into the deep end, life in the times of luke bonney

been busy

2007-10-06T09:14:00.000-07:00

Hmm where to begin. I can't believe its been so long since I've posted. What a looser. Anyway, there are three things that I will talk about, and only three. I hope you like them.

1. Ramada is still going on, and I'm still fasting. I remember way back at the beginning (three weeks ago) I had focused on doing a week. But once I started, it never really made sense to stop. Go big or go home. As a result of my fasting, my understanding of all the things that go along with Ramadan have grown deeper. For example, its well known that everyone is cranky as shit during Ramadan. After working all day and not having anything to eat or drink, I can now relate. It's also well known that some of the best meals of your life will be eaten during Ramadan. There are two reasons for this. 1 Food tastes soooo much better when you're really really hungry. You simply appreciate it that much more after not having it for an entire day. 2 People take cooking to a whole new level when they're preparing for iftar (the meal that breaks the fast). I've had a number of fantastic iftars. The first was at Tom's place, a feast of Tai cuisine, with delicious coconut flavored chicken and pasta. Then there was Nisrin's incredible Iftar. She prepared a delicious ginger chicken dish complimented by Lebanese meatballs and home made hummus. However, this past weekend I had an Iftar that all Iftars wish to become. I was invited up to Taher's place (one of my bosses) in Alexandria to enjoy one of his mother's iftars, a feast unmatched. Walking into the dining room, I was faced with this...

Enough Said

And here's Dody enjoying his Iftar

2. Two weekends ago, Chris and I finally got off our collective asses and decided to finish the painting Kent and Megan left behind. It started with finding the same color paint (luckily it was the only blue they had in the paint store across the the street) buying all the needed supplies, and conning some of our friends to come and help out. We were successful on all fronts. Step one was of course to tape up all the trim. Without a latter, we decided that Chris being the tall handsome man he is, would use the table to reach the top trim. All went well until we realized how big of pain in the ass it was to move the table. The top and bottom of the table are not, how would you say, connect at all.

After taping, we invited Kelly and Andrea over to help out with the painting. And when I say invited over, I mean offered them food of their choice, drink of their choice, and sexual favors... of their choice. Painting went rather well, with only minor spillage. All in all it was a great time. The wall might not be, um, one color, but its many slightly different blue patches, when looked at from a distance, are actually quite beautiful.

And of course we had to break in the the new paint job with some beers.

3. So the last few weeks have been quite hectic, but the next three weeks are going to be even crazier. This coming weekend is Eid, the great feast at the end of Ramanda. A number of us are planning a trip to Siwa for the four day weekend. Siwa is an oasis in the far west of the Wester Dessert. When we get there, we will be camping in the dessert for three days and two nights. Activities will include horse back riding, sand dune surfing, and hot spring swimming.

Two weeks after Siwa Chris, Harrison (crazy Nigeria) and myself are on the facilitation team for AIESEC in Egypt's national conference. It's four days of pure AIESEC craziness. The latest numbers just came out, and we're expecting a delegation of around 280 members, with a team of 8 faci's. Should be fun fun fun. October is going to fly by.

Oh, and one last thing. This past weekend I went horse back riding in the dessert, with a horse that liked running fast. And while I screamed, Harrison surely screamed louder.

Shower Any one?

2007-09-11T10:10:00.000-07:00

With Ramadan right around the corner I can't help but get excited about the new things I'm going to experience in Egypt. I've been here for over a month, am finally starting to feel comfortable getting around, started my Arabic lessons with my wonderful friend Luli and am getting serious amounts of work done at SilverKey. Since I've been here SilverKey has always been central to my Cairesian experience. Many hours have been spent there working, many games of guitar hero played and now with the Wii a whole new realm of Wii duck hunt and boxing. But today SilverKey has taken a new place in my heart. After two and a half days without water due to a badly broken water pump, the apartment has a noticeable stench due to my and Chris's lack of showering. This morning, upon waking up and finding again no water, I had no choice. I packed my towel and soap, went to the office and took my shower. It was perhaps the best shower of all time. Not only was it refreshing and clean, but it reminded me that water pressure still exists in the universe. I've grown used to the dribble we call a shower over the past weeks. With this new found showering capability, i might be showering at work more often. Watch out!!

This weekend was unbelievable. Night one was the famed Black and White party, hosted by Komal and Harrison. My first formal Black Tie event here in Cairo, I finally had a chance to wear my suit. The party itself was a huge success with 30 or more guests in full attire. I had a wonderful time, met a ton of new people and made it home sometime just after sunrise.

At the party with Chris, Karim, Manoj and Kenny. Keepin' it real.

I'm obviously smooth with the ladies, can't you tell?

Hanging out at Karoke night

futbol v. soccer

2007-09-02T11:44:00.000-07:00

Wednesday night, starting at 10:45 p.m. I enjoyed my first official Egyptian football game. 12 players, 6 on 6, with myself and Ryan (an Australian here for a four months) representing the white man. The game was played on a dirt field, and when I say dirt, i mean red, clay, destroy your shoes dirt. The kind that when inhaled, immediately turns to rock hard boogers. The field was half size, not too long, but wide enough to make you run.

Walking out onto the field, I was brought back to my days playing high school soccer games under the hot lights of Lomann field. My mission, don't embarrass myself and the rest of the United States of American with a poor showing on the pitch.

My play wasn't horrid. I managed to score a nice volley, assist a few goals, and not directly cause many goals. Playing on dirt was a new experience however. I'd never imagined my high school field (with grass) behind North Street school as a privileged place to play, but in comparison to what my Egyptians friends grew up on, it's a paradise. Playing on dirt means the ball never stops rolling translating into me forever underestimating how far they travel. There were a few mistakes, but nothing too bad.

By the end of the night, I was completely exhausted, drenched with sweat, but incredibly satisfied. Wednesday night football has officially become a fixture in my Caironian schedule. Next Wednesday, I'll be back. All you Egyptians better watch out.

Post about this past weekend in Dahab is coming. Weekend of snorkeling, drinking milkshakes, and some hard core lounging.

marriage?

2007-08-29T10:10:00.000-07:00

So last weekend I was exploring Cairo, doing a bit of wandering on a Friday afternoon minding my own business. My circle of knowing where the hell I am in Cairo is slowly but surely increasing, along with it my sense of freedom and independence. Kent was great to have around. He knew everything about Cairo, every nook and cranny, the fastest way from one area to another. But I never really had the chance to explore for myself. So away we went. Walking past Madan Talat Harb (a roundabout near our apartment) I was approached by a rather normal looking Egyptian, obviously a working man. He asked where I was from. Upon hearing I was from the U.S., he immediately started talking about his beautiful 20 year old sister. He promised me she was a fantastic house wife perfect for me in every way, every few seconds letting out "Yankee doodle dandy." I was at a complete loss for words. No idea what to say, how to gracefully refuse his sister's hand in marriage, all the while he's yelling Yankee doodle dandy. After smiling and nodding my way out of that, i enjoyed the rest of my exploring.

This weekend, off to Dahab for a weekend of fun in the sun. Looking forward to some world class snorkeling in the Red Sea.

weekend 2, still alive

2007-08-13T07:29:00.000-07:00

Well everyone, it's August 13 and I'm still alive and kicking. This past weekend brought a whole new round of adventures. Thursday night was a major first. I was invited to the wedding of one of my co-workers at SilverKey, Hossam Zain. However, before delving into the wedding itself, I must first comment on my pre-wedding experience. Egypt, Cairo in particular, is world renown for its insane traffic, from the congestion, to the pollution burning your eyes, to the ever-present symphony of honking taxis. Living in downtown Cairo, right between Midan Tahrir and Midan Talethaarb, I've grown used to dealing with the traffic. I'd relate it to the once famous game, frogger. Once you build up the necessary nerve to step into the apparently seamless wave of oncoming traffic, it can take a number of moves, forward, backward, side-to-side, to finally make it across. So far every day has been a flawless victory. I hope to keep it up.

Thursday night gave me a glimpse of the other side, Cairo's traffic from behind the wheel. Taher, the CEO of SilverKey in Cairo, was generous enough to drive us to the wedding. Getting into the car I had no idea what was to come. Driving through the city was easy enough, a few honks here, some swerving there. The real fun started once we made it onto one of the many overpasses that transverse Cairo. There was an instantaneous acceleration from 60 k/h to 120 k/m, accompanied by violent weaving, ducking and swerving. Cars were simply obstacles in Taher's path. While he's a great CEO, I think a more fitting career may be found in F1 racing. Without so much as a flinch, Taher confidently placed his car in spaces we in the states would consider dangerous for bicycles to pass through.

After 20 minutes of alternating horror and awe, getting to the wedding was a bit of an emotional relief. Walking in, I had no idea what to expect. The wedding itself was held in Nasir City, outside what is considered Cairo, in a complex built for such ceremonies. When we arrived, an hour late, we realized we were some of the first guests there. I admit that I was surprised that people were more than an hour late to the wedding party but my Egyptian co-workers confided that it was what they had expected. Time truly works different in this country. After 30 minutes of chatting, we were told that the bride and groom were on there way. Walking downstairs, I was greeted not only by the dancing bride and groom, but their dancing families, dancing friends, and an entire band of drum players and horn players complete with two men capturing it all on t.v. style video cameras. To say that Egyptians take their wedding parties seriously is a major understatement. We all danced our ways upstairs into the reserved room. Once inside, the bride and groom had to sign all the needed marriage documents. While I have no idea how long it takes in the States, the simple task of signing, fingerprinting and witnessing all the freakin' papers took 20 long sweaty minutes. As soon as they were done, dancing commenced, with all of the SilverKey team breaking it down. It was later noted by Kent that while we had no idea what we were doing, the Egyptians loved pulling the white kids into the dance. Whether it was out of kindness and generosity or to laugh at our horrid dancing, we'll never know. After a few hours of music the food was served, devoured and cleared in 15 minutes. It was a feeding frenzy comparable to the Bonney household after a hard-fought hockey game. After the food was gone, everyone said there good byes and left. All in all, it was a fantastic evening.

After the wedding was over, Kent told me he was heading up to Alex the next morning. I decided to tag along. After another mind-blowing ride up to Alex in a micro-bus weaving in and out of traffic at 160 k/h on the dessert road, we arrived in Alexandria to visit Luli, my new friend from Scrabble night. Our main mission upon arrival was eating the world famous fuul from Muhammad Ahmed's, Alexandria's self-proclaimed fuul master. From now on, I vow to travel in foreign countries with native people. Luli, a native Alexandrian, ordered us up an entire table of food. Literally food stacked on top of food. It started with the normal bread and pickled vegetables, moved into the tahina, fried cheese (yes, and its incredible), ending with the famous Alexandrian fuul. It took us awhile, but we slowly cleared the table. We waddled out 45 minutes later to walk off the fuul along the beach front. Alex is built around a huge bay leading out into the Mediterranean Sea. At its mouth once stood the famous Light House of Alexandria and the statue of Zeus, straddling the two points. With the breeze from the Med. in our faces we walked along listening to Luli describe the storied past of her city. We stopped briefly for some ice cream before driving to the Yacht Club located at the tip of the Western point of the bay. In the club we met up with Taher and his family, then decided to take a swim in the Sea. After a day of eating and walking, the swim was heavenly. After watching the sun set over the Med. dinner at another famous kafta place, Kent and I headed back to Cairo, fat and happy.

Friday night getting back to Cairo, we met up with Chris and headed to a party at Steve's house. I won't go into the details, as this post is already ridiculously long, but I encourage all of you to go ahead and ask Kent. He had a great time fighting refrigerators and screaming the lyrics to Kayne's Gold Digger.

Sorry for the long post.

out

luke

serenity now

2007-08-08T09:32:00.000-07:00

every day Kent, Chris P and I go to lunch. You could call the place a cafe. In front it has its Ta'amaaya, displayed for everyone to see. The smart ones pat the ta'amaaya before going in. Warm means its fresh and delicious, cold and you're in for an upset stomach. Everyday we go to the same place. It smells funky, its full of flies and other unknown insects but there's something about it. Time slows when we go to lunch, time for conversation, enjoying ourselves. After lunch we grab tea at the stand next door.

Today while at the tea stand with Kent, sitting on our plastic stools, enjoying the scalding tea, i realized how happy i was. There were a few beautiful white clouds in the sky, a wonderful little breeze, cats running around on the street, a few screaming children, a crazy car washer yelling at no one in particular, but I was happy. The odd feeling i had sent me back to Cornell sitting on the slope, back to my yacht club after a day on the lake, back to my porch sitting with friends. Here i was in Cairo, thousands of miles away from "home" yet I felt as ease, at peace, as if I had been here before.

It was an odd experience. Deja vu, i don't know. But its something I'm sure not to forget, one of those moments in time. Anywhere, any time, you can find a piece of home.

first weekend

2007-08-06T10:26:00.000-07:00

well i've survived the first week of Cairo. I've gone from my normal black-man fro to an Egyptian style quiff, thanks to our neighbor the barber. For the past five days he's been pestering me to trim up my bees nest. I must say, upon completion, Cairo is much more bearable the less hair you have.

Friday was spent sleeping and in the office. I decided to go in with Chris P, check some email, deal with my luggage and a few other backlogged details. I didn't feel great, suffering a spat of what Kent dubbed the Cairo colon. I'm sure you can all imagine what this entails. It results in quick sprints to the bathroom, irritable moods, and potential for disaster at every step. It was a direct result of my decision to jump right into Cairo food and drink. Instead of waiting a week or two, trying the slow and steady approach of gasto-assimiliation, I did the old dive right in and see what happens. My lunches have included the delicious fuul, a paste of beans and spices, as well as ta'mayaa, fellafel with an Egptian twist, both served in a pita. While the result was a bit delayed, there was a result none the less. This phenomena must be a fairly common occurance as all the toilettes I've come across thus far have a very noticeable addition to the standard "western" throwns we're used to. Right in the middle of the bowl is a little metal tube, bent upward. To your right, if sitting on the toilette, is a nozzle attached to the tube. With a slight turn of the nozzle the toilette user experiences quite the unusual sensation of having their ass shot with pressurized water. While this sounds entirely European and unnecessary, on the contrary, with out this beautiful feature my weekend would have been much more uncomfortable.

On Saturday, I was feeling better. We took a trip out to Al-Azhar park, a beautiful collection of green lawns, water fountains and sculptures, cafe's and ponds elevated in the middle of Cairo. From its top, I could see Cairo spreading out in three directions as far as I could see. We decided to grab a quick bit at one of the cafes. We sat for awhile, watching the sun set, when suddenly from below us, the evening call to prayer commenced all across Cairo. From hundreds of different mosques, sung over loudspeakers, the call to prayer mingled together creating a sound completely unique unto itself. i only hope those of you reading have a chance to experience it for yourself.

After leaving al-Azhar park we left heading down to Zimelikh, one of the two islands in the middle of the Nile, to celebrate one of the AIESECers birthday's. The party itself was on a boat tied to the docks of the Marriott. We spent the rest of the evening on the boat, looking out over the Nile, eating birthday cake and having a great time. In truth, most of my conversation was with Chris and Kent about American football. All of us found safety in a bit of home, talking about Madden and his retarded commentary, or Michael Vick and his dog fighting scandle.

All in all a great weekend.

Intellectual Chris, pretending he can read.

Kent, pretending we care about him.

Me, being bad ass with my new due, checking out the hot babes checking me out.

Sun setting over Cairo from al-Azhar park.

times a changin

2007-08-02T10:46:00.000-07:00

Well I must say that my first three days in Cairo have been...interesting, full of highs and lows.

Saying bye to everyone was tough to say the least. Luckily I was able to get a hold of many of my closest friends, from friends at school, to friends at home, to AIESEC comrads, to family and most importantly my brother Greg. The last three days before leaving for Cairo were spent in NYC living at my Aunt's, a 44th floor corner apartment with a kickin' porch. A number of awesome conversations were had sipping beers and taking in all of sparkling mid-town. Going out with Art (our latest latin import) and bones McBurney was great, especially hanging with them at Trent and Andrew's on Saturday. It was the first time Greg and my friend Pete had ever met any of my AIESEC friends. Both of them took me aside telling me they truly enjoyed the people they talked with. Says a little something about this crazy organization. The weekend was so fun I didn't have a chance to realize what was about to happen. Waking up Sunday morning, seeing Greg off, it started to hit me what I was doing, where I was going, how everything was going to change. I felt like vomiting (Saturday night's activities may have contributed).

The plane ride itself was nothing special, delayed out of JFK two hours, running from gate to gate in Keiv (comment about this later), arriving in Cairo 14 hours later, jet lagged but happy. Customs went smoothly, bought my visa, and went to get my luggage. Alas, after 30 minutes of waiting, there were four of us left, all starting our journeys in JFK. We had a collective "oh shit" realizing the consequences of the two hour delay. Filling my claim with a full list of "useful" phone numbers I could call, I met the awaiting AIESECers, and took off into Cairo.

The three AIESECers that picked me up were absolutely great. Stop one was a burger place, famous for its huge cheeseburgers. And by huge, they mean like Glenwood Pine's Tully burger huge (for those of you who don't know, the Pines is a burger place in Ithaca with f'in huge burgers). Stop two was to another famous stand known for its Oreo Milk shakes. At this point I started wondering why the U.S. is the only country known for its weight problem. Stop three was a concert that they decided to take me to.

The concert itself was bad ass. It took place at the Citadel, an ancient fortress that overlooks all of Cairo. The band, Osmatly from L.A., played some reggae/rock/latin joints. Listening to the jams while looking out over the lights of Cairo was pretty sweet. It marked the first point since leaving NYC that I had a chance to reflect on where I was.

After the concert the AIESECers dropped me off at my future abode, complete with open doored elevators and no a.c. The two dudes I'm living with, Kent Babin (crazy Vancouveran) and ChrisP (crazy Brit), took me in showing me my bed - the couch (once my baggage arrives I'll be uploading pictures showing the apartment etc.). Sleeping was interesting. Chris and Kent both had fans in their rooms, placed 2 feet from their sleeping bodies. I had an open window, in hopes the breeze would lull me to sleep. While I did fall asleep with the open window and nice breeze, it was more the sun blasting me the face around 6:30 that contributed to the interesting part. With the sun came the flies insisting that landing on my face was the cool thing to do regardless of my swearing and attempts to kill them. After vowing to destroy every last fly, I decided to read Arthur's gift, Lonely Planet's guide to the Middle East. To say the least, I didn't get much sleep. But, in all honesty, the apartment is sweet. Its right in downtown Cairo, close to everything. I've since bought my own fan, and with it has come wonderful sleep.

The first day of work at SilverKey was exciting. I'm Kent's replacement, meaning by the time he leaves in mid-August, everything in his brain regarding NG must move to my brain. On top of that, I need to learn how to create specs, work with Adam B (my boss), meet and work with all the Egyptian developers, understand how to use four or five other software programs and be able order my lunch from the cafe around the corner. The internship is a lot more than I thought, but I'm looking forward to the challenge. SilverKey is a great place to work. We come in around 11 and leave around 9, perfect for a night-owl like me trying to avoid the hot Egyptian sun. Everyone is incredibly nice, easy to work with and very dedicated. Its 9:20 p.m. right now on Thursday (the Egyptian Friday) and there are still 4 other developers working away. All in all, very excited about the internship.

Other major accomplishments so far have including buying my new cell phone, participating in the infamous scrabble night, and buying a pair of boxers (in anticipating of my baggage arriving). Moving into my first weekend and feeling good.

Be back with more updates and pictures soon.

Thanks everyone for everything. Looking forward to the correspondence.

luke

2007-07-18T15:50:00.000-07:00

just finished my last final for the summer. leaving on july 29th. my brain is so screwed up right now.

power up

2007-06-27T19:01:00.000-07:00

the title, for all you old school video game aficionado's, is in reference to altered beast, Sega game of a past generation. Anyway, here I am sitting on the Salaam prep call, realizing that I'm about to embark on the journey of a lifetime. While I have no idea what awaits me, I can't deny this feeling of absolute excitement thats been building in me over the past few weeks. The tickets have been bought, a few more weeks of class, some very important good byes, and then I'm off...

...

2007-05-11T23:38:00.000-07:00

This time of year is so weird. I was just reading over Sarah's post, and I have so many of the same feelings. This past year has been so crazy, an immensity of experience, personal change and growth. At the LC retreat last weekend, for the first time in awhile I thought back to SSC 2006, back to the beginning of my term, back to the uncertainty. I remember thinking that I was in no way ready for the task ahead, that I was going to fail, that I had signed up for the wrong gig. I remember thinking about the shoes I was going to be filling, the expectation everyone had, that I had, of what we could do. Then I came back, back to now. How did that all happen? How did we do all the things we did? There are so many. We were able to do it because of the people, the incredible individuals I was lucky enough to work with. This past year's work wasn't the driving force of my experience (although it was insane), it was all the different people I've become close to. My leadership team, the people within the LC, all my friends throughout the network, friends from Cameroon and Morocco, in Madison, Illinois, Kansas, GT, across the country and the globe. I've never had a time in my life when i've been exposed to so many incredibly powerful, intelligent, wonderful people.
That's why this time of year is hard. Some of those people, a lot of those people, are moving on. But that's life, and that AIESEC for sure. My next thought, I look around and see all those still here, the new and the old alike, and I smile. The next generation is here. Newness, freshness and opportunity.

Weird.

one love

...

2007-04-01T19:15:00.000-07:00

I can't seem to find the words to describe what happened two weeks ago. two weeks ago, i took off from JFK, KLM flight 865, to Casablanca. Upon arriving, my perspectives changed. Being one of 26 (American delegates), and one of 240 (MENA LDS delegates) my shared experience will go down as perhaps the most influential 10 days of my life. to speak of all the events that happened would take pages, but there are a few stories that stick out.

The memory that burns the brightest happened on the second to last day in a shisha bar someplace in downtown Casablance. There were 15 or so people, a smattering of Dutch, Americans, Mexicans, Egyptians, Moroccans etc. The conversation meandered for awhile, finally settling on religion, culture, and the differing perspectives of East and West. It was an intense experience learning about Islam, and what it truly means to consider ones self a Muslim. For me, i had to face questions of divine existence, learning about the creation of the Koran by the prophet Muhammed. This picture is me listening to one of the passages of the Koran, being read by a famous Egyptian reader. Yasmine, an MCer from Egypt explained to me that the Koran, when read in Arabic, is considered perfect. From what she said, the Koran is impossible to copy, in style and complexity, to the point where it is considered divine. This statement was quite profound, something I am still trying to understand. At the same time, I could tell that my opinions and ideas were effecting those around me. As a self proclaimed agnostic, it was difficult explaining to such religious people the journey I had taken to arrive at my current state. My stories of questioning, of being unhappy with Christianity as it had been presented to me, and ultimately my decision to find spirituality for myself, presented ideas that many of the AIESECers had not considered. With religion being so ingrained in their culture, at least one member of the table admitted that she had never openly allowed herself to question Islam, to decide what she would accept and what she wouldn't. When the shisha was done, and it was time to go, we exchanged a hug and a thank you. Now I want to go to Egypt!

I told my family this story last night, while they were in town for dinner, and got goose bumps. Revisiting that night will always be an experience unto itself. And for each and every time I do, I will think of AIESEC, and the situations it creates. this conversation was one of many for me, while I was one of 26 americans, and one of 240 delegates. The creation of MENA, and therefor this conference, is something that is going to have a lasting impact on AIESEC. For so many of these people, reality is different. I've always thought that AIESEC becomes most powerful in the regions where its most important. If this is true, then AIESEC in MENA is destined for greatness. This being the first conference only hints at the potential that lies underneath. For me, this conference instilled a sense of pride at being a part of MENA, at sharing time together with so many amazing people. I'll never forget this conference, with the crazy Tunisians and their drumming, the women's war cries, and the energy that spilled into all the sessions. So many friends and so many memories. The question I must face, is now what...

wierd

2007-02-01T20:42:00.000-08:00

I've never had a day where I've been so low and so high. While the things that are outside of my control have not treated me well as of late, the people surrounding me have propped me up and kept me going, and for them I am grateful. LTM tonight was a whirlwind of emotion, from angry and frustrated to excited and motivated. Its so nice to know that there's always someone to get my back, to help me when i'm down.

We can, we will, we must

love luke

balls deep

2007-01-30T23:16:00.000-08:00

well, I must say, the first two weeks of this semester have been, outside of AIESEC that is, shit. Started off today with a little genetics "problem solving session," code for pube tweezing session, then worked through a few lectures, stopped off at the lab, and finally GPM. I love GPM, always the bright spot in my week. So much positive energy always lifts me out of my normal Cornell slump. Bonus for today, as we had a Fraternity IM hockey game. I always feel a bit awkward playing in these games, being the stellar hockey star that I am. Most of the people on the ice are drunk off their ass (in our case) or are so poor at skating that they appear inebriated. In either case, I feel bad for the poor soles.

Well, thats it for now. After reading Bones, syd's and a few other blogs today, i've been re-motivated by the blogging bug. I can't spit novels like structure, but if i were to quote a famous friend of mine, I'm just working to maintain my rep.

one love

2006-10-02T20:24:00.000-07:00

Today was perhaps the worst day of the semester. To start off, I had a midterm yesterday (thats right, Sunday), a midterm tomorrow, and a midterm on Thursday. So already, my week is hell. With that already killing my chances of happiness, SAFC decided to ram it up our asses, and denied us our funding for RoKS. It was funny. The other day I was in Mary Schlarb's office, the ISSO, when I ran into a really nice guy. I was there to get a letter signed by Mary proving why RoKS should be attended by more than 4 people, when we started talking. He was an alum from six years ago back visiting while on campus. He was very dismayed when i told him about the hoops SAFC made us jump through, the same hoops he jumped through 10 years ago as a student. He was sad, saying that the other schools he visited as a recruiter, the other Ivy's, Stanford, MIT, treated their student's with so much more respect. We both quoted Cornell, "the big red tape", laughing, both trying to hide our serious frustrations. As it turns out, Clive from google was right, SAFC fucked us, for a technicality we had already documented, but had signed by the wrong person.

So I was bummed about that, wondering what would happen for all our newbies. But I wasn’t that upset. I was on my way to the lab, a place where I usually have a great time. When I get to the lab, everything was fine, working on some DNA synthesis, when my PI, my Professor, tells me he wants to talk to me. He brings me into his office, where he proceeds to rip me a new one. The worst part was that it was completely unexpected. I thought I had been doing a great job, and still think I am, but he was upset, and I had to deal with it.

My only hope is for tomorrow's Inductions session, which is going to be great, the AIESEC party on Thursday, and finally, a much needed break this weekend.

I thought I had everything under control, then people around me had to fuck it all up.

I don't want to sound like a whiney bitch. For the most part, things at Cornell are really great. AIESEC is running as it never has before. The month of October should be one to remember. We have so many things happening across campus, for students, professors, and professionals. RoKS is right around the corner, Jen is coming up for Salaam, we're putting on a workshop for Engineers going abroad, on top of a secondary recruitment for December graduates. I can't even keep it straight in my head. The people I have on my team are performing at a level so far above and beyond what I expected, I've lost them someplace in the clouds. We're running on all cylinders, always looking for new opportunities.

Now that i've written all that, my day isn't so bad anymore. Now I just have to learn some physics before my test tomorrow.

Love

luke

2006-08-14T21:40:00.000-07:00

SSC is over, as are all future public endeavors. It's simply amazing how one leopard print bra and some bright red lipstick can change one's future so drastically.

But in all seriousness, SSC was for me, an extremely satisfying experience. First and most importantly, I was able to truly connect with my Leadership team. The girls, myself and BS are closer now than we ever have been before. It's a comforting feeling, knowing how much we understand and care for one another. This conference, more than anything, turned all of us on, all the way on, for AIESEC Cornell this semester. The energy we all have is tangible. You can see it when we're talking, feel it when we're working, simply amazing. It's only a matter of harnessing it, and passing it on to the next generation.

Next to my own members, working with Ali, Arthur and Izaz on the subgroup output was amazing. For me, it was a learning experience that has long-lasting effects that I will be congnizant of for a long time. For me, more than anything, it was an experiment, doing something of the likes I had never tried.

Finally, at this SSC, I met so many great people, AIESECers that truly live the principled life that AIESEC strives to achieve. talking with them, getting to know them, hearing their stories, has forced me to question myself, my motives, why am I doing this?

I've reached on of those times in life when true self reflection is necessary. It's a fork in the road, with one road being the life I'm currently living, working to get by, never truly dedicating myself, accepting of what others think of me, and not what I think of myself. The second fork, is a life where I strive for true understanding and involvement in my endeavors, a life where learning is done not for merit and awards, but for self fulfillment. Where satisfaction is not an A on an exam, but complete confidence in my own understanding. While this decision may seem obvious, and it is, the changes that need to be made are great, undercutting my life, from AIESEC, to school, to my friends, to my love. Its a crazy, scary, exciting, incredible time.

Sorry for my melodrama.

Luke b

oh boy

2006-07-24T12:00:00.000-07:00

Another weekend in NYC, another fantastic AIESEC meeting. This one, while perhaps not as revolutionary in actual breakthrough thinking and innovation, was still a huge step.

When i got back to Ithaca last night, i re-read my last entry, looking for parallels between my emotions now and then, after the last NYC weekend. What I found was quite daunting, yet very exciting. The big break down I talked about last time, the incomplete communication, is now on my shoulders. Arthur, Ali, Izaz and I are the ones now responsible with bringing back what we've been working on all summer, to the rest of the nation's leadership. As stated, Oh Boy.

There are two major responsibilities I see us having. The first, and in my opinion, the most important, is beginning to shift the current culture, the environment in which individuals see themselves, in regards to AIESEC US. This is not easy, but it can be done.

The second responsibility is creating ownership around all the material, empowering everyone to fully believe in these ideas. The only way any of our visions are going to come to life, is through giving people the same feeling of excitment as we had, giving them back the power and feeling of influence, over their own realities.

Besides all that, NYC was great. Friday night was rather casual, going to Horace, a great hookah bar in the village, somewhere around b and 6th. I got there with a few friends from home, looking to meet up with some other AIESECers. The table is full, having pulled up a few chairs for myself and my guests. Few minutes later, in walk a few more AIESECers, then some more friends of mine from school. Pretty soon, our table is packed, everyone having a great time. One of the craziest moments of the night was while i was sitting, talking with Zvia, and someone started pulling on my hair from behind. I find out, it's some girl who sat behind me in neuro last semester, and had wanted, all year, to touch my head. Creepy, yet odly satisfying.

Saturday night was a different beast altogether. Another shit show at the Trent Palace down in Jersey city. The night started off innocently enough, having a few beers, smoking some hookah on the rooftop, talking with Pat and Arthur for a bit. Everything was progessing in a decidedly normal, somewhat laidback manner, when a mess of Canadians showed up. After some drunkin questioning, I found out they were the Canadian MC. So I go up and start talking to one of them, only to find out she knows nothing of AIESEC. Out of 8 or so Canadians, I manage to strike conversation with the only one not on the MC, let along aware of AIESEC at all. She of course, doesn't let me know until we're five or so minutes into the conversation. We manage to ramble on some more, me ever concious of the awkwardness I've created. After that, Dave, a fellow AIESEC man from Kansas, performed for the entire party, not once, but twice, his infamous Napolean Dynamite Dance Re-creation. That was soon followed by a great game of bitches bitches, and other colamity.

perhaps my favorit part of the weekend was Sunday morning. While I myself was, I'd say a 7 on the hung over scale, I walked in to find Dave from Kansas, still drunk from the night before. In front of him was some water, a cup of coffee, and a bottle of melox, what I dupped, the Kansas cocktail. While I must say Dave's input on Sunday was a bit below his normal high standards, I would look at him ever once in awhile, and immidiatly start laughing, just looking at the poor hung over wreck. It soon came out, that he didn't even remember dancing his second dance, for a crowd of 25 or so people. Just fantastic.

Anyway, back to work for me. yeah arthur, I'm getting paid for this.

Cheers

2006-06-27T14:43:00.000-07:00

What a weekend. I really got to know some very interesting people. The subgroup itself was amazing. We actually got through our agenda, with some major output, something I was very worried about. however, the next step is the most important, the communication of our ideas to the rest of the nation. After listening to the discussion this weekend, about last summer's SSC, it is my belief that the major break down for this past year, one of the major factors for the LTM fiasco spring semester, was the miscommunication that occurred at SSC. After listening to Rikesh and Ali from Madison, it became obvious that a lack of time and the lack of a clear plan of communication, or perhaps the perfect combination of both, resulted in the beginning of the mistrust between LC and MC. It was the perceived handing down of the design, the perceived limitation placed on the LC's, that pissed off so many people. Compounded on top of that was the incompleteness of the design and the tools to help in implementation. This process kick started what many have felt throughout AIESEC US, this feeling of apathy, a feeling of mistrust, and the beginning of the questioning and inquiry towards the "MC" from the "LCs." Having this in mind is so very important. We have the opportunity to push AIESEC US to new heights, empowering LC leaders, aligning globally, and strengthening our Brand. Man, I’m pumped.

Fatigue

2006-05-15T20:30:00.000-07:00

Pretty pumped, Preston has been re-instated, I'm done with finals, and I get to sleep after 40 hours of consciousness studying organic chemistry. I swear, organic chemistry is Lucifer's attempt at driving college students to insanity. All these things are pointing towards a really great upswing in my mood. While I don't have the gumption nor the strength, as all the caffeine I've ingested in the past two days is finally wearing off, I plan on getting back on the schedule that has been pushed to the side. I'm really very excited about this summer, so many awesome opportunities, hanging out with so many incredible people. What more can I ask. Till then.

el Duke

Sonata in H sharp

2006-05-03T23:21:00.000-07:00

So yea, finally joined this here blogger thing everyone has been raving about for the past two years. I know, I’m a little behind the times, but then again, I’m a little behind in everything. The past couple of weeks have been really great. The weather has turned around, as it tends to do this time of year. No more wind chill factors hovering at or near absolute zero. I can actually wear shorts outside and not have my leg hair freeze solid. How wonderful. Anyway, the real reason for the change in my spirits has been the transition process I am now going through with Arthur and everyone else in the LC, into my new position. The more I learn, the more eager it get to start working and implementing. LTM was fuckin awesome. I love hearing people come out with honesty, laying it all out on the table. What was particularly impressive was our ability to keep it strictly business. Whole heartedly, I believe that everyone came out of that conference feeling optimistic. We have put ourselves in a place to succeed. People are now cognoscente of the issues at hand, now we just have to deal with them. Anyway, its 230, and I have neuro section tomorrow. Oh joy. To all my fans, good night

random bitterness

2006-04-24T23:43:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking a lot about the experience i had last month in cameroon. While there, my ethusiam and creativity was at the very tippy top of its limits. I'd never felt so empowered to go out and make the world into what i wanted it to be. Now that i've been back here at Cornell, the constant grind has gotten to me, as i knew it would. Classes here wear on me so badly, not only the tests and the material, but simply the prevailing attittude that seams to be held by everyone, from students to teachers. Its this attitude of apathy, for everyone. No one here has time to care. They care about themselves, their futures, and getting drunk. There is never a sense of working towards something tangeable. Its all off in the future, something undefined and vague, as people haven't given thought to what it is. They just know its out there, lurking. My shinning star right now is the summer. I hope that i'm just being pessimistic, but i'm sick of school for the moment. I want it to end. The only thing keeping me going is the insane amount of sales i'm going to do this summer with arthur. We're gonna fuckin rock the shit out of the ithaca and Cornell. They're not gonna know what hit them.

2006-04-24T22:54:00.000-07:00

well, this is new for me, so i'll keep it short, because i'm short.