If you can't feed a hundred people, then just feed one.

I've decided to get back into the blogging world. I need more creative outlets in my life and writing is one of those for me.So...here goes...I figured I'd start with discussing my current project I've taken on.

As a former high school teacher, I have seen, firsthand, the effects of poor nutrition in my students. A a majority of them were on free or reduced lunch and it was amazing to watch the shift in their ability to focus in the classroom once they had eaten something.   I couldn't always do much for them, but I did try to provide them with nutritious breakfast or snack options before our big tests so that their minds could focus on something other than their growling stomachs.

Unfortunately, I don't work in the classroom anymore and my opportunities to help provide nutritious meals to children who are hungry has greatly deminished.  That is....until  I discovered The FEED Foundation .

Ever since I was introduced to The FEED Foundation a couple of years ago, I have been a huge proponent of their work. They are continually expanding their efforts to reach more people in order to provide meals for the hungry around the world. If you want to know more about them, check out the link provided above.

So that I don't lose your interest with this post, I will now get straight to the point.  The FEED Foundation has teamed up with Women's Health for the RUN10FEED10 10K. On October 13th, I will be running with friends in this 10K race and am currently fundraising to help have an even larger impact and feed even more hungry mouths. To find out more about the race, my fundraising, and if you'd like to help out - follow this link: http://www.crowdrise.com/katieyounger (No pressure, I'm just trying to get the word out as best as possible.)

For those who are reading this who may have already helped out, I am VERY appreciative of your support.

 If you're able to help I'd love it, but if you can't at this time I TOTALLY understand and know that you are helping those around you in your own way, big or small, and am grateful to know so many wonderful people who are always helping friends, family, and strangers around them!

That time your text goes to an unintended recipient...

I have this best friend. We will call her B. Linde, cause that's her name (it's been shortened to protect the innocent). You've probably heard of her before because we are besties that live across the continental US from each other and haven't seen each other in over a year and while that is completely tragic no amount of time can really tear us apart. Because like I said, we are besties.

If you've had the EXTREME pleasure of meeting B., you've also probably had the EXTREME pleasure of her taking a "selfie" on your phone or camera. Like so:

     A Smattering of B. self-pics over the years.

    Now, while we all LOVE having "selfies" of B. on our phones we also like to tease her about it. Thus, I take a self-pic of myself, well, anytime that I can really, to send to her. 

This past road trip was no exception. 

On que, I took a self-pic, to send to her:

And with a click of my little finger, it was sent with the following caption:

"This is the face of a girl that misses you"

WAIT! What?

It didn't send to B.

Nope.

If not B., then who?

It sent to a guy I know whose name also begins with B that I only had met a couple months ago and don't know ALL THAT WELL, although we are friends.  (We will call him B2).

I tried to redeem myself by explaining the mix-up to B2 over text which is just never a good idea because "communication" over text really doesn't exist.

I'm mortified. Humiliated. Embarrassed.

Little do I know, that to add to my social humiliation he is at my house with his roommate and my roommates and they are all having one BIG laugh at my expense.

And that's when B2 send me this pic in return:

Text Caption Reads: "This is the body of a man that misses you."

Yep.  That's my bedroom and bed. 

Yep. I pretty much laughed until I cried.

And then wished his shoes weren't on my bed, but I'm over it.

And then laughed some more. For a good hour or so.

In fact, I'm laughing now as I write this.

And that's how it happened folks.  We've all done it - accidentally sent a message to someone else when we intended it for a different recipient.  Unfortunately, this isn't the only time I've done this.  I could tell more tragic tales that involve guys I've dated, or wanted to date that aren't as funny, and more embarrassingly vulnerable, but let's be honest, I just don't want to re-live those moments.

Thankfully, this one ended in laughter and not TOTAL humiliation.  Good game B2. 

Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again

Today I wake up and the first thing I listen to when I get in my car to go to work is Jesse McCartney's "Leavin."  Why? Because it was one of your VERY FAVORITE songs. I only listen to it in special moments because it reminds me of you. When I listen to it it's almost as though I can see you in the passenger seat next to me doing one of your little Amber dances.

Today I go running and think of you. Because I can.

Today I dance "The HoeDown ThrowDown" by Hannah Montana like we did at your wedding.

Today I write a blog post about you because on this very day it's been 2 years since you left this mortal existence. And I miss you, but I'm at peace knowing without a doubt that I will see you again one day. And am so grateful for all the happy, special memories we have.

Today I call Britt and we talk about how much we love you and I read quotes from Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close.

While it may seem too personal to others for me to write all of this, to me, it's how I cope. By letting you live on through remembering you and ensuring that others know all about you, and how amazing and important you are to me. You are my best friend.

Today I listen to a song from one of my favorite Sidney Poitier movies, To Sir With Love cause I think it describes our friendship.

"But how do you thank someone

who has taken you from crayons to perfume?

It isn't easy

But I'll try

....

A friend who taught me right from wrong

and weak from strong

that's a lot to learn"

I will try to be as good a friend to others as you were and still are to me.

Today I laugh at the pictures we took when we insisted my mom do a photo shoot of us my freshman year of college. Here they are:

And finally, today in  your honor I share a story that you LOVED telling everyone we met, no matter how much it embarressed me.  You so lovingly named it, SEVEN PEAKS-A-BOOB.

Summer of '08 Me, You and Mary decided, in a lapse of judgment, to go to the Seven Peaks Water Park in Provo, UT. It's sketchy and dirty at best. We rented a 2 man tube and a single tube. You and Mary had just made me go on the scariest ride ALONE and all I wanted to do was relax in the lazy river. Thus, I left you two and went floating ALONE. I'd been floating by myself for approx. 10 minutes, with my eyes closed (this fact is important later), when I hear you and Mary EVER SO LOUDLY cackling down the way. I opened my eyes to see what could possibly cause such uproarious laughter but couldn't get either of you to stop laughing long enough to tell me what was so funny.  After about a minute of trying to get ya'll to speak through the tears, I looked down.  That's when I saw it.  My cute, brand new, bandeau, giraffe print swimsuit from Gap had failed me.    The entire left side of my top had fallen ALL THE WAY off my chest.  And I'd been floating the lazy river like that FOR 10 MINUTES. It was MORTIFYING. MORTIFYING.  Who knows how many people had seen and not told me OR how many family photos I am in accidentally flashing people in the background. We laughed and cried the rest of the day about it and you lovingly named it "Seven Peaks a Boob." 

Well Amber, this laugh is for you. Love you.

15 Minutes of Fame...

In 48 hours, I think I maxed out the "15 minutes of fame" each person should expect in life.  I thought I'd maxed out when I was in this movie with Jude Law and again when I was featured eating a popsicle on the cooking channel, but apparently had a few more minutes left to spare.



Watch 2:20 - 2:40 and I can be seen (a la 5 years ago)  freaking out that I was breathing the same air as Jude Law...and got to touch him.



Me and my friends, Amber and Lauren, can be seen around 15:27 - 15:35, 19:10, and 19:35.

That was my old claim to fame. This is my new.

Thursday, my co-worker and I spent the day touring the District in preparations for an upcoming conference I am in charge of. We got to spend the day getting free admission to lots of fun events and activities and the evening culminated with a Ghost Tour around Lafayette Square.

If you've ever wondered what kind of people go on a ghost tour in the middle of April, your answer would be...drum roll please...Ghost Hunters.  At Halloween, I'm sure you get your run-of-the-mill-average-Joe-who-is-in-the-holiday-spirit.  Not these people. These people were searching for orbs and other ghost terms I don't understand.

I didn't know what to expect on this tour and to be truthful I wanted to "duck out" early because it was late and I was cold. Unfortunately, the guide had let me borrow his (rather large) jacket and I couldn't just walk away with it so I had to stay the entire time. And it's a good thing I did. Otherwise, I would have missed out on a few minutes of fame.

There we were, our little group of ghost hunters, on the steps of a building overlooking Lafayette Square when our guide says,

"In all my years of hosting these tours, someone ALWAYS sits in the dead man's blood."

Ew.

Ok, so the blood isn't there anymore, but he pointed at me and said I was sitting in the very spot that this particular "ghost" had been left in his own murdered blood for 6 hours.

Apparently, he had been caught cheating with Daniel Sickles wife and Daniel shot him in front of many witnesses, but was acquitted in one of the first "crimes of passion" justifying his innocence.

As the story progressed, it was explained that this particular adulterer, Phillip Key, was the son of Francis Scott Key, the writer of our Star-Spangled Banner.



WHAT?!

CREEPY.

"How Bizarre! That's my 5th Great Uncle" I blurted out. (Historical Name Drop)

And that's when the FLASHES began.  You would have thought I was a ghost by the number of pictures these grown adults and their children were snapping of me.  I'm not sure what THRILLED them so much about this little scenario. I don't know if they just thought I was as close to a ghost as they were ever going to see or what. But, for whatever reason, one I shall never understand I kept hearing people say, "That's so cool. Take a picture of her. Take a picture of her."

And with that, I will now be showing up in random family, vacation scrapbooks around the nation.

Just 48 hours later, I had what will perhaps be my final 15 minutes of fame.  And I must say, if it is my last I am just glad it went out with a bang!

Saturday morning, Lauren and I drove up to New York for a concert that night at the Gramercy Theater.  The show was for one of my favorite hip-hip, broadway, lyrical genius artists of ALL TIME...Lin-Manuel Miranda.  I love him. 

Seriously though, this guy has pure, raw, genius talent running through his veins.  I think Eminem is a lyrical genius and this guy blows him outta the water.

Originally, I know him from my obsession with the Tony Award winning musical, In the Heights. Clip available HERE. He spent 7 years writing this musical and was the original star in the role of Usnavi. In fact, I went to the show's final performance 14 months ago in NY and it was quite easily the best musical production I've ever seen.

Anyway, then I fell in love with all of his freestyle stuff, which is convenient because the show we went to see was for a hip-hop, comedy, broadway, improv group he's in called Freestyle Love Supreme.

So, at this concert, I had won an auction and not only did I get to sit front row, BUT I ALSO GOT TO GO ON-STAGE FOR THE FINAL ACT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

They asked me questions about my day and then turned the whole thing into an improv, comedy rap about my day (Video will be available soon...) They hit all key elements and it was PHENOM.

AND they did an improv rap on Katniss Everdeen. HELLO?!?! LOVED IT.

I didn't think it could get any better.

And then, I got to go backstage and hang with the guys...AND...I asked Lin-Manuel if I could rap with him.

His reply, "YES! But, can I videotape you rapping for me?"

"Uh. Duh."

So he did.

And then there was another guy there filming me rapping with him that could potentially be used in the future.

Anyway. It was amazing. I am still waiting to get the official picture back from them and then I will post it. But, until then...enjoy this pic from the night!

It was a dream come true. Truly. I am still on Cloud Nine.

It's not letting me rotate. So, until I figure that out, we are sideways.