Think Spring!

Spring arrived in Ithaca a few weeks ago, and it couldn't have come at a better time. Classes are slowing down, deliverables are being non-existent and my motivation to do anything work-related has evaporated. I'm fully in senior spring mode!

Despite the slowdown in class-related areas, the social aspects of my time here have only heated up. The last few weeks brought some fun and new events, such as our admitted students weekend, Destination Johnson, and P.S. - Personal Success, a new tradition started for outgoing second years. Destination Johnson was another great weekend, where I got to meet students who will be first years starting in the fall. It was heartbreaking knowing that I won't actually get to be a student with them, but I'll be more than happy to see them again when I come back for recruiting in the fall. Here's a picture of me and the two lovely ladies (Kelly and Meredith) who stayed at my apartment for the weekend.

P.S. was a new event started this year. It's a day of celebration for all that the second years have accomplished and a chance to network/get advice from alumni as we embark on the next stage of our careers. It was an amazing day that started with a mimosa toast and ended with a fabulous dinner and fireworks! Below is a pictures of me and some of my closest gal pals at the event and of the amazing firework display.

Lots of other things have kept me busy as well (besides my Tivo). I've been working on a second Park Fellowship project this spring with a few of my peer Park Fellows. We're conducting an after-school program on Tuesdays at two different middle schools in the area, with the goal of teaching the students the value of teamwork, communication, respect in both competition and the workplace, as well as throwing in a few business concepts for them to grasp. It's been an amazing time working with the kids and having fun. Here's some pictures from our last session, where the students had to build small cars and compete on distance.

Lastly, we just had our bowling league award ceremony/celebration this past Wednesday at Pixel Lounge, in Collegtown. It was a lot of fun and I even won an award for second highest female average. I only missed first by 0.7 pins! Darn! Oh well. Here's a picture of me with my award.

Nirvana

So these days things are awesome. I specifically set up my last quarter so that I only have three classes, and I'm done by 10:00am on Mondays and Wednesdays and by 11:30am on Tuesday and Thursdays. That does mean I have to get up early every day, but it leaves me plenty of time to hit the gym, take naps, do assignments and whatever else I want. Basically, it's fabulous.

Now there is a common myth that the second year of grad school is automatically easy. I'm here to tell you that is not true. You've got to start planning your first year to make it happen. My plan was to take a few extra credits during the second semester of the first year so that I would have less to fulfill my second year. Then I still had a grueling first semester back so that the last semester would be the best. And here it is! Only three classes and plenty of time to hang out with friends, hit the gym and just relax. It's amazing!

Speaking of fun past times, this afternoon is our first intramural softball game. The weather appears to be cooperating for the first time in awhile, so it should be a good day to play. It's a Johnson school team, but the league is open for all Cornellians, so it's kind of fun that we may play some undergrads. Nothing shows you how old you're getting than playing students that are almost a decade younger than you! I'll let you all know how it goes...