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This blog has moved. Please continue the new blog here: http://mebrow12.me.holycross.edu
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This blog has moved. Please continue the new blog here: http://mebrow12.me.holycross.edu
Salvete, Xairete, Hello!
I’m back on campus after what was a glorious week back in Philadelphia. Spring Break absolutely flew by (I mean seriously, it winged right by me), but I think that was because I was constantly on the go and planning little adventures. I managed to go into the city itself to meet my dad for lunch. I proudly braved the train and am now extremely tempted to try to take the train into Boston—it was such a fun experience and not having to worry about parking a car was fantastic. I ate lots of Philadelphia foods (namely, a heap of soft pretzels) and was able to soak up some valuable down time before the end-of-semester push.
Although, my week was not completely without work. I had the unique opportunity to be a guest lecturer in my high school’s AP English class on Friday; I took them through a “close reading” of a few passages in the Odyssey, much in the manner Professor Joseph would have us do in Montserrat. The class had just finished the epic, which was perfect, and I got to show the girls how much I have benefited from college-level literary discussion. Apparently I have a “teaching gene” (according to my English teacher)…but I think it is just that I love to discuss Classics in any way, shape, or form. Seriously, I cannot keep my mouth shut about it. My friends bear the brunt of this obsession.
I left at five in the morning to come up here today, and I couldn’t help but be reminded of Move-In Day, when my family and I packed up the car and left at three in the morning in order to come to Holy Cross. As my dad and I pulled onto 290 E and I saw the stunning towers of O’Kane and Fenwick, I realized just how incredibly lucky I am to have two places on Earth that I love to be: my home in the Mid-Atlantic, and now my other home at Holy Cross. For this place truly is home to me. The weather happens to be gorgeous and as I sit here writing this the sun is shining beautifully into my room and I can’t help but think that there isn’t another place in the world I would rather be right now.
So, this week should be interesting. I have a lot to accomplish, but also some really neat things to look to forward to. On the more difficult side, I have an Astronomy test on Wednesday and a Montserrat midterm on Friday (along with my usual Greek quiz), so I know I’ll be in the library for many, many hours in the coming days. However, on Tuesday Professor Nagy, my advisor, will be lecturing in my Archaeology class because Doctor Bender is in Italy with a tour group right now. Professor Nagy will be speaking about Athens, our next stop on our crazy tour of Greece’s ancient archaeological feats, and I am very excited to hear what he has to say on the matter.
A shower, mass, and the rest of my Greek homework await me. Have a lovely week, everyone! Valete!
Salvete, everyone!
Well, Spring Break is around the corner and I am very much looking forward to it. Although, when I come back, I will be staring a whole heap of assessments in the face. But it will be worth it to go home and see the family, visit friends who go to school in the area, and go visit my crazy all-girls high school. This week, however, I only have my standard Greek quiz on Friday and an Archaeology test on Thursday. My parents are leaving early Saturday morning to come pick me up, and then I’m home-free and homeward-bound!
For some reason, the last week and a half or so has been very slow with schoolwork. Don’t get me wrong — this has been really nice, but has left me a tad antsy and looking around for things to do. My friend sent me a Web site on which you can test yourself on all of the countries of the world (you are given a map and you have fifteen minutes to type all 195 countries in), and I’ve been working on that while everyone is slaving away at papers and for midterms. As my friends said, of course I wouldn’t spend the time watching TV or lounging around.
Saturday, after my friends overtook my room for the entire day and did homework, I took a fun adventure to Boston with my friend Tom to meet his sister and go out to dinner. I forgot how much I love to go to Boston. The city is so picturesque and the night was just warm enough where I could enjoy looking around and just being outside. As stunning as the Holy Cross campus is, there’s still something in me that yearns to see a city every once and a while. That probably stems from my usual habit of heading down to Philly every so often. Seeing the Boston skyline made me super excited to see Philadelphia’s once again!
I’m off to work on my heaping pile of laundry. Probably should not have let it get almost as big as Mt. St. James itself.
Happy Monday! Valete!
Xairete, everyone!
Well, I survived my week of absolute academic chaos. I had a debate in Montserrat and a Greek test on the same day (Friday), so I spent the week trying to get ready for both. They went well, despite my obvious time crunch, and I just have to write a paper for Montserrat for Wednesday. Otherwise, it’s a pretty quiet week. I expect to sleep in a few times (and by that, I mean until nine or ten), which will be amazing.
This weekend was a blast, despite the fact that almost every single one of my friends went home to spend Valentine’s Day with their significant others. Amy, whom I had claimed as my valentine in November (on a card to cheer her up one gloomy November afternoon), was actually in Ottawa and had to be my valentine in spirit. However, she sent me on a chase throughout our hall for my present, providing clues to keep me running around. Her gift ended up being a little book of poetry by Billy Collins, who is one of our favorite poets. Saturday night was our class dance, so that worked out nicely. My good friend Tom is our class president, and he coerced me and my other friends who were still on campus to come and dance the night away. I’m so glad I did, because it gave me the opportunity to hang out with girls on my hall that I have always been friendly with, but have never actually gotten the chance to do anything with. They were beyond sweet and provided fabulous dance partners in Hogan Ballroom!
I’m pretty sure that it is not going to last, but the weather lately has been divine. I am always in awe of the sheer power of a New England winter — the wind on this mountain has a knife-like ability to cut one to the core, negative temperatures bite at every exposed bit of skin, and piles of snow provide a most interesting hindrance to getting to class dry. In the last few days, I have barely had to don a jacket…and coming from Philadelphia, where I consider a temperature of thirty degrees to be bone-chilling, I am amazed at how I have adjusted to living in the hellish cold that New England throws at us. I just don’t think of cold the same way anymore. Nor do I think of sports devotion the same way (more like air and water than just a bunch of guys sweating on a court or field), but hey, that’s a different story…
And now, a much-needed nap before I tackle the last of this Montserrat article. Although, Billy Collins is also a tempting option!
Ciao, Valete, and Xairete (which can apparently, as I learned today from Professor Joseph, be used as both greeting and goodbye)!
Salvete, amici!
Hope everyone is doing well this lovely Friday in February. Today was the end of a very, very busy week for me. It was full to the brim with assessments, meetings, Kimball, and other general shenanigans that had me running around and studying for hours at a time. It’ll be nice to take a break this weekend and just hang out with the girls for some downtime. Although, I have a fair amount to get done in a short two days, so we’ll see just how quickly this weekend goes (the week has absolutely flown by!).
Today and last night I spent a lot of time just chatting with professors in the classics department. I love all of them, because they’re so enthusiastic about what they do and make you feel like they have the time to honestly get to know you. Especially nice was my chat with Professor Nagy, my advisor. We don’t see much of each other, so it was good to catch up and tell him about the semester that he had helped me plan in early November. I showed him some of my Greek script (apparently, Professor Joseph thinks it is neat…he should see my copybook…) and we laughed over the fact that I have pretty much become a “Joseph-ite” because I see Professor Joseph so often. Hey, I’ll take it!
Tonight I’m heading to Blackstone on the free shuttle to go out to dinner with a fellow blogger and dear friend, Colleen Curran. We still work on a shift together at Kimball, which has been our only real time to talk…so we should have a really fun time eating and hanging out without having to restock the pancakes or sort silverware.
For now, a nap. I stayed up really late studying for my Greek quiz today.
Xairete for now!
Salvete, all!
Last week was crazy, to say the least. Unfortunately, I had to go down to Philadelphia from Wednesday-Saturday for my Grandmother’s funeral. Everyone here, especially my friends and professors, were really supportive and are helping me get back into the swing of this still-new semester. I have a lot of work to make up, but I’m chiseling away at it and will be back on track very soon.
I just completed a really interesting assignment for Montserrat. We’re currently reading Vergil’s Aeneid — and I’m pretty much in heaven, since I’ve read it once already and translated it senior year of high school. The best part about discussing the book again is that my opinions of certain events and characters in the epic have had time to sink, and I have formed definite opinions about them. This was evident in class last Wednesday, when we were going over one of my favorite parts of the book and I could not keep my mouth shut. The Aeneid is basically a myth about the founding of Rome, and foreshadows all of its greatness to come. So for class, Professor Joseph is having us write our own myths explaining a natural phenomenon. I spent a happy two hours writing mine on the origin of an owl’s hoot, and look forward to sharing it with the class on Wednesday.
The weather has broken a bit lately. It’s around 40 degrees out, which is unheard of compared to some of the negative temperatures we endured not so long ago. However, it is apparently going to snow and ice tomorrow. Go figure. The joys of a New England winter!
Astronomy is calling my name. I have a test Wednesday for which I should probably start reviewing.
Xairete for now, and Happy February!
Salvete, everyone!
I am a very sore but happy camper today — I finally got to go sledding! Beth and I went with a couple of her friends from crew and it was an absolute blast. It was still snowing when we went out, and the whole campus was covered in a perfect layer of powder with awesome ice underneath — the perfect conditions to go flying down Healy’s (an upperclassmen residence hall) hill, or the always intimidating Quad hill leading from Fenwick down to Kimball, or best (and scariest) of all, Freshman Field. I used my handy-dandy Kimball tray and was effectively five years old for the night. It was a glorious end to a very hectic day — I decided to pull a double shift at Kimball since I had the time (we have no classes today), which meant that I spent 8 hours there in one day. If you can’t tell, that is a long time to be at Kimball.
Classes went very well this week! I’m in love with my schedule, have incredibly intelligent professors, and have successfully made my way through the science complex without getting lost for a second. Professor Garvey, my astronomy professor, is exceedingly eccentric and never fails to capture my attention. I think he looks and acts rather like Mark Twain, for he has a big mustache and is very witty and intelligent. I feel so lucky to have gotten professors who are sincerely in love with what they do and are completely set on helping us see why their subject matter is pertinent and important, all while connecting with their students so well. For example, Doctor Bender (my Archaeology professor whom I’ve known for a while) gave out a sheet of all kinds of questions just to get his know his students, their study habits, their likes and dislikes, and strengths and weaknesses in the classroom. Things like this make Holy Cross truly unique.
Well, I’ve been to the gym every day now (except yesterday, but I think I worked out more than all the other days combined in that one day), so I suppose I should get there before another 2 feet of snow is dumped on this mountain. I think getting to Hart will be a workout in itself! Valete!
Salvete, omnes!
I’m so happy to be back at Holy Cross! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season — I know it went by so very quickly for me. I saw a ton of people, hung out with my family, went out to eat far too many times, and even did a Winter Ambassador meeting at my high school for the Admissions dept. (during which I found out there is a potential Classics major in this year’s senior class!). I got back to campus on Sunday night, which was quite the experience. The campus was dead and not a single one of my friends was here! I just took the time to completely re-organize my room, clean, and relax before all of my girls returned on Tuesday. We watched movies the entire day, helped each other unpack (well, I helped other people unpack…), and soaked up each others’ company for the first time in a long, long month!
Today was the first day of classes, and what a busy day it was for me. I had my two usuals, Greek at 11 and Montserrat at 12:30, both with the ever-entertaining Professor Joseph. Then came the really exciting part — my first Astronomy class! How I ever managed to find my way to the classroom in the labyrinth-like science complex, I don’t think I’ll ever quite know. After about 10 minutes of wandering and only 10 minutes until class, I informed a random professor in the hall that I was a Classics major , had no clue how to get to O’Neil (never having had to step foot in this place before), and he pointed me in the right direction without another word. I took astronomy in senior year for a semester, but I can already see that this is going to be a new experience. Professor Garvey is extremely knowledgeable and very funny, and also recognizes that most of us are taking his class because we need to fill a science requirement. Such understanding is right up my alley!
Tomorrow is my first day of work, and my friend Colleen, a sophomore Kimball captain (and blogger!), will be on my shift again, so it shouldn’t be too painful. I also have a class I’m greatly looking forward to — Classical Archaeology with Dr. Bender, the visiting professor whose trip to Italy I went on before my senior year. It will be really neat to study some of the places in Rome where he took us in the classroom setting. The sad part about tomorrow is that the weather is supposed to be absolutely, positively, viciously cold. It was quite a shock when my parents and I pulled onto campus to find piles of snow and a bitter wind that was markedly absent in Philadelphia. Ah, well, the joys of living on a mountain in New England! I’ll be sporting a record number of clothing layers tomorrow, I think.
I’m so happy to be back at Cross, and look forward to entailing the next couple of months of my first year here for you! Valete!
Salvete, omnes!
SNOW! FINALLY! Last night there was a lovely snowfall that blanketed campus with a pretty covering of the fluffy white stuff. As I (almost) officially finished exams yesterday with Montserrat, which was definitely manageable although required a lot of writing, snow was the cherry on top of my feeling of utmost relief at the end of exams. I managed to convince Simone to come outside with me around 1 in the morning so that we could play a bit in the freshly fallen snow—that’s when it’s best, after all! We threw a few snowballs around, tried to hit Jill’s window multiple times, and created “crop circles,” as we dubbed them, in the untouched snow in the street. If I had had my way, I would have gone sledding, but Simone dragged me back inside.
Exams overall went very well for me. I had a lot of time on my hands during the study period (much more than I actually needed), so I had time to relax and to continue to get better after my awful bug, or whatever it was I had last week. On Sunday night was the community mass for Christmas, the last mass of the semester, which went beautifully. All of my friends came to see me sing in the choir (perhaps to avoid studying…), and afterwards Jill and I went to the traditional Midnight Breakfast at Kimball, served by faculty members during finals week. It was a blast. The place was packed and Jill and I were thankful for the opportunity to do our two favorite things on earth: not study and eat.
Tomorrow I head home to my dear Philadelphia until Jan. 14th, the first day of classes next semester. Speaking of Philadelphia, today I pinned a Kimball captain as being from the City of Brotherly Love just by his accent — he said “wooder” instead of “water”, a blatant trademark of my hometown. I trained myself to pronounce the word correctly so I would not be made fun of up here, but back home I always slip back into my native tongue. Anyway, tangents aside, I am so sad to leave this first semester of college behind. It went much, much too quickly. In the past three months, I have confirmed my love for Classics, made some of the sweetest friends on the planet, challenged myself physically (remember Monadnock? I sure do!) and mentally, and enjoyed life in so many ways. I love climbing Mt. St. James day after day, adore the towering turrets of Fenwick, and the grand columns of Dinand. I love Holy Cross, and could not envision myself at any other school. I am so excited to see what next semester brings!
Congratulations to all Early Decision candidates who are just now finding out about their acceptances! This was a supremely exciting time for me, and I wish all of you the very best of luck.
I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas, a safe break, and enjoys the extra time with family and friends. Valete until the New Year!
Salvete!
Well, I’ve had a rough couple of days. When I went home for Thanksgiving break, my entire family was very sick with some form of the flu. I thought I had gotten away clean, but that was evidently not the case. Monday night, as I was writing my final Philosophy paper (woo!), I felt very cold and thought it was just because the study room in Mulledy’s basement was a bit chilly. However, my chills got progressively worse until I ended up with a 102 degree fever and was seriously out of commission for a few days. I missed my last day of classes, which I was sad about, but the good news is that I didn’t have to miss any more classes because right now is the finals study period. It’s a very useful three days before finals begin in which we can get ourselves together and start studying before finals actually start. Mine do not start until Monday, which is a real blessing, for I have to work at Kimball a ton this weekend. All workers have to work three shifts during finals week, which is a bit hard to juggle with studying, but I’ll get my studying done in between shifts.
I only have two actual finals, Greek and Montserrat — both for Professor Joseph. They’re on consecutive days at the same time, 2:30 in the afternoon, which is kind of funny. I’m glad I’ll get to sleep in a little before them, and do some last-minute review. I have a ton to memorize for my 2-hour Greek exam, so I think I’m going to get started on that tonight. Montserrat will be a ton of writing, but that’s alright, because the class has been graded based on writing throughout the semester, anyway. My assessment in Latin is interesting. Instead of a final, we’re reviewing our papers and the papers of those in our class for part of the session, and then for an hour we’re doing a translation of a part of an ode we’ve never seen before (with a dictionary, of course!). It should be a fun challenge.
Unfortunately, I missed the Christmas tree lighting ceremony on O’Kane porch because I was practically delirious from my fever. However, I still got my share of holiday cheer yesterday, because my hall went all-out for the hall decorating contest. There are lights everywhere, a painted fireplace, Dear Santa letters (one of which I composed myself, wishing, as always, to be in Rome), stockings, and snowflakes. My friends and I all did a Secret Santa gift exchange today, and baked holiday cookies (well, Amy baked holiday cookies). So despite the stress of looming finals, there is always the promise of home and Christmas to brighten the mood!
I suppose I’ll start to study Greek now—I have a horrendous amount of verb principle parts to re-memorize! Valete omnes!
