Only 2 weeks left!

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

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...

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.

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.

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

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...

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-

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..."

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?

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!

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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..."

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...

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...

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...

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