Dreams Do Come True: my run-in with Anderson Cooper

Anderson Cooper = The Silver Fox.

And my celeb crush.

I met him on Friday!?!

I know most people like the super buff, beautiful young Hollywood it-guy.  Butttttt, I adore the nerdy news anchor and I'm ok with that :)

Listen, I know he is old (and quite possibly/probably gay) but I don't care.

He is so smart and funny and then there are those beautiful blue eyes of his.

And the gray hair. He totally rocks it.

I have been a loyal fan of his for years now.

I have seen some Channel One days annnndddddd his giggle melt-down that is quite possibly the most adorable thing I have ever seen + it has oodles of witty puns that you cannot help but appreciate, I promise:

Seriously, if I'm having a bad day, I just watch this and it makes ME giggle!

Having said all of that, I cannot express to you the giddiness I felt upon hearing that he - the one and only Anderson Cooper of AC360 - was coming to Charleston.

 A lot of students showed up despite that it was the start of the weekend and a little rainy:

But, have no fear, I showed up early so I was in the front row :)

I got an up-close and personal look at his super cute self and was near enough to hear him:

Oh, ANNNNNNNDDDDDDDDD near enough to get a hug. Yes, a hug!

He was coming around and shaking hands but when he got to me I said, "Can I have a hug? I'm a hugger. Can I have a hug?" And he said, "A hug?" And I said, "Yes" with my arms out.

Then. He. Leaned. In. And. Gave. Me. A. Hug.

Naturally, I squealed.

Unfortunately, it was mid-hug and, therefore, directly in his ear. I just couldn't help myself. This was my reaction just seconds afterwards; I hate that I had not thought to give my camera to a friend nearby to document this but, take my word for it: the hug happened =D

 

It was interesting seeing how the show happened but most of all it was interesting seeing Anderson Cooper during the commercial breaks. 

He was so nice and funny and relaxed. He gave hugs and signed books. He chatted and checked what he think were his tweets or texts. At one point he eve spoke on the phone to a girl's mom who didn't believe her daughter really had met him. 

As if I wasn't already on cloud 9, it got even better when he started taking pictures with people after the show. That is when his true kindness and patience shined because I would have been claustrophobic and cranky:

See his little white head and glowing eyes in the top right of the crowd? Crazy, right?

But he was so gracious and friendly to all of us, posing and smiling for countless photos, including this one with me and my friend Susie:

Isn't he dreamy??? ;)

I feel like this was a dream. But, fortunately, it wasn't.

He did in fact visit College of Charleston (which he said was one of the most beautiful college campuses he'd seen) and he had our mascot Clyde on the show during his Ridiculist:

It was a wonderful evening!

It's crazy to think that I met him whenever I tune in and see him on his show now.

This was definitely a highlight of my life so I just had to share. I hope you enjoyed hearing about it and that you aren't too jealous ;)

Baptized in Sweet Tea: a book review

Baptized in Sweet Tea.

I didn't write that book, but.... (to be read in a slow, southern drawl) .... I declare, I sure do wish I had.

It is by far one of the best books I have read in a long time.

It captures the south in such a vivid and heart-warming way. It makes me love being born here even more than I already did!

The book is an easy read with pretty pictures mixed in between a collection of columns written by Ken Burger.

He covers topics like seersucker suits, college football, things my mother used to say, going home for funerals, hot cars and hot summers, the art of using cusswords, the art of returning phonecalls, and sounds of a southern summer.

Those are just a few of his fantastic angles used to capture the southern life.

He has a way of writing that is funny and each person or place he describes seems familiar.

Whether you were born and raised here - or just wish you were - be sure to pick up a copy of this book.

Some part of it, I assure you, will reach out and grab your senses whether in your memory, your present or your fantasy of life as you'd like it to be.

Oh, and be sure to pour a glass of sweet tea as you read it ;)

This is How we Praise the Lord - and it ain't like your grandma does!

                45,000ish college students
            +  4 days
            +  the power of Jesus
            =  over  3 million dollars raised!?!

Why?

Because we believe that:

However, people are sold. 27million people, in fact.

There are more slaves today than in any other time in ALL of human history.

We focused on this at Passion 2012 in Atlanta which leads me to....

The first way that we worship differently: 

We discuss tough topics.

We are not in denial that bad things happen. We learned about slavery, sex trafficking, bonded labor, children being raped, people being starved/beaten/devalued, etc.

And then we decided to

Plenty of Christians are criticized for not putting their money where their mouth is. Not us.

The next way we worship differently is... 

We do give to the poor and needy.

Between the hours of 7pm on January 2nd and noon on January 5th, we raised $3,066,000.

That means that us - poor college kids - gave almost 50 grand every hour.

Why?

Because we believe that:

And we believe that we should be because we are called to...

"Learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed. Defend the cause of orphans. Fight for the rights of widows."             

                                                           - Isaiah 1:17

Oh, and did I mention we were in the Dome???

Yes, third way we worship differently: 

We were not in a church. We were in the Georgia Dome!?!

So many, MANY people.

It was amazing.

My boss asked the neatest question: "Just look at all of them. Can you imagine what heaven will be like?"

Psalm 89:5 says

All heaven will praise your great wonders, LORD; myriads of angels will praise you for your faithfulness.

And, last but definitely NOT least, the final way we worshiped differently was:

We sang songs like this... 

Not quite the typical hymn (although those are also beautiful!).

We also praised Jesus with rap. 

Not my favorite BUT all rap is not crap and this guy's lyrics are solid:

You can't help but get pumped up listening to LeCrae; watch for the back-flip around minute 2.

And, what was one of the most beautiful moments in the whole conference, we sang "How Great is Our God" in many languages:

And this was the final song of the conference :)

This is the Jesus generation:

Join us to end this:

Worship differently.

Care.
Give.
Do Something Now.

An Almost Resolution, An Interesting Card, and Thoughts on Timeliness

It is 2012!?!

Today is January 1st... otherwise known as a new beginning.

So much potential - endless and exciting possibilities on the horizon.

The chance for improvement, to better yourself and your life.

Gah! I love New Years!!!

Having said that, yes, I am one of "those people"... the kind that actually do make resolutions.

There are the classics like "lose weight/work out more," "quit smoking," "eat better," etc.

But, none of those were for me.

An Almost Resolution

I considered this one: "Learn to be on time."

I hate to be late because I don't want to disrespect others by wasting their precious time but I am afraid I am often late.

I blame it on my birth.

Yes, my birth.

You see I was born late, in the wrong month in fact (March 2nd instead of February 23rd), so I simply got off on the wrong foot and haven't seemed to be able to catch up since.

This lack of punctuality was fostered by growing up in the Lowcountry of South Carolina where people run on a lazy, laid-back internal clock and everything just moves a little slower.

I recently came across this t-shirt which sums it up pretty well:

That is how it is for many in the south, including me.

And my aunt.

I think she is the one I inherited my tardiness from ;)

Case in point, this recent "Christmas" card I got from her...

An Interesting Card

I got a card from her on December 22nd and was pleasantly surprised to see it came before Christmas, as I have often received Christmas cards and gifts from her well into January and sometimes even into February.

Although, I was a bit confused when I opened the envelope and read this:

Congrats on making it to Christmas? Congrats on my Savior being born? Congrats on getting presents?



I was perplexed.

This is what the inside said:

The reason this was so odd was that I did not graduate this semester; I graduated May 7th of 2011.

That means this card was just about 7 or so months late!?!

But she wrote a sweet message inside and included a check (which was well-timed after I spent a ton of money on gifts for Christmas) so I am absolutely not complaining.

In fact, I am grateful.

She and her card helped me realize that this lack of punctuality pumps through my veins. I think it is a part of who I am. As aforementioned, I was born this way. (Cue Lady Gaga's "Born This Way" playing in your head now ;) Sorry I couldn't resist!)

So "Learn to be on time"- at least for now - is simply an almost resolution.

I try not to set myself up for defeat. I mean, in making my resolutions, I am up for a good challenge but I do like them to be feasible ;)

Having said that, I resolve for 2012 to 

- Serve regularly, hopefully once a week at a soup kitchen
- Call at least one friend from home/college each week
- Try to get something (maybe a blogpost???) published
- Memorize more scripture
- Learn to cook at least 7 meals (that way I can make it through a week!)

I hope you can come up with - and keep - some resolutions of your own...

Happy New Beginning on this New Years of 2012!