Something New

Here is a collection of collection of odds and ends from the week past, in which I have lacked the motivation to write an honest-to-goodness well written blog entry. You have my apologies, dear readers.

Monday: I have come to the realization that I cannot maintain a straight face in Latin, as saying the words out loud tickles me to an extreme. Amamus (we love) makes me think of “I’m a moose”, for example.

Tuesday: I got to break in my new pink laundry basket. After breaking the handle of my hamper last year due to too much weight (I was stupid and threw my detergent bottle in there once), I decided to aim for the more sturdy plastic laundry baskets. There are a lot of machines in Loyola basement, and I was pleased that most of them were empty. While not as spacious as the laundry room in Wheeler, I still think it’s lovely.

Wednesday: Co-curricular extravaganza night. I was the first person on the list for Science Ambassadors and signed up for CAB (Campus Activities Board) as well. I would like it to be further noted that the CAB table had excellent M&M cookies. Currently, sign ups for clubs are now on an online forum type of thing. The paperwork is now electronic, and the emails for clubs are now sent through that website. It’s pretty cool, actually.

Thursday: I survived! Due to my poor scheduling skills, I have both of my labs that day, as well as my creative writing class jammed in between. Essentially Thursdays are a big rush from eight in the morning to five in the afternoon. However, being in the Organic Chemistry lab is always fun and in genetics, we got our Drosophila!

Friday: First Latin quiz. Before Professor Lao entered the room, everyone was talking about how they hoped that the quiz would be first. When Professor Lao got into the classroom, she announced to the class that she usually begins the class with the quiz, but since it was our first one, that she would put it off to the end of class. The irony caused me to giggle. Professor Lao asked if I was alright, which prompted a fit of full blown laughter from me.

Please note: I have been told I have an obnoxious laugh.

I later went to the Shoppes at Blackstone with Clara, Lenore, and Dominika. I didn’t buy anything, but it was nice to get off campus.

Saturday: My friend Mike was making fun of me at breakfast, so I was crafty and stole a piece of ketchup covered egg-white-with-cheese omelet off his plate as payback. I was both shocked and impressed at my success.

Sunday (today): SPUD orientation. I couldn’t get into my SPUD from last year (Grandkids—Jesuit), but I’m signed up for Salvation Army Tutoring this time around. I’m really looking forward to meeting the kids!

Egads! It’s been so long since my last update. I apologize for the sheer agony you all must have suffered while waiting for my next update. How horrible! There are many excuses I could give you for my late entry, including keeping up with work, attending various campus events, going off campus, and sleeping. However, I shall cut to the chase and tell you the most recent exciting things going on right now.

You may thank me later for saving you from the rambles of the past two weeks.

At any rate, I went to the Kimball Student Office today to pick up my Kimball Captain application. I have been looking forward to the application opening for the past few weeks (much to my friends’ annoyance) and was horrified when I realized on Friday that I had forgotten to get one! So today before lunch I ran down there to get one. I’m so excited about filling it out, and really hope I get a position. It may be rather surprising to some of you, but I had a lot of fun working both last semester and this semester, and I’d like the chance to do it again, from a Captain’s point of view. Wish me luck!

On Saturday, Gordon, Linh, and I went to Providence Place Mall. It was my first time down there, and it was amazing. The mall was gigantic. There were five floors, the first two devoted to parking, Old Navy, and Borders, and the top three floors devoted to other stores, an IMAX theater and a Dave and Buster’s. Linh and I were on a mission to get clothes that somewhat resembled Hogwarts uniforms. Since Hogwarts on the Hill is coming up (it’s the Science Ambassadors’ biggest event of the year), we both wanted to dress up like Hogwarts characters. Since J.C Penney was conveniently having a sale, we both got ties for our respective houses. Linh got a Slytherin tie, and I got one for Hufflepuff. Gordon made an attempt at teaching me how to tie a tie, but unfortunately, I’ll have to ask him for further lessons.

Since the deadline for applications was January 15th, I wish you all the best of luck. I remember how irritating it was checking the mailbox every day and seeing no responses from schools, but don’t worry. The mail will come eventually…

I am now the owner of a pumpkin, a peck of apples, and a mind full of adventure from my amazing Saturday.

And let me assure you, it was quite amazing.

It started for me somewhere after waking up between ten-thirty and eleven A.M., which in itself is a small miracle, for I have early classes. The day further progressed into a spiral effect of awesome-ness as me and a few of my friends went on an apple picking trip sponsored by CAB (Campus Activities Board) to Berlin Orchards. While it sprinkled the entire time, and my sneakers and jeans up to my knees got soaked (I lack common sense and knelt down in the grass after some of my apples rolled out of the bag), it was still loads of fun. For only $3 I got ten pounds of apples, not to mention I discovered this really tasty type of apple called Jonagold. I also bought a small pumpkin and some apple crisp mix, which my friends and I used later.

Much, much later.

It was roughly 6:10 P.M., the dining hall was lively, the rain outside had slowed to a light sprinkle and two brave students decided to find the one missing ingredient for their apple crisp: butter. My friend Gordon and I ventured out to the Lobby Shop in Hogan first, thinking that because they sell eggs, milk, soap, and several varieties of cheese that we’d be able to find 1/3 a cup of butter. As it turns out, there was none there. We considered several options, including asking random people if they had butter, making our own butter from Half and Half, and running up and down Hogan in search of one of the three buses that run through Holy Cross. There was a wedding reception going on in Hogan 3, so hopefully the people there thought nothing of the pair of students dashing breathlessly through the door, looking for the nonexistent bus.

Eventually, we ended up calling a few friends (because there is safety in numbers) to make the trek down the hill to the gas station. When the gas station didn’t have butter either, one of us noted that there was a convenience store across the street, where, lo and behold, we bought a box of I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter. As our little group made the hike back up the hill, we saw the bus leaving with its occupants away from Holy Cross.

We arrived at Hanselman kitchen at 8:40 P.M. and proceeded to make one excellent apple crisp. We ate it with cider and I got to keep the wooden spoon that came with the packet of apple crisp mix.

Some people party on Saturday nights; my friends and I go on epic butter quests.