LiAnn Butterfield ’16

Hey everyone,

It was very briefly 50 degrees here, and it was sort of like a miracle.  But of course, it started to snow again a few days later. We’re now in a very windy in between temperature.  It could be better, but it could also be much worse.

 

The time has come to start choosing classes for next semester, during which I will be a senior. How crazy is that? If you think time flies by quickly in high school, just wait for college.  This is the time when you realize you’ve been playing that one sport for 15 years, or had that one friend for 10.  Of the four class slots I have for next semester, there is only one I am absolutely certain I want to and must take, and that’s Intermediate Creative Writing Workshop: Non-Fiction.

Aside from that, I feel like I’m in a weird in-between where I’ve take a lot of the non-major classes I was interested in (for example, Fundamentals of Drawing) and so I’m left to fill my non-English spaces with either more intro classes in things I’m not as interested in, or upper level courses in subjects I was avoiding for fear of doing poorly in the subject, usually from past experience.   For example, I really enjoy French, and I love languages. But because I didn’t excel in the 202 and 301 levels, I feel like I’d be starting an upper level 300 class already behind, where I would have had to work hard enough just to keep up. Similarly, I took the intro courses for psychology, philosophy, and sociology.  But there are some sub topics that don’t particularly interest me, and others that sound fascinating, but out of my range of likely-successes. Which sounds silly, because really if you worked hard enough you could probably do well in any class you wanted to. But over the past years in college courses I’ve figured out what classes I do best in, and those are usually ones with topics I am very much personally interested in, often topics I also have some history of study in.  For example,  I took IB Art in high school and so I really like my art course now, because I already have experience so it doesn’t feel like taking off from point 0.  On the other hand, maybe the reason I took art in high school was because I already liked it and always have.  Hmm…

Either way, I have a long list of potential classes in my virtual “backpack” including Russian 101, Painting 1, two different Shakespeare courses, a World War 2 course, and a law class.  One cool thing about upper level classes is that a lot of them (seminars mostly) are only once a week.  So you have a solid few hours to really focus on one subject, and then you have the rest of the week to focus on others and spread out work. Painting is only on Mondays, and class goes from 1:00-4:50.  That’s a long time, but in Art courses it often feels necessary. It’s hard to start an art project in just 50 minutes, you really need more time than that to get into it.

Our equestrian team held our annual horse show, with Clark and Assumption, and it was a really good day despite the rain.  I got really lucky and drew Lacey (still my favorite pony) for my over fences class, so I got to jump her.  I didn’t do quit as well as I was hoping, but I felt comfortable and safe on her so I enjoyed it more than I might have otherwise, and that’s definitely worth it.

A few of the girls on the cheer team, and a number of the boys on the football team, are part of Big Brothers, Big Sisters.  College students are paired with a “little”, who they visit once a week and get to know over the course of the four years.  This Sunday, we’ll be taking part in a talent show with them! We put together a cute routine and will practice again before Sunday to make sure it’s just right. The littles are so excited and enthusiastic, it’s very sweet to see.  Oh to be young again!

 

I took some cute photos of Lacey on Saint Patrick’s Day at lessons the other day, so I will try to post those soon!

 

Always,

L

Hey guys, sorry I disappeared for a little while!  Things have been hectic what with all the snow and ice.  We actually had a few days where it was so snowy the entire college shut down (although they managed to feed us!)  For almost 24 hours, we were 1422234925390on lockdown, around the time of the first blizzard, meaning you couldn’t leave your dorm at all.  Looking out the window, I didn’t really feel much desire to go out, anyway.  The wind especially has been crazy, blowing the snow around so it never stops hitting you, and making the temperature feel way too far below zero.  It has, admittedly, been kind of an adventure.

On the left, you’ll see a very large My Neighbor Totoro sculpture, accompanied by a mini Totoro.  They appeared outside of Loyola one night.  Sadly, they have since been buried in several feet of snow (picture that big Totoro, nowhere to be found, because there’s that much snow). They did inspire me to watch the movie again, though.  Always a good winter-weather activity.  snowed lili

On the right, you’ll see a photo of myself (thanks to Matthew for taking the picture) standing in front of the snow that has been piled in front of the chapel to clear walkways (or even just part of the walkways).  If I stood right in the center, I think the snow would still be at least three feet above me, if not more.  At this point, I’ve sort of gotten used to walking around campus with the “ground” being three feet higher than usual next to the pathway.

 

Cheerleading is coming to a close for the year, and it’s nice to look back and see how much progress we’ve made.  We have so many more stunts than we did last year, and dances (one we learned just last Tuesday, and then performed it at a game on Wednesday!), and a really great group of girls.  It’s been fun, too, which always helps when having to trudge through the cold and the snow to practice or games.

Horseback riding, on the other hand, is slowly returning to season.  Although we do ride all winter (it’s an indoor arena), sunny, warm days are much more convenient and pleasant, and being in an enthusiastic, generally good mood is much more conductive to learning and training than being in a wanting-to-go-back-inside mood.  Every year, we co-host a horse show (in case you’ve forgotten from last year, or are new to my posts).  This means we organize the classes (groups to compete against one another at various levels), order the prizes, prepare the horses, and make sure everything runs smoothly.  I’m really hoping for a warmer day, because there’s a significant amount of standing outside and waiting.  Our show is early in March, after we return from break, and hopefully it will go as well as last year’s did!  We’re bringing some of my favorite horses from lessons to the show (Lacey, Lucy, Daisey, Scooter, etc.) which is always fun.

Classes have been going even better than I hoped. In the past, I’ve found it hard to keep up with readings, especially when I have anywhere from twenty to two hundred, all due at the same time.  I’m not a particularly fast reader, especially if I really want to focus and take in all the information, and that means I need large chunks of time to just commit to reading one book or chapter.  But I think I scheduled my classes better this semester so that the heavy reading is split between days.  For example, the most reading I have to do is for 19th Century British Lit (we’re currently reading David Copperfield (Dickens), and recently finished Wuthering Heights (Bronte)), averaging about two hundred pages per week.  That class takes place on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  On the same days, I have art.  And while art is a longer class (studio art and dance classes are an hour and fifty minutes, twice a week) the work is so different from other homework, and very personal, that it seems to balance out with the reading.  There are also days where I don’t have art homework due, which allows all the time to go towards reading.

On the left is a picture of a drawing, mid-process, that I desk artwas working on for homework.  I’ll try to get a picture of the finished product, but anyways, it was for an assignment negative space artregarding perspective.

On the right is an image that started as a lesson in negative space (drawing the space between objects instead of the objects).  Our teacher then gave us free rein to finish the piece as we saw fit.

On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, I have Sex and Gender in the Middle Ages, and Animal Behavior, neither of which have particularly long readings.  Sometimes Sex and Gender’s readings are slow because of mechanics (we’re reading Wife of Bath (Chaucer) right now, which is in Middle English) but never too long.  Animal Behavior we generally have about ten pages due per class (sometimes its one short chapter per class, other times its a longer one split between two classes).  In Animal Behavior, we go over just about every paragraph of the text, so if I miss something in the textbook or am rushed in reading, it will most likely be explained in class.  We had our first Animal Behavior test on Monday, and I’m really optimistic about it.  There was only one or two questions that I wasn’t 100% sure on (and even then, I was about 75% sure).  This remembering things and understanding concepts is new for me and biology, and I think it has a lot to do with course interest.

I can’t believe it’s almost senior year.  I started looking at class choices for next semester, realizing what I have left to do and how little that is.  It’s sort of mind-blowing.  Time slips by, sometimes, despite being aware of every second.

See you guys soon!

Always,

L

Hey everyone!  Can you believe it’s almost time to head back to the Hill?  (I definitely can’t).  Break went flying by this year.  It was about, I believe, a week and a half shorter than last year’s winter break, as finals were significantly later (although not as bad as some other schools, ie my friend Maura’s finals ended on the 23rd, can you believe that?)  Either way, it’s time to start packing up again (I did finally manage to unpack everything…or at least get it out of the suitcases).

Next semester, my roommate Michaela will be studying abroad in Argentina!  It’s really exciting, and kind of sad at the same time, because she’ll have a great time and get to experience so much, I’m sure, but we got along really well as roommates (and of course, as friends) so it will be sad to see her go.  It’s only for a semester, at least, so she’ll be back for senior fun.  No, I don’t get the whole room to myself, as nice as that might be, but another girl I am familiar with will be moving in, and it will be nice to get to know someone new, too.

Matt and I went to Broadway this past Sunday, to see “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time”, which was also a popular book, although I didn’t read it.  I’d only seen Phantom of the Opera (twice) and Billy Elliot, which were both heavily musical, so it was really interesting to see a play that had no singing at all.  It was very modern- there weren’t really set pieces in the form of furniture or backdrop, but rather the whole stage was a grid, with the walls being interactive screens hiding occasional storage blocks, and a set of white boxes on the floor being used as seats, as luggage, etc.  I thought it was performed really well, and I enjoyed it a lot.  We also made a quick stop into Toys ‘R Us, always a good time.

I’ve started the summer job/internship hunt, and it’s predictably stressful.  There’s so much to do and look at, so many places to see and so many opportunities.  I’m hoping to get an internship in publishing this summer, since it’s been something I’ve been wanting to do for a while, but wasn’t quite the right age until now.  Junior year of college is, it turns out, quite a bit like junior year of high school- big, generalized tests, resume building, and pending future-determining decisions.

So, it’s time to get back to those.  See you back on campus!

 

Always,

L

Hey everyone,

It’s been such a busy month!  Time continues to fly by incredibly fast.  I can’t believe I’m more than halfway done with my college life.  It’s both thrilling and terrifying, the idea of making a life of my own and entering the working world.

The end of the semester finished up smoothly.  I was nervous about my final exams (I had two, in my English readings classes) because it felt like there was so much to remember, and I was worried I’d need to know more specific details rather than ideas to build upon.  But, the reason why I chose English as a major proved itself yet again, and the finals went much better than I was hoping.  I could tell that my teachers really wanted us to do well, because the tests were designed to let us show what we know and what we’ve learned, more so than just what the teacher’s own opinion is.  Now I’m waiting for the textbook list to be posted for next semester, so I can start bargain hunting for books, and thinking about what I’m going to be reading and studying.

Our finals ended a bit later than last year, so there wasn’t much time between getting home and Christmas (I still haven’t finished unpacking).  One of my oldest and closest friends (Maura) and her sister (Katie) came up to stay with us for Christmas and a few surrounding days.  Maura and I were adopted from the same orphanage in Shanghai, China, and our parents went through the same adoption agency to get us, which is how we came to know one another.  After they left, I headed up to Poughkeepsie to visit Matt, and spent New Year’s Eve at our friend Michaela’s house, near Albany.  It was a lot of driving to do in such a short period of time, so I’m glad to be grounded at home for a while now.

I’ve started thinking about what exactly I’m going to do after graduation.  As of now, my plan is to take both the GRE and the LSAT (probably more than once) and then to apply to both Creative Writing MFA programs, and law school, and see what happens.  I’m sort of hoping that it becomes obvious as I go along (although it probably won’t.)

Anyways, now it’s time to go think about the more fun aspects of growing up (ie apartments, pets, holidays, etc.).  See you all soon!

 

Always,

L

Hey everyone, I hope all has been well!  neil

It’s been one long stream of being busy here lately.  I finally got all of those papers out of the way, only to find more approaching (but what else could I expect?) along with some tests and other sorts of assignments.  Seniors, juniors, and sophomores have now selected next semester’s classes, and freshmen are scheduled to join us Thursday morning.  I got three out of the four classes I tried to enroll in at exactly 7am last Thursday (it’s always exactly 7am, except incoming freshmen fall semester enrollment, which I think was somewhere around 5:30pm).  So, as of now, I will be taking 19th Century British Novel, Sex and Gender in the Middle Ages, and Animal Behavior (a biology course for non-bio people).  cheer tdFor my fourth course, I tried to enroll in Microeconomics, but I was unable to get in (sometimes seats in a class are reserved, either for majors, or for a specific grade) so I ended up enrolling in a drawing course.

We recently had a special guest come to campus to lecture, the one and only, Neil deGrasse Tyson.  He talked about science, the progress we’re making (or not making), the things we could be doing that would help, how we should view science and research, etc.  It was really interesting, and understandable (coming from a non-science-major perspective).  He was also really amusing and relaxed, so it was a good time, despite it being over two hours.

Our men’s basketball team beat Harvard at the TD Garden on Sunday, in a really exciting game.  We were ahead 58-57 with one minute and Harvard had the ball, so it was down to if they made their shot or not, and they didn’t.  I don’t think I’ve ever been that excited about a basketball game before (or that tense during one, because it was close the whole time!)scooter

In horseback riding, I’ve been riding this one horse named Forest a lot.  He’s very cute, bay and kind of small, and a little bit sassy.  He’s privately owned, so he hasn’t been as easy to figure out as a regular school horse, but I think I’m starting to, and he’s very honest and well-intentioned.  Unfortunately, I don’t have any photos of him yet (it’s been too cold to linger for selfies with the horses) so here are some photos I took a few weeks laceyago, of Lacey (left, who I haven’t gotten to ride yet this year but still like to visit regularly and is doing well) and Scooter (right), who I did ride recently.  Scooter has cancer in one eye, which they’re treating, but despite that, he’s very sweet and listens really well.  He’s also really comfortable, which is always nice.  And little.  He’s a tiny little guy (though not as tiny as Romeo).

 

I’m looking forward to going home for Thanksgiving, to see my cats (and family) and catch up on some reading, and start thinking about life next semester, and then life as a senior!

Enjoy the holiday!

 

 

Always,

L

Hey everyone,

pumpkin 2014October has turned out to be much busier than I expected, despite the week long “Fall Break”.  Over break, I spent some time in the Hudson Valley, on Matt’s turf, and the leaves were pretty impressive (as well as the pumpkins and apples and various fall paraphernalia).  We went apple picking, and drove around Vassar College’s campus (they have a community garden that we briefly stopped by, for continued inspiration and motivation for our own Holy Cross hopes), and carved a pumpkin (it’s a Cheshire Cat, in case you aren’t sure.  Alice in Wonderland (Lewis Carroll) is my favorite book, and a tentative Halloween costume plan).

We also went to a sculpture park, Storm King Art Center.  It’s buddhaa 500-acre park full of hills, wooded areas, paths, tall grass, and huge pieces of art.  Having taken Introduction to Buddhism last semester, we found the “Three Legged Buddha” (2007) by artist Zhang Huan particularly interesting.  Some of the other pieces used rubber, stone, wood, and/or metals.  There’s often something automatically impressive about anything so huge and looming in size.  I’m really curious as to how exactly they create their art, because you certainly can’t just lift a 30 foot steel beam into place.

I’ve started to find that higher level classes do, in fact, get more difficult.  I have to pause to think and consider my work much more, which can be frustrating at times, when it feels like no matter what I won’t understand.  But that’s also, of course, what professors are for, to guide that understanding along just a bit further and to help when you get stuck in a rut.  It’s also becoming more apparent to me how important it is to have confidence in yourself and your work, and not to be afraid of being wrong.  I’m very shy about raising my hand, almost ever, because I tend to re-think what I had lucyplanned to say so many times that I can no longer remember what the thought was or how I wanted to say it.  It gets very dizzying.  It would be simpler to simply raise my hand, say my thought, and then learn from my new-found understanding or my error.  It’s something I’m working on.

I was away from the barn for a few weeks, one week because of homework and the next because we were on break, so it was good to go back today (although, as expected, also a little painful).  I rode a new pony, Lucy (pictured at right).  She’s very cute and pretty comfortable.  She can be sassy at times, as most mares and ponies sometimes are, but overall she’s very honest and easy, once figured out.

Unfortunately, the midterm rush hasn’t quite finished.  I have one midterm exam this week, and five papers due next week (yes, five, please send all the luck my way), so I will leave you with a picture I took of one of the campus’ friendly resident skunks.  I named him Arthur (he’s the one with the tiny white dot on the very tip of his tail), and he is arguably kind of cute.

 

 

 

 

Enjoy the turning of seasons!

Always,

L

Hi everyone!  Sorry for the absence, we were having some technical difficulties, and I couldn’t access my account.

The ivy has begun to change to its apple red color, and the trees are turning gold.  This is one of the best parts of being in New England for the Fall.  Admittedly, the weather has been a little temperamental lately.  A few weeks ago it was suddenly very cold (or rather, it felt very cold compared to the 80 and 90 degrees it had been), but then there have been sporadic days back in the 80s, and a few days somewhere in the middle.  It’s kind of fun, in its own unpredictable way.  I’m looking forward to a steady cool, though.  I’m definitely a fan of sweatshirts and gloves, and I’m ready to break them all out.

We go home at the end of this week, on October break already.  The first month has flown by.  I still refuse to believe that I could be more than halfway done with my college career.  It feels like I just moved in yesterday, leaving home and beginning to make bigger decisions on my own.  At the same time, it feels like I’ve always been here, and high school feels very distant.

I’ve had my first few graded assignments, and they’ve all been going pretty well.  I’ve been really pleased with the things I’ve written for creative writing so far this year.  My writing style and narrative voice has changed over the last few years, and I like the way its been developing recently.  My first major writing assignment is due this Wednesday, and my Irish literature class actually influenced what I decided to write about.  One theme/motif we talk about often in Irish lit, that can be seen in most if not all of the works we’ve read, is the presence of elements of fantasy and mythology, intertwining with reality.  So for this creative writing assignment, my ideas were originally based off of one of the myths (which I will tell you all about next time, once I’ve finished the assignment!)

I’ve also been kind of excited to find that I’ve really enjoyed all of the works I’ve been assigned this year as of yet.  I don’t know if it’s me growing up and developing a broader taste and appreciation for works, or me growing into my English major and appreciating the craft, or if I’ve just been lucky and really liked all of the things I’ve been assigned.

Chinese film has continued to be interesting as well.  I’d never had any experiencing with studying film, as opposed to just viewing.  We’ve learned the elements of mise-en-scene, which refers to the various aspects of what appears on screen and how it is placed/shot/etc.  For example, in one shot we might look at what angle it was shot from (high?  low?) and how it was lit, and where the various characters were placed, in relation to one another and in relation to the camera, aka the audience.  It’s not something I had ever really thought about before, so it’s been interesting to use and develop that eye.

Cheer has a bit of downtime, since there are no home football games in October.  That means we have plenty of time to polish new routines and work out new stunts, in addition to preparing for basketball season.  Horseback riding has been going similarly well and easily.  I can see how I’ve improved from where I was last year, and freshmen year, and in high school, and it’s really rewarding to feel accomplished in that way.  We had our first Holy Cross Food Nation club meeting of the year two weeks ago, and will have a second one tonight.  We got a handful of new people to the meeting with varied food interests, and then input from even more people, which resulted in this week’s theme being Oktoberfest.  One of the German FLAs (foreign language assistants) agreed to come and speak about Oktoberfest, which should be really interesting and fun to hear.

Unfortunately, it’s a very test/paper-heavy week for a lot of people, including myself, so I’m off to go write up a storm.

I hope all continues to be well.

 

Always,

L

Hi everyone!  Welcome back!

 

Classes have begun.  It’s definitely very weird to have class only three days a week, and four days off.  I like it but at the same time, it makes the weekends seem to rush, and the days with class sort of hit like a wall.  It’s easy to put off work when you tell yourself you have four days to do it.  Then suddenly the four days are up.

 

So far I like all of my teachers.  My two new English professors are both really enthusiastic.  Professor Reynolds (Contemporary Irish Literature) is encouraging and lively, and I’m already really enjoying the materials we’ve begun, so I have a good feeling about the rest of the semester for the class.  We started off with poems by Seamus Heaney.  I’ve been a little obsessed with Ireland since seventh grade when I went for a week during the summer on an equestrian vacation, so the topics and history behind the writing are really exciting to me.  Professor Ireland (Growing Up American) is very funny and the time passes quickly in his class.  We’re reading Little Women (Louisa May Alcott).  The plot seems like it should be a boring subject (four girls growing up and becoming wives, learning their places and interests, etc) yet somehow it’s easy to keep reading for me.  It might help that I read it in sixth grade.  Although, all I remember was reading it upside down because I wanted to seem cool (I don’t think it worked).

cheer junior 1

We won our first home football game of the season!  The score was 26-23, Morgan State-Holy Cross, with about ten seconds left, and five yards.  Then there were two seconds, and one yard.  Everyone was holding his/her breath, standing wide eyed with all the anticipation in the world.  And miraculously, we made it.  We haven’t won a home game since my freshmen year (and that year, we only won one) so this was beyond just winning a game for us.  People cried and no one stopped screaming and it was amazing.  Now we just have to wait and pray for the same performance this weekend, against Central Connecticut.  I think that finally having a victory under our belt might encourage everyone, get more fans cheering, and raise the attitude of everyone involved.  How discouraging must it be to go loss after loss?  This is like the rain after a drought, a hopeful turning point, that maybe will be just what we need.

 

 

maffew mellons SIP held its annual symposium for the summer research projects.  I had a few friends that took jersey mellonspart, living on campus for nine weeks, working on per-determined projects of their own design.  Jersey (my freshmen roommate, on the right) worked with a lab group studying lung regeneration.  Matt (on left) was working on the Community Garden project that I posted about recently.  I have a friend, Abe (the Organ Scholar of our class) who got to go to Italy for his project.  Imagine being paid to tour and study in Italy.  There were rows and rows of posters and presenters, and tables with maps and booklets to direct you.  Everyone worked really hard and presented themselves nicely.

 

Equestrian Club/Team had our first meeting tonight.  There were quite a few people to show up, expressing interest in joining or finding out more, which was exciting to see.  I’m ready to get back in the saddle (and bracing myself because it’s going to be a rough start) and see Lacey and all the other horses and ponies again.

 

I can’t believe I’m halfway there.

Have a good few weeks!

 

Always,

L

Hi again guys!  This seemed like a good time to catch you up on what I did all summer, since summer is almost over, and I didn’t have work today.

I kicked off my summer applying to as many jobs as I could find.  I had applied to a few internships (specifically for publishing/writing), but a lot of the ones I applied to were geared more towards rising seniors as opposed to rising juniors.  So maybe I’ll have more luck next summer.  In high school, you spend your time and energy building up your resume for college.  Once you reach college, it’s time to start that process again, but for potential employers.  Employers especially look for (or so they tell me) past experience, so having even a part-time job that maybe isn’t what you want to be doing for the rest of your life is still a good idea.  I spent about half a week worrying that I wasn’t going to be able to find a job and that I’d have nothing at all to do all summer (and no money) and frantically sending out resumes to as many places as I could think up.  Then I was called by human resources, and after that spent 25 hours per week at AAA New York.  I answered the phone, welcomed members, gave out maps and books, and filled out ticket forms.  All of the people were very friendly, and I enjoyed my time, even if it wasn’t at all writing-based.

I did mean to write over the summer.  I keep telling myself that I will make up for it by writing thousands of words in the three day gap I have between finishing work and leaving for the Hill.  But that’s about three days, and I have to pack (which just might take all three), and I’m most definitely one of those people who brings way too much and thinks it’s totally justified.  I’m pretty sure that after graduation I’m going to need a moving truck, or all three family cars, because there’s already too much to fit in one.  Anyways, I kept getting distracted, or tired.  One thing I found I struggle with is if my schedule is too routine and repetitive.  I find myself looking for checkpoints of non-routine events (a vacation or a friend visiting, for example), and then willing away the time until that checkpoint, instead of enjoying and using that time thoroughly.  Hopefully, my classes next semester will motivate me to do just that, and use the spare time (four days a week of it, thanks to my fantastic/unfortunate schedule) to be productive in things I enjoy, like writing.  I think it will help that I’m taking so many English classes, including creative writing.  Maybe the necessity of writing and reading required by the classes in combination with the free time will be just the right push.

DSC03255In place of writing, I did take a few fun trips.  Before I had found my job, a group of college friends and a few of my home friends and I went camping in the Adirondacks, on Indian Lake.  We had to canoe all of our supplies out to a tiny island offshoot in the middle of the lake.  It was sort of an adventure.  There were mishaps and some rain (or a lot of rain), DSC03284which only added to the feeling of satisfaction coming home.  It was also kind of fun seeing school friends out of school environment.  It’s different with my home friends, because in high school you have the opportunity to see people both in and out of school.  But when you’re at college, you live with them.  And while they may be different between class and weekend downtime, I know I personally feel and act differently (even just marginally) between all time spent at college, and time I spend at home, on breaks and over the summer.

(On the left is my friend Maura, myself, and Kelsey; on the right are college friends Abe, Matt, Angelo, and Jeff).

I later took a brief trip down to Long Beach Island, NJ, where Matt’s family rents a house annually.  I’d never been to that part of the Jersey shore, and it was beautiful.  Throughout the summer, I also made a few trips up to school, to visit my friends that were partaking in the Mellon Summer Research.  They got to live in senior housing, which was fun to get a glimpse of.  Campus was very empty, almost surprisingly so, and because the Mellon students are equipped with kitchens, the dining hall is not frequented, and so I didn’t encounter all the people I normally would have.  It made me view Hogan and Kimball a little differently.  I hadn’t realized how much of a community center part they played.  Of course, I was only up to school on weekends, so weekdays may have been different.

DSC03841Lastly, I went to Martha’s Vineyard, with my Mom, Matt, and my friend Maura (from the picture above of camping).  I used to go every summer when I was a child, but we stopped when my grandma got older.  I decided it was time to resurrect that tradition, or at least revisit the memories.  It was cool to see how much (or how little) I remembered, and see familiar sights that I couldn’t tell if I recognized from memory or photos.

(On left: Acquinnah Cliffs and Gay Head Lighthouse, on Martha’s Vineyard)

I probably won’t post again until I arrive at school (it’s only a week after all) so enjoy the rest of your summers, and I’ll check back in soon!  Wish me luck with the miles of unpacking.

Always,

L

Hi again everyone!  I hope all your summers have been going well. It’s almost time to check back into Holy Cross.

 

Summer went by really fast. I can’t believe we go back in just a few weeks.  I will be going back a few days early for cheer, to have a mini “pre-season” of sorts.  We’ll try to whip back into shape to perform our best at all the fall games, which will be coming up fast once school starts.  That means lots of practice, and of course bonding.  One of the nice things about moving in early for cheer is that it means we don’t have to compete with 50 other people trying to lug car loads of clothes, rugs, tvs, and books, onto the dorm floor. And we have a few extra days to settle in (and procrastinate at unpacking).

I will also be continuing with the Equestrian Team.  Admittedly, I didn’t ride over the summer, so those first few lessons are going to be rough, but I’ll be glad to be back in the saddle.

 

I’m looking forward to classes. I somehow managed to put myself in a really odd scheduling situation.  I will only have class on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays.  At first glance that seems like an overload, but then I remember that I took three classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays last semester too, and it wasn’t so bad, and now I have just one on Wednesdays instead of two on Mondays and Wednesdays and one on Fridays (which was my schedule then.) I have one of my favorite professors again this semester which I’m pretty excited about. And of course I’m excited to meet and learn from more of the English department, that I hadn’t yet.

One last thing to mention.  Matt, along with another student Cindy, started a club on campus, called Holy Cross Food Nation. I’m not sure if I mentioned it already, but as a refresher, it’s a group to promote dialogue about the social issues surrounding food, and encourage conversation, since often times people don’t pause to think about what they’re eating.  Matt is interested in why certain cultures eat certain ways, and the history behind it, for one example. I personally am a vegetarian and interested in the aesthetics of food more so.  Matt and Cindy also worked over the summer as a part of the Mellon research program towards establishing an on campus community garden.  Matt’s blog (www.eatingcompanion.com) tracks their progress and findings, so if you have a minute, why not check it out?

 

Maybe I’ll be seeing some of you on campus soon? To everyone just beginning to explore colleges and Holy Cross among their options, welcome and good luck!

 

Always,

L

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LiAnn Butterfield '16

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Former Blogger