NFB Youth Slam!

Hello to everyone! This is Tomi, and all of us here at Youth slam are having lots of fun. The entire news crew is very excited to be journaling LIVE from this extraordinary event! I personally couldn’t wait to write on this blog about last night’s happenings, since our original plans had to change.

On the schedule and in the announcements, a slam BBQ was planned for Monday night, with a live band that would play. Weather prevented this from coming to fruition and accordingly our schedule had to be changed. They never did tell us the “mystery band’S” name, however.

Instead of a BBQ, we had sort of a dance. Food was still served at the dance just as though we were at a BBQ ; Yet we were inside an echoy building with very loud music playing. The moment I stepped in that building, I lost my mentor immediately and proceeded off to the food lines. Later, me and the mentor talked and agreed to meet up at a location at the end of the dance.

Losing my mentor gave me new opportunities to explore the area around me and consequently meet new people. After receiving my meal, I stopped and sat down next to a volunteer from India, who came to this nation just this past January. He and I associated very well, since we both were immigrants! Briefly, our discussion centered around this American culture and the stress which comes with living in America.

Unfortunately, I could not find this man again after throwing my trash out and returning to my seat. Ah well. Perhaps we will meet again at some point during youth slam!

The rest of the night ended well. I talked to several others – including a girl from Maryland named Ashley, Dr. Maurer’s brother, and several other guys from the Frederick (Griffindor) dorms. Overall, I had lots of fun meeting new people. I am positive that the spirit of Youth Slam will continue to rise as the week progresses!

Last night, there was a barbecue planned to happen outside. However, it rained that night so the barbecue was moved to a gym type building indoors.
We stood in that line for a surprisingly short time, considering how many people were there to partake in some of the delicious food. After a meal of your choice of hamburgers or hotdogs, potato salad or chips, and a cookie, the dinner took on a party-like atmosphere.
There was a DJ and a great sound system and the party was in full swing within five minutes! I’m not a very good dancer, but I was out there with the rest of the excited masses.
I think my most educational moment was on the dance floor, where I was taught different sorts of dances. And, although I wasn’t very good at first, everyone I was with encouraged me to keep trying and practicing and that I would get better. I didn’t become a perfect dancer last night, but I had a lot of fun being a not so good one.
I did have a slight mishap involving a soul train line and resulting in a broken shoe. Right after the Electric Slide, one of my good friends suggested we start a soul train line. We were doing a pretty good job, although I had made the slightly unwise decision to wear flip-flops and the girl behind me kept stepping on them. Finally, after a particularly jerky turn, the strap to my flip-flop broke beyond repair. The rest of that night was spent in careful dancing. I must admit, I looked hilarious doing the Cha-cha Slide with one broken shoe, as I kept walking normally on the foot clad in the unbroken shoe, and hopping on the foot clad in the broken ones.
The walk back to our dorms was more difficult than I would have liked. Not only was one of my shoes broken, but the ground was slippery, as it had just rained. However, I finally made it up all those steps alive and in one piece. Overall, last night was a very fun and interesting affair.

The first day of Youth Slam was both a surprise and a blast. From seeing old friends to meeting my new team, there was never a dull moment. My mentor, Harriet Go, began referring to me as Miss Popularity, to which I responded by telling her that seeing as I had been to the last Youth Slam in 2007, and because my state of Georgia had the most attendees, I knew more people than most.
That day was spent getting to know our teams, eating dinner, and hearing some thrilling welcome speeches by several notable NFB members including Mr. Mark Riccobono, Ms. Karen Zaknini, and the NABS president, Arielle Silverman. All of them were thrilled that the moments defining the Youth Slam had finally arrived.
After the welcome meeting, we went back to our dorms to have meetings with our dorm captains, after which we were dismissed to our rooms for bedtime preparations.
Some of the funny and interesting moments were the state roll calls, where Georgia was the largest and loudest. Also, our dorms have a Harry Potter theme. For example, I reside in Prince George’s Dorm, which, for this week, became known as Hufflepuff.
So, as the first day drew to a close, most of us went to bed with anticipation on the brain and excitement in our hearts.