Tag: Thanksgiving

My Packing Problem

My Packing Problem

My Thanksgiving break was really great.  I slept in every day.  I ate amazing food.  I got to watch TV, ( I rarely have time for TV at school it seems).  But with every visit home, I run into the same problem and I never quite learn my lesson.  I simply over pack.  Every single time. And yet I know I have absolutely have no reason to pack anything at all! I have sweaters and jeans and everything else I need at home, and still, I cannot help but cram my case full with that “one sweater I just bought which I can’t leave behind at my dorm,” or my favorites boots, which lets face it, I love all of them, and I can’t bear the thought of not having access to them for a whole weekend.  I completely get the level of ridiculousness which is my over packing obsession.

And then I make it home.  I revisit my closet, and, gasp!  I think, “Why did I not take this shirt to school? OR these shoes?!”  The probles escalates, and so does the volume of my suitcase.  The night before my train back to Chicago I switch to a larger one.  I hungrily snatch my beloved possessions and fold and stuff until I reason that if I add anything else there is no way this thing will zip properly.  After my bingeing is over, I zip, and to my dismay, I can hardly lift it!  I re-strategize.  I remove the shoes.  I will, after all, be going home in a few more weeks, and I can live without those for the time being (I hope!).  Just to be sure, I also take out a couple of sweaters.  I zip, and voila! I can lift it, and therefore, I know I can get this baby on the train and not face the embarrassment of a conductor struggling to help me up the few steps.  I made it without any problem this time.

So tonight, as I unpack my last few things, I think how silly it is that I will be filling it back up in no time for winter break.  But I also think that it is just grand that Loyola has provided me with such great closet space for it not to matter so much.

Thanksgiving Festivities

Thanksgiving Festivities

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays.  Obviously, I love feasting on one of my all time favorite foods, mashed potatoes, but I also like being reminded of everything I am thankful for.

This Thanksgiving was a little different for our family.  We usually go to both of my grandparents’ house, but this time, we had Thanksgiving at our house.  We also had a wedding! My cousin Aly and her husband Ethan had a very small wedding with both of their families at our house.  My father is a lawyer and has the authority to marry people, so he led the ceremony.

It was a beautiful wedding, and it was nice they had it on Thanksgiving because that way, everyone could make it.  It was nice to meet her husbands family and have everyone come together for their wedding.

Thankfully, we still had the traditional Thanksgiving day feast. Even better, we not only had pumpkin pie, but wedding cake, too! It was amazingly delicious.

It was a great Thanksgiving, and it only reminded me how thankful I am for my wonderful family.

The Homestretch

The Homestretch

It’s been surprisingly great to be back at school from Thanksgiving break. Only two weeks left of classes and then finals week. I am ready to power through, and am very much looking forward to getting back home for a whole month!

It’s hard to concentrate on my current classes when I feel like I’m already in the mindset of next semester. I’m loving my class schedule for next semester—I finally got into a couple of photography classes! I’m taking Photography I, an art class and the first step into my photography minor, and Photojournalism, which is a communications class and will count as an elective for my Communication Studies major. Along with those two, I’m enrolled in Journalistic Interviewing, Writing for the Web (which will help me for blogging!), and Intro to the Bible.
Greetings from Galesburg

Greetings from Galesburg

The Great Hall at Union Station

As I said in an earlier post, I live about in a small Illinois town, about 4 hours away from Chicago.  My brother, who is a freshman this year at Loyola, and I have been looking forward to this holiday for some time.  For me, it means getting a break from some work, and for him it means catching up on sleep!  He supposedly stayed up 40 hours straight working on papers and finishing up those last assignments before Thanksgiving break.

Loyola gives us Wednesday off, but since my classes end fairly early on Tuesday, my brother and I were able to catch an early train home.  Amtrak makes a stop in our hometown Galesburg, and because the route is more direct than the highways, gets us home in about 3 hours!  I was also thankful to have him along for the ride, as I automatically get to sit with him and not some random person.

Also, the train departs from Union Station.  The Great Hall at Union Station is super gorgeous, and even if you don’t travel Amtrak or Megabus, it’s definitely worth a visit.  Some notable movie scenes have been filmed there, like The Untouchables or Public Enemies, (with Johnny Depp!).

As I recall, the Damen Ball, a semi-formal dance/ reception for LUC students to celebrate the end of the school year,  was hosted at the Great Hall at Union Station last spring.  I had friends that went and the pictures looked amazing.

Traveling home for the holidays is always a great experience.  If you aren’t able to make it home, there are other options which give you some of the comforts of home.  The residence halls always host a Thanksgiving dinner, or you can always plan some kind of dinner with your friends.

Sometimes a student’s family will visit them.  Loyola offers accommodations for guests called The Flats at Loyola Station. My brother was invited by a friend to a Thanksgiving dinner her mom was going to prepare while in Chicago.

However, I prefer to be home for the holidays.  Nothing is better than taking some time away from school and the city!  Happy Thanksgiving everyone!