Share and Voice: "How Can it Rain Fish?"

So this BBC news article discusses an interesting phenomenon I found while perusing Google.  Every so often fish fall from the sky apparently. Scientists refer to this as non-aqueous rain. And fish arn't the only animals to fall from the sky either. Over the past ten years birds, frogs, worms and spiders have rained down onto unsuspecting heads. 

This phenomenon is thought to be caused by water spouts (a type of tornado) that can pick up objects and carry then some distance over land. Religious fanatics are quick to point out that occurrences such as these are similar to plagues mentioned in the bible however, there are many recent reports of this type of activity and I would not be to quick to dismiss global warming as one of the causes. 

I hope you find this as interesting as I did and encourage you to look into it further! 

Read 'N' Seed 3: Second Quarter of "Smashed: The Story of Drunken Girlhood"

For the second quarter of this book I read the following two chapters that are contained in pages 109-156. In reading this book I have come to to discover that I identify with Zailckas. When she writes "Amstel Light is my upper and my downer, it is my euphoric bump, my sweet nod into vagueness, the hallucinogenic that contorts my world into one that's worth living in." The almost endearing way she refers to beer is so familiar to me (and I fear so many other girls) that it is quite alarming.

Some main points that are covered in this chapter are:

• Greek Life in college
• Relationships
• Coping with stress by using alcohol 

Before reading this book I had my own views on Greek life, and they haven't changed much after reading this section. Zailckas writes about being initiated into her sorority and the many hazings she had to undergo. Zailckas' generation was in the midst of ending the hazing phase. Colleges were starting to crack down and using alcohol was absolutely forbidden to use as enticement to join that sorority. However, these rules were broken, like so many others, and Zailckas made her decision based on the promise of wild parties. She writes that she found a common bond that all the girls in that house shared: the love of liquor.

Like so many timid freshman Zailckas was intimidated and exhilarated by the thought of dating but without liquor she felt powerless. She writes that her drinking becomes like a "fetish", and when her focus was not on a man, she was fully devoted to drinking. In the preface to the book Zailckas states that she felt as though she woke up one day and realized that she did not have any longstanding friendships and that this was due to her alcohol abuse. Zailckas became so used to functioning while drunk to cope with the stress of dating and making true friends that being sober while doing these activities seemed utterly impossible to her.

Like I mentioned before I can identify with the author of this book and I know that there are many other females like her who have used alcohol as a crutch and it can become a huge issue when we have a major part of society that has difficulty making and maintaining relationships. Look at the divorce rate in our country! The issue of alcohol abuse has huge and damaging implications for our country.   

Eye Opener: CSPI

I chose to score my diet and what a bummer! I came in at a 10: Uh-oh!I scored really well on the veggies because eating healthy is something I try really hard to do. My downfall came to milk products because I love milk in coffee, cereal, and I love to dip cookies in it! Also, I am not a huge fan a sweet things for breakfast (no pancakes or waffles for me) so I will make eggs and eat those because they are a good source of protein. I need most of my improvement in the animal welfare category which just solidifies the fact that I’m going meat free! I know that I need to change my behavior when it comes to animal products but it’s just so hard to say goodbye to milk and cheese!