Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Read the Subheadings
After such a
long wait, I wish I had an inspirational, thought-provoking message for you
readers out there. Unfortunately, you
will just be perusing a jumble of random events (read the subheadings) — my desperate
attempt to catch you up on everything that I have forgotten to recount. Obviously, I have been preoccupied with more
important engagements, namely ACADEMICS.
First, allow me
to share an entertaining video that pretty much represents my life. I shall work backwards from there. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYnw4N_zWb4
Swim Test
I completed my
50-yard swim test. It was easy. There’s really not much to say here… but it
felt nice to get back in the pool after three years of dry land. One hour and about 2000 yards later, my arms and legs were numb. I forgot how much muscle was required to push myself across the water!
Locking Eyes
with Aragorn and Legolas
Fermin, Cynthia,
Meili and I enjoyed a wonderful study break watching the first half of Return
of the King. I ate like… a third of
Meili’s Nutella, and I feel incredibly guilty. #fatpeopleproblems We definitely had some fun pausing the movie
at the close-up headshots of the Fellowship members staring toward at
us.
Christmas Carols
I don’t remember
what I did yesterday, other than singing with the Glee Club for Dartmouth’s
tree lighting ceremony. It was so much
fun, but extremely cold. Thanks so much
for watching, Pranam, Meili, and Teresa!
Everybody
Shuff-uh-lin
Our very own
dancing prodigy Cynthia taught some of the floor how to do the Party Rock
choreography. She’s so amazing, and she
never fails impress/surprise me with another one of her multiple talents. Dancing, singing, and speaking foreign
languages – you name it!
Onigiri （おいしいでしょうね!）
On the last
Nihongo Table of each term, the Dartmouth Japan Society hosts an Onigiri
Hour. My rice balls always fell apart,
so I had to cover them in nori sheets so they would maintain their shape…
Syssition
Professor
Christesen invited us Spartiates over to his house for a class dinner. It was very filling – steak, potatoes, salad,
plenty of dessert… It was interesting to
go around the room and hear from everyone what they thought was the most
interesting/strange/disturbing Spartan custom.
Quite a few people mentioned the marriage practices and the homoerotic
relationships between boys and their teachers.
Bubbles
Instead of
reviewing any material of intellectual value, my Writing 5 class celebrated the
end of Fall Term with a cookie and bubble party. After turning in our final research papers,
we had a contest to see who could blow the prettiest bubbles and discussed a
potential reunion for winter term. I’ll
miss this class. Professor Kremer is the
best! She made the writing process so *cough* f-fun… (in shock)
Last Day of
Classes and Living in Baker-Berry (つかれてよ！):
Yes, that’s
right! No more Introductory Greek or
Spartan History! I’m free! Well, not exactly. From about 11 AM yesterday to 2 AM today, I
studied very hard in the library, memorizing Greek verb conjugations and
finishing up a research paper on Lycurgan Politeia. I really shouldn’t say much about this night
beyond (exhausted students) + (looming threat of final exams) = intense
earth-shattering drama.
Bangla
I have committed
to learning Bengali, one grammatical concept at a time. Of course, I’m studying it so I can
communicate with Pranam (and hopefully his family once I can actually express
myself in full sentences.) It is so, so
interesting, but pretty difficult compared with Japanese or Latin. Soooo… Thumi kemon accho? Ami bhalo
acchi. Ami Bangla pori. Ami Bangla bhalobashi. Ami aata Bangla khub bhalobashi. :3
Thanksgiving
My break started on Monday since most of my classes were cancelled (except
for fluffin’ Greek). On Tuesday night,
the Chatterjee family came to visit Pranam, and I had the privilege of meeting
his parents and twin sister, who is from MIT and absolutely brilliant. On Wednesday evening, while I was studying in
Sanborn, they invited me along for a tour of campus. I really enjoyed the time to converse and
become more familiar with everyone. We
met back in McCulloch to share some Chinese food and engage in epic dance
routines – Everytime We Touch, Blame It On the Boogie, Salty Dog Rag, Wobble,
and of course some salsa and east coast swing!
On Thursday, the Chatterjees met us back in Brace Commons for the most
memorable Thanksgiving dinner ever.
Meili had already left, and I was disappointed about not being able to
spend the holiday with my mom, but together with my floor mates, I could really
sense a welcoming, loving atmosphere. I
attempted to brew up a vegetable soup, while George cooked a pasta dish. Mr. and Mrs. Chatterjee shared their own
culinary masterpieces with us as well. J Unfortunately,
for the rest of the weekend I had to play catch up. Well, actually my definition of catch up is
trying to get as much ahead as possible.
I’ll probably blog a little during winter break, so keep checking back!
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