My Journey to the end...

As the summer came to an end, I did my ritual summer routine. Took the last week of summer off to round up my life and head back to Cuse'. Well not before doing my summer routine, meeting up with the last few people I hadn't seen all summer and the few I saw all summer just to say farewell. One annual routine of my farewell consists of lunch with Louis "Coco" Carlo, the current associate Pastor at Abounding Grace. He was my last stop before the final farewell and it had become tradition to meet him the day before take off. As tradition follows he would always ask for a recap of the year, the summer and our final farewell would be a few questions to ponder over the year. Every year these questions would be my personal project and every year I would end the spring semester with a well crafted answer, sometimes even more questions.

This year however is significantly important as it is my final year at Cuse' and as life would have it I have no idea where the road will lead me after graduation. As the semester has sprung into fulla action and Senior year has been much busier then expected I lost track of the questions till recently. I found them in the bottom of my purse waiting for me to answer them. Not that I wil know the answers to any of the questions quiet yet, but it jogged my memory of that final conversation.

The conversation that led to an entry in my journal about being lost only a week before my car accident then I realized why that tradition had been so important. Every year it started me into the small steps of finding my way back. These questions I have really make me ponder and hopefully by the time it is time to take the walk away from my Undergraduate career I will have an answer. So I leave you with a few questions that he left with me:

1. What are your top 5 values?

2. Why these and how have they changed?

3. Who informed you of these?

4. What are your non - negotiables in life?

Difficult question I believe so impossible to answer I think not. They just take a year of life to learn the answer.

xoxo Lori

Surrounded by Angels

Today, I realized that no matter how far we run, no matter how hard we try to pretend and ignore God is ALWAYS there. Today I learned that no matter how far you run, how many times you turn from him or how badly you mess up he is ALWAYS there. Today I learned that there is such things as miracles. Today I learned how quickly your life can flash before your eyes and how precious life is. Today I learned that you cannot control everything. Today I could've died. As my steering wheel locked and my car spun out of control hitting the guardrails on Interstate 81, I realized how much God loves me and how he has a plan for my life. Today I could've died, I look at the car and cannot explain how i walked away with only some pain and bruises. As the entire front no longer exist on my car I thank God for my life. I did not deserve his mercy or his covering yet I'm alive to share this story. To tell everyone how God is merciful and loving. How no matter how far you run from him he has a calling on your life. I could not think of any reasonable explaination as to why I am currently alive other then God put his angels around me and kept me safe. A miracle I will never forget. Today my life was saved, Today I received a Miracle, Today I was protected and covered. Today my life was spared because he knew exactly what my life was meant for. Today I thank God more then any other day for the life he gave me. For the second chance I didn't deserve.

The Thrill of a thriller

Ever wonder who came up with the idea of roller coasters and extreme sports/ events. Honestly many of them are peoples worst fear yet some of the most money is made from amusements parks. As though the adrenaline rush from the fear and the rides is amazing. For instance those with fear of heights will wait on a six Flags lineto face ones fear. The business made off of money is outragous. As the thrill of facing a fear is that much more exciting in an amusement park then facing them head on. As though the thrill seems to out weigh the previous fear.
I mean for example my fear of heights exists, however today like many other times i have waited on lines for crazy lines but regardeless of how far or high a ride may be, my fear is continually faced each time. As though this thirll out beats my fear, for a fact it does every time. So the question is, do we allow fear to keep us from our thrills or do the thrills beat our fears.

Sleepless City...

The home of 24hour Starbucks, Dunkin Dounuts and pizza shops. The place where night lights and street lights are just as bright as sun and day time lighting. Busy streets only tame down for a moment, when bar lines are around the corner. Where you can bump into more friends in one night then a class reunion. The night life of New York City. The ticket a simple thing really, however something completely uncontrollable. The token AGE 21, the golden ticket to the bustling night lights and the busy streets.
The energy shot to the sleepness center of New York, and the rockin' parties that never end. The home of bars like Contiental, CheapShot and infamous McSorelys http://www.mcsorleysnewyork.com/, the ONE the ONLY a legend on St.Marks Place. But of course only possible with the golden ticket. The sleepless times begin at the stroke of 21. The price of a city that never sleeps well that all depends; a pithcer of beer $15, a shot $, a cab ride home $20 a great time priceless. A ticket to the 24 hour underworld night life that is this sleepless city.

xoxo
Lori

NYC=mean or just Newyorkers

Hello there bloggers, Clearly im am quiet terrible at blogging business...i must say however i am quiet better then i thought id be. Not saying much for my expectations of myself. However on to better and greater things. Ever been to New York, well I live in New York but after 9 months in Syracuse, New York takes some getting used to. Its quiet a cultural shock every time i enter the busy bustling streets of New York. I thought my pace was fast well, clearly I was wrong. New York just seems to keep getting faster paced every time I turn around. Its crazy how things are constantly being changed, upgraded and continually are going in New York.
I mean have you actually stepped outside onto the streets of New York, I mean really looked because I have and its crazy how many people pass one street corner a day. Talk about people watching you could get enough ideas from just people watching for a few hours, no need to waste an entire day. Then theres the fast paced and no apologies for rudely passing someone to just end up stuck at the same light as them. That always makes me laugh. Its as though there are rushing only to realize they are human like everyone else and will have to wait their turn. I mean really only in New York do you see such maddness, such rude behavior.
Seriously apparenlty uttering the words sorry take far too muh time for such busy New Yorkers. From an inside perspective you dont really realize how RUDE NEW YORKERS really are till you take an outside persepctive on the issue. I mean theres just plain rude then theres New York RUDE. I mean New Yorks def but a twist to the word rude. It is no wonder why I get stares when I tell people im from New York. Clearly they saw something I did not see. AHHhhh well then I guess its what makes New Yorkers special, its the New York "special" behavior. Where else would you be able to see the world in one city, bump into a thousand strangers and still not know the name of the guy you sit next to on the train everyday. OHHH ONLY in NEW YORK!!!



xoxo
Lori

Nature attacks

For everyone who was faithful Gilmore Girls watcher knows they have some of the funniest scenes. Well there is one scene in paticular that I always thought was queit funny. When Rory is late to her test and decides to drive her moms jeep. Well she gets attacked by a deer, well her car does. It is one of the funniest scenes ever well apparently nature really does attack like the deer did. Specifically a racoon, yep I said a Racoon attacked my car.

It was unbelieveable but it occured, at first many people laughed claiming I made it up till they saw my car. So believe it or not be careful you never know when nature will attack.

xoxo Lori

Just one of those days

You know the phrase, "just one of those days," well what does it really mean. It has become culturally acceptable to everyday phrases to describe how we are feeling or whats going on in our life. I mean really think about it, we have gone from having Websters dictionary to needing an urban dictionary because the majority of our words come from redefining phrases. We have become a society that over uses phrases shortens most of the words we use and communicates through.
Although I feel like they are overused, I have become one of those people who explains her life through overused quotes. I explain my feelings through these phrases and place them in my everyday lingo. For instance when you ask me how my day is going your likely to hear ahh its one of those days, as though it explains everything. However, I have realized that "one of those days" can be different things to everyone. Its the humor behind the idea that we always say claim no one know how we feel exactly however we use the same phrases to explain how we feel.
I mean really do we all feel the same way, because I think not. I have no problem with everyday phrases. I am an avid user of these phrases, just like I am an over user of phrases like OMG, or using words like Facebook as verbs, like Facebook me. Its funny how the English language changes, from one moment to another.
Well I guess today is just one of those days.

xoxo
Lori

The Caffeine Fix

In a world lived in the fast lane its no surprise that as a nation we are a caffeine addicted. From the moment we rise to the moment we lay our heads down to sleep we are constantly moving. Its as though the world is going to run from us the day we stop and breath for a second. The need for caffeine appears most apparent in places like New York City or college campuses like my very own, SU. However its funny how there aren't many little coffee shops around especially in a cities that live off of coffee. You can find hundreds of deli's restaurants but not tons of little coffee shops except for Starbucks.
Starbucks is the new phenomenon that seems to fill the need for a coffee fix, in a world that seems to need caffeine, it seems to be scarce of coffee shops till Starbucks came around. Not only has Starbucks become more popular than the corner coffee shop,there are many more Starbucks than any other coffee shop. Although its specialty was a remains coffee for the past 30 years Starbucks puts an extra ump into helping people keep up in the fast lane. Now one can have a Mocha Frap, a fun way to get the caffeine fix so needed in these times.
It seems no one is safe from the fast lane these days, as more and more young people are sipping away at there Carmel Fraps or Iced Lattes. Our society has become a group of people living life in the fast lane. A speed that doesn't seem to be close to slowing down any time soon. So a little help never hurt anyone; we are living a life in the fast lane fueled by the caffeine of Starbucks.
So thank you Starbucks for helping us keep up with the fast lane.

xoxo
Lori

A new phenomonen

As the technology takes the world by storm more and more people are becoming technologically savvy. I thought I was super savvy until about two weeks ago when I found out apparently I was really behind. I had been missing out on the Twitter and blogging two things that have become even more popular in the college world.
The saddest part was that my 64 year old Political Science Professor was the one who enlightened me about this phenom of Twitter. So of course I had to get one, and I thought Facebook was bad but Twitter is on a bit of a different level, as more "professionals" have it. Well of course I thought I was on the tech wheel but nope it was a failed effort, failed with a capital F. So now I have added blogging to my list of tech things to do. So here I am, saying hi to the blogging world. Hope my first blog isn't as boring as I think it is.


xoxo
Lori