Alright, enough technical terms about the job description for a RA. I'm just so excited to have the opportunity to work with other RA's and CRE's. I know it is not an easy job, but I look forward to the challenge, and I will meet that challenge.

I thought I'd write one last blog before I leave to Michigan tomorrow morning. I am attending the Midwest Academic Bowl at Lahser High School in Michigan as a student representative and volunteer. I will be working as a scorekeeper or a powerpoint operator. Volunteering for this will give me the opportunity to complete the required eighty hours of community service in order to graduate. I am thrilled to attending, as I like to see competition and I may see several students from the past when I participated in 2004. I will be back Sunday afternoon, and I will post pictures of the Academic Bowl and explain how successful it was. I hope you all have a great week/weekend, and don't work too hard!

I am going to steal Tyler DeShaw's salutation and say con amistad!

Con Amistad,

Greg

P.S. Check out the website for the Academic Bowl at academicbowl.gallaudet.edu! :)

I spent the weekend at home in Warren, Ohio, and I must say it was a good weekend. I had some difficulties, but I managed to get through most of it, and I had a wonderful weekend, spending time with the people who mean most to me (the list includes my parents, sister, girlfriend, and some friends). I was home for less than twenty-four hours, and the cause of that was because I had to catch an early train Sunday morning, so I stayed at a friend's house overnight Saturday night (She lives two and a half hours away). Overall, I thought it was a good weekend. I was surprised when I came back to D.C., as there was snow EVERYWHERE! It is not common for D.C. to get a lot of snow, but I took advantage of the amount of snow and we had a snowball fight, which was a lot of fun! I will post the pictures of the snow at the end of the blog. :)

I feel I need to dedicate this blog to my mother, who is a very hard-working woman. My mother is a wonderful woman who wants the best for everyone in our family. She has done a lot for us, and three years ago, when my mother mentioned she wanted to go back to school to receive her Master's degree, we supportd her every step of the way. I was proud of my mom, going back to school getting a Master's degree in Social Work. It was hard for her at the beginning, balancing work, family, and school; but she was able to get through it, and last weekend was her last weekend of school. My mother went to school once a weekend a month at Case Western Reserve University, and she will be graduating this May. I cannot wait to see her graduate, because it means a lot, not only to her, but to me as well, because she is an excellent role model for children, as she followed her goals and reached them. My mother deserves the very best, and I want to commend her on her recent success.

Now, I know I have went off the subject a lot in this blog, but I felt that it was neccessary to praise my mom for her hard work, as it is finally paying off. This shows me that you can be successful in anything you want if you work hard and do your best. This goes for everyone, and no one should set their own limits, as there are none.

Because I was mainstreamed, I was a bit wary of coming to Gallaudet, but like I said, I had a great support system in my parents and teachers, and they encouraged me to come to Gallaudet. Also, the summer before my senior year, I attended the Young Scholars' Program for two weeks, and it was one of the most memorable experiences in my life. I met numerous high-ranking people in the duration of the program, and they also encouraged me to come to Gallaudet. I know some of you may be asking why was I a bit leery about coming to Gallaudet. There's a lot of reasons, which include me being afraid of leaving my family and friends, I was afraid I wouldn't fit in at Gallaudet, and because I had been mainstreamed my entire life, I thought I wouldn't be able to understand what was going on.

Leaving home was difficult, but I made friends fast at Gallaudet, and we are now like brothers and sisters. Fitting in at Gallaudet was easier than I thought it would be. It also taught me in order to make new friends, you need to break out of your shell and introduce yourself to new faces every once in a while. Trying to understand what people were saying was not has hard as I thought it would be. A week or two after arriving at Gallaudet, I could understand what a room full of people were saying. I tend to worry about little things a lot, and in the end, I was worried about nothing. I am happy I chose Gallaudet, and I am thankful for the people in my support system; because without them, I probably wouldn't be where I am today.