Well, this is it- summer's pretty much over- what is left to say? Looking back on my previous posts I feel a bit lame- I definitely didn't do anything super exciting, so on that note, thanks for reading anyways :P

The last few weeks have been pretty crazy- so far everything I've done was leaning more on the to do/ i am obligated to do list rather than the bucket list, except for my mini vacation to Carlisle, PA to visit family. We hit up Hershey Park, Indian Echo Caverns, and a few other hot spots. Spending time with them was awesome :) I drove through a monsoon on the way home, but I'm pleased to report myself and the Chief (my Jeep) returned to Ithaca in excellent condition. My last day in the office was actually a few weeks ago, the following Friday I started RA training, really intense. However, it is definitely worth it in the end. I RA in Rowland Hall which is part of the first year residence hall program. The freshmen moved in today and they seem really great and enthusiastic. I hope I can provide a great experience for them in the hall, just as I had my freshman year!

Through RA training I have also met some amazing individuals. It's always nice to start off a new year with new faces. 

Although classes start on Wednesday, I think summer will be officially over after next weekend because I'm going to see KENNY CHESNEY in concert. You don't realize how excited I am, really, you don't :P

This summer really changed me in a few ways. Being my first away from home, I reached a new level of independence, one I never thought I would reach. I have always been very independent and self sufficient. However, I really stepped it up this summer and for that I am proud. To be totally honest, I began the summer with $27 to my name. I had no idea what to do before my first paycheck came in, therefore I had to be really careful. I began work with Fuse but then started at Rogue's Harbor, who hired me as part time but by the end of the summer I was a full time employee. Yes, two full time jobs- 7 days a week, one summer. Over 70 hours per week- crazy! I'm pleased and proud to say my tuition for the coming semester is paid off and my plans for a semester in Singapore are coming along nicely.

I didn't do a very good job keeping track of the restaurants I went to this summer, I can't say I went to ten new ones, but close enough. I started buying/eating organic which feels pretty good, and am a lot smarter about what I'm eating.

The sunset hunt didn't go as plan, I did not wake up once to see the sunrise (*disappointment in myself*) but what I did see was amazing.

Met lots of new people.

Met my financial goal.

Hiked (most) of the gorge trails.

Chief reached 100,000 miles.

Got involved with church.

Wisdom teeth removed (haha)

Stayed in shape.

Hit up the Farmer's Market, Cinemapolis, Greenstar, Ithaca Festival, and Myers Point.

~

So the point I'm trying to make by concluding this blog is that I may not have done all the things I wanted to do but I found a real sense of fulfillment by soaking up every minute of what I did do. And I thank God for the opportunity I had here this summer, even though at times it was lonely, and it rained a few times (ok, it rained every day, enough about the weather). 

Whatever you do, whether you meet your own expectations or not, look for what you did accomplish in the little things. People notice, whether you know it or not ;)

So a few weekends ago I went to see a movie at Cinemapolis. All I really knew about this movie was that it's about food. There was a lot of hype going around about it, and I figured, hey, I love food, I'm always up for learning something new- why not check it out?

Let's put it this way- I will never look at my food the same way again. Here's my account of the movie, which you check out at your local independent movie theater or watch when it comes out on dvd.

Have you ever really thought about what you’re eating? I mean, really thought about what you’re putting in your mouth? Where it comes from, what it took to make it?

Wonder no more. Food, Inc., a documentary hitting independent theaters across the country, including Cinemapolis in Ithaca, provides answers to those questions.

Be warned- the answers aren’t pretty. Quite frankly, they’re frightening.

Created by filmmaker Robert Kenner, Food Inc. was prompted by the average consumer’s lack of awareness concerning the food industry. But it’s not the consumer’s fault. With the consent of our government's regulatory agencies in the food industry, the USDA and FDA, the American consumer has been purposely blinded of the unsanitary, harmful, and unjustifiable practices that take place, all because of control by just a few big corporations.

Watch the trailer here-

That burger you ate at the 4th of July cookout- tasted good right? A good slice of a cow? Try a thousand.

The movie provided an exclusive look at the meat packing industry and how mass production is hurting (and even killing some) consumers while bringing more profit to the companies. Cows are slaughtered and meat is combined and packaged in such mass quantities that one burger could contain the meat of up to one thousand different cows. And with new strains of E. coli harming thousands of Americans daily, the chances of infections and food borne illness are growing exponentially.

Another sad truth is the treatment of animals while they are developing. In no way did this movie condone the practice of slaughtering and/or eating meat (it was carnivore friendly!) but the ethics behind the actual practices are outrageous. Chicken farmers genetically modify their chickens so they develop in a shorter amount of time and can be killed sooner. They grow the chickens with much larger breasts, because people generally like white meat better. Not only is this a questionable practice, but the young chickens are so overgrown and fat that they cannot even stand.

Animals are kept in houses completely darkened, overcrowded, and filthy, all because these corporations have regulations that actually encourage such conditions. Why? Laziness and convenience of mass production. One farmer in the movie lost her contract with Tyson meat because she refused to move her chickens from a lighted, clean farmhouse to a dark and dirty one.

The movie also explored the corn process, fast food industry, Kevin’s Law, and the big corporations themselves, specifically Monsanto, that control everything, down to the individual seed. Unsurprisingly, they all declined to be interviewed for the movie.

Shockingly, the government is fully supporting this veil over the public eye. There's an ongoing effort with the few corporations to make it illegal to publish a photo of any industrial food operation. And we can't help but wonder why. The FDA wants to pass a law that prohibits the meat of cloned animals as being labeled as such. Because who wants to know they're eating cloned meat?

"The industry doesn't want you to know the truth about what you're eating. Because if you knew, you might not want to eat it," says co-producer Eric Schlosser.

The unethical and downright wrong practices that control what you put in your mouth are certainly shocking truths, but should be realized by everyone so we call make a change. Here are some things the developers of Food, Inc. recommend you can do to promote change (other than seeing the movie of course!)

Eat and buy foods that are in season.
It’s the dead of winter and you just picked up a bag of vine-ripened tomatoes from the supermarket. You have to wonder- how the heck did that tomato stay so red and ripe, all the way from the vine, coming from halfway across the world? The truth? They’re grown in unnatural areas- hot houses to be specific, picked as green as could be, gassed to turn red, packaged and shipped right to your neighborhood grocer. Which brings us to the next point-

Labeling
That “vine-ripened” tomato I just talked about- lies! The “farm fresh or, "certified organic” eggs you pick up every week- nice label right? The USDA permits beak cutting and forced molting through starvation for the perfect eggs. Beware of labels and don't always believe what you see.

“You look at the labels and you see farmer this, farmer that. It’s really just
three or four companies that are controlling the meat. We’ve never had
food companies this big and this powerful in our history.”
– Eric Schlosser, author of “Fast Food Nation.”

Buy local and organic
Pretty self explanatory. That’s why it’s best to trust your local farmer’s market, co-op, street stand, etc. Some of these items can be more pricey but the cost on your health is a lot heavier than the cost on your wallet. Ithaca is the ultimate area for this green lifestyle change- from GreenStar Natural Foods Market to the Farmer's Market to the fresh food market at the dining hall.

Sign the Petition
See the sidebar for links to the Hungry for Change website and how to sign the petition

Write to your Congressmen, demand change
We can change this shameful problem county by county, state by state.

Vote with your Fork

You have the ability to vote on this issue every day –at breakfast, lunch and dinner!

If you read my first post, you might be able to appreciate this-

Today I got a new cell phone. Verizon was kind enough to grant me an early upgrade since they don't make my battery anymore, and I needed a new one. I'm not going to lie- when I was browsing through my options for new phones online, I was tempted by the Blackberry and all these other neat phones. I actually could have gotten a Blackberry for FREE! Hmmm.

I chose your basic LG flip. (It doesn't even look new, my old phone looks newer, so I certinaly won't be showing it off). WHY?! you ask? Well for starters, it was also free, but, as for the Blackberry, I don't use internet on my phone. Mostly because of the cost, but moreover, I don't need to be on the internet anymore than I already am. I knew a Blackberry would tempt me. Plus, while this seems like such a miniscule thing, a part of me thinks that if I had given in to a Blackberry, or God forbid, an iPhone (GASP!) I would be losing a part of myself. Deep inside I'm too simplistic for things like that. I like the "no-frills." Sometimes it's nice, but I have good reason for having this attitude-

The more we get, the more we want. The more we want, the less value we place on what we do have. Sometimes I think back to life without cell phones. And Sometimes it scares me. All the times I've used my cell phone for health or safety issues, for directions, for cancellations. What did we do back then? We either went without, used a landline if available, asked a stranger for help, or used a payphone (another gasp). But the point is, we got by. Ask your parents how they communicated with their friends in college. They did not IM, text, "tweet" or facebook. They probably valued face to face interaction way more. I'm a little jealous. Rarely did my friends swing by my dorm room to make dinner plans or ask a quick question- because they usually called or texted (No offense guys, but I know none of you are reading anyways).

So, back to my bucket list. For one thing, I started learning Mandarin Chinese through the Mango language learning system provided by the Tompkins County Library. If I knew how to type Chinese characters, I'd write something. I'm only through the first module but it's been a great experience! I've learned a lot already. I highly recommend it if you're looking to learn a language but can't take a class. Sometime next week I'll write a feature about it for Fuse if you're interested in checking it out.

I'm slowly but surely hitting up all the gorge trails this summer as well. Last weekend I hiked Treman with my friend Erin and this past Sunday I hiked Buttermilk with Jamie. Both days were gorgeous, unfortunately we don't have enough of those this summer! Next up is Taughhannock- although I've been to the lookout point numerous times, I'm looking forward to the trail below.

One minor set back was I unexpectedly needed to have my wisdom teeth out, so I was in bed recovering for a few days. Other than needing to be on painkillers, it was a better experience than I anticipated. I didn't swell up too bad and after 8 days I'm back to eating normal food- yay!

Well, I could have left the office 10 minutes ago, so I will now. Much more to come though, and hopefully some photos!

It looks like the bigger and better things on the bucket list will be waiting for the second half of the summer. For now I've been overwhelmed working 60 hours a week and yes, still praying for summer weather. We've gotten some nice sunny days, but only in small bouts. So, here's what I've been up to-

The sunset hunt- one of my hobbies is scoping out the sunset from different places in town. I love wathcing the sunset no matter where I am, but there's something about seeing it in Ithaca that's so much more beautiful to me. It might be the view from South Hill or the hazy skies at night making it more colorful. Being higher up on the hill certainly makes a difference. Since I've been here in Ithaca, I've experienced many, many "cotton candy" sunsets. The sky is streaked with pink among the blue background. I've seen pink and blue skies before but with the clouds over the valleys here, it looks like cotton candy to me. If only I had a photo! I'm hoping to buy a nice camera soon to take around with me and capture them.

So far I've watched the sunset from Stewart Park, the Cayuga shore in Lansing, Treman Park, some hills in Enfield, and from the parking area near Longview on 96B. And then of course, campus. All of these places have something different, but so far, I've gotten the best view of the actual sun from the Terrace parking lot. This I did get a picture of. While I've seen prettier skies and sequence of the sun setting, this area is where you get a full view of the entire sun, not hidden behind trees or buildings. If only I knew how to actually use a Canon SLR, this picture would have shown you the striking sky (sorry!)

Let's see, what else have I been doing? One thing I wanted to do this summer was start attending a church in town. I've been going to the Vineyard Church of Ithaca and I absolutely love it there! It's really down to earth, casual, and the services are so modern and relatable. It's also non-denominational and attended by many other college students. At first I was nervous about going on my own but it is such a welcoming environment, there was no need to worry.

I've also been reading a lot lately. Anyone who knows me knows that this is a big deal. I'm not proud of it, but I havn't read for pleasure since high school. I get distracted very easily and am usually busy enough reading for class that I don't have the time or desire to read for pleasure. But, this summer, I've been giving it the chance. I went to the Tompkins County Public Library and took out a few books. (Not that I couldn't have used to campus library but I wanted to try something different- plus, the library downtown is pretty cool). Among other books I've been reading, this one called "A Page Out of Life," has been grabbing my attention. I havn't finished it yet but I'm loving it. It's really not that special, many people might find it boring and certainly "girly." It's about 3 women who are on completely different paths in life, but they come together through scrapbooking.The stories are prety interesting and also inspiring. I love it because my friends and I like to scrapbook together and every summer we pass it around to each other through the mail so we can be adding to it while we're apart. It's amazing to see how everyone and everything changes over the years, especially at this point in our lives.

Well, that's about all I've got for now!

Well, kinda. By that I mean yesterday it was sunny and 76, best weather we've had yet. I spent the morning at the Farmer's Market, the afternoon at the pool, and the night at a cookout. It was a great day.

The strange weather patterns, or normal for Ithaca if you will, remind me of a week this past April. If you don't know by now how crazy and unpredictable Ithaca weather is- this might give you some insight-

April 20th, 2009: I woke up at 8 to be out the door by 8:30 (typical). I was rushing around getting ready for a morning of work at the daycare when I quickly hit F12 on my Mac to check out the weather for the day. This is what I saw, and I just had to take a screenshot:

Ok, it's June 15th and it hasn't reached 80 degrees yet. So to see that it was that warm in April makes me a little upset. But above all, the shockingness of this weather widget is almost too much to handle. 7 degrees is pretty typical of Ithaca in the winter, even in the late Spring. When I looked out my window it was definitely raining and some flurries were flying around.. but 7 degrees? Then 72 the next day, then 82 the next day? That's insane!

I posted this to my Facebook page and people couldn't believe it. They thought I photoshopped it or something. No, this is just exhibit A of how wild Ithaca weather can be. It also gives us hope that even the nastiest day can bring the most beautiful day less than 24 hours later.

I will admit, though, when I actually stepped outside, it didn't feel like 7 degrees, though it was definitely below freezing. My friends thought the weather widget had a glitch, but even if it did, to go from 30 to 80 in 2 days is still unheard of... everywhere else of course.

Alright so what does this have to do with my summer bucket list? This weekend I was able to enjoy the beautiful weather and kick back, which is in fact on my list. It's something I havn't had the opportunity to do very often- I was lucky enough to have this day off, which is a rare thing. I got a tan (my version), met lots of new people, enjoyed Steamboat landing, and made some money at the restaurant. I also started my sunset hunt which I'll explain in my next post, so stay tuned!