photos

So here are some photos I wanted to share with everyone. These are pictures of my father's hands that I took for a photo class back in MI. I also have them in my office at the Career Center and they hang on the dining room wall of my father's home in Michigan.

These have titles in the images themselves, but the ones on the walls do not. This series is called "Strength, Hope, Faith and Wisdom" and was inspired by a song by India Arie. Enjoy!

To Blog or Not to Blog? That is the question.

So this is my last posting. I know that many people blog regularly, but I am not sure that I will continue on once this class is over. It has been a great way to catch up and bond with classmates, but I think actually spending time with people is more my thing. I despise email, yet find that I check and recheck 3 different accounts several times a day. I find that it is easier to give people a quick update using email, but it is so impersonal. While it has been fun to read everyone else's blogs, especially when procrastinating, most of what I read, I already knew by having conversations with all of you throughout the semester.

So, for those of you who have done your procrastinating by reading my innermost thoughts, observations, etc. I think I will stick to writing in my journal, where no one has access but me.

Not wanting to stop blogging entirely, I have thought about creating a photo blog and will forward the address if I do open a new blog account. I think Dina's use of her blog to share her paintings was BRILLIANT and a wonderful way to share her talent with others. And I think I could get some good feedback on my photos by sharing them with my friends and family. And who knows? Maybe someone will actually want to BUY one!

Mariela

keep on truckin'

In my last few weeks and throughout this semester I have told myself to 'just keep truckin' and today I saw the funniest thing that made me think about my grad school mantra. While walking past the Lyric today on my way to work (at the Student Center) I saw a truck on Cathedral trying to turn left on Mt. Royal. Now, I am not sure how many of you walk near this intersection on any given day, but it is not a 90 degree left turn. It is more like a 30 degree turn and this 13 wheeler decided he needed to turn left AT THIS intersection. So I'm walking, strolling actually so I can see what's going on, and this guy makes the left, pops his front-end on top of the median and proceeds to get STUCK on the median and wedged up against the light post on the corner. Meanwhile, all the cars behind him and trying to manuever up on the sidewalk and backing up all in an attempt to get away from this moron. Then it hit me. Sometimes, when we keep on truckin, we do get stuck...but eventually we continue on and get moving once again. It is that thought that will hopefully carry me throught the weekend as I try and finish up my last few items for the semester and breathe deep, and start again on the summer term.

my favorite/cool blog

My coolest blog so far has been my neices. It is just this amazing thing to see two totally different girls with different personalities and different abilities grow up side by side. I am just in awe of my sister and brother-in-law and how they are able to both hold careers, raise these little girls and be such good, attentive parents. It is wonderful and awesome to see my sister as a mom. I felt the same way when my little sister had her little girl 8 years ago...It is just totally freaky to see these little girls who were my playmates throughout my entire childhood become and be great moms...what fun!

show and tell - process

For my show and tell I brought in a book called "The Hip Girl's Handbook for Home, Car & Money Stuff". It was a gift from my older sister and it is great. It tells you how to change your oil, unclog a drain, change a tire, find insurance, file your taxes, manage your checkbook etc. The reason I picked up this book (recently) was to reference the chapter on moving titled "Moving Makeover: Scopin' Out a New Place and Getting All Your Stuff There" since I am looking for a new apartment closer to campus and Penn Station.

me, meghan, and the BUBBLE CAR!

Here is a couple pics of me and meghan getting ready for a ride, buckling in, and heading out for a ride around Mt. Vernon in the bubble car! It was so much fun. These were taken at the Spring Block Party by my friend and coworker Stacey McGhee. She knew how much I wanted to take a ride in the bubble car and thankfully let me drag her and her camera along with me! Thanks Stacey!

This particular bubble car is owned by a UB Grad Student and he offers tours around Baltimore. He even has a romance package you can buy for you and your sweetie to cruise around Bmore with a bottle of wine. He is quite the entreprenuer...

Hottie Mr. Mayor

Megan got to post our work photo with Mr. Mayor O'Malley, and it is also on the Career Center website. And although being the 'webmaster' for the UB Post mostly SUCKS, seeing this photo was a perk tonight....He is just amazing, and looks so good in green!

UB Shutdown

Today my co-worker had the idea to shutdown UB for an hour, twice a week. I guess UMBC does it. A one hour break happens twice a week where nothing happens. No classes are scheduled during that time. So then faculty and staff can meet. Does this sound like a crazy idea to anyone else? William is a wacky guy but I love him. Anytime we brainstorm on anything, he comes up with the craziest ideas and makes me laugh. He's also my boss, so I love my job and love the people I work with.

I also work for Barry, who is an actor 'on the side' and has appeared in the West Wing. Pretty cool huh? So next time you see a debonair, white haired man in the career center, you can say, 'I totally ran into that guy that was on the West Wing!'

Another acting-related thing, a friend of mine in High School is now the host of the Planet's Funniest Animals. And another guy I went to high school with is a reporter on CNN, an old coworker of mine is a weatherman on CNN as well.

I am rambling now, but back to the UB Shutdown. I don't know if it would actually benefit anyone but the staff and operations of UB, but since that's the perspective he's coming from, I guess it would be a good idea.

What does anyone else think?