Astounding Associations

     As we approach the end of the year, I thought it would be nice to speak about some of the really great clubs and associations that are here on campus.  They are great opportunities to learn new things, get involved in the community, and make new friends. 

   There are about 41 different clubs here on campus that are either  academic, for the community, the arts, or sports and fitness.  Also, there is even an opportunity to start your own club.  This year I joined the knitting club, some MOVE programs, and the Founders Society.  I have met some of my very best friends at these programs, (namely Taylor, Alex, and Angelica at the knitting club).  It's actually a funny story (cliche I know) but I'll tell it to you when you run into me on campus! 

     When I joined the knitting club, I had never knitted before, or had even considered it.  But now, I can knit scarves, headbands, and hats!  They make great gifts for people and are really relaxing to make.  Here's a picture of just a few of the things I have knitted-

This is the first hat I've knitted and it was for MOVE

These are some scarves and headbands I made (most of them for my mom)

     The Founders Society is an important part of SMC because it connects both Alumni and Prospective Students to Saint Mike's.  I became a member originally because my Honors Program Mentor, Abby Meachem, recommended it to me and she is a big part of Founders.  I've had a great time as a member of Founders, I've gone to Phone-a-Thons, an Alumni Christmas party, and have helped out with accepted student lunches.  As prospective students, you should consider joining Founders because it is a great way to give back to Saint Mike's. 

     The Student Association is another amazing organization on campus.  They are responsible for running student events throughout the year, like the Grace Potter concert, free student bowling, Pizza Put, and free ice skating.  They also run Preparation Day (P-Day) which is a fun student day to eat and have fun before finals. These events are so much fun and are designed to let students have fun while being safe.  Here are some pictures of my friends and I enjoying SA events-

This was at the Bowling Night

This is from Pizza Put

This is from Ice Skating

     GOT S.K.I.L.L.S is a great way to see different programs throughout the academic year right on campus.  It stands for "Socially just, Kindness toward others, Inclusive toward all people, Leading at every turn, Listening with care, and Self-respectful."  This year there were so many different events sponsored by GOT S.K.I.L.L.S, everything from science programs, to english poetry readings, to Vandana Shiva talking about agriculture.  Famous legislaters, politicians, and scientists have come to speak at Saint Mike's and these are great opportunities to learn new ideas, thoughts, and perspectives.

        As a new Saint Michael's student, it is important to be involved on campus.  These different associations are ways to make new friends, keep old ones, and learn new things. 

Kayley

Literary Library

   As we approach the end of the semester, final papers are due, projects are coming to a close, exams are popping up, and finals are just around the corner.  Many, many students use the Durick Library as an important resource to help complete these last few tasks. 

     The Durick Library is practically always open and always filled with students getting their work done.  The library hours basically stay the same from semester to semester, with the exception of holiday breaks.  In the library, there are books (of course!), journals, magazines, different types of media like movies and audio books, computer labs, study rooms and classrooms, and faculty offices.  I find that when I write a paper, I can go to the library and there are so many books and I can also use the library's excellent on line databases right from my dorm room.  The database is available on the library website and can provide online materials for every topic imaginable. 

     For entertainment, the library has over 5500 DVDs!! My friends and I love to take out movies and have movie nights on the weekends.  Seriously, if you can think of it, they probably have it on the shelves.  There are also Cd's and audio books that are available for student use.   
     Interlibrary Loans are another important resource that the library provides students with.  It is an opportunity to borrow materials from other local college libraries, but have the convenience of them being delivered to Saint Mike's.  This system is great if you need a book for a certain class but we don't have it here at SMC.  Then, you can try to obtain it from a neighboring library.
    If you are working on a project and need personal assistance locating materials, there are reference librarians available to help you out.  There is even a spot on the library website to schedule an appointment right from your dorm room and check the hours that the reference desks are open. 
     The library has three floors- the basement, the main level, and the upper floor.  The basement is a quiet zone, meaning that there are cubicles and study areas that require silence.  Also, peer tutoring, the writing center, tons of books, a computer lab, and a media viewing room are located in the basement.  Also the Durick Den is in the basement and it is a small lounge where you can grab a quick snack.  The main level has books, reference materials, computers, magazines and journals, the DVDs, the reference librarians, and the circulation desk.  The upper level of the library has the bulk of the books in the library, a computer lab, the children's book room, and lots of comfy seating.  

       It is definitely worth checking out Durick Library when you visit Saint Mike's because you will be using it as a student here! 

Kayley

The Weekend Edition- Swingin' Sunday

  The story continues with the kickoff of Earth Week. However, all great projects shouldn't be started without first considering breakfast, or in this case brunch. Brunch starts at 11:00 and lasts until 1:00, so it's important to get in and get an omelet before it closes. I got one with ham, broccoli, cheese, and mushrooms and it was absolutely delicious. You can also chose to have bacon, onions, and peppers. After that, my friends and I went to our rooms or the library to start doing homework.
   At 2:00, Earth Fest started, a festival in Ross Sports Center, to bring awareness to our treatment of the earth. There was Ben and Jerry's ice cream, I had Cherry Garcia, hamburgers and veggie burgers, massages, smoothies, and best of all, Barefoot Truth was performing.

  I had never heard Barefoot Truth before today, but now I love their music! They have an incredible sound and are really individual and unique. I went with my friend Mary and we met Katie, Megan, and her sister. We all had a great time listening to the music, dancing like no one was watching (I hope), and eating ice cream. 

Megan's sister and Megan on the top, and Mary in the photo on the bottom looking super creepy!!!

Mary-Kate

A really bad picture of my delicious Cherry Garcia ice cream

   We were all really sad when Earth Fest was over at 4:00, but at 4:45 Alex, Megan, Marci, Katie, Taylor, and I went to dinner. I got some soup and a salad and everyone else seemed really happy with their meals.

   At 7:00 I had to go to Cheray Science Hall to watch a movie (Dirty Pretty Things) for my 20th Century class. I did actually end up liking the movie, but I wish I could have rented the movie instead. I'm sad I missed Palm Sunday mass at 7, but I can go later in the week on Monday or Tuesday.

   Even though I LOVE the weekend, I also love the routine of going to classes during the week. It has been a packed weekend and I hope you have enjoyed my "newspaper edition" of the events on campus. Have a great week everyone!!

Kayley

For your entertainment- a few short clips of Barefoot Truth performing

The Weekend Edition- Saturday Selections

  As I continue my reporting on the various weekend activities, I feel it my duty to inform the general public of my adventures. 

  Saturday morning, like any other, I went to breakfast around 9:00 and returned to my room to start some homework. A little boring, I admit, but at 11:30 I met with Alex, Taylor, Marci, Allyson, and Megan to eat brunch in Alliot. 
   Brunch is one of my favorite times to eat in Alliot because at the International station they make omelets. But today, I wasn't hungry enough to eat one, so I had a Greek salad. We talked and laughed at the table, and told Allyson about our escapades at Pizza Put on Friday night.

  After lunch, I went back to my room and called my parents to just check in. We chatted for a while, when I remembered that Charlie Brown the Musical was at 2:00. I ran to my friend Kate's room at 1:55 and she, having only gotten up an hour before, got ready in 5 minutes and we raced over to see the show. The show was really funny and I wish I could see it again. I loved it and thought the acting and singing were spectacular!!!

Sally, Snoopy, Charlie Brown, Linus, Sally, and Shroeder

This picture was actually in Pizza Put, so I thought I would put it in this blog post

  School musicals and plays are an important part of life here at Saint Mike's. In case you are interested, there is a theater major and a drama club for enthusiasts.
  After the play, I went back to my dorm to get ready to go into Burlington. Alex, Taylor, and I were going to go to Merrill's Roxy Theater to see Jane Eyre. We ate dinner in Alliot at 4:45 and then caught the 5:55 bus. The bus ride was great, except that it was snowing!!! We were all a little disappointed at the weather, but nothing could dampen our spirits. Snowy rain aside, we got to the theater at 6:20, but the movie was at 6:50, so we bought our tickets and went to City Market. City Market is an amazing super market. Everything is organic or natural and there is an incredible variety of produce and household items. It's really cool to just walk around in there to browse, or actually buy things.
   At 6:35 we went back to the theater, bought a popcorn, and took our seats. Alex and I had read Jane Eyre before, but Taylor had not, so we tried to give her a brief overview beforehand. Without giving any of the movie away, all I can say is that we all LOVED it and Alex and I felt it really stayed true to the book. You should definitely see it.

  Taylor and I

Alex and Taylor

  We headed to Ben and Jerry's after, I got a vanilla shake, Taylor got New York Fudge ice cream, and Alex got Strawberry Cheesecake ice cream. We sat in Borders enjoying our ice creams and then took the 9:35 bus back to school.

Us sitting in Borders!!

   Back at school, Taylor, Alex, and I went to Megan's room to have a dance party. Marci and Mary were also there and we all danced and had a lot of fun! Can't wait until tomorrow....

In case you were wondering...Taylor is hiding behind my blanket

Kayley

The Weekend Edition- Fantastical Friday

     This weekend is a hot one, with so much going on I thought I would chronicle all my experiences in a series of "newspaper articles." 

  It's Friday afternoon and our story commences with Afternoon Tea at 3:00 with my suitie Alex. We both got delicious soup this time, tea of course, and some bread that was amazing!  At the end of tea we went back to my room and talked for a bit.    

  After Alex left, I noticed that there was a concert on the library lawn by Kristen Graves.  Her concert was to benefit Simply Smiles, an organization to help impoverished children in Mexico. I took a video of her singing one of her songs...enjoy!

Here is a link to my own personal YouTube video of Kristen Graves: 

     At 4:50 I met with Alex and Taylor to eat dinner in Alliot. I ate a salad, some bread, and an orange, a strange meal, I know, but I wasn't that hungry. After, Alex and I went to the Mike Check Concert. They sing acapella songs like "Can You Feel the Love Tonight"
and "I'll Make a Man out of You." They are always so funny when they are singing and acting goofy. Tonight, their show was going to benefit the Prostate Cancer Foundation. They are always a lot of fun to watch!

  This is a video of the Acabellas, another acapella group on campus. It is an all girls singing group. One of the SMC Bloggers, Gabbi, is an Acabella and I always love listening to their songs like "Sunday Morning" and "Sweet Dreams."

   

    The Sleepless Knights are the third acapella group on campus and it is co-ed. They are excellent and here is my favorite song from them, "Killing Me Softly." 

   Also at 7:00 the Saint Michael's Dance Team was performing. They are soo good, I always looked forward to seeing their performances at the time outs at the Basketball games and it was great to see a whole show of them performing! Here is a link to one of their dances:

This is a video of the song the Dance Team was dancing to in case you really liked it (like me!):

  After all the different shows, the Student Association held a "Saint Mike's" night at Pizza Put. Pizza Put is a local pizzeria, and it has laser tag, mini golf, and arcade games. Last semester I went to the "SMC" night there and it was so much fun, so I knew it was going to be even better this time!

  This time I went with my friends Alex, Taylor, Marci, Megan, Kate, and Caitlyn. 

Marci, Taylor, Megan, Kate, Alex, and Caitlyn waiting for the campus vans!

  We took campus vans to Pizza Put (only about 7 minutes away) and when we went in, a worker handed us "credit cards" with 20 credits on them. First though, my friends and I were really hungry so we ate the delicious pizza they set out for all of us.

   We started to play some games and win a lot of tickets, and in the end I won, with a combined effort from Alex, Kate, Caitlyn, 585 tickets!!! Instead of handing in all your tickets, there are machines in which you feed your tickets in and you get a receipt with the number of tickets written on it. You take the receipt up to where the prizes are and you can pick out what you want. I spotted a little lion "piggy" bank and I knew that it was going to be mine. Also, it was only 400 tickets, so little Arthur came home with me along with some candy.

 Me and Alex



 Megan, Marci, and Taylor

 Me, Alex, Megan, and Marci

Alex and Me again

Megan won 150 tickets at one game!!!!

I won 4.....

Taylor racing

Alex shooting aliens

Here I'm cashing in all of my tickets!

Arthur the Lion and some candy

  I had a great time at Pizza Put with my friends and I hope you enjoyed Part 1 of the Weekend Edition. See you tomorrow for Saturday Selections. 

  

Kayley

Tasty Tuesday

     Yesterday was Free Cone Day at Ben and Jerry's.  On Long Island, Ben and Jerry's is not very popular and not sold many places.  I haven't even eaten Ben and Jerry's that many times and have never had it on Cherry Street in Burlington.  But that was all about to change because Free Cone Day was going to be my opportunity to eat a scoop of Ben and Jerry's for free!  My friends Taylor, Alex, Allyson, Holly, Liz, Lauren, and I met up after our classes around 5:30 to get the bus into Burlington to get some ice cream and then go out to eat.  When we got into Burlington we looked at the line of people waiting to get ice cream and I was amazed!  The line of people went all the way to Rite Aid! 

This is a visual aid in case you aren't familiar with the area

A- Ben and Jerry's

B- Rite Aid

Here is a picture of the line of people waiting for ice cream!

     Taylor, Alex, and I decided that waiting on line would take forever, so we walked down to the Skinny Pancake instead.  I got the Heart Breaker (see below) and it is filled with Nutella, strawberries, and bananas.  It was so yummy! Taylor got the Apples and Brie and Alex got the Veggie Monster.  They were both very happy with their meals and here are some pictures to prove it! 

Here is the Heart Breaker in all its glory

This is Taylor's Apples and Brie Crepe

  Guess we liked our food!

This is a picture of the kitchen below! You can actually see the

cooks making the crepes and preparing the food!!

     In the end I didn't get a free cone, but I had a great time at the Skinny Pancake with my girlies!  The bus ride back was so packed with people that I actually had to sit on Taylor's lap.  We had so much fun on the ride back, laughing and joking, that I wish we could do this every night. 

Kayley

Tips for going to the Skinny Pancake:

1. Go at an off hour, it gets really, really crowded there during the regular eating hours
2. Once you're there, scout out a table and put your jackets down to reserve the table while someone stands on line
3. Take your time when looking at the menu because there are so many delicious options to choose from
4. Once you have ordered, take your number and sit down and enjoy the wait because delicious heaven is coming pretty soon
5. Don't look for silverware because the waiters bring it when they bring your food
6. Enjoy!
7. If you go to the bathroom don't be freaked out by the walk through the building...the bathroom is a long walk away, so don't be worried

Energizing Exercise

     As we all are told, exercise is very important, but the question is, will we do it?  For me, I like to have fun and zumba is a great way to get your heart rate up while having a lot of fun.  Zumba is held on both Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6:00-7:15.  It costs $10 for about 5 or 6 classes and it is definitely worth it! The Zumba classes are held in the Tarrant Recreation Center which is above the Ross Sports Center.  There are also student taught Yoga classes which are held in the Eddie's Student Center (upstairs of Alliot) at 5:00 and 6:00 on Wednesdays.  I haven't gone to any of these (because Yoga makes me laugh for some reason), but my friends Taylor and Alex have gone to these classes and say that because they are taught by students, the classes are comfortable and welcoming. 
    The Ross Sports Center is the main location of the men's and women's basketball games.  I never went to a basketball game before coming to school here, but I love watching the games now.  My friends and I religiously went to every game of the season and I'm starting to actually understand what goes on in the game.  Going to sports games are a great way to show your school spirit and root for the home team. 

There is also a swimming pool which is used for the swim team and is available for students to use.  I have actually swam in the pool on several occasions and it is a lot of fun. 

     The Tarrant Center has four open courts, a suspended track, 3 raquet ball courts, and a squash court.  On the second floor of Tarrant there is the fitness center and weight rooms.  These rooms contain cardiovascular equipment, free weights, and benches.  There is also a rock wall that is available for student use to practice climbing techniques.  

     The Ross and Tarrant Centers are amazing exercise and work out areas that are made for every type of student.  From the beginner to the more advanced, students can feel comfortable in this exercise environment.    

Kayley