New York, New York

I had a really great trip this week. I volunteered at the Clinton Global Initiative in NYC. I didn't get to watch any of the sessions, but I'm going to catch up here. I saw Brad Pitt, Angelina, Chevy Chase, Petra, Jet Li, and I scanned Usher's name badge! When not covering access to the event or registering Sponsors, I got to go out into the city. The shopping was wonderful! I had a total blast, but it's good to be home. I'll be working hard on Capstone stuff this week.

schmorgesboard, schmorgesboard, schmorgesboard

I took Boomer with me to the Faulkner County Fair last night. He was okay until we entered the terrifying ride and game section. Lights were flashing, alarms were going off, he tried to run away on multiple occasions. He did eat a lot of dropped fair food though, reminding me of Templeton in Charlotte's Web. I won a prize playing skee ball, and Boomer, who noticed I was throwing a ball, jumped up on the lane and tried to chase after it. All and all, we had a lot of fun and I successfully dodged too much funnel cake.

I'll Believe it when I see it......believe it, folks

Here it is ladies and gentlemen, David's gigantic Minnesotan sculpture. The detail shots are of the inside. He's finally finished folks. It weighs approximately 3 tons and you could sit inside it and have a tea party. He'll have better pictures soon, when it's properly installed at the park. This should hold you over until then. I'm so proud.

Friday Night Lights...and Saturday....and Sunday

I went to Siloam Springs this weekend and spent most of it playing with children and watching football. Siloam had a high school game similar to that of Arkansas's but they didn't make a comeback like Alabama. Both my teams lost...sniff, tear. We had a good time, and it reminded me of when I was the photography editor of the yearbook. Yes, I was on yearbook, are you really surprised?

I also got to hang out with little miss Drooly McGhee, herself Isabella Jo. That kid is teething like crazy. We need to hang a bucket around her neck to catch all of it. She sure is cute though. Jed also made an appearance and ran his tricycle over some dog poop, and then promptly put it in his mouth. I promise he will never do that again. He said "yuck" for about an hour.

My goal this week is to get a significant start on the background section of my capstone paper, which is essentially a thesis. Discipline Discipline. Write things before they are due.

Jamie and Ryan are getting married this Saturday, so much fun should be had.

Next week I am headed to NYC to volunteer at the Clinton Global Initiative. I wish I could take pictures of the cool people in attendance, but it is forbidden! Here are the names of some of them though: Ted Turner, Bill Frist, Desmond Tutu, Robert Zoellick, Felipe Calderon, Anderson Cooper, George Stephanopoulos, Tom Brokaw, Tony Blair, Tony Bennett,Muhammad Yunus, and good ol' Bill himself. A lot of other great people you've never heard of will be there too. I get to work a 16 hour shift one day. The joys of volunteer work are never ceasing.

I could never be a telemarketer

My day starts out with me grabbing a list of organizations in Northeast Arkansas. I call them one at a time, and start my phone call like this "Hello, my name is Chandle Devor. I am a student from the Clinton School of Public Service in Little Rock working at the Arkansas Independent Living Council. I am doing a needs assessment of providers and consumers of disability services in Craighead and Mississippi Counties. Who do I need to talk to?" I am then transferred to 3 or 4 different people who I have to repeat this entire, ridiculous schpeal to. This process inevitably leads to me leaving a lengthy voicemail, which has a slim chance of being answered. You can understand why I became completely elated yesterday when I actually got 2 surveys back. I'm headed to the NWA tonight and will attend a Panther high school football game. Ah Nostalgia.

If I only had a name...

My biggest tasks today have been to master the fax machine, and to get people to understand, pronounce, and spell my name over the phone. Couldn't I just be Ann Smith or something? Someone called me Chandler Debor today.

I'm a machine

So I've been working my rapidly shrinking behind off trying to crank out these surveys. I'm on a roll with at least 10 organizations filling and handing them out (so they say). I really hope this isn't one of those things where really wonderful people sound sincere about surveydom and end up chunking them into the trash, (whether that be digital email trash or actual I-faxed-that-to-you trash). Let me just say that introducing myself on multiple occasions over the telephone is an excruciating process. I need an alias. I also have a codebook, survey database, directory database, 2 surveys, online versions of those surveys, and a growing provider list.

I will be in Jonesboro the 1st, 2nd and 3rd of October conducting focus groups, and the 4th and 5th at a Developmental Disability Conference in Russelville. All in all, the board is happy, I'm working on this thing for the majority of my waking hours and I think I can get it done, despite skepticism. I wholeheartedly admit I am a glutton for punishment and continually attempt to do more work than is humanly possible, but here's to conducting a comprehensive needs assessment of 2 counties, alone, in three (make that two) months!

P.S. I'm going to be She-ra for halloween, and if anyone has a plastic crown sitting around I need to put wings on it and a ruby rhinestone. Princess of Power! Now that's what I call feminism in a tube top.

a sack of potatoes

Well, I've lost 5.5 pounds, that's one sack of potatoes. Last week I ate a little too much for labor day and gained a pound. It's raining buckets and I have a presentation at 10 this morning. I also have class until 9pm. I'm going to Siloam Springs this weekend. Ashur is selling cookie dough for his kindergarten class, so let me know if you want me to order you some. He's a pretty good little salesman. He tried to get me to buy every single kind. I kept telling him I could only buy chocolate chip and he would say "..and brownie and snickerdoddle." If you know anyone with breast cancer or want to support it, I found these great t-shirts in newsweek. http://www.save2ndbase.com/ Have a great week guys.

Hooray for Holiday

David and I had a pretty quiet weekend. It was wonderful. We cooked and watched Friday Night Lights on itunes and walked the dog..... a lot. Living in an apartment is not the best way to have a 50 pound dog. We went out last night, and he ate my shoes. David bought a new camera, and here is a picture with it in the truck. It represents what my album cover would be, if I ever decide to be a punk rock or rap musician.

My other dog, Boomer, bit Katie's nephew this weekend. If anyone has any tips for stopping a jack russel/ corgi from biting kids, please let me know. I really don't want to get rid of him. He's such a sweetie, to me that is. Tomorrow it's back to work, so wish me luck.