It is about that time of year when things are truly wrapping up for us graduating seniors.  Yesterday was perfect proof of that as I participated in my last SONOR and HEAT events ever. :(  I have been involved with Bradley's Wellness Program for the entirety of my time here and I am desperately sad to be saying goodbye to all of the amazing things we do every year.

The events this week were held on Monday and Tuesday on the quad and SONOR passed out free cup tumblers for those who pledged to be smoke free while HEAT held their annual B.E.E.R. drive (an event where students see the effects of drunk driving by maneuvering a golf cart around an obstacle course while wearing beer vision goggles).  This was the first year I actually participated in the B.E.E.R. drive and it was actually quite funny as I took out quite a few recycling bins.  SONOR was also successful in handing out a majority of the cups they ordered and got over 100 people to sign the pledge on Olin Hall's brick wall.

Overall, the times I have spent in the Wellness Program have been some of my best at Bradley and I am sad to see them go.  And it is with a heavy heart that I am lead to another To Done item for the week...

Drive a golf cart wearing beer goggles? CHECK!

Complete my final Wellness Program event? CHECK! 

Graduation, here I come...

What an amazing week! First, I found out that I won an award for my senior project.  This means I will be going to New York City to meet the company the project was done for in person and my team and I will be receiving a small cash prize.  I have never been downtown New York and I cannot wait to experience it with my amazing team. Next, I got to have an awesome time presenting for SONOR (a peer education and wellness organization I am president of) at the regional BACCHUS Network.  This year it was at Illinois State University so we were able to attend and still sleep in our own beds at Bradley.  I also have never been to the regional conference, just the annual national one so it was a treat to meet the people in our area in a smaller setting.  Finally, I won an award at the conference for Outstanding Graduating Senior!  I have never had my own little plaque like the one I got there either, especially not with my own name on it, so I was more than thrilled to accept!

I am so honored and I couldn't have had a better week doing all of it!

Win the Douglas E. Alligood Diversity Advertising Campaign award? CHECK!

Present at the Area 4 BACCHUS Network conference? CHECK!

Win a plaque with my name on it? CHECK!

This week I was invited to a going away party for a professor at Bradley at a home in Galesburg.  When I was asked to bring a dessert for everyone, I knew right away that with the nice weather, I should bring a lemon-based cake (I always imagine lemon to be good for summer).  That said, I found a quick recipe on Allrecipes.com and whipped it together.  The recipe called for lemon pudding mix added to the yellow cake mix and I am very glad that I chose this one over the others I saw.  It was fluffy and moist and the whipped topping frosting made a very refreshing after-taste.  It turned out perfectly and it went over well with the guests (see remnants pictured below).

Basically this week, I did what all good women do and brought a lovely dessert to a party.  But for the sake of this blog, this was my first time making a lemon cake to present to a party full of people and I am happy to say it can be crossed off my "To Done" list!

Make a lemon cake? CHECK! 

If you have read my other most recent post, you will know that I just published a portfolio website and since then, I have been updating it and changing it as I get more and more feedback.  As it happens, the other day I had coffee with a professor and she spent some time with me on it and when we finished going through it, she asked if I wouldn't mind speaking to her journalism portfolio class about online portfolio designing.  I was so honored!  So, per her request, that is what I accomplished this morning and I decided to add it to my "To-Done" list. Not many undergrad students get the opportunity to guest-speak for another class so I figured it to be a really good one to mention.

Overall, it went very smoothly with the class.  The information seemed well-recieved and I was even able to answer a few questions about the creator that I used.  They were attentive and some of them even signed up for the same site that I used while I was talking about it.  What a positive, productive way to begin my day! :)

Guest-lecture for an undergraduate class? CHECK!

UPDATE: I have been asked to go to another classroom to share my experience with online portfolio building next week!

This post is a little late this week as I have been insanely busy lately but maybe this will help explain why.  In class the other day, we had a speaker from Bradley's career center come talk to us about LinkedIn, a professional/resume networking site.  Since then, I have been feverishly updating it; asking for and adding recommendations, updating my information, and finding useful groups to join.  After I did all of that, I updated my Twitter and began exploring new corners of what I can really use it for productively.  Next, I updated my Facebook and finally adopted Timeline (it's still growing on me, but so far I'm okay with it).  I also updated this site and changed the background and edited the "About Me" a little too (taa daa.)

So, the final thing I needed to get done was to design and publish a portfolio webpage and I am happy to report that as of Friday morning, it is finished!   The link is below this post and there is a screen shot above, but I am super happy with the way it turned out and I look forward to continuing to update and change it as my life and career progresses.  I used Wix and it was super easy to design with and it was totally free.  I had a vision of what I wanted a template they had to look like for my own use and this is exactly what I had in mind.  I guess the next step is to buy my own domain name and link the page to it, but for now I am taking a slight break to catch up on homework and apply to more jobs.

Design a portfolio website? CHECK!

Feel free to check it out: Portfolio