Shopping Period

This is a post from my google blog.

Hey all...
Although I haven't posted in awhile, I'm sure you understand. It really is such a busy time no matter how cliche that might seem. I did get those pictures up finally though!

We here at Yale are coming upon the close of shopping period which means everyone is stresses about choosing classes and subsequently choosing majors and future grades. I, myself, have chose to take my Life course (see first entry) Credit/D/Fail as the professor is famous for draconian grading as well as his ethics expertise. No really, google "Shelly Kagan grading" and you'll understand. I think at least 8 of the 18 people in the class are taking it Credit/D/Fail as well. Basically all that means is Pass/Fail only Yale throws the D in so you can't totally slack and still get the Credit.

In addition to that philosophy course, I have given up my math major and pushed math off in order to take a class called Intro to Cognitive Science. It's an amazing course about an up and coming field of study of the mind which combines Psychology, Philosophy, Neuroscience, Linguistics, and Computer Science. Every class I come out loving it more. The professor is amazing and the coursework in sooo interesting. Even though it is a big lecture course, it's fun and interesting and enthralling and I could go on forever!

I am also taking General Chemistry with a lab... The lab hasn't started yet, but I hear that as long as you keep up with the work you're OK. Chemistry is giving me the same problems it did when I took AP in high school so I'm not really enjoying it too much right now. At least I won't have to teach it to myself because I'm out of school! My professor is really great though. He makes the huge lecture class seem much more interactive than it is. I hope the discussion sections help me absorb the material better than high school. I also hope that the labs are interesting enough to compensate for the insane amount of work put into write ups...

My fourth class is an English writing seminar. It's title is "The Mind and the World". We get to watch The Matrix and write our papers on consciousness and stuff! Although I feel under prepared compared to the other students in the class, my professor is really great. She works at the Writing Center which is the writing tutor resource here and is always willing to help if we have questions. Our first paper draft is due on Thursday as well as my first paper for my Philosophy course... I hope I do OK on them...

On a more fun note, I attended my first Master's Tea which is when the Master or head of a residential college brings in a speaker from outside campus. Our speaker was the United Nations correspondent on the issue of embryonic stem cell research, Art Caplan. He has been on CNN and all sorts of new shows too! He was a very great and entertaining speaker and I am probably going to hell for agreeing with much of what he had to say.

I also had my first meeting for the music magazine I want to write for, "gunsliger. ". I told them I was interested in doing an interview or review of the upcoming Yo La Tengo concert at Toad's Place venue and they told me to go to the website and see if could find a press contact. I didn't, but I did find an email address at the bottom of one of the pages. I emailed saying I was a writer for Yale music magazine and I was hoping to get an interview and to my huge surprise I got a reply! I only have to let them know when my deadline is and then I will be able to get an interview. They also set me up with a photo pass for the show so my roommate Lea, who has the digital Rebel, and I are going to go and get some shots from the show! I am so excited! We intend on doing a feature article on Yo La Tengo in a late issue so one of the more seasoned writers is going to help me with the interview! I am so grateful since I have NO idea what I'm doing.

This is getting kind of long, but I have more to say so bear with me. Plus, I want to procrastinate some more! I am still continuing with the rush process for both a cappella and sororities. I should know by the end of next weekend which things I have gotten tapped for... For a cappella we have had auditions, rush meals which are meals you eat with a few members of the group to get to know each other, and singing desserts where they give the rushees a concert and feed us yummy desserts! It's really fun. For sororities, we had some getting to know you barbecues and nights and a local pizza place. Registration is tomorrow for rush and then we have two nights of parties where we go to each house for about 45 minutes and party and hang out. A cappella groups then sometimes have callbacks and culminate in tap night! Tap night is a crazy night where all rushees stay in there rooms and the a cappella groups run around campus trying to get the rushees they want to join THEIR groups. I am hoping to get tapped for one, but I only tried out for three so it's unlikely. Sororities have what's called preference night where we state which one we prefer and they do the same then they match us up and let us know which sorority, if any, you are invited to join. That should be exciting, too. There's really only one sorority I want to join because it is the least "sorority-ish" of all of them.

The last thing I have to talk about is the most exciting! Over the summer all admitted students were asked to nominate a teacher or counselor that we thought did a superior job if we had one. I, of course, nominated Mrs. Ring. I received an email from her saying that she had received a notice, complete with a nice desk set, that she had been one of the teachers that won the Yale Teaching Award through the Yale Educator Recognition Program! I am so excited for her! She totally deserves it!

I should probably go and do some work, but feel free to give me a call sometime as I have been finding myself a bit homesick every once in awhile... Also, if anyone's bored, they can send letters! I will answer any that are sent, of course.
(608) 790 0615
PO Box 201789
New Haven, CT 06520

I'll try to update more often so they aren't so long...
Miss you all!
Hayley

Opening Days

This is post from my google blog.

Hey all!

Here I am in my dorm room looking out at the New Haven Green. I am still in awe that I'm here. I have experienced so much already!

I started out with three days in the car... I'll post some amusing pictures of me and all my crap in the car on my facebook when I get the chance. I got to see my grandparents and other family in Chicago, so that was great! It turns out that my cousin Marisa is working at Yale for a while this year, so we can go out to dinner or something if I get really homesick. The second night we stayed in State College, Pennsylvania, home of Penn State. It was fun because we got upgraded to a really nice suite in the hotel! I wish I could have that as a dorm room!

The first night in New Haven my parents and I went to PePe's Pizza, world famous and claim they are the first pizza place in America! It was soooooo good!!! Too bad it's pretty far from campus... special treat perhaps...

I then left for FPC, FreshPerson Conference. Way to be politically correct, eh? Two of my roommates, Eva and Lisa, were there too. We got to meet freshman, talk to upperclassmen, see comedy and a cappella groups, hear speeches and panels, all while enjoying the features of a quintessential summer camp, cabins and all. I met some really fun people there. I also saw some really interesting things... including a naked junior guy streaking down the dock and into the water! It was crazy cold, too!

I had it the best! Because we didn't get back to campus until about 2pm, my parents had all my stuff upstairs to the third floor and practically moved in for me! They had also gone on an Ikea and Urban Outfitters run and essentially furnished our common room. Ours is the nicest I've seen so far. I am sooo grateful. My Uncle Jim, who lives about 30 minutes away, and my dad lugged all the furniture up and my mom lugged all my stuff up! I totally owe them! Our suite is one of the biggest on Old Campus, which is where almost all the freshman live. There are four singles and one double which results in six girls to one shower, but we'll figure it out. It has high ceilings, great windows with great views and a convenient back staircase that leads directly to the laundry room. Sadly, there's no fireplace, sorry Karl...

On Friday, we got to meet the Master of my residential college (Ezra Stiles) and his wife the Associate Master! They are so cool! She's adorable and and already knows me pretty well so hopefully I'll get to be her master's aid and get to plan the parties in the BEAUTIFUL house. Their art collection = amazing. I also met my dean, Dean Wood, who is the person who does the class advising for our residential college.

We registered, and then talked to our freshman counselors who are sort of like RAs except that they aren't looking to, and actually can't, get you in trouble. Angelique is soo sweet, and she's really knowledgeable, especially for pre-med stuff considering she's applying to med schools right now. We've already had to call on her for assistance with a drunk roommate that I won't name... She took her to the Health Services and was really cool about it.

My roommates are all really nice. Eva is from New Haven. She's really a sweet person. Lisa, who shares the double with Eva, is really spunky. She's from Houston and Ontario, long story... Steph is adorable. She's an national level figure skater from Salt Lake City, and no, she's not Morman. Rolake and Lea are probably the girls I relate to the most. Rolake is from New York. She's sweet and goofy, and really likes just hanging out. She went on a Target run with my parents and I. Lea is great. She's got AWESOME music taste and brought along her Canon Digital Rebel (Anna, Dawn and Sammy, it makes me want mine here! You would go crazy with all the beautiful picture opportunities!). She's low key but really fun! She's also right across the hall from me so that's fun too!

On Saturday morning, we had our freshman assembly in Woolsey Hall. It was magnificent, a high painted ceiling reminiscent of the Sistine Chapel, Wood paneling, an organ 3 stories high at least! The Masters and Deans and other important people filed in with their robes billowing behind them, Harry Potter style! It was AMAZING. The President and Dean of Undergraduate Studies spoke and it was great!

Last night, I went to a party in a room on the first floor called The Lair. It was really fun and chill. We went on to go to the luau party at the frat house, but Lea and I decided there were too many people, too crazy, so we turned back. I spent the later part of that night trying to clean up after my sick roommate, which I did NOT want to do... O well, hopefully it's just first week stuff and it will get better when classes start.

Today we had the Activities Bazaar. It was crazy. A whole quad was covered in booths and screaming people trying to attract freshman and others to their particular group. I signed up for a few, but managed to keep it down to an ok amount. I am thinking of rushing only the co-ed a cappella groups. If I don't get into one, I'm not going to care too much because they sort of take over your life... You do get free travel all over the country and world though! I also signed up for writing for the Gunslinger, Yale's music magazine which is just getting it's start. I signed up with the Yale Daily News (think Rory) and the Yale Herald to maybe be a music writer. I also talked to the Ski Team, and am really excited for that! Every year they take a trip to, I think, Montreal for the last week of Christmas Break to go skiing and party. Sadly, I will be getting my wisdom teeth out this year. I plan to race with them in Vermont on weekends during second semester though! Exciting! I am also contemplating rushing sororities. They aren't like typical ones though. They don't through parties, the frats do that, they don't haze, they give gifts instead, and they aren't snotty and elitist, only 10% of Yalies are Greek and the sororities are known for their philanthropy, especially the one I'm looking at, Kappa Kappa Gamma. I am also eager to get involved in theater here considering they have the #3 best College Theater opportunities in the country! Wouldn't it be cool if I got into Urinetown!?!

I've avoided having to take the Spanish placement exam, and shopping period starts on Wednesday. We get to "shop" classes to see if we like the class and the professors. It's great! We have that for two weeks, but I pretty much know what I'm taking. I'll let you know when I'm sure.

I had to say goodbye to my parents today, and that was really hard. As long as they were here, it didn't sink in that I wasn't going to be home for a long time... I loved high school, Aquinas, La Crosse, and my life the past few years, and I am really going to miss it. I hope you all are still going to want to be my friend when I get back!

I think I am going to go and relax on the Old Campus Green before I start to get upset... I miss you all! Keep in touch, OK?

Hayley