The Road to Here

Hey everyone! There are just FIVE DAYS LEFT until Spring State begins, and once it begins...it'll be just about the greatest JSA experience I've ever had, win or lose.

To start off, I want to look back to this point in time one year ago--before Spring State 2010. I was running for SER Senator, alongside Andrew Leontis, Liam Nuebling, Sigal Willner and Samir Khanna. Andrew and Liam would go on to get elected, and are running for Governor and re-election as SER Senator, respectively. Sigal, like Samir and I, lost, but is running for SER Senator yet again this year. Samir became this year's Director of Thought Talks, and Xavier's lone representative on Cabinet.

Me? Well, I became the state's first-ever Sergeant-at-Arms (a more understandable title: Director of Decorum). But before I even applied for Cabinet this year--in fact, shortly after I found out I'd lost--David Crosson, one of Servite's most admired JSAers and arguably the best debater I've ever met, found me and told me, "Hey, I just want to tell you something: Congratulations."

I was confused. He continued.

No More Mini-Cons :(

Recently I found out that the Temple City Mini-Con was cancelled, and that the CIR Megacon was postponed, then brought back suddenly to be this Saturday, at Carpinteria High School, followed by a beach party.

However, this Saturday I have a family event I have to be at, and family comes first in any situation. With that being said, I will, sadly enough, not be making any more campaign appearances until Spring State, when I plan to make up for the time I feel I've lost.

It is my promise to all of you that Spring State will be the best JSA weekend of the year, and that the election for Speaker WILL be the best this state has seen in a long time.

If you're going to be at the CIR Megacon on Saturday and you support my campaign, PLEASE let me know, because I'd be very interested in having you speak for my campaign, since I obviously cannot.

Keep checking back on this blog as well as my Facebook page for further information about my campaign!

Desert Megacon CANCELED; Further Campaign Appearances in Question

So, as it turns out, Xavier's school board recently informed their JSA chapter that they will not allow them to use the school's facilities for the planned Desert Megacon, and it's too late for the other two host schools, Marywood-Palm Valley and Palm Desert High, to take over hosting at this point. Because of this, the Desert Megacon has been canceled on last-minute notice...thus making the nearest convention the Downey Mini-Con.

Speaking of which, I currently do not have transportation to the Downey Mini-Con, and until I do, I'm unsure of whether I'll be able to make it there. I look forward to getting a ride down and to being at the mini-con, but keep checking back here for updates as to whether I'll be there or not.

On this note, I sadly will NOT be at the Conejo Valley Mega-Con; a family friend of ours is getting married on that day, and thus I will be there, rather than in Thousand Oaks. It is with regret that I say I can't be there, but I look forward to hopefully being at Downey and Temple City, leading up to the biggest of them all...Spring State! Which now is just 15 DAYS AWAY!!!!

Odds & Ends: Super Sundays, Looking Back, SURPRISE!

Just to sum up my latest campaign news and adventures...

• In addition to the two remaining Super Saturdays (4/2 @ Xavier College Prep, 4/9 @ Thousand Oaks), there are now two Super SUNDAYS to look forward to: 4/3 @ Downey and 4/10 @ Temple City! These all lead up to Spring State, which will be from April 15-17!
• I want to look back at the past two (technically three) events thus far...we're just 18 days away from Spring State as it stands right now, and the bulk of the action is yet to come! Thanks so much to those who supported me at Congress, the AR One Day and the SER One Day, and I hope to see you all on the road ahead!
• If you weren't at the SER One Day, and haven't been too tuned in to Facebook lately...well...SURPRISE! This Speaker election now has FOUR candidates, with my good friend and CIR Mayor Karina Jougla jumping into the race. This makes this election...well, not only tougher, but it'll be tense. Very tense, and very exciting. Anyone else agree that it looks like last year's LTG election already?

The NEXT Super Saturday!

The campaign trail continues in TWO DAYS! As I've said several times up to this point, the Southern Empire Region (SER) is holding their Spring One Day this coming Saturday at Whitney High School, in Cerritos. It's going to be absolutely fun, and I definitely have a fantastic speech planned out for the candidates' forum (well...I will have one). I can't wait to see you all there!

The theme for this One Day is "Reflecting on the Campaign for Change." As the name may suggest, the debates of the day will be themed around Barack Obama's 2008 presidential campaign, and what promises he made that have--as well as those that have not--been furthered on.

I hope to see VERY many of you out there, as well as the four subsequent one-day events thereafter!

Odds & Ends: AR One Day, Videos, SER One Day, Future Events

Tidbits to share with you all--and remember, just 26 days left until Spring State!

• Yesterday, despite a lower attendance than anticipated, the Angeles Region Spring One Day was a HUGE success! On a personal note, I won my first Best Speaker gavel in a debate on Israeli aid. My campaign speech from the candidates' forum is available on my Facebook page for viewing.
• In that respect, I will soon have a "Videos" section here on my blog, where you can view my speeches, recorded endorsements, and, soon enough, my annotated platform video.
• The Southern Empire Region One Day is in just six days! On March 26th, Whitney High School, in Cerritos, will host the one-day, entitled Reflections on the Campaign for Change.
• After the SER One Day, there will be four more events upcoming. They are:
  ---Desert Megacon 2011: A Look at the Future (April 2, 2011)
  ---Downey High JSA Mini-Con (April 3, 2011)
  ---Conejo Valley Megacon (April 9, 2011)
  ---Temple City JSA Mini-Con (April 10, 2011)

So...I can't wait to see you all in six days! As always, if you're interested in helping with my campaign, let me know and I will definitely find a way you can help.

Odds & Ends: Another Super Saturday, The First Stop, Remaining Opportunities

If I ever have several small tid-bits of news that wouldn't quite fit as their own post(s), I will be compiling them into "Odds and Ends", as I did here. So, here are the latest tidbits of campaign news and JSA news:

• Xavier College Prep, Marywood-Palm Valley, and Palm Desert have all announced that they are joint-hosting the 2011 Desert Mega-Con on April 2nd! If I'm not mistaken, the event will be taking place at Xavier's campus, and I will do my best to be there.
• The first campaign stop--yes, the AR One Day--is now just THREE days away! I can't wait to see ALL of you and to answer any lingering questions you may still have regarding my campaign.
• As always, I am willing to add any help to my campaign team. I have several opportunities to help in several capacities, so if you're interested, just ask!