What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 06/26/15

Greetings!

Here's what was going on in my world this week:

• New Student Orientation

This past week has been our summer New Student Orientation at my institution. It's always a fun, exciting time welcoming new students to college and this was the first time I've been able to go through the entire process here. I even helped plan and track everything ahead of this week, so it was really nice to be able to see everything come together. A great NSO can go a long way with paying dividends for the upcoming academic year. If we really a good job getting our new students excited to come to our institution, properly prepared, and generally just feeling like they have support for this big life transition, we can retain more students and have them thrive instead of just survive. I see myself easily (ideally) transitioning to a position with orientation in the near future. It's just so much fun as well as important for the rest of the institution's operations.

• Spider-Man Casting!

I was really excited to see the news this week that we finally have our Peter Parker/Spider-Man casting for the new Marvel Cinematic Universe iteration of the beloved character. Tom Holland will be portraying the webslinger, and since he is a relative unknown, there isn't much baggage coming for the actor, which is good. He has the look and physicality down, so I'm intrigued to see if he has the comedic chops, which is so important for the character, especially go along with the current vibe of the MCU. I'm we'll see much more of Holland ahead of his debut in Captain America: Civil War in May 2016.

• Seinfeld on Hulu!

Seinfeld is one of my favorite shows of all time. I've seen most of the 171 episodes of the show, but I know there are some I've missed. Hulu now has the entire series streaming as of Wednesday, June 24 (only for their paid subscribers). It brings so much more value to the table for people paying into their service, and now, with a Showtime add-on on the way, it is continually proving to be a solid competition (or companion like I do) to Netflix and the other up and coming streaming services.

Thanks for stopping by!

What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 02/13/15

Greetings! Here's what is going on in my world.

• Spider-Man in the MCU

This was big news for me this week. I had been hoping the rumors would come to fruition but I honestly didn't expect to have this be confirmed so soon. The details of the deal are interesting and seem to be a good, simple compromise for both sides. The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has been really consistent in their quality and it will just be awesome to have Spidey in the mix now (as well as his cast of supporting characters).

• Breaks

This weekend, I'm taking a trip out of town with my partner for Valentine's Day. We aren't going far nor are we doing anything spectacular, but it is a nice chance to get out of the typical day-to-day bubble. Even just going a few hours away for a weekend has a positive impact for my own wellbeing and productivity. I also have ACPA 2015 to look forward to next month and I'm working on trying to get away for breaks at least once month for the rest of the year. I want to visit friends and get out and explore!

• Minimalism

As I make my way in the adult world, I've been continuing my journey abiding as best I can by the tenets of minimalism. I'm trying to have only what I need since anything more will only weigh me down. This entails me being constantly critical and skeptical of the things I buy and do. I'm always donating, selling, or just consuming everything I have before I go off and get more things to clutter my life. I've been reading a book on this topic (review to come soon) so it has been on my mind quite a bit. I definitely go with the idea that a cluttered space is a cluttered mind. You can clear your mind and be less stressed if you get rid of what you don't need and go forth less burdened.

Thanks for stopping by!

What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 04/04/14

Good day to you, fellow geek and/or nerd! Here is what is on my mind for this week.

• Captain America: The Winter Soldier

I am very excited about this movie and all the positive buzz it has going for it. It's certified fresh on Rotten Tomatoes and after revisiting Cap's previous cinematic adventure not too long ago, I'm really amped up for this movie! I'm going with my partner to go see it tonight so expect to hear my thoughts on social media afterwards!

• Indianapolis

I visited Indy for a few days this past week for the 2014 ACPA National Convention and it was awesome! The convention itself was a lot of fun but being able to visit this cool city was a consistent highlight. There was cool restaurants, neat architecture, the weather was beautiful, and the city was very clean. I even visited a neat comic book shop, Downtown Comics, where I picked up a new Spider-Man comic (I'm geeking out about him a lot lately).

• Coffee

Coffee is generally something I geek out about, as it gives me life quite often. I want to specifically highlight a new initiative within the awesome TOMS family (the ones who make the cool, socially good shoes); TOMS Roasting Co., which provides ethically sourced coffee and in exchange, helps give clean water to those in need. I got a sample at the aforementioned ACPA conference and was excited to hear about this new endeavor for a company I love (I own two pairs of TOMS shoes already and plan on getting more). I'll have to let you know what I think when I get to try more of their stuff.

Thanks for stopping by! Keep it real, my friends!

What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 03/28/14

Howdy! Here is what I'm getting geeky about this week!

• School of Greatness Podcast

I was recommended this excellent podcast by a friend of mine and I listened to a few episodes while on my recent ride down to Delaware from NJ. I tend to download a bulk of episodes when I know I have a long drive alone ahead of me so I figured I'd finally check out School of Greatness. It's a fun, engaging interview format show with notable thought leaders in the realms of motivation, innovation, social entrepreneurship, and start-ups. Much like the Smart People Podcast that I have mentioned on here before, it is a great way to spend some time listening to thoughtful content that has powerful takeaways for your life, work, and everything in between.

• Spider-Man

Now I just generally geek out about Spidey but I picked up some new comics the other day with my favorite webslinger which helped foster my love for the character. I'm also getting more and more excited for The Amazing Spider-Man 2 coming out soon. I can never get enough of this guy! Read here for more details on what I've learned from Marvel resident young, geeky superhero.

• Star Wars: The Clone Wars

Probably mu other biggest geekdom besides Spider-Man is Star Wars. I've been binging on the new Clone Wars series that recently became "streamable" (which I'm making a word) on Netflix. I'm almost caught up on the episodes that aired on television and am more intrigued to tackle the "Lost Missions" that never made it to air due to the whole Disney buying Lucasfilm business. Having Arrow, Agents of SHIELD, and Clone Wars as weekly doses of DC, Marvel, and Star Wars respectively has been awesome lately, even though SHIELD has been frustratingly spotty with their episodes. That's another topic for another time though.

Have an awesome weekend everyone! Go geek out with pride!

Spider-Man & Life/Work Balance

Greetings, true believers!

In an attempt to blog more regularly, I'm going to pour out some of my brain juices on a fun connection I talk about often and has even been mentioned on the episode I did for the Life/Work Balances Podcast earlier this year (check it out here). The idea is using Spider-Man as a foil for these discussions about how to find a more perfect balance in our lives.

Spider-Man is one of favorite superheroes for this reason, he always has to struggle with being Peter Parker and his job of being your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. He has to go to class, see his Aunt May, try to date Mary Jane (or Gwen Stacy), make sure to get some photos into J. Jonah Jameson, and just take care of himself. His workload is comparable to some of ours as student affairs people, so the juxtaposition gels.

Where I feel I can connect with the Spectacular Spidey is that he comes to a better balance when he doesn't put up a wall between his personal and "professional" lives. When he tells the people he cares about that he's this amazing hero, the walls come down and it is easier to live his life when he is authentic. The people in his life can help him and be there when he needs it.

I feel as though you can't ever really block off what's going on in your life from your work. They should blend together so that you are always genuinely you in everything that you do. Your passions should be on display and your colleagues able to know the true you since they see you all the time. This will lead to better work, I feel, since this schism would go away that you feel like you always have to have a mask on with as much as our work overtakes our lives. I say we flip it the other way around; bring your interests, passions, and transparent self into the work we do for students. It will be a refreshing change of pace.

I learn lessons and make connections from my geeky passions often, and I joke that I take my entertainment very seriously so I hope this was helpful to you all out there. So take this in, reflect, and go out being the most ultimate you that you were born to be!

As always, remember; With great power, comes great responsibility.