First-Year Diary

27 May, 2006

Commencement for the Class of 2006 was yesterday, so I suppose now I am officially a sophomore. 

On Wednesday, I picked up Matt and Emily Jo and headed to Holy Cross.  We checked in and moved our stuff into Lehy.  We had a meeting at 11:30.  Matt was there for choir and band so he didn't come to that meeting.  It was a short meeting and they let us go to lunch at Lower.  Emily and I had the first shift.  We worked in Student Affairs for a few hours.  It was enjoyable.  We ran some errands and spent the other time playing games.  After, Jimmy Doan, Emily and I went to Blackstone.  We shopped for a bit and then went to dinner at Uno's.  It was an all around good time.  Emily and I spent that night watching American Idol with some of the other ushers. 

We got up early the next day.  While Emily worked one of the Hogan tables, Jimmy and I went to the Hart Center Lawn for Baccalaureate Mass rehearsal.  It was a beautiful day to say the least!  The rehearsal didn't last long at all.  Emily and I met up and went to the Awards Ceremony for a little bit.  Amy arrived in the afternoon and I was able to see her for a little bit.  We lounged around and enjoyed the nice weather until Mass.  It was really hot on top of the hill. 

That night was the Baccalaureate Ball.  We got all dressed up and headed to Kimball which was completely transformed!  It was beautiful.  There was a band, a DJ, a dance floor and an ongoing slideshow of the Class of '06.  I was on the first shift and held the door for everyone coming in.   It was great to see all the seniors I had met during my freshman year.  I even saw my high school English teacher! (Her daughter was graduating.)  The Ball was quite a success.

I woke up early next morning and headed to Fitton Field to help setup for Commencement.  The weather was spectacular!  The ceremony was really nice and it didn't drag on like most do.  There was a huge reception on Kimball Quad after.  Emily and I finished our usher duties and picked up our sweatshirts from Student Affairs.

It had started raining by the time I left, just like every other time that I leave Holy Cross.  Regardless, Commencement was a really great way to end my freshman year.  It gave me something to look forward to and also let me spend just a few more nights on campus.  I had a great freshman year and I wouldn't change a thing about it.  I will never forget the people I met and the experiences I had.  Holy Cross has become home and the people I met have become my family.

I was worried that Holy Cross wouldn't meet my expectations because I have heard stories about students having a horrible experience at their first choice school.  Well, one year down, I think it is safe to say that HC has exceeded my expectations.  Everything here is what I always wanted and so much more.  I knew college would be different from high school, but I didn't know it would be so incredible!  Though I have known all along that Holy Cross was the place for me, seeing Commencement reaffirmed that notion: this is the school I want to graduate from.
Through all of my experiences this year, I have learned a lot about myself.  I have tried a bunch of new things and broadened my interests substantially.  I have grown a lot as a person and I attribute that to not just the people I've met, but to the opportunities afforded to me by attending Holy Cross.  I guess a quote from my favorite Broadway Show Wicked can sum up the year and especially the people who have become so important to me.  "Who can say if I've been changed for the better, but because I knew you, I have been changed for good." 

I hope the next three years will be as good as this year has been.

20 May, 2006

It has been a week since I have been home and it is just so different.  I never really realized how much freedom I had at school.  Nor did I realize that it is a lot harder to stay up until three in the morning when people aren't around.

I am glad to be home in that I have been able to see my family and hang out with my best friends from high school.  Things haven't changed with them which is great, but I really miss being at Holy Cross.  There is just something about stepping outside of your room and having 150 people that you can talk to basically whenever you want. 

Next year will be very different since we are all in different dorms.  We also won't have the amazing community that was Hanselman and FYP.  We were one big happy yet slightly quirky family by the end of the year.  I am certainly going to miss that! 

I have been keeping in touch with most of my friends from school and it is just so good to talk to them! I will see some of them at Commencement and others not too long after that.  I am excited to say the least! 

I hope the weather is good for Commencement.  The hill is so much prettier in the sunshine!

14 May, 2006

Well, I'm home.  It's been a rather emotional few days.  My exam went really well on Friday.  I finished long before the three hours was up allowing me to spend more time with Amy and Elizabeth before they left. 

We all had one last dinner together.  It was chicken parmesan, one of our favorites.  Elizabeth's parents arrived not too long after.  We all helped move her out of her room.  It was incredibly sad.  Shortly after, Amy's parents arrived and we helped move her stuff out of her room as well.  Both of their rooms were completely empty.  Again, it is so weird to walk by a completely empty room.

I did most of my packing that night because I knew I would be saying goodbye to a lot of people on Saturday.  I spent that night with Grace, Mike, Emily and Rob. 

I woke up really early Saturday and went to breakfast with Matt and Inigo.  Then I did the rest of my packing.  Grace, Tom, and Matt helped move my stuff to my car.  To delay their own packing Tom and Matt flew kites.  For some reason, it made me feel better: just because freshman year was over, things weren't going to change too much.  I hung around Hanselman for the rest of the day.  The cold, rainy weather suited everyone's moods: many tears were shed especially on the third floor. 

I was finally able to bring myself to leave around 3:30 that afternoon.  I said goodbye to Grace, Ari, Kristin, Stacy and Matt and was on my way.  It was a sad and long drive home.  I liked having my own car because I could decide when I wanted to leave.  Everyone else was at the whim of their parents.

I will be back on campus in a week and a half for Commencement so I guess the year isn't over yet!

10 May, 2006

It has been a fairly uneventful few days.  I finished my last paper of freshman year.  It is kind of hard to believe.  I have been doing a little studying here and there for my psychology exam, but I will begin really studying either tonight or early tomorrow.

Most of my friends don't have exams until Friday or Saturday so we have been spending as much time together as humanly possible.  Some people have already left.  It is really weird and rather sad to walk by someone's room and see half of it missing.  I have even started packing and my room is looking slightly depressing.  My dad is coming to pick up the majority of my stuff tomorrow because it definitely will not all fit in my car on Saturday!

I went on a really fun late night adventure with Julie, Joey, and Matt around campus the other night.  It was memorable to say the least.  The rainy weather made it rather interesting.  Hopefully these adventures will continue sophomore year!!

It is still really hard to believe that I leave on Saturday and that I won't see some of my closest friends until August.  I definitely do not want to leave.  Going home is going to be much different.

Oh well, one exam left.  After that, I can worry about saying goodbye to everyone.

7 May, 2006

It was an incredibly busy week, to say the least.  After my last Spanish class on Tuesday I spent about sixteen hours at the Hart Center.  It was the Spring Concert.  It was an incredible experience.  We loaded in the stage, the lighting, the sound equipment and anything else that needed to be loaded in.  I was especially lucky because I was one of the hospitality co-chairs.  I spent most of my day with the bands.  Guster was the band I was assigned to, but Phantom Planet and Luke Temple were also there. 

All of them were incredibly nice and rather amazing.  I had such a great time and the concert was fantastic.  I was only able to see Guster play, but from what I could hear from backstage both Luke Temple and Phantom Planet were great.  The little sleep I got the night before and the night after didn't really matter all that much. 

Wednesday was the FYP Banquet.  We all dressed up and headed to the Hogan Ballroom.  It was a really nice dinner.  Dean Peace even sat with us for it.  It's hard to think that was our last FYP event.  Afterward, Elizabeth, Amy, Matt, Tom, Maggie, Kim and I watched Dogma.  It was a fun time and it was nice being able to spend time with them.  Sometime during the movie was the FYP study break.  The FYP mentors provided coffee and doughnuts from Dunkin' Donuts in the basement.

I spent all of Thursday and most of Friday studying philosophy with Stacy.  We accomplished a lot.  Friday was our cookout outside of Hanselman. It was absolutely gorgeous out!  Matt cooked and a lot of our friends showed up to enjoy a non-Kimball cookout.  After, I spent a lot more time studying.  To reward myself, I took a mini study break Friday night.  Matt, Kristin, Erica and I went to the Java Hut in Worcester.  It's a little coffee shop where some local musicians showcase their talents. Fran Rogers, a fellow Crusader, was playing that night.  He did a really great job.  After the show, since it was relatively early, we drove around Worcester for a little bit.

My exam was Saturday morning.  I think it went well.  I was certainly well prepared for it.  One exam, one paper and seven days before I leave HC.  It's sad, but it is sure to be a good week.

1 May, 2006

It's the first day of the last week of classes!  Well, it's only two days of classes and three days of studying, but still.  I am completely done with psychology classes and after today, I will only have one class Spanish.

This weekend was Spring Weekend.  It was a lot of fun.  Saturday there was the Spring Carnival on Hart Lawn.  Dinner was even on the Hart Lawn, bar-b-que style! There was so much to do.  They had mini-golf, a dunk tank, a rock climbing wall, a moon walk for "boxing" and a race type moonwalk. It was a lot of fun and the weather was absolutely beautiful! 

That night after we had our fill of the festivities, Elizabeth, Amy and I drove to Blackstone (since I have my car on campus until the end of the year). We went to Coldstone for ice cream and then to Target to pick up a few things.  It's really nice having a car on campus, but certainly not necessary.  We made it back in time for the fireworks display.  We all got our blankets and headed up to the Hart Lawn again to see one of the most fantastic fireworks displays I have seen in a really long time.  I wasn't expecting it be as great, and I was pleasantly surprised! 

It was another beautiful day yesterday.  Stacy and I decided to go to Lake Quinsigamond and watch some of the crew races.  They all did great.  Crew races are much more interesting than I thought they would be.  I'm really glad I went.  Then I spent most of last night in the library finishing most of my work for the next few days. 

As much as I am excited for classes to be over, it means that I am that much closer to leaving HC for the summer along with all my friends.  Luckily, I only have two exams so I can spend as much time with my friends as possible.

25 April, 2006

Well, it's been awhile.  Easter Break went by rather quickly.  I spent a lot of it getting ahead on work.  I was only back at school for one night last week.  I was home for part of the week for surgery.  My professors were incredibly understanding about missing classes which was a big help.  Luckily, I didn't miss any exams or papers.  My friends were great about helping me out with keeping me updated with the lectures.

I really have some amazing friends here.  When I finally did return to school, Matthew and Elizabeth presented me with a giant card with an absolutely hilarious poem on the front that they wrote up themselves.  While I was gone, they had a majority of the people in Hanselman sign it!  It was so nice of them and it certainly made me feel better. 

This week was enrollment for the freshman class.  Well actually, Monday morning at 6AM was enrollment!  Instead of having specific appointment times, the entire class was allowed to log on at 6AM and pick their classes.  I really lucked out and got all the classes I wanted.  I don't know if I've mentioned this, but I declared a second major: Psychology!  Next semester I will be taking two psychology courses, a Spanish course, and a religion course.  As of right now, I don't have any classes on Friday.  I might add a fifth course, but I'm not sure yet. 

Classes end next Tuesday.  I really can't believe my freshman year is almost over.  I am going to miss everyone this summer.  It's going to be rather weird not seeing people I usually see on a daily basis.  Summer is just going to be very long.

I may be here for Commencement activities.  Emily and I signed up to do be ushers for Commencement so we would be here a few days at the end of May.  I really would do just about anything to be at Holy Cross longer!

10 April, 2006

It's going to be a very short week and nearly stress free week.  We have Easter Break beginning after classes end on Wednesday until next Monday.  After that, it's about two and a half weeks of classes before study period.  This semester has gone by far too fast!

The production of The Caucasian Chalk Circle was fantastic!  Eric and Savanah, along with the rest of the cast, were great!  After the show, the entire cast stayed for a "talk back session."  We were able to ask questions of the actors and director about basically anything.  I think the session was incredibly helpful in understanding some important aspects about the play.

It was just the girls and I Friday night.  We ordered pizza and watched The Parent Trap and The Beauty and the Beast.  It was a lot of fun.  After a long, stressful week it was certainly needed. 

On Saturday, I got up early and did some spring cleaning.  Amy, Emily and I went to brunch relatively early.  That afternoon, Amy, Elizabeth, Matt and I took the shuttle to Boston.  It wasn't a very nice day, but it was good getting off campus for a few hours.  We walked around Faneuil Hall and then took the T to the Prudential Center.  We shopped around and hung out in Barnes and Noble for a long time.  Since there wasn't all that much to do, we decided to take the early shuttle back and returned to campus around ten.  We played a few intense games of Catchphrase and then decided we were all incredibly tired. 

I am really excited to go home this break. I get to see my brother for the first time in awhile.  It will be nice seeing the rest of my family, too. 

6 April, 2006

It has been a fairly hectic week.  I applied for a few more internships.  Hopefully, I will hear from them within the next few weeks so that I can start making plans for the summer.

I also submitted my application for CAB Concert Co-chair and signed up for an interview.  I hope I am offered the position, but there are upper classmen who have been on the committee longer also applying.  But, it doesn't hurt to try. 

Today I am going to Battle of the Departments with Julie and Matt.  Professor Whall, my poetry professor from last semester is the host and I am looking forward to seeing her again.  Tonight, everyone in F.Y.P. is attending the play The Caucasian Chalk Circle.  My friends Savanah and Eric are in this play and Emily helps out with tech.  I have heard really good things about the show so I am excited to see what it's all about.  I'm sure it will be fantastic. 

After such a work filled week, I hope this weekend is exciting.  There's always something to do on campus, I'm sure we will find something. 

3 April, 2006

New York City was so much fun.  We arrived there ahead of schedule and went straight to Battery Park.  We took the ferry to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.  It was rainy for a bit, but after that it was actually really nice weather.  We spent a few hours there and then we walked to Ground Zero.  It has changed so much since I was there back in December 2001.  Some of the things written all over the walls are rather incredible.  I'm glad we could all experience that while in NYC. 

We had free time once we arrived at the hotel which was about a three minute walk to the middle of Times Square!  Elizabeth and I really wanted to see a Broadway show so we tried getting tickets at the half price ticket booth but the line was ridiculously long and just not worth the wait. 

We decided to enter the lottery for Wicked (a show that I have been obsessed with for quite awhile, but have never actually seen).  Matthew, Tom, and Chris joined us in the line so that they could enter the lottery as well.  The way it works is everyone in line puts their name in and two hours before the show they call ten names and each person called receives two front row tickets for $25 dollars each.  We didn't really expect to win, but it was worth a shot.  Turns out that three of us won which meant we had six tickets to the show that night!  It was incredible to say the very least.  As Elizabeth and I kept repeating, "Like our HC t-shirts say, ‘God is on our side!'" 

Sunday morning we went to mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral and then to the Museum of Natural History.  We had free time after that.  Matthew, Elizabeth, Amy, Matt, Kena, and I had lunch at a nice little restaurant not too far from the museum.  It was another gorgeous day and we just soaked up the NYC lifestyle.  It was great. I am so glad I am a part of F.Y.P.

I am still in awe that it is already April: one month from now study period will have begun!  I don't want freshman year to end!