Athens Goes International

#6. See a movie during the week long Athens International Film and Video Festival

After three years of hearing about The Athens International Film and Video Festival, I finally decided to take advantage of the opportunity to see some pretty sweet films and documentaries.

For an entire week, the seemingly teeny tiny Athena Cinema (tucked away on Court Street) shows films that come from around the world. Many of the documentaries feature a lot of political, international and religious issues.

The best part? The film festival is FREE to Ohio University students with a valid student id.

I actually found out this week (April 23-29) was THE week for the festival. Naturally, I've been living under a rock (a rock filled with midterms and interviews) and didn't find out about the film festival until Wednesday. Of course, Wednesday was the second to last day.

I immediately found the schedule for the films online and decided I wanted to see Orgasm Inc. For those who don't know, I am currently working on my certificate in the Women's and Gender Studies program. Orgasm Inc is a documentary about the quest to create a pharmaceutical product for a "disease" that doesn't exist--female sexual dysfunction.

I immediately thought of Jenny Bak, a very good friend of mine as well as someone I've taken several WGS classes with. Just as I expected, Jenny was as excited as I was. Plus, she was a film festival first timer, too.

When we arrived, there were literally multiple movies playing at the same time. I was amazed to see the variety in topics--ranging from a documentary on skateboarding culture to the oddities found in families. Jenny was especially interested in My Neighbor My Killer, a documentary about the Rwandan Genocide. Unfortunately, it was playing at the same time as Orgasm Inc.

However, Orgasm Inc did not disappoint. It was insightful and gave a scary look into pharmaceutical companies and their marketing strategies. I can only imagine how fantastic some of the other films were.

As we left, we both couldn't believe we had missed out on such an AWESOME event for the first two years. Jenny said, "I wish I would have known about the Athens Film Festival earlier. I'll for sure be seeing movies every day at next year's fest!"


Until next time,
Mak

P.S.- Did you see any movies at the film festival this year? If so, what do you recommend?

10 Things Ohio University Students Should Add to Their Bucket Lists...

#5. Challenge YOU to not be a scaredy cat!

While I love knowing that you enjoy living vicariously through my experiences thus far (and the ones to come), I feel like part of my job is to encourage you to experience what OU and Athens have to offer.

Below you'll find an interactive map that includes the 10 things every Bobcat should add to their bucket list. Most of the items on the map I've tried, but there are a few I haven't yet (like trying Sushi Tuesday at Lui Lui Restaurant, climbing the rock climbing wall, attending the Athens Film and Video Festival and visiting Passion Works at their new location).



View 10 Things OU Students Should Add to Their Bucket List in a larger map




Until next time,
Mak

P.S.- If you think I've missed something major, feel free to let me know in the comment section. I'd love to try any suggestions you have for me!

A new favorite: German Village

#4. Visit German Village

Today, I ventured outside of Athens and traveled to Columbus to visit German Village. It's been a longtime goal of mine since it's where my parents actually met and where my dad lived. The opportunity to visit just never presented itself until recently.

My boyfriend Bob was in the area a couple weeks ago and discovered The Book Loft, a bookstore with over 500,000 books and 32 rooms. I had to see it for myself--being the nerd that I am. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves, but let me just say: if there is a heaven, I imagine it looks similar to The Book Loft. I literally think any book you could possibly imagine wanting to read is there.

Bob and I also grabbed lunch as well. I took suggestions from friends from Columbus and heard Schmidt's Sausage Haus und Restaurant was the place to go. It's not a place I would recommend for vegetarians or someone on a diet. However, the buffet (which I was told most people get) was definitely a new experience. It was enough to clog my arteries in one quick swoop. I highly recommend stopping in to try the bratwursts!

Until next time,

Mak

Church a la Athens Style

#3. Attend "church" at the Pub

I had heard rumors about a rather offensive church sermon that takes place at the Pub on Sunday nights after my roommate Clare's 21st birthday shuffle. Clare claims that the "pastor" shouted and told the crowd to "shut the f up" multiple times.

At the time, I had no desire to be verbally assaulted by a very burly 250-plus pound man.

But then, Adventures of a Scaredy Cat was born and I somehow found myself making plans to go to the Pub late Sunday night to do just that.

I coerced my next door neighbor Rachel, who is a little bit of a daredevil, to be my partner in crime.

For those who aren't familiar, the Pub is one of the many bars on Court Street in Athens. When Rachel and I walked in, the crowd literally was a sample of Athens. There were the Athens townies, the prepsters, some graduate students and the occasional 21st birthday girl. The "sermon" was scheduled to begin at midnight, but I quickly learned the Pub definitely does things on a relaxed schedule.

Needless to say, the sermon didn't begin until 12:30 and only after someone tipped off the "pastor" that there was someone in the audience who wanted to hear the sermon. The so-called pastor was a big, burly bald man in the audience who presumably was either an employee of the Pub or a regular as a Pub customer. I admittedly was a little scared when the bartender announced that "church" would be starting soon, especially when there were clearly some regulars in the audience who knew the sermon ritual by heart.

The sermon began with a song that sounded like a mix between AC/DC's Hells Bells and organ music. The pastor began by asking people at the bar to confess their weekend sins--which ranged from being a 21-year-old virgin to drinking too much. There were a couple (and by a couple, I mean at least 5) shots for 'JC' and a lot of sexual comments made to girls at the bar. The pastor finished with the scripture reading from a shot and cocktail recipe book. Sunday's sermon included the recipe for the "party starter" drink, which included Cointreau orange liquor, lemon juice, lime juice and a slice of orange as a garnish.

All in all, it was a little bit of a rowdy crowd and clearly sacrilegious. Not recommended for the conservative or scaredy cat crowd, but definitely something to cross off the bucket list!

I needed a little liquid courage once I realized what I had gotten myself into, so a Jack and Coke was exactly what I needed.

This shirt was too epic not to photograph. Admittedly, I was scared he may turn around and smash my camera. The quote on the back was shouted at least 30 times in a 10 minute span.

Until next time,
Mak

"I'll have the Balls Deep."

The title alone should be enough evidence that my life does have an abundance of awkward moments. I warned you before.

Yesterday I had the opportunity to not only enjoy the beautiful weather Athens has been having as of late, but to also help my friend, Jaden cross something off her bucket list--eating Bagel Street Deli sandwiches on the Athens County Court House steps. It's a clutch spot for people watching and basking in the sunshine--two of my favorite things. Jaden wasn't disappointed by the pure 20 minute bliss we experienced.

Jaden is a senior hospitality major from Virginia and lucky for me, she isn't quite ready to graduate. In fact, she'll be a "super" senior for all of next year. However, she's treating this quarter as if it's her last quarter at OU with a bucket list checklist hung proudly in her room (when it's not hidden under her piles of clothes...her room looks eerily similar to mine).

Bagel Street is a locally owned bagel shop that makes the most delicious sandwiches (and pickles). There's everything from the Wendy's Way (personal favorite--turkey, spinach cream cheese, avocado and sprouts) to the dedicated OU Bobcat (roast beef and smoked cheddar). I always recommend it to visitors and freshmen.

Unfortunately, every time I enter BSD--I'm reminded of my mom's favorite sandwich. I'm not sure if I've told you about my mom, but let me preface it by saying she is exactly like Leigh Anne Tuohy in The Blind Side, down to the size, looks and sass. She's also a huge food snob, but she sure loves BSD. Her favorite sandwich is naturally the Balls Deep--a mess of meatballs, onion, spicy mustard and pretty much any ingredient guaranteed to give you heartburn. It's also the most uncomfortable name on the menu. Who wants to hear their mom order a Balls Deep? Not this girl, but I miss her just enough that I would sacrifice the embarrassment to see her.

Until next time,

Mak

Arthritis research: 1, my burnt nose: 0

This past weekend, my sorority hosted our first annual AOII Goes Blue Ruby Run (it was a 5k) and raised over $2,000 for arthritis research--which is our national philanthropy. This is for sure the first thing to cross off my bucket list as it has been in the works since LAST YEAR! We had an after party with one of the fraternities on campus. The weather was beautiful, so we played corn hole, grilled out and had a DJ.

In years past, we've rented a dunk tank to raise money for our philanthropy. Sadly, we almost always broke even with the cost of the dunk tank almost outweighing our earnings. Our advisers were a little skeptical at first about the 5k idea. They both knew how much work it would be and were afraid it might be too much, but the executive board was determined to make it happen.

One thing on my long-term bucket list was to be able to create something that the chapter could continue doing long after I graduated. The 5k was perfect for that. Some of our girls even got to play traffic director for the day and wear those neon orange police vests. Awesome.

We even had the Ohio State University chapter participate in the event. There were also a couple dogs running the race...and we all know my unhealthy obsession to pet every dog in sight. Needless to say, I was happy as a clam.

The only downside to the entire day?
My summer freckles that have appeared and my burnt nose.



Until next time,
Mak

P.S.- If any of you local Athens or Columbus readers have some fun events or activities you think I should add to my bucket list, feel free to comment and tell me all about it!

Contrary to what you might believe, I'm not a dying middle aged man like in the cinematic version of this blog, The Bucket List. It's actually a little less morbid than that. I'm actually a 21 year old junior in college (out of state student!)--with less than a year left before I enter The Big Scary World. Before I graduate, there are a number of things I would like to see/do/accomplish--hence the title of this blog: OU Bucket List.

I will also be writing about other "bucket list" items that I hear or read about others doing as well as spotlighting a few of my own friends on their mission to cross off those coveted bucket list items. It's almost as if bucket lists are one of the things that seem to transcend cultures, languages and beliefs. Everyone has one (even if inadvertently). Hopefully, I'll learn a little more about myself and others as I attempt to tackle my own BL.

A little bit of a preface: My life (and this blog) is sort of like the movie, Diary of a Wimpy Kid--except I'm more of a scaredy cat than a wimpy kid (also, I'm not a prepubescent teenage boy). However, like Greg...my life is surrounded with interesting characters and some seriously awkward situations.



Until next time,
Mak