Bangs, and one less stress!

So yesterday after school I went to go get my hair cut. I knew I wanted to get bangs but I wasn't sure what to get, the full out bangs like I had when I was a little girl, or side bangs that many girls I know have. Before going I asked many people what I should get and I got answers from both sides, so I went to the hair cut not knowing what to do. I decided to ask my hair dresser what she thought would be good, she suggested the side bangs so I went with that and this is how it turned out:

I really like them and I am extremely happy I got them!

Today I had the ACT it went pretty well, I am just glad it is over, one less stress to have. I feel that the ACT class probably helped, the English section felt really good.

I wish that it would stop snowing, I am officially done with the snow and want spring weather!!! I don't mind if it rains, in fact I LOVE the rain it is great it is fun to dance in and makes the earth smell and feel much cleaner!

I am super excited for my dance performance this Spring May 9th, the dance we are doing this year is awesome and has really cool movements in it. It is all about the earth and that things are always looking back at you. Also that there is a guy holding the earth with his legs and everytime he shifts the earth shifts. Its awesome. Something else that is awesome is Transcedance, the dance concert my school's dance company had was way cool! Some dances were kinda intense but they really made me think and put new perspectives on things!

Well thats about all I have to say for this post!

Love Always

The End of Third Quarter and Some Mud

So Third Quarter came to a close which I am greatful for because it was a really tough quarter! There were many IB IA's and other stressful things. So today there is a little less wieght off of my shoulders but there are still many other things to do before the end of the quarter such as AP tests and ACT and SAT tests! So there are still many stressful things but I have also made it through a lot of stressful things.
Today I decided to go for a walk somewhere since I didn't have any school and enjoy the beautiful day! I went down to this bike/walk path down by Gardener Village and took a lovely walk. There was one little issue though when I got there, they were doing constuction all around the pathway and up on the road by the path. Since they were doing construction the beginning of the pathway was blocked off and you had to go around up onto the road to get to the path. But me not thinking clearly instead of going up onto the road I went through this backway to get to the path. This was not a good choice, I ended up getting my shoes all muddy and now I am probably going to have to throw my shoes away because they were covered in mud and for a moment I was stuck in the mud. Once I got out of the mud I had to climb up this gravel hill, over some railroad tracks, and squeeze through a fence to get to the path. Once I finally got to the path the walk was lovely and could enjoy the nature and the sun! When I walked back to my car I figured out that you could walk up along the road to the path so of course I made the unwise descion and ruined my shoes! :( Ha ha well at least I had an adventure!
After I took my walk I wandered around the stores there for a little bit. They have this really cute store there now called Purse-onality, it had way cute wallets and purses and this really cute skirt I wanted to buy but I didn't have any money so I didn't. Also they have this really cute Tea place which is fabulous too!
Well thats about all for now, I will try to keep writing on a more regular basis!
Love Always!

Successful 30 hour Fast and H20 Project

So I am so happy to say that we were pretty successful at my church's 30 hour fast and H20 project. Everybody did a great job at not drinking anything but water for the two week H20 challenge, and I think we earned quite a bit of money from that! Then this weekend starting on Saturday we started our 30 hour famine for the building of wells in Africa. We started this at 5:00 am at Belgium Waffle and after eating a nice breakfast walked the 3.2 miles back to church thinking about the 350 kids that would die in that hour to walk back from unclean water! We got back to the church and sadly I had to leave to go work on homework and go to CDT's dance concert (which was amazing and I am so happy I went! Good job Ellie, Kelsey, Elizabeth, and Maren!) but while I was gone people at my church worked on a project with little paper cups that we got 5,000 of to represent the 5,000 children who die everyday from unclean water! When I got back we headed down town to about 8th and 8th to a church called New Song Underground and went to a benefit concert for our fast that a girl named Amy organzied from our church. A bunch of different bands played there including our church's Radical Grace and a girl from my church named Sara who sings amazingly! This benefit was very successful and there we raised $350 dollars for our cause! Everyone at the benefit who performed did an awesome job and it was very inspiring! After the benefit concert we drove back to the church and actually napped for a while because we were all way tired, having no food really drains your energy! After a little nap one of the other youth leaders at my church Max Roth read a little story to us, and we had a small candle light service. We had 350 candles representing again the number of children that would die in that hour. We went to bed after this because by then it was getting closer to midnight.
The next morning we woke up to get ready for both services and sunday school. After those we finally broke our 30 hour famine with a huge breakfast. Sadly I was so hungry and so eager to get eating that I burned my mouth on this soup we had there. So now my mouth is still burnt!
:( ha ha in all it was a successful weekend and fast!

More H20 Facts

Here are some more facts about water and to get everyone thinking about how serious this actually is.

The Math

$1= Clean water for 1 person for 1 year

One $5,000 well = clean water for 700 children for 7 years

5,000 divided by 700 divided by 7 = $1.02 per person per year

One $15,000 deep well in Africa = clean water for 2,200 kids for 7 years.

$15,000 divided by 2,200 divided by 7= $0.97 per person per year

*A hand pump lasts an average of 7 years before needing repairs.

So one dollar can really make a difference!

The Science

Drinking poop kills.

Nobody wants to drink poop but when water comes from a shallow well and the only place to do your business is a pit latrine...it happens.

Diarrhea vs. The Third Reich

Hiltler's rule lasted 12 years, killing between 11 and 15 million Jews, handicapped, homosexuals, Soviets... about 1.25 million people per year.

Diarrhea kills about 1.8 million children per year.

Diarrhea kills five times more children than AIDS. More than tuberculosis, malaria, car crashes, cancer, war... Diarrhea beats them all.

We're smarter than amoebas. Deep wells beat diarrhea.

Love wins... if we do something.

The World

Of all the earth's water, 97% is salt water.

Of all the fresh water (3% of the total), 2/3 is frozen.

Only 1% of all earth's water is available fresh water.

90% of that available water is used for agriculture.

That leaves .1% for human consumputions-almost all contaminated

Most Americans use over 100 gallons of water daily.

Nearly 40% of world population has no access to clean water.

History

Lack of clean water kills 10 times more people than war. Scarcity of water has created more refugees than all wars in history.

So think about this and see how you could change somebody or even many lives, 1 dollar can save a life! Here are three websites that you can go to for even more info:

• www.water.cc/



• http://www.onedollarwater.com/



• http://www.theh2oproject.org/

H2O Challenge

This year for the fast at my church we are raising money and awareness about water. Many places especially in Africa don't have sufficient water to stay healthy. The water they drink is filled with Parasites and Pollution and causes blindness and Diarrhea. One child dies every 15 seconds from water related diseases, and that is 10,000 every single day! We are raising money to build wells in certain villages, and to educate the people about how to be more sanitary. 15 dollars can give clean water to one person for a whole year. My church is doing two things to help this cause out. One is we are doing a water challenge for two weeks where we fast from all beverages except water to see how important water is. We are starting this Feb. 15th and going till the 1st of March. The second thing we are doing is fasting for 30 hours like we do every year for different causes, and this fast is on the 28th of Feb. If you would like to join us on your own feel free. If you want more information on the H2O challenge and learn how you can help people who have water problems then head to this website: http://www.theh2oproject.org/. You will learn a lot and may even be a little shocked!
Be Grateful for what you have because it could be gone in and instant!
Love Always
Audrey

Who is that Girl?

My friends were telling me how I kind of look like Audrey Hepburn, so I put on some glasses and took a picture!

Living in the Moment and Looking at the Things I Have

So far the New Year has had me looking at all the things I am blessed with and not worrying about what can change or be different. I feel lucky to have great friends and a wonderful family that cares about me deeply. I am also lucky enough to see my sister go off to India and experience a wonderful internship there with Matri that works with HIV/AIDS to help people there to know how to prevent it and be safe. So far her trip has been filled with many amazing moments and also moments that really show you how lucky you are to live in the United States. The water there is very contanminated and every now and then the electricity goes out. The drivers there are crazy and the city is very crowded and polluted. But it is also a magnificent city where many different people live and where you can learn a lot from. I can't wait to hear more about her trip and the things she will do next.
I am also feeling lucky that I am able to dance as often as I do without anything preventing me to do so. I have recently heard so many stories of people around me who have had a serious injury preventing them to dance or do anything else they love. I am happy that there isn't anything preventing me from doing what I love, which is to dance. Without dance I wouldn't be half the person I am. Everytime I dance there are so many emotions I communicate and friends I dance with and teachers that inspire me to push myself further in the dance world. Dance is something I believe anyone can do and should do. I know it has changed my life!
The Most Important Thing About Dance Is That Anyone Can!
Te Amo
Audrey