inside the store, oohing and ahhing at everything and anything with tye dye and peace signs. I didn’t mind staying in there as long as we did, because I don’t normally get a chance to just roam around town. I was really glad I volunteered for Spend the Day. It was a great opportunity to show someone around and make them feel comfortable! I hope we can see each other more next year! -)

After I dropped Dani off at the Haggerty Administration Building (her mom wanted to pay her deposit right on the spot)  I headed back to my hall. The sun was shining, the rain passed a while back, and now it was time to work out and get some work done before the show I was going to see. I had a ticket for “Size Ate,” this one woman show performing about her personal experience with body image. The program says: “Margaux Laskey’s one-woman show Size Ate chronicles this futile quest for measured perfection in a theatrical, sometimes musical and often hysterical retelling of her journey through obsession and addiction to something like self-acceptance. A non-linear tale of her adventures in body, food, and culture. This show is one woman’s honest commentary on the labels, images, and assumptions we all live with.”

So that’s how they summed it up, and I think it’s a good a summary. I did like her through out her journey on stage. She had a very open personality, that made it easy to be able to relate to some of her feelings and situations. However, I felt there were some things that could have been improved. For example, throughout the entire play she used these torso mannequins that were labeled 0, 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, and 16. And they did their best to be the actual size of Imagine if you were in that audience to be aware of body image and to relate to this woman, and your weight, your size, your number, surpassed what was being represented as “fat.” What happens if you are a size 18, or 20, or 22? Imagine how that person in the audience must feel, that their size isn’t even being represented on stage. I just thought of that after the performance. Also, while I was discussing the performance with some of my friends, some interesting points were spoken about.  Ms. Margaux did fluctuate back and forth between being heavier and “full-filled” as she put it to rather skinny and anorexic. When asked the question an audience member, “Are you comfortable with your body now?” she answered, that she was indeed content with her body. But how did she become content with her body? I wish she showed the process of how she finally became healthy. I wish they promoted the idea of exercise and eating right into her performance. Also, is she finally content with her body because she is thin, because to be quite honest, she was on the thin side. Although you definitely looked past her body during the performance, would people respond better if she had more “meat” on her? Or do you respect her more because she completed the task…she became thin. Hmmm…curious.

**Just so you know***

If you need to talk you can contact the SUNY New Paltz Counseling Center, at 845-257-2920, where they are opened from 8:30-5 Monday-Friday or you can check out http://www.newpaltz.edu/counseling/

Also, If you need some BODY-POSITIVE INSPIRATION, here are some websites:

www.sizeate.com and www.sizeate.blogspot.com

www.adiosbarbie.com, www.bodypositive.com, everwomanhasaneatingdisorder.blogspot.com, www.evolvedeating.com, www.jessicaweiner.com, www.loveyourbody.nowfoundation.org, www.mamavision.typepad.com, wwwnationaleatingdisorders.org, www.overcomingovereating.com, www.something-fishy.org, www.webiteback.com

At any rate, it was a good performance all in all. That night I had Sexy Pitch rehearsal….go a cappella! We actually have a performance in Scudder Hall on March 5th, which is this upcoming Thursday! You don’t wanna miss it! Then I went to bedy-bye and woke up for my Friday classes…oh joy! This blog is already particularly long…(how does that always happen to me?) So…I’ll have to write another one about today!

I really must go to bed. It’s 2:30 in the morning, I can’t turn off the movie Titanic, and I have to be on a bus at 8:30 to go ice climbing tomorrow. I know…WHAT? ICE CLIMBING! I’m really excited….I hope all goes well! Alright, well I guess I”ll have to let go Jack, and jump into my comfy sheets. Ah. Happy Zz’s!

What a day.

I woke up at 7:15, peered out my window, and saw white puffs from heaven falling on the ground- SNOW! It was almost time to  get on the bright, yellow school bus waiting for me outside the Athletic and Wellness Center (which quite literally is RIGHT behind my building!) I had my ski stuff in a duffel bag, some cash, my phone, and I’m ready to go! I get on the bus, with the whole seat to myself (like that EVER happens on school buses.)  It was quite a tricky process getting to Hunter Mountain. I don’t know why, but the bus driver kept pulling over and asking for directions. EEE! My dad woulda been furious, us getting to the mountain so “late.” Anything over ten minutes after the lifts open is considered bad- news-bears according to our family ski policy. AH, but surprisingly I wasn’t frustrated. I was cool as a cucumber.

As I mentioned in my previous blog, I just signed up on a whim for this trip, and didn’t try to recruit any other students to go with me. I figured, hey- I like skiing, so I’m just gonna go. And ya know what? It was a good experience. I made my way through the maze of renting my ski equipment (which I still have to go through because I’ve never gotten around to getting my own boots/skis/poles…) I had to put my duffel bag in a locker, which barely fit! I luckily had some singles so I tried to un-do the folds in them in order for my Washingtons to be eaten up by the machine. I was surprised to find ONE token fall. A dollar a token? Really? But then again, should I really be that surprised? Then when I was all ready to go I realized…**** I forgot my goggles in my duffel bag. So I whip out my key, open up the duffel, get my handy dandy goggles and then pay another dollar to lock the bloody thing up again. I just wanted to ski and I was boiling in there with all those layers on!

I was ready to hit the slopes! The closest lift I set my eyes on, I was on it! The skis weren’t bad. I decided on 150s instead of 160s which is what I usually use. I opted for a smaller ski, length-wise, because I wanted more control, instead of more speed, which is what I’d get if I picked a longer ski (like 160s). My reasoning behind this was it was snowing like crazy and I wasn’t sure how well I’d be able to handle all that fresh powder. I’m not use to powder-skiing. I knew this before I went up the mountain. I’ve never been out west, regretfully, but hopefully someday I’ll be making fresh tracks on those trails.

At any rate, my predictions were right, and my legs were having difficulty deciphering the extreme differences between the huge piles of fresh snow and the ice underneath it (or right along side of it.) However, I didn’t want to stop. It was a challenge, especially since I wasn’t waiting for anyone. Therefore I raced down the mountain, went on the lift by filing in the singles line, and skiied down again, and again, and again. When I’m on vacation with my family or friends, we usually all wait on the side of the trail to make sure we have everyone before we continue. Usually…if we aren’t too antsy to continue skiing. So we get some more resting time….My lift ride was my resting time.

I had some interesting conversations with people on the lifts. There was a father and his two young kids. The boy was the youngest and he kept making dinosaur noises at me with boogers running down his nose, while his older sister tried to kick his skis off. That was interesting. Another time I was accompanied by three snowboarders who were discussing some raunchy t0pics, until the guy next to me exclaimed, “Hey guys, we have a lady present.” They all strained to look at me, and then came out with a bunch of “Oh-I’m-so-sorry’s.”  OH come on like THAT really offended me. Another guy said, “Oh, I thought you were a dude. Not like you LOOK like a dude. I mean you do have a helmet on, but no, I just thought a dude jumped on the lift with us. Guys usually do that. That’s all. You really don’t look like a dude though. Honest.” ( Ok- you can stop saying the word dude, for one, and I get what you mean, so please stop babbling.) Ah- I couldn’t stop laughing. Then they whipped out a flask and shared some sangria, exclaiming how it was some of the best they’ve ever tasted. The guy next to me offered me some, but I politely declined, for several reasons which I didn’t list aloud.

So it was 1:30ish and my legs were ON FIRE. I was having trouble  staying in control on the diamonds after a while, because my thighs were sore and my back leg was getting lazy with each turn. I decided it’d be a good time to get some hearty lunch and take a breather from the snowy hills. I went inside, ripped off all my wet gear, and bought myself some chili in a bread bowl (splurge!) It was delicious and warm and ahh hit the spot. I sat there for a bit, enjoying the warmth returning to my cheeks, as I watched ESPN’s bowling championship on TV. That wouldn’t be the first channel I’d turn the TV to, but ya know, my eyes lingered to it often.

After a little more stalling with finishing off a small hot chocolate, I knew I had to get back outside. It’s always hard for me to leave the warm confinements of the lodges to go back outdoors in the flurries. That’s why I don’t like to stop. At any rate, there was a family sitting close to me at the same rectangular table as me. The closest family member was a young boy with a freckled face, copper hair and a big toothed smile. He liked to tell knock knock jokes, which I overheard through out the course of my meal. When I was gearing back up, he was getting up to throw out some garbage.  On the way back from his trip to the pale, he sat down next to me, looked up into my face and smiled while saying, “Well, hello there!” It was one of those smiles that kids are famous for. He grinned extra wide, with his eyes shut and his nose crinkled to emphasize the extremity of it all. Then he slid down the rectangular table’s bench on his butt, until he made it back to his family. What a cute kid.

Now, this is where the story gets dramatic. WHERE DID MY SKIS GO? I couldn’t find them anywhere. My skis and poles weren’t where I left them, so I checked other racks to see if someone moved them for some odd reason. I tried on random pairs, which looked the same as mine, but didn’t fit of course. So I came to the conclusion that my skis were stolen. Who the heck would steal rental skis? I called my dad all flustered. Of course I just sat at a table inside, biting my finger and trying to hold back tears as he told  me not to worry about it.  I grunted “uh huhs” as answers, afraid that if I actually constructed real words, the waterworks would start flowing. I knew what I had to do. I dragged my feet to the rental place, and told them how someone’s taken my skis (well really THEIR skis.)  Funny story! Someone already returned them, thinking they were their’s and that they weren’t working anymore. In fact girly, they were mine, and you made me almost go out of my mind with worry! But it’s all good, because I don’t have to pay for some lost skis. PHEW!

At that point, it was late in the day, so I just decided to return my boots, and read some homework while chugging some water and unwinding. It was nice to relax and get some reading done. Before I knew it, it was 4:15, so I got back on the bus and by 6pm we were home. After that there was some more reading to get done, some dinner to put in my belly, and some Oscar’s to watch. By the way, I’m SO glad Kate Winslet and Sean Penn won the Oscars! ‘Bought time Kate Winslet! ‘Bought time!

Oh and by watching the Oscar’s it made me realize I watch NO MOVIES!? Why is that? I want to watch EVERYTHING….RIGHT NOW. Haha so if anyone is up for a movie night, just contact me, and I’m sure I’m game!

Ok sorry for so much writing, but there were a lot of interesting details I wanted to share. Until next time,

Kristen

So it was a while back that I finished my R.A.D. Women’s Self Defense class, but I really really wanted to post about it, because it was such a wonderful, empowering experience!

R.A.D stands for Rape, Aggression, Defense. The classes took place Tuesday and Thursday nights, Jan 29th, Feb 3rd, 5th and 10th from 6-9 in the Student Union Building’s Multi Purpose Room. So that’s 12 hours of personal protection, information, and hands-on basic self-defense techniques! This class is for women only (sorry dudes.) For all SUNY New Paltz students, staff and faculty, it was $10, and $15 for the general public!That’s just a little backtground information, but it was truly a great experience.

It’s a class that’s  trained to get you through basic physical defense mechanisms for women. On the first day we went through this large yellow packet that informed us of all sorts of things: the R.A.D. objective, general definitions, basic principles, self defense and the law, abduction, risk reduction, the date rape mentality, pattern of the date rape encounter, using the hand as a weapon, lifetime practice policy, vulnerable locations, and being familiar with the defensive mind-set.  PHEW that was a mouth-full. It may sound like jibber-jabber now, but don’t worry, you go through it with the officers who run the program. You can also ask a ton of questions to make sure you’re truly comprehending the information. All in all, this session was very desciptive.

For example,  did you know that if a guy and girl are drunk and the girl seems to want to have sex, but passes out and doesn’t give verbal consent, it is considered rape? I didn’t. In fact, what was actually considered rape was always a foggy line with me and now I’m glad to know that line sharpened in my mind. The quoted definition is, “An act of intercourse is rape if it occurs through the use of the victim’s mental incapacity or physical helplessness. Physical helplessness is defined as unconsciousness or any other condition which renders the victim physically unable to communicate an unwillingness to act and about which the accused knew or should have known. Thus, if alcohol or drug use causes a person to be unable to consent to sexual intercourse, having sex with that person is rape.” Also, the definition of rape in the packet is: “sexual intercourse with a person against her or his will, through force, threat and/or intimidation.”

Since us classmates had so many questions, we mainly started using pad-work on Thursday. For the remaining 3 sessions, we learned so many new maneuvers. I’m just going to put up some pictures, because I feel that’s the best way to describe it!

Funny right? I had to put this up.

We learned that what’s really the most essential form of defense is using your verbals. Most girls who say no, say it timidly, so it can be misinterpreted as her not really meaning it. You want to make sure that the guy really understands that you mean business:  by using your verbals full force there’s no misinterpreting.

The last day of class, we went through something called simulation, where the two male officers wore heavy-duty padding ALL OVER THEIR BODIES. Then we go through several situations where we might be attacked or double teamed, and we have to use what we learned to defend ourselves. We’re wearing padding and equipment too. Don’t worry. I was sooo scared for this class. “What if I don’t remember anything? What if I freeze?” But you know what? Not one of us quit and said we couldn’t do it. We treated it like a real situation and we all succeed through it. I actually wish we had more simulation trials throughout the class, after I realized first hand that my instincts would kick in…of course. Here are some pictures during simulation. Don’t be intimidated by all the padding! NO ONE was hurt during this, I promise! It was actually pretty darn cooooool!

Right in the groin.

And…he’s down.

There should be another R.A.D class coming in March, and I’d love to attend! I’m hoping my schedule will grant me that! I mean, how else am I going to practice? Oh, and bonus! For all those who already took R.A.D can come to classes for free!!

I highly highly recommend doing these classes if you can. It’s extremely worth while, and only 10 bucks!To be honest with you, I signed up for these classes because I initially thought it would be a rewarding work out, not because I was nervous some guy might attack me.  However, I was informed about things I never would have thought of before, like check the back seat of your car before driving away. I mean, you never know what crazy person you may encounter, right? It’s not good to be paranoid, nonetheless it IS good to be safe.

Besides, I couldn’t believe when Officer Kelsey told me that these classes never fill up. In fact, this is the largest class they’ve had in a while! PSH, who knew? Well below is a picture of the entire class after similation with Officers Jenelle Kelsey, Johnny Coxum and John Ritayik.

To register/find out information please call UPD Officers Johnny Coxum or Jenelle Kelsey @ 845-257-3340 or e-mail them at coxumj@newpaltz.edu or kelseyj@newpaltz.edu.  If you want to check out more information of R.A.D in general, the website is www.rad-systems.com

Truly, all women should take R.A.D. It’s always good to be knowledgeable and ready to defend yourself if need be.

Hope to see you gals there!

Oh happy day, it’s the weekend!

Hope everyone had a splendid Friday and such. Last night I was at the Winter Formal with all the Sexy Pitches. At 7:30, we sang 3 of our most up-beat, fun lovin’ songs. I was sportin’ this green get-up from forever 21 and some jade colored eye-make up to close the deal. It was fun to get all spiffed up and attempting at the stylish route while singing my heart out. After a little a cappella, I danced it up with my roommate from freshman year in the Student Union Building’s Multi Purpose Room. I love Liz and I miss her greatly! At any rate, it was so nicely decorated, with snowflakes and white lights in the formation of icicles.  Christine Sweeney and I had some shirley temples, which were scrumptious and then we went out on the dance floor! You know, it was a really nice idea…and I wish the whole school attended as if it were prom in high school. Because it was such a sweet notion, with everyone dressed up to kill and dancing….UH, lovely! I had such a nice time shakin’ my booty off! I get into it, tis true. They even had a backdrop set up where you could take pictures of you and your group. They printed them out within 20 minutes! CUUTE! You know, NPBlogger Jesse was one of the people running this entire event, so I bet she has more information on the winter formal. I just thought I’d touch upon it, since I really thought it was cute and a grand ole’ time!

On Thurs. night the Sexy Pitches and Absolut A Cappella performed a dorm performance in Deyo Hall. So many people showed up, and I just want to thank all those lovelies for coming and supporting the love of music! Thanks again! It was a fun night. Absolut had a bunch of dance-able, crazy tunes like Mambo Number Five, which made me laugh and laugh! Oh I love how they have fun with whatever they’re singing! Us Sexy Pitches debuted a new song as well. Maybe I shouldn’t give it away, because we are performing tonight at The College Terrace on campus (behind the Sojourner Truth Library.) Maybe I should just say to come tonight, and find out! That will start at 10pm tonight to hear more a cappella sing-sations! Get there early if you want a good seat. Ya know.

Obviously I over-estimated my arm-length here. Everyone else looks sexy, while I look like I’m trying to catch my balloon which I mistakenly released into the atmosphere.

It doesn’t even look like my mouth is open, but I swear to you I’m singing.

I love Christine Sweeny’s smile in this. She’s the one in the black shirt singing the solo, “Killing Me Softly!” In the picture, she’s a little to the left of my flailing arms.

All these pictures are courtesy of Christopher Thurston. Thanks!!

Before the concert, today is going to be my reading/homework/laundry/cleaning/working-out day. That won’t be the most joyous thing in the world- I won’t sugar coat it. However, tomorrow is going to be great! Although I was on the waiting list, I’m going to Hunter Mountain to go skiing again! BOOYAH! I hope the weather is nice (with some sun, less wind preferably) and easy does-it on the amount of ice. That would be great. To be honest, I’m not going with ANYONE I know…I just signed up on my own. It was a nice deal! Twenty-five smackaroos for lift ticket, equiptment and lessons if need be. If I wanted to try snowboarding I could take the instructor, but to be honest, I just don’t think I’d have fun. I want to speed down the mountain in tight turns– seeing how many runs I can do. It will be nice to just have a hard ski day and then on the bus ride home, just read or listen to some music. I love being around people, but sometimes it’s nice to rejoice in solitude.

So those are the plans for the weekend! I hope everyone is relaxing!

Kristen