One down!

Just finished one final paper...have one more paper, one more exam, and my thesis to revise! The end is in sight, my friends. And I will probably go through a fairly big dose of withdrawal when it's all over...

Theses!

Kevin, our friend Evan, and I have all successfully defended our senior honors theses this week. Thanks much to the family and friends who came to hear us blab about our research... I explored food and water security in the Middle East and North Africa, asking how economic cooperation around environmental resources might help pave the way to greater peace. Kevin was looking at how the internet blurs distinctions between private and public in our lives; Evan investigated the ways in which religion is measured and understood in polling and census data. It was a lot of fun! We are really in the final stages of undergraduate life, now...only a week left!!!

Nonviolence Training

Yesterday, Kevin and I got to attend a nonviolence training conducted by the Michigan Peace Team and sponsored by MSU's Peace and Justice Studies Program. From their website: Michigan Peace Team is able design nonviolence trainings for groups with a specific focus, and with the days, times and length desired by the group. We offer basic and advanced nonviolence trainings but we also tailor the nonviolence trainings for the group's needs. Our workshops provide participants the knowledge and skill to apply the healing and transforming power of nonviolence to situations of conflict and violence wherever they occur. Workshops are experiential and participatory in nature. Participants learn about nonviolence and empowered peacemaking through exercises and role plays facilitated by our experienced and highly qualified trainers. Goals of Training: Experience the transforming power of nonviolence for oneself and society; Learn about and practice skills for nonviolent peacemaking; Learn of domestic & international violence reduction peacemaking efforts and opportunities for volunteering on projects; Experience working together with others as a peace team. Major components of the Basic Training: Stories of empowerment, from one-on-one conflict situations to small and large peace teams, domestic (such as dealing with hate groups) and international; Theoretical and spiritual (interconnectedness of all humans and the earth) basis of nonviolence; Music and humor; Understanding the Roots of Violence; Theory and practice of Communication skills: (e.g., Active Listening, "I" messages, etc.); Experience of working as teams; Theory and practice of Consensus decision making; Theory of Public Witnessing and Direct Action; Mechanisms for social change; Cultural and racial sensitivity; Practice through role plays, quick decision exercises, hassle lines; Moving forward, forming a local peace team We had delightful role plays protecting PRIDE Week marches and a student protest march...they made me be the "bad guy" both times. I was an angry, Bible-bashing anti-gay preacher at one point; in another role play, I was a cop and had to beat up Kevin. Quite the day. (While the above description may indicate that I practiced violence more than non-violence yesterday, this is not the case...I learned a great deal!)

Yahoo! Mail knows...

My Yahoo! mail account is now displaying the weather for Norwich, England. I don't remember changing settings on anything, so I'm a little freaked out at its apparent telepathy and/or personal assistant-esque work. Well done, I suppose.

Three weeks left!

If you can believe it (I certainly can't), there are only three weeks left to go of my undergraduate career. It's not terrifying, in that I know what I'm doing next and am excited about it. It is terrifying, however, in that I am wondering where on earth four years of my life just went and how the heck they happened so quickly.
In any case, we are into the final stretch. Papers, papers, papers!!

Spam...

We've been having fun with spam in the comments on this blog lately. I have marked the author as spam; hopefully things will continue to improve.
I am trying to balance eliminating spam comments with still allowing wonderful people such as my grandmother without Google accounts to comment. :)

Food!

After a long week of fasting for Holy Week, food is delightfully tasty. I highly recommend it.
:)

"Les Mis"

We went to "Les Mis" last night for Easter and to help celebrate Mum's 50th.
I was thinking that perhaps I wouldn't cry as horrifically hard as I did the first time I saw it. I was wrong.

Happy Easter!

And happy Pesach (Passover) too, to those celebrating.

I fasted for all of Holy Week, as I do every year. Traditionally, I break the fast with communion at midnight and then some Peeps and chocolate.
Not this year.
My body was screaming, and I mean screaming, for meat. And Burger King was magically open past midnight, which it generally isn't. So fast is being broken with burgers and ginger ale. Not what is traditionally suggested for fast-breaking...yell at me if you wish, but my body is one happy organism.

Cami goes to college

Cami joined me for a few classes today...she had a fabulous time. Listened in during parts; happily ignored us using a laptop with headphones for other parts. We learned the word "kinship," heard a bit about the genocide in Rwanda, and have declared college "not as bad as I thought it'd be."
We have also decided that drinking water is fun and that girls can be doctors too, not just nurses.
Overall, I'm calling the day a success.

Cami!

My niece is staying at the condo this week for spring break. The last time she had a visit this long, she was four...and she's nearly twelve now. Long overdue, and lots of fun! We will be reading lots of books and exploring Lansing this week.
Last night, Kevin read us the first chapter from "Percy Jackson: The Lightning Thief" before bed. And then we fell asleep to Jim Dale's reading "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" on tape. Having way too much fun...