New Music: Ain't 'Nothin 'Bout You - Brooks & Dun

I feel a summer anthem coming....

Spring Weekend!

The last full weekend of my sophomore year was definitely one of the best! I literally had something fun to do from Wednesday to Sunday. The weekend began on Wednesday when our seniors had frat crawl. Me and my littles had a ton of fun dressing Emma up as the Little Mermaid and going to the frats with her. 

Then, traditionally, the last weekend of the semester is called Mayfest. SU puts on a big party and people go crazy before finals start the next week. Somehow I got super lucky this semester and I don't have a lot of finals so I was definitely able to have a stress-free weekend this weekend. All in all, it was a ton of fun and I think I took more pictures this weekend alone than I have all semester haha

Friday was my first castle court experience... so wild! Mayfest used to be a huge street party near a lot of off-campus apartments, recently the school tried to make it safer by hosting it in Walnut Park, but clearly students still find a way to have fun:) Literally everyone was at this party it was so crazy. Me and Allie were rocking '60s inspired headbands.

The night ended with a Trey Songz and Ke$ha concert at the Carrier Dome. I am not the biggest fan but me and Mackenzie had the absolute best time dancing like lunatics alone on the dance floor.

 On Saturday my friends and I participated in a fraternity philanthropy before going to another round of day parties. American inspired apparel was definitely the theme for the day. We were definitely worn out by the end of the day...

 On Sunday we toned down the 5 day weekend by going for a hike as a house. This was the cool location where me and Carly hiked last semester. So beautiful! I loved doing a fun activity with my sisters that wasn't the usual mixer. And I got to spend time with one of my littles! So sad that I won't be seeing her next year :(

I don't say this very often.... but I love 'Cuse

Mayfest 2013 from The NewsHouse on Vimeo.

This weekend was INSANE. Love how much footage they have of castle court, definitely one of the best parties of the year!

New Music: Boy Oh Boy - Diplo & GTA

 

In honor of the amount of raging/drinking/partying/fratting that took place this weekend I present to you the weekend's anthem: Boy Oh Boy. 

Classic Camp TV Episodes/Movies

I definitely don't think its a coincidence that my all time favorite TV episodes and movies have something to do with camp. Lately, as part of my final exam procrastination routine and my Camp Hayward preperation, I have been catching up on my all time favorite camp-themed videos. Obviously my excitement for camp this summer has truly gone out of control. 

Here are my Top 4 Camp Must-Sees!:

1. As Told By Ginger - "Season of Caprice"

Judge me all you want, but As Told By Ginger still doesn't get old. For a cartoon, this show handled some pretty heavy stuff! Long distance romances, mean girls, smoking, depression, all in Nickelodeon show! In this episode, Ginger succumbs to something every camp girl hopes to find: the perfect camp crush.

 

2. It Takes Two with Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen

UGH. Don't even get me started on this movie. Too late--I'm started. I freaking love every second of this. Ugh the camp in it looks just like that Camp Fuller that we visited my JC summer. Absolutely adore. In it, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen switch places--one goes to summer camp for orphans and another lives with the sexy, rich, entrepreneur father in a lake-side mansion. Perfection.

 

3. The Parent Trap with Lindsay Lohan

Well, if you haven't seen this movie before then just get off my blog right now because we can't be friends. No explanation necessary. Chose to watch this movie over going to Phi Sig's last theme party this weekend--no regrets. Love.

 

4. Full House - "It Was a Dark and Stormy Night"

This episode is kind of sad. Michelle misses camp so much that she steals a bunny to take home as a souvineir and then she and Stephanie and DJ have to go back to Camp Lakota during the off-season. Everyone knows that there is nothing more depressing than being at camp during off-season! I mean come on! Duh! And its a little scary which is definitely a plus. 

 

J.Crew Cafe Capri

 

I just bought the above J.Crew Cafe Capris in Mint Pinwheel Eyelet a few weeks ago. They were the absolute perfect pants for Easter on Cape Cod. I wore them with my favorite peplum tank, a matching mint statement necklace, and gold Jack Rogers. 

The pants were definitely a splurge for me. As I've mentioned in a previous post, my "pants drawer" generally consists of "butt-zips" (AKA the J.Crew Pixie pant), Lulu Lemon Wunder Unders, and a few pairs of dark skinny jeans. The Cafe Capris, being 1. Not-Skinny 2. A Color! and 3. Wildly patterned, are totally out of the box for me--but in a good way!! I don't remember the last time I wore pants that weren't practically skin tight and these were unbelievably comfortable!!

All my non-prep friends from Syracuse practically laughed me out of town when I showed them my new pants but hey, haters gonna hate. I'm still planning their next debut on the town. I was so happy to see this picture on Pinterest though, always looking for new ways to wear them! How would you wear the Cafe Capris?

Lusting Over: Coral Wedges

J. Crew Seville Wedge Espadrilles: $128.00

The other day at the mall, Lo and I saw this girl wearing close-toe coral wedge espadrilles, jeans, and a white shirt. I immediately called my mom to alert her that my own and only birthday gift this year should be close-toe coral wedge espadrilles. 

Surprisingly, finding close-toe wedges was really hard to do. And I wanted them to not be too tall that I wouldn't feel comfortable wearing them casually during the day like this girl was. Unfortunately, when I finally found the PERFECT wedges the price was slightly out of my poor, poor, end of Spring semester college student budget. 

Solution: Target. These guys are totally affordable --not as cute of a color-- but definitely perfect for a red-white-blue America inspired outfit. Or with a white dress. Or with dark jeans and a white shirt. See? And because of the cheaper price, I won't feel guilty wearing (and therefore ruining them) them out in Syracuse when Summer is over! The possibilities are endless! 

Target Women's Merona Marguerite Canvas Espadrille: $29.99

Hannah Melton on Ellen Degeneres! Wisdom Teeth!

My friend from school is going to be on THE ELLEN DEGENERES SHOW. She was trying to get everyone to post this on Facebook and Tweet about it and stuff but I never thought it would actually happen!!! This is literally so cool for her and I am so insanely jealous hahaa. I want my wisdom tooth video to be on TV! Anyways, there are three parts to Hannah's hysterical experience, here are some of the highlights...

Be sure to tune into Ellen tomorrow at 4:00pm!!!

Oh, and because I am sure you are all curious about MY wisdom tooth video...

Dove Real Beauty Sketches

I found this to be incredibly inspiring/moving/touching/beautiful/great/entertaining. 

Really amazing work. Please take the time to watch this:

#PrayersForBoston

"Boston is tough and resilient and won't be knocked down from this."

-Barack Obama 

 

I am shocked and deeply saddened by the tradgedies that occurred today at one of my favorite events of the year. I felt that fellow Bostonian, Mark Chiarelli, summed up everything I needed to say eloquently. 

 

"There are no words to make tragedies better. 

 

In fact, it's beyond me as a writer and a thinker to fully comprehend today's attack on the Boston Marathon. The bombing which, as of now, killed three people and injured at least 138 more is an unmitigated disaster. 

There is someone who awoke on Patriots Day with the intent to strip us of our freedom, of our piece of mind, and ultimately of our lives through an act of terror. Patriots Day is a celebrated holiday in Massachusetts, a day filled with sport, fun, friends, and most of all, family while celebrating our freedom.

Perhaps that's why the tragedy which occurred at the finish line of the 116th Boston Marathon  rendered me immovable, glued to a television screen as one of our worst nightmares unfolded right in our backyard. 

No, I haven't lived in Boston. I live in one of the safest suburbs in Massachusetts and rarely feel the need to venture directly into Boston unless I'm attending a sporting event or someone is willing to buy me a nice dinner. But through years of avid sports viewing and general proximity, I've been to the city countless times. I've been to the Boston marathon, I've walked down Boylston street, and I know people who volunteer and run in this great event each year. 

This hits close to home. Today, we are all Bostonians.

I haven't cried often in the past few years, but today I shed tears. I can't remember the last time I've felt so helpless, but today I sat on the couch without any clue how to deal with my emotions and not having a way to help. I assume I'm not alone in my response to today's events. 

No one woke up today dreading a disaster at the Boston Marathon. But anyone who's lived in the area or has a connection to the area felt an immediate attachment to the tragedy which unfolded. Mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, friends and others were affected today. Hopefully, by the grace of the powers above, none of our closest family members and friends were directly affected. 

But maybe that's why the emotions raged within me, knowing that it very easily could have been any of  us who decided to hang out near the finish line. 

To be honest, I have no real direction or real point to be made with the blog post. At 8:45pm, roughly 6 hours after the events took place, I'm pissed off. I'm angry that someone attacked my city, injured my people, and ruined the innocence of one of the greatest holidays and events of the year. I'm angry that I can't help, I'm angry that all of this happened.

A few hours ago I was more shocked than anything. Incapable of moving, incapable of thinking, just watching and occasionally letting out a few sobs. It's a horrible feeling, something I hope I never have to feel again. Unfortunately, I most likely will.

Lastly, I'd be remiss to mention all that was good today, however hard it may be to find good in such evil. As President Barack Obama stated, Boston is tough and resilient and won't be knocked down from this. While the ideals behind terrorism is to strike fear into the hearts of free citizens, one can hope that this will only strengthen the Commonwealth. 

And while it may take the darkest of days, today also brought out the greatness in our society. There are some deplorable, cowardly people out there, but today we saw that the good will always outweigh the evil. We saw Boston Police officers rush bravely towards the explosions. We saw volunteers tear through debris to rescue hundreds, and we saw over 1200 civilians in Boston offer their homes to displaced runners. 

I don't know whether it was the right move to write something while the emotions from today's attack are so raw. Honestly, I don't know what to think about today. But I do know that writing often helps deal with sorrow and frustration, at least for me. And hopefully, through reading this, I've helped some of you as well. I'll leave you with words much wiser than mine. 

"When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping." To this day, especially in times of disasters, I remember my mother's words and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers, so many caring people in the world." -Fred Rogers"

Top Five Favorite Phi Sig Shirts

I know my posts lately have been kind of over-the-top sratty but this is (probably) the last one for a while--promise!!! Inspired by Hannah from The Pink and Green Prep and the fact that we just got a really cool new PR shirt I wanted to post my top 5 favorite Greek life shirts I have received so far.

 Here we go: 

1. Our PR shirt for Spring recruitment this year! Loved the cotton candy colors (definitely helped to fake a tan!)

2. The Cinco de Drinko shirt from a few years ago.

3. These are the ones we just got today! So different from Phi Sig's usual style but so cool. I can't wait to it with high-waisted jean shorts, white shorts, or black skinny jeans. I also think this is a really cool style of shirt.

4. This is a super old shirt that I received in one of my big/little baskets last year. It kind of only looks good when you're tan but that means its only for special occasions:)

          
5. I am absolutely obsessed with everything there is about this shirt. It was last year's Cinco de Drinko shirt. I accidentally ripped it earlier this weekend and I am actually so upset about it :(

Phi Sig in the Spring

Sorry for the lack of posting! It always somehow surprises me how crazy the last couple weeks of school can be. I've been super busy with getting ready for finals, Greek events, and formal! This weekend was Spring Formal and Paddle/Letter. Spring Formal was really fun, Tycho came up from Binghamton and I got to re-wear my Prom dress haha. 

Me and Caitlin

Me and Tycho! 

Me and Sean

I wish these pictures were better quality but the cord that attaches my camera to my computer is mysteriously out of commission, so iPhone pictures will have to cut it for the time being.

Today was Paddle/Letter where the big gives their little (or littles) their first pair of Phi Sig letters and the little(s) give their big a decorated wooden paddle with a note on the back. I've been looking forward to this for so long and I feel so lucky to have gotten two! They are so cute and I love that each one is so different and reflects different things I love about both of my littles! I immediately hung them up on my wall when I got home from the house.

My wall is looking extra sratty lately!

Paddle/Letter with the babies!

New Music: Knocking on Heaven's Door - Bob Dylan

I know I say all the time that I am obsessed with songs, but this time it's no fleeting romance-- this is the real thing. I think this song might even have surpassed my love of "Before the Heartache Rolls in" by Hootie and the Blowfish. "Knocking on Heaven's Door" is that perfect blend of heartwrenching-ly sad but also a little hopeful. It's so heavy with nostalgia that I just picture a peaceful end-of-summer night when you finally have to go home and get back to real life. Ugh I just love it.

I Got the Job!!!

I am absolutely thrilled that I am lucky enough to be going back to Hayward for 6 weeks this summer. I will be going to resource staff training, staff training, session one and session two, and Vicky will be going session three and session four. Literally this couldn't possibly be more perfect and I am still in shock that one of my life dreams has actually been realized.  Never in a million years did I think that I would be lucky enough to be able to go back to the most influential, important, and AMAZING places from my childhood. On that note, here are the things that are keeping me up at night because I am TOO EXCITED about being able to do them again!:

JCs 2010 !!! So happy that so many of them will be back as well!

• Not showering for days
• Making string bracelets up to my elbows
• Breaking out my shark watch
• And my 5 year watch
• Pontoon jump!
• Blasting music from my cabin
• Making a happy list
• Seeing the stars
• Going to opening and closing campfires
• Trying the new water trampoline
• Taking about 5,000 LITP pictures with Allie
• Living in a bathing suit for the most part of 6 weeks
• Blasting music off the Pontoon

The Haywatch Waterfront

• Eating Lois's camp cookies and camp pizza
• Receiving care packages and camp e-mails
• Sorting mail
• Roasting Marshmallows
• Seeing all the new camp animals
• Eating staff snacks
• Playing douse the fire
• Going on fun time-offs
• Making European friends
• Laughing until my stomach hurts with my friends
• Taking a million pictures
• HAVING MY OWN RESOURCE STAFF SONG OMG
• Going crazy singing the JC and CIT song even though I won't be one anymore
• Buying the new camp sweatpants and sweatshirt
• Eating yogurt pretzels

And again

• Filling out a camp journal
• Riding the speedboat
• DRIVING the speedboat
• Kayaking
• Sailing
• Windsurfing
• Swimming
• Search and rescue
• Doing staff of steel

• 

  Pontoon Dock