Friday, April 25, 2014

End of the Semester.

I can't believe I haven't posted in this for almost 2 weeks...just goes to show how crazy this time of the year can be. Regardless, I'm finally making the time to get back into the swing of things, and hopefully I won't take any more long breaks like that!

Today, I just want to talk about my semester with you all and the typical feelings associated with not only ending a semester, but ending an entire school year. To be honest, I thought I wasn't going to like this semester that much. Almost my entire friend group is studying abroad or taking a semester off, which left me here at St. Michael's, feeling like I was a freshman all over again and trying to make new friends. I was worried I wasn't going to be able to because I was so attached to my old group of friends, but to my surprise, I was absolutely wrong.

This semester was a blessing in disguise to say the least. I've meet so many new and amazing people, put myself out there, become more active in the Founders Society as well as with the Drama Club, and taken the time to just explore what I truly wanted to do and where I wanted to be in my life. I worked up the courage to get the tattoos I always wanted (and I'm sure there are more to come), and I've established so many amazing relationships with people I'm sure I'll be friends with for years to come.

Meals with McKenzie and Maggie are always a good time. Since they were also my friends last semester, it's been nice to have them around!

Leena and I before giving a big presentation for my Shakespeare class. She was also around last semester, but this class has definitely brought us closer!

Zach and Kylian playing pool. I knew Zach last semester, but I met Kylian this semester - they're both pretty entertaining to say the least!

Julia and I at the opening night of Dog Sees God last month! I'm so thankful this semester brought her into my life, she's a fantastic person.

Kylian and I getting our smolder on.

Zach, Michelle, Kylian, Maggie, Julia, and Meaghan all came over to my room a month or so ago to have a Bob's Burgers viewing party! It was a blast.

Me, Ivana, and Brendan ice skating last month! Although we're all juniors, I actually only met them this semester and we've all become really close!

Paul and I eating at Olive Garden before he stayed at my place for a couple days during spring break! It's been nice having him as well since we became friends last semester.

Getting my third tattoo last month of my mother's birthday in roman numerals! 
Lily and I getting some free pancakes at iHop a while back! We became friends thought Paul and his girlfriend Kathryn, and we happened to have a class together as well!

The Drama Club crew! I'm so thankful to have met all of these great people.

Ivana, Brendan and I hitting up Burlington for some frozen yogurt at Orange Leaf!

Callie and I at iHop! I met her through Kathryn and Lily this semester.

Ivana being sassy after our photojournalism class!

A picture of the entire cast of Much Ado About Nothing that some SMC students put on downtown last night! It was incredible.
Clearly, this semester has been nothing short of amazing. While it did have its stressful and low points, those were nothing compared to all of the love I've experienced this semester from all of these incredible people.

Of course I miss my friends who are gone as well, but I don't think I would've been able to experience things quite the same if they hadn't left.

Of course there's my best friend Jesse, who took this semester off to pursue his dreams and train with the Navy. I've had so many good times with him and I can't wait until he's back!

Cait and I last semester before going out to a friend's. She's studying abroad in Ecuador this semester! I miss her so much.

Lauren and I last year at the Champlain Valley Fair. Hard to believe this was almost 2 years ago! She's studying abroad in Morocco currently and I definitely miss her zaniness!

Sheila and I at the Champlain Valley Fair last year. She's currently in London studying abroad, but she's actually coming home in about a week and I'll be able to see her when she comes to move her younger sister Maggie out for the year! I can't wait.
I'm so sorry if you read all of this because I know it's long, but this was definitely eye-opening for me to see how much has changed, how much I've grown personally, and how excited I am for my senior year at St. Michael's with both old and new friends! All it takes is putting yourself out there, and I wish I'd realized that a lot sooner.

Monday, April 14, 2014

Froyo!

As I'm sure you all noticed today, it was a balmy 80 degrees in Vermont! While it's normally hard for me to do much of anything to relax during the day with my schedule (especially since it's the last couple of weeks of the semester), I knew I had to find time on a gorgeous day like this one! As a reward for the harsh and relentless winter we made it out of, a few friends and I decided to go downtown to grab some frozen yogurt from a store called Orange Leaf - it was amazing!

Tank tops for once in my life! I was waiting for this for way too long.

Kathryn, Paul, Callie, and Lily enjoying their froyo on Church Street!

My messy creation - peanut butter, brownie batter, and vanilla yogurt all swirled together with cookie dough chunks, oreo pieces, and chocolate-covered pretzels. Heaven!
Needless to say, not much homework got done today, but it was definitely worth it. Sometimes, you just have to embrace the beautiful days and forget about the stress altogether, so I think I made the right choice. I'm sure I'll pay for it later, but nothing beats downtime with some close friends and good eats!

With Easter break coming up, I'll be working on my final project for photojournalism (that I will definitely share more with you all about once it starts rolling) and a 20-page research paper that I haven't started yet...wish me luck!

I hope you all did something stellar with this spectacular day as well. Happy Monday!

Thursday, April 10, 2014

Enterprise!

Hey everyone!

I know it's been a while in terms of how often I used to post, but it's definitely coming down to the wire as the end of the semester rapidly approaches and I get flooded with more and more work. On the bright side, I've been trying to enjoy the time I have left here with my friends before I'm home for the summer and having a blast!

Recently, I completed my multimedia assignment for my photojournalism class about the Masquerade Ball I went to a couple weeks ago, and it turned out beautifully! If you want to check it out, I'm going to post the video below. This is my first attempt at this sort of thing, so be easy on me!


Hope you enjoy it, and good luck with your end-of-semester madness! I'll try to post as much as possible before the end of the semester (time and workload permitting).

Happy Thursday!

Thursday, April 3, 2014

You've Got to See This.

Hey everyone! I hope you all have been having a good week and dealing with the stress and hectic-ness that is the last month of the semester well!

I know that I've been doing homework pretty much always lately, but something incredible happened in my life this week and I think it's worth sharing with you all. If you need a cuteness overload to lighten your mood, you've come to the right place.

Meet Siberian Husky puppy Bambi!

She is the cutest thing I've ever seen!

I'm in love, I think I'm going to steal her!
So this all happened one day when I was hanging out in my friend's suite and one of her suite mates dropped by with this adorable puppy! She's brought her around when I was there twice now, and I'm completely obsessed. Bambi just runs around the room barking, banging her head into things, and being the most adorable thing on the planet. I'm trying to work out a babysitting arrangement!

Well it's no surprise that I love animals, so of course I had to share Bambi with all of you! Who knows, maybe there will be more blog posts staring her in the future!

With that, I'm off to the magical land of studying once again, but it's not all bad! I've got quite a few things planned for this weekend and the coming weeks that I can't wait to tell you all about. Stay tuned!

Tuesday, April 1, 2014

Exploring Bergeron.

All my fellow Media Studies majors surely know the one and only Bergeron, located right across the street from Alliot, but for those of you who may not know this building all too well, here's your chance to get to know it better! Since it's used mainly by Media Studies majors and minors, it's no wonder that many students may have little to no knowledge of the building itself and its ins and outs. Luckily, I've got lots of information and various photos to offer!

A view from the outside - how quaint!
I love the architecture of this building especially.
Here's a view of the one and only classroom in the building. 
The smaller lab in the building - as you can see, it was packed with seniors working on their senior seminar projects!
The larger lab (also used as a classroom) is probably my favorite room in the building. I'm here almost every day!
Another view of the larger lab - us Media Studies majors and our photos!
The purpose of Bergeron is to provide a quality experience for those interested specifically in Media Studies by offering computer labs, digital cameras, equipment, many different useful programs, and an abundance of other useful resources that are pivotal to learn and use in the journalism world.

I don't know much about Bergeron's history, nor could I find any reliable resources online about it, but I do have many memories with this building. Since I declared my Media Studies major early in my sophomore year, I've spent more than one all-nighter there finishing various projects for classes such as Advanced Digital Media II, which focuses heavily on creating animations in a program called Adobe Flash, and Photojournalism, of course.

For Media Studies majors and minors, Bergeron quickly becomes a home-away-from-home...away-from-home. Some nights are intense and stressful and I really don't want to be there, but in the end, Saint Michael's and my Media Studies experience wouldn't be as unique and enriching without it.

I'm so anxious and excited to be starting my senior year soon, and I'm looking forward to one last hurrah in Bergeron. It's tough love, but it's love nonetheless.