What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 04/11/14

Oh Hey! Welcome to another weekly installment of what's on my geeky brain lately! I'm thinking green this week in honor of Earth Day coming up and spring finally having sprung. Let us get to it!

• Spring!

So this is a small, minor, simple geek out here. It is FINALLY warmer outside so I'm excited to be able to walk around with birds chirping, the sun shining, and there just being more positive energy around. It's funny how a change in weather can affect people. I look forward to getting to the beach next month and spending some quality time here around Jersey exploring before I depart after graduation(!).

• Sustainability

Back in the day I blogged on the topic of sustainability (linked above). It's something that I'm passionate about and I work into my daily habits everywhere I can. Being mindful of what we use and waste is a huge step in the move towards preserving this cool planet, which I'd like to maintain since I keep all my stuff here.

• The Cloud!

A big part of what I think will help with the aforementioned sustainability push is working more off the cloud. This means virtual storage such as Dropbox, Evernote, OneDrive, Google Drive, etc. It's a great way to collaborate, be more productive, and save space since you don't have to lug papers around. I am a strong advocate of utilizing the cloud and will continue to sing it's praises. I'm personally a big fan of Evernote and Dropbox. Perhaps a topic for a future geek out...

Keep that geek pride strong! Have a great weekend!

What I Was Geeking Out About - March 2014

Hey there everyone! I'm trying to make sure you all get to see all the awesome stuff I put out and make it as easy as possible at the same time, so here's a listing of the geek out posts I did in the month of March. They include such cool things as the School of Greatness Podcast, Harry's shaving supplies, Workaholics, and the Veronica Mars movie. Enjoy!

• Week of 03/07/14
• Week of 03/14/04
• Week of 03/21/14
• Week of 03/28/14

Appreciate the support as always!

What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 04/04/14

Good day to you, fellow geek and/or nerd! Here is what is on my mind for this week.

• Captain America: The Winter Soldier

I am very excited about this movie and all the positive buzz it has going for it. It's certified fresh on Rotten Tomatoes and after revisiting Cap's previous cinematic adventure not too long ago, I'm really amped up for this movie! I'm going with my partner to go see it tonight so expect to hear my thoughts on social media afterwards!

• Indianapolis

I visited Indy for a few days this past week for the 2014 ACPA National Convention and it was awesome! The convention itself was a lot of fun but being able to visit this cool city was a consistent highlight. There was cool restaurants, neat architecture, the weather was beautiful, and the city was very clean. I even visited a neat comic book shop, Downtown Comics, where I picked up a new Spider-Man comic (I'm geeking out about him a lot lately).

• Coffee

Coffee is generally something I geek out about, as it gives me life quite often. I want to specifically highlight a new initiative within the awesome TOMS family (the ones who make the cool, socially good shoes); TOMS Roasting Co., which provides ethically sourced coffee and in exchange, helps give clean water to those in need. I got a sample at the aforementioned ACPA conference and was excited to hear about this new endeavor for a company I love (I own two pairs of TOMS shoes already and plan on getting more). I'll have to let you know what I think when I get to try more of their stuff.

Thanks for stopping by! Keep it real, my friends!

What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 03/28/14

Howdy! Here is what I'm getting geeky about this week!

• School of Greatness Podcast

I was recommended this excellent podcast by a friend of mine and I listened to a few episodes while on my recent ride down to Delaware from NJ. I tend to download a bulk of episodes when I know I have a long drive alone ahead of me so I figured I'd finally check out School of Greatness. It's a fun, engaging interview format show with notable thought leaders in the realms of motivation, innovation, social entrepreneurship, and start-ups. Much like the Smart People Podcast that I have mentioned on here before, it is a great way to spend some time listening to thoughtful content that has powerful takeaways for your life, work, and everything in between.

• Spider-Man

Now I just generally geek out about Spidey but I picked up some new comics the other day with my favorite webslinger which helped foster my love for the character. I'm also getting more and more excited for The Amazing Spider-Man 2 coming out soon. I can never get enough of this guy! Read here for more details on what I've learned from Marvel resident young, geeky superhero.

• Star Wars: The Clone Wars

Probably mu other biggest geekdom besides Spider-Man is Star Wars. I've been binging on the new Clone Wars series that recently became "streamable" (which I'm making a word) on Netflix. I'm almost caught up on the episodes that aired on television and am more intrigued to tackle the "Lost Missions" that never made it to air due to the whole Disney buying Lucasfilm business. Having Arrow, Agents of SHIELD, and Clone Wars as weekly doses of DC, Marvel, and Star Wars respectively has been awesome lately, even though SHIELD has been frustratingly spotty with their episodes. That's another topic for another time though.

Have an awesome weekend everyone! Go geek out with pride!

What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 03/21/14

Hey everybody! Back to my usual rhythm this week so here's my week in geek!

• Harry's

This is a neat company I just sort of stumbled across recently that provides reasonably priced, all-natural, and social conscious shaving products. You can get a "starter kit" of sorts with a razor, two spare razor heads, and some shaving cream and then set up a revolving cycle of new razor heads to come right to your door based on your shaving habits. They also just opened a cool shop in NYC where you can get a haircut and shave and they'll also keep a database of how you like to get your haircut! It feels like a hip new way for men to keep well-groomed. I'm just wondering if they'll do a female equivalent some day. Perhaps they'll call it Sally's?

• Pocket

I got turned on to this app/website from a coworker at my internship and it is super awesome! It's a simple concept; it is essentially just a consistent, ubiquitous place to save links you find online. I just like it since it can be easily translatable across devices and showcases your links in a fun way rather than just being a mishmash list of URLs. It's free so check it out today if you need to get your mass of bookmarks and such organized.

• Rutgers Geek Week

This one is fairly self explanatory but the week of events is finally upon us. We've been planning for months and I'm very proud of how this year turned out. We have movie nights, trivia, panels, and our annual costume dance party. I am also proud to have simply been a part of it. I was able to gush about the unique effort during my recent interviews and share all the great things this initiative has been able to accomplish in its three years of existence. I look forward to hearing of Rutgers Geek Week's exploits for years to come!

Thanks for stopping by! Have an amazing weekend!

What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 03/14/14

Howdy! Check out what I've been geeking out about lately!

• Veronica Mars Movie

I funded this project back in the day during its highly successful and publicized Kickstarter campaign. I am very proud to have done so, having loved the show and all the people associated with it. I got a digital copy of the film in my inbox as part of my benefits of backing their project and it was just super awesome to be a part of the whole process from funding to fruition. Check it out and check out the whole series. It is a fun ride!

• Baltimore

So I have been staying in this fine city for the past few days as part of a placement conference to hopefully find a job for after I graduate. I'm staying right by the Inner Harbor with a few cohort members from my program and it has been awesome! There are so many cool places around here and the area I'm at is very nice. I look forward to returning soon!

• Student Affairs

Being at the aforementioned conference here in Baltimore hustling to get a job in student affairs, it has essentially been filled with multiple days of geeking out about my field as a whole and the awesome work we get to do everyday. I've just been riding the adrenaline from these great conversations and it is energizing to meet so many cool people doing cool things!

Thanks for stopping by! Come back real soon!

What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 03/07/14

Hello! This is a mostly video game filled geek out as I took some time in the past week to finish playing through these fine stories, some additional to the main narrative of already amazing games. Read on to discover my thoughts and praises!

• The Last of Us: Left Behind

I had heard some amazing reviews of this downloadable content after it came out so I knew I needed to jump on it to play as soon as I could. While there wasn't a whole lot to engage in as a player, the cut-scenes that I was guided through in the episode were fantastic and more than engaging enough to keep me hooked. I won't spoil anything for it but just know, if you loved the main game, you'll love this content. If you haven't played The Last of Us, after you're done reading this post, go out and play the game right now!

• Bioshock Infinite: Burial at Sea - Episode I

So I've been a visitor to the fine city of Rapture from the Bioshock series a few times now, but this was a very unique and fun adventure. This content takes place during the peak of Rapture's existence, rather than the unfortunate aftermath so it was cool to see the vision of Andrew Ryan realized. No spoilers here either but it is a fine addition to the compelling narrative strewn across the Bioshock universe!

• Workaholics

This may come as a longshot to some folks but I do love this show. It is some awesome smartly stupid comedy and the show's fourth season has been going strong so far. I just caught up on this season to date and I enjoyed every minute of it. Check it out if you can, you'll have a good time for sure.

Thanks for stopping by! Have an awesome weekend!

What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 02/28/14

Hello! Here is some neat stuff to check out that I've been geeking out on this week or in general! Enjoy!

• Warby Parker

I am a big fan of Warby Parker. I got a pair of glasses from them this past fall and have been loving wearing them all day, every day. Recently, I put in an order for some prescription sunglasses with them, which I am eagerly awaiting. Their products are reasonably priced and also help those in need of eye-care get the help they need in a similar model to TOMS; a win-win! They also do in house eye exams in their New York City space, which I also took advantage of when I was there last year. For my fellow eyeglass aficionados out there, I give Warby Parker my official stamp of approval. Buy with a purpose, my friends!

• The LEGO Movie

I saw this movie this past Saturday in 3D with my partner since we both had a hard week and wanted some lighthearted entertainment. We were not disappointed! Not only was the animation amazing, the voice-acting great, but there was a nice message to the film and it was far more than just a movie with LEGOs. I could see myself proudly showing this movie to my children in the future. Definitely a highlight amongst the dead zone of new movies out right now.

• Grove Made

I've been a happy customer of this company's products for a while now. They make custom wooden cases & covers for your iPhone, iPad, or MacBook (I currently own a MacBook cover and an iPhone case). They're based out of Portland, Oregon and just recently did a slick new redesign of their site so if you're in the market for a unique, sustainable case for some of your Apple gadgets, I highly recommend them!

I wanted to highlight some more neat social good/sustainable companies after plugging The Home T last week so I hope you enjoy what these groups have to offer and also check out The LEGO Movie soon! Have an awesome weekend!

What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 02/21/14

Salutations, good readers! So this is another late post to you all (better than not at all) because my attendance at a local conference for the latter part of this past week so my Friday post sort of fell by the wayside unfortunately. I was still thinking about what I wanted to write so here's what I've been getting into:

• House of Cards - Season 2

So I have only have two episodes left to go in this season and I must say that this has been some compelling television. For the uninitiated, this political drama centers around Frank Underwood and his ceaseless ambitions to influence the happenings in Washington, DC. I don't want to spoil anything but I'll just say it is an amazing show that is doing well by web series everywhere. It is very high quality all around and is entertaining content. I'd sell it as West Wing meets Scandal. It's right in the middle of those two shows, not too much on the policy stuff but also not too melodramatic or sensational. Stream it on Netflix now!

• The Home T

So I was turned on to this site by a friend of mine after seeing her wearing her New Jersey shirt recently. They sell super soft shirts adorned with any of the 50 states on them and the proceeds help support multiple sclerosis research. I have bought two already, one for Delaware and one for Maine (the former where I grew up and the latter where I was born). They're awesome shirts that support an awesome cause. What else do you need to know?!

• Guardians of the Galaxy Trailer

So this great trailer premiered recently and I have watched a few times to see how I felt about it. I don't know much at all about this team of heroes and this trailer was an excellent introduction. It shows the fun aspect of the movie and the feel that a lot of the Marvel movies have infused into their characters and films. This is especially important since we as the audience need to be able to relate to these lesser known alien characters. I encourage you to check the trailer out and get excited for the release in August!

That's all, folks! Go forth and geek out!

What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 02/14/14

Hello and good day to you all! Here's some things I've been geeking out about this week (or just in general lately).

• NPR - WNYC

So I've been listening to NPR (namely my local affiliate, WNYC) in the car a lot recently rather than having the same four songs plus way too many annoying commercials on my old Top 40 station. I felt like I just wanted to give it a shoutout (and National Public Radio in general) for being a wonderful change of pace in my day. It helps me relax, have interesting topics of conversation to bring up, and keeps me informed about the world. I think this is officially me getting old but it's okay, I don't mind.

• Positive Psychology

The elective class I'm taking during this final semester of my graduate program is on advanced counseling techniques, namely a positive psychology approach. People that know me would say this class is just preaching to the choir in terms of my day-to-day outlook, but what is has been able to offer is a more formal perspective on counseling through a positive lens. Most times, when helping people we try to think about what's wrong with them and try to fix it. After a few weeks of this course, I would much rather try to help someone see all the good in their lives and already within themselves so that they can lead more happy, productive lives. A plug here has been the Science of Happiness videos from the Soul Pancake YouTube channel we've been watching for class. Good vibes all around!

• Revisiting Iron Man 3

So as I was working on this post, having difficulty thinking of the last of the trifecta to write on, I put on Iron Man 3 since I recently got it on Blu-Ray. I saw it in theaters when it came out, and was lukewarm on it since it was such a bold move for the franchise. Revisiting it today, after Thor 2 coming out and with Captain America 2 on the horizon, I found myself enjoying the movie more having realized the vision of the movie as a whole rather than focusing perceived issues with the Mandarin. Admittedly, I'm also much more comfortable with the cooky version of the "Mandarin" in this film knowing that there is going to be some ret-con action with the character in the upcoming One-Shot on the Thor 2 Blu-Ray. Nevertheless, remember the message of this film; the machine doesn't make the man, the man makes the machine.

Have a good weekend everybody!