Sunday...

It happens to all of us.

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Our Lady of Prompt Succor

Hasten to Help Us!

Today marks the 4th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina's landfall and subsequent destruction New Orleans.

The city is in considerately better shape now, although many places still bare the scar of the storm. However, with time, they have moved from painful reminders to bittersweet memories of a strange and turbulent time in the Crescent City. But even after all of these years, its impossible to forget the images, smells, and feelings from that day. It's still possible to hear the deafening quiet I came back to a few weeks after the storm - when many people were still away in Houston or Atlanta. It's still possible to recall that awful scent from the very depths of Satan's lair that is the refrigerator left alone without power for a month. (Don't open it, I beg you!) And it's still possible to visualize the National Guardsmen and HUVs rolling down the streets of Mid-City.

New Orleans as it was and as it is will always remain a unique place. Even to this day, as I am stowed away in middle-of-nowhere, Ohio, people still come to talk to me about the storm and what its like to live in the most interesting city on Earth.

Oh and GO SAINTS!

Ministry Fair

Last night the Franciscan University of Steubenville hosted their annual ministry fair. The fair consisted of multiple departments of ministry including chapel, evangelization, outreach, and mission trips.

I arrived about 20 minutes early and already the JC Williams Campus Center was packed with students and presentations. I was immediately attracted to the mission trip set up in the Atrium. What really caught my eye was the advertisement for the mission trip to New Orleans, my sweet hometown. We were listed right along with Belize and Jamaica. Nice. Of course I signed up. The trip goes down to New Orleans during Spring Break, so even if I do not go with Franciscan, I am going to be in the area anyway. Maybe I'll just stop by.

I was the first one to sign up for more information about that trip, but hopefully a lot more people were interested. Although the area has seen vast improvement since 2005, there are many neighborhoods and people still looking for a little extra assistance. It never hurts. After witnessing the insurance fiasco at my summer job at the law firm, I can still see the need present.

Apart from the mission trips, the chapel ministries tables were swamped. It was near impossible to get anywhere close to the Eucharistic Minister sign up with fighting a few people off. (Or distracting them with free root beer floats.) Of course, with its popularity comes a series of hoops to weed a few people out - including a mini-reflection paper and such. If I ever get around to filling that out, I can start trying to participate in the very active and popular chapel ministry program here at Steubenville.

Although I haven't seen any of the previous ministry fairs, I would comment that it seemed to be quite a success. By 7:45 it was hard to move throughout the campus center - each floor was packed! I like to like it was because of the eagerness of holy people looking to serve the Lord, but it could have been because of the free root beer floats too.

Back in the Saddle Again

Ok, so I decided to take a summer break from blogging. Even though you would think that summer allowed more time to do unpractical and unimportant things, my summer did not. I finished working at the law firm about two weeks before the vacation would end so that I would have time to see the friends that I had missed all last year and during the summer. I also needed to take some time to start packing so I could go to....

Franciscan University of Steubenville!

I have finally made it into the wilds of Ohio! Although technically I moved in on Thursday, I did not figure out how to work the internet until late last night. This required numerous treks (really, treks, there are so many hills!) back and forth from my room to the campus center and to the RAs office. But alas, I have found the internet and can start blogging again!

Classes haven't started up yet, but that will change come Tuesday. Right now, I am stuck going through yet another Orientation. Orientations - they have their goods and their bads. Some parts seem repetitive and unnecessary, but other aspects I have found are quite helpful. Franciscan has organized small groups within the dorm buildings to meet nightly and go over the day. I am happy to say that these small groups are a great improvement over the most awkward small group of all time I had to endure at SHC. Who's idea was it to put my gay ex-boyfriend in the same group as me? Who? Not cool, Jesuits.

I am living in Marian Hall this year, which is the oldest and hottest dorm on campus. Seriously, there is no air conditioner or coke products in the vending machine. Ohio, what is going on?

The room is small, but sweet. The place is full of possibilities for feminine bonding. Although some of the rules seem a bit strict for me (no boys except during open hours, but only with the door open!) but at the same time, I understand where they are going with them. (Feminine community, once again). That should be interesting - and challenging for when my boyfriend comes to visit me from Mobile in October. Will he even be allowed to do the actual visiting part? I guess that will just take careful planning.

I shall post pictures of my dorm room shortly, to give everyone a feel for what Marian Hall is like. At first I was a little disappointed, but I think the mold is growing on me.

(Just kidding - there is no mold...just moths.)