Acklen Entertainment Presents Indie Band Fest

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NASHVILLE,Tenn –  Acklen Entertainment in conjunction with Indiebandhub.com is proud to announce its first ever Indie Band Fest showcase at 12th and Porter on December 9, 2008 starting at 8pm.

This inaugural event will feature two stages of Nashville’s best up and coming indie bands. Headlining the main stage will be Belmont University’s own Kopecky Family Band. The band’s just released EP Embraces has already begun to captivate the masses with its electrifying folk pop sound.

Also performing on the main stage will be the soul stirring southern rock band The Delta Saints. The John Shaw Group, Geisert 8, and The Signal will be anchoring the second smaller stage.

Tickets for the show will be able at the door for $5. Doors open at 8pm.

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About Acklen Entertainment: Acklen Records is a project based, educationally driven recording/marketing  project designed to engage and develop “hands on” student activity in the selection, development, recording, and production of commercial recorded product and marketing content for both online and venue use.

 

 

Alpha Gamma Delta Raises $2500 during Annual Trick or Treat Event

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NASHVILLE,Tenn – On Sunday night for Halloween, the ladies of Alpha Gamma Delta went trick or treating in a non-traditional way. Instead of asking for candy, they went “Trick or Treating for Cause.” Spread out in small groups all over Nashville, the members of the sorority were able to raise $2500 to donate to the Alpha Gamma Delta Foundation in about four hours.

The Trick or Treating event is one of the Belmont chapter’s biggest philanthropy events. The money raised at this annual event has helped award the chapter with the coveted Jewel Status award which is given to the top fundraising chapters by the Alpha Gamma Delta Foundation.

The AGD Foundation supports juvenile diabetes research, education programs, and summer camp scholarships for kids with diabetes.

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For more information about the Alpha Gamma Delta or Greek Life at Belmont contact Sarah Rochford at 615-460-6000

Never Have I Ever: Vegan Edition

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I’ve gone my whole life being a proud carnivore, but somehow I allowed myself to be talked into this 40 day vegan challenge for the Lenten season. Already 3 days in and so far so good,but I must say being vegan takes serious work. The amount of planning is no joke. If I forget to pack a lunch I can’t just go anywhere and grab something.

Yesterday, I was running errands and decided to get lunch at Luby’s (It’s just like Piccadilly for you none Texas people). I wanted hot food everything I had been eating was raw or cold, but that was not an easy task. Almost EVERY vegetable had meat and or animal product in it. The cabbage had bacon, the green beans had bacon, the beans had… yep you guessed it bacon. The roasted potatoes had butter, the corn had butter, the mashed potatoes had butter and other dairy like ingredients. So I have a delectable lunch of under-steamed broccoli and spinach (which probably had butter in it too but I won’t worry about it now).

I don’t miss meat, but I do miss animal products. Where as other people on this challenge are craving meat, I’m craving eggs and cheese.

I'd give my pinky finger for a spinach frittata right now.

I’d give my pinky finger for a spinach frittata right now.

If you are vegan or have been vegan, I need your help. What are your favorite recipes? Any tips I can use over the next 37 days?

The Liebster Award

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The Floundering was nominated for an award!!! I know crazy right. I am so honored that Jackie at Indecisively Blogging (she’s a fellow awkward girl, you must check her out), nominated me for the Liebster Award.

I had no idea what a Liebster Award was but I’m pretty excited about it. After some Googling, (I Google everything, well more like Yahoo everything) I found out that this is a cool way for you all to get know me plus check out some of my new favorite blogs.

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Sounds like fun, right?! Well lets get to it. Below are the rules I had to follow:

Liebster Award Rules

-11 facts about yourself
-Answer the 11 questions given to you by the person who nominated you
-Nominate 11 new bloggers and set 11 questions for them to answer.

11 Facts about Me

  1. My favorite fruit is green grapes, the more sour the better
  2. I’m a Texan but I rarely say y’all
  3. I wanted to be an Opera Singer when I grew up, then I changed my mind
  4. I wanted to be Alanis Morrisette when I grew up, yep true story
  5. I wanted to marry Tevin Campbell
  6. Later I demoted Tevin to bff and replaced him with AJ McLean
  7. I’m obsessed with the show History Detectives on PBS
  8. I watch Antique Roadshow every Monday night
  9. I watch This Old House every Saturday morning
  10. I love PBS (obviously)
  11. When I was 3 I ask my mom to change my name to Amy cause it only had 3 letters.

Jackie’s Questions

1. What is your most embarrassing moment?

I feel like I have had so many embarrassing moments in my life but the one I haven’t been able to live down occurred the day I got my sorority bid. Like any other freshman I decided to take a nap after my last class of the day. When suddenly I was awaken by the noise of loud singing. I ignored it at first but as the sound got closer I had to see what was up. Wrapped in my comforter , groggily I peaked outside my door only to see 40+ girls singing and clapping. At first I was shocked and confused then I realized I looked a hot mess in front of a pose of perky sorority girls. In efforts to quickly regroup, I tried to slightly close the door a tad just so I could drop the blanket and wipe any gunk out of my eyes (gross I know). My intention was to play it off like I was reaching for a pen with out closing the door all the way. But see this was the problem, I live in a 100 year old dorm and when the windows in the room were open it created this weird suction effect. Not only did the door close in their face it slammed so incredibly hard the walls shook a little. If I was pale enough to turn bright red I would have been the same color as Elmo. When I opened the door the look on their face was priceless. I’m surprised they didn’t snatch their bid back and walk away.

2. If you had to have the same thing for dinner every night for the rest of your life, what would you want that dinner to be?

Crunchy Tacos

3. If you could invite one celebrity over for dinner, who would that be? Why?

Pink; Anyone who knows me knows I’m obsessed with Pink. We would laugh and have a great conversation. We would talk about empowering women, baby Willow and her tattoos, then she would perform a kick butt aerial routine. 

4. What is your favorite movie?

Love and Basketball

5. What are your top 3 guilty pleasures?

Ok don’t tell anyone but they are, the movie Glitter, Ke$ha, and Wasabi Mayo

6. What is the most embarrassing song on your iPod?

See You Again- Miley Cyrus

7. If your life had a theme song, what would it be?
Ahhh this is the hardest question ever I have 2 Cuz I Can by Pink and No Reason at All by Jonathan Reid Gealt sung by Katie Thompson

8. If you had the chance to be a contestant on a game show, which game show would you pick?
Press Your Luck- No Wammys No Wammys!

9. What is your favorite ice cream flavor?
Cookie’s and Cream!

10. What is your favorite book?
32 Candles- Its a crazy story about a late bloomers revenge against her hometown bullies but things don’t quite turn out as planned.

11. What websites do you visit most frequently?

Pinterest– I’m obsessed

ASOS– Love their Clothes

Apartment Therapy– One day I will be a professional DIY’er

 Blogs I Nominate 

It’s been hard to find blogs that I read that haven’t been nominated for a Liebster Award already. So my 11 is more like 6. Gosh I’m such a rebel!

  1. Ears Like a Hawke
  2. Julielle Sears
  3. Honeysuckle and Lace
  4. Maybe I’m Amazed 
  5. Sweatpants and a Tiara
  6.  A Geek Tragedy

Questions for the Nominated Blogs

  1. What’s your favorite PBS show?
  2. If you could go any where in the world, where would you go and why?
  3. Crunchy Tacos or Soft Tacos?
  4. How did you come up with the title of your blog?
  5. Would you rather be weird or normal? Why?
  6. What’s the last show your binged watched?
  7. Backstreet Boys or N’Sync?
  8. What the last concert you went to?
  9. Big City or Small town?
  10. What clubs/organizations were you in during college?
  11. What’s your favorite magazine?

Quarter Life Crisis Relapse

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I have relapsed…. Yep, my quarter life crisis is back and with a vengeance this time.

^ I wrote that almost two weeks ago, but I couldn’t seem to find the rest of the words to accompany that thought.

This morning I logged onto my computer half halfheartedly determined to finish this post when I some how found myself on YouTube.

Staring right in front of me was a recommended video called Quarterlife Crisis Musical. I must admit I was a little creeped out by the mere fact that YouTube obviously has some sort of mind reading abilities. Seriously, how else would they know about my dilemma and undying love for musicals? Hmm well maybe its all of those Shoshana Bean, Katie Thompson, Jonathan Reid Gealt and Scott Alan videos I watch. Nonetheless, I was shocked to see the suggestion and intrigued enough to spend 3 mins of my life figuring out what this video was all about.

After the first 20 secs I was convinced that this video was a God send. It said, better yet sung, everything I wanted to say when I started this post two weeks ago. So instead of trying to regurgitate the words, I thought it was best I let them deliver the message for me.

Check out the Quarterlife Crisis Musical below, you wont regret it!!

A Look at Valentine’s Day Through the Eyes of a Late Bloomer

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Valentine’s Day is a day many enjoy and several more dread. Today is a day our society has dedicated specifically to the celebration of love. But not just any type of love, this holiday has a heavy emphasis on romantic relationships. I believe that emphasis is why its one of the most cherished yet most hated celebrations of the year. Its a reminder of how beautiful love can be but also the pain that it brings.

Today some of you will enjoy a beautiful love themed dinner, be gifted tons of super sugary candy, dust prone bears, wilty flowers or engagement rings; while others will be downing a bottle of two buck chuck and watching the Sex in the City box set. But at the end of the day, everyone, whether intentional or not, will take a moment to reflect on their current views on love.

Well, I decided not to wait till the end of the night.

When I set out to write this post, I thought I would give you all some cynical and witty single girl exposé on the true meaning of the crazy commercial holiday. However, as I sat down at my computer I realized their are probably 34953479834.5 versions of that story already making their rounds on the interwebs. Instead, I decided to talk about Valentines Day from the perspective of someone who has never experienced it.

Now sure I have “technically” experienced this holiday. For 5 years of elementary school I was guaranteed at least 15 Valentine’s Day cards, and for the last 26 years at least a card from my parents. But I have never had a Valentine of the romantic kind. When I ask myself does that make me sad the answer is, not really. However, it does give me an interesting view on love.

Love is a word I understand but cant comprehend. To me it is just a foreign as the words Agape, Liebe, and Amour. I recognize the words, I can translate them, but I’m at a lost for their definition. I have yet to experience it, but I am intrigued by the idea of love. At times it seems unattainable and not worth the heartache it causes; while equally being an honest and beautiful thing I can’t wait to experience. But with all that said, love is something I simply cherish.

I cherish the fact that love is something that has to be earned.

I cherish the fact that love creates everlasting memories.

 I cherish the fact that one day I will be able tell someone exactly what love means.

Most of all, I cherish the fact that love will be worth the wait

(Cue Tori Kelly’s Dear No One)

So tonight as you reflect, I challenge you to cherish love. Take a moment to think about all the sweet memories you have because of it. Valentines Day isn’t about the dinner, gifts, or lack-thereof, its about celebrating God’s greatest blessing, LOVE.

An Awkward Girl’s Guide to Networking

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As an awkward girl, networking is the bane of my existence. I really can’t even describe how much I hate it. We’ve already talked about my lack of conversation skills, so the idea of making small talk with a bunch of people I don’t know is just not appealing to me. But with all of that said, networking plays a vital part in surviving today’s society. It can be hard to find a job, friends or even relationships without it.

Now that I have reignited my job search, I find that it is incredibly hard to find leads without networking. Sometimes in life we just have to get over things that make us uncomfortable and learn to fake it till we make it. So in efforts to help my fellow awkward girls, I have compiled a quick and easy guide to becoming a master networker.

Wear A Conversation Starter

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The whole idea of networking is to meet new people.Right? But that is also the hardest part of networking. As socially awkward people we often shy away from approaching people we don’t know. So why not create an opportunity for others to approach us. Wearing a conversation starter is an opportunity to bring the crowd to you. At your next networking event try wearing an interesting pair of shoes or clothing item. The other people in the room will be so intrigued that they will want get to know you or learn more information about that specific item you are wearing.

Become a Complimenting Queen

Randomly introducing yourself to new people 7 times out of 10 creates a very awkward encounter. You’ve gone up to a person, told them your name, did the whole weird giggle “nice to meet you” dance, then what? Usually its the dreaded AWKWARD SILENCE. Try to reverse the roles from the tip above. Instead of starting a conversation with an introduction, start it by complimenting the other person. Find their conversation starter and tell them how much you love it (even if you dont, but try to sound sincere). Everyone loves to be praised. Just make sure your compliment is appropriate. You want this to be an ice breaker, you don’t want to come off as creepy. Limit your compliment to 2 sentences. Try something like, ” I love your shoes! Where did you get them?” The key is to keep it simple.

Come Up With A Go-To Question

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People love to talk about themselves. A great way to limit any possibility of the conversation getting awkward is to steer it in a direction you are comfortable with. Come up with a go-to question you can ask the new people you meet. For instance, a few months ago I got the opportunity to attend a blogging conference. My go-to question was, ” What inspired you to start blogging?” In case you didn’t know bloggers love to talk about their blog and I love to listen, it was a win- win situation.

Become the Follow Up Master

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The first step to becoming a follow up master, is to develop a question that relates to the current conversation. Let’s say you are talking to a person and they just told you they are a doctor. Ask them whether or not they have a private practice or work in a clinic and why they chose to go that route. Whatever it is you ask them try to make sure it is an open ended question. You want the conservation to have a continuous flow.

Relate, Relate, Relate

relate-relate
In order for networking to be beneficial, people need a chance to get to know you also. What if the person you are talking to isn’t a “follow up master” and they haven’t asked you a question. Try to find something that they are talking about that you can relate to. Say for instance, they are going on and on about their love for Pink (the singer, not the color) think about a Pink song you love (this shouldn’t be hard, there all amazing) and insert yourself into the conversation.

Bring a Buddy

 

Caitlin (left) and her best friend Callyn. They've been best friends since grade school They both graduate next year from high school. We love Callyn.

Last but not least, bring a friend with you to your next networking event. Awkward environments are always more comfortable when familiar faces are around. Just try not to use your friend as a crutch. You are there to meet new people.

Have Fun

 

have-fun

Its really that simple. Don’t stress about the possible awkward encounters. Just enjoy yourself and have fun!

Getting Over My Fear of Taking Risk

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I have never been a big risk taker. For the last 26 years, I have always been the one to play it safe. It was my mindset that I was better safe than sorry. When it came time to apply for colleges, I only applied to the ones I thought I would have a good chance of getting into. When people ask, “whats the craziest thing you have ever done”, I always draw a blank. I haven’t done anything crazy. Now I am realizing, that behavior hasn’t gotten me very far in life. There have been tons of missed opportunities because I was too scared to take even a simple risk like asking a question.

Last month when I turned 26, I made a promise to myself that I would take a few risk every once in a while. Nothing too crazy or that would result in death, but risk that would be beneficial to my well being and make me happy. I am happy to say that I have stayed true to my promise. Unexpectedly just a few days after my birthday I quit my job. It was of bit of a rash decision. When I went into work that day I had no intention of quitting, but within a few hours that toxic work environment reared its ugly head again. Although I’ve wanted to quit before, I constantly told myself that I was lucky to have a job and I shouldn’t quit. However, that day it dawned on me that somethings just aren’t worth it if you go to sleep every night dreading the thought of waking up. Every moment I stayed in that place I was missing out on the opportunity to find something better.

I may not be in the position that I thought I would’ve been in at my age, but I’m at peace, and that’s all I can ask for. Now when I go to sleep, I’m thankful to wake up feeling hopeful. Taking risk isn’t as scary as I once thought. The burden of status quo weighs a lot heavier on your conscience than the result of taking a risk.

Top 3 Reasons I’m Proud to be a Late Bloomer

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Yesterday, as I was browsing the internet I happened to runs across this article from The Daily Illini. The article focused on recognizing and embracing your flaws. Although I read it rather quickly and skimmed some of the 600+ word essay, I couldn’t help but continuously re-read this one paragraph,

“Flaws are interesting — they make people seem more exotic, more unique. But admitting your flaws shows confidence and even a degree of maturity — and it may take some critiquing to get there.”

She’s right, flaws ARE interesting, with out them we would be Stepford Wives a.k.a boring and the same. The first step to any issue is to acknowledge that it exist, then to embrace it. But the third step, society has only recently started talking about it, is flaunting it. That’s right, flaunting the one thing that many would be embarrassed to discuss.

I am ridden with flaws most can be seen with the naked eye but the one that has troubled me for a while is being a late bloomer. No one can tell someone is a late bloomer just by looking at them. I started this blog as a way to acknowledge and embrace being a late bloomer but today I am ready to flaunt it. Here are the top 3 reasons I am proud to be a late bloomer:

1. I Have Yet to Reach My Full Potential

Every good story has a climax or peak, so do our lives. There are a large number of people in this world who hit their peak in high school or college. Life from there on out is just a downhill battle. Just like every teen movie in the 90’s its the late bloomers that are successful by the time the credits are rolling. I’m proud to be one of those people, my life is just beginning. Plus if I remember correctly its the hare that wins the race, right?
2. I Really Can’t Get Any More Awkward Than I Already Am

On top of being a late bloomer, awkwardness just seeps from my pores. I have a feeling this is a problem a lot of late bloomers probably struggle with. Should I be ashamed of my inability to thrive in social interactions? Maybe. But I realized today, I am so unfortunately awkward that it really can’t get any worse and for that I am proud. I have fully embraced being awkward. At this point its fairly comical. Just like hitting rock bottom, things can only go up from here on out.
3. I’m Not Jaded by Life

So many of my friends and acquaintance have this jaded outlook on life. Not that there is anything wrong with that, I am sure they have learned valuable lessons from the situations they have encountered. However, I’m seeing that because I am experiencing so many things for the first time my outlook is exceedingly more open-minded. Now that could also mean I am being a bit naive but I choose to be more optimistic.

Never Have I Ever: Austin Edition

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I have lived in Texas for about 22 years of my life, Houston to be exact, but for some reason I have never been to Austin. Why is that surprising? It’s the freaking state capital! Wasn’t I supposed to go on some school field trip or educational family trip when I was a child?

Hmmmm…

Anyway, as they say better late than never.

Recently, my best friend/ little sister (its a sorority thing) from college came down to Texas from Tennessee to visit her family for the Holidays. Since we haven’t seen each other in nearly four years, it was a absolute must we take advantage of this opportunity.  So I drove the 3 hours to Austin for an epic and educational weekend.

We had a nice stay at the Omni Southpark Hotel. Right off Hwy 71. It’s an older Omni hotel definitely, not as posh as the downtown location, but it’s certainly a step up from the Motel 6’s of the world. Only major con- no free wifi…

omni south park

 

The first night we had tickets to check out Movie vs Movie, an improv show at the Coldtowne Theater. The tickets were uber cheap, just $4, plus they had free margaritas (YES PLEASE!). The location was smaller than small but I could see it being a hotspot for Austin’s elite breed of hipsters. The moment we walked in it was painfully obvious we were outsiders. One would think living in hipster central Nashville for so long, I would have  at least become an honorary hipster, nope.  Hmmm, if only I would have worn a graphic v-neck t-shirt or plaid. Oh well next time I will be prepared.  Now for the show, it was funny. I wasn’t hip enough to understand every joke and some of it was painfully silly but it was funny nonetheless. If you are in Austin, be sure to check it out.

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We spent our Saturday doing all of the typical Austin touristy location. We enjoyed tours at the Capitol and the Bob Bullock Texas History museum.  Plus a visit to the infamous Greetings from Austin Mural.

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austin mural

Victoria mural

Even though it was a short visit and rainy for a good portion of the time, I must say I really enjoyed my visit. I hope to return to the great city of Austin soon!