Man, last time I posted was September? I am SO off my blogging A-game. Well, let’s get ourselves up to speed. How about we go by month? 🙂

SEPTEMBER:

I wound up not having enough time to devote to the up-and-coming glee club on campus, which was something I wanted to jump into with much enthusiasm. But since hockey season (which means you can find me working every men’s and women’s home contest) starts in October in addition to physical therapy, weekly blood testing, classes and study time, I suddenly found myself in over my head. Hopefully the spring semester will afford me a bit more flexibility, though I continue my job with Sports Information as a second-year PA Announcer.

OCTOBER:

Laker hockey has begun! And I’m finally getting settled into a routine, which feels nice. I try to go to physical therapy around 8:30-9:30am on MWF to get it out of the way and give me enough time to come home and do some work before having lunch with Leah and getting ready for class. By having my Fridays off from classes, I try to get my errands done for the week and I report to work most nights at 4:30 or 5:30, depending on what my job is that night. Alpha Phi Omega is also in the bulk of their pledging process, and I’ve taken on another little “brother” this semester, furthering the Spotted Leopard family 🙂

NOVEMBER:

On the 5th, my sister married the love of her life, and I got to be the Maid of Honor! Months and months of work finally led up to the wedding, which was more than perfect. I had a blast! I’ve also stopped physical therapy, due to a discrepancy with my health insurance and how many visits they’ll cover me for, despite repeated attempts to prove that I was in need of physical therapy services. Instead, I took matters into my own hands and spoke with my orthopedic surgeon at home, who gave me permission to do whatever physical activity feels comfortable. I bought a membership at the new Planet Fitness in Oswego, and I’ve been trying to go as often as possible. It’s so tough getting back into the shape I was in back in 2005, but I’m keeping a positive attitude. Plus, I’m sure my fellow blogger Samantha can give me some pointers!

DECEMBER:

Well, here it is: the homestretch. I’ve spent a good amount of all-nighters, downed countless bottles of 5-Hour Energy (safely, of course!), all for the heaviest workload I’ve ever had in one semester. When did I think it was a good idea to take 3 of my Writing Plan courses in one semester?! The point is, I got through those classes with A’s and B’s, so I’m proud of the work I put in. Our house also witnessed a slight change in dynamic, with one of our housemates moving out. We’re sad to see her go, but we know it’s for the best and she will still remain a close friend! My time at home was nice and the holidays went well, but I get very bored very quickly in Smithtown, as I don’t have any friends from home or high school to meet up with. I needed to get back to Oswego ASAP!

PRESENT:

I’m sitting in my empty townhouse, typing away at my desk in a pair of sweats, a T-shirt, and one of those green goopy beauty masks that you always see in chick flicks. Why not, right? I’ve been the only one in my house since January 2nd, but that ends tomorrow when Kayle and Dave come back from their trip to Mt. Tremblant (which fellow blogger Steve DiMarzo spoke about in his most recent post). You’re probably wondering why am I up here so early. Since I work for Men’s and Women’s hockey, I came up to work at a couple of games and also picked up a Winter Session course to keep building up my credits. At this rate, I could maybe graduate early!

With this extra time, I’ve taken to starting up a free 1-month trial of Netflix (hehe, that will be put to great use), singing/playing guitar to an empty house which sounds amazing since the acoustics are gorgeous, and trying a few new recipes while I’ve got the kitchen to myself.

Oh yeah, and I’m also becoming a pro at cleaning snow off a Ford Escape in under 8 minutes flat. It’s an acquired skill. 🙂

I am not sure how many of you know about “The Secret”, of life. “The Secret” is the answer to the happiness everyone seeks in life, who does not want to be happy? Most people wake up every morning wanting to be happy, productive and successful. Well for those of you who have not yet found how or what to do to become happy I will introduce to you “The Secret” to happiness, success, money, good health, great career, positivity, and EVERYTHING AND ANYTHING YOU WANT! I want to share “The Secret” with the world; this is part of my life purpose, to help as much people as I can. “The Secret” has been around for centuries but has only been known by very few in history such as the inventor of the telephone, Alexander Graham Bell, Isaac Newton, Jesus, Mahatma Gandhi, just to name a few. “The Secret” is no secret at all; we have been introduced to “The Secret” since we were young without noticing it. Your thoughts and feelings is the key to “The Secret.” In 2006 a film, “The Secret” was created by a woman named Rhonda Byrne. Later in 2006 after the film was released to the world she wrote the book “The Secret.” Recently in 2009 she published, “The Power.” I read “The Secret” about 2 years ago, I am currently reading “The Power” and I got my hands on a personal copy of the movie” “The Secret.” When I was first introduced to “The Secret” from a close friend of mine, I was so excited about applying this tool to my life. “The Secret” was also introduce on national television on the Oprah Show, it was also added to Oraphs book list. Applying “The Secret”  definitely something to get used to at first; it takes a lot of practice. They say practice makes perfect, right? Well I have become more conscious about my thoughts and feelings which is ultimately the key. I have made a vow to myself that no matter what I will always practice “The secret” and never lose sight of the message. It all comes down to the Law of Attraction. This is much like the law of gravity. It is ALWAYS in effect. The law of attraction is all about like attracts like. What you give out is what you receive. The thoughts you give out into the universe is what the universe will return to you. You are like a frequency tower that sends out energy into the universe, whether they are negative or positive. Now the universe does nothing but simply places people, events, circumstances into your life depending on the energy you give out for a certain reason. It’s as simple as that, what you give out is what you receive. If you have negative thoughts and feelings, then you are placing negative people, events and circumstances into your life and vice versa. In order to help everyone comprehend “The Secret” I will post daily teachings, whether they are by the week or by day, I will get it done. You can personally have these daily teachings on your ipod like I do. There is an app that you can buy on http://www.thesecret.tv/. You can also find the movie and book there as well. I started receiving daily teachings on December 25 so this is where I will begin:
December 25: (Day 1) The secret contains clear priniciples on how to live your life in accordance with the natural laws of the universe, and the most important thing for any person to do is LIVE IT. You can only become the master of your life by LIVING IT! As we travel through a year of teachings, the clarity, understanding and wisdom you will reviece every day will help you live the laws that govern human beings, so you may truly become the master of your Life.
December 26: (Day 2) Every night before you fall asleep, give heartfelt thanks for the wonderful day you just had (no matter what kind of day you had). Think about the next day, intend that it is going to be wonderful. Intend that it is going to be the best day of your life. Intend that it is going to be filled with love and joy. Intend that all good is coming to you and everything is going to flow perfectly, etc. Then when you wake in the morning, BEFORE you get out of bed, again declare your intentions for the day and give deep thanks as though you have received them all. As you do this, you will begin to create your life deliberately, and you will experience firsthand the power that is within you to create the life you want.
December 27: (Day 3) I want to let you in on a secret to THE SECRET. The shortcut to anything you want in your life is to BE and FEEL happy now. It is the fastest way to bring money and anything else you want into your life. Focus on radiating out into the universe those feelings of joy and happiness. When you do that, you will attract back to you all things that bring you joy and happiness, which will not only include an abundance of money, but everything else you are wanting.
December 28: (Day 4) The creative process helps you create what you want in three simple steps: ask, believe and receive. Asking the universe for what you want is your opportunity to get clear about what you want. As you get clear in your mind, you have asked. Believing involves acting, speaking and thinking as though you have already received what you’ve asked for. When you emit the frequency of having received it, the law of attraction moves people, events and circumstances for you to receive. Receiving involves feeling the way you will feel once your desire has manifested. Feeling good now puts you on the frequency of what you want.
December 29: (Day 5) If you feel bad about your body, that is a powerful feeling, and you will continue to attract feeling bad about your body. You will never change your body if you are critical of it and find fault with it, and in fact you will attract more weight to you. Praise and bless every square inch of your body. Think about all the perfect things about you. As you think perfect thoughts, as you feel good about you, you are on the frequency of your perfect weight, and you are summoning perfection.
December 30: (Day 6) You are like a human transmission tower, transmitting a frequency with your thoughts. If you want to change anything in your life, change the frequency by changing your thoughts.
December 31: (Day 7) Gratitude is a powerful process for shifting your energy and bringing more of what you want into your life. Be grateful for what you already have and you will attract more good things.
January 1: (Day 8 ) The great teach Neville Goddard offered the following process in 1954 in a lecture entitled “The Pruning Shears of Revision.” Every day, before you go to sleep, think through the events of the day. If any events or moments did not go the way you wanted, replay them in your mind in a way that thrills you. As you recreate those events in your mind exactly as you want, you are cleaning up your frequency from the day and you are emitting a new signal and frequency for tomorrow. You have intentionally created new pictures for your future. It is never too late to change the pictures.
January 2: (Day 9) Just like the law of gravity, the law of attraction never slips up. You don’t see pigs flying because the law of gravity made a mistake and forgot to apply gravity to pigs that day. Likewise, there are no exclusions to the law of attraction. If something came to you, you drew it, with prolonged thought. The law of attraction is precise. “You create your own universe as you go along” – WINSTON CHURCHILL (1874-1965)
January 3: (Day 10) Prosperity is your birthright, and you hold the key to more abundance- in every area of your life- than you can possibly imagine. You deserve every good thing you want, and the universe will give you every good thing you want, but you have to summon it into your life. The Secret is that you have the key. The key is your thoughts and feelings and you have been holding the key in your hand all of your life.
January 4: (Day 11) When you know that the infinite intelligence of the universe exists, you can tune into it and draw anything from it. The past greats drew what they wanted from the infinite wisdom of the universe and then produced it in our physical world. Although they took inspired physical steps, it was hand in hand with infinite intelligence, and so everything flowed to them effortlessly to create beyond what any human being had conceived before them.

Today was the first full day at Mt. Tremblant in Quebec, Canada.  This is my first time skiing in five years.  After a semester of ups and downs for the Ski & Snowboard Club, they finally made it to Mt. Tremblant!  My interest in the trip grew over time, through conversations I had with officers and members of the club.  After much deliberation, I decided to join the group of 57 SUNY Oswego students and test my rarely used skills on the slopes.

The trip began yesterday, Sunday, January 2, 2011 at about 7am.  Well, I woke up at 7am and the bus left at about 10:20.  Why so late? Well, we had to wait for some people and I was almost forgotten! No worries though, I made it and was on my way.  We spent about 7 hours on the bus and arrived at the hotel at about 8pm. This trip included a few stops to eat and grocery shop.  After unpacking the bus and settling into the room, we all decided to lay low and enjoy the night.  The next morning was to bring a very early start and a great day on the slopes.

Check out what my room looks like!!

At about 7am this morning, Monday, we woke, went to breakfast, and immediately headed out to the mountain.  I had a little bit of hesitation, but received a lot of motivation from my friends.  The first run down was very bad; I was falling avery few feet and twisted my neck in a way I would never think to be possible (I’m still very sore right now).  After what could have easily been my 15th fall, a few of my friends stopped to help me down the rest of the way.  I owe my life to Mike and Wilson, who both stuck with me through every following fall.  At about 2/3 of the way down I finally got the hang of my “pizza” and  completed the trail with ease.  The final stretch was very exciting because I was able to go on my own.  Here I am, a 22 year old man, and I can’t ski down a hill.  Now I can! (I think).

Ater the second run, I headed inside and rested for a while.  Everyone from my room came back for lunch and then headed out for another run on the mountain.  I stayed back and hung out with my friend Tom, who had fallen earlier in the day and really injured his neck.  After Allie and Griffin returned, the four of us ventured the village.  It is beautiful here, you all should see it! (I’ll take pictures tomorrow and post them with my next entry).  We stopped at a few stores and this restaurant, Le Diable.  It was incredible! The group ordered a Honey Blonde, homemade beer (we are all of us, I promise) and Allie and I shared a French onion soup and garlic escargot (yes, i ate snails!) They were so good!.  The time I sped with them was great.  I am really enjoying this group of people and am honored to be a part of this trip.

We then headed back to the hotel room and stuck around for a while.  We spend the rest of the night in and I’m now watching three of them play backgammon.  Two of the girls are sleeping and I’m sure the rest of us will get to bed soon.  It is now midnight and I’m sure tomorrow will be full of adventures.  I am looking into going dog sledding and possibly horseback riding.  I love skiing, but I want to experience as much as I can while here.  I’ll probably make a pit stop at the restaurant and order another bowl of that delicious French onion soup.  For now, I must sign off and say good night.  I will write again tomorrow and include pictures and hopefully some amazing experiences.

Crunch, crunch, crunch

The snow crunching beneath every footstep not too loud, not too quite just enough to not be intrusive. It provided the perfect monotone backdrop to his thoughts.  As he wandered home, many thoughts raced through his mind. “This test wasn’t that bad, in fact it was probably the fairest one” Hmm he thought “I wonder if I did well enough”. The thoughts soon started streaming out in a frantic succession “Yeah the test might not have been bad but that doesn’t mean You did good either-well what is good eno-it be a shamed that on the easiest test of the semester you still don’t do wel-“ A cold wind momentarily interrupted his thoughts.

After days of anxious studying and fussing over the chapters the big day had finally come. “One way or another I’m glad its over with…at least I hope so” Kwame thought as fears of having to repeat the course flashed through his mind. The day had been a long and trying one. The day of the chemistry final had finally arrived. But before that Goliath could be faced, he had dealt with two exams earlier in the day. As had been the case throughout the semester those exams came and went with ease. “Worse case scenario I’ll get a low 80 on either test, realistically though I probably got somewhere in the high 80’s to mid 90’s but chemistry though…”. His mind wandered back over the chemistry exam trying his hardest to gauge how well he had done.  It was fitting of the day if not the week. In his pocket his phone silently and patiently blinked with the reminder that he had 2 days worth of ignored and unanswered text messages from friends. All day long he had secluded himself from focusing on anything outside of the finals, study breaks were met not with moments to relax and watch TV but instead to study for the other two exams pushed to the bottom of the totem.

Crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch…

For the first time Kwame noticed the sound of the hard snow beneath his boots. Just two hours before he had made the same trip in the opposite direction, however the footprints like his optimism had vanished. He shook his head half in disappoint half in amazement as to how both had abandoned him so quickly.

As he turned the corner and approached his apartment, Kwame allowed himself to put things into perspective and depart from the gloomy attitude that had accompanied the walk. “I actually learned A Lot to say the least”. He recounted the conversations about the potential dangers of hydrafracking, the call home to his mother in disbelief about a chemical as dangerous as fluoride being in drinking water despite obvious health risk, and learning what Global Warming was exactly and what the causes were. On the doorstep to his apartment he allowed himself one last thought “ I tried. Overall I wish I could have done better in this class this semester some how, some way ; but  I did the best I could today, whether my best was good enough… I don’t know”

We’ll have to wait and see…

WOW! SO I haven’t written a blog in a while. But it’s never to too late to share my thoughts. This semester has been my most hectic one yet. I feel like I had the most stress I’ve ever experienced in my life. So much stress that I don’t even have the energy to stress about finals week. Finals week is where everyone stresses out, cries, screams, and contemplates dropping out of school and living in their parent’s basement for the rest of their life.

But I would not change the stress and craziness of college for anything. I think I have learned the most about people, and the way others think. I’ve learned that you can give someone advice all day long, but at the end of the day they will do what they choose fit. People can hear you, but no be listening. And that the simplest misunderstanding can snowball into World War III. But at the end of the day, conflict, stress, arguments, and complete madness must exist in order for there to be balance in the world.

“Every day is a new opportunity to grow a little more.” – Chris McPherson

             Yes, it’s that time of year again. The time were even the obnoxious neighbors are hold up in there room, and the bars have to come up with a new way to pay their bills. “For what” you may ask, Finals. Though some classes may be more lax than others there is still so much to study for. Though you may feel like its time to exhale but I would suggest you don’t get too elated since finals week is the time that defines whether you get the chance to come back next semester. Though it may seem like college lore, there are quite a few people who don’t come back and they are not always the worst students. Even the upper classmen aren’t immune to the wrath of finals; though there previous grades act as a buffer they have a higher GPA requirement. So, for freshmen I want to say especially study hard get some sleep and good luck (you got this far).

:::Heavy Sigh::

People are saying “the semester is almost over!!!! I’m so excited” but in a way for me THIS IS the semester. I have the biggest exam of the sem on Tuesday. Right after two OTHER exams is the dreaded Chemistry: Environmental & Public Concern final. Anyone and everyone I’ve spoken to at some point in these last 4 1/2 months has heard me bemoan about this class. It’s been the thorn in my side, the dirty little mud on my clean and pristine GPA avg.

Chemistry by far isn’t my strongest subject in fact next to math its the worse! All semester I’ve been behind in class and on exams. However  I’ve tried to work even harder. I’ve done the extra credit when I rather be home, kept my eyes glued to the power point slides most of all ,I’ve not given up .

So this Tuesday after all the in mental strain and hoola hoops my mind will have been put through for the first few finals. I will once again walk into the classroom , anxiety sky high, confidence fluctuating between thoughts of “I’ve prepared for this I’m good” & “OMG this test this test this test” and I will face chemistry for the last time. For all the marbles(30% of final grade) and I’ll put to rest one of the hardest challenges I’ve faced since I’ve arrived. I’ll win though because.

I didn’t give up….I Never gave up

-Kwa

So, as it turned out, I didn’t have to go back to Practicum. The Field Placement office returned my email and told me that the number of hours that I have is sufficient, so it feels great to have that behind me now. Yesterday, I took my final for my English 360 class, so that is another class that bites the dust. All I have left now is Adolescence Psychology, for which I have a final on Tuesday night, and then Wednesday, I am leaving. I am hoping and praying that it won’t be too long after that that I see my boyfriend, but I have a feeling that it will be. The last time that I was home, which was for Thanksgiving Break, it was almost a whole week before I first saw him. Anyway, I am going to do my very best not to be negative in this blog entry. It’s just that it is 3 AM, and I am tired.

So, why am I not asleep, one may ask? Well, my roommate got back from a party at around 2 AM, and despite the fact that it should have been pretty clear that I was getting ready for bed for the night, the first thing that he does is his usual – turns the TV on; yes, at 2 in the morning, and I can’t sleep with TVs on, even if they are muted. No matter what position I try to fall asleep in, I can see the flashes of the TV screen even with my eyes closed, and it is especially ridiculous, because that is on while he is playing a video game and while he is listening to music via his earbuds. It is just utterly ridiculous, and so now, I am just hanging around waiting for him to realize that he is being monstrously rude – or for him to get tired himself and go to bed, whichever happens first, which will probably be the latter.

Again, I don’t mean to be negative. I just feel so explosive due to that “end of the semester” feeling that I know all of us are familiar with. I am excited to go home but am worried that I won’t be spending a whole lot of time with my boyfriend, which means that I would honestly rather be here. I know as a fact that there will be a week that he will be going on a trip out of state, a trip on which I am not invited. That hurts, but at the same time, I am trying my absolute hardest not to be selfish about it. Besides, he will be here next semester, and we are trying to live in Sheldon together. I was told a good three weeks ago, at least, that I would know shortly after Thanksgiving whether or not we are in, and it is now the tenth of December, and we still have had no word. It is incredibly frustrating, because if we don’t get in, now we don’t have very much time to plan otherwise, and we haven’t been able to at this point because he can’t yet access his MyHousing account.

I just can’t wait for next semester and am really hoping for the best news possible out of all of this, which would mean acceptance into Sheldon. Just tonight at Mackin, we had a fire alarm because of someone smoking inside of the building, and I am getting tired of that happening. I shouldn’t have to worry about a fire alarm going off in December, and I need a quiet space where Ray and I can concentrate on our work, and that, for us, is Sheldon. I am just going to keep my fingers crossed, I suppose, and hope for the best. I would try contacting Residence Life and Housing again, but I don’t know if I should.