I'm One Eighth Done?!

The title is not false: In a matter of a week, I will be on eighth done with my college career. It is not that I am anxiously awaiting this, either. In fact, I am quite enjoying my time as a poor college student. Nevertheless, I cannot help but notice how quickly this is going by.

As the Spring Semester approaches, some changes have taken place in my educational priorities. For example, the most significant would probably be my change in majors. I was previously a Psychology major with a concentration in Elementary Education; I am now a double Theatre and English major with a Creative Writing minor.

Contrary to what I should hope no one would think, this has nothing to do with my sister's BA in English. In fact, I would have preferred to be just a Theatre major, but then the question rises of what will I do with this in "the real world"? I am really not banking on acting professionally. With an English major and a Theatre major, I have many options, including Education.

I am somewhat disappointed that I will not be pursuing Psychology, however. Since I had had no previous experience in this subject pre-college, it was a new and interesting topic, and it continues to intrigue me now that I have a little knowledge of it. Regardless, there is little in the field of Psychology that I would ever wish to continue with as a career option.

My strongest reason for switching my majors is my never-ending passion for Theatre. In high school, theatre was a mere after-school activity to which I loved dedicating most of my time. Now, my passion can be transformed into classes where I can excel in doing what I love. What better reason could there possibly be than this?

Therefore, as I approach my week of final exams, I eagerly await my two theatre class that I will be taking next semester, as well as the play in which I am acting. The Boot and Buskin (faculty-directed) show is "Emma's Child", which is a more depressing version of Juno. There is a cast of eleven, as well as an understudy cast of another eleven. I was fortunate enough to be cast in the lead cast--the only freshman! (Not to brag, but I am quite proud of this!) Our show is in mid-February.

For other updates in Spring Semester, I will keep the blog up-to-date.

Where Did My 1st Semester Go?!

I said that I would write again after classes had started.

I lied.

In reality, I'm writing past the half-way point into my first semester of freshman year! I like to think I've come a long way since then. It's simply impossible to try to fill my readers (if they truly exist) on what's been going on since then, so I'll just address some main points of my year so far:

Classes:

On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, I have three classes.

My day begins at 11:30--a reasonably late time--with Western Civilization until 12:20. I suppose that it is appropriate that this is my first class of both the day and the week because it is my least favorite. My professor, a priest, is more than competent on the subject, but his lecture-and-note-taking style of teacher does not work for me. I require some form of activity to create comprehension, and not just listening and writing pages of notes. Nevertheless, I have enjoyed the emphasis the class subject matter has had on Rome, considering my vacation over the summer. Just today, during our class on the Italian Renaissance, we looked at several pieces of Roman art and sculpture, most of which I can now say that I have seen (Birth of Venus, David, Pieta, etc.). I have even taken to pulling up my own photos from iPhoto to reference during class, mostly because my own photos spark personal memories of the experience of being there in a real experience, rather than a vicarious one.

Right from Western Civilization I go to Theatre from 12:30-1:20. This is a class that I enjoy greatly, as many might imagine. About once a week, including today, we have a guest speaker who comes to our class to talk about something in theatre. Today, for example, we had someone talk about set design. The speaker was none other than my advisor, who I will mention when we get to my Tuesday-Thursday schedule. In theatre, we also do many little skits and acting activities that go along with chapters we read in our textbook. We're currently in the process of presenting skits that we did as part of a lesson on directing. In groups of three, we got and "empty scene," which is basically a short scene where, when taken out of context, there is no purpose evident within the lines. As directors, each person in the group directed the other two members in acting out the scene in a different way. Since the scene was "empty," one director may have seen it as the dialogue between a mourning woman burying her pet and a teenager, while another may have seen it as the dialogue between two men in a line-up. The possibilities are endless.

After a short break for lunch, I have Psychology from 2:30-3:20. Since psychology is (currently) my major, I'm happy to say that this is definitely one of the most interesting classes I'm taking. Taught by a Jesuit of Le Moyne, my professor is not only fully intrigued by his subject matter, but obviously applies WHAT he teaches to HOW he teaches--a refreshing change. Today, we had a quiz on learning, which is obviously relevant to someone like me who has a concentration in elementary education. We've been studying the different experiments scientists have done to test learning, such as the "Bobo Doll Experiment," where young children watched a "model" adult beat up a bobo doll (the inflatable ones that have sand at the bottom and look vaguely like people). The children, when placed in a room with toys, were significantly more aggressive towards the doll than the other group of children, who did not witness the adult model's example behavior towards the doll. This proves that children are very impressionable when it comes to mimicking the actions of adults around them, and therefore translates to explain why families with abuse between parents often lead to the children living abusive lifestyles.

On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I have either two or three classes--it varies.

At the beginning of the year, it was typical to have three. I would start my morning at the way-too-early time of 8:30 for advisement until 9:20. This class, with the theatre professor involved in set design (who I mentioned before), is not exactly a 'class.' It is a required class for freshmen to promote involvement, as well as to support new college students by assisting with organization and other techniques to make college an easier adjustment. Since I am in the Performing Arts Learning Community, the students in this class, as well as my Theatre class, are the same, for the most part. We all are also located on the same two floors in our residence hall. Advisement is also involved with our year-long theme of Evolution, including reading "Only A Theory," by a guy named Kenneth R. Miller. I have come to despise Miller because I do not agree with many of his ideas on how evolution and religion can co-exist. Regardless, advisement is meeting less and less as the year progresses, bringing my Tuesday-Thursday down to two classes.

From 11:30-12:45 I have Critical Writing, which is easily one of my favorite classes. With its focus on grammar and writing and lack of emphasis on reading, I immediately fell in love with this class. The professor is a kind, little old woman. One of my friends is famous for saying, "I wish she was my mom!" Not only is she quite agreeable, but we also do various activities to learn the subject matter repetitively, making it exceedingly easy to pass her (few) grammar quizzes. We write rough drafts of essays in class, so that we never have huge writing assignments hanging over our heads for her class. Then, she organizes us into small groups and we work together to critique each other's papers. The next draft would focus on global revisions (content), followed by a draft with local revisions (grammar), and then a final, graded copy. Our first essay of the semester was on drugs and alcohol, and our current one is on academic integrity and plagiarism. Before an essay, we read a series of articles on a topic and fill out Critical Reading worksheets that analyze the thesis of the article, the counter-argument, and various other elements of it. The semester will culminate with an efficiency exam for three hours of writing on a specific topic. I feel as though English AP prepared me greatly for this class, since my last meeting with my group members for the essay on plagiarism found little to criticize in my hastily-written first draft... though I know my professor will have plenty to critique!

My next class is Education, from 4-5:15. This is not specifically for elementary education-studying students, but for the ones doing adolescent education, as well. Our professor has made it clear to us that the point of the course should really be our practicum hours in an actual classroom setting; there is only so much one can learn from a textbook about teaching. The technical name for the class is "Teaching in a Diverse Society," so there is a lot of emphasis on diversity in a classroom. We recently had a mid-term exam (my only class that gave one) with many short answer questions on everything from a specific field on which we did research (mine was theatre arts, naturally) to describing extrinsic rewards of being a teacher (summer vacations!). We also had to choose between two essay topics for a short essay, and I chose one discussing the pros and cons of inclusion for special education students--a topic I think my mother would love to discus or write about for an essay.

My schedule, however, does not end with classes. On Mondays and Wednesdays, I participate in a group of about 20-25 other students in the Le Moyne Singers. This groups is vaguely equivalent to Pilgrim's Chorale. The girls had to tryout because we were greatly overpowering the boys, but I successfully made it through auditions and was placed in the Soprano voice part--obviously. We sing many tunes from musicals and movies, including Into the West (Lord of the Rings), Seize the Day (Newsies), and Little Shop of Horrors. We also sing some John Williams Christmas songs, The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire), and the Star Spangled Banner (for sports events). Just Wednesday we started learning Linus and Lucy, which is quite a challenge. We got the music from the Jazzuits director (the Jazzuits are a far more select musical ensemble), so it makes sense that it is difficult. We are also expecting to get Seasons of Love (RENT) any day. We'll be having a concert some time in December.

On Sunday nights I always have to make sure I check my school email because I get an email from the executive editor of the Le Moyne Dolphin--our school's newspaper that publishes every Thursday. I get two or three emails of articles that I copy edit and send back to her. Though this task comes easily to me, I find myself getting aggravated with how unprofessional these writers for our paper sound. I am aware that articles that are editorials are not supposed to be completely formal, but how can anyone take a writer seriously if it is written in a VERY amateur way?

I mentioned practicum when I was describing my education class. My practicum hours, which must total up to ten hours by mid-December, are spent at a tutoring center in an apartment complex right off campus. It is a ten minute walk to get there, and I am supposed to be there at 3:30 on Mondays. In case you're keeping track, this means I go right from Psychology (ending at 3:20) to practicum. I spend my time there working with a few kids on homework. I am not entirely happy with my placement here because I was hoping to get a taste of actual classroom life. This lacks one of the most important parts of elementary education: a teacher who requires the characteristics of leadership and patience. There is no teacher or teacher-type role in the tutoring center. How can I decide if I want to be an elementary school teacher without being in a classroom? Working the with children one-on-one is fine--I don't mind explaining and describing things or giving an example to help them understand what a vocabulary word means. Nevertheless, I am conflicted with my want to be in an actual classroom for my practicum hours.

The most demanding of my extracurricular activities, however, is as one of the two assistant stage managers of one of the plays our school is doing. There are two groups that put on shows here. One is Boot and Buskin, which is managed and directed by the faculty. They are currently working on Shakespeare's "As You Like It," which is being directed by my Theatre professor. The other group is Major Arcana, which is completely run by students, which the exception of having a faculty advisor. The director, stage manager, set designer, etc. are students. My roommate (Kari) and I are the two assistant stage managers. Rehearsals are usually four or five hours a week, generally from either 6:30-11:30 or 8-11:30. It is a very rigorous and time-consuming schedule, but I truly enjoy it.

As you can tell, my schedule has very little free time, which is why I tend to stay up until the wee hours of the morning on the weekends when I have a bit of time to relax. However, I am enjoying all of my extracurricular activities thoroughly--so thoroughly that no matter how bogged down I am with work, I do not want to drop any of them. My classes, though I favor some more than others, are a refreshing change from high school because the professors seem genuinely intrigued by their subjects. All in all, I am having a wonderful college experience so far.

...And Then I Moved In.

It is official. I have moved in at my new home--Le Moyne College.

The road here was bumpy. We knew that departing from the house by 4:30 am would be no simple task, but it ended up being the reason my day did not go smoothly. In fact, I hardly want to remember the first half of it! Due to summer activities back in RI, I had not been going to bed before 2 am. Therefore, it was exceedingly difficult to fall asleep that fateful Saturday morning. In actuality, I did not fall asleep. Instead, I tossed and turned as my mind refused to stop ticking away, until I realized my efforts were futile.

I arose and dressed and found that my parents were just waking up. And so my real day began. I slept for about an hour in the van on the way. It was not easy, considering all of my belongings prevented us from reclining our chairs. And then the nausea set in. We shall call it nerves.

I was restless and felt sick for most of the day. Move-in was a blur for several reasons:

1. The move-in Orientation Crew were amazingly quick at delivering my things from the van to my third floor room. In fact, they beat me to the room. It was like magic!

2. Though I acted social and personable as I walking into my residence hall for the first time, I literally shook as I filled out their information sheet. I was so nervous. My eyes were darting around the room at all the strangers, and I just could not keep still.

3. I continued to feel sick as we unpacked boxes, and my lovely sister and mother did a good portion of the work for me. I needed to sit down and breathe! It was very overwhelming.

I failed to re-gain my normal personality until I took an hour-long nap around dinner time. I felt so sick I could not even eat. So I slept it off, and woke up feeling quite refreshed and ready to face the evening's activities, which ended up being really fun.

My roommate is the perfect roommate for me! We both share many, many interests, and even some classes. We had no problem setting up our room the way we wanted, and it is truly a sight to see. We are quite proud of its colorful beauty. We have spent most of our time here together thus far, including tonight's activities, which were a hall meeting and fireworks. While attending the former, we met many fellow participants in the Performing Arts Learning Community. These outgoing new friends sat with us for the fireworks, and we all came back to our residence hall together and relaxed in the basement together.

Our basement is quite amazing. It has got a bit television, a very loud juke box-type music player, the kind of video games where you sit in the chair and control whatever is on the screen, a pool table, and tons of comfortable chairs. Even though it was only 10, we ended up back in our rooms after a short amount of time.

I fail to think of much more, though a post will follow in the next few days about my classes, which start tomorrow. Peace, loves.

Another Day, Another Country

A mere two days after returning from Italia and I have already been ambushed by calls and texts from friends asking when we will be going out to do various activities and socialize in all sorts of ways with different combinations of people and places. Do not get me wrong--I love my friends and the time I spend with them is always a memory in the making--but sometimes I just do not feel like going out. It may be difficult for people to understand, especially people who have been sitting on their rumps watching television and monitoring Facebook fifteen hours each day, but after doing miles and miles of walking and losing the comforts of home, I just want to chill.

And there was a lacking of comforts. Our trip to Roma was amazing, but it had its ...unfortunate events. The first came on our first night. We were staying in a small apartment-type house that is rented out to people. It had a nice living room, a tiny kitchen, a long, creaking staircase, a master bedroom, a small bedroom, and a tiny bathroom. When we had arrived, the woman who was there to meet us told us the basics--which keys were for what, how the couch pulled out to be a bed, etc. Most significant to this tale was one bit of advice: Do not run the microwave at the same time as the air conditioner or the water heater. Simple.

We took this advice, but by some error of communication, we thought it would be alright to use the air conditioner and the water heater at the same time if we did not use the microwave at all. Fail. The power went out soon after we had both of these appliances running. Plunged into the darkness of a home with which we were not very familiar, we all went to bed. Un-showered and hot, we forced ourselves into slumber.

But not me. I could not sleep. Not matter how I tossed and turned, my body could not be fooled into thinking it was time for sleeping, despite the fact that I had not slept in many hours. At this point, it is significant to mention the bugs. Upon our arrival, my sister and I promptly flopped down onto the master bed for a moment's relaxation. Not ten minutes later, I had gotten at least three bug bites. They looked like mosquito bites, yet we had seen no mosquitoes.

Bed bugs? An image of a festering mattress popped into my head. Until we found bug spray on the ground for gnats. Ew. Suffice it to say, we all suffered from frequent gnat bites throughout our journey.

Going back to that first night, we had not had enough light to pull out the bed from the couch, so my sister and I were laying on the regular couches. Therefore, we had no sheets or coverings, which would not have been a problem due to the extreme heat (no air conditioning and no fan without power). But the heat was not the issue here. Without a covering, I was an open target to the little creepy crawlies in our house. Every time I was beginning to fall into an actual sleep, I would feel a tickle from a bug and it would jerk me out of my state. Not to mention the garbage trucks that go around every night around midnight, the oddly sounding European sirens, and various other noises that distracted me for hours.

I did fall asleep eventually, only to wake up about four hours later to begin a day of lots of walking. Throughout our seven days abroad, we did all the major tourist spots--The Vatican and Saint Peter's Basilica, the Trevi Fountain, the Spanish Steps, and so many other museum and Villas and such. We quickly learned the metro stops and the Italian words necessary to our travels.

We also saw many things that drift away from the tourist attractions. For example, our last full day featured the Appian Way. Our day consisted of a long trip on the metro to a long, hot, city-side walk, followed by more walking, and then going through the San Callisto Catacombs. While this was refreshing (since the catacombs are underground, and, therefore, very cool in temperature), and a good length of walking and standing time (45 minutes), we could not take pictures--a small let down. Then, we had to walk back. We walking slowly under the olive trees and took pictures. It was semi-relaxing.

We found our way to a bus stop, but this was another fail. We could not buy bus tickets on the bus. You had to have them ahead of time. We did not. So we continued on foot, going on intuition alone because we had drifted off of all of our maps. But then we moved on to the city, where we had to walk on busy streets with no sidewalks--a dangerous feat for my mother's nerves. We found ourselves in a more residential part of Rome, though it was still very city-esque.

Finally, we came across a metro station. We were quite happy to see that red sign with the white "M" on this occasion, and even happier to see our quite street and little home, regardless of the gnat infestation.

The infestation was not the only problem with our house, however. By this time, we had called someone who got the power back in the house. However, we were a bit scared, understandably, to run the water heater again. We ran it for a little while and then tried showers. Freezing. It was like an unheated pool that sits in the shade. And then twice as cold. Not pleasant. But it is no fun to think about the negatives of my lovely trip.

I would have to say that my favorite day was when we went to the Villa Borghese. The Borghese family line started many generations ago, and they began to accumulate acres of land and rooms of art. Then one of them became a Pope and his cousin a Cardinal, so the family was even better off. Now there's a gallery and tons of gardens and fountains and land one can wander through. And it is off of the beaten path, so to speak--quite a peaceful place.

Best of all, there was a freezing cold fountain outside of the gallery. In case you were not aware, all of the water in Rome is perfectly fine to drink. It is a bit mineral-y, but definitely clean. So there are fountains all over the place--even in the heart of the city. Here, there were six taps all in the entrance area, and we spent a good part of the day relaxing by the cool water.

We also made a rather expensive two-day trip to Florence, or Firenze, as it is called in Italy. This was my sister's favorite. It was still a city atmosphere, but in a more laid back and pretty way. I would definitely suggest it to travelers simply because it is such a nice area with so many things to do. Seeing the Ponte Vecchio, which is the main bridge in Firenze, completely full with shops and food and great photograph opportunities, made it completely worth the while.

All in all, the trip was a success. If I were to go back, the only thing I would change would be investing in a week-long metro/bus pass, which was 16 euros. A single trip on the metro is one euro. And though we did not take the metro sixteen times, the use of buses any time would have been quite handy. Nevertheless, I got my exercise for the summer. And I sure did make the best of all of it.

To Europe...And Beyond!

It's important to note that when I begin a blog entry, I never have a set purpose. Often, I'll have some hint of inspiration, or I will just need a reason to stay up later at night than necessary. The latter is the case this time. After an epic adventure with five friends in a small car making the trip to Rhode Island's capitol just to go to iHop (mind you, Providence is only about twenty-five minutes--got to love the smallest state), I do not feel like going to bed. Instead, I'll just sit here on my bed with my fancy little laptop in my room, which is currently more full of color than ever before. You see, I went college dorm shopping today. Even without the $116 of new things my room is pretty amusing. It's violet and lime green. Now, there's a whole mess more of violet, plenty of orange, and bits of green, pink, and blue. And suddenly I feel as though I'm a lot more prepared to begin school. Of course, there are still six or seven weeks until I will make the six hour drive up to Syracuse with all of these new colorful things. However, I assure you that I will be occupied thoroughly until then. In four days, I embark on an over-seas journey to Italy. Specifically, I'll in in Rome for five or six nights and Florence for one. I'll be traveling with family (an adventure all it's own), including the Ma and Pa, as well as my older sister (22) and older brother (20).

It's not as though we've never traveled together--our month-long trip cross-country was a doozy--but this is the first one in a while. Of course, being on a plane together for 9 hours isn't much improvement from being in a van for a month. Nevertheless, our family is exuding excitement. Especially since Mother, Father, and Brother have never been abroad. It is sure to be quite the experience.

Just today I converted $160 into 105 euros--it sounds weak, but keep in mind that exchange rate variation is all relative. Those euros found a cozy spot in my wallet. I'll admit that it's nice to have foreign money on me again. It's been a year since I last travelled abroad, on a world-wind "Mosaic" trip to England, France, Germany, Czech Republic, Hungary, and Austria. All in two weeks.

Anyways, this trip is sure to include lots of museums, for one, since my sister is filled with knowledge of Italian artists, and she's never shy to share it. My brother is looking forward to the Vatican, which I'm sure will not disappoint. And I know disappointment. Last year, in Paris' famous Louvre museum, we saw the Mona Lisa. Yes, it was from a distance, but it was quite a bit smaller than most people would guess.

Personally, I'm excited to dive right into the culture of the country. What do people eat? Where do they shop? Yes, all the history and sites are fantastic to see, but once the night sets in, I hope to be able to explore.

So, I'll be sure to write again when I've gone to yet another European country. It should be a blast! And even though it's raining in this lovely little state and it will be 90 in Italia, let's try to enjoy the summer, sì?

It's One O'Clock in the Morning--Do You Know Where YOUR Children Are?

[This was written on June 21, 2009]

Yes, it truly is quarter past one in the AM right now. And yes, I truly do have work at my local Walgreens at 7, also in the AM, tomorrow--today, rather. But the thing is, you only have your first night with your new laptop once. So I intend to savour it!

I feel prepared to be educated now--ready to write papers and do any other work that comes my way, with the help of my little 13.3" MacBook Pro. It's adorable and amazing and has 320 GB of space, which is pretty fantastic. Plus I got my iPod touch and an hp photosmart printer. Basically, I'm high on technology.

However, I'm not writing to brag. Actually, I'm writing in procrastination. I figure the later I stay up, the later I'll go to sleep, which will bring work to me at what will feel like a slower pace. Yes, I know, it's inevitable that it will, whether I sleep or not, occur in ...5 hours and 43 minutes. Regardless, I like to try to slow time down. And while I do not intend for this blog post to be as lengthy, nor with as meaningful a purpose, as its predecessor, I hope to convey some kind of a point.

This may turn in to a rant on technology that is only due to my sister's awareness of it. She would refer to herself, though only four years older than your's truly, as belonging to a different generation. Her childhood consisted of collecting pogs (those cardboard circle things) and watching that Scary Monsters show and Rocko's Modern Life. While these features also played a role in my "youth," I can't say that they are as memorable as they are in my sister's mind. Personally, I watched Hey Arnold. I played with a tape recorder.

My sister will never hesitate to describe our modern world as one of "Want It--Get It" attitudes. For example, if I should ever desire to find information on jellyfish (simply chosen because it is currently by laptop's background), all I have to do is press command and "N," followed by typing into the little Google box, "jellyfish." And then--PRESTO--I have any little bit of information I could ever need on jellyfish. There is no driving to the library. God forbid we have to look down the aisles! Poor Melvil Dewey's Dewey Decimal System isn't even needed for the average student.

There are obvious perks to technology today. It's more convenient. It is quick. But where does that get us in life? What does that teach the generation growing up knowing nothing but easy, quick access? What will be the result of this?

In my opinion, as well as my sister's, we're creating people who aren't going to know what libraries are. We're going to see people ordering pizza off of the internet instead of picking up the phone, resulting in decreased communication skills. We're creating people who don't know what a gym is, because they will simply order diet pills off of the internet when they realize they're putting on weight. We've paved the road for dangerous romances, identity theft, and couch potatoes!

I hope I don't offend anyone reading this, for that truly is not my intention. I'll easily admit that I am hypocritically guilty of many of these offenses which I have pointed out. But it is really the inspiration of my own errors that makes me write this. While I sit in my bed with my laptop on my legs, iPod on the blanket, additional computer on the desk beside me, alarm clock that plays CDs, video chat camera, etc., I see that I've fallen victim.

What I'd like to point out is that, while we can and should take advantage of the speedily evolving world around us, it is always significant to grasp the world fully. If you order a book online to your local library, walk to pick it up. If you're writing to your great aunt, write a letter (yes, with a pen) and put a stamp on the envelope. Take a moment to realize that we're pretty lucky to have the technology we have, but it took this amazing world around us to do so. As my Mother would say, get your "buns" off the chair and take a step back to soak it all in. And let's all enjoy it, eh?

Introduction to Summer Vacation

[This was written on June 18, 2009]

Apparently there are 73 days until we all begin life at Le Moyne.

Feelings on this? Personally, I'm extremely anxious and nervous.

I can honestly say that this is due to a combination of orientation and my older sister's graduation from college. I'm having second thoughts, not unlike those stereotypical ones before marriage, about whether my decision was correct. Don't get me wrong--orientation was great!--but I fear that college will be too much like high school. A big part of my college decision was based on the fact that I will be residing about 5 1/2 hours away from home, which is exactly how I wanted it! As the youngest of three children in my family, I feel as though independence is something for which I should strive. It's not the distance from Rhode Island that gives me the jitters--it's the people. I don't know any of you!

My humble little high school's graduating class of 2009 was composed of a very diverse 281 individuals--before drop outs. My group of friends consisted of the drama kids and the drama friends. And we were like apples and oranges, or however Forrest Gump worded it: We were really close. Basically, all of my close friends were involved in drama in some way. That being said, drama at Pilgrim High School in our little "city" is not all that it should have been. Audiences at shows were basically family members and best friends. Occasionally, we got some people from the senior center down the street. Actors in the shows were nothing but dedicated--sometimes as much as 36 hours a week in preparation for shows. Yet we never seemed to get an audience worthy of our hard work. It was all family that would stand and clap even if we all had forgotten our lines and danced the Hokey Pokey for two hours. We loved them dearly, but we craved an interactive audience that would walk out of Pilgrim's auditorium with smiles on their faces and eyes lit up because of, well, us!

That was what had happened to me, at least, about two years before I was going to join Pilgrim's student body. I saw a performance of Jesus Christ Superstar that pretty much shaped the foundation of my high school career. I knew immediately that I wanted to be a part of this phenomenal group called the "Pilgrim Players." I did become a part of it--freshman year, fall musical. It was a student-written version of Christmas Carol. It was the spring musical, however, that secured my dedication to the world of the dramatics.

Footloose, if you've never seen it, is crazy. It's a 1980s musical about a town that isn't allowed to dance. It didn't matter that I was ensemble--all the more fun! Then, after two shows with the same director--the director who had constructed Jesus Christ Superstar, also--we got a new one. Fortunately, it was an English teacher with whom I was familiar. Nevertheless, our small group of Pilgrim Players were unsure if Mr. D. would be able to keep up with the outrageous personalities in "his" drama club. It wasn't that he was old--actually, he was very young--but he always maintained a relatively composed attitude and behaviour in the front of the classroom.

Now, after three straight (non-musical) shows, three musicals, and two murder mystery dinner shows, my group of friends knows Mr. D. very well. Though he'd never admit it, I think we're all his friends and favourite students. It's difficult not to get to know people very well when you spend practically every hour that's not already taken up by sleeping and school on a high school auditorium stage, which is probably why it is so strange thinking about not going back to that auditorium to try out for the next show in the fall. Even now, though my iTunes in on shuffle, a song from my sophomore year's production of How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying is on. I can't seem to escape Pilgrim Drama Club's grasp, and I don't know if I even want to.

As you can hopefully see, Le Moyne has a lot to live up to. While everyone loves to complain about their high school's flaws and inconveniences, truth be told, I'm sure we could all come up with at least a handful of fond memories that took place in those halls and classrooms. I've made so many relationships that I'm quite scared to lose. Nevertheless, I'm completely hyped up to make some new ones. Therefore, as my last summer like this one--my last summer under the direct influence of Pilgrim--I hope it doesn't go by too fast, even though I know it will. Let's all enjoy it, eh?