Super Bowl XLVI !!!

I have got to admit, I think Indianapolis is a FANTASTIC place to host a Super Bowl...then again, I may be slightly biased lol

Yesterday, I had the chance to visit Super Bowl Village and it was beyond cool!
I am super excited to see how all the events play out and even more excited to see who wins ((go giants! screw the pats!!)) hahaha

Here are a few pictures that I took on my little tour of Super Bowl Village :)













I gotta say this though...if you're not in Indy...YOU ARE MISSING OUT!!

basketball

As many of you all know, I am a student manager for the IUPUI men's and women's basketball teams. Yes, I know...I'm crazy for doing both and it makes for an extremely busy schedule, but I do it because I love it :)

So far this year, the guys are 1-2, losing the last two games on the road and the girls are 0-1 after taking on #16 Purdue. They have their regular season home-opener today against St. Francis, N.Y.

This coming week is going to be absolutely I.N.S.A.N.E. This is what my schedule looks like through November 30:

11/19: IUPUI(w) vs St. Francis, N.Y.
11/20: IUPUI vs Eastern Michigan
11/21: leave for ISU
11/22: IUPUI(w) @ Indiana State
11/23: leave for Kansas
11/24: miss thanksgiving :'(
11/25: IUPUI(w) vs Florida Atlantic @ Kansas
11/26: IUPUI(w) @ Kansas
11/27: IUPUI(w) vs Lamar @ Kansas
11/30: IUPUI(w) vs North Dakota State

WHEWW!!! This is going to be a super long week, but I'm looking forward to it!
Here are pictures of my second families :D

Music :)

Lately, I've been trying to listen to as many hymns as possible throughout my day. I recently came across a piece by a guy named Ricky Valdez that I absolutely love. He did a composition of "If You Could Hie to Kolob" and "Adam-ondi-Ahman". It's probably my favorite piece that I've come across and I wanted to share it with everyone, so here it is!!

NBA lockout

Okay...so I was on Facebook this morning and came across a post by someone I know that kind of bothered me. This person was talking about how the players don't need anymore money and that they're all super greedy, and that they don't seem to care about the effect it will have on the cities and those who work for the NBA. So many people really don't know what this lockout is all about, so I'll tell you all.

The NBA is on a lockout because the the amount of money brought in from media coverage and whatnot is not being shared equally. At this point in time, the athletes receive 55% of what's brought in, while the owners and those at the top only get 45%. The commissioner and owners want the income to be split 50-50 and the players don't want to do that. While I don't agree that fighting over a measly 5% is worth it, I can see where each side is coming from.

While reading the comments on the status from this individual, I became more and more upset over what was being said. One person went as far as saying that "...if they had any other talents other than playing basketball..." a second person said that "it's utterly despicable. they should be ashamed of themselves" and another individual stated that "aren't most professional basketball players gangsters anyway?"

I have come to know many NBA players this summer and can tell you all that these statements are, without a doubt, completely and utterly wrong. The guys I've met are the complete opposite of every stereotype that was presented in that conversation. Many of them are really intelligent and are family men. I've seen the way they act around their families and they are just like the rest of us. Everyone has struggles and problems (and free agency) and they have to deal with the consequences of their actions just like the rest of us. We shouldn't judge people by a general stereotype, especially if we don't know them.

And, on a side note, many of the athletes DO care about how the lockout is affecting the cities and people losing their income/jobs that come with it. I came across an article that demonstrated just how some of them feel and what they are doing to help out. Here's the link to the article that was posted in the IndyStar, and it also made national news.

http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2011110200428

How Can I Be?

I absolutely love this song. I came across it a few months ago and have listened to it at least once a day since then. This is probably my favorite version of the song by Nela Otuafi.



How can I be like my brother Nephi?
And my father Lehi of old?
How can I be like Captain Moroni
In the wars that were told?

How can I see forever
Like the promise to the three Nephites?
I wanna be Samuel the Lamanite
I wanna be Benjamin the Wise
I wanna be like Abinadi
Oh tell me how can I be like them?

How can I be like Alma the Younger,
Strong servant of the Lord?
How can I be like Mighty Ammon,
Whose heart was his sword?

How can I be a stripling warrior,
And learn to fight by faith?
I wanna be Samuel the Lamanite
I wanna be Benjamin the Wise
I wanna be like Abinadi
Oh tell me how can I be like them?

How can I be like my brother Joseph,
When he prayed in the grove of trees?
How can I have the strength that he had
And the love he had for God?

How can I be courageous
And strive to choose the right?
I wanna be Samuel the Lamanite
I wanna be Benjamin the Wise
I wanna be like Abinadi
I wanna be like Jesus Christ
Oh tell me how can I be like Him?
Oh tell me how can I be like Him?

daughtryyyy :D

I cannot even begin to tell you all how excited I am for Daughtry's new album to come out!!! Daughtry has been my favorite band since they came out. I loved Chris Daughtry on American Idol, so I guess that's one of the main reasons I love his band lol Anywho, their new album drops on November 21 and I don't know if I can wait that long (aaaahhhhhh!)

Here's the new single off of their unreleased album,Break the Spell. It's called "Crawling Back to You" <3

Indy Pro Am

This summer, I've had the opportunity to help out with a summer basketball program called the Knox Pro-train Indy Pro Am created by Carlos Knox. This has been going for three years now and I've helped out for the last two.

Carlos Knox played basketball here at IUPUI. His number has been retired and he continues to hold many of the school records for basketball. He played professionally for the Pacers as well as in Germany and Venezuela. He is currently a volunteer coach for the Indiana Fever. He is one of the nicest guys I've met and I'm very grateful that he has given me the opportunity to help out with his program.

Because of having the chance to work for him, I have met many wonderful guys. His Pro Am league is one of the best in the Midwest. It is NBA and NCAA sanctioned so that not only professional athletes can participate, but college athletes can as well. I have met at least 10 NBA players and quite a few European players as well and I have become quite close to a few of them :)

Here are a few of the NBA players I've had the chance to see this summer

Mario Chalmers (Miami Heat), Eric Gordon (LA Clippers)


DJ White (Charlotte Bobcats), Jeff Teague (Atlanta Hawks)


Gordon Hayward (Utah Jazz), JaJuan Johnson (Boston Celtics)


Jeff Green (Boston Celtics), George Hill (Indiana Pacers)


Mike Conley & Zach Randolph (Memphis Grizzlies)


Paul George (Indiana Pacers), Shelvin Mack (Washington Wizards), Lance Stephenson (Indiana Pacers)


Once again, I am beyond grateful that I've had the opportunity to help out with this. It has made this summer one of the few that I'll remember for the rest of my life.