Googling... myself :)

In watching some videos about important topics, such as parents who cast their kids out of homes in Nigeria after labeling them witches, I got sidetracked a bit with a random video about Facebooking and the work place.  It's basically everything I've already heard and know, and have discussed with people a lot... but if you want to watch it, it's here and available for you to check out. What Your Post Could Cost You

At the same time, the video got me thinking.  They discussed how employers Google potential employees to see what comes up.  In previous experience, I've learned that there are quite a few "Crystal Lucas"'s out there - there were three in Kalamazoo, MI alone, all in High School at the same time as me!!  But I thought I'd check it out a bit more, in recent times, just for the fun of it. And to see what a prospective employer might find if they type "Crystal Lucas" into a search engine...

Here's a bit of what I've learned about myself:

• I evidently have a twitter page called "crystalmeth 3:16" - which I haven't tapped into yet.  Maybe in my spare time. (I have to admit that, while the 3:16 part intrigues me, the meth part makes me a bit concerned...)
• I am dancing professionally with Anthony Krotz in ballroom dancing, I think... competing for S. Africa, which is evidently where I'm from.
• According to the Weddingchannel.com, I recently married Todd Wenzel on May 22, 2010.  If you still want to send a last-minute gift, it appears I am registered at Kohl's. (Please ship to my current address in Dar es Salaam... thanks!)
• According to the UPenn almanac, I won the Martin Luther King award for community involvement 23 January 2008.  Good to know!  As a second year MSW student who graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a BA in political science and Africana studies in 2002, I'm evidently keeping busy as I grow in my understanding of the African culture and languages.
• A Hope College Math Dept Newsletter - Off on a Tangent - showed that I was being inducted into Pi Mu Epsilon (a national math society).  Ok, I'm a nerd.  This one is actually about me!
• Apparently I'm also a 49 year old living in Raleigh, NC...  I'm a real estate agent in Texas... and I have twin sons in North Carolina, where I work as a residential and commercial interior designer up and down the East Coast.
• According to the BigTenNetwork.com, I also have a son signing on to play football with Purdue sometime soon.  GO PURDUE!
• Quick!  Who can tell me where Puna is?  Well, hooray to me for winning third place in the A Taste of Puna Cookoff cooking contest with my Puna Chocolate Banana Rolls.  Does that mean I get a free trip to Hawaii?
• Surprisingly enough, I'm still listed as a first grade teacher for Stocks on a 2006-2007 staff webpage.  I'm just hoping that there is a more recent webpage out there for the school!
• Despite assuring everyone that I think running is actually kind of boring (sorry Dad!), I managed to run from Alaska to Panama on the Peace and Dignity Run to represent the Nuxalk Nation, which I presume is in Alaska.  Quite a feat, if you ask me!
• I also recently performed in a play called Mother Courage and Her Children close to where I grew up - at Western Michigan University!  Here's a picture of my budding acting talent.

I, of course, am the flamboyant one on the left.

• In my spare time, I work as an academic coach at the University of Tennessee Knoxville.  Here's my newly updated picture!

• And on FaceBook, I recently quoted that my "sister from another mister," Yanela somebody, was coming to visit sometime soon.  Funny, I've never even heard that phrase before... I must be hanging with the wrong crowd.
• Most importantly, of course, is my continued excellence in teaching.  In 2006, I was named the Teacher of the Year in Bermuda.  I always was interested in multi-cultural education! Check it out here on The Royal Gazette.

Here I am, receiving my reward.  Aren't you proud?!?

All in all, it's funny to realize that Crystal Lucas appears to be such a common African American name.  If Crystal is really so African, why is it that no one in Africa can actually pronounce it?  It just goes to show that "African-American" is not so closely tied with African after all!  Usually, people here finally settle on the familiar (and similar-sounding) word "Christo," (pronounced Chreeest-O), which means "Christ" or "Jesus," when they first meet me.  This is only slightly awkward since my main focus these days is to point kids TOWARDS the Messiah... not pretend to be Him!

On Babyfit.sparkpeople.com, I also discovered that the peak year for naming your girl Crystal was 1983. (Granted, the percentage for naming kids Crystal was still less than 1%, but still...) Coincidental?  I think not!  Unfortunately, this plays right into the fact that though my parents wanted an unusual name for me, there were three Crystals born on the same day in the same hospital as me once upon a time!  

And of course, I would be remiss if I didn't mention my relation to the amazing Uncle George Lucas, who is sort-of pretty-well known for some movies he made about Wars in the Stars.  I'm pretty sure I found a direct genealogical connection to him online somewhere; now I'm just working on fleshing out the details for breaking the news to him (and how he should use obscure African languages in his movies - oh wait, he already has!) before passing the information on to the rest of the Lucas clan!

It's school time: Your homework (if you choose to accept it, which you have to: I'm the teacher!) is to Google YOUR name and let me know what you come up with!  :)  Have fun!