Happy November! The past three weeks have been one, long blur. What with classes, a business trip of sorts to Indianapolis, marching band happenings and Halloween, my favorite month has come and gone without even a casual "hey-o." But onwards and upwards!
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| Livin' it up in the big city (of Indy). |
You may be wondering why I up and left for Indiana of all places (Fun Fact: it's the 43rd state I've visited) in the middle of Fall Term. Well, the National Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) Conference was in Indianapolis this year and as a member of the University of Oregon's PRSSA Executive Board, I got to go. Along with the five other members of the board, I went to workshops, heard speakers (including Scott Kelly, the dude who lived in space for a year!), toured a PR agency, networked like crazy (we got to sit down for half an hour with the former VP of Communications for KIND Bars) and explored the city in our free time.
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| #ScoDucks |
It was a great experience that only cemented my affirmation that PR is the route for me. The conference itself was interesting, but disaster stricken Day Two when Twitter crashed. It was almost comical watching all of these hyper-Tweeting future PR professionals struggle to sit still and simply listen to a presentation. You could almost see the thumbs twirling like phantom limbs in a subconscious attempt to live Tweet. Even the presenters seemed a little unsure. There was always, inevitably a slide promoting a relevant hashtag or encouraging the audience to interact and discuss something on the Tweet-o-sphere, which, as if in an apocalypse film entitled Tweetastrophe!, didn't exist.
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| Touring Hirons & Company, a small advertising and PR firm (of no relation to the Hiron's of Eugene). |
Another twist to the PRSSA plot was the convention happening at the hotel next door. Apparently more than 60,000 people descended upon Indy for the Future Farmers of America (FFA) National Convention and Expo. There were teenagers everywhere you looked in navy jackets with golden embroidery stating where they were from -- Montana, Texas, New Mexico, California, Georgia. Although the FFA and PRSSA gatherings were very different, I couldn't help but imagine how much the two groups could do if they joined forces...
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| Give me an "I!" |
After my long weekend in the big city, I jumped right into one of my biggest responsibilities as the Events Director for UO PRSSA, an event called Ducks Love Dogs. It's a fundraiser for both Greenhill Humane Society in Eugene and UO PRSSA, where you can rent a dog for a specified amount of time to play, cuddle or walk. A college campus is a great place to hold something like Ducks Love Dogs because so many students are what I call "dog sick." They just miss their pooch back home. I don't have that much experience planning events and luckily this one ended up being not only successful, but also fun and adorable.
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| The event will be back in the spring, so fear not! |
Then, to top off a full few days, UO had a home game against Arizona State. Because it was Halloweekend, the Duck came out in his costume and there was a number of fans in spirited garb, including some Sun Devils in veryyyy form fitting morph suits. The highlight of the game, however, was when we finally pulled a victory. I don't know if I'd bet on a bowl game, but at least we know some success is possible. Sco Ducks!
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| Greetings Earthlings, from Commander Spock and Lieutenant Uhura! |
And on a final note, Halloween was quite fun. I celebrated with a few close friends and got to get all dressed up. My boyfriend, Jonah, is a bit of a major Trekkie, so I geeked out with him and dressed as Nyota Uhura, which seems fitting as she is a translator and communications officer. I mean, if I'm going to be exploring strange new worlds I'd like to know how to chat with any aliens we meet. I've definitely come a long way from cowering at the sight of E.T. to dressing up as a space explorer. But for now, before traveling to any other cities, states, countries or galaxies, it's time to study!