The Bloomberg Breakfast Boycott

It's that time again. Time for New York's Mayor Bloomberg's annual interfaith breakfast, which invites country leaders, with all different faiths, from all over the world, to share breakfast with Bloomberg in NYC. Though, there will be one major difference at this years breakfast, that being the absence of 14 major muslim leaders who will not be attending. Said leaders are boycotting the breakfast in order to display their opposition to the "unfair" surveillance, or spying, of muslims that the NYPD has been conducting recently. The targeted areas of surveillance on Muslims include: mosques, Muslim businesses, and predominately Muslim neighborhoods. I find it insulting that Bloomberg condones this obvious violation of Muslim American rights, and still expected these leaders to come to his breakfast. In a letter addressed to Bloomberg the 14 Muslim leaders (plus many other businesses leaders, organization leaders, and professors) voice their opposition to Bloomberg by writing, "Mayor Bloomberg, the extent of these civil rights violations is astonishing, yet instead of calling for accountability and the rule of law, you have thus far defended the NYPD’s misconduct".  The full letter can be read HERE. I fully support the Muslim leaders who have chosen not to attend. The city of New York is basically racially stereotyping all Muslims living in New York and they're breaching these Muslim's civil rights. 

Protest to the Breakfast and to the
Surveillance of Muslims

So Mr. Bloomberg, when the other Muslim leaders who did accept your invitation arrive at the interfaith breakfast, will they be given their own special surveillance like their fellow muslims residing in NYC? 

The answer is no, because that would be ridiculous, sort of ridiculous as racially stereotyping every Muslim in the big apple. 

I think this opposition just goes to show how America's new surveillance laws, such as the Patriot Act and the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, are ultimately affecting the world and its opinion of us. These laws enable racial profiling and this is not the first time America has racially profiled a group. I really hope that America has not ruined all Muslims' opinion of our country, but then again, I fear that it's too late for that. Racism against Muslims has been on the rise in America ever since the tragic events of September 11th, and if anything, this surveillance that the NYPD is conducting just promotes the racism. 


For the New Years I am creating a resolution for America. We as a country need to remember what this country stands for and realize what we will not stand for. 


Hope you all have a happy New Years Eve, 
Chrisanthy S.

The 51st State: Chicago

Today, a shocking idea was introduced to me. It's the idea of splitting Illinois's Cook County, primarily the city of Chicago, away from the rest of Illinois and making it its own state. The origin of the idea began in Southern and Central Illinois where they feel that Cook County and Chicago are munching up the state's tax dollars and imposing their political views on the rest of Illinois. They feel this way because they uphold much more conservative views than Cook County, and they attribute the liberal decisions made for the state with Cook County elected officials. Cook County is the second most populous county in the country and according to the article, the rest of Illinois feels like they're getting lost in the crowd.


At first I questioned the legitimacy of this idea. Because to me, the likeliness of Chicago becoming a state, about parallels the likeliness of republican candidate Jimmy McMillan becoming president in 2012. But, as I read more of an article published by the Huffington Post (click here to read), I learned that central Illinois state reps Bill Mitchell and Adam Brown actually proposed such an idea recently at a press conference. Bill Mitchell saying, "The old adage is true: Just outside Chicago there's a place called Illinois." Bill Mitchell has infact even introduced a bill to the Illinois General Assembly to separate the state from Cook County. To be passed, this bill would potentially be voted on by state citizens, and then congress would have to approve it, and finally the president would have to approve it as well. 

IL State Rep Bill Mitchell

Now, I suppose I can see why these Southern and Central Illinois citizens are getting frustrated, but I honestly think they just need to suck it up. We live in a democratic country, while our system is usually just and fair, it does not mean that everyone gets what they want. I think that if they really feel that strongly about their political views being enforced, than perhaps they should move to a more conservative state. 


Chicago is the staple of Illinois, and according to the article, Cook County "...is the state's economic engine and key tax generator, providing substantial contributions to the state's other 101 counties for everything from schools to roads, colleges and universities, and prisons". Which means that downstate Illinois may possibly not even be able to financially support themselves if they became a state. I don't think that they could legitimately function without Cook County. A state cannot simply divide and become their own state because they feel overpowered.  Plus, then all state maps, text books, and even the flag would need to be changed. 50 states is a nice even number, and 51 is not. Has Southern and Central Illinois really thought this through? Just because they aren't getting their way does that really entitle them to become their own state? 


Overall, I think this concept is absurd and is never going to be implemented. And frankly I feel embarrassed for Bill Mitchell and Adam Brown for bringing it up at a press conference with a straight face and for introducing it as a bill and I plan on writing a strongly worded letter to Billy kindly explaining how stupid this idea is. 


What do you think?

America's Most Used Drug

Allow me to begin this blogpost by saying, I'm an insomniac. I average about 4-5 hours of sleep a night. Because of my unique sleep schedule, I feel as if I have formed a very close, personal relationship with joe. My cup of joe. Every morning.

Unsurprisingly, I often get criticized for my coffee drinking habit, as it is a nationally accepted notion that coffee is horrible for you because of the caffeine, which is infact America's most used drug. I am often told that the caffeine in coffee stunts your growth. But what most people don't know is that, that "fact" is actually a wives tale. It stems from a study conducted on the elderly where the subjects ages 65-77 drank eighteen ounces of caffeine daily and had greater bone loss over a period of three years when compared to 65-77 year old's who did not ingest caffeine daily. A more recent study compared the bone gain and bone density of 81 teenagers, some with very high caffeine intake and some with very low caffeine intake, over a period of six years. The study found that the teens with the highest daily caffeine intake at the end of the study had no difference of bone gain or bone density than the teens with the lowest caffeine intake. And no growth stunting. 

Though, not having the fear of stunted growth isn't the only reason why coffee is okay to drink, coffee actually has many health benefits too. According to this article entitled "7 Health Benefits of Coffee" from the Huffington Post, experts tend to agree that for the effects of coffee on the body, "....the good largely outweighs the bad for most people...". 

The article's listed seven health benefits are:
-Coffee can help you proofread better

-Coffee can lower the risk of depression in women

-Coffee can potentially save your brain from Alzheimer's
-Coffee could lower a man's prostate risk
-Coffee could ward off skin cancer
-Coffee can protect you from type 2 diabetes 
-Coffee can decrease the risk of developing Parkinsons


These health benefits prove that the consumption of coffee can actually be beneficial to a person opposed to the popular belief that it is harmful. I am glad that coffee is finally getting the justice it deserves because it is amazing, in my opinion. But, like anything, coffee is best in moderation, so drink wisely. At the end of the day, America's most used drug is thankfully not as dangerous as it's cut out to be. 

Lee's Live Expletive

Lee Corso

Yesterday morning, during ESPN's College Gameday show, while joking around, reporter Lee Corso used a curse word. He used the f-word. 


You know, the one that ends in K. 


And of course, half an hour later, into the first quarter of the Michigan-Nebraska game, ESPN aired an apology from Corso saying, "Earlier today on College Gameday, while picking the SMU-Houston game, I got a bit excited and used an expletive that I shouldn't have used". 


Swear words have always been taboo in American society, but sometimes I think the public puts too much meaning on them. It's just a word. And I bet most, if not all, viewers that day had probably heard the f-word before. 


In fact, it seems that everytime a cuss word gets uttered on live TV, there is a huge uproar. Viewers complain and a video of the event turns viral on Youtube. But why do people care so much? I understand how parents do not want their children to be exposed to that kind of profanity, but if the parents actually ever took their children to a college football game, I can promise them, their children will hear the f-word many more times than once. Hopefully as parents, your instilling good enough judgement into your kids for them to know which words are and aren't acceptable. One cuss word they hear on ESPN College Gameday is not going to taint them as human beings. 


All in all, I just do not understand why live reporters especially always have to use perfect language. Can you imagine how hard it is to be perfect and make no mistakes while hundreds of thousands, sometimes millions, are watching. 


Now, I'm not condoning the use of cuss words on TV, and I'm not saying that it's okay for reporters to use them all the time. But once in a while, that's fine. I'm sure you wouldn't want so many strangers criticizing you when you make one mistake. So to everyone that's criticizing the **** out of Corso, please cool down. 


Yours Truly,
Chrisanthy S


A full article on Corso's f-bomb can be found HERE.

An Ignorant Generation

Last night, my friends and I treated ourselves to a dinner at Flat Top Grill. Overall, we had a great time. It was great food, great atmosphere, and great company. Though, one part of the night really ticked me off. It was while we were waiting to be seated. There was a lull in conversation, so I brought up the Penn State scandal. To my astonishment, none of my friends knew what the Penn State scandal was. Perhaps the biggest scandal of college football, and not one out of the five of them had ever even heard of it. 


This caused me to start wondering about how many other American teens are unaware of current events. My research led me to a study done by Harvard regarding how many American teenagers pay attention to the news. The study states that some "28% of Americans between the ages of 12 and 17 said they pay almost no attention to daily news, and 32% said they pay only casual attention to one news source a day". 

This statistic genuinely alarmed me. In my point of view, one needs to be educated in current events in order to be a functioning member of society, even if one is only a teenager. So, I began to question why such a low number of teenagers read the news. The only teenagers I knew for a fact didn't read the news  were these five friends from Flat Top. After talking to them, I realized that the news is just not a priority for them. Their lives are too much wrapped up in homework, after school activities, college searching, work, friends, family, facebook, and sleep to pay attention to the news. 


But really, I don't think the news is that difficult to keep up with. If a teenager just takes 20-30 minutes out of everyday to focus on current events, they will most likely have a good basic knowledge of current world happenings. 


The study also states that: "Among people age 18-30, 48% said they pay attention to daily news, and only 23% of older Americans said they largely ignore news." So luckily, eventually in life, the news does become a priority for most. Teenagers will mature into functioning members of society after all. 


Nonetheless, on Monday, I will begin schooling my friends on current events during our fifth period lunch whether they like it or not. 


If you want to learn more about the Harvard study click HERE.

Guilty Humor

This past Wednesday, my level nineteen American Studies class embarked on a marvelous fieldtrip into the depths of downtown Chicago. This journey included a visit to the Smart Museum of Art, the Osaka Japanese garden, and a viewing of the Chicago-based play, Clybourne Park.

The plays plot begins in 1959 with a white couple moving out of their home in the predominately white Clybourne Park neighborhood of Chicago and a black family subsequently moving in. The idea of having black neighbors bothered and upset many of the white couple's white neighbors. The play then flash forwards to present day, now-predominately black Clybourne Park neighborhood at a meeting of neighbors pertaining building codes. The topic of race gets brought up at the meeting and it does not end pretty causing division between the neighbors.

The play gravitated on the topic of racism in Chicago and how it's changed (or perhaps not changed at all) from fifty years back to present day.

Division Between Neighbors in Clybourne Park

To symbolize racism fifty years ago, certain white characters bluntly expressed their concerns of a black family moving into their neighborhood.
To display racism in present day, there was a number of racist jokes that got thrown around. Jaw dropping, incredibly offensive, sometimes disturbing racist jokes. Racist jokes that I do not feel comfortable quoting on my school blog. But all in all, these jokes were quite funny.

I've always been taught that racist jokes are not to be laughed at. Not only because they are hurtful to the ethnicity of the joke, but also because you never know who is watching you laugh at something that offends them. In the incredibly liberal area where I live, you DO NOT want to be known as a racist and talk travels quick. But the thing that amazed me the most about the racist jokes in Clybourne Park was that everybody laughed at them. Well maybe not every single person in the audience, but it sure seemed like it.  But why are racist jokes okay to laugh at when watching a play and not okay to laugh at in real life?

I've developed a few theories to try to explain this phenomenon:

1. It was dark in the theater and everyone was fixated on the play, not you. So no one would ever know whether or not you laughed at these jokes.
2. You heard the majority of the audience, black and white and everything in-between, laughing at the jokes, so it was okay, because everyone was doing it.
3. The play is a form of entertainment and they had plenty of jokes not pertaining to race, so you knew it was also a comedy and the jokes were intended to be laughed at.

I know these theories can be seen as ridiculous, but they are my best speculations at this point. If anyone else has any other theories I would very much like to hear them, because this was quite an experience for me and any insight would be appreciated. 

An End

During 6th period on Friday, my phone started going off. It was my New York Times app informing me that Obama is to pull out all the troops in Iraq by the end of the year. This means that we as a country will be able to say that the war in Iraq is over. A war we've been in for 8 years now is going to finally be over.

Iraq

Being opposed to the war in Iraq, I thought this to be great news. When I received that notification 6th period, I even thought to myself, "Wow, I'm going to remember this moment for the rest of my life as the moment I heard the war was over". I was genuinely excited. Yet, no one else knew. I waited for the day to progress for there to be some sort of commotion and nothing happened. No one ever mentioned it. In fact, I still find myself informing people today about this news and its been almost five days now since it has been announced.

So many Americans don't know yet! When World War II was over, there was people dancing in the streets for crying out loud. It just seems that this time around, no one cares that the war is ending.

Now,  I understand that World War II had much more US casualties than the Iraqi war, but that does not make the Iraqi war insignificant! I'm not completely sure what kind of reaction I should expect from people when I tell them that the war is definitively over, but I want SOME reaction. Perhaps I just have not brought it up with the right people, but shouldn't everyone care? We are all Americans and it affects us all. 

The Fun Theory

In all honesty, some basic human responsibilities are dull. No one looks forward to recycling bottles, watering their plants, picking up their dog's poop, etc. This mixed with laziness is why our oceans are now poisoned by plastic, why house plants die of thirst, and why nice shoes are ruined by stepping in doggy poop. 

But what if these tasks were fun to do? 

The Fun Theory is an idea, created by Volkswagon, and it basically states that through fun, you can improve people's behavior for the better. Volkswagon not only applies this theory while designing new cars, but they also set up an international competition based on this theory. The winner was selected by a panel of Swedish experts in environmental issues and behavioral science. His name is Kevin Richardson and for his idea, he won 2,500 euros. A video of his idea and its application to real life can be seen here:  

After spending about an hour on the website for The Fun Theory (thefuntheory.com), looking at all the cool ideas, I have concluded that it is INGENIUS. And many of these ideas could legitimately benefit society. My favorite theory being that you can get more people to use the stairs instead of the escalator by making it fun to walk up the stairs. People in Stockholm did this by transforming a staircase, next to an escalator, into a giant piano. 66% more people chose the stairs instead of the escalator that day. The video of this theory can be seen HERE.     

I just have one problem with The Fun Theory though; When did it start having to be fun for people to do the right thing? In many of videos I have watched on the website they provide you with statistics about how the particular theory of the video actually changed human behavior. The difference between the numbers before The Fun Theory was applied, and after The Fun Theory was applied are astonishing. 

Nowadays, we live in a world where we constantly are entertained from our phones, our tvs, and our computers. Especially in America where in 2009, the percent of people who didn't use internet at their homes was at a low 31.3% (US Census Bureau). And since 2009 it seems logical that, that percentage has only decreased. 

These forms of constant entertainment make our duties to be a responsible human being seem boring and unappealing, which is why they're not getting done. I wish we lived in a world where most people didn't have to be amused to throw out their trash into a garbage bin instead of on the ground. But, until then, The Fun Theory is a nice solution. 

Your thoughts?

-Chrisanthy S

Incarcerated Ink

This past week in American Studies, we've been discussing civil rights at length. Me being a somewhat free spirited teenager residing in the North Shore (a very liberal area), I found myself being on the left side of all the civil liberties we put up for debate. But, I must admit, about a week ago I didn't think much of the first amendment. Honestly, I think I took it for granted.

Juan Pablo Pino

As mostly everyone knows, a good number of countries do not share nearly as many rights as we do. One country in particular has been in the news frequently lately for a completely absurd arrest. The country of Saudi Arabia recently arrested famous Columbian soccer player, Juan Pablo Pino, for wearing a sleeveless shirt in a mall. This shirt showed off Pino's numerous religious tattoos and so mall-goers complained to the Saudi police and had Pino arrested. In Saudi Arabia, it is against the law to not have your tattoos covered. Luckily, Pino was released the same day after expressing "deep sorrow." 


Saudi Arabia has also recently banned women from driving. If you needed any more evidence to help you understand the extremely limited amount of civil rights Saudi Arabia gives its citizens, this is it.


The thing that struck me the most about this story, was the panic I imagined Pino felt. Saudi Arabian police are definitely not the friendliest of people, perhaps they are even the scariest of people.


One could not even fathom this arrest occurring in America. Especially since tattoos are becoming increasingly popular here. Now, the right to have things like tattoos and body piercings seems to me like a right we take for granted. After hearing this story, I can sincerely say, I truly feel thankful to live in such a just nation. 


-Chrisanthy S


If you want more information on Pino, an article can be found HERE.

Mary Bach's Own 2 Cents

If a store charged you 2 cents more than the listed price would you say something? And what if they offered you a refund, would you still be mad? Mary Bach found herself in this situation at a Walmart store in Delmont, Pennsylvania. Mary bought a 98 cent sausage and Walmart charged her a full dollar for it. Her solution to the situation? Sue Walmart. She sued Walmart over the 2 cent overpricing even after they apologized and gave her a refund.

Mary Bach

My initial reaction to this news story was that Mary Bach was being completely ridiculous. 2 cents was not worth the time and money of a lawsuit. I also did not consider her a consumer activist like most news articles had been referring to her as.

As I dug deeper into my research of Mary Bach, I learned that this was her 5th lawsuit against Walmart. And all five lawsuits have been for the same problem.

Perhaps Mary Bach does feel strongly about consumer rights, and since Walmart has made this mistake (perhaps not even a mistake) so many times, they deserve to be penalized. Walmart is not known to be the most honest or fair company and maybe they need people like Mary Bach to set them straight.

But on the other hand, seeing as this is Mary Bach's 5th lawsuit against them, could this be a source of income for her? Walmart makes a small mistake, and since she is a consumer, she's allowed to cash in.

In America nowadays we see a fair share of stupid lawsuits, and I think that's why my initial reaction to Mary Bach's story was so negative. Just another person trying to make easy money is how I saw it. Now that I've had time to mull it over, I still find myself to be a little iffy on my opinion of Mary Bach. If you're really passionate about a cause, is it okay to make money off of it?

Please feel free to put in your own "2 cents".

-Chrisanthy S

A link to a news article about Mary Bach can be found HERE.

Music and Our Fellow Man

Yesterday, while scrolling down my tumblr dashboard, I saw an interesting post about a new website. The website is: http://emotionalbagcheck.com/ . Upon entering this website you will be asked what you wish to do with your emotional bagage. You can either "check it"or "carry it". When you check your bagage in, you write a few sentences in a box provided about what is currently bothering you; really any problems that you find yourself having in your life at the moment. Then, you leave your email (which remains anonymous). If you decide to carry your bagage, you view someone else's emotional baggage and then you suggest them a song to listen to, to help them through this rough patch in their life. The site partners with grooveshark (a free online internet radio), so you type in the song you want to send to them in a search bar on the side of their post and grooveshark provides a list of songs that match your search and you just click the one you want to send! It's really simple. You also have the option to write a small note of helpful words. The owner of the emotional baggage then receives an email with the song suggestion and the note.

Home Page to the Website 

I think this website is genius. Personally, when I'm going through a tough time, music always helps. How better to cope with your problems than with a personalized music suggestion and inspirational words from a sympathetic stranger. This website will not erase all of your problems, but it can sure help you deal with the hand you've been given.


Bob Marley once said, "One good thing about music, when it hits you fell no pain". Ever since I heard this quote I have carried it with me, remembering it each time music affects me on a personal level. Emotionalbagcheck.com does an extraordinary job of utilizing the power of music and bringing this quote to life.

I appreciate the fact that this is an American made website whose purpose is to help not only our fellow American, but our fellow man. It shows that we can all unite through one powerful medium, music. I have yet to drop off any bagage, but when I do I'm confident that this website will help me through any headache I'll be enduring.  You've got to check this website out!

-Chrisanthy

Extreme Couponing: Extremely Crazy

I find that TLC is highly skilled at consistently producing shows that end up on my guilty pleasures list. It actually sort of freaks me out. Shows like Toddlers and Tiaras, My Strange Addiction, and 19 Kids and Counting never fail to leave me less than completely captivated. My new obsession: Extreme Couponing. Normally, grocery stores and discount vouchers do not fascinate me too much, but you have to see these coupon clippers!

The pilot episode of the show featured young mom Jamie who took up extreme couponing after her husband lost his job. She did this so she could maintain her lavish lifestyle while there wasn't any income coming in. TV crews followed her as she embarked on her priciest haul ever, retail valued at $1200. Though, Jamie did not pay $1200 for her purchases, she paid $103. Why you may ask? Because Jamie is a coupon freak! But it's not just Jamie, it is every single woman (or man) on the show!

Other extreme couponing ventures on the show include a $600 haul  ending in a $3 bill and a $144.33 haul costing only a penny after coupons. Everyone who is featured on the show spends countless hours a week collecting, clipping, and organizing coupons for her hauls. They even plan out their massive shopping list in advance, calculating the grand total before and after their coupons are added. Then, they preceed to go home and stash their new booty in organized "stock piles". These stock piles look like mini grocery stores, click this LINK TO SEE REBECCA'S STUNNING STOCKPILE. Absolutely mind blowing

At this point, many guests on the show admit that they get a certain high from this couponing. Basically, they make it sound like some sort of drug addiction. They say they feel as if they are "robbing stores" because they are taking so much of the stores' product at little to no cost. It just seems to me that all of this is madness. Would you really want your main activity in life to be couponing? These peoples' lives have been taken over by the call of the clip and it is most likely that they will never end up using even half of the products that they accumulate! And imagine how much money a grocery store loses from one extreme coupon-er! What if everyone became extreme coupon-ers, would the grocery store market (no pun intended) be ruined?  Even though I find this couponing craze psychotic and bizarre, it is still extremely amusing to watch. Plus, there are some extreme coupon-ers that donate their purchases to the military and to food shelters and I find that very admirable. But all in all this show is crazy, and I highly recommend it.

-Chrisanthy S

Irene: America's Inside Joke?

Before I begin this blog post, there are a couple things that you, the reader, should know about me:
1. This summer I participated in a service trip on the US virgin island, St. Croix. It was the highlight of my summer and a once in a lifetime experience. The best part was probably the friendships I formed. The only problem is everyone else that went on my trip is from the east coast, and I mean EVERYONE. All 12 of them. But their East Coast insight will tie into this blog post soon enough I promise!
2. I am an avid Tumblr user. For those of you who do not know what Tumblr is, it is a blogging website that is mainly focused on pictures. I am proud to say that my blog is followed by 760 people daily and has accumulated 18,400 hits since march. Okay so it's not that impressive but that was my only mark on the blogging world...until now.

So back to my blog post! Recently my east coast friends from my trip cannot stop talking about Hurricane Irene, and rightfully so because it's causing quite the panic. I mean look at how much terror it has done;1.5 billion estimated federal cost, at least 44 death toll, tens of thousands of people without power, etc. it deserves to be talked about, alot! But what I find odd is the number of Irene jokes I have been seeing everywhere! Like the picture you see to the left. This picture has accumulated almost 14,300 notes on tumblr. Which means that 14,300 people have either reposted this on their own blogs or have "liked" it. 14,300. That's close the number of people that still don't even have electricity from the hurricane!

Or how about this youtube video of the famous "Weather Channel Streaker" (DON'T WORRY IT'S CENSORED!) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkAaDcDFopU
It's pretty sad to watch this weather man rant about all the people joking around behind him, isn't it? Mr. Eric Fisher is clearly outnumbered. Those east coasters sure do love their storm humor. But we have not even reached yet my favorite form of Irene humor: The Hurricane Irene twitter account! 

Just like the inflatable boat photo above, this screenshot (of one of its best tweets if I should add) is also famous of Tumblr. Racking in about 18,700 notes may I present to you @Hurriicaneirene !! Pretty funny, huh? Now I'm sure you are loving these jokes as much as I am, but doesn't something seem kind of weird about them? For example, have we as a country ever had such quality hurricane jokes before? Or any hurricane jokes for that matter? I think the answer to these questions is no. When hurricanes hit parts of the US like the south, in areas such as Louisiana or Texas (who know serious storm devastation too well), joke twitter accounts are not being made. No anonymous (wo)man sits behind their computer desk thinking of new jokes to pour out for internet fame. No one blows up an inflatable boat to sail in a whopping 1 cm of water. And no one takes off their pants on national television. Though, I have heard a few Katrina jokes before, but it is my understanding that these jokes are taboo in American society, and are hurtful to the millions who have suffered.

Now I don't think all these Irene jokes are necessarily a bad thing, I'm just not quite sure about how they reflect onto us Americans in general. Are east coasters simply the jokesters, or are they just able to take this situation lightly because they do not know the terror that the southerners do? I'd really like to hear others insight on this oddity basically because I'm not so sure that I even have a solid opinion on this. Thanks for reading!

-Chrisanthy S