7 Things NOT to Do This Valentine's Day

Single ladies, this one's for you! 

Happy Days for Hitler

In the midst of the outpouring of donations surrounding Haiti, I had been following my friend, Nicole's, adventures in India.  She is there on a fellowship, learning and discovering so much!  The experience truly seems to be impacting her in a way I couldn't even describe.

She had been writing us back home about a man she met there named Hitler.  When I read this, I thought it was a mistake!  She explains in her blog more about his controversial name and why he is in every aspect the OPPOSITE of what we associate with that name.

You can read her blog here! 

If you're like me and often times need a more personal reason before you donate hard earned money, please read this blog.  Even if you're unable to donate, you'll still walk away with a new knowledge and understanding of the way people live in other areas of the world. 

Thank you! :)

Donate in the Spirit of Audrey Hepburn

By now we're all quite aware of the horrific disaster that occurred (and is still ongoing) in Haiti. I have to say, despite a few setbacks, I think the world has had quite a tremendous response. It almost made me happy to see how much everyone is eager to help and the text campaign the Red Cross started has already raised millions. If anything, I think that this showed people that when disaster strikes, we're there - especially the U.S.

I've waited for a long time to be proud of my country again. One of the first times I smiled was when Obama was elected as the next President. His election alone helped the U.S. image worldwide. No longer are we quite as hated as we used to be! (I speak from firsthand experience. No one wants to go abroad, to a western country no less, and tell someone they're from Canada just to avoid confrontation.)

The second time I was proud was the U.S. response to Haiti. Of course, I texted 90999 and donated $10 to the Red Cross, but I wanted to do more. As I was reading through one of my many Audrey Hepburn books the other night, I came across the pictures of Audrey in Africa with hungry, sick children. It really got to me. They almost mirrored the images we were seeing of Haiti. I knew that if Audrey were here, she'd be on the forefront fighting with UNICEF to help the poor children. It was with this thought that I decided to donate to UNICEF.

I don't have a lot of money, but I wanted to do something in honor of my idol and in hopes of helping at least one family in Haiti.

So, in the spirit of the great Audrey Hepburn, please donate to UNICEF. Any little bit counts!

Would You Date Someone Your Friends Hated?

This article is interesting... What would you do? I think most people can say they've been in this position before.

Repower America

A guy stopped me on the NC State campus in Raleigh (I was visiting my cousin) and asked me what I thought about "going green." Here's my not-so-eloquent response:

Happy National Hot Tea Month!

I hope you all join in celebrating National Hot Tea month with me!  The Tea Association of the United States announced that January is National Hot Tea month.  So grab your favorite mug and your favorite tea and put on the kettle!  Read the article here.


If you have no idea where to begin with tea, here are some of my favorites:

Harney & Sons - Tropical Green
Blend of green tea and pineapple.  Makes you feel like you're in the tropics! You can get this at Wegman's or any other large health food store.

Stash - White Christmas
Perfect combination of ginger and peppermint.  I'm not usually a fan of peppermint tea, but trust me, this one is worth trying!  It may not be in stores for much longer.  This can also be found at Wegman's.

Tea Geschwedner - Amaretto
This smells like rich amaretto and warms you up almost just as well! Found at any Tea Gescwedner locations.

Tazo - Berryblossom White
By far my FAVORITE Tazo tea!  A light white tea with blueberry and white cranberry flavors.  I recently learned that Starbucks is switching to loose tea (it's about time!) and so you will no longer be able to find many Tazo teas there anymore, however, it's still available

Republic of Tea - Blackberry Sage
This was said in a mag (forget which one) to be a favorite of Scarlett Johansson's!  It's flavor is a little earthy, but the berry gives it a sweet kick. Can be found at more upscale tea sections.

So this should get the celebration started!  What are your favorite teas?

New Year

I love the feeling the New Year brings with it - the feeling of starting over; the feeling that you're really going to work on and change things that you've talked about forever. The feeling that with this new year will come a new adventure/start/opportunity.

This year, my resolution is to simply maintain that feeling - the feeling that tomorrow is the start of something new. I have many goals for myself, and like my crazy mind, I've starting reaching for these goals in bits and pieces. I want to focus on one, while maintaining others.

If you have any inspiration, please share!

Happy 2010, everyone! :)