Things I Get For Free

It happened twice, I got a free movie ticket at Harkins and then AMC.

I forgot to post this when it happened but, when I went to go see Dark Knight Rises at Harkins, the movie was delayed. We sat in the theater waiting for the movie to start and it never did, nether did the previews. Finally, someone that worked there came into the theater and told us that they were having technical difficulties and the movie would start in about 10 - 15 Minutes and to compensate for our patenice, we would be refunded the ticket by giving us a ticket voucher.

We can use the ticket voucher anytime we want for any movie we want. We still ended up watching Dark Knight and only waited for about 20 minutes, not too bad actually. One thing I did hate is that we missed the previews. My friend paid for my ticket so I gave her the voucher.

In Pomona, every August the Fairplex fairgrounds hosts the L.A. County Fair. As a townie, it is a must go. Well, I've been to the fair quite a few time so my friend suggested we go on a Thursday. Why? Because that day there was a book drive promotion. If you donate a new or gently used book, you get in for free. Perfect! and Since we live close to the fair, we decided to bike so we won't pay for parking. It took us less than 15 minutes to bike to the fairgrounds.

Nothing says summer like a baseball game. Better yet, a free baseball game. 76 gas had a promotion that if you submit four receipts showing you pumped more than ten gallons, you get two free ticket to any game you want. Well, I submitted eight receipts and received four tickets. I chose which game to go wisely and chose to go on Labor day because that day, dodger dogs were sold for $1.

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I'm back from Italy, moved back to California from Michigan, and I am settled down now. In the past two and a half months, I have received a lot of free things but have failed to take pictures or add them here because I have been busy trying to settle back into the groove of things.

I think this is the best thing I have received for free. Yes, I get a six-week trip to Italy, with Rome being the home base, for free!! Let me explain.

Last summer, I completed a study abroad program in Rome, Italy. I have to say it was the best experience ever and I have yearned to go back ever since. I made amazing friends, saw history with my own eyes and ate amazing food.  I kept my family and friends back home up to date with everything I was doing by creating a blog.

The program coordinator was amazing and once we got back from the trip, he invited our whole group for coffee to catch up and to talk to participants for this year. This happened in April. While drinking coffee and catching up, he offered to look over my resume because I was having difficulties finding a job while I was working on finishing up my Masters degree.I emailed him a couple days after and never heard back from him.

Well two weeks ago, he responded to my email and apologized for the delayed response and wanted to talk to me over the phone. He called me and much to my surprise, he asked me if I was interested in going back to Italy with him this summer as a program assistant. Even before he explained what I would be doing or any other details, I said yes. I didn't hesitate.

Today, Hubbard dinning hall hosted the 2012 Culinary Cup for Michigan State University and I was gracious enough to be invited. I found out that there was going to be free lunch and I can't pass up that kind of opportunity.

As you can see from the picture, I had a couple of sandwiches, cole slaw, pickles and not picture hot dog, chips, and a drink. They were all very delicious and I have to say, after lunch I was very sleepy but still made it through the day.

I am very proud of this item. Today, I got a free baseball from a foul ball hit at the Lansing Lugnuts game. I have been to many baseball games and I have never gotten the chance to catch a homerun or foul ball.

Because it rained for most of the day today, I assume the stands were empty because of the rain. It didn't deter me from attending my very first Lugnuts game, which was on my to-do list while I am in Michigan. Leave it to me to wait until the very last home game they will have that I will be able to attend. 

It's finals week and it seems like all graduating seniors are going out to the bars every single night, and I am no exception. One of the popular drinking establishments in East Lansing is Rick's American Cafe and every Tuesday it is half off all drinks.

On Saturday, I attended a Phi Kappa Sigma alumni event at What Up Dawg?, a local restaurant/bar that sells specialty hot dogs and even has beer on draft. I am an active member of Phi Kapp but will soon be an alumni so, one of the almuni offered to buy my meal for me to say "welcome, you're now a Phi Kapp alumni."

A final parting gift from Michigan State University, a paper weight. As much as these items are useless, this one is pretty bad ass. I can use it as the dealer button on a poker game, a ball marker when playing golf or simply to hold down some paper on my desk when I get a job.

As graduation approaches, a lunch was organized to celebrate the interns at MSU's RHS Marketing Communications and bid them farewell. I am one of those interns and I have to say, I am a little sad that I will be leaving RHS and most importantly Michigan State. As a farewell gift, we were given a green folder with the MSU logo.

We were told that this folder might give us the edge if we take it to a job interview. After all, there are over 375,000 MSU alumni worldwide. One of those alumni has to be an HR representative and should notice the folder. Seeing as I am in the process of finding a job, I am definitely going to use this to bring my resume, cover letter, writing samples, business card and reference list. Let's hope this helps me land the perfect job that I've been looking for.

There seems to be a trend here because this is the fourth time I have gotten free pizza since I started this blog. But this time it was higher-quality pizza than that from Rick's.

The pizza came from Pizza House, a pizzeria located in East Lansing. Tom, our program coordinator for the study abroad program I participated in the summer of 2011, bought the pizza for his summer 2012 program participates. Tom invited our group to talk to the future participants about our experience in Rome and convince them that it is a great experience and that they will have fun.

Tom did the same thing for us last year and provided us with free pizza and pop (or soda). I think this part of the program orientation is helpful because the group gets a first-hand account of the program and what Rome has to offer. It brought back memories of Rome and made me miss the wonderful city and the people in it.