There is a big difference between recognizing Thanksgiving as a holiday and actually recognizing the thanks that you would like to give to the people and things in your life. 

Since, of course, I was preoccupied with the holiday spirit until now- I will take a moment to say it without getting too chummy. To my parents- you guys are gems. To my siblings, gems as well. My friends? Guess what- gems. My lovely lady? Incredibly.. also a gem.

Point is- if I were a prospector, I'd be swimming in diamonds. From my job to my lifestyle, I've truthfully very little to complain about.

I recognize privilege, but I also recognize an extreme appreciation for the people and things that I have worked for and surrounded myself with.

So here's to giving thanks!

Death is never an easy topic to deal with. Especially not when it hits so close to home. Recently, a close friend and club member of mine, Bernie, came into the spotlight.

I'm going to miss that little guy. He was the goofiest freshman that I've ever met. I have a lot of feelings about this, but do not feel as though I necessarily want to pour my heart out into a public blog post.

The moral here is that you should all check up on your friends and family. You never know how much time you really have with the people that you love.

We are forced to go to school until we are adults. But then once we've made it to adulthood, we are once again at least partially obligated to attend even more of this schooling at college given that we are able.

I am by NO means complaining about the institution as a whole that has changed my life for the better or helped me to find myself, because had I not gone to college, I would be a very different person.

My problem with academia is described in one word: gen-eds.

Are you a costume person? Do you dress up for the Holidays? 

Of all of the seasons, Fall has always been my favorite. It's something about the crispness of the air- the weather allowing you to wear any combination of short/long sleeves imaginable, or the beauty of the trees as their leaves change colors to fall. Caramel apples, cider, pumpkin pies, Thanksgiving- I could go all day. Fittingly, Halloween has also always been my favorite Holiday. As a kid, I loved the costumes and free candy. As an adult, I love it even more. Discount candy bag? Sign me up. Then all the ghouls and ghosts (my friends) go out and get up to some fun.

While it may not be the case that scholars and wisemen alike have been debating this topic for centuries, it is certainly a fun article to argue about. What fruit is best? You know- the major food group growing on trees and bushes out in the wild for anybody to take. (And a shockingly delicious one, too.) And while the concept of delicious food just appearing for anybody to take is crazy enough, not all are created equally.

THE best fruit on the planet Earth is an UNRIPENED pear. And I mean UN-RIPE. Green and crunchy, a little bit sour, a little bit tart. The answer to all of my questions. The apple (see what I did there) of my eye. And for all of that, somehow ripened pears are actually my least favorite fruit. Gooey, grainy, nasty. Second place best fruit of all time goes to the asian pear, which is an apple pear hybrid. Definitely worth trying that thing out too if you ever get the chance.

This has been my two cents on this debate! Can you tell that I'm hungry?

I'll start by prefacing this- Wes Anderson is and always has been my favorite director. We as people are lucky that the likes of him have ever graced the silver screen. But why? Easy. He is methodical, intentional, rhythmic, humorous, & above all else, entertaining. His more outward point of acknowledgement is his particular way of filming, using wide pans and center framing. His movies were actually my childhood inspiration for my interest in stop motion & live action film. (Seriously, you can ask my parents. I made them watch this movie so many times that they banned it in our household.) 

But, how does this tie into my love life? It's the parallels in thought & methodology. It takes a lot of creativity & input to churn out a meaningful relationship, and just as much abstract thought that applies to how I operate on a day-to-day basis. I relate to many of the characters and overhead general direction that these movies follow. Most importantly, however- I find these movies to be so enjoyable that I use them as a personal Litmus test to gauge compatibility. Can't stand them? There's the door.

Enter- my lovely lady.

As a rule of law- I don't count any relationships that occurred during my time in High School. I mean, seriously, is this 1958? These days, those are practice runs. And pictured above is the most earth-defyingly compatible lady to ever stumble into my life. And like all good things, there's a lot of history here too.

I've had the great pleasure of knowing my Meadowe for two years, and the stockpile of picturesque events that have occurred between us until now could very well be made into a movie that I would watch 10x over. Directed by Wes Anderson, of course. Our favorite director.

Above is a picture of the craziest trip of my life. (A whopping 2 hours down the street from my house!) I'm joking, that's a lie. But in the grand scheme of things, I really have not seen that much of the world. If you were to find a standard map of the United States and draw a 2-inch circle around Virginia, you'd have covered more ground with that alone than I had in my lifetime as of 2023. So, to put it simply, I've been making some travel arrangements.

Know this: I will never hesitate to pack up for a few days and see what the world has to offer if I am given the opportunity and have availability in my schedule. They say that you work to live, not the other way around!

Despite my last name, I didn't become a "skier" until my freshman year of college. Attending James Madison University so close to the mountains, there is a certain allure calling every student with even a semblance of interest towards the slopes. And, seriously- in a world of streaming movies from home and countless activities that fail to get your heart racing (looking at you, dinner dates,) I feel very strongly that every person should live life on the edge every once in awhile. If you're not risking some life and limb, what are you doing? Playing it safe shouldn't be a discipline that you follow in every aspect of your life. I'd encourage every person on this beautiful green earth to step one foot towards and try something invigorating- whether it's skiing or not.