I Am an Online Dating Expert and a Published Writer!

Hello Thursday, it is great to see you again! I am all around the board today with my Thursday Rundown as I cover online dating, work, football, and the movies. Let’s get started ASAP.

The New Way to Date – So apparently I am an online dating expert! We get calls from the media every single day asking us to put them in contact with our faculty members who specialize in certain areas. This past Friday we fielded a call from news station WPDE regarding a story they were doing on the safety of online dating. Because the subject revolves very heavily on social media, I was assigned to give the interview. Reporter April Baker came over to the office and interviewed me. I talk to the media a lot but usually it is in relation to something I am doing at the University. This time around I was straight up giving my expertise! I had a fun time doing the interview and April did a fabulous job. Watch the report by clicking here.

A screenshot from my online dating interview with WPDE.

A screenshot from my online dating interview with WPDE.

Published Writer – I love to write and I do it a lot through this blog and other outlets but never before has my work been published in a legitimate, hard copy publication. That recently changed. I was humbled to have the opportunity to write a profile piece for the latest issue of Coastal Carolina University Magazine. Our twice-a-year alumni publication, this magazine is beautiful and glossy with a large readership. I wrote a piece on Patrick Sparks, an important alumnus of CCU. I put a lot of effort into the piece but after three months since submitting it to the editor, I kind of forgot about it . However, I was reminded of it in grand fashion today when I held a copy of the magazine in my own hands. I had a small moment of pride when I saw my own story on that page with my name on it. To have opportunities such as this is a big reason on why I came to Coastal.

The main photo on the right is my article in the magazine. The top photo is the cover, the middle photo is my social media ad in the publication, and the bottom photo is the magazine logo on the inside cover.

The main photo on the right is my article in the magazine. The top photo is the cover, the middle photo is my social media ad in the publication, and the bottom photo is the magazine logo on the inside cover.

American Sniper – For a long time now I have looked forward to watching “American Sniper.” After months of buildup, award hype, and countless previews on television, I am pumped up for the nationwide release tomorrow. I am just so intrigued by the role Bradley Cooper plays. As a fan of his, I am chomping at the bit to watch him take on this character. It is something completely different from anything he has ever done. I will see it at the theater for sure this weekend and I will make sure to let you know how it was.

Championship Sunday – This Sunday the NFL conference championship games will be played. It goes without saying that I will be cheering heavily for the Seahawks to dispose of the Packers in the earlier NFC contest. To see my favorite team get back to the Super Bowl for the second year in a row would be very fulfilling. As for the AFC nightcap, I will be clearly cheering for a certain team as well. I hope the Indianapolis Colts kick the snot out of the New England Patriots. I enjoy Andrew Luck and despise Brady and Belichick so I am crossing my fingers for a Seahawks-Colts Super Bowl. Nothing is better than watching the NFL on Sunday when you have the sweet assurance that you don’t have to work the next day.

Social Media Promotion of the Week – As a fun little social media promotion to start the semester off, I implemented something that I thought of while working out last week. I had Jada, my social media intern, go to Kimbel Library and randomly choose five books from all corners of the facility. She took photos of the books and put a note on the inside cover stating what to do with it when found. Starting on Monday I posted a photo of one of the books on our social media outlets challenging our students to find it, check it out, and then bring it to our office for a prize pack. I repeated this routine with different books on Tuesday, Wednesday, and today. Four days in and we have had a winner each day. Two of the times we had a group of students come in with the winning book. Jada did a great job choosing the selections as she picked books that somehow related to the University and/or the college experience. This promotion will wrap up tomorrow.

These are the four student winners who checked out the hidden books the past several days.

These are the four student winners who checked out the hidden books the past several days.

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Did you know that January is already halfway over? How are you doing with your New Year’s resolutions? If you have already fallen off, don’t give up. Hop back on and make good on your goals. The year is still very young. Have a wonderful holiday weekend and enjoy the football games! Don’t Blink.

The Latest Happenings

You all know the drill, it is Thursday! That means I write as quickly as I can about five different topics. Hang on if you don’t want to get left behind, here we go!

BABY – Tomorrow I will become an uncle! My sister will go in for surgery on Friday so doctors can deliver her daughter. Names are narrowed down but it will be a hospital room decision on what the baby is ultimately called. Although I will be very far from my new and first niece, I look forward to Thanksgiving when I get to make the trip back to Spokane and meet her.

My sister will have her baby tomorrow.

My sister will have her baby tomorrow.

 

Bucky Covington – Remember Bucky Covington? He got a lot of play on country radio one summer for the songs “Different World” and “Good to be Us.” Well, he has fallen in popularity a tad since then. Last Friday night I watched him perform from inches away at the Boathouse, a bar and music venue in Myrtle Beach. The haggard looking Bucky got up on a tiny stage in front of about 80 people and did the best he could. He had two band members with him, including his twin brother named Rocky. He sang his two hits and a whole bunch of covers. He even managed to attract a couple of groupies. After his set a guy named Warren Stone, who was supposedly a strong contestant on “The Voice,” also performed.

My up close view of Bucky Covington on Friday night.

My up close view of Bucky Covington on Friday night.

Starbucks on Wheels – Today something arrived on campus that had our whole community rejoicing: A Mobile Starbucks Truck. Coastal Carolina University is just one of three colleges in the nation that gets to take part in this Starbucks pilot experiment. The coffee giant sent us the vehicle which is a fully functioning Starbucks restaurant on wheels! It will move around campus strategically according to different times and when certain events are taking place. When I posted images and video on our social media outlets today our students went bonkers. Now if only I shared their enthusiasm…I hate coffee.

Here are some of the photos I snapped today of the new Mobile Starbucks Truck.

Here are some of the photos I snapped today of the new Mobile Starbucks Truck.

On Assignment – A cool thing about my job at Coastal Carolina University is that I get to work on cool projects that I didn’t have the opportunity to do at my last stop. One of these projects is writing for our alumni magazine. Yesterday I got to visit Sparks Toyota and interview CCU alum Patrick Sparks. I chatted with him for 25 minutes and obtained some great material to write an alumni profile piece. I will submitted my first draft to the magazine editor this evening at the end of work. Pretty soon my writing will be published in a magazine!

Start of the Most Popular League – The NFL season kicks off tonight as my favorite team hosts the Green Bay Packers. I plan to watch the second half of the action as I will be at the Myrtle Beach Pelican playoff game that starts at 7 p.m. I am already bracing myself for the social media onslaught that will occur on my Facebook newsfeed as the Seahawks hit the field. It is great to have the NFL back but I still prefer college football over it any day! By the way, make sure to look for my twin on the field!

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Time to get off to the ballpark for tonight’s game. Hopefully no marriage proposals. Best of luck to my sister tomorrow! You can expect photos and most likely a blog post about my new niece. Have a great evening and weekend. Don’t Blink.