Snowshoeing....an adventure to say the least

    Last week was quite crazy for me.  I had an exam in one of my spanish classes on friday, on thursday I had my Modern Latin America midterm, and I had a french exam on friday also.  Many things to study for and so little time!  I was very busy to say the least, but by the end of the week I was so ready to go snowshoeing with my best friends Taylor and Kate through the wilderness program. 
     First off, I feel I should say that I have NEVER snowshoed before and I had no idea what I was getting myself into.  We had to get up and be ready for 8:00 am on saturday (very difficult to begin with) and then head over to Alliot to meet our trip leaders.  Both Alex and Alex were leading the trip and made the getting to know each other process very easy because they both had the same name!  We took an SMC van and headed toward Abbey pond.  I'm still not sure where it is exactly, but it was about 1 hr and 30 min away.  We made a wrong turn on the way there, but that's all part of the journey of life isn't it? We sometimes make wrong turns but the way we handle them is what defines us.....and back to snowshoeing.  We got back on the road in about 5 min and then continued on the journey.  We made it to the little side road to where we were supposed to park the van and when we were almost to the parking lot the van stopped moving and we just were sliding on the ice!  We all got out (me, Taylor, Kate, and Alex) and helped to rock and push the van!  It was exceedingly exciting for me because I have never had to do that, so I felt very powerful after that. 
     Once we parked and got outfitted with our snowshoes and gear we started down the path.  There was not a ton of snow on the paths at the start, so we were walking on rocks for a bit with a thin layer of ice and snow, but once we started to get nearer to the pond there was a bit more.  To get to the pond was about 2.5 miles and then we took the path back walking about 5 miles in total.  In the beginning it was exhausting!  We had to stop a lot, plus we were all wearing many layers and then all that exercise was getting us too hot!  I was definitely not expecting it to be such a strenuous activity but I'm so happy I went.  My friends and I shared many laughs and bonded for about 7 hours!  At the end when we reached the pond all our efforts were rewarded because the pond and the view was absolutely beautiful!  And to make it even better, the walk back was so much easier and we already knew the path and how to snowshoe like pros. 

     It was a very exciting trip and we were all sore and tired when we returned that we all showered and watched a movie.  It was a very full day and I am so glad I got to share the adventure with Taylor and Kate!  Please tweet me, formspring me, or contact me (use the contact tab at the top) with any questions you have about SMC.

Kayley

Green Up!

     In Saint Ed's foyer Tuesday and Thursday mornings (not every time, but very often) from 8:00-10:00 there is a coffee hour run by Green Up.  It is in an effort to support fair trade and if you bring a reusable mug, you get the coffee for free!  If you don't have a mug, you can purchase mugs and steel water bottles for $2 and $3.  They also supply free trade cream, sugar, and occasionally chocolates. 
     Some times there are even special guests to discuss issues that Green Up tries to combat and increase knowledge about.  One week, a Saint Michael's Alumnus Andrew Driscoll visited to discuss Fair Trade issues. 
     Here are some pictures:

     I hope every one's week goes well and if you have questions tweet me, formspring me, or use my contact page at the top!

Kayley

Every Wednesday

      Every Wednesday I go to the library in the morning before class.  Mostly I go there to read some articles from the Spanish newspaper El Pais.  I think that being able to and having the resources available to help my Spanish is a great thing!  I really enjoy reading the cultural section of the paper or even reading about celebrities! 
    There are so many different newspapers available and a great magazine section at the library.  I especially love the Eating Well, Knit Simple, and history magazines.  There are literary, history, political, the arts, pop culture, and environmental magazines.  I like to just go and browse sometimes and see just what the main topics of each magazine.  You should try and check it out sometime!
     If you have any questions about life at SMC tweet me, formspring me, or use my contact page at the top! 

Kayley

Valentine's Day Celebrations

     Valentine's Day: wonderful, sweet, fun, sugary, and delightful.  Some of the words that come to mind when I think of this holiday, but mostly celebrating love.  I started the day getting ready and heading to breakfast to eat with my friends.  I was surprised to get some lovely Valentines from my wonderful friends and the day started out right! 
     I went to class (Modern Latin America) and then to my Self Defense class which is held in Ross.  That was great, until I got elbowed in the lip.  Let's just say (in the words of Marci) that it looked like I had plumping lip gloss on...in other words, a fat lip.  Oh well, I took it in strides, I mean it happens every once in a while, right? I went to the library for 15 minutes to read a magazine (a Tuesday tradition) and then went to Alliot to meet with Alex for our 1:00 lunch.  I was absolutely delighted to find that there was french onion soup today, yum! After lunch I moped around until I had to go to a Founder's Society meeting.  Honestly, I was a tad bummed it was today instead of tomorrow, but what can you do?!  After we got dinner and there was a station in Alliot where there were chefs making cherries jubilee!  It was delish!

There's Megan!

     After dinner, I made the quick decision to go to zumba instead of getting some ice cream from Ben and Jerry's (they were giving out free scoops).  I had an excellent time dancing and grooving out to the great zumba dances.  I left early and met my friend Taylor in Alliot at 7:30 and I had a cup of tea.  Finally back in my room for the night, I relaxed with my friends listening to some Sinatra while writing this and then watching New Girl on tv.  Overall, it was a pretty excellent day and I'm happy that I got to be with my friends on this glorious Valentine's Day! 

Cheers,

Kayley

Office Hours

     Hello! Happy Monday! Woot the week has already started!!!  Tonight my friends and I went to the Sloane to eat at the Knights at the Round Table.  It was delish!! I also went to Spanish mass tonight! 
     At the start of each semester, every professor puts on his/her syllabus when they are available for office hours.  Office hours are incredibly helpful when you need to meet with a professor.  (also if you feel nervous about emailing a professor, it takes the stress out of the situation, because the office hours are already scheduled so you can just drop in!)  I definitely recommend going to visit professors when you have questions on homework, need help with an essay, or just have questions about the class in general. 
     Please feel free to ask me any questions you may have about life here at SMC via twitter, formspring, or my contact page. 

Kayley

up to SNOW good

     Whenever someone hears that I go to school in Vermont, the automatic response is "oh it's cold up there!"  And I say why yes it is!  I love snow, and I definitely picked the perfect school.  Last year we even got a snow day.  This year, as many of you know, has not been very snowy, but early this morning I felt some snow blowing in on my face from the outside (I keep my window cracked) and I was overjoyed!  There are some essentials for staying warm:

• call it what you will, but long underwear/ long Johns/ thermals/ whatever
• under armour (optional)
• hot chocolate
• boots
• big woolly socks
• a warm coat
• gloves, scarves, hats, etc
• an open mind to dress like a crazy person!

     My friends Taylor, Eleanor, and I took a walk this morning from Pontigny to Rite Aid and it was a ton of fun.  It was about 10 degrees, but we made sure to bundle up:



     I have some friends who absolutely hate snow, but they still love being here at SMC, so it's definitely just something you have to take with a grain of salt.  And don't worry, they are always salting the pathways here or we'd all be slip sliding around!!! 

Kayley

Portland or bust!

     Hi friends, it has been a while (I apologize) but last week was a bit crazy for me.  On Thursday (4:45) I went with the Liturgical Choir on a trip to Portland, Maine.  I was lucky to be with some fellow bloggers- Marci and Alex.  It took us about 5 hours to get to Portland and we stopped midway to eat at a Pizza Hut.  Here are some pictures of Marci and me living it up on the bus!

     I don't want to bore you with all the details of the trip so I'll give you a basic rundown of what happened-

     -We stayed at a beautiful hotel called the Fireside Inn

     -We played at 4 masses- 2 at Catholic High schools (both on Friday) and 2 at churches (1 Saturday and 1 Sunday)

     -We ate a lot- literally eating all the time...I LOVED it

     -I got to go into the hot tub at the hotel which was very lovely

     -I made many new friends

     -I got to visit downtown Portland.  It was my first time and I really want to go back!  It was beautiful

     -Both Marci and I had quite a bit of homework to do, so unfortunately some of our free time was devoted to that

     -took a bunch of silly pictures as you can see

     -we practiced SO MUCH, but it was all worth it in the end &  here are some videos: 

     I wish I could say that I can't wait for the trip next year, but I will be studying abroad at the same time.  However, I will say that my senior year will be an EPIC trip!  Tweet me, formspring me, or contact me with any questions you may have about life at SMC.

Kayley