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ALL HALLOWS EVE & BROOKLYN & BIKES
Halloween is almost upon us in the city, and spirit (and decorations) abound. I took the F train to the land of Brooklyn a couple of days ago, just so I could wear my hipster apparel and use my trendy messenger bag, and when I stepped out at the Carrol Gardens stop, the world had changed. In place of Manhattan’s impressive buildings, wide bustling streets and frenetic horn-honking-people scurrying-cars swerving vibe, a human sized environment had emerged: narrow shady streets with families out for walks, couples with their hands in each-others pockets, dog walkers and stroller pushers galore. If I ever needed a family vibe to set me right, I should come here. Most of the brownstones (2-3 story connected houses built out of brown sandstone) had tons of decorations. No. I mean TONS. I couldn’t even see facade of one entire house it was so loaded with skulls and fake spiderwebs and scythes and pumpkins and plastic tombstones and whew, I could go on. This happens to be a post of run on sentences, but it fits my vibe right now, so hang tight.
I kept wandering and found these things:
Forty-three carved pumpkins, numerous spider webs (hard to count for obvious reasons), 2 children who decided to dress up early (1 michael jackson and 1 sesame street bigbird, related?), 20 cozy coffee cafes, many hipsters, 1 Trader Joes, 1 3rd floor balcony with a giant ladder leading to the ground (break-in? bored tenants? fire!?) and 40 people on bikes.
Thousands of golden orange leaves dotted the asphalt, with most trees in that lazy stage of half-dress, where thousands of the leaves are gone but many still remain. So many people whizzed by on bicycles that I though I might be back in Colorado or even the NW. Here, though, people do the craziest things on bikes. They shoot through intersections, don’t wear helmets, wear helmets from the 1960’s (did they even have helmets back then?), and lock their bikes with the thickest chains I’ve ever seen. Crazy stuff. At least they ride their bikes and the subway, though. One of the ads on the F train states that NYC residents use 75% less energy than the majority of Americans, simply because they use public transportation. It’s one of the things only things I hate about Colorado- public transportation sucks. To get into the mountains takes more gas than I care to admit and though CC’s ski union does offer a ski-bus, it only goes to a couple resorts and fills up fast. That said, if you have a friend with a car, you’re set for 4 years of POWDDEEERRRR and great company. Long story short, I wish Amtrak was as reliable and widespread in the West as it is here in the Eastern Corridor.
To conclude this conglomeration of random thoughts, I shall orate on the celebration of this coming weekend. NYC has, no not the world’s largest ball of twine (1,475 miles long, Cawker City, Kansas), not the world’s largest rocking chair (Cuba, MO), nope, not even the world’s largest yogic circle (unknowable because yogis don’t care about such things). NYC does have the biggest baddest Halloween parade, fo sho. It’s in the west village, near where I live and it’s been an institution for 36 years. Needless to say:
I AM STOKED for this weekend.
More Halloween NYC news at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/joe-peyronnin/eek–its-halloween_b_338233.html
POST SCRIPT: If you don’t read the HUFFINGTON POST, you should. While it sounds like a bad dream from the 241th Harry Potter movie, the Huff is actually a very well respected news organization, second (in my book) only to the behemoth of the New York Times. The great thing about the former company, is that it is strictly online- and free. (Question of the day: how are newspapers like the NYTimes staying afloat?)
PEACE
-Claire
Living in Slocum–the substance free wing.
I thought it would be nice to talk about living in the sub-free hall of Slocum. Why? My hall recently had a dinner at Paul York’s,the Residental Life Coordinator, apartment. He asked us questions that were very specific to the sub-free community. It made me question if I chose to live in the sub-free hall for the right intentions.
Being a freshman and not knowing where my niche was at CC, sub-free hall has made a very positive influence for my first year. It’s self-selecting. Students choose to live on this hall. Not all of us get along, but we’re a big family. I remember 1st block, we had dance parties (pratically) every weekend. Unfortunately during one of our dance parties, Security had come up thinking we were under the influence–we were just having too much fun, and getting out of hand.
Looking back (as a second semester Freshman), I did wonder if being placed on the sub-free hallway was a good idea. It was one of the best decisions I’ve made (besides choosing CC, of course). Transitioning into college is difficult in itself, especially on the Block Plan, and having a home that was quiet with a new family made college that much easier. I highly recommend choosing sub-free as a freshman, especially if you’re uncertain, uncomfortable, and need some stability in a new college environment
Living on the substance-free hall does not mean you have to be substance free, it’s where you live. As my wonderful Residential Advisor said at the beginning of the school year, “It’s not a lifestyle, it’s a home.”
peace out (it’s SPRING BREAK),
Melissa
Dance party!
Part of my hall getting ready for Halloween fun!
Part of my hall went to Yoo Mae for sushi! Verrrrry good + cheap!
Articulating Goals
Although I had a great break, relaxing would not be the word I’d use to describe it…yes, productive is a much better choice. In fact, this past winter break is the most productive break I’ve ever had. I packed up my room at my parents’ house and helped my mom clean like crazy. I also finished my application for the Truman Scholarship, providing financial support for graduate study, leadership training, and fellowship with other students who are committed to making a difference through public service.
The scholarship is uber competitive (there’s only one winner per state) and is a beast to fill out; it has seven short answer questions plus a policy proposal, none of which are easy things to quickly anwer. Luckily, I immediately knew the theme of my application: going to law school to further my work advocating for the Hispanic community. A child of an immigrant, I’m especially interested in immigrant rights issues. I spent most of my first two weeks of break researching statistics and gathering information about possible career paths, law schools, etc. Then, I had to articulate my thoughts into coherent essays. The process was particularly difficult because, although I’m passionate about the subject, I’ve never had to write about it before now.
I’m glad to be finished; it’s a huge weight off my shoulders, and I know this sounds ridiculous, but just filling out the application was extremely rewarding. Believe me, there are several other things I would have loved to have been doing over break besides filling out an application, but let me explain: as a junior, this application forced me to consider what type of graduate school I want to go to, explore law schools, speak with professors at those schools, brainstorm possible career paths, think about the steps I must take now to get there, and work towards a solution to a problem plaguing our community. One of the difficult things about attending a liberal arts school is that you don’t have to ever narrow your options or goals in life, which can lead to a crisis senior year when people graduate with no idea of what they are going to do after college. I, on the other hand, now have a set of concrete goals and a plan on how to accomplish them. So, even if I don’t get this scholarship, I’ve gained a lot from just filling out the application. But fingers crossed that I get an interview – they’ll announce finalists in four weeks.
Even though I was rather productive this break, I had time to relax a little bit. I caught up with old friends, played in the snow, hung out on Pearl Street, and rode my bike. During the first three weeks of break, the weather was freezing and super windy. But when a sunny day sneaked in, Xavier (my brother) and I managed to fit in a bike ride.
taking a quick break before heading home
Turkey!
