Long Time, No Blog

Well, it’s certainly been a minute, hasn’t it? While finals were their usual sprint to the finish, my winter break was also a bit all over the place. In the span of three weeks, my travel went something like this: Philly, New York, Maine, Chicago, Philly, New York, Philly.

With a dad in Chicago, a mom in New York, a grandmother in Maine, and early classes in Philly, I’m lucky I was able to laze around as much as I did (which is the only real purpose of winter break, amirite?). Aside from catching up on the Real Housewives of Atlanta, I applied to a couple internships, reworked my resume, cleaned out my Chicago closet a little, and finally finished a book I was reading for pleasure throughout the semester.

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December in Philly

After my whirlwind Thanksgiving trip to Maine I spent a few days detoxing in Philly. I love being in cities during the holiday season, especially such walkable and neighborhoody ones like Philly. The four weeks before winter break were a mad dash of writing and researching so it was nice to get a little bit of downtime beforehand.

Penn’s Landing at night

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Interview with a Shero

You know someone's a big deal when she has her own Tumblr meme

My first year at Bryn Mawr I had the pleasure of attending a paneled discussion at Penn’s Kelly Writers Huse featuring Kathleen Hanna, Sara Marcus, Katty Otto, and Beth Warshaw-Duncan. While fawning over Hanna, my middle school idol, I was also introduced to Katy Otto, a pillar of Philadelphia’s independent music scene and my newest shero (that’s a female hero, fyi).

A recent assignment for my journalism class served as the perfect opportunity for me to pick Otto’s brain a little. We met up at West Philly’s Satellite Café where we discussed trans-inclusive spaces, listening to Tori Amos in our teenage bedrooms, and what it means to be 35 and still in a “girl band.”

The article was published on our class blog, the English House Gazette. Read on.

Halloween & the Hurricaine

Autumnal charms aside, this October also finished with a vengeance.

First and foremost, the month culminated in my dorm’s annual fête, the legendary Radnor Halloween. This year was a great success with plenty of students from the Tri-Co and beyond (Drexel, Temple, etc). I also got to sport my costume at some events in Philadelphia to much acclaim (I went as Maeby Fünke from Arrested Development).

However this October did go a bit rogue. After Hurricane Irene’s underwhelming appearance on campus last fall, I wasn’t terribly worried about Sandy. While it seems devastation struck everywhere else, Bryn Mawr fared quite well with only a few downed trees and about 19 hours of lost power. The silver lining? A two-day hurrication. Continue reading

October at Bryn Mawr

Is there anything more wonderful than October at Bryn Mawr? Leaves, pumpkin flavoring, scarves, and fall break make for a pretty wonderful month. Between my stints in both Maine and Chicago, Bryn Mawr autumn is definitely my favorite. The air is crisp, but not too cold, and there’s so much excitement on campus.

Now for some much needed photo documentation–bryn mawr college Continue reading

My Bi-Co

I think many would agree that one of Bryn Mawr’s greatest assets is the Quaker Consortium. Comprised of Bryn Mawr, Haverford, Swarthmore, and UPenn, the consortium allows students to freely take courses or participate in activities at any of the listed schools. The Bi-Co, referring specifically to the historical ties between Bryn Mawr and Haverford, is especially close. While I do enjoy my sojourns to these campuses, I admit I spend most of my time on a campus not tied to Bryn Mawr at all: Temple University.

To be honest, I was pretty ignorant of Temple until I began dating my boyfriend and current student. This past year, mostly in thanks to my flexible schedule, I’ve found myself studying, eating, and hanging out on their campus at least once a week. I never considered large universities during my college search because I preferred a smaller environment, but through my self-created Bi-Co I’ve been able to get a feel for university culture. While that environment certainly has its perks (Starbucks on campus? Into it.), I’ve also been able to appreciate my own campus even more. Though Bryn Mawr and Temple are completely different institutions, I can still find a few reminders of home while walking around the North Philly campus…

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