Senior Scramblings

Only 2 weeks left!

2010-11-29T09:32:00.000-05:00

Back from Thanksgiving break...and only 2 weeks remaining until finals. And then-- it's the end of the semester.
I have not had much time to myself, hence the lack of blogging- not to mention I have been working on a new site for class, fitrunner.info. The site is for my New Media New Markets class and it is a website designed to serve as a running resource for all runners. We could pick any topic we wanted and had to develop our site, design it, and get it up and running by the end of the semester. For PR II we have been working with a client (Boston Debate League) to come up with new volunteers for upcoming debates. This is proving to be more difficult then originally imagined.
I am so excited for next semester-- I am taking Review Writing and Media Pop Culture. Hoping for an easy semester for once. I will be continuing an internship of some kind (whether it be staying at Mom Central where I work now or a different pr/marketing firm) I can't believe real life is so close.
Panic mode will definitely be kicking in soon.
Winterball is coming up and then I'll be heading to Vegas for new years! Can't wait

A Little Sore, But Ready for More

2010-10-18T10:58:00.001-04:00

Yesterday was my half marathon in Newport, RI. It was the most beautiful course I have ever run, by far. It's no wonder why it was voted 4th best marathon to run in the country! It started at the beach and continued on through Ocean Drive, where all of the mansions are in Newport. My sister and I placed 316 out of 2055 with a finishing time of 1:44. It was freezing in the morning of the race. We had to leave my house at 6:30am to get to the shuttle, only to wait in line outside to actually get on the bus to get to the race. By the time we got to the start of the race (post bag check and waiting in more lines for the bathroom) the gun had already gone off. We were anxious to get there on time at first, but then we remembered that our time would not actually start until we crossed the start line (there is a chip in the bib that actually keeps your time for you). I was dressed in shorts in a Tee, but by mile 4 I was starting to warm up. My sister and I decided to stay together for this race. Normally she takes off on me in the first couple miles, but since we have both never done a half marathon, we thought it would be fun to just run it together at a comfortable pace. I have to admit I am glad my first big race was the full marathon, last May- it made this race seem like a breeze (And I was so relieved that I was done at mile 13, and that I did not have another 13.1 to go!) I am SO ready for another half. Today, registration for the Boston Marathon opens... I so badly wish I had a number to officially run in Boston this year. But my sister qualified, so i will be running along side her come race day. The only real problem with not running in the race officially is that if I do run it in under 3:40 and potentially qualify for Boston next year, I won't be able to register, since the time would not have counted. Looks like I will have to register and run in another marathon either before, or after Boston!

More Pics coming soon!

Rainboots...

2010-10-04T09:29:00.001-04:00

The first gross rainy Monday of the semester. It's cold, dreary, and just plain annoying. And to top it all off, I have a Bio Exam at 5:30 tonight. Blegh. According to the forcast this rain will last throughout the next couple of days.
I can't complain too much though. I had a great past couple of weekends. We celebrated the last of the 21st birthdays out of my group of friends. We took her out to this dueling piano bar in the financial district called Howl at the Moon, which is a different type of bar since there is a live band (or dueling pianos) that take requests and play top hit songs (Like rediculous renditions of Keisha and Lady Gaga).
My roommate from the dorms Freshman/Soph. year got engaged recently and I am going to be the Made-of-honor. Her parents held an engagement party for them at their house. All of a sudden I feel so old. Almost graduating, friends getting married- I have a feeling this year's blog theme is going to be about how fast the time has gone- and how bad I want it back.
Things are about the same as any other year- class, work, tours, internship... I am finishing up my last of my required classes-including the general education ones and my PR ones. Looks like next semester will pretty much just be electives. Hopefully I can find another internship to tack on to get some more experience before I try to find a job next year. But let's not get too ahead of ourselves. Still have to get through this Bio exam. Ugh- why did I wait until senior year to take this? No motivation for Biology, or Biology Lab at this point.
1/2 marathon in Newport, RI in 2 weeks!

The Beginning of the End.

2010-09-20T11:40:00.000-04:00

Senior year? Really? Hard to believe this is my last fall semester at Suffolk. Where has the time gone? After working this summer full time at my internship, I realize I am NOT ready to graduate. I don’t love the 9-5 thing. It gets old reallllllll fast. The only upside of working full time is having nights and weekends all to myself. Yet, I am willing to give that up for chance to stay here for just a little longer. Maybe an extra year? I love that as routine as school becomes- the rigorous schedule, balancing the class schedule with working while fitting in gym time, it never gets boring. It is always changing. As soon as it becomes intolerable, there is a break, vacation, or the semester ends. With work, that’s all there is, Monday-Friday-8:30-5:30 Every. Single. Day. I just am not ready for the rest of my life to be one long monotonous routine. Maybe a little too depressing for a first post back from summer- I apologize. I did have a great summer working. I learned a lot. I was the executive assistant to the CEO of the consulting firm I interned at last semester. I learned all about different PR firms, campaigns, and tactics. I was in charge of all of the company’s social media and online product reviews. It feels weird coming back and taking classes about public relations, social media, and event planning, when I did it all for real all summer.

This summer consisted mostly of working, but I was able to get away a few times for some long weekends. I went to Chicago to visit my brother, whose band was playing right next to Wrigley Field. My cousin got married, so my whole family came to town for that. I went to Maine and Vermont with my friend Dayna (who I met while in Australia), and I got to go home to RI a bunch of times to go to the beach.

We are all getting back in the swing of things here at Suffolk, getting used to the new faces on campus and all the new ambassadors. I am still trying to get used to introducing myself as a senior before all of my tours. I am missing the old senior ambassadors who have moved on to other things. Luckily social media keeps us all connected and I am able to keep tabs on the incredible things they are all up to post college life.

My schedule, per usual, is pretty jam-packed. Mondays I get up at 5:45 to hit the gym (aiming for the Boston Marathon this year!) and get to admissions for 8:30. I have New Media New Markets from 1-2:15 and Public Relations II from 2:30-3:45. I have a quick break from 4-5:15 and then Bio from 5:30-8:10. Tuesdays, I am at my internship until 4 and then go to Bio Lab until 8. The same goes for Wed. and Thurs., but without the night classes. For the most part I have Fridays all to myself, which is another plus about still being in school. I am getting course credit for my internship, so I am technically enrolled in 5 coursed. This semester I will finish up the last of my core requirements. Next semester I am going to try to get another internship, to broaden my resume.

In one year I will be at a completely different place in my life. Scary. In just a few months I will begin to look for jobs. What happened to the senior in high school stressing out about which college to go to? Seriously feels like yesterday. 8 months until I am a college graduate. Let’s slow down. Please?

Summer...Sort of.

2010-05-27T16:34:00.000-04:00

One month later- and so much has happened! To start off, I ran the Providence Marathon!!! For those of you who have been following along (or have read any of my older posts) you know that I had been training for the marathon since September. That’s right, 26.2 miles. And trust me, it’s a lot longer than it sounds. (Although it sounds pretty long to say) And the “.2 “ at the end of that 26- feels like eternity. But I did it! 4 hours and 6 minutes later, I passed the finish line in downtown Providence. It was the best/ worst feeling of my life. My sister actually qualified to run Boston next year. I am deciding whether or not to put myself through training again and try to find an in to run Boston with her next year. It was the hardest thing I have ever done (And the most painful, especially after the fact). Recovering was awful. But it gave me a great excuse to eat anything and everything. “I can eat that, I just burned 3000 calories” was my saying of the week. A little counter-productive. I took only one week off of running- but it took a lot longer for my muscles to feel better. I took up yoga my first week of recovery- and it definitely helped me with stretching and getting back out there. School finished up, I had my 21^st birthday, and now I am now officially a senior. Crazy. I am trying not to think about that too much right now, but graduating is getting closer and closer. Working full time over the summer is a taste of life after college. It is nice to be done after 5 for the day, without having to worry about schoolwork or papers, but I am not used to the same routine everyday. Getting up at 6:30 is not my favorite thing to do. Welcome to the real world.

I am loving my internship, though. I have learned so much about marketing and public relations. I am planning to keep working here through next year, too. Hopefully I will be able to get class credit for it again in the fall. My schedule is going to be rough- per usual.

One more science lab to get out of the way! I am also taking New Media New Markets, and Public Relations II. What’s strange is throughout my whole career at Suffolk, I have been a PR major, and never questioned it. Now I work at a marketing consulting firm, and I am thinking I really should have been a business major all along. But I guess if they both would have gotten me to the same place, it doesn’t really matter. It’s something to think about when picking your majors. I would have been miserable trying to get through economics and math classes for four years. I guess what I am saying is, many majors at Suffolk can result in so many different jobs after college. I don’t think it’s what you are studying at school that really matters, as much the experience you are getting through school and the internships you do. So don’t stress if you still have no idea what you want to do. I’m sure more than half of the seniors that just graduated still have no idea, either.

I will post throughout the summer if anything interesting happens- although I am not really counting on it.

I am off to an Aquafina Flavor Splash party for work!

Happy summer!

Hay

Papers, Providence, and a little bit of Pomegranate

2010-04-26T09:13:00.000-04:00

My to do list is getting smaller. I can actually see the end. The Providence Marathon is on Sunday. Freaking out just a little bit, although watching the Boston Marathon and running some of it got pumped me up for my marathon. The expo at Hynes was really cool, too. Tons of free stuff, and great information for runners. I also met the editor of Runner's world, Andy Dixon, among other runners who have won top marathons all around the country. I know I have done all the mileage and have trained for so long, but I am still afraid it was not good enough. I saw many people in the Boston marathon who hit a wall or got really bad leg cramps and just looked like they were in so much pain. I even saw a girl faint at mile 25. Seriously 25?! They took her away in an ambulance. She was so close. I would rather that have happened at mile 4. I cannot imagine not finishing after running 25 miles. Why am I doing this again?! Trying to think positively and just not think about the race until I am at the expo on Friday... All I have to do is get through this last week. 8 months of training. Where did it go?

My theory paper is due wed. Cannot wait to turn that in! Took me a verrry long time to get through it, but I did it. Feels great. My Integrated Marketing Communications project is due tonight- my group and I are going to have to pull it together at the last minute before class since we have only all met once. Hoping it all goes smoothly. We are presenting Bud Light Pomegranate to our class as a new summer beer- with all the promotions and advertising attached. This is a slide showing some of our packaging ideas- we used photoshop to create new logos designs.
The ambassador farewell dinner for our seniors is tonight- but unfortunately I have class and have to present so I will not get to go. It's too bad too because I hear they are getting food from the North End (little Italy section of Boston). Sad I am missing out :(
We also had our last themed party of the semester at our apartment on Saturday and as usual, all the ambassadors took a picture. It was Rubik's cube themed and everyone was supposed to dress up in all the colors of the cube. Of course not everyone did, but it was fun to see those that did dress up!
Last night was my friend Kirsten's 21st so her and her boyfriend cooked dinner and made dessert for all of us girls. This semester has been crazy-with a different 21st birthday to celebrate every week. Our weekends are definitely packed, that's for sure. My birthday is coming up on May 8th- and I'm thinking a pub crawl through Boston to celebrate :)
We also planned a trip to Vegas after our last friend turns 21 in September. We are planning a trip for the long weekend in October. There seems to be some good deals for flights and hotel packages- so more to come on that next year!
This will probably be my last post as a Junior! I will try to blog a bit over the summer- although with my internship 45 hours a week I know I will be swamped with work. I am excited to have weekends to myself though for the first time since I can remember. The joys of a real job- and not a waitressing one. I signed up for a summer race series along the Charles river on the Esplanade of Boston (assuming I can run again after my marathon). They have one race a month for every month of summer- reggae, Mardi Gras, and blues themed...I am hoping it will keep me motivated to keep running!
Good luck to all of you making your final decisions on school!
Until next time,
Haley

p.s
Good luck to our seniors leaving us- :( Nicole, Beckee, and Kristin. It has been so amazing getting to know all of you over the past three years and I will miss you all so much! Come back to Boston if you can find the time- through teaching kids in Mississippi, going to a great law school, and working on your dream in Disney. I am so proud of all of you for getting to do exactly what you wanted for yourself after school. All of your hard work has paid off! You have all been great friends and co-workers and I hope you continue to keep in touch and keep me updated! We will miss you!!!

The 2 week meltdown...

2010-04-14T09:31:00.000-04:00

Let me just throw this out there...in two weeks or less, I have my Communication theory paper and presentation, Intercultural communication paper, intercultural communication project, integrated marketing group project, Internship log/paper/portfolio, and my communication theory final -all due. And to top it all off, my marathon is May 2nd, at the end of that Hell week. How am I going to get through the next couple of weeks?! I guess I have to just take one thing at a time, but it is hard not to freak out when looking at it all at once. Right now I am stressing most about this Communication Theory paper- it is on Facebook and research I have done about friending and getting to know strangers by looking at pics, posting on walls, etc. This is also known as "Uncertainty Reduction Theory." It is a very formal and structured paper and I have never written anything like it- based on my own research. I keep putting it off but I definitely need to get to it this weekend. I need to lock myself up in my apartment and or library and just get stuff done. Enough complaining.

My parents came in last week and we took a ride to Castle Island. We walked there for a while and then went back to Sunset Grill to eat those amazing nachos. That killed my "eating healthy before the race" strategy just a little bit.

Last week Rach and I went looking at new apartments with our other friend, Anna. We are now looking for a 3 bedroom in the north end. I am nervous we are never going to find anything for as good a deal as we have it now, but we are looking. Lets ad that to the stress list, too.

This saturday we are having a mini showcase- since the last two were so full and we had to start turning some people away from registering. I will be speaking and giving tours for accepted students. Click the link above if you did not get a chance to come to the other showcases!

Marathon Monday coming up next week! I'm excited- hoping it will get me super pumped for mine!

Time for a tour,

Hay

The month long countdown-

2010-03-31T09:41:00.000-04:00

So many things are happening in just about a month...the end of school/ lots of work, my 21st (/Vegas trip?), my marathon... Classes are getting busier and more and more projects are getting assigned. Tours seem to be getting bigger, even with Showcases going on right now. It has been raining. A Lot. Supposedly this weekend is going to be gorgeous though, so lets hope that holds true. Apparently my hometown, Cranston (RI) Was basically under water yesterday. 100 people got evacuated...

On Thursday a bunch of us went back to Limelight, the Kareoke place, for my friends 21st birthday. I went to a new place for dinner on Friday, Sunset grille and Tap. I have been to another restaurant of the same owner, Sunset Cantina. I guess one has over 150 tequilas and the other has over 100 beers on tap or something crazy like that... but the food was amazing. We split this Mediterranean spinach and artichoke dip which was basically like nachos, but instead it had feta cheese, red peppers, pita chips... so good. I can't wait to go back. Although I still love my Boston Beer Works nachos. Everyone who knows me knows how obsessed I am with that place. My sister and I go at least every other week. (Hey, we are marathon training...so that's how we justify it.)
And Sunday was Showcase. Luckily it did not rain, which I think is a first. I think it went really well. The next one is next weekend for accepted students.
As far as work and projects coming up, I have my final communication theory paper, which I am writing about Facebook, so I am in the process of doing research for that. I also have my Integrated Marketing Communications project, where my group has to launch a new Budweiser product for the summer and include all of our promotion and packaging plans to the class, and a project for Intercultural Communications, where my group has to introduce a new product to an Asian culture. We chose Japan, but we have to promote this new product to them based on their consumer trends, values, and beliefs, which will be a totally different approach than if we were just selling to the American consumer. I also just picked my classes for next semester. Senior year... I'll get into that later on when I know for sure what I will be taking. Covering a tour today for Rach,
Catch ya laterrr,
Hay
P.S- Happy Easter/ Passover!

"Don't you have enough on your plate? Stop eating..."

2010-03-24T09:41:00.000-04:00

No, my subject line has nothing to do with food. This is what my dad emailed me after I told him I was looking to add on another internship to my resume. I thought it was very clever...As much as I LOVE my internship at Mom Central, and plan to work there for as long as they keep me, I also feel it is still important to experience more than one internship while I can. I have not even worked in an actualy Public Relations job and that IS my Major. Mom Central is more marketing, with word-of-mouth and social media strategies. It is also very specific, tailored, and targeted, so it might be nice to try and work at a big pr company, to see what else there is. I am however, working at Mom Central 45 hours a week this summer... If working that many hours does not scare me away from graduating, I don't know what will...And as far as having a lot on my plate, when do I not? Keeping busy keeps me sane, I have recently realized. As much fun as doing nothing but hanging out and training over spring break was fun, (while I creeped on all of my friends fb photos of them in Cancun and Miami) I was bored out of my mind after the first day or so. Being busy makes the days and weeks fly by.
My grandparents took my sister, cousin, and I to Pier 4 over break, which is this super nice seafood restaurant down near the Institute of Contemporary Art, kind of near the aquarium. It was amazing (and very expensive. I also spent some time in Newport RI and New Jersey, along with time on Chris' roof deck in the north end on those really gorgeous days. I got to see my room mate from Australia over the weekend, too.

I have registration for Senior year on Monday! Can't believe it. And I know I have said it this time every year, looking back at my old posts from freshman year, but I can't help but say it again. I feel like such a different person from freshman year. Although it has only been a few years, being here has changed me. Even just living on my own in my apartment has been such a learning experience. I am glad Suffolk forced me to move out of the dorms Junior year. Pretty soon I'll be out in the real world... and I'm not so afraid anymore.I have only 2 required classes left for my major. PR2 and Bio with a lab, which of course I have put off until the last minute. And of course I am dredding it...especially because I am taking it Monday nights from 5:30-8:10 and the lab on tuesday nights. :( gross. I love my schedule so much this semester and I do not want it to change. I am probably going to have my internship count as a class again, if I can fit the 16 hours in my week again. It is proving to be a little more difficult this semester, though. The rest of my time here will be all electives. Which kind of makes me mad, to know that I am paying to take some pointless classes. But I guess I could take some different types of classes that could still relate to my major, like media criticism or event planning. I bet I could take them pass/ fail, too... hmmmm.
So much to do and So little time, as always.
Until next week,
Hay

Spring? Is that you?

2010-03-08T11:44:00.000-05:00

Only 8 weeks until the Marathon! With the weather getting warmer, the race is starting to come so fast. It is all getting very real for me. I feel like I still have so much more mileage to go! I have been following CoolRunning on Twitter, which is a great running and training site, and they have been offering some great tips for beginning marathon-ers, half- marathon-ers, and even those just getting into running.
My sister's marathon in Virginia is in a week, and we have been training together. Since she is starting to taper, the next couple weeks of training for me are probably going to be tough, since I am on my own. I have definitely been slacking on the training lately, with the rainy cold weather, but hopefully with the weather warming up, I will find my motivation again. I have only been up to 18 miles once, so I need to get a couple more long runs in. Starting to get a little nervous/anxious!
In other news, I present my Quiznos midterm tonight in Integrated Marketing Communications. Tomorrow night I have a midterm in Intercultural Communications. I also need to start making surveys for my research for my Final paper in Comm. Theory. The semester is going so fast!
Just got an email about meeting with my adviser to register for classes for my senior year! I'm not ready!!!
One week until break. And for the first time since I can remember, I am taking the whole week off. No work, no internship. Just training and relaxing...
Can't wait. Hopefully heading to NYC this weekend and getting in some snowboarding at Wachusett next week!

P.S. Saw Alice in Wonderland 3D this weekend. Kind of a disappointment. If your going to spend the money, shoot for the IMAX showing. It will make a difference. It was cool because it was in 3d, but the story was just "eh." Johnny Depp did a great job being a total creeper, as usual, and Lena Gieseke, Tim Burton's wife, was the other best part of the film.
On the other hand, and a completely different type of movie, Shutter Island was pretty great. Creepy and Insane, but I would recommend it if you like a good psych thriller!
Let me know your thoughts
Until later,
Hay

19 days until Spring!

2010-03-01T13:40:00.000-05:00

Did I mention I HATE group projects? I especially hate them when no one seems to worry about the project, except for me. My group member/ friend came over last night to work on our Quioznos campaign. We were supposed to meet as a group with the rest of the 6 members, but everyone canceled. Go figure. Everything is due in one week...Ahhhhh. Midterms. Got to love em'.
I was able to get a taste of the country life this weekend when my family and I headed to NH. My uncle recently built a house up on a mountain in North Conway, so we stayed there and then went snowboarding in Maine on Saturday. It was only my 2nd time, but I think I am picking it up with time... Fellow ambassador (and friend) Chris came to join us Saturday- Sat. Night along with one of my best friends from Suffolk. It was great to get out of the city for the weekend, but not long enough. I was away from the internet, phone, school and homework. It was so relaxing. Just a fire, family, friends... It really made me appreciate the break from the business of the city. (and start the countdown to Spring break...)

My mom and I on the chairlift

Halfway down the mountain (we decided to take a little break...)
I am looking forward to being able to snowboard again over break, even if it is just at Wachusett and close to home...

I had my Comm. Theory Midterm last week, and got a 27/30. We are now really stepping it up and beginning to work on our theory papers. I am writing a paper on a theory about Facebook...I am not really sure exactly what I am going to write about yet, maybe about "friending" someone new, or what college students are using facebook for most... whatever theory I can come up with and be able to do research on. I'll keep ya posted.
Oh! On Friday my mom, my sister, the little girl my mom mentors, and myself are going to see the Lion King! So excited :)
I am also going home for the weekend for some family stuff...

Until later,
Hay

Monday, Marketing, and Midterms...

2010-02-22T13:14:00.000-05:00

Monday in admissions. Things are pretty busy here, especially after the craziness of information sessions all last week. Midterms are just around the corner, which is unbelievable. I have a midterm in my Comm. Theory class on Wednesday, and a midterm project for my Integrated Marketing Communication class, due on the 8th. For IMC we have to recreate the Quiznos brand campaign with a group of students. We have to create a new website, TV spot, Radio Spot, along with researching competitors' campaigns.
I love and hate group projects. It is nice to get other views and have more ideas for projects, but you never get to work on something when you want to work on it, and everyone is always so busy. I also hate the idea of only having one grade for 5 people, because you know the work load is never distributed equally. Finding a common meeting time is so tough, especially now that most students are into their internships and other jobs. I do not like to be a procrastinator, but with group projects, I feel like I am always pulling things together at the last minute.

Anyways, enough complaining. It's almost spring break! Not like I am doing anything exciting, but still, no class. And this weekend I am going to New Hampshire with my family to snowboard and just to hang out. It is also pretty nice out today, which I guess I should try to enjoy, since it is (supposedly) going to snow the rest of the week. ughhh I want it to be March 20th and Spring already! Also just found out that the marketing consulting company I intern with wants me to work full time over the summer, so that is one less thing to worry about!

That's it for this week...
Hay

Sometimes the snow isn't SO bad...

2010-02-16T15:17:00.000-05:00

I have not had class since last Tuesday night. Snow day :)...and today it is snowing- actually snowing, unlike last Wednesday where there was supposed to be a big snowstorm that never actually hit. So I went to work in admissions for a couple hours and went home. I went to RI for the weekend, and I have not been back there since Christmas, which is crazy to believe. I hung out with the family and saw a friend from high school. Sometimes it's just great to get out of the city- away from all the hustle.
Wednesday night some of the girls traveled through the snow in what I hope will become a Wednesday night ritual. Just a girls night midweek on beacon hill...

Last Sunday my aunt, sister, mom, and I ran the 10k road race down near the Seaport District. It was 6 miles and very, very cold. I just wanted the race to be over, before it had even started. We waited so long in the cold, just to run. Maybe not worth it, but after it was all finished, I could say it was fun. It was my first road race and I ended up doing a 7:44 minute pace. I was feeling a little ill afterwords, though. I can't wait for the Spring, where I wont have to force myself to put on 100 layers of clothing...
Here's some pics from the race.
My sister, mom, and I at my apartment, prepping for the race
Right before the race.
After the race I took a few days off from running, I am really starting to feel sore. Luckily I have a couple months before the marathon, so I can take off some days if I need to. Yesterday my sister and I ,dreadfully, got through a 16 mile run. Good thing we fit it in yesterday, though because that snow is really coming down out there!
Now I don't even want to walk to the bus stop to get back into the city from my internship... wondering if my night class tonight might be canceled?
Info sessions at admissions all this week! Make sure to sign up here, if you are interested!

Hay

I hate you Punxutawney Phill...

2010-02-03T09:22:00.000-05:00

6 More weeks of Winter...and today it's snowing. Go figure...

Things are finally becoming routine and class projects and presentations are now underway. I have a presentation in Communication Theory today, a paper due Monday about the super bowl ads for Integrated Marketing Communications, and a project for Intercultural Communications due on Tuesday night.
This Sunday is the Super Sunday 10k road race! It is a 6 mile road race down by the Seaport Area of Boston. My mom, sister, and aunt are all running it, so it should be fun. It will be good to figure out my pace- and a good break from just regular marathon training. Plus, it is sponsored by Legal Seafood and Harpoon Brewery, which means free stuff! 87 Days until my marathon!

Not too much else going on around here, just waiting for the Spring, (and possibly planning a trip to Vegas for my 21st?)

More to come,
Haley

Spring Semester...

2010-01-21T11:25:00.000-05:00

Spring semester. Back to school and admissions. I also have my internship to ad to my weekly schedule. So far my internship at Mom Central Consulting has been great. The company is a marketing consulting firm that helps brands better connect to Moms. They focus mainly on social media-facebook, twitter, and blogs to promote and market major brands. Mom Central works with some big name brands and companies and since it is a pretty small company, I get to actually do a lot of work for clients and see a lot of the behind the scenes stuff I might not normally get to do or see if I were interning at a big PR firm. I am glad to see that I do love what I am majoring in, especially since I know so many people that get an internship Junior year, only to realize that they hate their chosen fields.

I have been in Boston all over break and it has been pretty low-key. I worked full time at Mom Central, followed by 2-hour gym sessions every night. (Yes, believe it or not I AM still training for a marathon!!) I was home only for Christmas Eve and Christmas, but don’t feel too bad for me, I still found time to go out almost every weekend :)

It has been a year since I left for Australia. A few girls I know from Suffolk are now at the same campus I went to when abroad. I have to admit it is pretty hard looking at their pictures and reading their statuses about the beaches they are going to or the scuba diving trip they are planning… I can’t wait to save up enough money to go back there. Although, I have to admit I am glad I went when I did. I cannot imagine missing out on this internship by going this year. I really think sophomore year is the best time to study abroad. (Especially spring semester if you are going to Australia; it’s their summer) And I have pretty much nixed the Spain idea for the fall. While it is possible, it is probably not the best choice for me right now. Money/ time wise… I guess I didn’t really realize just how close I really am to the end! Not ready.

Anyways, back to the marathon stuff… I have been running or going to the gym pretty much every day since I first announced my big goal. The most mileage I have done so far is 17- which I got through with the help of my sister… and it took us 2 hours and 37 minutes. Not too bad, right? Ha. Only like 9.2 miles to go. My marathon is in Providence on May 2nd. I still have plenty of time to train. (Which is worse because right now I kind of want to get it over with.) Running in the winter with ice and snow is way harder than I could have imagined. And being cooped up in the gym to run on a treadmill for over an hour isn’t much better… but I am done venting-for now.

So school… I am taking 3 classes- because my internship is counting as 4 credits. The internship is sixteen hours a week and I have to keep a daily log of everything I am doing. I am also taking 2 night classes, Integrated Marketing Communications and Intercultural Communications, and one M/W class-,Communication Theory, which I have heard to be one of the toughest Comm. classes at Suffolk. So I guess we will see…
More to come!
Haley

In the midst of finals...

2009-12-15T12:09:00.000-05:00

Day 2 of finals week. I already had my PR final and I had my advertising final yesterday, and I have no idea how I did. The questions were very tricky... Tomorrow is my science final and my Public Relations presentation on an event my group created from start to finish. We chose to organize a breast cancer charity ball...

Thursday my internship starts! I can't believe its already here.

I probably should have been studying all weekend, but instead I enjoyed the last weekend of everyone being in the city before they head home for the holidays. I will being staying in the city to work all break and hopefully a few friends with apartments will be here to go out with me on the weekends. Thursday night was winterball! It was a great night with some gorgeous views that I will post. Friday night one of my friends that went to Australia with me hosted a mini dinner reunion and Saturday night Rach and I had an ugly holiday sweater party at our apartment, which was so much fun. Most people got really into it and dressed up! I'll post about my internship later next week!

"I'm your biggest fan I'll follow you until you love me..."

2009-12-07T14:53:00.000-05:00

In case you did not know, or have been living under a rock the past month, my title is from a Lady Gaga song. This weekend has made both my room mate and I obsessed with Lady Gaga. Between the songs "Paparazzi", "Bad Romance", and "Speechless" I think we have listened her over 300 times collectively this weekend. So excited to get her new CD, even if she is mildly insane.
Thursday I went out with my Wheelock friends (the ones I met in Australia) to the Fenway area. We had a girls night, hung out, and ate at this Mexican restaurant right behind the park. They are all graduating this year so they are all kind of freaking about that. So glad I'm, not there yet. Although just wait 'till next year...I am sure I will be freaking out too.
Friday night my sister and I took her room mate out for her birthday at Boston Beer Works. I can honestly say they have some of the best nachos and sweet potato fries I have ever had. Can't wait to go back!
On Saturday a bunch of my friends and I went out to Faneuil Hall, which has tons of fun shops in the day, restaurants, and clubs at night. (It is also approximately 10 minutes from my front door) We went dancing at one of the clubs for the night. This is why I love Boston. Every weekend night there is something different to do. The city never gets old.
On Sunday I went to the movie theater right next to the Commons. I saw the movie "Brothers" which was one of the most intense movies I have ever seen. I am pretty sure everyone was crying by the end of the movie. It was a great movie, just really hard to sit through and stomach...
This morning I woke up and ran with my sister. It is so hard to believe it was really 65 degrees out 3 days ago. It is freezing today! She is also training for a marathon and it really helps to have a training buddy. We got up early this morning to run and it was the coldest weather I have ever run in! We needed lots of layers, which were peeled off throughout our run. We did just about 13-14 miles. That is a half marathon! Definitely more than I have ever run...by about 4 or 5 miles. It was much needed. I feel like I have been slacking on my runs recently, and I also took a couple days off. Time to get back into training mode... now if only my legs were not so sore :(
Today my group presented our Advertising project. We had to create 2 different ads for the same project, geared towards 2 different target audiences. We made ads for the new Ipod shuffle, which talks to you and tells you what song you are currently listening to, who the artist is, and what playlist it is from, with just the push of a button. Our target audiences were runners and the "curious consumer" who often questions technology. We made 2 different commercials, and presented them with story boards, which are basically just screen shots of a commercial. Our professor seemed to really like our ideas, so I'll get back to you when we get our grades back.
I am getting really pumped for this weekend. Thursday is winter ball, Friday is the undergrad staff dinner, Saturday night my room mate (and fellow ambassador Rachel) and I are having an ugly sweater party at our apartment, and Sunday Rach and I are going to see Rooney perform in Cambridge. So many plans!
On Monday I have my advertising final. I think its going to be tough. I'll have to fit in studying for that something over this coming week/ weekend, especially with all of these plans...
I think I have basically covered this whole weekend. Until next week,
Hay

The Calm Before the Storm...

2009-12-01T09:09:00.000-05:00

So here we are. 3 weeks of the semester left, back from Thanksgiving break. I had a relaxing last couple of weeks; going out at night, meeting up with other ambassadors, and visiting old friends at URI, but I should have known it was not going to last. I'll pretty much be living in a cave for the next few weeks, studying for finals, preparing my final projects, and finishing up my hours in the admissions office. As much work and studying as I have left to do, I still have to admit I am glad I am not in your shoes anymore; waiting to hear back from schools and finishing up applications...

Pretty soon you all will start to get your decision letters back from us and pretty soon you all will start to make some big choices. If you get acceptance letter from Suffolk, that question will be "Is Suffolk right for me?" Which is a pretty loaded question, to be honest. Like I have been saying all along, it takes a certain type of person to come to Suffolk. Now that's not saying that we have a "typical" student at Suffolk, but I would definitely say students here have a certain mindset. I have said this on all my tours and I continue to believe that our school is different than your typical university, especially comparing us to other Boston schools. The rumors are true, we do not have a college "campus" with grassy football stadiums and parking lots to tailgate in, but if you were anything like I was, you are not looking to go to school in Boston for the football stadiums. However, we do have some parking lots (okay more like parking meters...) but still, I wouldn't suggest bringing a car. Now with that being said, if you really need that grassy feeling, the students hanging out on the quad, playing frisbee, and just relaxing outside, we do have the Boston Commons/ Gardens for you. It is kind of like a quad, except it is shared with the rest of the downtown Boston Area.
So no campus. How do students feel at " home"? How do students get involved without a "campus"? Do students still feel like they belong to the university? This is where it takes a certain mindset to come to Suffolk. You have to come in here knowing your going to try harder than the typical college freshman. You have to be willing to step out of your comfort zone and meet people. You have to get involved. We have so many clubs,teams,sports, and events that it is impossible to ignore them. Getting involved is the best way to meet new people and to really immerse yourself in the school. Our campus may not be the standard campus feel like other schools, but we do have our own type of campus. We have buildings close to each other, where you will pass hundreds of our other 5,000 or so undergraduate students, but you will also pass hundreds of other professionals while passing through the State House court yard, like doctors, lawyers, and representatives. Hey,you might just get an internship from one of those people within your four years here. So all I am saying is to really think about where you are going to choose to go to school. Don't just choose a school for the name. Do the research, visit the school (take a tour!), and really try to picture yourself there. It is after all, going to be your home for the next 4 years...
As busy as I am, as stressed as school can make me, I still am glad with the decision I made to come to this school almost three years ago. I jumped right into getting involved, meeting new people, living in the dorm, and planning events for Suffolk. So far, with my first Public Relations internship coming up, I feel Suffolk has prepared me for the real world with the real life experiences I have come in contact with every day, which I might not have been able to say if I were living in an enclosed college campus.
It is just about time for my tour and I promise the next blog will be a lot lighter, especially to get my mind off finals!
Haley

Open House, Rain, and Running...

2009-11-16T09:54:00.000-05:00

So all week it was gorgeous out, starting last weekend. As soon as Open House came...Pouring alllll dayyy longggg. It was awful, but I should probably expect this now for Open House. It has been awful weather every year for Open House, and usually Showcase in the spring, too. Despite the weather we still had some troupers come out and visit us. Everything went pretty smoothly and we still had some pretty big tour groups. I'm guessing we were missing a lot of people who signed up though, thanks to the miserable weather.

In other news, I started running a couple months ago and recently decided to train for a marathon. I know what your thinking...I am absolutely insane. And I probably am. I was never a good runner, or a runner at all. But I decided to push myself and try to achieve this goal. Both my sister and brother have run marathons, so I figure if they can do it, so can I. I would love to run the Boston marathon, but I either have to qualify or get involved with a charity and raise 4,000 dollars. I am going to try to find a way to run Boston as a registered runner. If I can't I am going to run the Providence marathon in May. I started slowly, running for a half hour around the esplanade, a beautiful little park around the Charels river...and I have recently upped my mileage to about 8-9 miles, which takes me about an hour to do. Only about 18 more miles to go :) I will definately track my progress on here, and let you all know how I am making out, and how long it takes for me to want to quit. I have about 5 months to train, so hopefully I stay on track, especially with the holidays coming up. I found this blog, actually my mom sent it to me, about finding the will to run and the stuff that will keep you motivated. One of my favorite ideas is buying some new running stuff. This will make me excited to go out and run with some new gear. Going to get on that this weekend :)

I also just bought my winter ball dress! Tickets go on sale today! It is going to be at 60 state street, in the state room. This is one of my favorite Suffolk events, especially since I usually help out with decorating and/or planning for it.

Time to enter all those prospective students into the computer from this weekend!
Haley

Only three semesters left...

2009-11-10T09:30:00.000-05:00

Just registered for my Spring 2010 classes. Only 3 semesters left at Suffolk! Ahhhh. Scary. I got the last spot in a couple of my classes, so I was pretty lucky to have a registration time at 8 am

Friday a bunch of us ambassador girls (and Andrew) got together and speaking of admissions, tomorrow there are info sessions all day and Saturday is open house! Register now if your interested in tours, info sessions, and every bit of Suffolk you would ever want to know!

This past weekend I went home. I was needing a break from the busy city, and I probably won't see my family again til' Thanksgiving, so I figured I would go home for the day, which turned into the weekend like it always seems to do. It is so hard to resist all that home cooked food. And plus is was gorgeous out and my sister convinced me to run outside in the park/ zoo near my house. (which turned into 7 miles!) On Saturday my mom, dad, sister, and I went on a 6 mile hike in the Blue Hills in Dedham, MA. It was way harder than I thought it would be, but the views were worth it. Tour time for me!
Haley

Sean Kingston and Girl Talk!

2009-11-05T09:37:00.000-05:00

This past weekend was our annual Suffolk concert. In the past we have had Jason Mraz and Gym Class Heroes, but this was by far our biggest show/ venue. Sean Kingston and Girl talk performed at the House of Blues on Saturday night, and it was quite the show! Sean Kingston was good, playing all the songs we all know and love, but he only played for an hour. I think everyone was really there to see Girl Talk. I had never really heard of girl talk, but he mixes songs together to create a dance party with songs you would not normally consider "dancing material." His show was amazing, besides the glow sticks hitting you in the head every 2 seconds; but this was cause to throw your hands up and join in on the fun. There were giant balloon balls, toilet paper being dispensed from a machine, students up on stage... it was just an absolute rager! I'll show you what I mean with some pics other Suffolk students have taken...

November?!

2009-11-02T09:34:00.000-05:00

November 2nd already. I cannot even believe it. only 3 weeks until my favorite holiday :), any excuse to eat massive amounts of food equals a great holiday in my book.

Halloween was this past weekend. I did not have a costume until the last minute and then I wore my roomate Rachel's pirate costume that I also wore my freshman year. Its fun to see what crazy things people come up with, but I hate the hassel of trying to find a good cotsume, and spending money for it. Never in my life have I bought a costume. We were always original growing up in my family, creating our own months in advance before we would go out trick or treating.

I had both my interviews and they both went really well. I went to one in government center (right near Suffolk) for a public relations firm and and I was offered the posisiton, but he told me that it was unpaid. I still would have done it but I went on another interview on Friday for a paid internship and was offered an internship for the spring. I wish I could do both but with admissions in the day and this new internship in the day, I do not think I will have any time for another internship, especially one that is unpaid. I am realllly excited about it. I'll explain the job more when I find out more later on in the semester. I now have to think about taking night classes for the spring, since I have to work in the day for both the internship and admissions. Its going to be a real busy spring,thats for sure. Trying to figure out which classes to take now and which to take later can be really stressful. I only have 5 required classes left, and I want to use this internship as my elective. Also, only some classes are offered certain semesters... so for certain requirements, like a cultural diversity, the ones I am interested in taking are only offered either spring or fall, so thats something else to take into consideration. As a junior, I register on the 10th, at 8 am online. Trying to plan all of this stuff out...

On another note, I got my ad analysis back for advertising class. I analyzed the Svedka advertistements. Here is one of them I discussed...

My teacher loved my paper and my analysis of the campaign as a whole. This advertisment class is kind of making me want to do more with advertising when I graduate.

Something to think about.

spring planning.

2009-10-27T09:36:00.000-04:00

So I have an interview for an internship on Friday and I got a call from a craigslist job I applied to to set up an interview for a PR internship :) So far so good!
Now I am planning my classes for the spring. If I get an internship, it will be for class credit so I will only have to take 3 other classes. Im thinking of taking mostly night classes, which will probably be awful, having 3 hours of class straight, especially if one of them has to be bio :( The good thing about it will be having tuesday, thursday, and friday completely free, and also the days of mon and wed free. This will allow me to work in the days. Its just going to be tough getting through the night classes...
Ill write about the interviews later!
Wish me luck!
Hay

Just a recap.

2009-10-22T10:33:00.000-04:00

Thursday was the first night in a long time all of my girlfriends got together and went out at night. We met up after I got out of work and went into faneuil hall. There were a group of 10 of us that all lived on the same floor 1st semester of sophomore year, before we all went abroad our seperate ways. Most of us now live in apartments, in the North End, West End, Beacon Hill, Comm ave... one commutes from home, and one is an Resident Assistant. We are all still close, although we do not see eachother every single day like we used to, we still have those nights where we can all go out togehter and it is just like old times...

Friday night I went home and visited some old friends from URI. I went to my friends sorority social, which was sponsered by Red Bull. Its crazy how different our schools are. There about 100 other girls there, and she knew every single one. She was trying to explain the whole big/litte/ rush and pledging thing to me, but it went right over my head. Being in a sorority is such a big commitment, I don't think I could ever find the time to do it between my 2 jobs, admissions, and the annual fund but it does sound like a lot of fun. We have a couple of sororities here, but they are more about community service and I just read in the Suffolk Journal that a new frat is starting here next year, which will be a chapter of Sigma Alpha Epsilon.

I am now also searching for internships. I have been using Craigs List and the website called erecruiting I got from career services. No luck so far, but ill keep ya posted.

Saturday morning I jumped on the Train from providence and got to admissions by 10 for the students with students info session, which is always my favorite event. We get to talk to an audience (which of course I love as a PR major) about specific topics and answer any questions they may have. We then split up and take groups on tours.

After that my old roomate from Australia came up to visit. A few of my friends from Wheelock who I met there came to visit too. I also died my hair, as you can see. Another life lesson, don't dye your hair from a box. Especially when the box says darkest brown. It will often come out black.

Yesterday was advising... usually you are given an advisor freshman year depending on your major and you have them for 4 years. Most students are required to take a freshman seminar, I took SLAMEDDD which was sex, love,addiction,marriage...etc. Sometimes that professor is your advisor. In the communications building, you can usually see any of the advisors, but I usually choose to see the same one every time. I like to get to know them and check in whenever I have to. I also used the same advisor to email and help me when I was abroad and to register for classes. I have now been to advising about 5 times, so i know the routine pretty well. This time, my advisor started off our convo by saying "Wow your getting up there, almost done huh?" Ahhhh scary. I only have 5 required classes left and the rest electives. There is a good chance I could end up in Madrid in the fall, if all goes according to plan, and I can also only take 3 classes next semester and have an internship for class credit. Life and classes at Suffolk really change once you hit Jr year. There is so much more freedom and so many more interesting classes you can take for fun, not because you have to, once you get done with all of those gen-ed classes.

Today is my PR midterm. Wish me luck! Have to run to class.

More later

Hay

Just a thought...

2009-10-13T09:11:00.000-04:00

You ever just stop and think "how did I get here" or " What decisions in my life have lead me to where I am now?" I think its called the Butterfly Effect... when one tiny decision can change the rest of your life. Well maybe its not exactly what butterfly effect is, but its close enough.
For example, (And this is a big decision, not something small i guess) I almost went into school for communicative disorders or occupational therapy. So different from PR, that's for sure...which means I would not have come to Suffolk, maybe not have lived in Boston, had my own apartment, met all of my friends, maybe not have gone abroad...but I would have had completely different experiences. A random thought, but I was just thinking about it this weekend. I feel like I am getting older so fast and 2 decades later, I think I am at a good point in life to analyze my life so far. A bit cheesy maybe, but maybe there are some things I wish I had done differently, different friends I wish I had stayed in contact with, decisions or fights I could have undone. Not that I regret things in my life, because there is no point in regretting something you can't fix. Just something to think about for the next 2 decades of my life. I think a person can change completely in a couple years, especially during high school- college. I figure that people don't really know who they are or what they want in life until college and perhaps everyone goes through their own stage of "Identity Crisis." Not that I think I want to change my life or anything, but maybe just ad some more meaning to it. I am still interested in PR, just not sure what this major will lead to. Its not a definite job out of school, and I think that is starting to worry me a little bit. There is no definite standard salary pay, like if you were going to be a physical therapist or doctor, but I guess its just a risk I have to take. Besides, if I end up going to grad school, I may re-evaluate my choices again and decide if I want to change any of my paths at all.
Different than my usual blog post, maybe its the rainy weather, gloomy days can sometime bring deep thought I suppose :)
Tour time.
Hay

raining :(

2009-10-07T09:13:00.000-04:00

Wednesday. Its miserable out. My walk from the North End in the rain... well lets just say I am soaked. Only 2 more days until the long weekend. Busy day today. Working, advertising, design lab, science lab, gym.. This past weekend was fun, went out to that karaoke place Limelight on Thursday. Here are some pics

Friday was my friends 22nd birthday party. The rest of the weekend was pretty laid back. Got to see my mom on Sunday and then went to my sisters apt. near Northeastern to cook dinner and watch desperate housewives :)

Not sure what I am going to do this weekend. I feel like everyone is going home for the first time this semester since its a long weekend. I have a lot of projects coming up that I should probably start. And the Sox have the playoffs game on Sunday.

I can't believe I have already lived in my apartment for over 2 months. Time is already flyinnnn

I need to find an internship. I went to Career services earlier this summer but I didn't end up getting one because of my class schedule. I definitely need a paid internship in order to be able to pay for my apartment, but most of those places require at least 15 hours a week, which with class and admissions, I just couldn't fit. Maybe for the Spring. Going to get a jump start on looking for the Spring and hope I can arrange a class schedule around the internship. Wish me luck!

More later,

Hay

Brrrr, October.

2009-10-01T09:52:00.000-04:00

Its getting cold. And I hate it. Flip Flops were probably a bad choice, but I just don't want to let go of summer yet. Besides, with the way our weather works it will probably be like 75 degrees tomorrow...
Currently in the admissions office, blogging, and entering students from my tour yesterday into the computer system. I heard through the grapevine that Ben Affleck was back shooting in the North End today (where I live.) Maybe I'll try to scope him out later. Supposedly its him and Blake Lively from Gossip Girl. Last week my friend ran into Kevin James (King of Queens, Mall Cop), who I love, in the Boston Commons. He was shooting his new movie Zoo Keeper.
Finished another ad for my design lab class. We had to do an ad for "bolt Bus" that gets people from Boston to NY for one dollar. Here is what I came up with... currently working on a poster for a band's upcoming show. I'll post it once I'm finished.

Tonight we are all going out for my friend Allison's 21st birthday. We are going to Limelight, a kareoke place on Tremont street. We all went last year for her birthday and it was so fun. (picture on right is my friend Geralyn and I singing, I think it was Kelly Clarkson) All of my friends are now starting to turn 21. Its so weird, I remember being young and counting the years till I turned 21 and it seemed to far away. Just think, it was almost 10 years ago since elementary school. Thats a decade.It just does not seem like it was THAT long ago. My friend Dayna is turning 22 and having a party at her place in Brighton this weekend. (She goes to Wheelock) She was telling me that its kind of depressing because she has no other big birthdays to look forward to. Everyone hypes up 21st birthdays so much, that it seems kind of anti-climatic. Especially a year later, whats so exciting about 22 and up? Makes me think I never want to graduate college. So glad I am only a Junior this year, (sorry Nicole, Beckee, Kristin, Matt...) I don't want to think about having to search and apply for real jobs just yet...For now I am happy working in Admissions. I also work for the Annual fund now too, calling alumni to talk to them and ask for donations. Its a tough job, just because you are on the phone for 3 hours straight, and a lot of it is ringing. But I have met some fun new people so far so thats a plus!
Anddd we got new Ambassador jackets today! Other than that not too much happening. Last night was the Meal N' Reel movie series. It happens every Wednesday night where we put on a movie not on dvd yet and have free food. Last night was Public enemies and Tacos. Last week was Transformers 2 and wings I think. Put on by Program Council of course ;)
Thats all for now,
Hay

little bit of this and a little bit of that...

2009-09-24T10:03:00.000-04:00

Sean Kingston and Girl Talk Tickets went on sale yesterday! - 15 dollars at the House Of Blues, next to Fenway. should be a sweeet show.
My computer was fixed, Suffolk IT pulled through and found out it was my hard drive that crashed. Saved me about 400 dollars. What a Relief.
So far classes are...okay. Still waiting to get into the good stuff with my PR and advertising classes, since thats what I am most interested in. I have some interesting projects coming up creating and analyzing new ads in Advertising. I am loving my design lab course, although its a little bit out of my element. Our teacher is a teacher for the New England School of Art and Design, which is part of Suffolk, but holds art majors such as Fine arts, Graphic Design, and Interior Design. The class is like a graphic design course and we are learning photoshop and illustrator, which is a good break in my day from the textbook. Right now we are working on ads from a local boston business... Here's what I got so far. (remember I have had No experience with web design) On the left is a print ad (poster) and on the right is my online ad...My friend that I met in Australia came over for dinner last night. She goes to Wheelock college, which is only a T Ride away. This is why I love Boston. If I lived anywhere else I wouldn't get to see friends from other schools so easily.
Other than that, not too much else going on. I desperately need to do laundry, but cannot seem any time in my day to get it done. I am basically busy from 8 am to 9 pm every night, and Grey's Anatomy returns tonight!!! Just remembered and I am so excited :) Can't wait for the weekend. Saturday we have the students with students information session and after that I have the whole weekend. (although I do have a lot of homework to get done...)
Off to science and then program council, to start planning our Spooky World Halloween event!
Hay
p.s...
definately still missing this and can't believe its been over 5 months since I have been in Aus... (thats longer than I was there for!)

Officially a Junior.

2009-09-15T10:19:00.000-04:00

September. School is now in full swing and I am finally all settled into my apartment. Its bitter sweet I must admit. On one hand I get to see everyone that I have not seen since before I went abroad. There are less hours of work, but more hours of homework. Having my own apartment has already been so much fun, but I never realized how much extra money you spend versus the dorms, where pretty much everything is paid for up front. You need to by food, and of course you need to decorate, which adds up very quickly. Little things keep coming up that we NEED to buy, like a carpet, coffee table, pots, pans, etc...I feel like I am constantly
cleaning. With no dish washer, I do dishes at least 4 times a day, and we have already gone through a whole bottle of dish soap. There are definately perks,though. There is no signing people in, or RAs checking up on you, or quiet hours (unless there are a lot of people and your neighbors don't love the noise) We have an oven and stove and toaster...so I can cook whatever I want, whenever I want and I can have other people over. I've been quite proud of my cooking skills so far. The Chicken Parm, pasta, and salad, has been my favortie so far. Sometimes its tough to go home after a long day then decide what you want to cook for dinner...but those days its just pasta or mac and cheese (I'm still just a college student after all ) ;)
(the pic above is a few of us Ambassadors at my new apt! Allison, Me, Chris, Rach. Below is a few of our friends in the apartment, too.)

My classes are already starting to stress me out, but that might just be because I REALLLLYY don't want to spend 400 dollars that I don't have on books that I may or may not ever really need or use. This semester I went with a new approach. I rented books. Most of them from chegg.com. Supposedly I have saved over 100$ by renting my books instead of buying them. Return shipping is free and you have 30 days to send them back if for some reason you don't use them. The only problem with that is I am waiting to get all my books in the mail and I am getting assignments where I need to use the books for class. Luckily our library keeps copies of all of our textbooks we need for class. Looks like I'll be doing all of my work in the library for this week.

It has definately been a rough couple days for me. My laptop decided to crash just as I was trying to install wireless internet into my apartment. My tv (that we needed 4 guys to carry up our steps because it was ginormous) decided not to turn on and is now 300 pounds of junk sitting in my living room taking up space. Another TV I brought in after that also is not working. I now have 3 tvs sitting in my living room...and a remote where only 2 of the buttons work. I'm still not sure what to do with my laptop, since neither Suffolk IT ( information tech.) or Best Buy knows what is wrong with it, and HP wanted to charge me 50 dollars just to talk to me since my warentee was up. I have a feeling it might be cheaper just to buy a new laptop rather than getting it fixed :(

I finally quit Joes Bar and Grille and got another job on campus at The Annual Fund, calling alumni that starts on the 20th. We had ambassador training on Saturday and we met all of the new ambassadors ( some were just new to me from last semester.) Seems like its going to be a fun group this year :) I singed up to do a lot of students with students info sessions, so if anyone is interested, check the dates online to come!

Heading to my Science class now, then hitting up the study abroad fair in one of our cafs to talk to prospective students...then Public Relations later on. Busy day!
Definately much more to come,
Haley

So long Summer. (aka the month where it did NOT rain every day...)

2009-08-11T14:48:00.000-04:00

August 11th...where has the summer gone? Almost time to start classes. Definitely looking forward to seeing some other ambassadors back in the office. Its been pretty quiet around here all summer, and lots and lots of tours.
I am nervous for the upcoming semester, probably going to be my toughest one yet with classes, bills, rent... and 2 jobs to pay for it all...but I'm so excited to be living in my own apartment. Right now is stressful though. I am trying to figure out how I am going to move all my stuff from RI into the North End, on the same day that everyone else is moving in as well. And I still have not signed my lease. Probably should get on that...I am also ready to stop waitressing every night, its getting pretty old, fast. But I am also not ready for studying and tests and projects either. Does it have to be one or the other????
I still feel like I JUST got back from Australia, yet they are already through their winter semester there. Time is flying...
My summer has been pretty low key, just trying to save some money for the fall. I went to Vermont a couple weeks ago to meet up with a friend I met in Australia. We went canoeing down a river... and even though we flipped it was still pretty fun :) The ride up was pretty long though.(Boston traffic-not so fun...)
I went to see Xavier Rudd at the House of Blues on Sunday. Hes an Australian singer/ musician and he plays the didgeridoo, which is a unique Australian aboriginal instrument. He has a pretty mellow sound. Here is a little more about him from his website

"Xavier Rudd - Dark Shades of Blue

Maybe more than any of his previous albums, Xavier Rudd’s Dark Shades of Blue is a balance of darkness and light. That’s what the Australian singer-songwriter/one-man band/didgeridoo virtuoso hears in the disc.
Plenty of each went into making the disc. Dark Shades of Blue is the first Rudd album in several years to be recorded in Australia. As a result, it bears the joy and peace of mind that comes with an often-touring artist that gets a chance to catch his breath."

Also just bought Kings of Leon tickets! super excited for that... I heard their 2 most popular songs when I was abroad and they were played in the local clubs/bars all the time so hearing them here brings back some fun memories. They are playing at the Comcast Center on Sep. 11th.

Program Council and SGA have announced the fall concert...Sean Kingston and Girl Talk. Its at the house of blues. I have never heard Girl Talk but people really the DJ. It should be one giant dance party :)
I also found out Sox tickets go on Sale at school on the 14th... I am sure there will be a line out the door for those within the first 5 mins they go on sale...

Going back to RI for the weekend. My Swedish exchange student from high school is coming back to visit for a few days . I have only been home once all summer. And have barely even spoken to any of my friends from high school in a really long time. It is crazy and so hard to stay in touch with everyone as time goes on. There are just so many people I want to talk to and see, but not enough time in the day.Especially since I live and work in the city all summer...
I am ready for school and to reconnect with everyone again after being gone all semester.
...Although I wouldn't mind going back to Australia again or start planning for the Spain trip ;)

That's all for now, time for job 2 of the day...

Pandora,Prospects, and Plans...

2009-07-15T09:47:00.000-04:00

So remember how I said it was supposed to rain for the next three days? lets try the next month. I can't believe it rained for basically the whole month of june.
Well finally, July 15th and sunny :) Just what I have been waiting for. I am back in the swing of things completely...working at admissions during the day and Joe's at night...
Trying to save up money although first semesters tuition bill is due pretty soon so all that money I have been saving will be gone. :/
NESAD ( new england school of art and design) info session today...
Currently sitting in the admissions office playing with Pandora, a newly found website playing like artists all day(today its Jason Mraz) while I enter prospects into datatel
basically this is my day-everyday.
My roomate from Australia, Alisha, is coming into boston this weekend from Jersey. So excited!! Have not seen her since she left on Apri 25th. We are having a mini reunion with friends in the area that were abroad together. My other friend I met there from Vermont is coming to visit next weekend too.

Other than that, not too much going onnnn
kind of excited for the fall to start, to move into my new apt. in the North End, to work less hours, for all my friends to be back in the bean...
and to start taking PR classes :)

Going back to Prospects now...
Haley

Sooooo, Spain?

2009-06-09T13:26:00.000-04:00

Raining in Boston today... and apparently for the next 3 days? I want my Australian weather back. :( Although I hear its getting colder there ( its now their winter), but that means around 65-70 at the coldest. Its not fairrr.
Its definitely true about what they say about study abroad. Once you go, you are bit by "the bug" meaning that you just want to keep traveling and seeing places you have never seen before. Traveling has been on my mind a lot lately. I've only been back in the states for 7 weeks and I'm already trying to find ways to get back out. Don't get me wrong, I love being home with my family in Rhode Island and I especially love Boston in the summer, but now I know there is just so much out there that I have not seen yet and want to experience...and yet my bank account funds are veryyy limited.
So with that in mind I was thinking of Spain. Suffolk has a legit campus in Madrid where we can take Suffolk classes with Suffolk professors and I figure while in Spain I will get to visit several other countries around there. I know I have already been abroad once, but I really want to go again... except this time it will be a little closer to home, a little (or a lot) cheaper, and I will get to see many more places than I did in Australia.
I am thinking of going either this spring, or next fall, which is probably more realistic. I have quite a few elective courses left to take so I might just save those for Spain, along with another science lab. This means I will be taking 4 major requirement courses over the next year. It will be a lot of work, but with Spain in mind I think I will be able to get through it.
This will be the first year I have classes on Fridays. :/ Its all about the Sacrifice. haha.
So my Fall 09 classes (as of right now...) are Advertising 1, Public Relations, Design Lab, and sci 101 with a lab...
Sounds pretty intense to meeeee.

And todayyyy I start my new job at Joe's American Bar and Grille...working over 12 hours tonight... niceeeee. Gotta start saving for Spain. I only have a year ;)

so many prospects...

2009-06-04T16:22:00.000-04:00

So i think that as a whole, we have all entered about 1000 prospective students into the computer system, within the past week. basically, all of the cards filled out at college fairs and whenever someone asks for info about Suffolk, we are the ones to put your info into our system. These are usually followed by mailings, packets, and letters. Just in case you were wondering, thats all us :)
other than that we have been giving 2 tours a day. This week started orientation for new freshman. I remember it like it was yesterday...being so excited to meet new people and see my new school. And now its 2 years later...crazyyyyyyy
I am currently living by myself at a friends apartment a few T stops away from Suffolk, near newbury street...he moved home for the summer, so now i get to live there. I get to stay in Boston, and live in an apartment rent free! its a win win for me! However, living alone does get pretty lonely. I have never even had my own room, so living alone, eating alone etc... is pretty different.
Luckily I have some great friends who live here in the city also. Just so happens a couple of them are also ambassadors :)
Chris, Rach and I have had family dinners like once a week.
I made an awesome chicken parm for Chris and I last night...and the week before i made stir fry! How quickly you learn to cook when you have to live alone and cook for yourself. Man do i miss my moms dinners now... (that i complained about for so long)
Looking for a second job...got hired at Joe's American Bar and Grille on the water...right near where my new apt. is going to be in the North End in Sep...and i also had an interview at a bar near TD bank North Garden...waiting to hear from them. Hey maybe I'd even meet some celts/bruins players there?!
Thats about all thats been going on around here so far this summer...
Still missing Australia every day, and my hope of going back there soon seems to get farther and away...Just trying to keep in touch with people there is hard enough with the time difference :/
eventually, i will get back there... for now, still getting back in the swing of things in the Bean... and trying to enjoy summer a little bit :)

Back in the Bean...

2009-05-27T09:09:00.000-04:00

Back to work in admissions...there are 4 of us here. Basically we will be doing tours all summer and entering prospective students info into the computer system...
Rach and I are figuring out our apartment stuff for the fall, getting our money in, etc...We will be living in the North end, about a 10- 15 minute walk from school and moving in Sep. 1. Im pretty excited to have my own place, not have to sign people into the dorms, and to cook my own food.
Right now I am staying in Boston during the week and living home most weekends. I am also
Looking for another job at a restaurant or bar for nights/ possibly weekends, hopefully close to my new apartment in the North End.
Other than that, not too much going on. I still have a lot of people to catch up with since I went abroad, which I guess I will be doing this week.

Hay

Back To Reality...

2009-04-29T09:47:00.000-04:00

After traveling for 3 days with no sleep, with a 13 hour layover in San Fran, I landed back in Boston Monday morning at 7 am. Saying goodbye to Australia was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do. It is hard to leave paradise, especially after being the best 4 months of my life. I met some amazing people and had some great experiences. I cannot believe how fast it all went by. I never had culture shock while abroad, but now that I am back, I am sure I will have reverse culture shock. I have only been home 2 days and I have already been comparing everything to Australia...I already know I am definately going back there, just a matter of when. Maybe for grad school? Maybe just to travel...

So now I am on summer break... off till September :) Now time to get back to real life. Working all summer to try to make back all the money I've spent while abroad and hopefully save up enough to go back soon...

I'll be working in Admissions all summer, so I'll be blogging

Hay

"Freee Fallllinnnnn..."

2009-03-22T03:45:00.000-04:00

So obviously, I went Bungy jumping!! It was insane. There is not much else to say about it other than that. Jim (my boyfriend), and a few friends from here decided to go to Surfer's Paradise and jump off a 140 ft (14 stories) platform, free falling until the cord couldn't give anymore. :) It was the biggest rush I have ever had, even more than Sky Diving... Imagine that feeling when your stomach drops on a roller coaster...now imagine 100 times that, thinking you are going to hit the ground. I actually hit water under me, but you get the idea. INSANE. I would do it again in a heartbeat... Forcing yourself to dive off a platform when the guy behind you tells you to, is the scariest feeling ever.

Jim was here this week. Come and gone. It feels a lot harder now than it did before he got here. I am starting to miss home and my friends in London, Greece, Prague... We are all pretty spread out. Only a month left here. This is rediculous. I cannot believe how fast my time here is flying by. It is unreal. Pretty soon this whole trip abroad is going to seem like a dream. :(

I got my underwater pics back from the reef, so here are a select few.

(Shark!)

What's the past tense of scuba dive?

2009-03-10T00:56:00.000-04:00

Scuba dove? Dived? Anyways, I went Scuba Diving on the Great barrier reef this past weekend. We were on a boat for 4 nights, sans showers, soaking up the sun, swimming, snorkeling, and diving. It was such an amazing experience. Being able to breathe underwater is definitely unreal. The islands we went to were called the Whitsunday Islands. The water was turquoise, and you could see straight down to the bottom. The sand was white and so fine that it squeaked when you walked on it. Snorkeling on the reef was so cool. The reef was only about a foot away from my face, allowing me to take really cool close up pictures. I saw all types of coral and fish I have never seen before, along with sharks!! They weren't huge, but still sharks none the less. These are pictures of the islands we were on, and the sunrise we saw on the boat early in the morning...
The last night on the boat was brutal, we were under a cyclone warning and we had to get back to shore. Everyone on the boat except for about 4 people got extremely sea sick because of how rough the seas were. We got back to the beach and stayed at a hostel for the night. We then met up with everyone from the boat at night and our diving instructor. Only 5 of the 23 people on the boat were from the States, so it was fun getting to know people from all over the world including Sweden, Norway, Holland, Japan, Germany, and England. Most of them were just traveling the world, by themselves from 3 weeks to a year. I feel like people outside of the States travel way more than people form the US. I am going to make it a goal to travel more. It gets pricey, but it is totally worth it. There are so many cool places to see. If I can't do it soon (because of having no money when i get back from OZ) I will do it after school is over, or until I have saved up enough.

In my pop culture class today we watched an Australian TV show called "summer heights high" If your interested, check it out because it is absolutely hilarious!! We were all dying in class. Its kind of like the office. It is one guy who plays a few different characters. Just a side note I was thinking about.
In other news, my boyfriend touches down here at 7 am Thursday morning! I am meeting him at the airport and I get to show him all around the Gold Coast. So excited. :)
Time for class :)
I'll post my underwater pictures as soon as I get them developed!!
Hay

Sky Diving, Surfing, Swimming, Swinging...

2009-02-22T01:05:00.000-05:00

Just another day...
I just had the most amazing day of my life. I went to Byron Bay, about an hours drive from Bond Uni. I didn't go to sleep on Friday night because the bus picked us up at around 3am. We got picked up and brought to Byron Skydive, where we anxiously, nervously, and excitedly waited to do the craziest thing imaginable; Jump out of a plane 14,000 feet above Australia, falling 200 feet per second in the free fall before a parachute opens. Was I scared? Not at all...at least not until I had to sign my life away just "in case" as they said. We watched the first group get prepped and hop into the small plane, where they would be pushed out in the case they decided to change their minds at the last second.

We watched them go up and about 20 minutes later, we watched them go down. The landings looked so smooth, easing my nerves a bit. But then, it was our turn. Oh man I cannot tell you, I was feeling about 300 different emotions and reasons to forget about the 388 dollars I spent and not jump. But no one was going to let me off that easy.

We got into our jumpsuits and in about 5 minutes learned how to fall, and that's basically all they taught us.
We were paired up with our jump masters (mine who told me he has jumped over 5,000 times, which made me feel a little bit better. I hopped in the plane first and was seated in the back

(which means i was jumping last) Our plane took off and all was fine, until we were over the ocean seeing for the first time what 14000 feet really looks like. Soon is was all clouds and time to jump. I watched as 5 people got pushed over the side of the plane, and the faces they made just as they saw down below them, nothing but sky, and of course the screams I heard as they jumped. I had to watch them all. Then it was my turn. I thought, "is it too late to say no?" But before I could even finish my thought I was free falling, without a chute. Nothing but sky surrounded me. I have never felt anything like it in my life. In what seemed like forever, the parachute opened and it was a smooth ride from there. my instructor pointed out things we saw on the way down, as we did twists and turns and were getting closer to the ground. He had me practice landing while still in the sky, and soon we were landing smoothly on grass, which was nothing. I surprisingly felt so safe the whole way down and even landing. Words cannot describe how amazing the jump was. I would do it again in a heartbeat and I think everyone should do it at least once in their lives. I was unbelievable. Seriously. Do it.
After jumping I had a rush like no other, I felt like I could go run a marathon, until about 45 minutes later when I sat down, and passed out from the adrenaline fading and my lack of sleep catching up. As you can obviously tell...
We waited for the other groups and watched videos of the jumps.

We then headed to the beach, where we had surf lessons, and I have to admit, I am getting a little better. I actually got up on my board about 4 or 5 times (2 being by myself without the instructor pushing my board and telling me when to stand) I'm telling you, its wayyyy harder than it looks, harder than skydiving, and scarier because the fins on the board could whack you in the head after you get flung off of it. ( Which I did many, many times, along with nosediving)

We then hung out at a fresh water lake for a bit and found these young Aussie kids climbing this tree and swinging off a rope. The tree looked pretty high, but the guys in my group were trying it, and I'm never the type to let a guy think he can do something I can't, so I started climbing this tree, feeling invincible after jumping out of a plane. The rope seemed way higher than it looked, as I climbed the shaky boards and nails sticking out of it, real safe. Anyways I was shaking, but managed to get the the top and jump into the water, which also wasn't as deep as it seemed. (I know, such a bad move...) Just another thing to add to my crazy list of the day.
Following the intense rope jumping session we headed to dinner at a place called "Cheeky Monkeys" down in the city of Byron Bay, which had a very cool hippie, peace, love kind of feel. We ended the night at a club called "La La Land" where the bus brought us back to Bond by about 2am this morning. Talk about exhaustedddddd. :)

Next up is Scuba Diving at Whitsundays, where Ill be Sailing on a boat for 3 nights and checking out the Great Barrier Reef. I love Australia.

"Do you come from a Land Down Under"

2009-02-09T03:59:00.001-05:00

Well, I am finally into the swing of things with school and living on the Gold Coast,Australia. School has really picked up, and I am finding it pretty hard to focus when it is so nice out, and everyone is heading to the beach every day. Between classes we head to the pool, since the heat has been about 95 degrees the past few days.
This past weekend we went to Brisbane, a city about an hour from here . It is so different to be legal in another country. We can go to casinos and clubs, and it is just such a different atmosphere. Brisbane is a big city, kind of reminds me of Chicago, maybe a little of Boston.

Treasure casino in Brisbane

I have not gotten real homesick yet, but I remember at Orientation they said it can creep up on you at any time.
My boyfriend is actually coming to visit me 4 weeks from thursday, and im SO excited. It will be really nice to be able to share at least some of my experiences with someone else from home.
I just booked a couple trips around Australia. Saturday, I'm going skydiving!!! AHHH so excited/ nervous. I also just booked a tripto a place called "Whitsundays," where we will be sailing for three nights, and scuba diving on the Great Barrier Reef. We also get surf lessons and get to borrow kayaks.
I have tried to find a job to support living this lifestyle here, but I have found it near impossible. Its such a relaxing break to not be working 2 or 3 jobs and have school all at the same time. Aussie is so relaxed and laid back. I never want to leavveee...

I have a project in my Australia pop culture class due tomorrow and midterms are already in 2 weeks! There is not much "homework" here, but instead there are projects or just a midterm and a final, which is very different, and tough to get used to. Basically you are on your own if you want to do well. You have to force yourself to study in order to be prepared for the midterms and finals. We'll see how that goes.

As it is 4:13 am at home on Monday morning, it is 7:13 pm here monday night aka time for dinner.
More updates later!
Keep warm!
Hay

Sunburnt in January.

2009-01-18T22:03:00.000-05:00

This past weekend, my roomate Alisha (she's from New Jersey) and our new friend Matt, from somewhere in MA. much like many many other people on this study abroad adventure, (and here I thought I'd be the only one) and I went to this amusement park called Dreamworld. We went on roller coasters and got to hold Koala bears and feed Kangaroos. I even pet a Tiger!
We took the bus, like we do everywhere, which seems very similar to the T system we have, excpet above ground of course.

I started classes on Monday. They are set up different from at home. Every class has a lecture and a tutorial (Tuts). I have two 3 hr long classes back to back!!! I thought the 2 hour classes were bad. Its going to be tough to sit still for that long. Luckily, I only have class Mon and Tues, and one on wed morning.

I went surfing todayyy!! It was amazing. Well, it actually was so hard and frustrating, but amazing once I actually got up on the board. The beaches here are so different. The current is so strong and the waves just keep comin'. And they are about 20 feet high.

Being out at the beach all day gave me a pretty bad burn, even with sunscreen! The suns alot stronger here than at home.

My school offers classes at our gym which is pretty awesome. A bunch of us went to a kickboxing class last night, and it was probably one of the most painful experiences of my life. No lie. Our instructor was so hardcore and wouldn't let us quit. Doing that once a week will definately whip me into shape.

Anyways, with the combination of the sun, surf, and sweat from kickboxing, I am exhausted. Bed time for me.

p.s. a few phrases I've learned here

Barbie= BBQ

Brekky= Breakfast

Toma(h)to sauce= ketchup

fairy floss=cotton candy...

and several others

i'll keep ya posted! :)

Hay

Just to make you all a little bit jealous :)

2009-01-16T10:55:00.001-05:00

I Hear its wayyy below freezing in the states.

I thought some lovely beach pictures of Surfers Paradise would cheer you up (or at least convince you to study abroad here)
I still don't think being here has hit me. Maybe when classes start on Monday. My roomate and I are starting to plan a trip up to Cairns to skydive and scuba dive at the great barrier reef. There is so much that I want to do here that I feel like even four months is not enough time. For now we are just hanging out having a blast in the summer sun (the very hot, bright and burning sun)

IM IN PARADISE!!!

2009-01-13T20:42:00.000-05:00

Okay so.... a little over a month later.

I am in Australia and it is absolutely amazingggg :)

I arrived in Sydney on Jan8th and met up with a group of people from CIS (center for international studies) and that is the program I went with through Suffolk
There are people from all over. Sydeny was fun. We stayed in a hostel and saw the opera house (see above picture) and the Sydney Harbour bridge.

We did lots of tours and went to the Toranga zoo to see tons of animals and Koalas and Wombats and Roos. I love it here. We are now at our school in the Gold Coast, about an hour plane ride from Sydney and an hour bus ride from Brisbane. (where we landed)

My school, Bond University, is amazing. It is the most beautiful campus I have ever seen.
It is suchhhh a change from Suffolk. It feels good to be doing something different, although I am afraid I won't want to leave. It is about 95 degrees here right now.
our classes start next Monday, but I am taking all electives so I am not that worried about it.
I am taking Australian Pop Culture, Internet Advertising, Understanding human behavior and Image and Photography.

So far I feel like im on vacation. And I don't want it to end. Here are some Pics from the trip so far...

This it a waterfall in the blue mountains in Sydney, where we went on a longgg hike

This is me at the Toranga Zoo, with the Sydney Harbour in the background

Koalas at the Zoo!

The center of campus at Bond University.

no stress, no stress ,no stress...

2008-12-01T13:26:00.000-05:00

i wish.

Just as I thought I was in the clear with stress and work getting piled on me, I was smothered the moment I got back from such a great thanksgiving break.

here it comes, the big build up, the week we all dread, the week before finals...

today is a crazy day; media 9-10, journalism 11-12, admissions 12-330, computer programming 4-6, work at the restaurant 6-wheneverrrr...

longgg day...

luckily today was my last media class and my last journalism class before finals.

I have about 14 hours left to fulfill between this week and next at admissions

I have a midterm in computers tonight, then we are reviewing for the final project and the final...

I have a paper due in Rhetoric next week sometime, which she has yet to assign to us, and questions to prepare for the media final next tuesday.

Journalism is going to be writing 2 stories based on press releases and police reports...

Tomorrow night I may go ice skating in the frog pong in the commons, along with PC's relaxation day including free massages and food and crafts...

Wednesday is the ambassador dinner in the North End

Working thursday night

and luckily there is no class on Friday, so most likely I will be in the library for most of the day...

then at night is Winter Ball ! :)

So as you can see I have a very busy, planned out week, which will hopefully go by super fast, making finals zoom by, which will jump start my vaca before Australia!

Thanksgiving break was so much fun. It was so relaxing to just be around family and old friends.

This is my brother and my sister and me on thanksgiving night :)

My friends and I went ice skating skating on wed, I got to see all the fam on thursday and on saturday my boyfriend lead my family on an adventure to Caribiner's rock climbing in New Bedford, which was so much fun. I got certified to belay others, in hopes to go back over winter break. Here are some pics from there...

10 days and Im freeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.

wish me luck!

until next week,

Hay

Time, Turkey and Tests...

2008-11-24T14:42:00.000-05:00

Approx. 2 days until Thanksgiving, where I'll get to see my sister from MD, and my brother from Chicago.

Approx. 8 days of class left (and also living in the 10 somerset street dorm...I will for sure miss that gorgeous view.)

Approx. 43 days until Australia.

My excitement is starting to build... :)
I'm thinking my life is flying by a little too fast, and my countdowns probably are not helping. I'm starting to get nervous about going away for such a long period of time, knowing that if (when) I get homesick, I can't just jump on a plane and fly home...

My finals are scheduled from the 8th to the 10th of December, and one is discussion based, and one is a paper, which by the way she has yet to give us the assignment...one is a computer programming final on the computer, and my journalism final is writing a times article on a news press release. No real tests, which I am not really complaining about.

People are starting to freak out. I probably should be doing the same, but I am thinking past finals to break and spending the time with my family and friends before I am off for a few months in the summer heat of Australia.

A Weekend of Events

2008-11-17T12:53:00.000-05:00

I just came from Journalism class. He started off by telling us to open the Boston Globe and find this article about Suffolk University

Its pretty interesting to know that our President is the higest paid in the country... although I'm sure there is more to the story than the globe gives, like the scholarship money he does give out, or that the money he donates to new buildings like the law school, dorms, etc...

In the past week we have talked about the Wilkerson case, and today we wrote a story about Jim Marzilli, a Senator who was charged with sexual assault and resigned on Friday.

I must admit that this class has made me read the news, which i can honeslty say I never did on a regular basis. My professor thinks that in only a few years, the only newspapers will be online newspapers, much like boston.com.

In other news, I was on the green line train on Friday that was in a "train accident". I still cannot really tell you what happened, mostly because we were not even told by conducters what "happened." all I know is that either we hit the train in front of us, or a train sideswiped us. It was one of the scariest moments I have even been involved with. People flew past me and tumbled down the stairs, causing them to hit their head, some seeking emergency assitance. The conductor did not let us out of the train for a good 15 minutes, not to mention that he did not even know where there was a first aid kit. We exited the train, but had to walk through the arlington-boyolston tunnel to get to the Boyolston T- station.
I ran to my 9:00 class at 9:15, only to get there and find that she had cancelled class.
What a morning.

Saturday was open house! It was crazy busy, but definately well organized and a success. It was a gloomy day, but we got past that pretty quickly. Tours went well, this year we were able to seperate groups into 30 or less, making it a better experience for everyone.
The ambassadors worked the event from about 9-330. I Had abreak untill about 4:30, and went into work at the restaurant until about 2:30 am. Needless to say by Sunday, I was exhausteddd.

Only a week and 3 days until thanksgiving break!! I'm real excited to be home with my whole family. I havn't been with all of them in soooo long. When we get back from break, we have only a week of class, then Christmas break...then AUSTRALIAAAAAAA. okay but I'm getting ahead of myself. I still have to get through finals...
But they are coming up quick!

That's it for now, i promise.
Haley

p.s here are some pics from Halloween I neglected to post at the time halloween actually happened...

<--My sister and I -

--> Miss Muffett, Female gangster, Risky Business, and Tomb Raider. (my roomates.)

Time flies...

2008-11-05T14:58:00.000-05:00

Only about a month left for me. Really. This is insane.
Just thought I'd throw that out there.

Halloween weekend was a good time. I always love seeing the crazy costumes people come up with.

I went home for the second time on sunday because my sister was home from MD.
Its a huge difference from last year, where I went home every couple of weeks...It just shows you how much you adapt to a new lifestyle, and how quickly. I have to prepare now because when I am in Australia for about 5 montts, I'll never be able to go home, it will be difficult enough to get in touch with them when I am 12 hours ahead.

My midterm grades all came back. Journalism was definately the toughest. It was basically just writing in article under pressure, in class... But he grades pretty hard. I have no idea where his grades come from, but I got a B on my article.
Intro to media was discussion based, I got a rubric back basically giving me an A, and I got an A on my art of rhetoric and reform paper.
Computer Programming was a little tough, but I managed to pull off an 89 (only because it was open book and we could use the internet)

We are swinging quickly into finals... and final projects. I have a feeling i'll be getting swamped any time soon.

Next Saturday is Open House! (Nov. 15th) Hope to see you all there...
check the website for some more info.

Also, our Moo cards came in!
We now can hand out little business cards with our blog info and e-mail address on tours or to anyone interested... pretty exciting stuffff :)

thats is for now, time for computer programming...
Hay

Its a season for sickness...

2008-10-27T12:51:00.000-04:00

So im sick... along with like everyone on my floor. Its gross. I want to get a flu shot, but apparently you can't get one when your already feeling under the weather. Probably something to do with your immune system and figthing off the dead flu virus so you dont catch it.

I've had 3 midterms so far. 1 to go. My media midterm is wednesday and its basically a discussion group with my professor on topics we've gone over in class. Im not that worried about it.

I went on my first Duck Tour last weekend to help with family weekend. Very informative. There was also a pumpkin festival last weekend, where government center was covered with pumpkins to benefit camp sunshine, a national retreat for children with life-threatening illnesses and their families

My roomate and I saw Saw V on Friday, at the Lowells thater, and I have to admit I have seen all of them. And of course there wil be another one. I have not been to the movies in so long, and I cannot even remember the last movie I saw before SAW...that could be because the price to see a movie has gone up to like 10.50. I cant even believe it.

My costumes have been narrowed down to Little miss muffet, or Dorothy. They are both borrowed of course. Who can really afford to spend 70 bucks on a costume they will wear once? I mean it benefits me because I end up borrowing them for free ;) I looked at the Garment district in Cambrdige for costumes, which was an interesting experience. Its just floors of crazy costumes and gear from like every decade...Its like a consignment shop, so everythings reasonably priced, but of course being the picky person that I am, I still found nothing i was satisfied with.

My sister is coming up from Maryland to visit for Halloween, and I'm so excited! I havn't seen her since the summer...

A bunch of us are going to Spooky World on Wednesday, through program council, for 10 bucks. The park is open for rides, but they turn the park into a haunted park. There are haunted hayrides and spooky houses, should be a fun timee.... I have to miss my computer programming class to go, toooo baddd.
Just kidding. I hate that class. Im not a computer person. I can use them for the internet and simple things, but when it comesto writing computer codes and making my own websites, I get lost. I took the class instead of taking Statistics. Good idea? im not so sure...

Thats it for now...I need to take some DayQuill so I can possibly make it through my computer prog. class tonight from 4-6. Yikes.

Thank you Chris Columbus.

2008-10-14T11:52:00.000-04:00

So Thursday was Jason Mraz! It was an extremely crazy day for me. I got to The Roxy at 12, to help up set up and stage crew a bit. I got to watch Jason Mraz give an interview to someone about his interests in photography... He seems like a pretty down to Earth guy. He took a group photo with everyone from Program Council, before the show. This picture is me and Rachel (another ambassador), and two friends before the concert. Those hot pink T-shirts, are our STAFFshirts for PC

At 4, I had to go to class because we were watching a movie that was supposedly going to help us answer a question on our take home mid-term. Half the class didn't show up, and when our teacher wasn't even there, mostly everyone but 6 people left.

At the end of class, a stand in prof. came in to take attendance. I was glad I stayed for the movie, even though I was so close to leaving.

After class, I went back to The Roxy, before the crowds showed up to get in. We cleaned up and prepared for the concert. Because we helped out, we got to see the show for free, and in great seats. We were in the balcony and could see everything perfectly. After the show a bunch of us helped load up his truck, and break everything down off stage. It took foreverrrr. I finally got home around 1.

Hung around Saturday, and worked Saturday night until about 230. I went home Sunday morning! It was so good to be back in RI, even though it was for such a short period of time.

The trees were gorgeous, vibrant, and colorful. I went apple and pumpkin picking, baked apple crisp, and enojyed an amazing homecooked meal of chicken parm. (*my faveeeee) and now I have tons of leftovers for my dorm :)

I went down to URI that night to visit friends from home and went down to the beach at night. It made me miss RI so much, although at night it was freeezing.

I went to the Situate art festival on Monday, then out to lunch. It was a great day. :) Living away truly makes you appreciate everything, I cannot imagine living at home and not getting the experiences that I am getting now.

Just another Manic Monday...

2008-10-06T12:53:00.000-04:00

Annnnnddd, its cold. Not happy. Luckily, I only have 3 months to deal with it getting colder before I will be in Australia, soaking up the summer sun. Can't wait...

Although getting there seems to be the hard part. Trying to book flights to where I have to be may be one of the most stressful things I have ever had to do. It is so difficult. I have to fly to Sydney for the 8th of January, and get there before 12pm. Then I have orientation until the 11th and I have to fly to the Gold Coast, where my school is. I have to book a round trip flight, even though I have no idea when I will be heading back here. I just keep looking at pictures like this, its keeping me determined to get everything done. Although if the price of the flight doesn't scare me away, I dont know what will. All the flights together are costing somewhere around 3000, which will be the most money I have ever shelled out at once, which is the reason for the lack of spare time, and the waitressing job I have newly acquired.

The bad part about the job is that my weekends are not much fun anymore, if im lucky, I will have one night off to relax and go out with my friends. This week I had friday off.

It was my friend's birthday celebration who lives on my floor. We went to a kareoke place on Tremont called "Limelight" where anyone under 21 can go untill 11:00, and it then turns to 21 plus. It was a lot of fun, if you have the courage to make a fool of yourself on stage in front of other people. I did. :) It was a good time. This is a pic of my clustermate and I singing a Kelly Clarkson song, probably hurrendously, but still.

I have a project due tomorrow in my rhetoric and reform class, and I am doing it on the Ku Klux Klan. Its so interesting, but so scary to know some groups still exist. I also feel very strange researching it on my computer, and seeing the crazy websites that come up when trying to get information from Google. I should have started this presenation a while ago, butttt on the days off I had this weekend, I wanted to do nothing but relax.

I am all over the place right now and im sorry about that. Its kind of how my brains been running lately, one thought to the next and back again.

Midterms next week. Fun stuff.

Jason Mraz on Thursday. Cant waittttt. I'm volunteering in the morning at the Roxy, getting stuff all set up and whatnot.

I have a class visit on Friday, which means someone interested in Suffolk will shadow me in my Journalism class Friday at 11-11:50. I have never done a class visit, but I wish I had done them when I was looking at schools.

Like I said, full of random tidbits today.

Ill update on the concert next week, and anything else that may be interesting.

Hay

So long sweet summer...

2008-09-23T11:48:00.000-04:00

Sunday was gorgeous out, and yesterday it was so coldd, and also marked the first day of autumn. :( I love the warm weather,so I am pretty bummed that is getting chilly outside. I hate sweaters and wearing long sleeves; I'd much rather be at the beach in a bathing suit, soaking up some sun...

I had a great last day of summer though. I went with a friend to a beach not too far outside of Boston called Nantasket Beach... and I learned to surf! I wish i had learned wayyy earlier, and not the last day of summer, but I'll take what I cant get. And so basically...this was basically me...
Not really, but I wish. I did actually get up on the board by the 5th try, not too badddd for a first time-er.

Jason Mraz tickets are now sold outt!! Sorry for all of you hoping to meet someone from Suffolk and beg them to buy you a ticket. I am so pumpedddd. I got his new cd onto my Ipod, and I'm not gonna lie, its pretty sweet. One of my favorites its "If it kills me." The cd has a pretty mellow sound, which I am totally into. If you like this cd, also check out Michael Buble, and Matt Wertz, different sounds, but some of my faves.
<--- His new album cover. Also, this is a link to youtube, to see/ hear Michael Buble's song "Everything," another great song. Seriously, check it outtt. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPUJIbXN0WY
So i seem to be on a music craze today...

I'm in the office until 3 today, then I have class at 4, The art of Rhetoric, Protest, and reform. I really hope this class gets better, because right now all we have been talking about is slavery, which is okay for now, but not for a whole semester. I have to do an project on some kind of reform group, or a group that had an affect on the times, and I chose to do it on the KKK. Should be interesting. I think soon we will be moving onto the Women's rights movement. ..
anyways, That seems to be it for now :)
im off to youtube some more Jason Mraz.
Let me know if you have any more music suggestions for me!
oh! p.s...check out fellow Ambassador Nicole's article that she wrote for the Suffolk Voice about the Temple Street fair last week!.
Hay

Back in the Bean...from a new view

2008-09-09T11:12:00.000-04:00

Its been a week since I moved back into the city, this time as a sophomore. Its weird to watch the freshmen move in and get adjusted to a new city, new friends, and a new room. I can't believe it was a year ago that I was doing the exact same thing.
Besides being a year older, not much seems to have changed over the summer. There are some new RAs (Residential Assistants), new activities planned, and many new faces in Somerset (miller hall), but thats about it.
One of the first nights we had a tie dye party in the lobby of 10 Somerset and most residents attended. Yesterday Jason Mraz tickets went on sale for only 10 dollars and im super excited for the concert!! We also have some other cool events planned, like Blue Man Group, Cirque Du Soleil, and a comedian coming to Suffolk, all through October.
First semester so far has been great. I am taking Intro to Media, Journalism 1, The art of Rhetoric, Protest, and Reform, and Computer Programing. So far so good. Media seems really interesting; our first class we watched the simpsons and discussed the media's portrayal throughout the episode. My Journalism professor works for the Boston Globe, which is pretty awesome to have a professor so connected to what he teaches. In computers we started creating out own website with HTML, which seems like it will start to get pretty complicated, but hopefully not too difficult. I am still not sure what to expect out of the Rhetoric class; so far we have just talked about slavery, but then again I have only had one class.
Now its just about getting back into the swing of things, and trying to get work done while living on a floor with all of my friends, where it is neverrr quiet. Might have to head over to the library one of these days...
So that's what up this week, more to come later. :)
Haley

2 weeks later...and a Sophomore!

2008-04-29T19:02:00.000-04:00

So that's it!! I'm all done; finished up today at 5:00 with my finite math exam and my freshman year is over. Wow. its crazy i can't even believe it.
I head back home to Rhode Island tomorrow where I will be working lots over the next 4 months.
Good luck to all of you with picking your schools
and Good luck to our graduating seniors, especially our senior ambassadors!!
We'll miss you!!
Until September...
Haley

"We're Kind Of a Big Deal"

2008-04-15T14:19:00.000-04:00

So today is the Temple Street Fair, organized by Program Council and SGA and other student activities. Our theme for program council is from Anchorman, "We're kind of a big deal.."
We had shirts made with the saying. They are pretty awesome
Basically the event consists of fair like activities and games, where students can get cotton candy, snow cones, popcorn, take pictures in photo booths, get henna tattoos, etc...
Its a fun event, especially on such a nice day as today, where the sun is out. I hear tomorrows supposed to be even warmer though, so i'm very excited to just go for a run, or lay out in the commons.
I only have about 5 hours left to work in the Admissions office, and I am all done with tours for the year. Its so weird to think that my freshman year is basically over. I waited forever to be in college, and im already 1/4 done with it. Its kind of scary. Many of our ambassadors are seniors and they are getting real jobs and talking about what is next for them. I can only imagine that it will seem like tomorrow, being done with college. Its just like how fast high school went, looking back. Except now, we are in school even less, which makes it go by even faster. Its scary! Kind of a wake up call; dont keep wishing for the next best thing, just enjoy life one day at a time. Such a cliche, i know, but its so true.
I have 8 days of class left and so much work to do. I have a 10 page paper due for American lit, 4 mini papers for film on different movies, a persuasive speech, and 5 exams coming up.
I also am supper stressed about my study abroad application. I found out the program I want to get into, which is a certain school in Australia, only accepts 6 people, and if i want to have a chance to get a spot, i have to have my application stuff in before I leave for summer, which is April 30th. Yikes.
Basically, i have lots to do, and only about a week to do it.
Oh! almost forgot...Today in my American Lit. class, Maxine Hong Kingston, author of famous Chinese-American short stories and essays, came to speak to our class. I have never actually had the chance to hear an author speak about his or her own work, and after reading her stories, it was such an inspiring class. I got to hear about what she was thinking as she wrote her stories, and learned about her Chinese-American culture and about her inspirations...Shes doing events at Suffolk all week...
I also saw Suffolk's production of HAIR on Saturday night. It was definitely interesting. The cast was very strong, in both singing and acting. The actual story line, well i did not really know what was going on besides being a hippie in the late 60s, early 70s...it was show unlike any other, for a lack of descriptive words...
Hopefully I will have another chance to Blog before I head back to Rhode Island for the summer!
Until then...
Haley :)

April Showers...

2008-04-01T14:45:00.000-04:00

So here we are, April 1st. The last month of school, the home stretch if you will.
I will be a sophomore in 28 days. Which means i will have to change my blog's heading because I will no longer have the prospective of a freshman. I'm open for suggestions.

So there are a few things i would like to do before i head back to Rhody for the summer.
I want to go to the Museum of Fine Arts. I want to see another off broadway show. I want to go to the Performing Arts Production of "Hair" and I want to go to the murder mystery Dinner theater show. So do i have time to do all of this within the next 4 weeks? I hope so. I have quite a few long papers to start, all due around the same time, like the 23rd ish. Since i take night classes i get those exams out of the way a week earlier than the others.
Spring Ball is also coming up, which is April 24th. I need to find a dress. Just remembered.

It says online that it is currently 60 degrees in Boston, Ma, but i dont think thats quite accurate. Its pretty gross out, windy, and some rain, definately not a warm 60. :(
I'll be back in RI before its anywhere near time for beach weather.

So the College of Arts and Sciences Showcase went well on Sunday. There were lots of people here, around 1700 i believe.
We have the business showcase this coming saturday. The days are super busy, but its kind of fun to know that our tours and what we say may have an influence on where students plan to go to school for the next 4 years of their life.

I register for classes on the 3rd. Keeping my fingers crossed that the classes I need are not filled up by upperclassmen.
Other than that... just trying to stay focused on getting all of my work done.
Lets hope for warm weather.
Sincerely,
Haley

Spring Time :)

2008-03-25T14:05:00.000-04:00

So it seems that the spring is really here. Although there is still a chill in the air, I can see/feel the sun. Very exciting.
We are all back from Spring break and boy did it go by fast, too fast. But now we are back and there is only one month left. Seriously, one month! I cant believe itttttt. I feel like i have not been in Boston that long, and already it has almost been a whole year of school...

So today I got my last exam back. I did much better than expected on my English exam (the one with all of the identifications) and so its a big stress reliever. Although, he did pass out to us a research paper assignment 7-10 pages long, due April 24th. For now, thats in the back of my mind, obviously.

I have to start thinking about planning my trip abroad, hopefully next spring in Australia. I have to meet with an advisor and pick what school I am going to go to, but there are so many options! Plus, I have to take into consideration that our summer is their winter. I am a horrible decision maker, if you have not noticed already.

For my presentation skills class, which I take as a night class, I had to see a speaker. I had to find a speaker over vacation, write a 5 page paper on how they gave their presentation, and then write a speech on it. I saw a speaker on Occupational Therapy and Sensory Disorders. The speaker was actually really interesting, but the paper, not so much. I still have to write the speech and present it, due April 3rd...

Anywaysss,
Thats it for now
Haley

Spring breakk where areee youuu??!

2008-03-12T12:52:00.001-04:00

Okay so the week before spring break is officialy the worst week ever. It seriously goes on foreverrr...
I have one more midterm on thursday in my amer. lit class and I can guarentee it is going to be the hardest one yet. Not looking forward to it AT all.
I just want it to be warm and sunny and spring. Is that too much to ask?
Theres just about 6 weeks left here...not that im counting down, its already flying by... But who doesn't lovvve summer?

I met with my advisor yesterday in the communications department, which is in the Ridgeway building. We looked over the classes I have taken and the core requirements i still have to fulfill. I need to do another humanities requirement, a social science class, a quantitative reasoning class, another comm. class... and thats for next sem. I still have to do lab sciences but hopefully ill be able to knock one of those out of the way over the summer sometime...picking classes and organzing a schedule is alooooot harder than it seems.

My friends and I went to Avenue Q the musical last night. We bought tickets at the Hub, through SGA (student govt. association) and PC (Program Council). The show was pretty close, on the other side of the commons, and it was hystericallll.
Tickets for our New York trip (through PC) went on sale yesterday...20 bucks for a trip to NY and to see Legally Blonde the Musical. That is just one of the events PC is currently planning...we also have our Spring Ball coming up. funfun.

After my exam tomorrow I can stop freaking out. I have a feeling its going to be a late night tonight, especially since ihave class until 8:10 which means studying probably wont start until around 9...
wish me luckkk!

haley

March!

2008-03-04T14:57:00.000-05:00

Its now March, which means...almost Spring! I am very excited for it to start getting warmer. Spring is my fave. season and this Boston winter is lasting wayyy too long. Although, today has been warmer than the past couple weeks...
2 midterms down...2 to go! My finite math exam is on Wednesday and it is only 6 questions... could be really good or really bad. nervous.

My American Lit. midterm is next Thursday and we have not gone over it yet, so I have no idea what to study. Hopefully its not a quote where you have to name the story its from and the character who said it and what they were talking about... I think those are possibly the WORST exam questions ever.
I also have not gotten back my 2 other exams yet... hopefully soon.

only 7 more weeks till summer!! woohoo. very excited. My last exam is April 29th! In high school, I was never done until like June 20th. Although this summer will be all work and no play. I have to make moneyyyy. Hopefully ill find a restaurant job or something...anyways, went off on a little tangent there.

10 days till Spring break! ha. Just a week to relax and see old friends from high school.
On Sunday night me and a couple friends went to the Suffolk Vs. Wentworth Hockey game. I think this is the first time Suffolk has ever made it to the semi-finals or whatever. Suffolk won in overtime! very exciting. Im excited to go to the next game. I think more people need to get in athletics and go to games. It would be more fun with even more people there...

I realllly really want to start a field hockey club at Suffolk. I talked to the director of athletics, but he doesn't know where we would have the space to play... hopefully we can work something out...

That seems to be it for now :)
Haley

My first blog!

2008-02-26T15:12:00.000-05:00

So, this is my first blog ever! Hopefully those of you that read this will get a better understanding of what Suffolk life is like through the eyes of actual students. I live in 10 Somerset, which if you have ever been on a tour of Suffolk, it is the dorm we show you.
We are now halfway done with second semester, and so far for me college life has been great. Its a total 360 coming from high school, but after a few weeks of being here, I cannot imagine being back in high school, or even staying in Rhode Island for college. I am so glad i chose to go to school in the city. I barely even remember the times of waking up at 6 every morning to get ready for school. bleghhh. glad thats all done with. The earliest I ever have to wake up is 9:30 to be at work in the admissions office Friday morning for my 10:00 tour.
I have a midterm thursday night for my Presentation skills class and I have no idea what to expect. We gave our first speech last thursday night, which was kind of nervewracking... but definately something everyone should be able to learn how to do.
I had my women struggle in film class last week, which i think went okay. Its almost time for spring break!! Very excited! This year is Flyinggggg by. Its crazy. I'm basically almost a sophomore in college. Jeeeese.
Thats it for now :)