I can't believe I am packing up and readying myself to move back to Penn. Where has this summer gone? As sad as I am about summer ending (and having to trade in my flip-flops for Uggs), I am definitely excited and ready to head back to school. This year, I am living in my Sorority House. We have a great location (38th and Walnut), so now I am closer to the restaurants on 40th….and the gym to work off what I eat! If someone were to come and look at the boxes sprawled across my room, they would think I was moving into a mansion. Clearly, I did not learn to pack lightly from my freshman year. How can I feel fully moved in without bringing every possible shirt I might feel like wearing?
Anyway, I am moving in on Saturday. Most upperclassmen are there or will be there by then, so I figured that traffic might not be horrific. Be warned, it is pretty bad on the highly trafficked move-in days. My roommate will already have moved in when I get there, but we already agreed on whom is taking which side of the room and have color coordinated our things (we're girls!)
I will be the last one of my friends to leave; it is really strange being the only one left. Most of my friends have already started classes…haha. School is starting to become more of a reality as my professors are starting to utilize Blackboard (it's where our grades and assignments are posted) to post my syllabi. Unfortunately, it looks as though I'll have quite a bit of reading this semester! Not dwelling on that, I am going to enjoy the sunshine while I can before the long northeast winter!
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Friday, August 17, 2007
A Wise Fool
I can’t believe it has been a whole year since I was preparing to head to New Student Orientation (NSO week is one of the best weeks of your undergraduate life!) Last Sunday, the Bucks County Penn Alumni Club had a welcome picnic for the future freshmen (Class of 2011). The kids that showed up were really great and they all had a ton of questions. It is weird to think that a year ago college was such a huge unknown and now I am a veritable authority (sophmore does translate to mean a wise fool, so perhaps I don't know as much as I think)! Everyone always has the same questions. Number one is always, “Is it hard”….to which I always respond, not if you go to class and keep up with your reading! Other than that, we discussed living situations, the dining halls (one of the perks of being a sophomore is not having to be on the meal plan, so I guess you know where I stand on the issue), class selection and social life. Penn social life is a strange thing. Sunday through Thursday, we are most definitely a studious Ivy League, but Thursday night through the rest of the weekend, Penn kids really know how to let down. It is great looking forward to a reasonably stress-free weekend when you are having a particularly work-heavy week (I’m hoping I will not have too many this semester!)
On a side note, I am a huge loser and am actually looking forward to my classes. I ordered my textbooks for my Poli Sci classes (tip to all future freshmen: order your textbooks off of Amazon.com, you’ll save a ton), as they are posted on the Penn bookstore website, and they came today—I will neither confirm nor deny that I have opened them and looked through them already…
Other than that, I have been taking it pretty easy since my internship and class ended. I forgot how nice doing nothing can be. My brother and I are currently arguing over the remote for the TV…the one plus about going back to school will be regaining sole ownership of my remote and not being forced to watch Wedding Crashers for the millionth time (it wasn’t even that funny the first time).
On a side note, I am a huge loser and am actually looking forward to my classes. I ordered my textbooks for my Poli Sci classes (tip to all future freshmen: order your textbooks off of Amazon.com, you’ll save a ton), as they are posted on the Penn bookstore website, and they came today—I will neither confirm nor deny that I have opened them and looked through them already…
Other than that, I have been taking it pretty easy since my internship and class ended. I forgot how nice doing nothing can be. My brother and I are currently arguing over the remote for the TV…the one plus about going back to school will be regaining sole ownership of my remote and not being forced to watch Wedding Crashers for the millionth time (it wasn’t even that funny the first time).
Thursday, August 2, 2007
3 Months Down, 1 to Go...
So I cannot believe it is August 2nd. It is officially three months since I finished my last final and about one month until I move back in. I guess I would have missed Penn more if I hadn’t been down here every day for the past six weeks.
This summer I am lucky enough to be working at the Annenberg Public Policy Center for a National Public Radio Program called Justice Talking (http://justicetalking.com) . It is a great internship; I highly encourage all future students to consider spending a summer or sometime during the year helping out. It is not like most internships where employers don’t trust the capability of students. I have gotten to put together research packets for future programs and even have one of my ideas for a show topic chosen! The staff is so laid back, it’s an amazing summer job.
I’ve also been taking a summer class—Communications 125 Communication and Behavior. I had heard that this class was potentially pretty boring so I decided it might be beneficial to get it out of the way in six weeks as opposed to twelve. It ends next Thursday, and I have to tell you that this class has been phenomenally interesting. Perhaps it is because I have an interest in communications (as it is one of my majors!) or maybe it is the fact that I only have one class to worry about so I am not as stressed and can really enjoy the reading. Either way, my professor, a graduate student named Lauren Feldman, who has done most of her research in Political Communications (really fascinating stuff!!) is one of the best professors I have had here at Penn.
Summer classes are kind of a hidden gem.
If you can get past taking classes in the summer, they are much more relaxed (code for easier), class sizes are much smaller (this class has 12 students as opposed to close to 200 in the spring) and the students really get to interact with the professor. As a bonus for all Penn students, about half of the class is comprised of pre-college students (high school kids doing a summer program at Penn), which makes the environment not as stressful and the competition a bit easier. Needless to say, despite my roughly 3-hour commute in and out of the city every day, I am really enjoying my summer at Penn—not to mention I have not had to go without eating at my favorite places all summer!
This summer I am lucky enough to be working at the Annenberg Public Policy Center for a National Public Radio Program called Justice Talking (http://justicetalking.com) . It is a great internship; I highly encourage all future students to consider spending a summer or sometime during the year helping out. It is not like most internships where employers don’t trust the capability of students. I have gotten to put together research packets for future programs and even have one of my ideas for a show topic chosen! The staff is so laid back, it’s an amazing summer job.
I’ve also been taking a summer class—Communications 125 Communication and Behavior. I had heard that this class was potentially pretty boring so I decided it might be beneficial to get it out of the way in six weeks as opposed to twelve. It ends next Thursday, and I have to tell you that this class has been phenomenally interesting. Perhaps it is because I have an interest in communications (as it is one of my majors!) or maybe it is the fact that I only have one class to worry about so I am not as stressed and can really enjoy the reading. Either way, my professor, a graduate student named Lauren Feldman, who has done most of her research in Political Communications (really fascinating stuff!!) is one of the best professors I have had here at Penn.
Summer classes are kind of a hidden gem.
If you can get past taking classes in the summer, they are much more relaxed (code for easier), class sizes are much smaller (this class has 12 students as opposed to close to 200 in the spring) and the students really get to interact with the professor. As a bonus for all Penn students, about half of the class is comprised of pre-college students (high school kids doing a summer program at Penn), which makes the environment not as stressful and the competition a bit easier. Needless to say, despite my roughly 3-hour commute in and out of the city every day, I am really enjoying my summer at Penn—not to mention I have not had to go without eating at my favorite places all summer!
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