.great weekend.

I had the honor and privilege to accompany the Novice and JV debaters of JMU to Novice/JV nats this past weekend.
I forgot how awesome and utterly tiring debate is. Imagine it: hundreds of really intelligent kids carrying 50 lb tubs of evidence all across a college campus to see who can out-talk each other until there is only two people standing - it is a blast.
Congrats to the teams, they did an amazing job. I was really proud to say that I was JMU faculty this weekend.
Thanks to Paul and Mike as well for letting me come along - I will miss my opportunities to do this in the future.
In the words of one of our lovely debaters (Nikki), "Debate is Life, everything else is just Prep Time."
Well said....

.the beginning.

Hi All:

I want to begin this post with a shout out of thanks to my friend Bethany Harrison Suhr for inspiring me to start this blog.

It was in reading her blog that I think I discovered what my new activity (and hopefully mindless pastime) will be: blogging. Beth, I hope to do this justice. You rock sister, love you lots!!

So, what can I say? I hope this space will give a forum to keep my family and friends abreast with day to day of my life as I begin this new journey.

For those of you who may not know (or for those who have been living under a technology rock for the last few weeks), I am moving. Yes, again!

I have received a fellowship to attend The University of Pittsburgh starting this Fall. I will be pursuing my Doctorate of Philosophy degree in Communication and Rhetoric (with a concentration in Media and Culture).

So, in about four (hopefully short) years, I will officially be able to be addressed as Dr. Erica Clarke! ;) Although some of you have been addressing me this way for awhile, it will not be official until 2014.

Hence the blog....I am banking on the fact that this is going to be an interesting journey and that someone may have an interest in how it unfolds. So, I am going to attempt to keep track of all the beauty and pain, joys and sorrows and the stuff in between.

Hope that you enjoy it as much as I do - maybe we will learn something along the way.

They say, "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger."

I am praying to be a body builder in May, 2014! ;0