life update.

yes i'm still alive. =). LOL. i know my life has been in an uproar since may. now with nothing really to do but apply to jobs and sleep, i'd figure i would blog. its only fair. LOL.

i am a proud alumna of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute...after much hard work, sweat, tears, late/all nighters, i have a dual degree. and they say it cant be done in 4 years, i beg to differ. my family showed up and showed out. im gonna say they were the loudest family at graduation. dinner was great and go to spend time with my loves.

the first weekend in may i got to see my bestie and of course good times. getting acquainted with her new campus for grad school...im so proud of her! kappa cruise weekend was crazy! the best cruise i've been to.
birthday was wonderful...oh em gee i couldnt stop laughing cuz my friends kept joking around. surprise at midnight and everybody who went out later made my bday one of the best birthdays ever.

now im home enjoying not having anything to do while still searching for jobs. tryna stay encouraged cuz this job market sucks but i know something is coming my way...

♥ A.Erika ♥

everything changes.

"If you just walked away/What could I really say?/And would it matter anyway?/It wouldn't change how you feel..."

Trying to get thru last set of finals of my undergrad career. But drake at syracuse and cruise on the hudson this weekend to relieve some stress....

where the f*** have i been?

Welllll i dont even know where to start. So much has happened since the last entry. New goals, new interests ;), new searches for the directions of my life. Life has been good. I cant really complain. So my life within the last month in no particular order....

Brotherly visits - The weekend of March 19th my buddy came to visit. Surprised much?!? It was so good to see him and catch up. We spoke for about 2 hours, reminiscing on the good ole days of RPI and our last spring break's shenanigans. Talking about all those adventures made me realize how much I have loved my college experience. It truly has been a blast!
The next weekend was great. My alpha men came back for the Black& Gold Ball. Those guys from OY have a special place in my heart. They have taken care of me since I stepped foot on this campus and I love them dearly. Friday night was great, chillin at the bar, bros treating us [girls], and a lil dancing at a house party. The picture to the left is probally my fav of the weekend. It shows BSA presidents from 2006 to present. Feel so honored to be apart of great history. Saturday night, the big EVENT was nice! i love getting dressed up. my booskie and I actually came to the ball together. The afterparty....no words and i'll leave at that. LOL

Spring Break - Worked. Slept. Minimal Work. A random roadtrip to bingo. Great times! Pretty much sums it up!

Figuring out my life - Yes I am second semester senior graduating on May 29, 2010 and have NO clue what im doing after. So my parents and I have been going back and forth as to what my post graduate plans are. They are pushing for the military and very adamant about it, while im not so sure about it. And this is when I have my mentor/mama intervention. It seems like I always speak with her before I make a somewhat major decisions and she brings it all into perspective. So now im considering the Peace Corps, working for the state and/or US Embassy. These opportunities will give me a chance to travel [the visit to Australia is looking a lil more closer than I thought]. So im kinda lost but i have ideas on where i wanna go.

Easter Weekend - The best since ive been at RPI. Friday night a friends 21st "easter egg hunt" turned into a game of charades and a discussion of kegeling. *stiff body* inside joke. LOL. :) Saturday my shooting star invited me to her lake house. It was so great to get away from campus. And great food and cocktails! Tres Leche Cake plus cranberry & vodka with lemon! oh em gee! SO GREAT!
Sunday was church! I have been so spoiled in atlanta to have a numerous amount of churches to go with ministries that leave me spiritually fulfilled. Here in upstate NY.....ehh no so much! So when I go to church, I always compare it to my churches back home and there is no comparison. So wherever I move, it is important for me to have a spiritually fulfilling church home where I see growth and growth within me. Then we decided to have easter day dinner...it was so CLUTCH. within 15 minutes, the itis SMACKED everyone. it was so great that we're doing part 2 in like 2 weeks. it was like a little family and i felt like i was back home.

Two awards - So I received Who's Who Among Student in American Universities and Colleges. Very happy about that...one of 65 students selected from RPI. And thennnnnnnnn....I received an invitation to join the prestigious leadership honor society, Phalanx. The highest leadership award given to RPI students. Since I found out about this award, it was one of my dreams to be inducted. So when I got my letter, I hugged the girl who gave to me, good thing I kinda knew her already. LOL. But the "tapping" [induction] ceremony is this Sunday and I am so excited! Cant wait to join the ranks of the RPI's superior leaders. =)

April the month of Natually Inspiration - So I decided for the month of April, i will not straighten my hair. Tryna be in tuned with my natural state. I want something new! Ive been wild with it too...big curly fros. LOL. Channeling my inner erykah badu/india arie state of mind.Here I am. LOVE it! I am not my hair!

So life has been good! And april is getting better day by day. ;) 2 roadtrips within 2 weeks. Seeing my big sis/bff 6 days before my bday. Hosting for OMSA awards. The events keep rolling in!! =)

♥ A.Erika ♥

hiatus [effective 02.01.2010]

Hiatus not from blog, although it may seem that way. But hiatus from partying wilding out at social activities. Although I've been cheating a lil bit, this hiatus has given me time to think about what going on in my life.

January was probally THE most trying month of my life. I probally lost like 12 lbs in 3 weeks due to stress. Being so uneasy that I couldnt sleep at night. Yea it was that bad! But at the end of it all, I was still able to give thanks and praise my Lord and Savior because without His love and guidance, I would not be here. All that I went through made realize that I cannot get through life without Him. He proved to me that while man has given up on me, He is still in control of everything. And I am thankful for that because if it was for man, I would not be lying in my bed in Troy writing this post.

So as this hiatus continues, I will continue to lay low and reflect on my life, both present and future. Getting together my post graduation plans are stressful within itself, not to mention plans for graduation plus schoolwork plus presidency/RA-ing. Yes I am overly involved. But I am keeping everything in perspective.

So I'm back, I promise.

♥ A.Erika ♥

happy [belated belated] new year

Happy new year! Belated I know. I tried to make it up with this new years photo of Australia ANNDDDD new layout. Gooodnesss!! I cant wait to visit this place and chill with the aborigines. LOL.

But I decided to take a break from blogging to do some reevaluating. I spent alot of my break thinking about myself and the future. I am the type of person who likes to know the result before something ends so I prepare myself. But thats not how life works and i think this is where my problem lies as I'm thinking about my future. I feel like if I was so driven [as many people say I am], I would not be confused and losing sleep about my future. I need to stop worrying about what others think so much and make my decisions based on whats good for me. So i'm slowing developing "back-up plans and not putting all my eggs in one basket" [as my daddy says]

Since this is my first post of new year, it would be fit to post my new years resolutions. But to be honest, I really dont have any....well theres only 2 that i would like to share. The first being is getting reconnected to God. I admit that my relationship with God has definitely faded since I went to school. Being home brings everything into perspective and I have realized that if I want to succeed, I need God by my side because He is the only one who can make a way out of no way. So getting back in good grace with my Lord is TOP priority.

My second resolution could be broken down into multiple resolutions but I like to keep things nice and simple. Too many complications makes my head hurt. But just to take care myself physically and emotionally. Physically....drink more water, take my vitamins, create a workout schedule, get at least 6 hours of sleep. Emotionally...journal more, have more me time. Ive realized I give too much and people take advantage of that because they know i'll always be there, as a result, not enough me time.

So to 2010, I must come out better than what I went in. Welcome 2010! :-)

♥ A.Erika ♥

my 2009 wrap-up

As this interesting year of 2009 comes to end, I thought I would do my wrap-up of 2009. In this year, I learned...

• GREAT friends are hard to come by but I am so thankful of the friends I have in my life. Some have gone away, the TRUE ones have stayed, some have become closer. They truly have kept me sane through this year and made this year so memorable. Friends are so important to me and have become like family. People think they are in my inner circle but they arent even close.
  
• Forgiveness is a necessity. I have learned that being able to forgive somebody who wronged you will allow you to move on in your life, giving you peace in your life. After all, if the Lord can forgive me for all my transgression, who am I not forgive?
• I need closure in my life. Or I will continue to worry about it. I had a lot of open ends in 2009 and I'm glad that they are now closed so I can move forth in 2010.
  
• You have to give people a chance. Sometimes I can be closed minded and I just wont give people a chance. I think its because im an introvert. Having conversations with certain people made me realize that we all dont give people a chance and you never know what you can learn from people. Just because a person looks/act different doesnt mean they can add value to your life.
• INFJ. Introverted. Intuition. Feeling. Judging.
• Guys come and go. Not gonna say I havent totally given up on them but I'm done with them for awhile. I'm chllin.
• Love is what keeps me going. And it mainly comes from my parents and my brothers. They are my biggest supporters. I love them soooo much! They give me the confidence I have and support all my antics even my crazy ones.
  

2009 was not the best year but not worst either. Making my plans for 2010 NOW. Speaking of, I need to get my materials for my vision board. A vision board is an artistic way of displaying one's vision for the year. Trying something new for the new year. Im excited for 2010. I feel some good things coming my way and make some changes for a better life. See ya in the new year!!

♥ A.Erika ♥

#imthankfulfor....

My support system has been the best these last couple of weeks. I never really questioned the love and support of my family because I knew it was always there but the love from my friends has really surprised me lately. I had a really big interview last weekend and the amount of support I received from not only my fam but also friends really made me realize how blessed I am for the people I have surrounded myself with. And I am SOOOOOO thankful for them.

As usual, I am in the NYC for the break. As awesome as NYC is, I am starting to think this place is not for me. Driving is a hassle with all the traffic and not mention everytime I come here, something always happens to my car. :-( [Currently recovering from a minor case of whiplash]. I always have a good time but I dont think this place is for me. I am just ready to eat some good food and get some rest so I can finish this semester strong. Hopefully I'll get to see my RPI peeps before I leave.

♥ A.Erika ♥

no tricks...all treats! lol

Halloween 2009 was a blast! My friend who is on co-op in St. Louis came back and partied for the weekend. I kicked off Halloween weekend with Night of Free Expression in celebration of Black Awareness Week [BAW]. BAW helps to expose black culture to the RPI community and abroad. It is also considered the preview for Black History Month. Our theme for BAW 2009 was Retro Magic. Night of Free Expression is closing ceremonies for BAW where we have members "freely express" themselves through any artform. We also bring in a poet to perform as well but this year, we tried something a little different by bringing a musical artist to perform, Mr Jesse Boykins III. It was quite awesome. He was SANGING and the band was great. Here he is with the eboard. :-).
Then I went out for some pre-Halloween festivities. Friday, I went to THE party at the PCC. I went last year when my sis came to visit and it was POPPIN. So this year I expected the same and it was good but not as GREAT as last years. Last year, the DJ played this stint of old school reggae [the reggae that I grew up like Buju, Lady Saw, Sanchez] and that made the party for me. This year he played alot of hip hop which was cool. Got to stanky leg, my dougie except not swag surfin. Just a tad bit disappointed. But it was a great night with my crew! I was a french maid. hehe.
I dont know who I think I am but I went out Saturday night as well. I went to Union for another party. This time, just my boys and my roomie. Me and the roomie represented the different decades, me as 80s dancer and 50s pinup girl for her. I must say we looked great!Finally got to swag surf. LOL. But totally missed my anthem for my senior year: WASTED. Not that i'm implying anything but I just like the song. LOL. But all in all, it was a WIN. One of the best weekends in a while and Im happy because I cant go out anymore because I have a lot of work to do until Dec.11.

P.S. In honor of Halloween, here's a little poster I did for my information design class.

♥ A.Erika ♥

midterms!!

So officially hate MIDTERMS. Maybe because they sucked for this semester. I got sick last week and was out of commission for like 3 days, throwing my whole study schedule off and resulting in me not doing well on my tests. It was a wake up call and I needed to start grinding out this work. So grind mode is in full effect. Plus, mama lindo is coming today for family weekend. And I know she will give me the inspiration I need to get through the rest of the semester. Trying to keep hope alive!!

On a lighter note, I scheduled my final interview with the company I really want to work for. And I need to call the travel agent to get my travel itinerary since they are flying me out to DC. This is so exciting for me! I hope it all works out. I want a skirt suit for the interview so we're going shopping this weekend. :-) A lil retail therapy doesnt hurt. I also have an appointment for senior portraits on Monday. It's crazy how fast this year is moving.

♥ A.Erika ♥

Still Recovering....

So these last 2 weeks have been so busy. Its been one crazy day after the other. Last week and weekend my life was consumed by Career Fair. Not just any Career Fair but the NSBE/SHPE Career Fair, the LARGEST student-run career fair in the nation. Not to mention it was alumni weekend so all, well most of my closest friends came to visit. Needless to say it was a fun-filled weekend. Got a couple interviews while enjoying time with my friends. Couldnt have asked for a better weekend. Here's the staff at the Corporate Reception in blue polos! Fresh...big ups to A-team! ;-)

Of course I had no recovery time. And then my body decided to malfunction so I caught a cold. After all, life must not stop as a result of Career Fair and sickness.

A Monday interview with a company that shall remain nameless didnt go to well putting a damper on my week plus preparation for group presentations and projects which were all due on Friday plus an interview with a company I really want to work for plus a malfunctioning body equals STRESSFUL week and fast recovery with a VERY PROMISING opportunity with the company I really wanna work for and midterm break.

So truly I cant really complain because this is how senior year is supposed to be: stressful, exciting, promising, and all the emotions in between.

♥ A.Erika ♥

omg! he waved at me....

Yes President Obama waved at me. LOL. Its been such a busy week that I haven't time to post this momentual occasion but I saw President Obama on Monday. He came to Troy. For a president to come such a small town such as Troy, is big within itself not mention the first black president. So my roomie and I skipped class, and headed to Hudson Valley to the Mr.President Obama.

We got there around 10:30am, one hour before he was supposed to speak. I almost slapped one of the Wendy's managers, saying he would tow my car if we parked in the parking lot. I gladly moved my car without making a fuss because there was nothing that was gonna get in my way seeing MY president. We waited and then the motorcade sped past the crowd. *screams* I only saw his profile and that was good enough for me. But it gets better.

Me and the roomie tried to blend in with the other students and find where the speech would telecasted from. We found this nice older lady who directed us to the student center and we watched the speech in the auditorium. Even though I was jealous that he didnt come to RPI seeing that the president of my fine higher institute of higher learning is on his advisory staff and not to mention he butchered the name Rensselaer.*I digress* He made several points about the importance of education, whether its a PHD or its an associate degree. My favorite line from his speech was "result of hard work, discipline, sacrifice & ambition that served a common purpose...leadersip isn't inheritance, its a responsibility"

After the speech was finished, me and roomie ran to back to the street to see President Obama off. When his motorcade passed this time, it was going about 20 miles slowly so then the moment happened... I SAW HIM WAVED AND SMILE. It was so awesome. Even if I dont get to meet him, just seeing him so close made me happy. [I actually got it on video but i was so excited that u only see him for a brief second. LOL.] But it was an awesome day and has made my senior year so far.

♥ A.Erika ♥

labor day weekend: saratoga springs style

So I spent my labor weekend exploring something new: Saratoga Springs. About 25 min from campus, I had never really thought to go but I was in the mood for Chipotle and decided to take a trip. I'm so glad I did because its beautiful. And I ended up not even getting Chipotle. Lol. It's the epitome of what college town should be: boutiques, restaurants/bars, friendly atmosphere, art galleries, bookstores, bakeries, etc. I finally have some options for formal dresses. Another place to spend money for retail therapy :-). I wish Troy could compare but it does not.

Saratoga is known for its horse racing history. Its big summer pastime for the Capital Region that bring families together for the summer season. They had displays of painted horses all over Broadway, which is the major street that runs through the heart of downtown Saratoga. This was my favorite.

While there, me and the roomie [shes great btw. i was a lil nervous rooming with her and 2 other random people but its going well so far.] got dinner at Contina, a small mexican restaurant. The food was excellent but the service was kinda suspect. He was nice but very absentminded. I had a chicken quesadilla and SANGRIA!! It was my second time having it and i LOVE it. i think im acquiring a taste for wine but only if its sangria though. One of my roomies worked at a winery this summer and says PEACH sangria is speciality. Now you know imma imported Georgia peach so i definitely have to try it. We are supposed to have a dinner party soon and I will make sure that will be on the menu. But that wont be the last time Saratoga sees my face. Another trip coming sometime soon...another week or so. LOL.

♥ A.Erika ♥

senior status

so im officially a SENIOR [May 29,2010 im out this biotch] in college. I've had 2 full days of class and I have to say I kinda like the courses I'm taking. Yet this is gonna be a tough year dealing with my senior coursework [which entails BOTH my EMAC and Management thesis/capstone], presidency of 1.5 organizations, being a RA, searching for full-time employment, applying to grad school, preparation for graduation and if theres any time left, enjoy being a SENIOR. So I really have a full plate but I am ready to take it on headfirst, only with much PRAYER and encouragement from those I love. Its gonna be an interesting/fun/ long ride until Graduation 2010. But on May 29, 2010, to hear my name being called, walking across the stage to get my degree [after shaking Dr. Shirley Ann Jackson and the rest of the Cabinet's hands], it will ALL be worth it. So here we goooooooooooooooooo.....

♥ A.Erika ♥