In March all of my dreams came true! My husband and I were fortunate enough to be able to go to Disney World for our honeymoon. For the record, Disney World is my absolute favorite place on Earth. I am a huge Disney nerd, so the trip was like spending a week in paradise. We took a train all the way from New York to Florida, which was an adventure in and of itself. We both love trains, and it was my first experience actually riding on one. The trip took about a day (I slept most of the way), and then we finally arrived at the resort we would be staying at in Orlando.

The resort included a shuttle to and from all the Disney parks, which we definitely took advantage of. The first park we visited was Magic Kingdom, the stereotypical “Disney” park, complete with giant castle. Our favorite parts of the park where Gaston’s Tavern (a rustic eatery inspired by the charming villain from Beauty and the Beast), and the Wonderland area (of course).

I got to ride my favorite Disney World ride, The Mad Tea Party, and then eat at my favorite cat’s cafe!

           

We even spotted some familiar faces signing autographs nearby!

Next up was Epcot! Honestly, we never wanted to leave Epcot. We would have been perfectly happy to move in permanently, and sample all of the amazing international cuisine on a daily basis. The park itself was gorgeous, filled with replica cultural buildings, all built around a sparkling lake.

Our favorite “country” had to be Morocco. We ate there two out of five days, and were left hungry for more! Morocco was so colorful and luxurious, I just wanted to touch everything!

Just look at this mouthwatering cuisine!

Another delectable food item came from the streets of Japan! It’s pink, sweet, completely addictive, and it’s called Frushi! 

It’s sushi, made from fruit! I know, right??

We did briefly visit Disney’s Hollywood studios, but it just wasn’t for us. The park is lovely, with a classic Hollywood theme, and lots of documentaries and live shows to watch, we just prefer the more active parks. One of our favorite rides is located in Hollywood Studios however, The Tower of Terror, and we got to see a stunning Beauty and the Beast live show, so it was all worth it.

Last, but certainly not least, is Animal Kingdom! Now, we had been told by numerous people not to bother visiting this park. They said it was boring, we wouldn’t like it, etc. They were very, very wrong, and we never should have listened! We saved this park for the last day of our trip, figuring we would just pop in quick, and leave. Once we were there however, we wished we would have visited every day! This park has amazing food that easily rivals Epcot, tons of interactive exhibits, Bollywood dancing, and even a safari.

We loved the safari so much that we wanted to do it twice, however we ran out of time…. We saw giraffes, and elephants, and even flamingos, oh my!

There were also rhinos, lions, hippos, crocodiles, okapi, and pelicans spotted. My favorite creatures spotted in Animal Kingdom (not on the safari), were these adorable bats!

I didn’t want to leave them! They were so cute, and kept stretching their wings, and flapping around!

Well, I could talk about Disney World forever and a day, so I’m going to wrap things up here. Disney World really has something for everyone, not just fans of the animation or characters. I cannot recommend it enough to anyone who enjoys great food, animals, history, nature, or just having fun! I can’t wait to go back to Disney World some day, if I had the unlimited funds, I’d live there! I hope you enjoyed this post, and I hope I inspired you to take your next family trip to sunny Orlando Florida!

Growing up with a diabetic mother has made me more aware of the benefits of healthy eating. Seeing her suffer through many hospital visits triggered a desire in me to see her healthy. I began to encourage her to eat better and I changed the way I ate as well so that we could do it together. Me and my mother have become more health conscious over the years and we’ve both lost a lot of weight.

Check out the delicious and healthy meals I’ve been cooking up this summer!

• Fish or Chicken Tacos!

The chicken was slow cooked in a Crock pot with taco seasoning and water, then pulled apart when soft enough. The fish was sauteed on the stove top with olive oil and taco seasoning. Taco toppings include: guacamole, tomatoes, shredded cheese, sour cream (optional), lettuce, and a mixture of sauteed onions, peppers, mushrooms, and cilantro.

• Fish, Salad, & Rice

Okay so the fish was fried! But it doesn’t have to be, you can bake it, or cook it on the stove top! I cut a Swai fish fillet ( just 70 calories) into 3 pieces and dipped them in egg before I fried it. I added some fresh spinach (no salad dressing) and about 1/2 cup of curry seasoned rice.

• The Lettuce Taco (A Vegetarian Dish)

The lettuce taco contains a sauteed mixture of green onions, mushrooms, cilantro, green peppers, and fresh garlic. Split peas and avocado chunks were added to the mixture at the end of the cooking process. Romain lettuce leafs were filled, sprinkled with cheese, and dotted with spicy Sriracha sauce. This dish was my favorite and it’s good for cleaning out the body!

Get creative in the kitchen tonight and try one of these healthy meals out! See you next time! God Bless and Happy Eating!

It’s that time of year again! Time to stock up on tons of new gear, and get ready to hit the books. I don’t know about other schools, but I know that GCC starts back up for the Fall on August 24th! I just can’t wait! Therefore, I went out and scouted around town (and the internet), to find the absolute cutest back to school products out there this season. Let’s start off with the locally available goods! Of course you can get these things over the internet as well, I just happened to see them around town.

How about we start with Office Max! I feel like Office Max is an often untapped gem, that tends to get overshadowed by bigger store chains such as Walmart. But if you really take the time to look you can find lots of cute goods, usually at discount prices!

My current favorite products from Office Max are this sweet journal (and there are lots of other journals to choose from, with lots of other quotes), and glitter tape!! Come on, who doesn’t need glitter tape?

Next up is Target, where I hit the jackpot on cute backpacks! I’m in Target a lot; I would honestly have to say that it is my favorite go-to store in town. In addition to cute backpacks, I also spotted wonderful folders, thermoses, and bento boxes lining the store’s isles.

Are these not the cutest backpacks ever??

Look at this adorable lunchbox! It’s a cookie!

I think I also saw french fries and hamburger lunchboxes as well.

Lastly, I want to introduce you to this incredibly affordable, and very cute online school supply store called Modes4U. This store offers everything from travel safe cutlery, to dessert shaped erasers, and I highly recommend checking it out. Personally, I was most obsessed with their amazing pencil pouches. I’ve included my favorites below, with links.

Get it HERE!

Get it HERE!

Get it HERE!

Get it HERE!

Thanks for sharing my back to school, excessive excitement with me! I hope that I was able to inspire you to add a liberal dose of cute to your school supplies haul. Remember, for everything in life, there is always a cute alternative!

Come one, come all, come to the Genesee County Fair! This week only! Located right here in Batavia, at the Genesee County Fair Grounds, 5056 East Main St. Rd. As someone completely obsessed with carnivals and fairs, of course I attended! It was absolutely wonderful!

My first order of business was obtaining a great big bag of cotton candy! It was so big, in fact, that I still have half of it left! Then I went directly to the 4H Rabbit Show. Rabbits are my favorite animal, so when I saw this event listed in the complementary event guide, I just couldn’t resist. It was a room with rows and rows of rabbits, it was like rabbit paradise!Once my husband successfully dragged me away from the show, we went to look at the wide array of other animals the fair had to offer. There were the biggest cows I had ever seen, pens and pens of adorable sheep, and lots of friendly goats!

 

Playing with all the animals was my favorite part of the whole fair. Well, except for the food…. Besides my giant bag of cotton candy, I also got some deliciously seasoned salt potatoes, handcrafted soda (with free refills), a snow cone and something I had never before heard tell of….TACHOS. When I saw them on the vendor’s sign I just had to know what they were. The answer, tater tots topped with nacho cheese, sour cream, and your choice of scallions. Let me just say, they were awesome.

  

The fair has lots of rides and games, from the classic carousel, to something that looked like an obstacle from the competition show Wipe Out. My husband was even able to win me this adorable little guy, by throwing darts at a wall of balloons! He is now a proud part of my plushie collection.

The fair also features dance teams, karaoke, horse competitions, a flea market, local vendors, and even a fire juggler! There’s just so much to see and do! It’s a good thing this event lasts all week!

So hurry, hurry, step right up! Don’t miss your chance for tons of family-friendly fun and games! The fair is only in town until July 25th, you definitely don’t want to miss it!

Just the other day my family had a big gathering at my grandmother’s house in Batavia. A big gathering meant that I had to go gather lots of pizza. We decided to go with Dominos, as it was close by, but when I went to pick up the order I received an incredible surprise! A new board game store had moved in right next door to the restaurant!

The name of the store is The Game Cave, and according to their website they offer many different board games, trading card games, and RPGs, along with accessories for all your gaming needs. Different special events are held daily for various games, and walk-in playgroups are always welcome to use play space free of charge.

They also offer an exciting new program called the Cave Crate! If you sign up for this monthly renewing subscription, once a month you will receive a box containing a minimum of three assorted Magic: The Gathering Boosters. You also have a chance of getting dice, a deckbox, sleeves, or even special game related artwork and handmade items from local artists. The subscription costs about $40 per crate (including shipping), and each crate contains a minimum of $50 worth of product. If you play Magic: The Gathering this is an excellent bargain, and a great way to support a local shop. I personally don’t play this game, but I know that it is immensely popular, and it’s never too late to start.

The store is still growing, but it already contains a wide array of trading cards and a healthy selection of board games to choose from. Every time I enter The Game Cave there’s always an exuberant group of game enthusiasts happily taking a new game for a test drive, or busting out an old favorite. The atmosphere of the store is homey and welcoming, and I have always found the staff very attentive and knowledgeable. If you’re looking for something new to do in Batavia, or for an exciting family-friendly activity, look no further than The Game Cave.

 

This summer I’m taking ENG 105. In this class Professor Toni Boyd is having us study writings about expressions of the human experience. In one of our assignments we were asked to write about what being human meant to us and how it related to art. I submitted this poem and I would like to share with you.

A Few Words

By Iesha DeLesline

Flawed, sick, tired and broken

Striving, succeeding, failing and reviving

Eating, living, digesting and growing

Learning, studying, adopting and forsaking

Going, coming, working and resting

Seeing, admiring, taking and replacing

Dreaming, flying, landing and still dreaming

Seeking, finding, believing and reflecting

Loving, hurting, healing and loving

Praying, waiting, noticing and thanking

Working, sweating, sowing and reaping

Kindness, generosity, doing unto others and being done unto

Oppressing, greed, doing unto others and being done unto

Strategizing, foreseeing, conquering and winning

Listening, accepting, trusting and jumping

Perfected, healed, purposed and whole

Hi everybody!

My name is Kasey Edgerton, and I am so excited to be your new student blogger. I am a 22 year old freshman here at Genesee Community College, and I live in Oakfield. My major is Fashion Business, and I plan to pursue both the fashion merchandising, and fashion design paths.  I currently hold a Bachelor’s in English from SUNY Albany, and I am looking forward to incorporating the written and communication skills I have developed in a whole new way.

Fashion has always been a major passion of mine, as well as special effects makeup, photography, singing, theater, board games and video games. In fact along with my husband and brother-in-law, I have a YouTube channel called Edgertainment, where we play and discuss various video games. We also tackle current topics of interest in the video game industry. Oh, and there’s one other thing you should know about me. I absolutely love all things Alice in Wonderland!

Although I am not currently a member of any clubs here at GCC, I am very interested in potentially joining DECA (Distributive Education Clubs of America), Forum Players Theater Company, and Film Club. Growing up in Oakfield GCC felt like an extension of my backyard. I visited the campus countless times for school events, to participate in Scholastic Bowl in high school, and even to attend a summer youth theater camp. Some of my best childhood memories revolve around this college, and I feel incredibly blessed and excited to finally be able to attend here as a student.

I’m so happy to be your new blogger! I can’t wait to report back on all the magical things this college has to offer, and to share moments of my life that you will hopefully find interesting.

Today, as I was reading The Rochester Review (published by The University of Rochester), an article brought social issues to my attention. I read about how U of R college students protested against police brutality and the deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner and I asked myself, “Where do I stand? What are my feelings and opinions about police to minority interactions? Am I afraid of racism or the police?”

Sometimes, being in upstate New York, I forget about racism. Yes, I am an African American girl with a head full of dreadlocks, but I know the people I interact with see I’m more than that. I act as if I am because I really am, and I think people pick up on that and treat me like a human being, not according to my complexion. I can forget about the physical differences and the stereotypes we’re supposed to be. Like the “black activist” black girl, that’s just not me – but power to you if you are! I mean that.

I have friends from many different nations and we get along swell here in our little college town.

The only time I’m made aware of my stereotype is when strange incidents happen, like, when a girl walks into the rest room, sees me, stares an extra second too long, perhaps judging weather it’s safe or not for them to stay, then realizes it’s too late to leave the bathroom without being rude, so they continue to walk in (taking their chances I imagine…risky business you know), and use the bathroom. At that moment I put on a quick smile, finish washing my hands because all I want to do is scramble outta there as fast as I can. I’m never 100% sure if prejudices exist in every moment like that, I just have my instincts to rely on. But I don’t let things like that dictate how I live and how I communicate with different people.

I hope that my character shines through my physicality for the rest of my life, but as I see what’s happening in the world I do harbor a small fear. What if people treat me with racism after college? What if I’m stereotyped then? I feel sad when I think of Trayvon Martin, who was labeled “suspicious” just because he was an African American boy wearing a hood. That makes me want to dress up in the most suspicious manner possible and be as cheerful as I can just to teach society a lesson.

Well, I’m done with this ramble for now. Come back next week!

This weekend was a blast!

This past Friday a group of friends and I went to Letchworth State Park. It was beautiful. The first thing we saw when we arrived was a huge canyon. I stood up on the rocky edge and stared down at the river miles below. Across the great gap in front of us we saw birds flying high and circling around looking for food. We got back into the car and drove to one of the falls. Our group split up as three of our friends decided to take the high trail to view the falls from a distance, while two of us took the low one to get as close to the falls as we could, and we got really close! After descending 127 rocky stairs, that were slippery due to all the rain from Thursday, we headed right  and stood on a misty ledge right in front of the falls. It was amazing; my first time seeing a water fall of that size in person. As we were headed back to try and see the falls from a nearby bridge, my friend noticed a log that lead you to a lower level. He crossed it, peered off to see if we could get closer to the fall, but then decided it was too risky because there was a little stream of water running through the path. But when he came back up, I went down myself and decided it was manageable and worth the risk. So we both carefully and slowly avoided slipping as we reached a ledge that was lower and closer to the water than the previous one we’d been to. It was fun and adventurous!

Saturday, two of my friends, who are from Japan, cooked a wonderful meal and made a delicious dessert called Choco Korone!

I told them that I’d seen a dessert in a Japanese animated show called Lucky Star and they decided to make it for me. I’m so grateful for them, it was good!

After lunch, we decided to go to 7-Eleven. They were giving away free Slurpees because it was July 11th! Get it? 7/11? Ha! We rode our bikes to main street, picking up a friend along the way, and sat in the shade on the side of 7-Eleven with our Slurpees. Yum.

When we got back to College Village we hosted a movie night for all our summer residents. We turned one of the common rooms in our new building, Lilac Hall, into a movie theater and showed “127 Hours” starring James Franco. We served popcorn, soda, tea, and chips (dipped in honey by a few of us). The room was filled with squeals and plenty of people covered their eyes at the climax of the movie. Why? Well if you’ve never seen the movie, I won’t give you any spoilers,  go see it! Until next blog! See ya!

Are you I.T.?

It was a Wednesday morning, 10 a.m., when I arrived in room D203 for the big Information Technology videography process. Through a doorway to an adjacent room, were lights and camera equipment set up. There was a girl sitting on a stool in front the biggest light box I’d ever seen, she had blonde hair and wore a blue GENESEE tee shirt. Her name was Erica Parker. I was told to come in and settle down before the camera guys began the interview process.

For the next hour we listened to Erica tell her story as she responded to questions about her experience in Genesee Community College’s Information Technology program. She just recently graduated from GCC with a 4.0 average in I.T. But before then, she attended GCC’s IT Academy Career Pathways program for high school seniors and earned college credit. “High school student by morning, college student by afternoon!” The beginning of her journey was tough because she noticed that she was the only girl in some of her I.T. classes. She said when she walked into the classroom, everyone stared, and she got the impression that they were wondering if she was in the right place. “Are you in the nursing program?” Erica said she was asked frequently by GCC students. “No, I’m in Information Tech”, was her usual reply. Erica spoke more about how a GCC teacher, Jim Bucki, noticed her potential and encouraged her to think about I.T. as a career option! She did, and she said finding her place became easy when teachers showed a deep desire for her to succeed, and as she learned more about her field. It was inspiring to hear her story and to see how a commercial is made.

More filming and photo ops were done in the afternoon and I got to sit as an extra in one of the videos so keep your eye out for me. 😉

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