Something to Think About

I had to take sociology this semester, which is the study of how different societies are created as well as their structure. In all honesty, it was probably one of the most boring classes I've ever taken, BUT once in a while our ancient professor gave an interesting lecture.

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He spent one lecture talking about the disparities between our urban society (Chicago) and the societies of the rest of the world. Some of the statistics he gave were truly shocking, and I think everyone should be aware of them. These statistics all come from the World Health Organization.

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• When you look at the world's population, 80% live in substandard living conditions
• 1/6 of the world’s population is unable to read and write
• 50% of the world’s population suffers from malnutrition
• Only 1% of the world’s population has a computer
• Over 1/2 of world’s population exist in relative poverty
• 1/7 of the world’s population (1.1 billion people) live in absolute poverty (meaning no food, just trying to survive)
• 7 million +  in US have no jobs
• The majority of world’s population live on less than $2 per day
• 6% of the world's population own 59% of the wealth in the world
• 1 million people in the world will not survive until the end of the week
• We are richer than 75% of the population if we have a roof over our heads and a place to sleep
• If you have money in the bank, you are among the top 8% of the world’s wealthy

These statistics really put things into perspective for me. I'm assuming that if you're reading this, you have a computer. Therefore, you are part of the top 1% of the world. Next time I complain that I don't have something, I'm going to come back to this post and realize what a lucky person I am, compared to the rest of the world.

--Becky

Arrivederci!

Hi everyone! 

By the time you read this I'll be on a plane to Rome. I have no idea what the wifi situation is going to be like when I get there, so I probably won't be able to post any pictures of my trip for a few days. I've scheduled a few posts in advance while I'm gone, so I hope you enjoy them! I'll also try to keep up as best as I can with commenting on all of your blogs.

I'll update you all on my travels soon!

--Becky

Italy: The Preview, Part 2

I don't think I've mentioned this on my blog before, but one of the big reasons I'm going to Rome is that I'm Catholic and Rome is THE place for Catholics to visit in their lifetime. My college requires us to complete two religion courses for graduation. In Rome, I'm taking the religion course "Theology of Pilgrimage". 

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The idea behind this class is that we will be visiting The Seven Pilgrim Churches of Rome, three of which were made official by Pope John Paul II during the Great Jubilee of 2000 (jubilee=really special Holy Year). Catholics who visited four of these churches in the middle ages believed that they would receive an indulgence (a "pardon") from all of their sins. The theory still runs true today, but I really don't think I've done anything too terrible that I need to visit all of these churches for God to forgive me. Still, just THINK of all the pilgrims who have visited these churches before me!

I don't know how the heck we're going to see all of these, and I'm sure they're all going to blend together after a while, but here they are!

The Seven Pilgrim Churches of Rome

1. Santa Croce [Wednesday, May 23rd]

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2. Giovanni Laterano [Wednesday, May 23rd]

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3. Maria Maggiore [Wednesday, May 23rd]

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4. San Paulo [Monday, May 28th]

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5. San Lorenzo [Friday, June 8th]

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6. San Sebastiano [Friday, June 8th]

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7. San Pietro [Friday, June 8th]

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Jesuit Pilgrimages

Since Loyola is a Jesuit school, we're also going to some institutions that somehow represent the Jesuit tradition.

San Andrea [Wednesday, June 6th]

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Gregorianum [Wednesday, June 6th]

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First Jesuit University, yeah!

Il Gesu [visit for the first time on Wednesday, June 6th; class mass Monday, June 18th]

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The Jesuits' "home" church

San Ignazio [Wednesday, June 6th]

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Church of St. Ignatius Loyola

Rooms of St. Ignatius [Monday, June 18th]

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Preserved rooms of where St. Ignatius lived and prayed

Orvieto and Assisi: TBA

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I've already talked about Assisi in a previous post. On June 9th, the entire Loyola community goes on a day trip to the medieval town of Assisi. However, my Theology class professor will be taking us on a separate excursion there, as well as to Orvieto. Orvieto is interesting in that it has an underground city (cool, right?), because the town was once the home of the papal residency and it needed an escape route for the pope in case the town went under siege.

--Becky

Pinteresting Wednesday (2)

It's time for another week of "Pinteresting Wednesday!" For the past few weeks I've been pinning mostly DIY ideas for moving into my apartment (okay, officially it's a dorm, but calling it an apartment makes me feel more independent) next year. I've been pinning a few random things too, though!

Source: mydeco.com via Becky on Pinterest

Source: oldegreencupboard.blogspot.com via Becky on Pinterest

Source: cheerfulsimplicity.wordpress.com via Becky on Pinterest

Source: adayinthelifeofmisskranz.blogspot.com via Becky on Pinterest

Source: apartmenttherapy.com via Becky on Pinterest

Source: fabfitfun.com via Becky on Pinterest

Source: rubymurraysmusings.blogspot.ca via Becky on Pinterest

Source: thehandmadehome.net via Becky on Pinterest

Source: lifeguardpress.com via Becky on Pinterest

Source: media-cdn.pinterest.com via Becky on Pinterest

Source: si.smugmug.com via Becky on Pinterest

Source: themetapicture.com via Becky on Pinterest

Source: google.com via Becky on Pinterest

Anatomy of a Carry-On Bag

I'm trying to pack as light as possible, but I still need some things to entertain me during the 10-hour flight to Rome. Here's what I'm planning to take in my carry-on as my "in-flight" entertainment:

For fun:

• Rome travel guide: my parents gave me an Eyewitness Travel guide for Christmas
• My journal
• Embroidery floss to whip up a few friendship bracelets

For survival:

• One water bottle: they only allow you to bring one on the flight, I'm told
• Pens
• Gum: My ears always get plugged during flights, so I've learned that chewing gum does the trick to "unpop" them
• Ear plugs: Pretty self-explanatory. I'm hoping I don't get stuck to a crying baby for the whole flight.
• Inflatable neck pillow: so I can perhaps catch some shut-eye during the flight

Tech:

• Nook Color: loaded with my reading assignments for class as well as a movie or two (any suggestions on anything new that's come out?)
• Cell phone
• iPod: loaded with all of my playlists and some Rome podcasts.

Well? Do you guys have any suggestions on what to bring for the long plane trip? Specifically books, movies, etc.?

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day, Mom!

I'm typing out this post as my mom and I watch "Downton Abbey" on Netflix. My sister is out with friends, my dad is on a trip, so it's just me and my mom. And that's okay, because we are each other's best friend.

Since my dad travels for a living, my mom, sister and I naturally grew very close. I can't imagine how hard it was for her to raise two little girls basically on her own. The life of a pilot's wife can be lonely, but my mom preserved.

She taught me to read when I was four years old, holding up flashcards of the letters of the alphabet and taking me to the library every single day to check out a new picture book. There were many outings to the park, trips to the zoo, and days spent at the lake, just the three of us. Once my sister and I were in school, she volunteered every chance she could. We were never embarrassed when she went on field trips with us--we loved our mom and wanted to be with her as much as possible.

See that dog in the pic? She walks her five miles every day. That's dedication, my friends. I'm so proud of her.

Now that I'm in college, my mom and I still text every single day in order to keep up with each other's lives. I try to come home as often as I can to see her.

 For mother's day we're giving her a pretty corsage and taking her out to brunch. Afterwards we're going to one of Wisconsin's state parks, Devil's Lake, to enjoy the weather. Happy mother's day everyone, and I hope you all have a great day!

Ghost Radar

And here it is, the post that will make you all question my sanity.

I recently downloaded this app on my Android phone called "Ghost Radar Classic".  It was one of the most popular apps on the store, so I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. The app looks like this, courtesy of the app's webpage:

You have a radar on which little spots appear. As you walk around, you'll run into some of these spots, which are apparently areas in which your phone detects "quantum fluctuations" (in other words, GHOSTS according to the app creator).

Then the program will turn these fluctuations into words, which are supposed to be what the ghost is saying. I know, this sounds really fake-y, and I thought so too!

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BUT I've been playing around with the app for a few days and it seems almost legit. At first I thought the spots were just detected motion, such as if someone was walking outside or something. However, I set my phone down with the app running on my kitchen counter as my mom, dad, sister and dog were there. The phone didn't detect anything.

I did the same thing when I was the only one in the house, and the app went crazy. Most of the words don't make any sense, but one time one of the words that showed up was "car" after I asked the ghost where it was. I went into the car and the app went crazy again, detecting several "ghosts" at once.

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Another time I was driving past a hospital. After several minutes of inactivity, tons of things showed up on the screen. The words that flashed were "hurt", "chest" and "operation". CREEPY...all of the words are associated with a hospital.

I know, you're probably still skeptical. Just download the app and decide for yourself what it's all about. I don't know if I believe in it's validity, but the app is a lot of fun to play with. And it might just be making me want to sleep with a light on.