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Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Sunday, June 29, 2008
La música buena
For you music lovers out there, I recommend finetune.com.
I have been a member of this site for a long time and have finally incorporated it into my blog (see right hand side of page). Ultimately, this site is a great tool for sharing and finding "new" music. Also, it has amazing utility for travelers and people on the go. The best part is that it is all FREE.
If you set up an account and would like to share music, my screenname is kimberlydj (my finetune). I hope this is helpful for some of you!
I have been a member of this site for a long time and have finally incorporated it into my blog (see right hand side of page). Ultimately, this site is a great tool for sharing and finding "new" music. Also, it has amazing utility for travelers and people on the go. The best part is that it is all FREE.
If you set up an account and would like to share music, my screenname is kimberlydj (my finetune). I hope this is helpful for some of you!
Love
I Corinthians 13: 4-7
Romans 13: 8
I Corinthians 13: 4-7
Romans 13: 8
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
As promised, a Ukraine post.
Well, I haven't been able to think of a good enough excuse to warrant further procrastination, so -- without further hesitation. . .
For four weeks between May and June I was in Ukraine. Earlier this spring I applied for the Alma College Ukraine Service-Vision Project Scholarship (USVP), which fully funds a month-long trip for two Alma students. Though it is not necessary for receipt of award, both myself and Lauren (the other student who was selected) are members of the Alma College Forgotten Children of Eastern Europe (FCEE). This student-run organization sponsors the Veselka Children's Home north of Kiev and has been a primary focus of the USVP trip. That is to say, during the USVP trip each year, the selected students serve as "ambassadors" (for lack of a more precise term) for FCEE. This year, Lauren and I were able to visit the Veselka Home, The Way Home in Odessa, the Crimean Peninsula, and various organizations in Kiev. We met wonderful people and generated a lot of great ideas for the direction of FCEE (at least, we think they're great, of course we would!).
The trip began at Veselka. We spent nine days there playing with the children and learning more about how we can help at Alma throughout this coming school year. Neither Lauren nor I speak Ukrainian, but (surprisingly) many of the children spoke Spanish! It was a good thing too because we really got to know them well.
After the orphanage, we passed some time in Kiev, exploring the city. I think we saw every major tourist site in the city with expert guidance from Rick DeLong (our translator and guide in Kiev). The weather was beautiful and the sites were fun (my favorite during this first trip in Kiev was the Kiev Philharmonic, see below).
We then took a train to Odessa, a major port-city on the Black Sea. There we worked with The Way Home, a private organization that helps street children return safely to their homes and serves as a transitional home for them. In our brief time there we participated in social patrols (going out into the streets, feeding the homeless children, and encouraging them to come into the Way Home Center) and helped the director, Dr. Robert Gamble (This Child Here) write his annual donor report. Through our many interactions with Dr. Gamble we identified some potential avenues for FCEE sponsorship of The Way Home.
While in Odessa, Lauren and I also took advantage of some non-volunteer opportunities. The first was that we learned some basic Russian phrases and how to read the Cyrillic alphabet from our host family (a young girl learning English and her grandmother, a former language teacher). The second was a concert to see the Russian-speaking pop-rock group Bymbokc (Boombox, they sound like Jason Mraz). We were able to get free tickets from our host-brother who sings in a talented local band. The final thing was going to the "beach." Our last day in Odessa we packed a small picnic and enjoyed beautiful weather and a nice view of the Black Sea.
Following our week in Odessa, we took the train to the Crimean Peninsula for a two day trip between Bakhchisaray and Balaklava. There we learned a bit about Crimean-Tartar culture (basically the only ethnic issue in Ukraine). We visited the Kahn's palace and hiked up to the old Tartar fortress in Bakhchisaray. In Balaklava, despite a bit of rain, we hiked to a ruined tower above the bay. There was something fantastic about the sights and food in Crimea. I wish we could have stayed longer than a couple days.
During our return trip in Kiev, we visited a lot of individuals and organizations which work in Ukraine on current issues such as tourism, domestic violence, business management, and legal services. We met a lot of interesting people. While emphasis of this time in Kiev was learning, we were able to sneak in a little bit of tourist fun, namely we saw a phenomenal guitarist, Enver Izmailov.
This video is from the concert we attended. This song, in particular, was one of my favourites.
Overall, the trip was wonderful and I would love to return to Ukraine in my future. If you want to see more pictures, the following are links to my Ukraine Facebook albums: Ukraine, More Ukraine
Also, all photos in this blog post are courtesy of Rick Delong, tryukraine.com
I hope you are all well and happy. Peace and Love.
For four weeks between May and June I was in Ukraine. Earlier this spring I applied for the Alma College Ukraine Service-Vision Project Scholarship (USVP), which fully funds a month-long trip for two Alma students. Though it is not necessary for receipt of award, both myself and Lauren (the other student who was selected) are members of the Alma College Forgotten Children of Eastern Europe (FCEE). This student-run organization sponsors the Veselka Children's Home north of Kiev and has been a primary focus of the USVP trip. That is to say, during the USVP trip each year, the selected students serve as "ambassadors" (for lack of a more precise term) for FCEE. This year, Lauren and I were able to visit the Veselka Home, The Way Home in Odessa, the Crimean Peninsula, and various organizations in Kiev. We met wonderful people and generated a lot of great ideas for the direction of FCEE (at least, we think they're great, of course we would!).
The trip began at Veselka. We spent nine days there playing with the children and learning more about how we can help at Alma throughout this coming school year. Neither Lauren nor I speak Ukrainian, but (surprisingly) many of the children spoke Spanish! It was a good thing too because we really got to know them well.
After the orphanage, we passed some time in Kiev, exploring the city. I think we saw every major tourist site in the city with expert guidance from Rick DeLong (our translator and guide in Kiev). The weather was beautiful and the sites were fun (my favorite during this first trip in Kiev was the Kiev Philharmonic, see below).
We then took a train to Odessa, a major port-city on the Black Sea. There we worked with The Way Home, a private organization that helps street children return safely to their homes and serves as a transitional home for them. In our brief time there we participated in social patrols (going out into the streets, feeding the homeless children, and encouraging them to come into the Way Home Center) and helped the director, Dr. Robert Gamble (This Child Here) write his annual donor report. Through our many interactions with Dr. Gamble we identified some potential avenues for FCEE sponsorship of The Way Home.
While in Odessa, Lauren and I also took advantage of some non-volunteer opportunities. The first was that we learned some basic Russian phrases and how to read the Cyrillic alphabet from our host family (a young girl learning English and her grandmother, a former language teacher). The second was a concert to see the Russian-speaking pop-rock group Bymbokc (Boombox, they sound like Jason Mraz). We were able to get free tickets from our host-brother who sings in a talented local band. The final thing was going to the "beach." Our last day in Odessa we packed a small picnic and enjoyed beautiful weather and a nice view of the Black Sea.
Following our week in Odessa, we took the train to the Crimean Peninsula for a two day trip between Bakhchisaray and Balaklava. There we learned a bit about Crimean-Tartar culture (basically the only ethnic issue in Ukraine). We visited the Kahn's palace and hiked up to the old Tartar fortress in Bakhchisaray. In Balaklava, despite a bit of rain, we hiked to a ruined tower above the bay. There was something fantastic about the sights and food in Crimea. I wish we could have stayed longer than a couple days.
During our return trip in Kiev, we visited a lot of individuals and organizations which work in Ukraine on current issues such as tourism, domestic violence, business management, and legal services. We met a lot of interesting people. While emphasis of this time in Kiev was learning, we were able to sneak in a little bit of tourist fun, namely we saw a phenomenal guitarist, Enver Izmailov.
This video is from the concert we attended. This song, in particular, was one of my favourites.
Overall, the trip was wonderful and I would love to return to Ukraine in my future. If you want to see more pictures, the following are links to my Ukraine Facebook albums: Ukraine, More Ukraine
Also, all photos in this blog post are courtesy of Rick Delong, tryukraine.com
I hope you are all well and happy. Peace and Love.
Friday, May 30, 2008
Ukraine.
Dear friends,
I am in the Ukraine. It is spectacular. I wish you were all here with me.
I promise to post a lot more about my trip after I get home and load up the photographs.
Loving and missing you all,
Kim
I am in the Ukraine. It is spectacular. I wish you were all here with me.
I promise to post a lot more about my trip after I get home and load up the photographs.
Loving and missing you all,
Kim
" Only Love is Real"
I Corinthians 13: 4-7
Romans 13: 8
I Corinthians 13: 4-7
Romans 13: 8
Monday, April 28, 2008
O, Grenvil! How I come to loathe thee. . .
Dear Beautiful People:
It is official; the warm, nostalgic feeling of homecoming has faded into the sickening dose of pity and boredom that haunts those capable of recognizing the gravity of reality in a small, post-manufacturing economy. Apparently, Greenville is increasingly ailed by hopelessness, teen pregnancy and drug use. Surely, the former "ailments" are little more than symptoms of a more substantial and infectious plight.
I am not wholly convinced by the common hypotheses of which disease plagues my hometown. Some are quick to assume that it has been poor state economic policy that has fostered the stagnation -- I daresay, the retrograde movement -- of this community. To this, I argue that Michigan's economic policies do not necessarily explain cases across broad spans of time; that is, it is highly unlikely that the successions of leadership in this state have coercively been able to bring down the might of the automotive and other manufacturing industries, especially across the decades since this disease began its manifestation. Nor does this explanation provide insight as to why, in locations nationwide, similar phenomenon occurs.
Others posit that the disease is much broader -- an economic woe echoing throughout the United States and the world. For many internationally, the Western approach to capitalism, free market globalization, is the culprit for our ills. Free trade rhetoric spouted by the US, World Trade Organization, and other global bodies claims that liberalized economic policies spur development (2002 Monterrey Consensus). In some instances, this is true. After signing the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1994, Mexico's inflows of foreign direct investment increased significantly and overall poverty decreased (World Development Reports 1996-2007, World Bank). But, for significant groups within the population, the benefits of liberalized and free trade are out of reach. In Greenville, there is a large portion of the population which, correctly or incorrectly, maintains that NAFTA is what has allowed our manufacturing jobs to head south and east. Assuming, of course, that this draining of "quality, high-paying jobs" is what drives teenagers in Greevilles across the nation to cook meth and fornicate. (The logic has been grossly oversimplied, but I believe it essentially expresses the general thought processes explaining the downturn of society in a place like Greenville).
Ultimately, however, both these explanations are wrong. The horrible increase in high school drop outs, teen pregnancy, drug use, etc. has little if anything to do with economic wounds. Our own permission of cultural and social degradation is the sickness eating at this community. The said degradation deriving, of course, from an epidemic lack of responsibility for ourselves and for others. Blaming economics is a simple explanation of the disgusting debasement of American community. The correlation is obvious, likely perfect and positive. We, in our seemingly-infinite ability to pass blame, see correlation and read causation. Similarly, for those that do recognize this plague as social, I am sickened by the continued inaction to affect change. Fingers are pointed at everyone, but ourselves. Well, Greenville, look in the mirror. It is not Governor Granholm, nor President Bush, nor global capitalists that have brought this to your door. It is your apathy and lack of caring for the progress of your fellow citizens. Turning your head as a child is abused, ignoring your neighbor's depression, not saying 'hello' to a new face -- to an old face! -- these are things that reduce the quality of life in this community, country, and world. We are responsible for the sickness around us and, consequently, only we can reconstruct what has disintegrated. How? By caring enough.
It is official; the warm, nostalgic feeling of homecoming has faded into the sickening dose of pity and boredom that haunts those capable of recognizing the gravity of reality in a small, post-manufacturing economy. Apparently, Greenville is increasingly ailed by hopelessness, teen pregnancy and drug use. Surely, the former "ailments" are little more than symptoms of a more substantial and infectious plight.
I am not wholly convinced by the common hypotheses of which disease plagues my hometown. Some are quick to assume that it has been poor state economic policy that has fostered the stagnation -- I daresay, the retrograde movement -- of this community. To this, I argue that Michigan's economic policies do not necessarily explain cases across broad spans of time; that is, it is highly unlikely that the successions of leadership in this state have coercively been able to bring down the might of the automotive and other manufacturing industries, especially across the decades since this disease began its manifestation. Nor does this explanation provide insight as to why, in locations nationwide, similar phenomenon occurs.
Others posit that the disease is much broader -- an economic woe echoing throughout the United States and the world. For many internationally, the Western approach to capitalism, free market globalization, is the culprit for our ills. Free trade rhetoric spouted by the US, World Trade Organization, and other global bodies claims that liberalized economic policies spur development (2002 Monterrey Consensus). In some instances, this is true. After signing the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1994, Mexico's inflows of foreign direct investment increased significantly and overall poverty decreased (World Development Reports 1996-2007, World Bank). But, for significant groups within the population, the benefits of liberalized and free trade are out of reach. In Greenville, there is a large portion of the population which, correctly or incorrectly, maintains that NAFTA is what has allowed our manufacturing jobs to head south and east. Assuming, of course, that this draining of "quality, high-paying jobs" is what drives teenagers in Greevilles across the nation to cook meth and fornicate. (The logic has been grossly oversimplied, but I believe it essentially expresses the general thought processes explaining the downturn of society in a place like Greenville).
Ultimately, however, both these explanations are wrong. The horrible increase in high school drop outs, teen pregnancy, drug use, etc. has little if anything to do with economic wounds. Our own permission of cultural and social degradation is the sickness eating at this community. The said degradation deriving, of course, from an epidemic lack of responsibility for ourselves and for others. Blaming economics is a simple explanation of the disgusting debasement of American community. The correlation is obvious, likely perfect and positive. We, in our seemingly-infinite ability to pass blame, see correlation and read causation. Similarly, for those that do recognize this plague as social, I am sickened by the continued inaction to affect change. Fingers are pointed at everyone, but ourselves. Well, Greenville, look in the mirror. It is not Governor Granholm, nor President Bush, nor global capitalists that have brought this to your door. It is your apathy and lack of caring for the progress of your fellow citizens. Turning your head as a child is abused, ignoring your neighbor's depression, not saying 'hello' to a new face -- to an old face! -- these are things that reduce the quality of life in this community, country, and world. We are responsible for the sickness around us and, consequently, only we can reconstruct what has disintegrated. How? By caring enough.
Love
I Corinthians 13: 4-7
Romans 13: 8
I Corinthians 13: 4-7
Romans 13: 8
Wednesday, April 09, 2008
Belief-o-matic
The Belief-o-matic is a fun, online quiz that supposedly helps you to determine with what spiritual stucture or religion your beliefs most closely align. I took this quiz in highschool and was dominantly a Liberal Quaker. The following are my results now (I think they are very accurate):
1. New Age (100%)
2. Unitarian Universalism (98%)
3. Neo-Pagan (97%)
4. New Thought (96%)
5. Liberal Quakers (92%)
6. Scientology (89%)
7. Mahayana Buddhism (86%)
8. Taoism (84%)
9. Christian Science (Church of Christ, Scientist) (73%)
10. Mainline to Liberal Christian Protestants (72%)
11. Hinduism (71%)
12. Theravada Buddhism (71%)
13. Secular Humanism (67%)
14. Orthodox Quaker (65%)
15. Jainism (62%)
16. Reform Judaism (56%)
17.Nontheist (49%)
18. Sikhism (45%)
19. Bahá'í Faith (44%)
20. Seventh Day Adventist (34%)
21. Orthodox Judaism (33%)
22. Mainline to Conservative Christian/Protestant (25%)
23. Islam (21%)
24. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) (21%)
25. Jehovah's Witness (15%)
26. Eastern Orthodox (8%)
27. Roman Catholic (8%)
I think it would be fun if some more of my friends took it and compared. So, let me know what you guys end up with!
1. New Age (100%)
2. Unitarian Universalism (98%)
3. Neo-Pagan (97%)
4. New Thought (96%)
5. Liberal Quakers (92%)
6. Scientology (89%)
7. Mahayana Buddhism (86%)
8. Taoism (84%)
9. Christian Science (Church of Christ, Scientist) (73%)
10. Mainline to Liberal Christian Protestants (72%)
11. Hinduism (71%)
12. Theravada Buddhism (71%)
13. Secular Humanism (67%)
14. Orthodox Quaker (65%)
15. Jainism (62%)
16. Reform Judaism (56%)
17.Nontheist (49%)
18. Sikhism (45%)
19. Bahá'í Faith (44%)
20. Seventh Day Adventist (34%)
21. Orthodox Judaism (33%)
22. Mainline to Conservative Christian/Protestant (25%)
23. Islam (21%)
24. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) (21%)
25. Jehovah's Witness (15%)
26. Eastern Orthodox (8%)
27. Roman Catholic (8%)
I think it would be fun if some more of my friends took it and compared. So, let me know what you guys end up with!
Tuesday, April 01, 2008
Brief Life update. . .
It appears, evidenced by history, that any renewed resolve I have for updating this blog regularly only survives a month or so before I forget my resolution. I do not feel particularly guilty for not writing my blog consistently; not writing in my journal, however, worries me. Both this blog and my journal have gone unattended for weeks, a fact that I regret. Now, having finished with the Truman Scholarship process and having completed another season of Model United Nations, I am collecting my life and returning to the little writing that I do -- beginning with this blog.
I am glad to report that life is wonderful. Allbeit busy, the last three months have been remarkably productive. The challenge of applying for the Truman, preparing as a Finalist, and interviewing for the Scholarship was one of the most difficult processes of my life. I was forced for the first time to crystalize my passion and ideas into a plan for the future. More than this, I was also pushed to defend why and how I could make my plan a reality. Though I did not receive the scholarhip, I gained so much from the experience that it made all the struggle worthwhile. However, I couldn't be too upset about not winning, particularly because the week previous our Model United Nations team made history. For the first time in MUN history, one school has won three Outstanding Delegation and three Oustanding Position Paper Awards. Alma College represented the delegations of Burkina Faso, Costa Rica, and Palau. Anyway, the adrenaline was so high after our success at the National Conference in New York, it was probably impossible for me to get sore over the Truman.
Overall life is sensational. I have great friends and a million and one things to be thankful for.
Ciao - in hopes that I will update again soon with something more universally substantive rather than a brief personal account.
Peace and Love.
I am glad to report that life is wonderful. Allbeit busy, the last three months have been remarkably productive. The challenge of applying for the Truman, preparing as a Finalist, and interviewing for the Scholarship was one of the most difficult processes of my life. I was forced for the first time to crystalize my passion and ideas into a plan for the future. More than this, I was also pushed to defend why and how I could make my plan a reality. Though I did not receive the scholarhip, I gained so much from the experience that it made all the struggle worthwhile. However, I couldn't be too upset about not winning, particularly because the week previous our Model United Nations team made history. For the first time in MUN history, one school has won three Outstanding Delegation and three Oustanding Position Paper Awards. Alma College represented the delegations of Burkina Faso, Costa Rica, and Palau. Anyway, the adrenaline was so high after our success at the National Conference in New York, it was probably impossible for me to get sore over the Truman.
Overall life is sensational. I have great friends and a million and one things to be thankful for.
Ciao - in hopes that I will update again soon with something more universally substantive rather than a brief personal account.
Peace and Love.
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