What it's like to be a senior at SMC

Most people probably don't think about their senior year, especially if they are seniors in high school! Well welcome to the world of being super busy, getting to take classes that you love, having closer  relationship with some of your professors, and living with some of your close friends!

I have a packed semester of classes, but they all are about something that interests me and are helpful for what I want to do after college. A few professors in my major have also become very helpful and people I go to for advice and to talk about various things.And I get to live in the 300s with some of my close friends ..somewhere I dreamed of living when I was just a first year.

I tend to spend the majority of my time doing/studying things that I love like Anthropology, Volunteers for Peace (my internship), and rock climbing! I also get to experiment with food and cook up family meals with my close friends/room-mates. It's nice having your own space, still be part of a community even in your fourth year at school and loving the place you began calling home four years ago!


Here are some pictures of my home and a look at what it is like to be a senior!

My Room

My view!

Family Room

Kitchen

Things I miss from abroad

A year ago I was abroad in the beautiful land of Firenze (Florence, Italy) embracing the romantic culture, divine food, and the best semester ever! Every once and a while or maybe more regularly I drift off and recollect about my trip and I start to think of some of my favorite things. My favorite things lead me to missing them so I comprised a list of what I miss!

-Dried kiwi
-Listening to podcasts daily
-Wandering around the city
-Going to museums and learning about new things

-Weekend adventures to far off lands, cities, or new parts of Florence
-Speaking in Italian
-Walking a mile to class .....sometimes I miss this
-Espresso
-Gusta Pizza
-Gelato
-The Duomo
-My rooftop terrace
- The many David  statues
-Travelling around by train, plane, public transportation
-Slowing down the pace of life
-Not walking around on my phone all the time
-My Signora
-Buying my food fresh and daily
-Feeling like anything is possible

My favorite bakery on my street!

David!

The craziness of Senior Year

Who ever thought that so much could happen and change during the first month of senior year? Well I never anticipated this. Jumping into senior year I never imagined myself being this busy and having so many things to constantly be doing. Updating my resume, attending grad fairs, researching graduate schools, and thats not even  my homework.

I knew that I was going to have a busy semester since I'm taking two big Anthropology courses one being my capstone and the other Research and Theory, but I have never been this busy. Sometimes I feel like I'm running around like a chicken with it's head cut off. Yes, being this on this occupied can be a little overwhelming at times I'm also learning to embrace it and appreciate it. For instance I'm in classes that I really like studying or doing research on things that interest me. My research for one of my classes has been a way for me to explore an interest of mine, Buddhism and meditation.

Something I have used to help re-center myself and help regain control over my very busy schedule has been meditation. For my research and theory class I had to choose a topic/place/ organization to research about and conduct interviews etc. I chose the Shambhala Center and I have found that my research has been very relaxing. I've attended a few hour long open meditation sessions, a Shambhala cafe, and will continue attending more events.

Despite all my busyness I'm getting to do things I really like or are interested in. Getting to live Senior year around how I want to spend my time is pretty awesome. And Saint Mike's has allowed me to find my passion and provide me the tools to cultivate it and keep learning and exploring! I will do my best and blog more around my busyness!

Building Peace through a Peace Dove

Who would have thought that I would get to spend some of my time at my internship helping build a peace dove for Burlington. Now you probably are scratching your head trying to picture what a peace dove is. Well, the dove is going to be created from paper and some other pretty simple innovative material. The dove will be like a puppet and will be worn in the John Dewey parade by someone! 

By helping build the dove I also get to meet some pretty awesome people. Here in the picture is Frank who inspires and remind's me to be creative and think outside the box again. Frank tells the best stories and has done some pretty cool things like building over 100 of these birds along with other animals! The structure of the bird is mostly made from tightly rolled up newspaper. It is actually very sturdy! I love getting to meet past volunteers of VFP along with other people from the community who all bring something different and unique to the table when we come together to create the dove. 

Volunteers for Peace

This semester instead of taking a fourth class I chose to get an internship for credit. Being an Anthropology major I am not required to intern, but wanted experience in areas that I'm interested in so I chose a non-profit  in the area that did work that inspired and interested me greatly.

Volunteers for Peace allows individuals to volunteer in over eighty countries around the world from two weeks to up to a year! The volunteering is unique in that it allows people to interact with others from different regions of the world. Most trips do not have a volunteer from the same country together because this allows for a really valuable experience and way to make friends. The service projects range from working with kids, environmental work, hands on work, along with other kinds. One of the other really great things about VFP is that trips are affordable (especially for college age students)!

So far, I have gotten to learn more about the program and it's history as it turns 30 this year.To celebrate the anniversary, VFP is creating calendar of thirty years sharing pictures and quotes from volunteers. This is a project that I am working on right now. I'm really excited about what I am getting to do with VFP and everything I have learned so far! I will update ya'll as the semester progresses.

Welcome Home Leaf Peepers!

Fall is in the air and the leaves are starting to turn. This can only mean that leaf peeping season is just around the corner! One might ponder what is leaf peeping. Well, according to the dictionary leaf peeping is: an activity that one might partake in during autumn in areas where the foliage changes colors. It is the act of admiring autumn foliage for its beauty. 

I've never in my four years at SMC, driven around with a leaf peeping intent, but maybe this will be my year! Leaf peeping came to my mind when I opened this page because this past Sunday my roommate Julie and I went apple picking in Shelburne. On our way over to the farm, Shelburne Orchards, we got a glimpse at the foliage starting to change and got excited. Our immediate thought was how we must explore the foliage in Vermont during our senior year!

Fall is one of the best seasons in Vermont and is a great time to come and visit. I personally love starting school again and getting to catch up with my friends that I didn't get to see over the summer. I also enjoy getting to move back home. SMC and Vermont have really become my home away from home and this year is really going to be bitter sweet. So whether you love leaves, love SMC, or want an adventure plan a road trip and come say hi! 

Hi was wondering what kind of stuff like furniture and things like that come in the suites. is there stuff like couches, fridge, microwave, shower curtains, what comes in the bedrooms? things like that...and what type of things do you reccomend bringing?

Hey! In the suites they come with couches, chairs, a few little tables, one big fridge all in the common room. For the bedrooms they come with a desk, a bed with drawers underneath and an armour (dresser/closet). Microwaves and shower curtains are not included unfortunately. So I would recommend talking with your suitemates and planning who can bring a TV, microwave, shower curtain, etc. I suggest also bringing a mini fridge if you already own one for extra storage of food along with cleaning products for the bathroom.

Ask me anything