1 in 4

I am sure some of you have seen this, but for those who haven't: take a look at this picture.

This smiley man wore this shirt to Coachella. I am not sure if he thinks he is being funny or clever by making a play on Fatboy Slim's "Eat, Sleep, Rave, Repeat", but that shirt clearly says "RAPE" and he is not even close to being funny.

April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month. It is great that this is a nationally recognized thing, but the fact that rape and sexual assault are universal and not particularly uncommon is just disgusting. Rape is one of the longest existing and most frequently occurring crimes in human history. I can't imagine how to make it stop, but it needs to. 

The University of Denver has many initiatives trying to combat sexual assault and rape on campus. I commend the university for putting things in place. One of the campaigns is "Consent is Sexy". I have a delightful pajama shirt that says this. It is a pretty simple concept if you ask me. "NO" is not consent. Being intoxicated is not consent. Trying to resist is not consent. Get with it. Also, learn your definitions. Rape is not exclusively sexual intercourse. No consent+any undesired penetration=rape.  

"One in four college women report surviving rape or attempted rape at some point in their lifetime." (http://www.oneinfourusa.org/statistics.php) 

1 in 4. That is way, way too many. 25% of college women will be raped or almost raped. That means that in my circle of closest friends, one of us will fall victim to a rapist. I pray to God none of us will but this statistic is still terrifying. 

What is the point of having a blog if I'm not trying to help the world or raise awareness? Stay educated and make good decisions. Please.

Jacquizz

On April Fool's Day, I was lucky to become an "aunt". I say "aunt" because technically, we are cousins, but I am going to be everything to this little boy that his mom has been to me. For that reason, it's Auntie Carolyn.

Over spring break, I traveled to Washington D.C. to hopefully welcome little Jacquizz into the world. Unfortunately, he wasn't early and I wasn't there when he was born. At least the quality time with my aunt and uncle was absolutely wonderful. The little guy came over a week late. He actually is not little all, weighing in at 10 pounds, 3 ounces. He has the chubbiest cheeks I've ever seen. I'm super bummed out that I can't be there to see him and meet him. I guess I will have to be patient.

Oh, I should probably explain the Jacquizz thing. His name is actually Ryan, but before he was born he was nicknamed Jacquizz after a football player on my aunt's fantasy team. It' s totally amusing, but the poor kid will probably be called Jacquizz for awhile. Let's be honest, I'll probably still call him that when he's 30, but only when I want to annoy him.

I haven't even met the kid but I have never felt such love for any baby before. There haven't been too many babies in my family and I was young when my other cousins were born. I guess that explains why he is the background on my phone. I simply cannot wait to know and love this little boy.

Ryan, hopefully the Internet is still a thing in 10 years and I'll be able to show you this post. Granted, when you're 10 you'll probably think it's stupid, but I'll love you anyway.