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Diva Lesson #8: Celebrate!

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Hello hello my Divas! It’s nice to be able to converse with you once again. Throughout this crazy, strange week, I wasn’t sure if I would make it to the end. Yet, here I am, not only surviving, but thriving! (Maybe that should be another lesson…we shall see). This week was a true oddity because we had Monday classes on Tuesday, and Tuesday itself was obliterated from the school week. Talk about sheisty! But such is life I suppose, and despite being hit with the triple whammy of an 8am class three days in a row, I still made the best of it and I survived! It’s what Gloria would have wanted (Gaynor…for those of you who may not know for some reason.) Well anyway, with the arrival of Diva Lesson #8 comes midterms! Take some time to review the past Diva Lessons, and make sure you understand them fully! You never know when you  may need to apply one or more of them in your everyday life. Proper application is surely, the key to success. Anyway, now that I’ve gone off rambling, let’s get back to the meat of the issue! Now when you hear midterms, I know most of you are probably thinking about crazy tests which cover a ton of information, all complied onto just a few sheets of paper. But here at Diva Lessons, we don;t play it like that. Instead, we’re gonna teach y’all a fun lesson! That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take it seriously though, of course! So here it is, “Diva Lesson #8: Celebrate!”

Now amongst our daily shuffles from place to place; activity to activity, we may found ourselves lost, confused, or overwhelmed. First, consider looking back at the Diva Lesson entitled Balance is Key (it’s a winner, I assure you.) But then, the next step it to remember to enjoy life, and make the most of it! Sometimes this means taking some time away from your studies, to celebrate those in your life who are important and matter most to you. Amidst my crazy schedule, that’s exactly what I did over the weekend. To start off the weekend, which would ultimately lead to my friend Sarah’s birthday on Tuesday, I went and paid a visit to Suite Ronnie Intensive (home of Sarah, Jenn, Eileen, Lindsay, Haley, and Dom…and kind of Jon). Things started out like a typical Friday night, with the usual food and Mario Baseball playing. But then, we decided that for Sarah’s birthday, we would have a scavenger hunt. Eileen and Lindsay were one team, and Sarah and Jenn were the other team. They made up lists for each other, and I was the judge. I assigned different point values to the items on each of the lists, so that we could determine a winner at the end. Both of the teams made hilarious and somewhat challenging lists which ranged from taking wacky pictures with different people or in random places, and others mandated collecting items, like restaurant menus or TCBY samples. The whole night was truly a blast. At the end, when the teams came back together, we ate an entire loaf of challah bread while laughing at the hilarious pictures they had taken, and items that were collected. It was by far one of the funniest moments in a long time.

The following day, we all simply hung out, and at night I went over to Gage to help Jen make some items for the sub-regional meeting that will be taking place here at New Paltz over the weekend. I helped her make door tags for all of the visiting people, and they turned out wonderfully. The next day, which was Sunday, Sarah’s parents both came up to visit for her birthday. They’re always hilarious, and I enjoy when I get to see them. Initially, we all went apple picking and Jenn creepily took photos of cute babies we saw while we were on a tractor ride to the apple trees. But, this weekend was unusually warm, so it ended up being too hot to fully enjoy picking the apples. Therefore, we went back to campus, and hung out around Suite Ronnie Intensive (located inside Dubois, and known as SRI, as Stephen calls them). We all watched videos of Sarah from when she was still in high school and laughed at how crazy she and her friends were. The best video was her birthday video, which her friends made for her. It’s probably one of the funniest things ever created. A little later on, Sarah’s parents took her out to dinner, and Jenn, Eileen, Lindsay, and I went on a mission to gather items for Sarah’s birthday. This included a ton of pictures that were used to create a giant collage.of hilarious or fun pictures taken over the year, and throughout her life. Then, we finished off the night by all returning to SRI (have you been paying attention to the abbreviations?!) and had ice cream cake for Sarah’s birthday! It was truly a wonderful day.

The following day, we still didn’t have classes because of Columbus Day. So I was able to sleep late, I stayed in Haley’s bed for most of the weekend, and I listened to the Student Ambassadors out the window as they went by with tour. It was another simple and relaxing day with friends, and Sarah and I were both in our friend Jen’s movie for her film class which took up a large portion of the afternoon. Following that, we got lunch, and spent the remainder of the day studying and doing homework for the week to come. Once midnight hit on Tuesday morning or Monday night, Jenn brought out a candy cake which she and Eileen had made earlier in the day. Basically, a candy cake is a typically circular structure, both filled and surrounded by candy, giving it the appearance of a cake. It’s pretty interesting. I went back to my room, and went about the next day as a typical Monday (even though it was Tuesday?) and had lunch with SRI for Sarah’s birthday, went to my classes, and got everything I needed done. Then, we all went out to dinner at the Olive Garden for Sarah’s birthday. I went with Sarah, Eileen, Jenn, Lindsay, Jon, Steven, and Mary. It was really a blast, but I don’t think the staff liked us very because we were a group of college students. That’s fine though. I hope she had a really wonderful weekend and birthday, because it was very nice to be with everyone and take time to celebrate as people should when someone important has a big event in their lives!

Basically, to sum up this lesson, always remember that people are most important. Quizzes and tests will come and go, and although they have a great importance, especially in college (for obvious reasons), having that strong foundation of friends to help support you and have fun with is also key. It is the best feeling to be able to make them feel loved and appreciated, simply for being a part of your life. That’s why this lesson is so important. It is essential to take some time out, even a small amount of time, and just celebrate! Let your hair down, and let loose! But of course, never lose your class and poise, because those are arguably the most essential pieces to being a Diva. Anyway, I guess it all really just comes back to two main ideas. Appreciate those you love, and never be afraid to express it, especially when it’s their special day, and always remember how important it is to celebrate and enjoy these moments in life! Too frequently, we get caught up in the constant buzzing of life’s activities, but being able to celebrate and truly enjoy what life has to offer is an essential skill, especially when it comes to being a Diva, and reaching your true potential. I suppose that’s really all I have to say this week! Enjoy you next week, and be sure to check in next week for the next Diva Lesson installment! Until then, this concludes “Diva Lesson #8: Celebrate!”

 

Extra Credit!

As if I don’t have enough going on in my life, this week, I decided to run for Vice President of Capen Hall, where I live on campus. There was an opening, and I took this as a sign that I should run for the position because i hadn’t done so originally and I missed being involved in Hall Government. Luckily, I got the spot!! I’m excited to see what this new Hall Government and my position have to bring me.

As stated earlier in the Lesson, this weekend we’re hosting a NEACURH sub-regional meeting. This means I will be able to meet the chair of my national committee, Danielle. I’m very excited to finally meet her in person, and assist at the meeting in anyway that they need me too.

Further, this weekend is Parent and Family Weekend. Being an Orientation Leader, I am obligated to help out. For my shift, I will be taking a boat ride on the Hudson River with Christie, Stephen, and 300 parent and family members. It should be interesting and I hope it doesn’t rain. Also: Stephen and I bought matching sailor hats, so that should also be hilarious.

Tonight, I attended an A Capella show in Bevier Hall. There were so many people there and the lounge was so warm! All of the groups were great, and the Sexy Pitches performed a new song. But of course, their new song was “Back to Black” by Amy Winehouse. I nearly started  crying because I love her and miss her so much! Stephen thought this was funny, so her sent out a mass text to all of the other Orientation Leaders to tell them, because I had done an Amy Winehouse tribute during session 5 of orientation.

Of late, my life has felt a little messy, or a little all over the place. I think I have some things to sort through, but that’s life I suppose. When it comes down to it, you need to be able to persevere through problems, and face them head on, with your head held high. It may not come easily, and it might take some work, but it’ll be worth it in the end. It’s a process, and I think I need to get started.

Diva Lesson #5: Indulge

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Heyhey my Divas-in-training! If you’re like me, you’ve been hard at work day in and day out, and you’re probably looking for some kind of a break. Hey, I don’t blame you! We all want some time to relax and enjoy some free time. Well…you’re probably wondering “But wait Brendan, what exactly does a Diva do with spare time?” Obviously the number one answer any Master Diva would tell you: “Get that heel training in!” High heels aren’t easy, but practice makes perfect! Well anyway, that’s not what this lesson is about. Actually, this lesson is about something different…probably the number two answer to that question…and the answer is: Indulge. Hey, you work HARD for the money and everyone is entitled to a break. So lemme tell ya ’bout it. So here we go, strap on those training tiaras and get ready, cause this week’s lesson is “Diva Lesson #5: Indulge.”

All last week, I was counting down the days to the weekend. It was our first feel week of classes and you KNOW I was feelin’ it. But hey, we’re here in college to work, and that’s what we do. So anyway, last week was a big week in my family. It was my parent’s anniversary, my dad’s birthday, and my sisters birthday. All of these events within one week of each other! Cray-cray, I know. But life works in mysterious ways. As part of this extravagant celebration, my parents decided that they would come up to visit me, along with my sister, for the weekend. So, on Saturday morning, my parents came and picked me up from New Paltz. We had a small debacle where we all ended up running circles around Parker Quad looking for each other, and it was kind of hilarious. Eventually, we all met up and I went with them to the neighboring town of Gardiner where we would be staying for the night.

The place where were staying was an apartment above someone’s garage. It was a giant room with a bed, futon, and couch, along with a TV set, refrigerator, and a small but nice bathroom. The home was gorgeous and it even had a heated pool, a hot tub, and a sauna along with a mountain view. It was wonderful. After we dropped our things off, we drove down the road and got some sandwiches and other food to have a picnic in the mountains. We then drove down to an area of the Mohonk Preserve where there was a little waterfall and we ate our lunch. Then, we drove further down the road to a second area of Mohonk and took to the trails! We did some hiking through the mountain trails, and then some serious rock climbing as well. As you can imagine, I wasn’t particularly prepared for this, and wasn’t exactly thrilled about this rock climbing situation. Still, I went along with it, and after I did it, I felt pretty accomplished. It ended up being really cool and the view was spectacular from the top of that area up high on the rocks. Also while we were hiking, we ran into a woman and her family. Funny enough, the woman recognized me. She was one of the people in charge of International Orientation and she recognized me from working with me since I was an Orientation Leader this summer. This just furthered the lesson that you will be recognized as an Orientation Leader wherever you are…even on the side of a mountain. We chatted with her family and ended up descending the mountain with them as well. It was a charming afternoon.

After we left the Mohonk Preserve, we went back to the house to compose ourselves and get super classy for our evening ahead of us. We ended up going to dinner at the French restaurant inside of the Culinary Institute of America. The campus there was so beautiful and when looking at the map, I realized that all of their residence halls were named after different spices which I thought was hilarious. The restaurant was phenomenal. I had a seafood crepe, aged pan seared beef, and flour-less chocolate cake with hazelnut ice cream. The food was all so wonderful, and the atmosphere was great as well. While at dinner, my family had time to relax and catch up with each other. We talked about all kinds of things, and I updated them on what’s been going on in my life lately in more detail, since it can be hard to do so over the phone. Once we were done there, we went back outside and the campus was beautifully illuminated, and there was a gorgeous fountain right outside of the main doors. We drove back to the house for the night, and we all just relaxed for the evening. My mom and sister even took advantage of the facilities and took a dip in the hot tub! I was super tired though, so I just hung around the room and went to sleep.

The next day, we packed up all of our things since we would be leaving that day. It was my sister’s birthday too! She turned 21. We started out the morning watching reality TV (Top Chef: Just Desserts, in case you were wondering) and we ate cookies that my dad bought downtown. Then, we got the car all loaded up and headed out to breakfast at the Plaza Diner. It was weird being there during the day, because generally Stephen, Jen, and I go there really late at night. But hey, a little change up never hurts. While we were there, my sister opened her birthday gifts. My parents bought her a Nook Color, and I got her a gift card that she could buy things for her Nook with. I placed it inside of a Little Mermaid card. I figured it was fitting. After that, we went down to a nearby apple orchard and we picked apples for a while. I was picking all of the biggest one and had a really heavy bucket. We walked all over that orchard looking for the best apples. Fruit selection should be taken very seriously! I picked about 19 pounds, and my sister got about 14-15 pounds. That’s a ton of apples. Once we left there, we made a stop at my sister’s friend’s place. She just transferred to New Paltz and lives off campus, so she invited us over to take a look. The place was very small, put perfect for her needs and very cute too. Still though, it made me think about how glad I was to still be living on campus. I don’t think I’ll ever move off.

Finally, it was time for them to leave. They dropped me off back on campus with all of my things, including a ridiculous amount of apples, and my magazines. Magazines are essential. You need to keep yourself updated! Mark Sanchez is on the cover of GQ, Armie Hammer is on the cover of Details, and Kate Moss is on the cover of the phenomenal and over the top 758 page tome that is the Vogue September Issue. I live for this. Once I was back on campus, it was right back into the regular routine. Homework, Avant-Garde staff meeting, and then straight into the week with interviews (more on that in Extra Credit!), club meetings, homework, classes, quizzes, and other such things. This week, I had nine of my students all with birthdays within ten days of each other. Insanity I say! The week actually went by very quickly though, and I can’t believe it’s Thursday night already.
As I sit here typing, awaiting my 8:00 meeting with the Chairs of the NACURH Advocacy Committee, and then the first A Capella show of the semester at 10:00, I can’t help thinking and reflecting upon the fact of how important it is to treat yourself. You need to take care of yourself above all else. It can really help you get into a better frame of mind just to take a step back and do something that is either a lot of fun, or that you really enjoy. Sometimes, an escape can be the perfect remedy when you’re feeling stressed, sad, or just need a serious time out. This past weekend was the perfect example of this principle….and believe me, I indulged enough for all of you! Do not ever hesitate to enjoy yourself and indulge because hey, let’s face it! You’re a Diva, you deserve it! That’s why the lesson for this week is “Indulge.” You are now free to engage in your own person guilty pleasure. Enjoy!

Extra Credit: Earlier this week, Jen, Rose (also known as Lil Fabz), and I were sitting in our Feminist Art and Culture Class, and suddenly we heard “Only Girl in the World” playing from someone’s phone before class started. It was hilarious.
Also: This week, I had my interview for a spot as a delegate to go to NEACURH later this year. It went very well and I found out today that I got the spot as a delegate! I’m very excited and can’t wait for all of the preparation to begin for the conference.
Finally, New York Fashion Week has been going on. The lines from all of the designers have been pretty flawless. Spring 2012 looks very promising. Be sure to check them out on the Vogue website or something! They’ll leave you gagging on eleganza!

Diva Lesson #2: Return to Your Roots.

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Hello hello once again! I know you simply can’t get enough of my diva lessons, so why keep the general public waiting any longer?! So here it is: The second lesson on your road to full-fledged DIVA! So, here it is: Diva Lesson #2: Return to Your Roots…and no, I’m not talkin’ about your natural hair color. But that can be just as important. That’s a lesson for another time though…

As you may have learned if you had read my last post, on Monday of this week, we didn’t have class due to that ultimate diva who would not be upstaged, Hurricane Irene. Irene may have stopped classes, but she cannot stop the world. Especially the world of extracurricular activities. Some of them anyway. This fact meant that the organization known as the Residence Hall Student Association would be having its first meeting of the semester.

Up until the moment I walked through the door really, I felt conflicted about whether or not I should attend the meeting. During my first year, I was an active member of hall government, and participated very actively in the Residence Hall Student Association (RHSA). This year, a mix of events, including being active in many other clubs and organizations, left me conflicted about whether or not I would stay involved with RHSA over the course of this year. I thought it over, and decided that I would attend the meeting because my friend Stephen was going, and my friend Sarah was being introduced for her position as RCC (Regional Communications Coordinator) as part of the Regional Board of Directors (RBD), for the larger regional affiliation of the Residence Hall Student Association, known as NEACURH. I know I just threw a ton on abbreviations at you, but that’s what we like to do. Abbreviate things. If you have trouble catching on, it’s okay, I won’t hold it against you. Britney Spears wouldn’t want me to. Finally, the last piece which contributed to my decision was that this year, I hold to position of Vice Chair of the Advocacy Committee for all of NACURH, the National Association of College and University Residence Halls.

At 9:00, I headed over to Bevier, a suite style residence hall, where the meeting for the week was being held. Sarah and I walked in together, and instantly I recognized so many faces of people who I hadn’t seen since the end of the spring semester. I went around and talked to a lot of people before the meeting began, and then took my seat next to Stephen. Basically, RHSA represents the interests of all students living on campus, and organizes large events for them to participate in, as well as advocates for their interests to make sure they have the best possible college experience. That’s what it breaks down to, yo. The meeting was just like any other. Various topics were discusses, an overview of the organization was given, Sarah was introduced, and even I got introduced too which I wasn’t expecting. As the meeting progressed, I thought about how nice it was to be back with all of these people who had helped to shape my first year here on campus.

The meeting went on as usual, and after it was over, I talked to some more of my friends, then went to my friend Kyleen’s room and she gave me a fabulous birthday card with a pair of sunglasses made out of paper on the front. It was phenomenal. Following that, I met up with Stephen and Jen (The second, if you remember from my last blog post), and we drove into town to go to the diner, which is one of our most frequented hang out locations. Two more of my friends, Jaz and Marissa, ended up joining us and we all ate together and had a wonderful time. It was really nice to be able to spend some time with all of them. Jen, Marissa, and Stephen all worked at orientation over the summer, and now that the semester has started again, I don’t get to see them as much so I enjoy spending time with them when I can.

When the evening came to an end, and I returned to my room for the night, I thought back upon the course of night, considering all of the events that had taken place. When I thought about RHSA, I realized how nice it was to be with familiar faces, who had helped me so much during my first year. Through RHSA, I had developed a stronger sense of self on this campus, and helped to develop my leadership skills further, which aided me in gaining a variety of leadership positions both on campus, such as being an Orientation Leader, and even nation-wide, as I am now the Vice Chair of the Advocacy Committee for NACURH, as I stated earlier. Although I do not plan to be as involved as I was last year, I arrived at the decision that it is important to stay involved with RHSA this year, because it is a strong foundation of my roots here it campus. It’s where I grew from, where I evolved from, where I learned from. Give back, my inner Oprah voice told me. That’s what’s most important.F

And so, that is how we arrive at the Diva Lesson of the day. Since RHSA gave me so much, I realized I must return to my roots, continue to help, and continue to learn. I am so thankful for RHSA because of all that it has given me, and now I know I can give back, but also take more as well. There’s always room to grow. So, that’s why the lesson for this session is “Return to Your Roots.” There’s nothin’ like it. Go out there, plant your roots, and return to them when you can or need to. It is essential. Class dismissed.