Days of D-Hall and Dorm Rooms

Part of college is spending  huge amounts of time in the dining hall and the dorms. Since many of you at home, and those of you checking in with me for the first time, have yet to see my dorm room I thought I would attach a video of it! Today was beautiful out so I actually didn't spend a whole lot of time in my room, but tonight is devoted to studying and reading which will take place at my lovely desk. Hope you enjoy my video :)Love always,
Emmeline

Do you ever get homesick? I am worried about missing my family are there opportunities for them to visit?

I definitely get homesick. I have a very close relationship with my family which made coming to Skidmore very difficult. That being said I found that Skype has been a great tool to help me stay in touch, and keeping busy with activities and really creating your own sort of "college family" really helps. Parent's Weekend is this weekend which is exciting -- My older sister is visiting Skidmore for the first time! Also, if your parents have time, there are long weekends that they can pay a visit. Homesickness is very common, but I think the most important thing to remember is that there are other people whoe end up feeling the same way. I've bonded with many friends over being homesick, and then we get together and come up with activities to get our minds off of it :)

Ask me anything

More Than Meets the Eye



Be Silly! College is Fun--Embrace It!!!

   I was sitting at Starbucks this afternoon and my new friend Tom came and sat with me for a bit. I met him last week at Starbucks and I was a little taken aback when he just came, sat at my table, and introduced himself. It was clear that Tom was intellectually disabled, but when I got to actually speaking with him he turned out to be highly interesting. Today, we didn't really talk about much, simply the sunshine and the caramel apple cider that we were both drinking. It was not a monumental conversation in any way, shape, or form, but it was one of those moments that made me embrace how happy I am to be alive. So often I get caught up in being irritated with the exam that's coming up, or the friend that won't return my calls, but really those are trivial little parts of what is an overall awesome life! I know my blogs lately have been fairly cheesy, but I almost lost a dear friend over the weekend and I implore you to really take the time to embrace life because all too soon it can be taken from you. Those who know me well know that I idolize Marilyn Monroe and the complexity of her life so I will leave you with her quote, “We should all start to live before we get too old. Fear is stupid. So are regrets.” -Marilyn Monroe
Love always, Emmeline

It's a Beautiful Day

Me and Gab being silly!

     It's easy to get wrapped up in the fast pace of college and forget to stop and smell the roses. I've been reminded lately that life is a beautiful gift, and unfortunately so many people lose sight of that. I'm thankful for my life, the opportunity to come to Skidmore, and the people I am lucky enough to call true friends.
   I'm happy that this week is over as it was filled with numerous exams and papers! This weekend is the all-college "Oktoberfest" weekend that is thrown annually by the senior class. Yesterday there were bouncy castles in the green and I was SOOOOO EXCITED! Tonight there is a semi-formal Victorian dance...I'm not sure what attire qualifies as "Victorian," but I'm excited nonetheless. Next week is the start of my work for the Skidmore theatre box office! The black box show, "Pilgrims of the Night," is very soon, and it turns out that the PLAYWRIGHT WILL BE IN ATTENDANCE for our show...OMG! Well, I'm off to give a tour!
Love always,
Emmeline

Dienstag!

I remember that much of my junior year of high school was spent in awe of my chemistry teacher. He went to Harvard, he tried medical school but realized he had more of a passion for teaching, he was an extremely talented baker, and he spoke German! My family comes from Norway and Ireland so I know very little about Germany and German culture except for what I’ve been told in history class. The language I’ve heard spoken a few times by my chemistry teacher and a couple friends, but that’s about it. When I called my mother yesterday morning and shared with her that I was planning to attend a German hip-hop concert she laughed and then said, “Emmeline, I admire that you always seem to branch out your interests.”

Part of college is experiencing things you may have never thought about before so last evening I walked over to the Skidmore Dance Theatre and witnessed the talent of two German DJs from Berlin. They mixed “DJ-ing” with rapping and threw in the beats of some of the U.S.’s top 40 music. It was a highly entertaining experience, but I was rather saddened by the lack of attendance. There were about 30 people total (one of those was my organic chemistry professor) and most of them were from the German class. Everyone there was super excited and participatory, but I think the event could have sparked much more interest if it was advertised more and placed in a venue like Falstaff’s. We were all encouraged to get up and dance on stage, but in a place the size of the dance theatre and with only about 30 other people it was kind of awkward to go to the front and “shake it.” On a Thursday night in Falstaff’s I could see the event being brilliant. The advertisement would have been better, attendance would have been up, and the student population would be ecstatic to have the opportunity to dance to some new beats! While I wish the concert had been set-up differently, I still enjoyed it. I got to meet new faces, sing and dance to German music, and have a far more upbeat Tuesday night than usual.

Liebe immer (love always), Emmeline

Summer is FALLing Away :)

Football with my Skiddies!!!

   
     The rain has been non-stop and the temperature has finally dropped which means that it must be fall! Last weekend a few of my friend and I took a road trip to the beautiful Adirondack Mountains and I was blown away by the vast amounts of leaves changing color. I never knew that so many shades of red, yellow, and orange existed!
    I've officially been back at Skidmore for one month and I am adjusting well. It was a tough start considering that my boyfriend decided that he wanted to end things, but the support of my friends and family has been great! My classes have been wonderful which also has helped. 9 hours of lab a week might seem overwhelming, but it has actually been quite exciting!!! My bio lab has really helped me delve into the mechanisms behind evolution and my organic chemistry professor has made the complicated world of organic chem into something fun and interesting so I can't complain! This coming weekend is the all-college Oktoberfest weekend so I'm preparing for all the fun. Karaoke night is Thursday and I am PUMPED!!!
    Love always, Emmeline

Undecided

    Undecided. College students all seem to go through a phase where most everything in their life is undecided. We have yet to declare our major, we have no idea what we want our future to hold, we can't even decide whether we want to have dinner on or off campus. Part of the beauty of being a college student is that it's okay for us to be undecided at the moment, but still it makes things complicated. It makes things uncertain.    
    I am happy to be back, but all this uncertainty makes the transition from home to here so much more difficult. I have faith that it will get better and all this cloudy, rainy weather isn't helping much either. That being said, Saratoga Springs is a great place. It was nice to grab a chai latté from "Uncommon Grounds," and to listen to live music at the street festival. Seeing familiar faces is comforting, and I'm enjoying meeting new people as well.
    Classes start tomorrow...wish me luck!
Love always, Emmeline