Cathy's Thoughts

Hoping for hope!! And being proud of all the young people who are voting for the first time.

2008-11-04T18:53:00.003-05:00

Today is election day. I spent a good part of the day taking folks to the polls. It was exciting watching all the college kids vote....most of them for the first time. Although if you are reading this you know that I am to the left especially on social justice issues............what I want you to know is it didn't matter to me how they were voting.....it mattered to me that they were voting and that they were excited to do it!! I'm proud my daughter stood in a 2 hour line, and pre-registered before her 18th birthday was even here.
So no matter how it turns out tonight I have a huge amount of hope for our future. As long as this energy continues and the young folks get involved change will happen.

Bethune-Cookman students are READY to TAKE BACK THE NIGHT

2008-10-28T20:02:00.003-04:00

I was in Daytona today with Cha Cha speaking at Bethune-Cookman. What an exciting time as they kick off there community wellness program. We had an exciting program with students and faculty about domestic violence issues. We had a good turn out of motivated folks ready to make a difference in the world.
The nursing students are ready to take on the world. It's always heart warming to see the excitement in their eyes as they are getting ready to become our next activist.
A huge thank you to all of you who are taking a stand and being the voice for those who can't stand for themselves. I will be very excited to hear about your rally in November and each of you should be proud of your school for taking a stand!!
Until next time.
Cathy

Getting "REAL" with the Knights at UCF

2008-10-28T19:54:00.002-04:00

Monday was a great day.....Kelly, Cha Cha and myself headed over to UCF for the day.
It's always a good day when I get to visit Tom Hall and have lunch and ride in the Cadillac of all golf carts!
The class was a lot of fun. Everyone had good questions and comments. I can't believe how many emails I had from the class before I ever got home.
It was fun checking out the free speech zone on campus. I think every college campus should have one of those. It was definitely politically charged yesterday as we get really close to election day. But isn't that what college is about, learning your boundaries and expanding your knowledge.....I love it!!
I will back at UCF November 19 for a diversity program. I hope to see some of you there.
Love and light,
Cathy

Uiversity of Texas Pan Am

2008-10-02T07:03:00.002-04:00

This has been an awesome week. I traveled to SOUTH Texas Monday and Tuesday to speak at UTPA. This was my first visit to that part of the world. Ken went with me since nobody trust me getting close to the boarder of any country! lolol
We had great flights and spent Monday afternoon in San Antonio. What a really nice city...with some yummy food. Tuesday we spent on the college campus...it was about 4 hours south of
San Antonio so t took a little while to get there.
The program was a lot of fun. The students had great questions and were really engaged. It's always fun to go to a new school and meet new people.
Now I am in North Carolina. I arrived last night and had dinner with a bunch of community activist that are all passionate with amazing spirits. Today I have the honor or co-presenting with Marti Sinclair. Marti is the woman who discovered AZT....what an amazing honor it is to share the same stage with her. I'll let you all know how it goes.
Cathy

School days school days.........wow we're off and running

2008-08-17T09:08:00.002-04:00

It's hard to believe summer 08 has come to an end..........where did the time go. I hope you all had as nice of a summer as I did. I spent most of the break with the kids....mine and the rest of the gaggle of boys that hang out at my house. One of those kids Sean leaves today for Marine boot-camp.....I think I am as nervous for him as his own Mom. Lyndsy starts college full time in the morning and Garrett is officially a junior now......and I am officially old. I think I do have a new empathy for the helicopter parents that I am always complaining about though......oh no have I become my Mother? hehehe
As school starts I've already been on the road. I was asked to speak to all the PE and Health ed folks in Pinellas County last Friday. It was a really nice group and my first time doing anything for that school system so that is always fun for me. I spent the rest of the week doing various trainings for the campus leaders at FSC as always I am so impressed with all of them.
This week I will be doing a training for the new freshman on campus Monday and then traveling to Tallahassee Tuesday and Wednesday then back to FSC to meet with all my incredible HCC kids.................all that really depends though on Faye the storm heading our way........hmmm didn't we do this in 2004.
I hope each of you have a great 08-09 year. We are currently booking my speaking schedule so if you want to get on the books email bookingcathy@aol.com
Take care!
Cathy

Summer days.................

2008-06-26T19:13:00.002-04:00

Hey everyone. Summer is going by really fast. I've been doing a variety of here and there classes, working on booking schools and just trying to catch up on stuff in general. Here's a big shout out to the students at the AHEC camp you guys rocked!!
Lyndsy graduated from high school a few weeks ago.......so that was a big deal!! She already has 34 college hours so she is well on her way to her next diploma.
We are heading out on July 5th for a real 2 week family vacation. We'll be in Key Largo for a week and Orlando for a week, so it should be a great time.
I hope everyone is having a great summer. I look forward to lots of new schools and lots of new students next year.

End of the year whirwind!!

2008-04-27T18:51:00.002-04:00

The last few weeks have been crazy busy. Last week I had 29 classes and this week there will be 17!! This is the time of year for lots of programming in middle schools and high schools. Tomorrow I will be at St Edward's in Vero. I'm thrilled to be going back there. In the past it was one of my regular schools but it has been about 5 years since I've visited them. Tuesday I will be at Clewiston High.....that means I get to have dinner with my Mom and Dad......not something I get to do to often.
Big news on the home front. Lyndsy got an early graduation gift. Troy and I got her a 1999 Betel. She had no idea............it was totally a surprise. She is counting down the days to graduation and I am counting the gray hair that is popping up while she learns to drive!!

Sacremento is the windy city........

2008-03-02T22:31:00.002-05:00

I''m in California with 5 of our Florida Southern HCC students. We are here at a tobacco training. We had a great day today and are ready to learn all sorts of new things the rest of the week. We landed in 40 mile an hour winds.............and boy was it hard to walk in. Tomorrow we may find snow after the meeting.....will see.

Greeks Talk Sex with Cathy at Wake.........

2008-03-02T22:26:00.002-05:00

Wake Forest was an awesome day. The program was mandatory for Greeks and it was "Talk Sex With Cathy" and everyone could ask anything they wanted to. Everyone had great questions and good comments. We had a marvelous lunch afterwards at the Village Tavern.... they are supposed to be opening some in Floida soon so that is a definate on my list of places to eat.

Salem College..........a room filled with Girl Power!

2008-02-28T08:08:00.002-05:00

I am always so impressed by annual visit to Salem...........young women that know what they want and where they are going. Last nights program was a lot of fun. I was excited to talk about things that are a little different than my usual presentation. A huge thanks to Susam and Beth for organizing this weeks events. All the classes have gone great and outside of the 22 degree temp it has been a perfect week.
Cathy

UNC School of the Arts........

2008-02-27T16:13:00.002-05:00

Wow what a morning I had with the students at UNC. First off it was 22 degrees this morning and I left Florida with nothing but my sandals! But there were several Florida folks in the crowd with their sandals on too. Both sessions were a lot of fun and I really felt like we connected. We must have because by the time I got to my computer I had 9 friend request on my facebook. I had a really nice lunch at a little cafe that Steve and I had eaten at a few years ago. I didn't remember having been there til Susan and I were talking. Not sure how I could forget it because Steve managed to spill not one but 2 glasses of tea while we were there. Tonight I will be at Salem College and then I will be at Wake in the morning so I still have a busy schedule..........

Salem Academy..........girls that know they need a plan

2008-02-26T18:34:00.002-05:00

Today was a fun day. I spent most of it at Salem Academy with some seriously bright high school girls. Some of them are going to have a hard time sleeping tonight because for the first time in their life someone......(that would be me).....told them that their parents and grandparents still have sex.................oh the horror of it all. Several thought their Mom's were way to old for that......their Mom's are 39.......if I could have had it on tape to send to them on their big 40's it would have been priceless.
I spent lunch at Salem College with some premed students talking about meds and compliance. That was a lot of fun too and the food wasn't bad. Tomorrow is really busy... 3 classes at UNC School of the Arts and then a night time program at Salem College so I am going to call it an early night.
Take care!
Cathy

Fried chicken and sweet tea at Winston Salem State

2008-02-26T18:27:00.003-05:00

Now they know how to treat a southern girl when she comes to visit!! This was my first visit to Winston Salem State but I sure hope it won't be the only one. First I have to give cudos to Justin he was the only male in the house last night and boy was he a good sport. Tiffany did an awesome job setting up the program and feeding everyone. Students laughed, cried asked questions and learned together. I had such a nice time with these very empowered young African American women!! Thanks again to all the powers that be that made the night possible.
Cathy

Tornado winds instead.................

2008-02-10T15:25:00.000-05:00

Let me first start this blog by saying I am so sorry for all the losses last weeks storms created. The students at Union are so lucky admist all the damage to be alive!!
When I woke up to head to the airport Wednesday morning most of the destruction had happened while I slept. My initial feeling was maybe I should rent a car and drive to ABAC instead of trying to fly......because as those of you from the south know you can't get anywhere without going through Atlanta......much to my regret I didn't listen to that little voice. When I landed in Atlanta I was stuck. So I rented a car and drove 4 hours back to Tifton in horrible rain....it would have been no more than 5 hours from the house..lolol. The program that night was great. All the "Rowdy's" in attendance were on target. The girls softball team was there in full. We had a neat time. The party packs the school handed out were really great too. Bernice is the best. She is definately the reason ABAC is on my schedule every year no matter what.
We had a fabulous dinner full of things I shouldn't eat and got caught up on all sorts of things.
I made it back to the hotel about 11 and was wipped.
Thursday morning I woke up and headed to Albany State University. This was my first visit to their campus but I sure hope it isn't my last. Mrs. Hayslip is awesome. She had everything ready. It was African American HIV Awareness day and ASU is a traditionaly all black college. There was initial attention paid to the fact that I wasn't black................kids never realize I hear really well. But the program went off without a hitch. They had lots of press there that stayed too. The health center was offering free rapid testing that day and I have a feeling they had a lot of takers. They have a great group of students involved in HIV issues and they were really excited with ideas of things they could do now.
Mrs Hayslip and I had a fast but delicious lunch then I was off to the sirport to head for Pittsburg. My program there was at 8 and I landed at 6:26 and it was snowing. I know Kelly was afraid my cab deiver wasn't going to get me there on time but we made it with 15 min. to spare.
This was my first time at Chatham. What a gorgeous campus!! Again a great turnout. Lots of questions and emotions that night. the cool thing for me was I got to visit my old friend Kelly. We had a great dinner and I spent the night at his house.
As I was flying home from this trip I was struck by the week. Three amazing schools, one full of country folks.....one traditionaly African American and one almost entirely girls......all three engaged and wanting to make a difference in their students lives with education that could save their life one day. It struck me one again...............how awesome it is to be involved in higher ed!!
Cathy

World Wind Trip...........

2008-02-05T16:14:00.000-05:00

Hi everyone. I know I have not been good at the blog lately. December was a really busy month with World AIDS week events all over the country!! Colorado, Boston and Florida all the events went really well.
Then it was time for the Friends-Together Christmas party.........it was a blast. Thanks to all the folks that collected gifts, cooked food and wrapped gifts to make Christmas an exciting time for all of our families.
Christmas was a big deal at our house this year. Any of you that know me well know I hate to cook but I cooked for the whole family, my folks and Troy's folks came for the holiday.
December 29 Troy and I were married. It was a simple ceremony with our families, in Ft. Myers. We had beautifull weather and held the ceremony at the Manatee Park and had a small get together at his house there. Then the real vacation started as we took a week long cruise. We slept and ate and slept some more.............that's what you do when you get old on vacation.
This month has been really busy at my Florida Southern office. We suffered the loss of a student who was returning to campus from the holiday break and then last week we suffered the loss of another student to an accident. So as you might imagine most of my time has been spent around helping folks deal with all the issues grief brings up.
I am very excited about the next few days. Tomorrow night I will be at ABAC in Tifton. Definately one of my top 3 places to go! Wednesday morning I will be speaking at Albany State in Albany, Ga. This will be my first visit to their school.............then I will hop on a plane and Thursday night I will be a Chatham in Pittsburg! It's going to be a fast and furious trip but I can't wait. I will keep you all posted and up to date!
Cathy

2007-11-27T00:40:00.000-05:00

Today started out with the chaos of the Orlando airport at 6 am and all the Thanksgiving craziness..........
Ken and I landed in Denver at 9 am Mountain time.......it wa 23!! They tried to give us some little match book car to take on our 5 hour journey..........that was a big Nay Nay..... we wound up with the coolest Durango it has seats that heat up!! Our journey to Adams State was fun.....lots of snow, lots of wild life, lots of ice!
Matt and his crew turned out the numbers tonight! The crowd was great, lots of community folks were there. This school pulled off an amazing task. They pulled this event off in 2 weeks. I am so impressed by all of their dedication and determination.
I am so excited about working with all of you guys in the near future!! You are the most passionate group of kids I've seen ina long time. I hope the rest of your weeks activities go as well as tonight.
Hand in hand we all make the difference.
Cathy

Bacchus in Atlanta...............

2007-11-11T20:15:00.000-05:00

Ryan, Kristin and myself loaded up Wednesday afternoon and headed out for the conference in Atlanta. We spent the first chilly night in Lake City. We got there about 8 at night and were joined by Ken, from Friends-Together for dinner.
Thursday morning we headed out for Atlanta, we stopped in Macon for lunch and reached the hotel by 1 in the afternoon.
The conference was a great experience for alll of us. We had one minor well major complication and that was there was a huge typo in all of my printed literature. Ryan the "idea man" came up with a great fix, but it involved lots of work. We went to the trusty office supply store and purchased 6,000 lables!! We needed several different sizes.............. we rant the printer for hours printing lables and new flyers and we all worked at night putting the lables on 2,500 brochures, business cards and post cards. So as you can guess I owe those 2 several really good meals!
The presentation went off without a hitch. We had right at 300 participants. I am getting ready for my tour out west! We had lots of folks from Wyoming, Colorado, Missouri and the Dakotas..... I have never spoken in any of those states so I sure hope I hear from some of you guys and gals.
Our trip home went well. We got back to Lakeland around midnight Saturday. Poor Ryan and Kristin I fed them at Cracker Barrell and stopped once for gas and a bathroom break and that was it......but we were all so tired all any of us could think about was our beds in Lakeland.
It was so good to see Kelly and Berniece and lots of other folks that I don't get to see nearly enough. I think we are all excited about the Regin 9 conference in Feb.
Cathy

St Augustine breezes

2007-11-05T21:18:00.001-05:00

I was honored to be the key note speaker at the "first annual" AIDS symposium hosted at Flagler Hospital, by a number of local organizations. They had a standing room only crowd for today's events. It was so great to see Jere, Chris and Tasha all three part of our Friends-Together family.
Everyone there was energetic and engaged. It's so nice to have a group that everyone is there because they want to get educated. My challenge to each of the nursing students was to leave today's event and educate 3 people that they love.
Next road trip...............Bachus on Wednesday with Ryan and Kritsten. We will leave from Lakeland for Atlanta. We will be attending the conference and I will be a featured presenter on Saturday. I am really excited about the opportunity!!
Cathy

NOVA........UCF......Warner Southern.....and FSC Alpha Chai

2007-10-29T21:50:00.000-04:00

Hi all!! It has been a really busy couple of weeks not only have I spoken at NOVA, UCF, Warner Southern and the Alpha Chai girls I also had our Haloween Camp this weekend for Friends-Together. The NOVA program was really nice. We had a good turn out for lunch. Nick and his gang organized the event and as always I love to be on their campus..........those of you from Florida I always stay by Saw Grass so I can get a cardio workout! hehehe
At UCF I presented to the peer ed class. It's always a neat group of folks. My volunteers in there were really good sports.
I visited Warner Southern today. Thanks Donnie for having me visit your new school. I hope your students weren't to shocked by what I had to say.
What is there to say about the Alpha Chai girls................. I was never in a sorority but I do love the sisters of Alpha Chai. Not only are they awesome volunteers for HCC and Friends-Together they are also incredible sisters to each other. Don't forget you all promised by spring to have something done for me.....I will be back to check on your progress.
I am off to Nashville on Wednesday......I'll be home on Saturday then off to St Augustine on Monday.....then off to Atlanta on Wednesday. It is going to be a long two weeks.
Make good choices!!
Cathy

OshKosh by gosh............

2007-10-11T23:10:00.000-04:00

Well today has been AMAZING!! I got to the Orlando airport at 5:15 this morning. My flight was half empty and left on time............I changed planes in Chicago.....again half empty and we even landed ahead of schedule!! I was picked up at the airport by Dr. Helen Bannon. Helen was my first Women's Studies professor at FAU in 1988 and she still looks the same today!
We had a very nice lunch and visit then it was off for a quick nap.
We went to an interesting lecture on Sexism that was sponsored by the Women's Center. Very interesting guy from California.
The class tonight had an excellent turnout. Everybody had good questions and lots to say. A big thanks to Frank for being my volunteer he was a really good sport!!
John and Helen took me to a delicious dinner. I cheated and had pasta......nobody tell Troy or Lyndsy!!
It's a little chilly here. I got a school sweat shirt to stay warm. Helen will be picking me up at 7:30 in the morning to get me to the airport. I fly to Atlanta where Troy will be waiting for me. We are going to take a few days off and head to Tennessee. I am looking forward to the cool weather and leaves.
I just want to say thanks to Helen and John for making this such a nice trip. I sure hope to get invited back again!
Cathy

Off to cooler weather.....

2007-10-10T19:38:00.000-04:00

I'm off to OshKosh, Wisconsin early in the morning. I have a 6:30 am flight out of Orlando......and I speak tomorrow night. I am so excited about this trip!! I have never been to Wisconsin before. The weather is going to be really cool and I hope to see some leaves. Friday I will fly back to Atlanta where Troy will meet me. Then we are headed to Tennessee for a few days of R and R. No worries I will be back Monday night.....in plenty of time for HIV testing at FSC Tuesday. Then Wednesday I will be speaking at NOVA in Ft Lauderdale. It's a lot of miles in 7 days!! I definitely need my vitamins this week.
More from OshKosh tomorrow night.
Cathy

Lambda Chai Guys Rock

2007-10-05T15:38:00.000-04:00

I spent last night with the Lambda Chai guys at FSC. It was an amazing night. The guys had great energy. I have to say I always tell folks they can ask me anything and generally I feel like most of the questions have been asked of me at some point..........however the guys last night asked 3 that were brand new. They definitely had me on my toes!!
A big thanks to all of them for coming and making this old lady have to think hard on her feet.
Cathy

The folks here in Chapel Hill say.....

2007-10-02T21:39:00.000-04:00

God is a NC fan because the sky in NC blue........hmmm not so sure what my Daddy would say about that. The last two weeks have been a whirlwind. The class in NJ was a tough one. But I feel like I have brain cells firing that haven't had to work in a long time. I have a huge home work assignment to do in the next 30 days so I can apply for my national certification in smoking cessation. But after all the class work I am definitely going to go for the certification.
I flew home last weekend and spent Sunday recovering.
I tried catching up at FSC on Monday.....a week's worth of stuff in a day. Then today I jumped on a plane to Chapel Hill. Many of you know I am on the advisory board for GSK and their Patient Advocacy Leaders. It is an honor to be part of this programming. The folks here are amazing and come from every disease state. It is amazing to see how driven, dedicated and focused these folks are!!
I will be on a plane home tomorrow afternoon. Thursday night I will be talking to the Frat guys at FSC it would be a great program that I definitely will rest up for before I get there. I'll keep you posted on how it goes.
Cathy

Brain strain.........

2007-09-24T21:34:00.000-04:00

Today was an intense day of classes.......there is clearly a reason why you go to school when you are young. There is so much to take in and so few brain cells left. Today's classes were all about addictions, something I know very little about.
On the fun side, I had dinner with an old friend. David and I worked together years ago and he lives up here....well in NY but close enough he came to see me. We went to an Ethiopian restaurant. It was really good. Definitely not something you would find in Lakeland.
Well I am off to bed so I can be up and ready early in the morning.
Cathy

Arrived at Rutgers

2007-09-23T19:10:00.000-04:00

Hi everyone. I arrived in New Brunswick earlier today. The hotel is right on campus thank goodness.......we all know I have no mass transit abilities! The campus seems really nice. My classes start first thing in the morning. I got out and walked around some this afternoon. I had a really nice dinner and now I am heading Wayne's warning not to be out at night alone. I have settled into the room and am going to catch a little bit of football before I call it a night.

I will try to keep you guys posted on the events of the week....it should be fun.

Cathy

FSC Freshman Women Rock

2007-09-19T16:29:00.000-04:00

What a day September 18 was this year!! First I'm another year older...yippee....not to many women my age celebrate those numbers going up but for me.......well I don't think I have to say much about that.
Yesterday was slammed! We had HIV testing in the afternoon and a Friends-Together meeting too. But at 7 last night all the first year women, their RA's, several female student life staff and myself gathered in one room.......that's over 300 females and NO males. The energy was amazing. I started by talking about sexual responsibility, then we opened it and talked about the things women need to be able to talk about.
I will say I was a little concerned....OK a lot concerned at the number of young ladies who hadn't ever seen a gynecologist in their life and the numbers who have no idea how to do a self breast exam........it was a little scary but now that I know I will be on that like white on rice.
If you are at FSC we will be having a ladies self check night in October and I hope the room is packed!
I will be leaving for NJ on Sunday. I will be in Newark for a week working on some of my certifications. I must say I am looking forward to some cool weather.
All the best!
Cathy

Life's a Jungle..........

2007-09-14T22:09:00.000-04:00

This week has felt like a jungle for sure! I have been at FSC all week. My Healthy Campus Students had a record setting blood drive with 83 pints on Tuesday and 64 pints on Wednesday. That was amazing since our biggest day ever in the past has been 48!! On Monday I had a really different lecture with Professor Mel Gregory's Social Study Ed class about the things you need to know in the classroom. On Tuesday I was in Dr Bill Gregory's EXL class discussing the pitfalls of your freshman year. Last night Dr pat Smith and myself with HCC hosted our first round table discussin of the year. Our theme was College is a Jungle......how to prepare for the four year adventure. Dr. Smith was right on track and the discussion was great. We were thrilled to have 30 folks at our first discussion of the year. Next week is going to be really intense. Lots of programming, HIV testing, and bunches of classes!! We also have a Friends-Together meeting and a World AIDS Day planning session so if you want to be involved we need your help.

Freshmen boys.......

2007-09-06T10:08:00.000-04:00

This week has been a busy one for sure. But I had an exciting program Tuesday night! All of the freshmen men at FSC with their RA's and our HCC folks had a great class on sexual responsibility. I lectured and answered questions for about and hour, then we split out into their small groups with the RA's and we had group discussions. It was a lot of fun. I really want to say thank you to each of the RA's, Wellness staff and professional staff that were there. You guys really hleped make the event special.
Cathy

On the road to home..........

2007-08-28T23:26:00.000-04:00

Today was a great day. The Freshman Convo at LTU went really well. If any of you from LTU are reading this I was so impressed by your school, administration, faculty and SGA. What an opportunity you each have to strive for excellence in an environment where everyone seems so excited about your potential. It isn't often that I see such enthusiasm from every person I meet on a campus. I hope you each have an amazing and challenging year.
As for me I'm headed home to Florida. We have our first HCC events of the year next week with a 2 day blood drive....so if you are in Lakeland, turn out and donate!!
Cathy

LTU and an amazing dinner

2007-08-28T10:05:00.000-04:00

Good morning all. Last nights visit with the SGA reps was an awesome time. They took me to Bahama Breeze where we all ate way to much food. It was really nice to get to know some of their students and staff. Today's program will be a formal Convo....cap and gown. Leslie did give me permission however to take off the hat when I speak.........thank goodness because those of you that know me well could picture me swinging around one time and the hat sailing across the audience!!
I will let you all know how today goes!
Cathy

New school year and I am off and running.....

2007-08-27T16:10:00.000-04:00

Hi everyone. Well the school year started for me on August 20. That night I did a presentaion for all of the Freshman at Florida Southern College. It was an awesome program with lots of excitement.
This has been a great summer. The kids and I had a lot of time together. Lyndsy is a senior now and Garrett is a sophomore. Lyndsy is taking 3 college classes with her high school load and Garrett is wrestling on top of everything else. I think this is going to be a really busy year.
Summer camp was a big success. We had a great time and it wasn't as hot as in the past.
I've been sick off and on this summer still suffering from my last visit to Tanzania.....but I have gotten a lot of rest and am ready for the new school year.
At FSC I now have 8 work study students for the Healthy Campus Coalition and that is really exciting. We have lots of programming happening this school year.
My speaking schedule is busy as well. I am actually in Detroit as I type this. I will be speaking at Lawrence Technical University for their opening Convo on Tuesday. This is my first time in this part of the world so I am really excited to be here. I do owe Lyndsy big because her 17th birthday is Tuesday and I want be home......don't feel to bad her we celebrated all weekend.
I will be going out tonight with students from LTU SGA, to Bahama Breeze......sounds like a place that it will be hard to stay on my diet.......By the way I have been really bad all summer but my gym days start back the Thursday. If you see me bug me about it........I need to be bugged.
I've gotten lots of emails about blogging so here is my promise to try to do a much better job this school year!! I will definately post after my program at LTU.
Cathy

Hey everyone..........

2007-03-14T21:46:00.000-04:00

Sorry it's been a while since I've blogged. It has been a really busy couple of weeks. I am off to Sarasota tomorrow to speak for an American Dental Association conference. Things are in high gear for the last six weeks at Florida Southern. We are planning a swipe drive for the Friends-Together bike ride, a blood drive, less stress packs for finals week and a big campaign for National Kick Butts Day.
Last week I was at the University of Central Florida. The students were awesome and I loved seeing Tom Hall. I sure do miss his every day presence in my life. Well I promise to blog sooner next time......
Cathy

On the road again........this time in Florida

2007-03-03T08:51:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone. Well this weekend I am in beautiful Ft. Walton Beach at the Positive Living Conference. This is one of my favorite places to come. This is the 10th anniversary for this conference and I've been at 6 or 7 of them. Today I am presenting on Africa in one session and facilitating another panel discussion.
What's so nice about the conference here is it is full of us dinosaurs..........that's a political term that lots of folks use ....... in not so nice a way sometimes...... to refer to people who have been activist for a long time. Butch McKay organizes this event. He is an amazing guy, he traveled to Africa with us the last time. He is the executive director of OASIS, but his brain is a file cabinet of information. Just spending time around these folks energizes me to do what I need to do for the next 6 months!!
The beach is gorgeous but it's way to cold for this Florida girl to put on shorts!!
Take care!
Cathy

On the Road Again

2007-02-21T22:26:00.000-05:00

Well, this week has been a great trip. On Monday evening, after the trip to the NC School of the Arts, Cathy spoke to students at Salem College...just a stones throw from the NCSA. Tuesday morning and lunchtime were filled again at Salem College. I must thank the members of BADU(Black Americans Demonstrating Unity). Even at a lunch program, which can be a very difficult time to draw a crowd, we had a great crowd. Thank you Salem College!!! Then came Wake Forest University. You guys did a great job of welcoming us and we really enjoyed our time on your campus. Today was a day of old friends, good food, and memorable advice.
Cathy and I met up with a great friend, Ryan(this is an official shout out!)We had time to rehash all our old tales of embarrassment and enjoyment. Ryan, Cathy, Stephanie and I all had lunch with some friends(hey Aunt Mary) at the Macaroni Grill...props for the lobster ravioli. Oh, and if you ever get lost for a hour driving through the streets of Greensboro, remember that a map is only your friend when it is right side up...how I came upon this knowledge is not important.
Tonight Cathy spoke at the University of North Carolina Greensboro. Again, it was a great group and an entertaining audience.
As I sit here in my hotel room in Greensboro, NC, the view from the 18th floor looks very much like a pinball game with the dark sky and the multi-colored lights of the city that often are only appreciated when you can look from above. Hmm...a pinball machine...that leads me to my final point. I think the biggest thing I learned this week is this...
Life is not predictable. Sometimes without realizing it, I find that I get frustrated with all the unanswered questions in life. But, really, life is like the pinball machine right in front of my eyes tonight. As the cars zoom through the streets, from above those cars become the pinballs. At ground level, I can predict when and where they will turn...but from above, I can't tell where they will end up. Sometimes it's better to just keep pushing the buttons on the machine. Only when you stop pushing is the game really over.
Thanks again to the North Carolina School of the Arts, Salem College, Wake Forest University, and the University of North Carolina Greensboro. We had a great trip and we are looking foward to next visit. A special thanks is in order to Dr. Susan Opt, Chair of the Communication Dept. at Salem College for housing Cathy and I this week. North Carolina was a lot of fun. So...
On the Road Again.
-Nicole

Hey......here's to NC School of the Arts!

2007-02-18T22:16:00.000-05:00

Wow what an awesome day!! We just got back to Susan's house.....it's 10:15 but we are all so jazzed sleeping is not going to come easy. The students put on a spectacular show tonight. It was an interactive art exhibit and play. They had all sorts of stations, the first was a time line of AIDS in the US, they had incredible photos and facts and they also compiled a series of original news clips that were playing. The second section was a wall of beautiful photos of people who were then portrayed in the play. The third station was a tribute to Tori Dent, she was an incredible poet who died of HIV last year. Her poetry was used as the back drop for several of the stations. Next there was a white pedestal that a young woman dressed all in white stood on. She was surrounded by pictures on silver elastic cords from the floor to the ceiling. She was viewing each photo as if to remember a loving memory. The next station was a young woman in red with a wall of red ribbons that she was assembling again ceiling to floor. The last station was an interpretive dance performed by two young men it was the story of the fight against the disease and eventual death of the characters. Finally the play was called the "Support Group". The cast spent the last month visiting local groups and patients and created an incredibly real production of what a support group is like.
After all the performances I spoke. The audience was electric with awesome questions and wonderful interactions. I was so honored to be there tonight and to meet such great kids, faculty and staff. A huge thank you to each of them and the members of AIDS Care Services who also attended tonight. I will definitely be looking forward to coming back next time.
Hand and hand we all make the difference.
Cathy

We made it to North Carolina

2007-02-17T19:06:00.000-05:00

Hi folks. We are now in Charlotte, NC. Tomorrow we will continue on to the North Carolina School of the Arts in Winston-Salem. The students of the NC School of the Arts have created a play based around Cathy's visit to the school. We are really excited to see the show(Break a leg guys!) So far the trip has been pretty smooth. The temperature is in the mid-thirties...teeth shattering cold to us native Floridians. We planned on a hot tub session at the hotel tonight, but as neither of us has any blackmail material on each other, we will not be indulging tonight. One thing we did notice on the road...Cathy's Scion is the modern day Beverly Hillbillies' wagon rolling up the coast. Cathy and I found it quite amusing that we have not seen another vehicle that resembles the navy box. People stared...we smiled...fun was had all around. That's all for now.
-Later Gators, and Noles(Cathy)

Time Change

2007-02-16T20:28:00.000-05:00

Oops, I haven't changed Cathy's computer clock. It is not 5:12pm. It is 8:29pm. I just thought you should know. Ok, really...night night all!
-Nic

Greetings from South Carolina

2007-02-16T20:12:00.000-05:00

Hi everyone! We're off to see the wizard...ok, we've spent all day on the road. If you haven't already guessed from my oh so original movie reference, it's Nicole typing. Cathy and I are in South Carolina passing through on the way to the Tar Heel State. Five schools in four days...(dramatic pause) we can do it! Well, after a whole day in the car rockin out to Sheryl Crow, The Beach Boys, and of course various country tunes that I so passionately serenaded to Cathy, we are ready to call it a night. Before I leave you, here's some homework...Cathy has informed me that her middle name is excruciatingly embarrassing. Therefore, I NEED to know it! If anyone can help me on my quest, please contact me so that I may use it repeatedly in conversation with Cathy. Thank you very much. Have a good night. -Nic

Welcome to my new site

2007-02-04T18:24:00.000-05:00

Hi everyone!! I'm glad you have stopped by to visit my new site. I have to say a huge thank you to Nicole for putting this all together, and to Shawn for helping with the logistics. If you know me, then you know I am not to technologically inclined. So this is all new to me. I am going to do my best to keep you all updated on what's going on both with my speaking tours and with Friends-Together events.
This weekend was a big event for us..........Travis turned 19!! So as many of us that could go went to Orlando to help him celebrate! All my "kids" are growing up....I feel so old!
This week I will be helping my Florida Southern students prepare for sexual responsibility week. So come back and visit and I will keep you posted on the details.......
Love and light,
Cathy