This past weekend was the first of two Honors Scholar Weekends. It was a fun filled event in which scholars who have been accepted to Elmira College can come and receive their scholarship that they have been offered. The scholars come for a full day, and also have the option of coming the day before and spending the night with an overnight host. I had the privilege of being able to host a '14. This particular student, who's name I am going to keep to myself, came earlier in the day and came to two of my classes with me. Then while I was a practice he hung out with my friends. It was a BEAUTIFUL day here, and they played football and can-jam outside.
When I came back, we got dinner and hung out the rest of the night. We hung out and watched some of the NCAA tournament, then went to bed. The next morning we got up and went to breakfast. It was the first opportunity he had to meet some of his future classmates because we ate with two women's soccer recruits. It was nice I think for them all to meet and be able to talk face to face and not over the Internet. We then proceeded to Spidel Gymnasium where he met up with his father and they proceeded to the various activities that Admissions had planned for them throughout the day. My duties now turned towards helping to make each student's experience a special one. Being a Gold Key, we help to run the event. We set up the various events that they go to, as well as mingle in the beginning with them so that they can ask us any questions that they may have on their mind about the college.
Being a Gold Key is a great job for one to have. It is an opportunity to be a good portrayal of the college itself, but it also benefits you as an individual. You can improve on your public speaking skills, your interview skills, and help to do away with the nervousness you might have with going up to a person and say "Hi, my name is [insert your name here]". That is my favorite part of being a Gold Key. I love being able to meet new people, because everyone has their own specific story. I like going up to someone I have never met before and having this connection instantly of being at Elmira College, it truly is a unique experience.
Honors Scholar Weekend was an all in all success. It was fun being able to get to meet an incoming freshman next year, and getting to know him. As well as being able to meet other '14s and their families on Saturday morning.
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Monday, February 22, 2010
Winter Break
Here at EC we have the unique opportunity to not only have a spring break, but a winter break as well. This break ishappening this week and being on the lacrosse team I had expected to be here all week practicing and hopefully playing games. We ended up being able to have the opportunity to go home, and after hearing this I got extatic; my goalie, who lives a few towns over from me, and I would leave from our scrimmage at Kings College and head home from there. Having this supprise come about was awesome and being able to see my family really excited me.
The day before the scrimmages, however, fate called and the transmission on my goalies car went. It really sucked the wind out of me and was a real bummer. Being an athlete we do get a bit of a perk if we are here on campus. The athletes that have to stay on campus get meal cards that cover the meals that we have while we are here, and that is really nice considering my meal account balance is much lower than it is supposed to be.
Our scrimmages went okay, although, like any team early in the season, we have much work to do. It was very exciting being able to play in my first college lacrosse game. College athletics are a whole different ball game than high school and youth athletics, and being here at EC I am getting the opportunity to experience it. It is also the benefit of going to a small school and knowing that you don't get enveloped in the society of a 40,000 students school.
The day before the scrimmages, however, fate called and the transmission on my goalies car went. It really sucked the wind out of me and was a real bummer. Being an athlete we do get a bit of a perk if we are here on campus. The athletes that have to stay on campus get meal cards that cover the meals that we have while we are here, and that is really nice considering my meal account balance is much lower than it is supposed to be.
Our scrimmages went okay, although, like any team early in the season, we have much work to do. It was very exciting being able to play in my first college lacrosse game. College athletics are a whole different ball game than high school and youth athletics, and being here at EC I am getting the opportunity to experience it. It is also the benefit of going to a small school and knowing that you don't get enveloped in the society of a 40,000 students school.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
EC Mens Lax
This week marks the second week of the Elmira College Mens lacrosse season. Coming in as a freshman I did not really know what to expect as far as playing a college sport is concerned, but so far it has been a lot better than expected. We started back in the fall with fall ball practices, an alumni game, a purple and gold inner squad schrimmage game, and a game against SUNY Cobleskill and Broome Community College. These all went really well for us. We shut out SUNY Cobleskill and defeated BCC very nicely. Now its the real deal and we are working hard.
Playing on a college team is much different than playing for a high school team, much more fun and exciting. The intensity level on my high school team was very minimal and no one was really excited once the season time came around, no one really enjoyed going to practice and when everyone was having fun when the spring time came around after school, many of the guys on the team did not want to be there. College is much different, and I like that a lot.
Every practice I feel as though there is a solid intensity level and that every one of the guys on the team is there, ready to play, and excited about it. Everyone works hard and there are no excuses. "New year, new team" is the motto that has enveloped the 2010 EC mens lacrosse team, and we're ready to proove something.
I feel blessed with the opportunity to continue to play lacrosse at the next level, and opportunity that I feel i would not have had if I had gone to another school. One of the pluses about going to a small school like EC is that I am able to play on a varsity team even though I was not recruited, and it gives me the chance to stay in shape, and open myself to new opportunities and new people.
Playing on a college team is much different than playing for a high school team, much more fun and exciting. The intensity level on my high school team was very minimal and no one was really excited once the season time came around, no one really enjoyed going to practice and when everyone was having fun when the spring time came around after school, many of the guys on the team did not want to be there. College is much different, and I like that a lot.
Every practice I feel as though there is a solid intensity level and that every one of the guys on the team is there, ready to play, and excited about it. Everyone works hard and there are no excuses. "New year, new team" is the motto that has enveloped the 2010 EC mens lacrosse team, and we're ready to proove something.
I feel blessed with the opportunity to continue to play lacrosse at the next level, and opportunity that I feel i would not have had if I had gone to another school. One of the pluses about going to a small school like EC is that I am able to play on a varsity team even though I was not recruited, and it gives me the chance to stay in shape, and open myself to new opportunities and new people.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Snow
Growing up in New Jersey, I never fully understood what snow was. When I came here everyone that I met from around here and further north kept saying be ready for the snow, be ready for the snow, but it never came and seeing as how I love snow, I found myself to be quite disappointed when my hopes were raised for nothing. The day after I got home from Elmira on winter break, we got a snow with 16 inches of snow. In New Jersey we're lucky if we get 16 inches a year, compared to 16 inches in one storm.
Over winter break I went up to my girlfriend's house which is further upstate than Elmira is. The entire way up it snowed. The high ways were covered, and in my opinion it was one doozy of a storm. She and her mom constantly said that this is nothing, it's not a real storm unless the snow is blinding and you cannot see the car thirty feet in front of you. While I was up there I did not experience the excitement of this blinding snow, although I really wanted to. Everyday however, when I woke up and it was still snowing, my girlfriend asked me "You still like the snow?" and everyday I was still sure that I love the snow. It is fun waking up and seeing the progress of a night time storm, and seeing the snow build up in the fur tree outside of my window.
Over winter break I went up to my girlfriend's house which is further upstate than Elmira is. The entire way up it snowed. The high ways were covered, and in my opinion it was one doozy of a storm. She and her mom constantly said that this is nothing, it's not a real storm unless the snow is blinding and you cannot see the car thirty feet in front of you. While I was up there I did not experience the excitement of this blinding snow, although I really wanted to. Everyday however, when I woke up and it was still snowing, my girlfriend asked me "You still like the snow?" and everyday I was still sure that I love the snow. It is fun waking up and seeing the progress of a night time storm, and seeing the snow build up in the fur tree outside of my window.
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Traditions
Elmira College is full of traditions and that is one of the things that I liked most about EC when doing the college search. When I was researching schools and looking on their websites I ended up on the page about Elmira's tradtions and what they mean, and I thought that it was really interesting and cool.
This weekend I was able to experience the tradition of Holiday Weekend for the first time. Just like the orientation trilogy, candlelight, and Mountain Day, it was yet another new and exciting experience for me to have here at EC. It started on Friday night with the Holiday Banquet. It was a nice change of pace from the wraps, pizze, omlets, and burgers that have consumed my diet since coming to EC. Being able to eat a wonderful Turkey dinner with stuffing, beans, cranbury sauce, and potatoes was a nice treat when I got there. As well as eating the amazing food it was fun to see all the different professors, coaches, and administrators hosting table and sharing a meal with all of us students.
The tradtitions that Elmira has are something that makes going here even more fun and interesting. they are something that really brings everyone together and gives both the students and staff something to have pride in.
This weekend I was able to experience the tradition of Holiday Weekend for the first time. Just like the orientation trilogy, candlelight, and Mountain Day, it was yet another new and exciting experience for me to have here at EC. It started on Friday night with the Holiday Banquet. It was a nice change of pace from the wraps, pizze, omlets, and burgers that have consumed my diet since coming to EC. Being able to eat a wonderful Turkey dinner with stuffing, beans, cranbury sauce, and potatoes was a nice treat when I got there. As well as eating the amazing food it was fun to see all the different professors, coaches, and administrators hosting table and sharing a meal with all of us students.
The tradtitions that Elmira has are something that makes going here even more fun and interesting. they are something that really brings everyone together and gives both the students and staff something to have pride in.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Veterans Day
Veterans day in my family is something special for sure. Service is something that is special and common amongst the members of my family aswell. For generations past, my family has been in just about every branch from the Navy to the Coast Guard, and also the Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps.
For as many generations as we can look back, the Aldens, my mom's dad's side of the family, has served in the Navy. My great-grandfather met my great-grandmother while stationed in Bermuda, and they had my Grandfather. He joined the Navy where he met my Grandmother who was also in the intelligence department of the Navy, stationed on Church Street in NYC. Her father was in the US Army during the first World War. He drove munitions and supplies up to the front at night, and drove back during the day. When he came home, he believed he had used up all of his luck driving during the war and never drove again.
Their third daughter, Mary, enlisted in the Air Force right out of high school. She then proceeded to go to college in Philadelphia and earned her degree. She became a lab tech and was ultimately stationed at McGuire AFB in Wrightstown, NJ. There she met USAF Captain Ed States. He had gone to Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida. Ed was a pilot who flew C-141s at McGuire. The two of them got married a few years later and had me.
Ever since I was a young lad, I have wanted to join the military and continue the tradition that was started many generations before me, and here at Elmira I am getting that opportunity. I joined the AFROTC Det. 520 at Cornell University in September, and on Sunday I marched in my first Veterans Day parade. It was an experience that I found to be sort of emotional. For years and years now my family has marched, led, organized, or attended parades on Veterans Day, and now it is my turn and I feel blessed for the opportunity to do so.
Aside from my family members listed above, I have had a cousin in the Coast Guard, an Uncle in the Marines, a cousin who is a cadet in the US Army battalion at JMU, and a grandfather in the Army. Veterans day is a very important holiday in our family, and it is something that we take with great pride.
For as many generations as we can look back, the Aldens, my mom's dad's side of the family, has served in the Navy. My great-grandfather met my great-grandmother while stationed in Bermuda, and they had my Grandfather. He joined the Navy where he met my Grandmother who was also in the intelligence department of the Navy, stationed on Church Street in NYC. Her father was in the US Army during the first World War. He drove munitions and supplies up to the front at night, and drove back during the day. When he came home, he believed he had used up all of his luck driving during the war and never drove again.
Their third daughter, Mary, enlisted in the Air Force right out of high school. She then proceeded to go to college in Philadelphia and earned her degree. She became a lab tech and was ultimately stationed at McGuire AFB in Wrightstown, NJ. There she met USAF Captain Ed States. He had gone to Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida. Ed was a pilot who flew C-141s at McGuire. The two of them got married a few years later and had me.
Ever since I was a young lad, I have wanted to join the military and continue the tradition that was started many generations before me, and here at Elmira I am getting that opportunity. I joined the AFROTC Det. 520 at Cornell University in September, and on Sunday I marched in my first Veterans Day parade. It was an experience that I found to be sort of emotional. For years and years now my family has marched, led, organized, or attended parades on Veterans Day, and now it is my turn and I feel blessed for the opportunity to do so.
Aside from my family members listed above, I have had a cousin in the Coast Guard, an Uncle in the Marines, a cousin who is a cadet in the US Army battalion at JMU, and a grandfather in the Army. Veterans day is a very important holiday in our family, and it is something that we take with great pride.
Monday, November 2, 2009
Halloween Spooks
Saturday night was the first halloween in college for my friends and I, and it sure was a doozy.
The night started with my roommate and I having the single best costume ever, and the purchasing of the costume starts the saga of Halloween 2009.
We decided, with the help of a friend, to be Brennan and Dale from the movie Step Brothers. On Thursday afternoon my roommate Albert, my friend Will, and I went to the Party Store, Target, Khols and Salvation Army to work on our costumes. Albert and I ended up wearing khakii pants, purple button down shirts, argile sweater vests, and curley haired wigs. To say the least, we might as well have been in the movie ourselves.
At salvation army, Albert made the purchase that may one day save our lives. He found a "Y2K Survival Guide, hosted by Leonard Nemoy". It cost his all of $4 and if used properly might be able to save our lives in 2012 when the Myan callender comes to an end...who knows?
Halloween night was a blast, hanging out with friends and eating massive amounts of candy. The really spooky part of the weekend happened last night in Will's room. According to Will, he woke out of no where, rolled over and saw a mysterious white figure standing there staring at him. At this point he grabbed his glasses put them on, and the white was still there, but kind of blocked out by the light from his window. He then rolled over and said "I don't believe in ghosts" twict and went to bed.
I personally don't believe him because ghosts don't exist. If they did then how come he just went back to sleep? I'd definately want to ask that ghosts a few questions, such as Who are you? What happened to you? How is ghost life? I wouldn't just roll over and go back to sleep.
The night started with my roommate and I having the single best costume ever, and the purchasing of the costume starts the saga of Halloween 2009.
We decided, with the help of a friend, to be Brennan and Dale from the movie Step Brothers. On Thursday afternoon my roommate Albert, my friend Will, and I went to the Party Store, Target, Khols and Salvation Army to work on our costumes. Albert and I ended up wearing khakii pants, purple button down shirts, argile sweater vests, and curley haired wigs. To say the least, we might as well have been in the movie ourselves.
At salvation army, Albert made the purchase that may one day save our lives. He found a "Y2K Survival Guide, hosted by Leonard Nemoy". It cost his all of $4 and if used properly might be able to save our lives in 2012 when the Myan callender comes to an end...who knows?
Halloween night was a blast, hanging out with friends and eating massive amounts of candy. The really spooky part of the weekend happened last night in Will's room. According to Will, he woke out of no where, rolled over and saw a mysterious white figure standing there staring at him. At this point he grabbed his glasses put them on, and the white was still there, but kind of blocked out by the light from his window. He then rolled over and said "I don't believe in ghosts" twict and went to bed.
I personally don't believe him because ghosts don't exist. If they did then how come he just went back to sleep? I'd definately want to ask that ghosts a few questions, such as Who are you? What happened to you? How is ghost life? I wouldn't just roll over and go back to sleep.
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