Who says "It's the most wonderful time of the year?"

As everyone gears up for the holiday season with dreams of sugar plums, snow, and presents, college students dream of finals, papers, and a month off of school (the best present one can ever receive, seriously). The semester is winding down but every class is gearing up! All the last minute papers, essays, problem sets, etc all seem to crash on you on the last moment. I would not call myself a procrastinator, but just a busy busy girl with never enough time so everything gets done at the last minute anyway.  But let's focus on the positives, shall we? 

1) It hasn't snowed yet, just rained and rained.  Someone told me once that Ohio has the most cloudy days out of any other state? I also had someone tell me that this was true for California...

2) The beautiful lights on campus and on Sand

uksy St! I will need to take some pictures. Our campus is so beautiful this time of year.

3) Non-denominational ugly sweater soirees.

4) Spending some extra time in my apartment, curled up, with hot chocolate reading online gossip blogs.

These pictures are a little outdated. They were from Halloween when we were gnomes. I just had to do it! We are just regular garden gnomes. The audacity people had thinking we were the "Travelocity gnome"--can't get away from commercialization. 

First, I must say, Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! The one thing I love about going to a private, small university is getting the entire week off for break. Even when we get back, there is a very short amount of time until the semester ends.
But before break even began, I had the opportunity to travel to St. Jude's Children's Hospital for my sorority. Nationally, Tri-Delta has pledged $10 million in ten years. This is a very big goal; our chapter alone has pledged almost $7,000/yr! They paid for us to travel to Memphis and all of our expenses. Traveling to Memphis was nice in itself to be able to get to see the city. Most importantly we were able to tour the hospital and see where all the money we are raising is actually going. Tri-Delta as a whole has an entire floor in the Chili's Care Center. Included are several pictures from my trip to Memphis!

Who is winning the World Series? Yeah. That's what I thought.

It is quite interesting watching baseball at a place like OWU when you have so many students from New England and Ohio. Let me tell you, I thought there was going to be a turf war during the Indians-Sox games. And when the Sox were finally victorious, come Monday, the New England students gloated happily with Varitek jerseys and Bo-sox hats (I was one of those gloating fans, not going to lie!). A lot of people ask me why I am a Boston Red Soxs fan since I was born in upstate New York and raised in Indiana. I ask you this, why is Lebron James a Yankees fan? Do I need to justify my fanaticism? I think not.
Oh and Jacoby Ellsbury, if we're ever both single, give me a call sometime.
I will leave you with some personal family pictures of the lovely Red Sox and their stadium.

Global Warming, a mixed blessing.

It has been ridiculously nice outside almost too warm for my taste and my irish kleenex skin. I should owe my gratitude to good ole global warming for this one. Then again, the weather in Ohio is fickle so one never does know.
The past two weeks has been filled with great excitement. Thomas Homer-Dixon and Strobe Talbott came to OWU to give lectures as part of the annual lecture series Sagan National Colloquim. As an International Studies majors, I have read extensively about them and articles written by them. I was really impressed by their presentations but most importantly devestated. A lot of what they had to say involved the horrible mess and dire straits of the current global situation. Everything from climate change to the huge refugee displacement caused by the Iraq invasion. They inspired me and made me realize that I am definately in the right major!
I also found out that I have the opportunity to go to Memphis, TN to visit St. Jude's Children's hospital on behalf of our Tri-Delta chapter! I am able to see where the thousands of dollars each year that our chapter raises go. I will make sure to post pictures, but I don't go to Memphis until November.
Other than that, I am just dealing with the regular college woes: time management, exams, and applications for Graduate School. This weekend was our fall break so it was nice to have an extra day off, I really needed it to catch up on some z's.
Attached is a picture of a bat that has been calling my bedroom window screen home for a while. Perfect example of global warming-he/she/it hasn't migrated south yet. The other picture is a group of friends at the Cheesecake Factory for Jessica's birthday (Happy Birthday, Kleinman!)

Graduate School, Shm'aduate Shm'ool

So it's been a little while and I've been a little busy-what do you expect from a college student who does everything under the sun (and the milky way!). Live has been a little crazy around OWU with classes but especially applying to Graduate School. Let me tell you: do not fool yourself by thinking that after the SAT, ACT, college acceptance letters, etc. that is a relief. I wish. Applying to Graduate School is a much more involved task than I ever thought. I guess I was nieve to think that this would all be easy. With the applications, GRE, recommendations, etc., this whole thing is stressful! Well I am going to stop there, because talking about it creeps me out and makes me more stressed than I already am.
I just need to make it through the semester with out wishing my days away!
Other than school, everything has been going great! Informal Sorority Recruitment was last weekend and we have some wonderful new members! I know I haven't posted pictures in a while, so I will do that now. We went to Vaqueros-my fave, for a little fun and fiesta!
I am also on a student faculty commitee that meets once a week which keeps me busy too as well as attending all the home soccer games!

How did I become a senior? I was walking around campus getting things done the other day and I realized that I know no one here on campus! It is pretty wild that many dear friends have moved upward and onward in their lives after graduation so it is really wierd. Other than that, school has started off with nothing rather unusual. My class schedule allows for me to work in the mornings in the Admissions Office while having plenty of time in the afternoon to study, run, and do Tri-Delta stuff.

Talk about being busy. I never thought a person could have so much to do in such a short amount of time. Getting one's life organized takes some time.
I just moved in to my apartment downtown. It has high ceilings and has central AC which is a luxury I haven't had for the past three years on or off campus! It's really not something to complain about only on heat advisory days like today! Giving tours is like taking a steam bath and I feel even worse for those touring who have to interview afterwards. Good thing the counselors don't care about sweaty prospective students and their parents.
I'm really looking forward for school to start up. Even though it is really hectic, this will be my last fall here and since fall is my favorite season it is a double bonus! (I really missed fall last year when I was in Spain--they don't have too many trees). I'm really looking forward to getting back in to the swing of things with PROGRESSOWU. We go down to a soup kitchen in Columbus weekly and I really enjoy doing it. I went with my friend Keira in the spring so I am excited to participate more. I also can't wait for the rest of my friends to get back and catch up for the last time about summer jobs and vacations. Kind of sad, isn't it.
I went to New York last week and am off to a wedding this weekend. I know I have been promising pictures so I will put those up soon.

Maine drag

Thus far, I couldn't have asked for a better summer: traveling to my favorite summer vacay spots: New York and Maine, visiting my sister in Chicago, living with my friend liz, being 21 and next to a great city (and getting to finish the Harry Potter series which was amazing--promise I won't ruin it). However, I could have asked for a better layover in JFK. How could a transportation system run so poorly? Better yet, all means of transportation! I could blame Jet Blue for my 3 am arrival in to Columbus. I'd rather lay the blame on Laguardia, for having an extra runway hence making all JFK arrivals and departures late.
Enough about planes and my bitterness towards them, Maine was wonderful this weekend! I was able to sleep, a lot. I went to the beach, ate seafood, and went kayaking on the pond. It was so nice to be away from people for a while.
Over the next couple of weeks I am quite busy. I am taking some time off from working in the Admissions office to take my "vacation." Total, it adds up to 2 weeks. However, I am taking it over a period of 4 weeks so I am missing a few days every week. Wednesday I am going home for two days to get my life together before school starts: doctor appointments, cleaning, packing--things like that. The week after that, it is back to New York. Thank GOD I am driving this time.

Summer lovin', happened so fast...

How does the summer go by this fast? Seriously, July is halfway over and I am booked solid every weekend for the rest of the summer! As promised, photos from Chicago are included in this post. Since I live near Chicago I never get to do the tourist-y things so we went to Millennium Park (beautiful). Personally, I am a huge fan of the botanical gardens. In Columbus there is apparently a butterfly conservatory with Chihully glass. Sounds
brilliant-I'll have to go sometime.
Recently, I have been spending a lot of time in Columbus. Gallery hop, another unique feature of Columbus, occurs every month throughout the year. All of the galleries and shops in the Short North stay open late and people meander through them. I think Delaware will have that future potential as well. Even in the three short years that I have been here, Delaware has added shops, restaurants, antique stores, and boutiques. It's pretty exciting to see it happening.
This coming weekend I am heading to Maine which will be a nice and relaxing change. For once it will be nice to be away from the rest of civilization. Other than that I have been doing some great reading and studying for the GRE. Oh! And I am also training for the Columbus 1/2 Marathon. As a retired cross country runner, I could never see myself doing a marathon-I know how much work that is. Half of that distance seems much more appropriate. Hopefully the weather cools enough to allow for some good running!

I have never been to a Major League Baseball game where the team I have rooted for won! How disappointing is that? I am very bad luck. Last weekend I went to a Cubs game in Chicago for my birthday and to visit my sister. It was sad, to say the least, that the Cubs, on a seven game winning streak mind you, lost!!
I am pretty excited for the 4th of July tomorrow because not only do I get to sleep in I also get to go to Red White and Boom tonight! I go for the food--fireworks are so blaise.
Other than the occasional trip, I have been moving in with my friend Liz before I can finally move in to my apartment in August. It has been absolutely gorgeous here and I am hoping to be able to ride my bike in bearable heat. Ohio has a great rails to trails program which converts old railroad tracks and turn them in to trails-nice, huh?

I'm on Call

Tomorrow marks the first day of summer-could I sound more excited? Besides the last day of summer session, which is a good way to start off the summer, I am still working a lot. I miss the days of high school where one could lie around by the pool all day and not have a care, or a job, in the world! Don't get me wrong, I like to work, but unfortunately the reality of having to get a "big girl job" or going to graduate school don't seem as appealing as lounging with a fruity drink by a pool.
With senior year approaching, I plan on taking the GRE in August and apply to several graduate programs there after.
Between now and then, I plan on going to Chicago, Maine, New York, and Boston. Mom, if you read this, I promise to come back to Indiana too! I've also had a great time here in Delaware this summer hanging out with friends in the evenings. It is a great thing to be 21-I tell you!
I've also had a great time hanging out in downtown Columbus either shopping or eating or doing whatever! Most recently I went to a Kings of Leon concert--absolutely AMAZING (hence the title of this entry).
Working, studying, and traveling-does it get much better than this? Now, if only I had a pool...

Okay, so I am guilty

I feel pretty bad for not posting for a little while. Since things have cooled down and it is officially summer, well almost, I feel as though I can start writing on a regular basis again. This summer I am planning on staying in good old Delaware, OH. I am taking a summer school class to help get ahead and make my last year a lot easier. Also, I have a great job working for the Admissions Office--if you come for a tour this summer, you will surely see me so say hello!
Anyway, I have been keeping busy with not only work and school but exploring Columbus. I have only had a car here for roughly the past 5 months, so I can travel back and forth to Columbus. I went to the Arts Festival (those are the pictures included) and I am going to a concert there tomorrow night. I turned 21 three weeks ago so Columbus has even more to offer with great bars and restaurants.
Other than that, I have been prepping for the GRE and Graduate Schools. Who knows where I'll be one year from now! The rest of the summer I am trying to stay and shape and gear up for my friend Jori's wedding in August.

Celebrate

Summer is approaching and it has been beautiful here. School has officially ended and summer work has officially begun! These last couple of weeks I have been trying to tie up loose ends: saying goodbye to friends graduating, going abroad or transfering. I was also able to visit the open shelter in Columbus with an organization here on campus called ProgressOWU. I hope to continue this throughout the fall.

The Final Unraveling

One thing I am always asked, is what is going on at OWU during the weekends. While I like to venture in to Columbus and enjoy all that it has to offer, many things happen here on our campus. Over the past two weeks there has been an Opera, a play, two concerts (one step show included), and an art exhibit. The pictures that I am posting are from the Senior Art Exhibit-Denouement. It's really interesting to be able to see all the great work created by friends and students.
There are just a few days left of school and I wish there were more. I have so much work so I just need two weeks to get everything finished-no matter how hard you try, there never seems to be enough hours in the day! This weekend there are even more events distracting me from my work--Alumni Soccer game, Miss OWU, and most importantly, the lacrosse game verus DENNISON.

Life in Ohio has been quite crazy the past few weeks-including the weather (how can you go from literally 80 degrees to less than 35?) Other than that, this is the time of year that is crazy for anyone involved in academics even the faculty are super busy. I found out this week that I was accepted in to four different honor socities this week. I now feel validated for all the hard work I have put forth over these past couple of years. This picture is of my friend Liz, studying in Slocum Hall. I like studying there because first and foremost it is very quiet and secondly, much more beautiful-some pretty good selling points. Plus, I can stay there 'til all hours of the night, just like I always want to.
Other than academics, I have been hanging out with friends and doing various things for my sorority. I went to Manahattan's Restaurant, a local eatery that I have yet to visit. I was actually quite impressed-I highly reccomend it if you're looking for a place to eat.
Most importantly, my friend and future off-campus roomie, Lacy, purchased a chi-weenie. Also known as Gracie, this little dog is only 5 pounds. Its full size is going to be only a few more pounds than that. I had to include pictures-she is just too adorable!

And it continues...

Spring break is over and today is the first day of classes. Pretty exciting, I know. Over the weekend I had the opportunity to explore Columbus a little more. Even though I have been at OWU for a few years and have had an internship in Columbus, I have not had the chance to see everything. I went to the North Market, which is a very cool indoor market where you can buy lunch from Pad-Thai to Italian. I highly recommend it. Everytime my parents come to visit, they bring a cooler so they can buy lots of goodies at the North Market and keep them fresh on their trip home! I also went to the Columbus Art Museum. It has some great permanent collections of European and American art. We specifically went for the Op Art exhibit. The Wexner Center, which I wrote about a few weeks ago, is much different, and I would recommend visiting both museums.

The pictures in this post are of downtown Columbus, OH.
The one extra picture is of my room mate Laura, she went on a trip to the Everglades with OWU. Several trips are organized through the school, very cool option for spring break. Here is she is modeling her gear.

What to do with a week of vacay:

Sitting here at home, on a gorgeous, 70+ degree day-beautifully balmy, one asks themselves, what is there to do? The bar is not in walking distance, my friends from home are at their respective colleges, and alas I was fortunate enough not to have homework (unlike myself with a take home exam, a problem set for economics, and lots and lots of paper writing). A few things I would reccommend watching, reading, and listening to the following:

Books, During the school year, recreational reading is basically out of the question. During break, one has a little more time, especially on a sunny day like this, what is better than going to the park and reading a good novel? First, I would highly reccomend "How We Are Hungry" by Dave Eggers. He actually gave a talk at Ohio Wesleyan two years ago and was a great treat. Filled with hilarious mini stories, Eggers is known to be "phenomenaly talented" and "very unique" [Washington Post]. If you're in to witty, tension filled books that will make you laugh, Eggers is for you. I would also recommend the sequel to "Running With Scissors," "Dry" by Augusten Burroughs. If you thought the first book or the movie was crazy, this one is even more insane. It makes you feel as though your problems are minute in comparison to this memoir. Next, Dorothy Allison's "Bastard Out of Carolina." This great book depicts the life of a young woman who knows at an early age that she is a lesbian. Very good. We read some of Allison's works in my Women and Gender Studies class and that lead me to this book.
Okay, so I guess you can say I like memoirs about people who's lives are crazy and seem unrealistic. So I guess this list is biased.
Others to note: "Fierce People", Dirk Wittenborn and Sylvia Plath's "The Bell Jar'

You're reading this great books but what about some music to ride around in the car too. On that long ride back to school next week you have to have something to keep you awake. Albert Hammond Jr. Enough said. If you're a fan of The Strokes, this cd is phenomenal! If you're a little old school try a little Edith Paif's french sounds of La Vie en Rose. Perfect for that breezy Parisian day we seem to be having.

Other than that? Enjoy your spring break! Whether it is Hawaii, Canada, or your hometown-relax, because it only gets crazier from here on out!

Pictures of SB coming soon!

Snow, what snow?

It's been a little awhile since my last post, and I am sure you have heard of the Blizzard of 2007. It has been the University's first snow day in 5 years, I am glad I survived! Last year, they almost had to close school due to flooding after it rained for weeks on end and they almost had to open up the Olentangy dam. But as my mother would say, "This is nothing like Saratoga, New York!" When we used to live in New York, the snow would get so high, our dog would walk over the fence. This year they had several feet of snow, nothing comparable to Ohio! The University did a great job executing the cleaning and shoveling of the snow and ice. They kept the dining halls on the residential side open and were well staffed. I was impressed, to say the least.
What else is new? Besides the snow? Not a whole lot. We're coming down to mid-terms and our first big papers. It doesn't help when one has a cold like I do. But I'll keep on truckin'. I am hoping to post some good pictures soon. Until then, this is a picture of my friends Maureen and Brittany on the way to our Sorority Crush party. They were smart and wore boots.

No love for Lovie Smith

Yeah for the Colts finally winning a Superbowl in my lifetime. I hope there will be many more to come! Over the past couple of weeks, I have been able to accomplish a lot of things. I went to a student gallery opening in Edgar, one of OWU's art buildings which is always fun. It is nice to see all the hard the work and dedication done by students, very talented ones at that. I also saw a great exhibit at the Wexner Center, one of the art museums in Columbus. The exhibits are free and they always have new and interesting events. For example, the band Girl Talk played at the museum on Saturday. If you ever get a chance to visit, the bookstore/gift shop makes it worth the trip. Downtown Columbus has a pretty good art scene. Gallery Hop happens every month where you can visit all the different galleries in downtown Columbus. The art club organizes a bus to go down, so anyone can go, for free!

The pictures are from the art exhibit at the Wexner Center and from dinner at Panera with some of friends.

Time to Breathe, just a bit.

Now that recruitment just ended, adding 18 new girls to the house, I can finally relax (but just for a moment). I have lots of catching up to do and an Economics quiz tomorrow. How thrilling. I am coming down with something, let's hope it is nothing bad. We also have sorority formal this weekend so I hope I can wrap everything up and get ready for that. I am currently in the process of researching Graduate Schools. One might think this is a little premature, but I didn't do as much undergraduate research as I would have liked. Since Graduate school is much more specific in a study, I am hoping I can find the one that is right for me. I am also planning to take the GRE this spring because they are changing it in the fall and the last thing I want is to be a guinea pig. I am still waiting on a reply from an internship I applied to. They responded very quickly but have yet to get get back to me a second time. It is frustrating, but I am hoping for the best. This internship would be great and came on a recommendation by one of my professors. Let's hope I can pull things together!

Back to the grind

I am four days in to school and still alive. Always a good start. It is definately wierd to be back after being gone for so long. I get to see the people I know and have missed while others keep their aninimity. I have moved in, finally! I am living in Hayes, the same dorm I lived in my freshman year. I have filled out the application to live off campus next year, let's make that happen Res Life! Dorm life isn't bad, but three years of dorm living is my limit. Preperation for sorority recruitment has been going on non-stop this week. This weekend kicks it off and we're hoping to get a huge pledge class this year. Sorority life has taken up much of my time this week so I am little behind in my school but I can catch up next week, not too worried yet! I am taking 5 classes, 4 of them upper level so I have my share of work. The pictures posted are of my fellow sisters in Delta Delta Delta, since the theme of this week is recruitment.

But I liked 2006!

Sadly, another year has ended, or maybe that was a good thing. I enjoyed 2006. It was a year of firsts: I lived in Delaware, OH, had a great internship, and studied in a foreign country for a semester. I hope that 2007 brings me just as much success and happiness. I rang in the New Year in Columbus with several friends and enjoyed sleeping and watching movies most of the weekend. I think everything finally caught up to me, because I am pooped for no reason. I am starting off the year working hard: finishing up internship applications (cross your fingers for me!), studying for the GRE, and doing my sorority's recruitment slideshow. I am trying to fit in my social life, time with my family, and the gym in there somewhere too. Hopefully all of this will get done before this weekend.
The year however has started off with world chaos. With the ETA bombing at Barajas in Madrid to the civil war in Somalia, I am hoping that 2007 brings peace. Atleast this makes a job market for me
[picture posted] my friend and OWU soccer stud, Erik-ringing in the New Year.