You're Not Alone!

With the weekend coming to a close and the prospect of a lazy, Monday holiday on the horizon, I've had the opportunity to just relax, which I still find unnerving. In the last few months leading up to my return to academia, I worked both a part-time and full-time job. Any form of "relaxing," usually consisted of me sleeping for the five hours in between them. And since I've been in Utah, I've only had more idle time to waste, which I've regrettably filled with meaningless television and video games. However, I have a job interview on Tuesday (I'll keep you all posted) about which will (hopefully) result in more productive evenings for myself.

In other news, I just wanna thank you guys again for the birthday wishes! I really appreciate it! 'Twas a totally awesome day, filled with sushi and delicious birthday cake!

So, let's start with this day's post...

I recently had a chance to re-watch the movie Captain Phillips with a friend. For those of you who haven't heard of it and want to know more (I mean, it's got Tom Hanks in it and he gets hijacked by Somali pirates; kind of an awesome plot line) you can view it's IMDB page here.

During the course of the film, there's a part when Tom Hanks' character, Captain Rich Phillips, is set adrift at sea with only his pirate captors on a lifeboat. And even though the Captain's crew is following closely behind them -- via cargo ship -- it becomes increasingly apparent that he is alone and his chances of survival were rapidly dropping with every passing moment.

I think we can all relate to the Captain's dilemma. In life, we sometimes find ourselves in uncertain situations where the likelihood of us making it out unharmed seems nearly impossible. And even though we have support standing by, our own loneliness sometimes blinds us to their presence.

But the good Captain was not alone! In fact, three US Navy Ships AND a team of Navy Seals were also dispatched and en route to intercept the pirates and rescue him, which they did successfully!

Can you imagine being freed from that chaos and seeing the extent of your rescue party? Would you think that you -- a small, insignificant citizen of Planet Earth -- would be worth the trouble of mobilizing navies and special ops?

I firmly believe there is very little humankind would not do for each other. And whether you believe in a Higher Power or not, I think someone is aware of your troubles and somewhere there's a rescue party on stand-by awaiting the call to assemble and save you.

Take my new roommate Terry, for instance.

This guy is incredible. He's a Psych major here at UVU and he's got the uncanny ability to read body language accurately. He's the kind of person who will stop you in the hallway, ask you about your day, and just give you a hug because he knows something is amiss but won't ever intrude and ask you directly about it. When I was going through my roommate drama earlier in January, Terry would occasionally text me or drop by my apartment. Those visits were random, but they were perfectly timed events that definitely helped me out when I felt alone and isolated.

Then there people who have always been there, like my second cousin Melissa.

To be truthful, I didn't actually know Melissa before I moved to Utah. She was just another relative my mother would randomly discuss who also happened to go to UVU. During the aforementioned roommate drama, I would sit in my apartment and just waste time alone. But all that would change when a five foot tall girl, accompanied by all her roommates, came to my door one evening and said:

"Hey... I'm your cousin and I live upstairs... Wanna hang out?"

And we've been hanging out ever since.

There are lots of people like Terry and Melissa in the world, waiting in the wings to be needed. We just need to be open to them. And maybe, one day, we can be needed for someone else.

An Apology is In Order

So it's officially been over 2 weeks since my last post...

In my defense: My birthday photos keep crashing the Blogger app I use for my blog, so that has frustrated me to no end. And this past weekend I was in the wedding party for my older sister and, as you know, weddings bring out the stress in people.

So please take my most humble of apologies and forgive me of my absence. Hopefully I can make posts more regularly from now on.

PS. I have postponed my 22 Acts of Service Recap post for the time being. It will happen eventually; not now, but soon.

Almost Done Everyone!

My extreme blogging will commence at midnight but until then I can't seem to upload any of my pics on here :(
If you are friends with me on Facebook you can see my actions so far but until then please be patient with me as I try to sort it out.

Game Day Everybody!

It's almost 5am and my right arm is pulsing with caffeine and pain from writing my address a bajillion times but I am ready for today.

It's time.

Pre-Game Thoughts: Why a Day of Service?

Ladies and gentlemen, we are so close I can taste it. :)

But in all seriousness I am a bundle of nerves today. I've got about 3 more cards to finish, some bird feeders to create, and finish the final touches on my artpiece. (Who knew melting crayons would be so fun?)

But as my birthday comes closer I can't help but wonder to myself: why am I doing this? And the more I've pondered about it the more I've realized the reason.

-cue the violins-

My mother is possibly the most blessed women in the world, and not because she has me as a son.

In the early fall of 2011, my mother was admitted to Winchester Medical Center due to complications with her breathing/oxygenation. She was put under almost immediately upon arrival  and spent 5 days on a ventilator and another 10 days staying in the ICU.

After 17 total days in the hospital she returned home, spending Thanksgiving and Christmas with our family.

On New Years Eve she was admitted again and spent 19 days in the hospital.

(You see where this is going, right?)

So when my birthday came around a month later, the last thing on anyone's mind was celebrating.

You would think that after enduring that I would be more grateful for my mother and care less about my birthday, but sadly that was not the case.

I distinctly remember being really angry and hateful. This was MY birthday after all. Why couldn't it be normal?

Its amazing how much we can grow up in a year.

So, this year I figured I would do penitent service to offset my terrible mood last year.

Is that a good enough reason?

Quick Service Update!

Thought I'd share some of my progress with you all so far. 2/5 of the handmade cards are complete and I have one work of art done as well. Moving along quite nicely if I do say so myself. One week left till my birthday. Will I make it?

The Official "22 Acts of Service" List

It's the moment you've all been waiting for! Here is the official list:

1. Leave quarters at a laundromat - For the first year I lived in Winchester I had to depend on the laundromat to get my clothes clean. And you can easily drop about $15 - 20 to finish every load. So just a few dollars in quarters taped to a machine can help offset some of that burden.
2. Donate used books to a library - I actually have a stack of books on the corner of my room that have only been read once and will probably never be opened again. So this way I can give them a chance at being read more than once.
3. Pay the tab for someone behind me - A lot of the sites I looked at for ideas had this one. And how awesome would it be to pull up to the cashier in a McDonalds drive-thru and be told that your meal was covered?
4. Feed parking meters - The Parking Authority in Winchester is notorious for giving tickets due to "hungry" meters so I figured another little bag of coins to be spread out throughout the day would be a fun idea.
5. Leave pennies on a playground/anywhere for children/adults to find - As a child, finding a penny was the equivalent to being a millionaire! So I'm gonna spread some of that wealth around as well. And you know what they say: "Find a penny, pick it up / And all day long you'll have good luck"
6. Donate to a local food pantry - This one is a service classic but what are the classics for if they aren't enjoyed once in a while?
7. Write a thank-you letter to someone who inspires you - A letter may be heading your way!
8. Return shopping carts from the parking lot to the cart corral - This is actually a pet peeve of mine. Nothing worse then a cart left 3 feet from the corral or a couple yards from the entrance.
9. Send flowers anonymously to someone in the hospital - Another given, but I thought it would be really sweet. Especially if they haven't received visitors for a while.
10. Compose a poem for someone and share it with them - I'll actually be randomly choosing one of my Facebook friends to be the recipient of said poem.
11. Make a bird feeder to be hung in the park - Relatively easy project that I thought would add a lot of character to the local park.
12. Bring in a special treat for my co-workers - Though I have scheduled to have February 11th off, I will be working that morning because I work night shift that month. So to my co-workers reading this -- You have also been warned!
13. Draw/Paint/Color a picture for someone - Another randomly chosen Facebook friend will receive a art piece signed my moi.
14. Tweet 5 individuals who are having a #badday and send them a "hope your day gets better" message - I actually took this idea from UK YouTube-Star Carrie Hope Fletcher (itswaypastmybedtime).
15. Hide $10 in the dollar store - I just like the idea of someone stumbling upon money in the dollar store!
16. Leave change for the vending machine - Another typical service idea but worth having on here anyway.
17. Make/Send handmade cards - I actually have people in mind for this one but either way it will be fun to hear from them anyway.
18. Leave a gift for the Mail Carrier - Even the heroes of all things postal deserve a treat once in a while!
19. Hand out gum to strangers - I saw a picture someone posted of them randomly taping packs of gum to people's cars so I thought it would be a cool thing to also reciprocate.
20. Visit a graveyard - I like the symbolism of this more than anything. Looking back at the past while striving towards the future. Maybe I'll bring some flowers as well.
21. Call up someone you haven't talked to in a while - I'm going to attempt to reconnect with an old friend. Will keep you posted on that!
22. Post pictures and blog about it - Yes folks, there will be pictures and documentation of all 21 aforementioned service projects to be posted at the end of the day.

So do you guys think I can complete all of these in 24 hours? Leave your comments below. And, last but not least, have a great day!

QUICK UPDATE!

Haven't posted in a while so I figured I'd just write a quick update.

Right now I'm still finalizing my 22 acts of service. I'll post my official list on the first of February for all to see.

In other news, I've reached over a thousand page views! Whoo! Not quite sure how to celebrate that but if you guys have any suggestions feel free to leave them in the comments!

Thanks again and I'll talk to you all later!

ISO Service Ideas

My 22nd birthday will be here in less than a month and I haven't got the slightest idea how to celebrate it.
I kid you not, I actually Googled "birthday ideas" and allow sorts of randomness came up... you try it; I dare you.
But the one idea I liked the most was the "(insert your age here) acts of kindness." Throughout your birthday day, you would complete the acts of kindness, ending the day one year older and on a service high.
The only problem with this is: I need to come up with 22 different acts of kindness to do!
This is where you, my dear readers, come in.
Help me have the best birthday EVAH by giving me ideas and suggestions! Send them via Facebook or email and I will happily compile it together and give everyone a preview of the list before my birthday.
Let's do this!