Different Strokes For Different Folks

Happy belated Easter everyone!!! I hope everyone is doing well.

I celebrated Jesus’ Resurrection on the west side of Washington by going to my church named Allen African Methodist Episcopal Church (also known as Allen A.M.E.). After church, my family and I went to eat at Joe Seppi’s; a little Italian restaurant that is located in Tacoma Washington.

After dinner, my mother, sister and I went to my mother’s friend Sidney’s house to top off our holiday with an Easter egg hunt. Yes, I am a 20-year old who likes to participate in Easter egg hunts and gladly received an Easter basket from my mother. The endeavor was very fun considering this hunt was between only my sister, Tondi and me. There was definitely some sibling rivalry there. For the record, I won with seventeen eggs; Tondi had fifteen.

For me, all three activities are necessary to have an enjoyable Easter holiday. I find it quite intriguing that there are so many different types of people in the world that celebrate and live life differently. For example, my Caucasian friend, Travis and his family celebrates Easter differently then I do. They wake up, have a big breakfast, then an egg hunt, and end with exchanging their gifts. This still creates a fun holiday environment; it’s just a different experience from mine.

I hope everyone enjoyed this Spring filled holiday with smiles, happiness, family and friends. I’d like to close by asking you all–how did you celebrate Easter?

http://www.dbc.org/pages/page.asp?page_id=251054#.VSTI0PnF-So

http://www.assaggiosteria.com/menus/specials/easter

A Capella is Important Too

A Capella has blown up so much in recent years, its become almost as popular as Gregorian chants during the Medieval Period. The media has helped push A Capella into popularity through various ways, one being a movie called Pitch Perfect and an A Capella competition titled The Sing Off. 

Pitch Perfect is about a young new college student named Beca, who immerses herself in an A Capella group and steers the gang towards success. The Sing Off features various A Capella groups preforming today’s popular music. This competition has celebrity judges that eliminates a group each week. Ultimately, an A Capella group wins a grand prize and becomes famous.

Due to Pitch Perfect and The Sing Off, A Capella has popped up at thousands of universities. Central Washington University didn’t have A Capella until 2011. In 2011, Isaiah Ragland, currently a senior at Central, brought A Capella to Central Washington University through Nada Cantada. Eventually more groups were formed like Boots n’ Cats, Fantastic Forte, and 20/20.

Last year, Emelia Blunt, another senior at Central, started a non-audition A Capella group named Blunt Force Trauma. This group is exciting because students can have all the fun of being in an A Capella group without auditioning. This is really important to me because although I haven’t always had professional training, music has always been a therapeutic getaway for me. This is a great opportunity for others who are in the same situation I’m in as well.

Recently, Central had its Fall A Capella concert called FallapaFOURza. This concert’s line up involves the groups I’ve mentioned earlier. Blunt Force Trauma’s songs include: “Rather Be” by Clean Bandit, “Make it To Me” by Sam Smith, “Your Love” by the Outfield, Ke$ha, and Moko. Here’s is a video of our performance if you would like to watch.

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Diabetes: Not always what you may think

In honor of National Candy Day, I’m going to talk about something that is somewhat related. Diabetes. There was a time I was concerned for my health and my doctor thought I could have diabetes. I was really worried and thought “Hmm I guess that makes sense, I do love my sweets more than the average person”. My friends agreed as well so there, it was settled. Turns out I do not have diabetes.  I don’t know about most people but I was under the notion that diabetes was caused by eating too much sugar.

November is National Diabetes Awareness Month and although I don’t have diabetes, I know someone who does. And I think its great to learn more information about this subject because I’m sure other people are or were under the same notion I was.

The cause of both type I and type II diabetes is widely unknown. Type I diabetes attacks the “insulin producing cells” in the pancreas. Because of the lack of insulin, sugar builds up in the bloodstream instead of absorbing in the body. There is a similar situation with type II diabetes. In type II diabetes the cells in the body become resilient to insulin. The sugar-filled energy from the body goes into the bloodstream instead of being adsorbed into the cells.

The American Diabetes Association organization (ADA) is doing everything in their power to get Americans to live a healthier lifestyle, prevent, and handle diabetes. This years theme is “America Gets Cooking to Stop Diabetes® which is presented by Sun Life Financial”. The ADA has dedicated a title for everyday of the week to promote exercise and a balanced diet. The ADA is so dedicated they encourage others to participate in a do-it-yourself fundraiser,” they’re calling Cook to Stop Diabetes. This involves family, friends, and the community coming together for a fun party involving healthy cooking and raising money to stop diabetes.

If you would like to find out more informational facts about diabetes or the ADA visit:

Click to access adm-2014-fact-sheet.pdf

 

 

http://www.ourskinny.com/diabetics/november-is-national-diabetes-month/

http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/diabetes/basics/causes/con-20033091

Click to access adm-2014-fact-sheet.pdf

Relaxation: Taken for Granted?

Nowadays, life is so fast pace it’s easy to be like the “Energizer Bunny” and keep going, and going, and going. Peoples days are filled with so many activities to the point where they end up sleep with sore tense bodies, go to bed, then wake up the next day to do it all over again. I am guilty of this and want to talk about the importance of relaxing for our bodies and for our well being. An added bonus is that you live a happier life.

As people may know, there are so many simple ways to relax. So much in fact, there is no reason why someone cant be relaxed while dealing with the hustle and bustle of life.

Everyone uses their hands so often and don’t show them love. As weird as this may sound, it is a great idea to give yourself a hand massage. Hand massages are excellent for people who type a lot because hands tend to hold a great amount of tension. Believe it or not these massages are a good way to calm a pounding heart. When you get a chance to, grab some lotion or oil and start to rub your thumb against the base of your hand. Another way to instantly feel relief is to sprinkle cold water on your wrists and behind your earlobes. The arteries right under the skin allow the whole body to feel cool, calm, and refreshed.

This may sound cliche, but honestly it is really beneficial to stop and smell the roses. “Certain smells change our mood.” Obviously, during a workday you can’t always leave your desk whenever you want just to smells the roses. It’s recommend that you bring a jar in with you, leave it at your work place, and smell whenever need be. My coffee addiction was enabled more when I found out the smell of coffee can help lower stress hormones. Talk about simple, even if you don’t like to drink coffee the smell will comfort you.

Food and drinks are essential to being alive and one of my favorite things to do. So if it can help me relax, that’s an added bonus. It would seem like most people know that green tea boots your metabolism, but did you know that green tea has a chemical called  L-Theanine? This chemical helps release anger. So the next time you feel like you want to punch someone or something drink green tea. I like to flavor mine with peaches. Mangoes are not only a tropical tasty snack, they help lower stress levels due to a compound called linalool.

I hope that these tips and suggestions find you well. Remember there are small little things you can do to every single day that will help you live a more relaxing life. If you want more tips than I mentioned earlier click on this link below. http://greatist.com/happiness/40-ways-relax-5-minutes-or-less

http://www.popsugar.com/fitness/Relax-Already-Stiff-Neck-Shoulders-Gone-1845331

http://greatist.com/happiness/40-ways-relax-5-minutes-or-less

http://g2goutside.org/tag/kids/

http://www.naturalhealth365.com/food_news/eating_mangoes.html