Cuff

This is my best friend, for so many reasons.

victory rose.

Á silfur-á
Lýsir allan heiminn og augun blá
Skera stjörnuhiminn
Ég óska mér og loka nú augunum
Já gerðu það, nú rætist saga
Ó nei

Á stjörnuhraða
Inni í hjarta springur, flugvélarbrak
Oní jörðu syngur
Ég óska mér og loka nú augunum
Já gerðu það, lágfara dans
Allt gleymist í smásmá stund og rætist samt
Opna augun
Ó nei


I make a wish and close my eyes.
Yes do that, now begins the story.

California here we come, right back where we started from.

Well, hello there. Finally back in Orange County, and let me tell you... It feels good to be home. The last couple of nights have been packed! We saw the grand canyon, drove 383,837,276,765 miles, met up with other roadie teams, and went to Vegas. Vegas was insane. We did not get there until 3 in the morning, due to not being able to cross the Hoover dam. As soon as we got there, we decided to go "walk the strip" at 4 in the morning. There were not many people out because it was so late in the night, but we were out long enough to see sunrise! There were 8 of us all packed into one hotel room- the Luxor. The pyramid looking one.
All I can say is that I enjoyed being on tour. It was amazing. I can write a lottt about it, but I do not really want to. If you want to hear about our adventures... just let me know and I would love to fill you all in. Yes we had our up's and down's but for the most part... Being a roadie for Invisible Children was awesome. Life changing.
Our team and also team Pacific Northwest are staying at my house tonight. So there are roadies sleeping everywhere. As soon as everyone went to bed, I left to go see Erin Cuff. Words can not explain how amazing it was so finally see her after 3 months. Sitting on her apartment roof with her, watching shooting stars and loving every minute of it.
Its so good to be home.

Steve Irwin

I just finished reading "Steve and Me" by Terri Irwin. It was a book about Steve Irwins life. His passion for animals made me realize how much I really do feel the same way. Here is a short video about Bindi Irwin (Steves daughter) and her speech at Steves Memorial service. I really miss his amazing conservation work and his strong love for all kinds of animals.

Steve Irwin
February 22, 1962- September 4, 2006

Ze end of the world.

Nebraska

Nebraska. Oh the familiar place. We have been here for 2 days now and I do like it here. It is freezing. We went to the zoo today (while it was raining) and there were beautiful gorillas there. One even kissed me through the glass. It was unbelievable. So tomorrow, I think we are going to go to a few thrift stores and just hang out around Lincoln.
I decided to learn how to play the harmonica. I bought a "learn how to play harmonica" guide and it came with one. I'm a nerd, I know. But I am really excited about my new interest.
So one week and counting. I will be home a week from today! I really can not wait. I love being on the road, but I feel like I need to start my life over back in Orange County. I have so many ideas and goals about moving home. I want to become more involved in the community, I want to find a small group bible study, I want to go to Rock Harbor every Sunday now, and I really want to become more active with local organizations. I feel like being a Roadie for Invisible Children has changed me. I feel like I now have a purpose. And now I need to go and live that purpose. I have this idea... An idea to reach out to the homeless in our community. Maybe do a weekly thing? Serve dinner? Make some new friends? If anyone is interested in starting something with me, let me know. :)


Deut. 15:7. If there is a poor man among you, one of your brothers, in any of the towns of the land which the LORD your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart, nor close your hand to your poor brother; but you shall freely open your hand to him, and generously lend him sufficient for his need in whatever he lacks.

Minnesota

Minnesota is awesome, don't get me wrong. But it is cold and I want to come home.

Iowa

Iowa is one of those states that I completely forgot about until I became a Roadie and I found out that I was going to be spending some time here.
We have been in Iowa for about 3 days now and I love it. It is beautiful. I have never ever seen trees like this before. They are bright red or bright yellow. We definitely do not have trees like this back in Orange County. We have had 2 screenings here in Iowa. One at Drake University and one at University of Iowa.
My friend Aimee, who I met while being here in this state, told me that there was a huge flood back here in June and July. It is so sad to see the buildings and houses they they have lost. During the Iowa City GuluWalk (A 5k walk that happens in different states and countries once a year to bring awareness about the war in Uganda.) I noticed the the line on big buildings where the water line used to be. It flooded the town about 8 feet!!! It's so crazy to think about all these natural disasters that happen in different states of the country, but I am living in Orange County and nothing disastrious ever happens there.
Anyway, its October 26 right now and there is about 3 more weeks of tour left. It is really sad to think about, but at the same time, I feel like i'm ready to come home now.
Happy Halloween!!

Kansas

I'm going to just start off by saying, I love Kansas and I'm considering applying to University of Kansas after a year back at home. I really like it here. I guess I just love this area out here. I have a lot of friends here, so it would totally work out. Things have been going well.
The other day, we were staying with our friend Allie and she organized an awareness walk. Which is when we got a bunch of people to all wear black shirts and Red X's on the shirts. Then we walk for a mile and some will hold signs that read "End a war in Uganda!" or "We walk because the kids of Uganda walk!" So it is a fun little way to bring awareness to Uganda.
I have met some really cool people lately. Which is a big reason why I want to move out to this direction. I never thought I would want to move from Orange County to Kansas. But I like the little change.
So I went to the hospital the other day. I was checked in to the emergency room. I was having eye problems so I called my grandma and she recommended that I should go to the hospital and I did. Grandma knows best!
Apparently, I have a corneal abrasion. Which means that I have big scratches all of my eye. The doctor gave me pain medication and some sterile eye drops. I'm proud to say that I'm already feeling better!
I'm having a lot of fun on tour right now. Everyday is a new adventure. Everyday we see new things and meet new people. Yesterday, we went to IHOP church which stands for International House Of Prayer. It was an awesome place and there were a ton of people there.
Our regional manager flew here to visit us for the weekend. It is nice to have her here and let us know how we are doing at our screenings and as a team. We passed the test. :)

It is crazy to think that we are done with tour in a month. Time flew by so fast! I'm going to be sad that things are coming to an end, but at the same time... Excited to start new. New school, new job, new friends, new everything. I'm planning on starting an "Invisible children" club when I go to school. It's going to be awesome!

One last thing to finish up with... I LOVE FALL!!! In California, we do not get many beautiful red and orange and brown leaves! So to see all of these trees drastically changing colors is just so beautiful to me. I'll take pictures of them and leave post them next time I write.

Meet me in St. Louis

I'm still in St. Louis. I like it here a lot. There are a lot of fun places to hang out. Kind of where the "hipsters" go as some would call them. And yes, the Vice Presidential Debate was held here two days ago. I didn't get to go but it was interesting to see all of it happening. I did get to watch it on a HUGE screen though.
Yesterday, we had a screening at a high school about 20 minutes from St. Louis. After the screening, we the team and I went to dinner at Steak and Shake. My $3 meal was tasty- Kids Meal Chicken Strips. After dinner, we went to a Halloween store and I bought a white sparkly fairy wand. I'm planning on being a snow fairy for Halloween, but with out any wings (I have no money for wings.) Later that night, we all went to Skate Galaxy and we pulled the whole..."Hey, we work for a non profit, can we get a deal on admission and skate rentals?" And of course... the lovely young man said of course. We got in for $3 instead of $8. We happily skated all through the night surrounded by colorful flashy lights.
Today, we have yet some more free time so our agenda consists of: Zoo (FREE), Modern Art Museum (FREE), go up inside the Arch ($5?), and maybe go back to the City Museum (FREE because the girl supports Invisible Children.)
We leave legendary St. Louis on Sunday night and head up to Kansas City. Quite exciting because Kansas city is beautiful.
Anyway, fun times. Things are getting better. I'm not that lonely anymore. I still miss everyone like CRAZY! But things are going good. We are having fun and raising A LOT of money for the our secondary school in Uganda. Oh, by the way... If you guys were not aware... We are on the road and raising money for our partner school. Each roadie team is partnered up with a different school in Uganda. So our school is called Gulu Secondary School.
Here is a short 3 minute update clip that we always show after our main movie called "Go!"
http://www.invisiblechildren.com/media/videos/detail.php?id=301626189

Just copy and paste the clip and watch it! :) Peace and Love!

Arkansas, NOT what I expected.

Arkansas is beautiful. I have never been here before so I really wasn't sure what I was expecting. To be honest, I wasn't expecting much. There are huge green trees, very pretty lakes, and tiny hummingbirds everywhere I look.
Our 4th teammate, Lauren, is with us now. She got back from Uganda 4 days ago. We picked her up for Tulsa Airport. It is really nice to finally have another girl with me. She had an amazing time and I got to see her pictures... AMAZING! I am really thinking about going to Uganda in January with the other roadies. Money will be a problem... but I know if it's Gods plan for me to go, things will work out. So please pray for me!!!
Anyway, we have met some really cool people. Two of them, I can see myself having a really strong friendship with them even after tour.
We went to a college football game last Saturday. It was a University of Arkansas and University of Alabama. Unfortunetly, Alabama beat Arkansas by A LOT!! But it was still really cool to get to go to the game and sit in the student section.
For those of you who know about my obsession with gorillas... There were statues of gorillas in this miniature golf place, so I got a million pictures with the beautiful things.
Oh, there was also this TOMS (for a every pair of TOMS shoes you buy, a pair is donated to a kid in need) event and we all bought a pair of TOMS and got to paint them if we wanted. So I bought a red pair and I painted, with white paint, Jorden er Jeres on the shoes and painted on sunflowers. "Jorden er Jeres" means "The world Is yours" in Danish. The people working there were big fans of Invisible children so they were excited to meet us. They kept asking us questions and then took pictures of us with our shoes when we finished.
My teammates Patrick and Eugene, and I went on a little hike yesterday and we found some natural hot springs. The water temperature was around 110 degrees. It was really cool.
Oh, and the other night, a few of us and some friends that we made, played Sardines on the campus of University of Arkansas. (Sardines is that game when one person hides and the rest of us go and find that one person and when one person finds the one who is hiding, they need to get down and hide with them until theres one person left.)
We will be in Arkansas until Thursday and then we leave for Missouri. I am loving this adventure sooo much, but of course, it's kind of hard because I miss some family and some friends. I sometimes feel kind of lonely, but then I keep reminding myself of what I'm doing.
Ok, Kuc & Mar

(Peace and Love)

Oklahoma, where the wind...

Its been a little over a week now that I have been on tour. We have been in Oklahoma for a week and I can honestly say that I love this place. I wouldn't mind moving here one day. (But that would never happen because I fell in love with California the day I was born.)
Every minute spent so far has been... different. There has been some tough times and there has been some incredible life changing times. Its only been a week, I know, but I can already say that I am transforming into a different person. Just to see the look on kids faces after they watch the documentary that we're screening or when the varsity wrestler of the high school comes up to me and tells me that he cried through the whole thing, it's just all life changing. I could just see how we were changing these kids lives. We were inspiring them to make a difference.
The night of my first screening... A Monday night at Oklahoma University. There were about 30 people there. I was so nervous talking on stage but I think it went okay... We sold roughly $700 in merchandise that night.
Nine screenings later and I feel a lot more comfortable talking in public.
Anyway, the weather. The weather has been crazy. It has been raining everyday but I love it. Apparently, all this rain is coming from the Hurricanes. My friend Nick and I went for a walk in the rain and returned soaking wet. It was so fun to just jump in the puddles, run in the streets, and walk underneath slanted rooftops. I really don't think I can ever get tired of the rain.
I'm trying to think of some of the cool stories from the week but there are too many to talk about... I'll just name a few...
1. I saw an armadillo the other day. It was on the side of the road... dead.
2. Theres a clown that works at IHOP and he made me balloon animals- love swans. (He was actually kind of creepy.)
3. I Danced in the rain.
4. My teammates put salt in my peanut butter and jelly sandwich the other day. So I had the manager of the restaurant yell at them.
5. The lead singer of one of my favorite bands told me that he liked my shoes and my shirt.
6. It is impossible to eat healthy when you're living off $10 a day.
7. I miss Erin Cuff.
8. I have fallen in love with Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Ok, I think thats all. I am having fun, as you can tell. Our 4th teammate arrives in Tulsa tomorrow. She has been in Uganda for a week seeing first hand of what we are working for.
We leave for Arkansas on Thursday. Keep listening.

The love in his eyes.

Love is a powerful thing. It can change one persons life. It can open up to a bigger world, bigger place. It can make someone feel like something. A lot of us take the word 'love' for granted. People say it without even putting a meaning behind it. In the world we live in today, love is more important than it was yesterday. We need to remember to love... and to put a meaning behind it.


I met some pretty cool people on Sunday. A few of us did this homeless outreach thing in Ocean Beach. At first there were about 10 people who lived on the streets and about 10 of us from Invisible Children. It was awesome, there was this one man who played guitar. So he would play and I would sing and dance along. His name was Bucky and he never took his smile off his face. He actually told me that his favorite thing to do was hug. So throughout the day, I think I got about 5 hugs. I literally saw the love in his eyes for life. He just looked sooo happy getting to talk and hang out.
A few hours later, I went for a walk and these two homeless kids about 17 years old... asked me for some money. I told them to follow me because we were putting on a barbeque in the park for the homeless. So they did and they also got a few more of their friends to come. As we were walking over there, the lifegaurd stopped us and told Beans (one of the kids that asked me for money) that he couldn't have his dog on the beach and park area until 6. So he said ok and we kept walking to the park. Since he couldn't come hang out with us because of his dog, he hung out right by the street. The lifegaurd then walked up to him and gave him a $300 ticket because his dog was sitting on the curb. There was sooo much I wanted to say to that lifegaurd but it really wasn't my place. I was so mad. I mean, honestly, how is a homeless kid going to pay for a $300 ticket? And it really wasn't his fault. Besides that whole deal, we had a pretty good time just all hanging out, eating hotdogs, and getting to hear all these kids stories. I can honestly say that I met some really rad people that day. I do feel for them because most of them had some serious drug problems. So I ask you (whoever happens to read this) to just pray for them. Pray that somehow, they get their lives back on track. Pray that they realize that their lives are way more important than any drug can ever be. Pray that they find that love that I found for Jesus Christ.

Today I was inspired by Jason Russel.

First of all, let me update ya'll on my last couple days. Every morning, we wake up and have to be at work at 9. You would think it would be a little hard getting ready because I have 55 rooomates and everyone is showering, washing their face, making breakfast, or sitting on the porch doing their daily devotions, but I love it. And I love every minute of it. We are like one big family. So anyways, we drive the big "invisible children" vans to work and arrive at 9. Then we go to the conference room to train. This first week is all about training and getting to know the staff and each other.
Today Jason Russel, one of the founders of Invisible Children gave us a very inspiring talk. It was probably one of the best hours in my life. I can honestly say that when it was over, I walked out of that room feeling more important as a human being than I did when I walked in there. He first began by telling us about growing up and how he did not know who he was. He was the loner in school with no friends. Jason began telling us about "how to find your individualality." He was saying how each and every one of us are specifically designed differently. We are like snowflakes; Every one you find is different but yet, still beautiful. We are to live our lives to the fullest. And this I believe: that the free, exploring mind of the individual human is the most valuable thing in the world. And this I would fight for: the freedom of the mind to take any direction it wishes, undirected... as long as you find Jesus Christ first. Your real, new self will not come as long as you are looking for it. It will come when you are looking for Him. Look for yourself, and you will find in the long run only hatred, loneliness, despair, rage, ruin, and decay. But look for Christ and you will find Him, and with Him everything else thrown in. God created us to make a difference. He wants us to stand out, stand pride, and stand up.

Some of that was written by C.S. Lewis and Jason Russel, and myself.

I am unbelievably lucky to be here where I am. I am now a part of a movement. I am now a part of the Invisible Children team. No one deserves to be invisible. We are too important to Jesus, to go unoticed. So to finish up, rememeber, you ARE someone. You are more then you think. You mean the world to me.

Officially moved in.

Hello! So this is my first official blog of the tour. I moved in the house yesterday. I have about 55 roomates. It is completely crazy but I love it. It is the greatest experience I have ever had. Last night, about 25 of us went for a walk to the gas station to get gatorade (apparently, it is a "roadie" tradition.) When we got back to the house, we told scary stories in our basement. Some of the stories that some told were actually quite scary and unfortunetly true. The roadie house includes 7 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, 2 living rooms, 2 kitchens, 1 attic, 1 basement, and 2 deck/ balconies. It is amazing.
The next morning, we all woke up at about 7 because we had to leave by 8:30 to be at the office. When we got to the office, we met the Invisible children staff, had a tour of the office, and learned about the history of Africa. Yes, I did get to meet the founders of Invisible Children and it was amazing to finally meet them in person. While they were telling us about the war in Africa, they decided to surprise us by bringing Jolly (the "Ugandan mother" who was actually in the Invisible Children Rough Cut documentary.) So it was a privledge to get to meet her. I actually had tears in my eyes from excitement.
After work, all 55 of us drove the IC vans back to our house and watched tv together. It is truly amazing to get to know all of these people and hear their "IC story." I am becoming great friends with everyone due to the fact that we were all specifically picked to be roadies. We all share the passion and love to make a difference in Northern Uganda. I am very excited for the next 4 and 1/2 months of my life.