About Amanda
I’m a disgruntled LIRR commuter by morning, real estate journalist by day, insomniac by night, and cancer butt-kicker for life.
Where To Find Me
The Best Rejection Letter
Published January 2, 2012 | A Writer’s Book of Days (01/02): Write About A Time Someone Said No
The best rejection I received was from my first choice for college – I was wait-listed at Villanova University. At that point, I was applying for scholarships and couldn’t hold on to the hope that I’d get in at a later date. Instead, I semi-reluctantly sent in my acceptance letter for my second choice, Fordham University. I grew much warmer to the school as August came closer, but there was still a nagging “what-if.” I’d really loved Villanova.
A week after I started classes at Fordham, a plane hit the North Tower of the World Trade Center and the world turned upside down in an instant. But unlike many of my new friends, I lived closed to home – something that turned out to be very important to me during that tumultuous first year of college. Many weekends were spent back on Long Island as I dealt with the stress of 9/11, a horrible roommate, and the worst two semesters of my entire educational life. This is something I wouldn’t have been able to do had I been anchored to the Philadelphia area.
I sometimes wonder if I would have stuck it out at Fordham if I didn’t have that escape. I soon found my place there by joining the school newspaper, The Ram, where I started as a news writer and quickly rose to the ranks of editor and eventually editor in chief. The latter position secured me quite a few interviews post-graduation, and I quickly settled into the world of business journalism.
I wonder where I’d be today had it not been for Villanova’s rejection. Would I have lived in New York? Would I be a journalist? Would I have had all the great experiences of the past 10 years? Would I have traveled to as many places? Would I have such a diverse, wonderful group of friends?
I wouldn’t trade what I have today for all the Villanova acceptance letters in the world.
Help Me Squash Lymphoma!
Published September 1, 2011 | It’s been a while since I’ve blogged – life has been that crazy. So crazy that I just started fundraising for my annual Light the Night Walk, which benefits the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. As many of you know, I am a six-year survivor of Non-Hodgkins lymphoma, so this cause is near and dear to my heart. Last year, I raised over $7,700, my best fundraising year ever.
This year, I’ve created a website, Squash Lymphoma, to make donating and promotion a bit easier. It talks about my history, Team Squash Lymphoma, the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, and my fundraising efforts for the year. I will be walking at Bethpage Ballpark in Central Islip, Long Island on October 29.
To kickstart fundraising, I’m holding my first contest for the month of September. Every $10 donated to my Light the Night fundraising is an entry to win an iPod Touch 8GB. A winner will be chosen at random on October 1.
Other things to do: send out my nifty thank-you notes to last year’s donations (fashionably late, as usual with everything in my life), check out if there’s another Islip street fair this August, and pound the pavement for business sponsors.
Would you please consider donating?
$380 Million
Published January 5, 2011 | I, like 99% of other Americans who played Mega Millions last night, did not win the $380M jackpot. Or even part of it.
But what the heck would I do with that much money? I can’t even decide what to do with $38 in my pocket sometimes.
Lisa Brewster
So, I thought about what I’d do (after making sure people around were taken care of properly):
- Donate significant portions to my three favorite cancer charities: Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Journey to the Cure, and I’m Too Young For This!
- Donate a significant portion to Stony Brook University Cancer Center as a thank you for treating me
- Establish scholarship funds for Fordham University and St. Mary School, so students who can’t afford to go to either school could have a chance like I did
- Upgrade The Ram‘s office and technology, and upgrade the technology in Fordham’s Communication & Media Studies department as needed
- Likely a pipe dream, but convince the Sisters of St. Joseph to reopen The Academy of St. Joseph and upgrade the school so it can properly compete with other private schools on Long Island
- Buy an abandoned movie theater – preferably Islip – upgrade it, and name it “A Theater Near You” (which I thought was the name of every theater when I was three years old)
- Buy a house, preferably with a pool and near a library
- Make sure every food pantry on Long Island is well stocked
- Build a shelter or transitional housing
- Buy some commercial real estate
- Open up my own bookstore
- Travel the world
I’m sure I’ll think of other things. What would you do with that much money?
Sam Champion Made My Morning
Published January 4, 2011 | This morning, everyone’s favorite weatherman, Sam Champion, tweeted:
goodmorning from Times SQ! …mega millions up to 330million… ahhh retirement”
So I tweeted back:
@SamChampion Could’ve sworn you were worth billions already
”
I didn’t actually think he’d reply – the guy has over 34,000 followers. But he tweeted back:
@AmandaNMarsh hahahah NO… cause daddy would b in bed if worth 330 million!!!”
That totally made my morning. It’s the small things that amuse me. But it particularly excited me because, you see – Sam and I have a history. A history he doesn’t know about.
In elementary school, I could have been described as a goody two shoes. Always behaved, always did my homework, was a teacher pleaser, etc.
Sam was the first person to ever get me in trouble.
I was in third grade, 1991. It was one of those overcast winter days where you can just feel the snow in your bones. My teacher chastised the class for not paying attention, saying that it wasn’t going to snow until later that evening – don’t expect an early dismissal.
I piped up, “Well, Sam Champion said it was going to snow four inches by early afternoon.”
She replied that it wasn’t going to snow until that evening.
“But Sam said so!” I was adamant.
And for the first time in my school career, I had my name written on the board for misbehaving. I had contradicted my teacher, and she wasn’t happy.
Guess who had an early dismissal that day? Thanks, Sam, for providing me hope, even if others tried to dash it.
Oh %#@! Christmas Tree
Published December 4, 2010 | Our annual Christmas tree tradition usually means driving less than 10 miles to a lot somewhere, or if we’re really in a time crunch, Home Depot. This year, Mom and I thought it would be a grand idea to cut our own Christmas tree. After much Googling, we settled on Lewin Farms in Wading River, a town that’s at least a good 40 minutes from my house. (In fact, that’s where we purchased two 100-lb. pumpkins when I was 11 years old. There were only supposed to be two normal sized pumpkins, but my sister Alyse found a mega pumpkin, so I had to have one too. It took the help of Secret Service agent-type guys who were ferrying around a group of Italian diplomats to get the pumpkins in the car, then the help of a neighbor and a jury-rig of aluminum lounge chairs and towels to get them out at home. I digress.)
I must have visited six or seven website in regards to picking your own Christmas tree on Long Island. I remembered correctly that all trees, no matter what size you cut, were $30. I remembered incorrectly that there was no one around to help you cut or get your tree off the farm. After putting down a $5 deposit to rent a saw, we were on our own. Continue reading