DAY 1: Newport Beach
BALBOA BAR!!!
Day 2: Exploring PCH
SPRINKLES CUPCAKES!!!
DAY 3: Hike
Day 4: Hollywood
DAY 5: Disneyland
DAY 6: Huntington Beach
DAY 7: In N Out… well mainly just exploring LA but the best part is always In N Out
Sometimes I think;: Why did I move to Chicago? Then I remember I LOVE THE SNOW!!!
Photos taken by Ania Jakobiec
Even though I just posted some Spring Break activities, we do still need to acknowledge that we have one week left of classes. For some of us, like me, this is also the week that we have midterms. It’s going to be a long and hard week, and we all know we need that little extra push to give it our all. Here are some quotes (and a joke) to motivate us and put smiles on our faces while we study:
“Nothing is impossible. The word itself says ‘I’m possible’”- Audrey Hepburn
“If we do not plant knowledge when young, it will give us no shade when we are old”- Lord Chesterfield
“If we all did the things we are capable of, we would astound ourselves”- Thomas Edison
“Just because it isn’t in your life plan, doesn’t mean it isn’t exactly where you’re supposed to be”- Don’t Trust the B in Apt 23
“Life is 10% of what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it.”- John Maxwell
“Two silk worms had a race. They ended up in a tie.”- It’s a corny joke, but it made me laugh
It’s the most wonderful time! Of the Spring semester that is. IT”S SPRING BREAK! There’s one week left before students head home, overseas or even just hang out in their off campus apartments for a week. There’s plenty to do and nothing to do at the same time, and I’ll be embracing every moment of it.
This year for break, I’m heading down south to Mexico with my family to soak up some rays (some pictures will be shown upon my return). We haven’t been on vacation in years, though, so all my other college Spring Breaks have been spent at home. Therefore, I know exactly what it’s like to look forward to break… and then feel bored and unproductive during it.
Have no fear, though. This blog is dedicated to making a list of things to do during Spring Break 2013, with things I have done and things I have yet to do.
1. Pick up that hobby you’ve been waiting to start- Whether it’s writing a book, knitting, Mixed Martial Arts, or Video blogging, just do it already! I know- this applies to me too in regards to the video blogging.
2. Catch up on your television shows- Watching your favorite shows in college can be hard when you have night classes during them, you don’t have the right channels, and you just plain don’t have the time. So take some time (but not too much!) to enjoy your favorites- because The Walking Dead, The Vampire Diaries and Pretty Little Liars are all awesome.
3. “Dolce Far Niente”- I’m picking up snippets of Italian here and there, and this saying translates to “The sweetness of doing nothing”. So go ahead, be daring, and spend some alone time with yourself being idle. This may seem scary, but how many people can say that they’ve mastered the art of just spending time with themselves, getting to know themselves while doing absolutely nothing at all? Consider this my challenge to you.
4. Redecorate something- This can mean redecorating your room at home, your apartment, yourself or your life. Or you can do all of the above. This week may be short, but it’s plenty of time to evaluate your life both physically and mentally. Clean out your closet finally and donate your old things. Repaint. Hit the gym and get a haircut. Check in with your New Year’s resolutions and see how they are going. Making little alterations or beginning to make big ones is a great way to productively spend time. It’s called Spring-cleaning for a reason.
Now, you may be wondering why all the activities on my list seem rather individualistic. Include other people in them if you want and can! But from personal experience, I’ve noticed that I don’t hang out with too many people during my Spring break because our breaks are different, we’re in different locations, I want to take time for myself, whatever the reason.
Also, it’s pretty easy to come up with things to do with friends. Are you more likely to go bowling with friends or by yourself? When you are on own, the feeling of nothing to do and a lack of motivation kicks in, so sometimes it takes some outside help to get inspired. Therefore, hopefully, you guys will do one (or all) of the activities above during your week vacation to preoccupy yourselves.
We’re halfway through week two of school everybody! Happy belated Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Because I only have classes three days a week, and I had a four-day weekend, I’m still not quite in school mode yet.
Now that I have experienced every class, I am very pleased that all of my professors seem solid, and getting up and going to class isn’t too much of a hassle. My workload is slowly expanding, and it’ll be interesting to see how on top of my work I stay since I have four night classes (out of six total). I know from experience that night classes give you room to feel like you have an entire week to do the assignments, but this is not a smart idea, especially since I have two night classes in a row on Mondays.
Along with the transition to back-to-school, I’m am trying to maintain my resolutions. For the most part they have been good, and I had my first in-person interview for an internship today. I’ll post later this week on how it went.
There is one resolution that I am struggling with already, and I haven’t even begun it yet, which is my vlog. I haven’t yet had adequate time to devise a plan of action for how to accomplish this resolution, so I may not be able to start it for another month or so. I will try to start a vlog this weekend, but if it doesn’t work out, I plan on extending my time limit to before Spring Break. I will succeed though!
Other than keeping up with my studies and applying for internships, I’m doing everything to keep my stress level down while the workload hasn’t become completely overwhelming. A tip for the day to help de-stress, courtesy of my boss and Admission Counselor, Adam Buller, is to take some time out of your day to focus all of your attention on something small, such as doing some cleaning.
Personally, I like to cook when I’m feeling overwhelmed because it takes my mind completely off of my day’s malfunctions. Other things I do include washing the dishes, reorganizing my things, or taking 10 minutes to listen to new songs I’ve fallen in love with. Two current picks are “Killin It” by Krewella and “Mermaid” by Train.
(As a side note, Krewella is a dubstep music group that was founded by two girls that went to my high school, one of which was in my graduating class. I’ve recently been introduced to their music by my best friend, and in support of them, I’m giving them a mention in my blog, not as paid sponsorship. Take a listen and if you like them, show some support).
It is spring break, this time away from classes well needed. When I venture home to California, there are always a couple things I must do.
1. In N Out – Double Double, Fries (ANIMAL STYLE) and a Chocolate Shake. The interesting thing is I really don’t find the food as amazing as people make it sound, it is simply more of a comfort thing. When I take that first bite into my burger I know I am home and my mind goes directly to vacation mode.
2. Golf – There are not too many ways better to reconnect with my father than a round of golf. Playing a round is always a good way for me to start of the break because I know I can win some substantial money from my pops.
3. Climb Mt. Baldy – Only an hour from LA and one of the greatest climbs in the area. Every other year I have gone home to plenty of snow and spent time on the slopes. This year I had to settle with amazing weather and climbing one of the tallest peaks in Southern California.
It’s the first Monday back from spring break and getting back into the school routine couldn’t be harder. My week in Nicaragua was more amazing than I could have imagined and my mind is definitely not in the mood to write the Shakespeare essay that I have to do tonight.
So, instead of talking about school, let me tell you about Nicaragua!
Our first day there (Sunday) we climbed an active volcano named Cerro Negro! It was very steep and the majority of the time I climbed using all fours. Even though it was incredibly hard, it was definitely worth it once I reached the top. The view was breathtaking!
On Monday our group went into a community called Chunco and spent the day playing with the school children. We set up soccer and baseball games and, for the girls, we brought hair bows and nail polish and did their hair and nails. They absolutely loved it. Even though most of us did not speak very much Spanish, the children were very open and loving. I spent the day constantly holding hands and giving hugs to these amazing children.
Tuesday and Thursday we went to a different community, Rincon de Garcia, and worked side by side with the Nicaraguans from the community. We spent the day digging trenches for water pipes. Rincon de Garcia is a very poor community that does not even have clean water so once the water pipes are put in place it will completely change the standard of living for everyone in the community.
On Wednesday morning we went to a handicap orphanage in the town of Chinandega. The residents there were all severely handicapped and our purpose was to just serve through our presence by reading to them, helping them play games or just sitting next to them rubbing their back.
After the orphanage we had lunch in town and then brought the kids from Chunco to a pool. The pool trip is a once a week trip for the kids and only the top five best well behaved kids from each class get to go. It is supposed to encourage the children to go to school and behave well once there.
Friday we went back to Chunco and played with the kids more. In the afternoon were were lucky enough to take a trip to the beach and got to swim in the ocean. We watched the sun set and then headed back to Amigo’s property for the night.
Overall it was a very humbling, eye-opening and amazing experience. I could not have hoped for more out of my spring break and I miss it so much already. Unfortunately, I have to force myself to come back to reality and focus on school.
I just got back to Baumhart after a long day of traveling. I took the MegaBus back from Detroit this afternoon and arrived back at Union Station a few hours ago! After unpacking and organizing some things, I feel settled back into my Loyola life. I’m sad that spring break is already over, but excited to get going with the rest of the semester, and already looking forward to summer!
My spring break was good– the perfect relaxing week that I needed. I was able to spend some time at home with my family in Detroit and also fly down to Florida to hang out with my sister, her husband and two sons. My nephews are the cutest!
I am looking forward to next weekend– it will be my first St. Patrick’s Day spent in the city. Every year the city puts on a grand parade and dyes the Chicago River bright green! I have a few midterm exams to get through this week, but Saturday will be an incentive to do well and get through them!
There is a ton of stuff going on in the city for St. Pat’s– check out Metromix Chicago’s Guide to St. Patrick’s Day 2012 for ideas of places to hit. A lot of events are geared towards the over-21 party crowd, but us underagers can still have a lot of fun in the city this next weekend! Can’t wait!
Here is a photo of Chicago’s green river on St. Patrick’s Day a few years ago– no filter necessary, the river is BRIGHT green! I can’t wait to see it for myself!
Photo credit: Anapoly on Flickr.com via Creative Commons
My all-nighter did not have a major impact on my day, with the exception of my time. When I got done with class for the day, I had about an hour to book it from Lake Shore Campus to Baumhart to pack and make my train home for Spring Break! To be honest, I did not do any major or serious packing. I just threw my laundry in my suitcase and was out of there.
Now that I’m home, I’m really perplexed by the fact that it is snowing. It’s Spring Break, and it’s snowing! It really isn’t that unusual for the weather to be like this in Illinois, but what really frustrates me is that for Winter Break, there was no snow.
Snow or no snow, I’m completely satisfied with getting some type of break. The weekend gave me ample time to catch up on lost sleep and consume major junk food.
I don’t have any big plans for this break. In fact, I have many assignments and papers I definitely need to work on.
Backtracking a bit, I did not get the chance to blog about going to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra during midterm week. This was my first time to see the CSO. I was invited by my brother who was required to go for his Music: The Art of Listening course. We saw “The Soldier’s Tale,” which was narrated by John Lithgow, who you might remember as the Lord Farquaad in “Shrek.” It was a great experience and hopefully I can catch another show this semester!
Only two days until spring break! In the midst of midterms and many papers, it is the light at the end of my tunnel. This year I am going on a mission trip to Nicaragua from March 3 to March 10 and I could not be more excited!
The trip has been organized by one of my close friends, Alex. He went on a mission trip in high school through the same organization that we are going through, Amigos For Christ. Amigos has a site in Chinandega, Nicaragua, and has been able to bring a community fresh water. While down there, we will be continuing this work by digging for water lines.
We will be doing more than just physical labor though. Our itinerary shows that on Sunday, our first day, we are going to climb an active volcano! Monday and Tuesday we will be working in the community but on Wednesday we are going to an orphanage. We will be playing with the children and entertaining them. After the orphanage we have the opportunity to go into town and get souvenirs and such. Thursday and Friday are back to working in the community and we leave on Saturday.
The fact it is just two days away though means I need to go into crazy fast packing mode Thursday night after my midterms are over. Luckily, I do not need to bring much, just shorts, t-shirts and one nice outfit for church.
I am getting too excited though and am neglecting my midterm studying! I need to get my priorities in order and focus for just two more days. Ah, so much easier said than done though.
Things have been so busy this past week! I’m beginning to get pretty homesick, and am very much looking forward to heading home for spring break in just two short weeks. I can’t believe it’s almost here already, but I’m also really glad!
My 20th birthday was this past weekend– some friends and I went out to dinner to T.G.I. Friday’s downtown to celebrate. We had a great time!
Here’s me (on the left) with two friends enjoying our deserts!
Now that we’re several weeks into the semester at Loyola, it seems like professors are starting to pile on the classwork. I have quizzes and assignments due left and right in all of my classes. I’m doing my best to maintain my sanity!
I have friends from home coming in town this upcoming weekend– I’m very excited to welcome them when their train gets in tonight to Union Station downtown. We have plans to do some touristy things and then go our to dinner on Friday, hit up Skating in the Sky at the John Hancock Observatory on Saturday, and then go to a concert at the Riviera Theatre Saturday night. I will write again after the weekend and hopefully have lots of fun pictures to share!