National Whistle Weekend..umm I mean Orientation

As most of you know, Thursday started off National Whistle Weekend here at SMC.  The whistles were in full force.  They greeted us, they told us what to do, they woke us up in the morning, they got us pumped at the dance. Yup, this weekend was all about the whistles, oh ya, and Orientation too.

Because this week has been so hectic and I have done so much, I thought I would break it down by day so that I don't miss anything. This has been such an amazing week.

Sunday Aug. 21st
- I had a BBQ with my Senior English class and teacher.  We had a really special class and it was great to see everyone before we all left.  I loved getting to meet my teacher's dogs as well.
- Right after my english class BBQ, I had a family going away party at my house. It was so cool to say goodbye and to eat my favorite meal of enchiladas.

My family and I on my front lawn on Sunday.

Monday Aug. 22nd
- Spent the day with my amazing neighbors.  We went to Lake Compounce, which is an amusement park in CT.  We had so much fun and I was very impressed with Landon's (5 years old) and Preston's (3 years old) bravery with the rides.

Tuesday Aug 23rd
- Packed all day.  Got everything organized for Wednesday's adventure.  Finished up my Eating Animal's Essay. I also went to softball practice.

Wednesday Aug. 24th
- My last Neil's Donuts breakfast for a while with the family.
- Packed the car, so it would be ready to take off the next day.
- Went to see WICKED with my friend Dani.  We had so much fun! What a great show, it was beautiful and amazing, and I still kinda can't believe I saw it.

Mom and I with the stage in the background

Mom, Dani and I during intermission

Thursday Aug. 25th
- Left for SMC at 4:15 am.  I was really tired because of Wicked so I slept almost the whole way here.  We only stopped once, which is pretty much amazing for my family.
- Arrived at SMC at about 8:50, I was greeted by some awesome and energetic O-Leaders at the gate.
-  Drove to my dorm and forgot my room number.  I eventually remembered and the orientation leaders kicked butt at getting all of my stuff up the FOUR flights of stairs!
- Started moving all of my stuff into my room.  Sent my dad and brother to get the bed lofter guys.  Unpacked all of my clothes.
- Lofter men came in and lofted my bed.
- Met my roommate and my roommate's family.
- Went to check in at the Ross Sports Center and checked out all of the cool exhibits there.
- Took our class photo in the gym.  Then we ate some delicious food and met with our orientation groups.
- Convocation Ceremony.  This was very nice, and also very hot.
- Then it was time for "fun for all" which was really cool and, you guessed it, fun.  We did team builders in the gym.
- Hang out/walk around campus
- Bed...finally!

My little brother CJ and I before they left

Friday Aug. 26th
- Wake up to whistles
- Breakfast with my Mom, Dad, and brother.
- Went to opening Mass with my family.  It was very nice.  Then we said our goodbyes.
- Went to lunch with some of my Joyce floormates.
- Hung out until dinner, then dinner at Alliot.
- DANCE PARTY!! The dance party was for the freshman class and it was really fun.

Saturday Aug 27th
- Wake up to whistles
- Went to an informational academics program fair.
- Then a really helpful panel on my summer reading, Eating Animals.
- Lunch
- Met with my advisor, he seems really cool and knowledgeable.
- Dinner
- Scavenger hunt with my orientation group.  Loved walking around campus and enjoyed the beautiful sunset.
- Super hilarious hypnotist show.  Best I have ever seen.
- Hung out with some floormates.

Sunset outside of my window

Which brings us to today...

Sunday Aug 28th
- Irene!!!!
- Rain boots were in order this morning, as well as a heavy duty rain jacket.
- Ross for our last orientation event.
- Wrote a letter to myself for when I graduate. Then we watched a really cool presentation by a  very interesting man.
- Underwent an Orientation tradition that includes a really special braid.
- Went to informational sessions on SMC Athletics for softball.
- Back to my dorm to write this.


Now, I am just writing this, looking out my window at Irene which is rocking it right now with a ton of wind and rain.

As you can see, it has been a busy couple of days for me with very little sleep.  So far, I LOVE SMC!! Orientation was great and the O-leaders each deserve a trophy or something.

Fun Fun

This is going to be a quick post because I need to go pick up my brother from his summer job in about 5 minutes, but I thought I would let you in on my packing progress and try to put a youtube video into this post.

This is a video I made and even though it is quick, the real-time is alot slower and I probably spent an hour organizing my college supplies and figuring out my final list.  I leave in about 10 days and I am trying to finalize all of my stuff.

Hopefully the video is right below here...

I thought it was kinda fun to share.

Also, HAPPY BIRTHDAY AUNT LAURIE!!

"Make new friends, but keep the old, one is silver and the other's gold"

I was a Girl Scout for 13 years and I cannot tell you how many times I have sung this cute campy song.  We sang it at every meeting from the tender age of 5 to the "wise" age of 17.  Although I used to sing it constantly, never has this song had so much meaning than this summer.

This weekend was my last softball tournament with my team of the last 2 years.  We are all headed off to college in the fall (2 of us leave this week!).  Our schools range from as far south as Georgia to as far north as Vermont (Go SMC!), so we know that this is the last time we will see each other for quite a while.

For those of us who play on travel sports teams, we know that the people on our teams are the people who we spend almost all of our time with. Today, I had to say goodbye to all of those great people, but we know that it is not forever.  We are definitely going to get together during breaks, and we made a Facebook group so we can all stay in touch.  They are amazing people and I am so sad to be leaving all of them.

It is not just my team that I am leaving in about a month, it is also all of my "home friends" as I am sure they will soon be called.  Even though I am leaving my "home friends", I cannot wait to start at Saint Michael's.  There will be so many more people to meet and I know I will make more friends while in Vermont.



One is silver and the other is gold...