Mardi Gras! Africa Night! RecycleMania!

(I did my Mardi Gras glitter mask all by myself)

Hey hey friends! Time flies by so fast when you're busy, working hard and having fun. I got quite a bit of studying done this week, as well as some fun extra adventures. Last night was Mardi Gras, and I am on the Student Traditions and Activities Board (STAB) so I was volunteering to help make the event happen. It was so much fun and we had a really good turn out. On Bourbon Street there were dancers, contortionists, psychics, musicians, and face painting, there were bands from LA and Phoenix on the next floor, a DJ and dance, and an illusionist. On the third floor in the Skyroom we had a casino with chips and everything. Our highest roller got 121,650 in chips and won an ipod touch, the second and third place winners got an ipod nano and a digital camera.

         The Aggie Recyclers and the USU Sustainability council kicked off Recyclemania this week. We are competing with 5 other colleges around to see who can recycle the most. We had information tables set up, and documentary going, fun recycling games, and free Aggie Ice Cream in exchange for a recycling pledge. We had a good turn out and got the word out to encourage people to engage in the competition and recycle.

        But my favorite event this week was definitely Africa Night! The African Students Association put on a really great night of traditional food, dancing, clothing, and music. It was so great and I met so many new friends. I met a friend from Ghana and told him how I was going to Ghana for a study abroad and he told me all about it and taught me some useful phrases in Twi, like εtε sεn? (how are you). It was great and I really enjoyed it!

Long weekend baby!

The week of love has passed and gone, and I spent Valentine's Day babysitting (which I am totally fine with...) I live in Salt Lake, so for this long weekend (President's Day) I decided to catch a ride home with one of my friends to spend some time with my family. This week was also BSU (Black Student Union) week and some of the events included a Gumbo Cookout, Black Out Loud, and a the Black Student Union also hosted its annual “Black and White Affair” soul food dinner Friday. The dinner included a variety of soul food and entertainment. The New York-based slam poetry group Words with a Pulse was SO amazing! Two guys kind of rapped/sang poetry and it was really powerful and moving. Wow!

Black Student Union is an organization established to promote a higher level of Black consciousness, advancement and mutual understanding among all cultures and people. BSU serves to provide information to its members and raise cultural awareness within the community at large.

'In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends. - Martin Luther King, Jr.'

Aggies 23-0 woo!

Hey friends! Can you believe it? Yet another week has passed and the Aggies are still 23-0 in basketball. Phenomenal! But last night after the game, there was an after party at the Fun Park. There was a free dance, laser tagging, bowling and fun all over the place! After we got our groove on, my friends and I went to Village Inn for some sustenance. This week went by really quickly, from test to quiz to papers, dance practices, eating, and maybe even a little bit of sleeping ;) but it was great.

It was also really cool this week academically. In my college, the college of natural resources, when we are looking to hire a new professor the students are invited to meet the candidates, hear about their research, and even have lunch or dinner with them along with some other faculty or grad students. This week there were two candidates that came and presented their research. I had to opportunity to meet and have lunch with Dr. Brian Fisher and attend both of his presentations about climate change and social justice issues in Tuvalu. It was really awesome! I think it is great how the students are able to be a part of that and that the college cares what we think of the people that will be our professors. I love Utah State! :)

Rallying at the State Capitol

Hey friends! So I was definitely on the news like 5 times on Friday. There was a huge rally at the capitol for students around the state in support of higher education. Some state senators and representatives spoke to us on the front steps (there was tons of media coverage.) After, we went into the House and Senate chambers and wrote notes to the wonderful people who represent us as students and told them how we feel about the quality of our education at Utah State and how much it matters to us. There was a really good turn out of students from Utah State. We had two tour buses that went down for the rally and we had a really good time. The entire week was a week of activism. We had a rally in the Hub (where everyone eats lunch), after the basketball game we had a party where we made posters and signs and wrote our senators to prepare for the big day at the capitol. But I feel that students of higher education are the future of this state. we are the future leaders, voters, and taxpayers here. Higher education is one of the most valuable investments the state can make. For every $1 invested into higher education, the state sees $7 in return. It is beautiful! I love this school so much and my education here means so much to me. You will most certainly get an awesome education when you come here :)