ShannonMcNamara.com Coming Soon!
May 30, 2007 | Leave a CommentPosted by admin | Filed Under Erin Weed's Blog
Great news! My friend Tom Jenrette, has totally spearheaded a complete re-design of our favorite angel’s website, www.shannonmcnamara.com. It’s going to be officially launched on her birthday, June 21st. We are looking to add more content…either photos, memories, poems, songs or anything else you can think of. Also, Tom is starting a non-profit to keep Shannon’s memory alive. Click here to read the details.
Active Minds on Campus
May 29, 2007 | Leave a CommentPosted by admin | Filed Under Erin Weed's Blog
So I recently met the coolest girl…a girl fighting back in her own awesome way…and her name is Alison Malmon. She founded a non-profit organization in 2001 in response to the suicide of her older brother Brian. The organization is called Active Minds on Campus, and here’s what they do:
Active Minds is a nonprofit organization headquartered in Washington, DC that develops and supports student-run mental health awareness, education, and advocacy chapters on college campuses across the country. Each student group’s mission is to:
*Increase awareness of mental health issues;
*Provide information and resources regarding mental health and mental illness;
*Encourage students to seek help as soon as it is needed;
*Serve as liaison between students and the mental health community;
In my line of work, I often see how violence in our society affects people’s mental health. I believe this is a cause we should all really embrace. Alison has greatly helped me with some cool stuff going on here at GFB headquarters (more on that coming soon) so a big thanks to her. Check out their website (www.activemindsoncampus.org - new site will be launched soon) or even better…join a group on your campus.
Awesome Anderson
May 28, 2007 | Leave a CommentPosted by admin | Filed Under Erin Weed's Blog
I recently finished Anderson Cooper’s book, “Dispatches from the Edge: A Memoir of War, Disasters and Survival.” In case you didn’t catch on by the title, it’s not light reading. In most cases, it’s downright sad. But I didn’t get my nickname “Princess of Darkness” for nothing…I loved this book. Anderson is incredibly well-traveled, and is in the media for all the right reasons…to tell the real story. Few media figures nowadays seem to have his committment to geting out the truth, and being willing to accept personal risk to make it happen. He’s inspired me to get my booty out of America to do some international travel…not sure when, but definitely soon. Kudos Anderson!
Craptastic good luck!
May 27, 2007 | Leave a CommentPosted by admin | Filed Under Erin Weed's Blog
I’m so psyched! I was at a festival in Boulder yesterday and out of nowhere, I feel this thud on my right shoulder. I look at my husband like, “What the hell is your problem?” And he was like, “What?” I look down only to realize that I got crapped on by a bird. My knee jerk reaction was to get mad, but then I remembered that movie “Under the Tuscan Sun.” Remember the part when the lead actress (I think Diane Lane) wants to buy the villa from the old Italian lady, but the old lady keeps saying no? And then Dianne gets crapped on, and the Italian woman jumps for joy and agrees to sell it to her? Great movie. So clearly good things lie ahead…
But apparently I’m not alone. Even really important people get pooped on from time to time. If you’re really, really bored you can click here and watch President Bush going through the same experience: http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=c28_1180051991
Danskin Tri
May 23, 2007 | 1 CommentPosted by admin | Filed Under Erin Weed's Blog
A lot of people have been asking me about the triathlon I’m currently training for, so I thought I’d just share with the group. Every year, I try to do one triathlon. I believe it’s the official sport for people with A.D.D. (like myself) Swim a little. Get bored. Jump out of water and run to bike. Ride for a little bit. Get bored. Jump off bike and start running. Get bored. See the finish line and make a dash for it because you know there are donuts at the end. Yeah, that’s triathlon and I simply adore it. Above is a pic of me from the tri I did last year at Sandy Hook, NJ. I was incredibly freaked out, because the swim portion was in the ocean which was flooded with jelly fish. They are my nemesis. (See the pic I took below. Isn’t it scary?)
But this year I’m doing the Danskin Tri in Denver, so I’m gonna take a good guess in saying that I won’t have to deal with jelly fish. It’s a half mile swim, 12 mile bike and a 5k run. Challenging, but not deadly. Between training for the tri and doing all my Krav Maga, the daily task of getting out of bed and walking to the bathroom has become a grisly, painful ordeal. But a quick stretch and an offensively strong cup o’ coffee gets me back in action. Today I did my first ever Spin class. Later this afternoon, I picked up my bike from getting tuned up at the local bike shop. I hopped in the saddle and nearly screamed in pain. Holy crotch distress….I had no idea how much that Spin class destroyed me until that moment. Quite shocking, actually.
I saw Big Foot!
May 20, 2007 | Leave a CommentPosted by admin | Filed Under Erin Weed's Blog
This weekend I was visiting with my fam in the Chicago suburbs having a nice picnic dinner, when all of a sudden I look over to the most disturbing expressions of creativity ever. (And I used to spend lots of time in New York City, so this is saying a lot.) It’s some sort of weird art thing, with cement women’s body parts planted into a hill. I love the fact that this ginormous foot has an oddly longer 2nd toe.
But you know what they say about women with big feet…they have big hands! So big that both myself and my little neice could sit in her palm. I named this crazy art form “Olga.”
Kitchen Remodel?
May 17, 2007 | Leave a CommentPosted by admin | Filed Under Erin Weed's Blog
In an effort to take some time off, I am giving myself projects that have no relation to fighting. My first project was the kitchen. It’s pretty old and outdated, so my hubby and I went to this awesome appliance place and raided the scratch ‘n dent section. We got 4 stainless appliances and come out under budget! So we thought we were in the clear…that is, until the fridge arrived and it wouldn’t fit between the countertops. Shit. So we did the only natural thing because we love this fridge so much…we ripped out the counters to give us that extra 1/8 of an inch to make it fit! So now the fridge is happily in place, and we can see the contents of our silverware drawer at all times. It’s oh so convenient.
Takin’ A Break
May 14, 2007 | Leave a CommentPosted by admin | Filed Under Erin Weed's Blog
Today marks the first week since Febraury 1st where I won’t be traveling. Wow. I kinda don’t know what to do with myself…but in a good way. As much as I love my work, I have been looking forward to taking some time off to rejuvinate myself. Being on the road isn’t as glamorous as it may seem, and it can run a person down. I have learned in my 5 years of travling with GFB that it’s absolutely crucial to have “down time.” So that’s exactly what I plan to do for the remainder of May.
I’m aware that many of you are loyal blog readers so I don’t plan to leave you hangin’ for the next two weeks. So instead of blogging about violence and GFB related stuff, I thought it would be fun to blog about overall randomness, my adventures here in Colorado, my triathlon training progress, my pug and her friends and the new Krav Maga school that I joined. So stay tuned for some fun posts, and be forewarned: I’m going to start doing a lot more video on this blog. I’m gonna call it Weed TV.
Guard Your Fortress
May 13, 2007 | Leave a CommentPosted by admin | Filed Under Erin Weed's Blog
Check out my latest article for UniversityChic.com about home security:
http://universitychic.com/node/1347
Krav Maga
May 12, 2007 | 1 CommentPosted by admin | Filed Under Erin Weed's Blog
One of the best things about my relocation to Colorado is that one of the best Krav Maga training facilities in the nation is right here. Let me explain, for those of you who are wondering, “What the hell is Krav Maga?” From the KM website: “Krav Maga is the official self-defense system of the Israeli Defense Forces. It has been taught to hundreds of law enforcement agencies and thousands of civillians across the United States. Krav Maga is a simple, effective self-defense system that emphasizes instinctive movements, practical techniques and realistic training scenarios.” You might recall J-Lo’s stellar performance in the movie “Enough.” She was using Krav Maga.
Cal State - Long Beach, CA
May 9, 2007 | Leave a CommentPosted by admin | Filed Under Erin Weed's Blog
Yesterday officially marked the end of my Spring speaking season. I spoke to about 100 students at Cal State during an outdoor festival celebrating multi-culturalism. It was H-O-T but I still had some brave souls whipping out some Palm-Knee-Elbow action. Good times.
After the Cal State program, I had a few free hours before my flight so I called my favorite superheroine Angela Shelton. Love this girl. She’s a survivor of childhood sexual abuse, and made a movie called Searching for Angela Shelton. She has spearheaded a major movement to help other survivors heal and find their strength and voices again. You might have seen her on Oprah, 48 hours or as a speaker on your campus. She’s also a sought after actress…check her out in her latest movie Air Guitar Nation. We hung out at Rock Bottom Brewery downtown Long Beach, along with her awesome friend/screenwriter/producer, Abigail. It’s been awhile since we had a chance to hang and swap ideas, so it was all good. Afterwards we decided to shoot some video on the streets of Long Beach, which turned out to be a pretty random experience. While we were shooting we were cat-called by an elderly man, people in the building above us were tapping on the windows as we shot, some guy came up to us and we had a conversation too bizarre to put into words and a guy on a segway breezed by while we were shooting. It was just funny and bizarre…see me and Ang pictured above on Ocean St.
I heart Chuck Norris
May 7, 2007 | Leave a CommentPosted by admin | Filed Under Erin Weed's Blog
OK, so I just LOVE Chuck Norris. He’s so cool. And the other night I was out to dinner with friends downtown Denver, and we got to talking about the Chuck Norris craze on the internet. That’s when we got loud and obnoxious, and someone accessed the e-mail below and announced it to the restaurant dining room. Most of them didn’t get it, but we all thought it was funny. So enjoy. God Bless Chuck Norris. I want to meet him, and try out some GFB moves on him.
When the Boogeyman goes to sleep every night, he checks his closet for Chuck Norris. Chuck Norris doesn’t read books. He stares them down until he gets the information he wants. There is no theory of evolution. Just a list of creatures Chuck Norris has allowed to live. Outer space exists because it’s afraid to be on the same planet with Chuck Norris. Chuck Norris does not sleep. He waits. Chuck Norris is currently suing NBC, claiming Law and Order are trademarked names for his left and right legs. Chuck Norris is the reason why Waldo is hiding. Chuck Norris counted to infinity - twice. There is no chin behind Chuck Norris’ beard. There is only another fist. When Chuck Norris does a pushup, he isn’t lifting himself up, he’s pushing the Earth down. Chuck Norris is so fast, he can run around the world and punch himself in the back of the head. Chuck Norris’ hand is the only hand that can beat a Royal Flush. There is no such thing as global warming. Chuck Norris was cold, so he turned the sun up. Chuck Norris can lead a horse to water AND make it drink. Chuck Norris doesn’t wear a watch, HE decides what time it is. Chuck Norris gave Mona Lisa that smile. Chuck Norris can slam a revolving door. Chuck Norris does not get frostbite. Chuck Norris bites frost. Remember the Soviet Union? They decided to quit after watching a DeltaForce marathon on Satellite TV. Contrary to popular belief, America is not a democracy, it is a Chucktatorship.
Pugapalooza
May 5, 2007 | 1 CommentPosted by admin | Filed Under Erin Weed's Blog
Next week I have my final speaking engagement of the semester in California, and we are watching my friend’s two pugs for the weekend. My pug Zoe along with her new friends Hemi and Shelbi are having a total blast. But even in a good-sized house, it’s complete and total chaos. Non-stop entertainment, especially when they decide to bust out a 3-way game of tug-o-war with one of Zoe’s dog beds. (YouTube video of that pug action coming soon…) At one point they got too exhausted to move and all ended up on my lap…see above. Good times.
Job Openings at Girls Fight Back!
May 1, 2007 | Leave a CommentPosted by admin | Filed Under Erin Weed's Blog
Due to our major national expansion that is happening this summer, we are looking for some awesome people to fill the following positions:
GFB Instructor - teach the 90 minute GFB program in your local middle and high schools!
Program Coordinator - This is the person who will set up programs across the country for the GFB instructors. This position will be based in Boulder, CO.
GFB Intern - We need tons of help, and our interns will be directly involved with the major stuff we have going on. Interns will also be based in Boulder, CO.
To learn more about all the positions and application guidelines, go here: