DePauw University

I spent my Fourth of July weekend all over the place. On the Thursday preceding the holiday, my summer roommates and I kicked everything off with a grill out. We had brats, hot dogs and hamburgers. Of course, we engaged in everything American, and I was able to brush up quite a bit on my cornhole game. For those that are unfamiliar, cornhole is a game played predominantly in the Midwest, using two boards and corn-filled bags. It is similar to horseshoes, but a lot easier. Here's a wikipedia link, if you are truly confused.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornhole

Over the weekend I was able to head home to my hometown of Batesville, and spend some time with my family. I was also able to catch a Cincinnati Reds baseball game. Personally I enjoy watching sports and any time I can catch a Pacers or Reds game, I go for it. There have been several times that I've left DePauw University with friends or teammates to catch a Pacers game. It's a short 50-or-so minute drive to downtown Indy from the campus of this liberal arts college.

I made it back to campus on Monday (the Fourth) just in time to catch the city of Greencastle's firework display in Robe-Ann Park. It was a warm, clear night. The park is a two minute walk from the east end of campus. It was full of community members and families eager to catch the fireworks. After watching something such as a fireworks display on the Fourth of July, I really got the sense that people were united. It's patriotism, right? However, after I left the park I realized that people aren't just proud to be Americans, but also identify proudly with their respective cities. After the fireworks were over, there was a loud applause, and families slowly (and almost reluctantly) dispersed back to their homes across town. It's hard to explain, but I really got the sense that everyone there was proud to be a member of the Greencastle community. And after spending six semesters, a summer and two winters on campus here at this private liberal arts college, I can say that I feel some of that pride too.

With the summer almost half way over, I can officially say I am almost ready for life after college. I can’t say I’m not excited for the fall when there are more things to do and more people around the private liberal college campus, but I’m learning some real life skills and starting to realize that graduation may not be the end of the world.

Three of my good friends on campus this summer, as well as some other friends who join in every once and while, have gotten down a good weekday schedule that we stick to fairly regularly. Here’s a typical rundown.

1. Work. I go into work at the DePauw University admission office every day until 5. I get to meet cool people, show off one of the best liberal arts colleges, and work on some paperwork in my down time. It brings together the best of office work and working with people in one convenient location.

2. Run and/or bike (except on our off days). I’ve always thought it would be awesome to run a half marathon, or, in other words, 13.1 miles. So, when I brought this goal up to my friend, Zach, he was more than willing to “train to with me.” While training isn’t really coming along as fast as I would have liked, we are up to six miles and still working up. We started out on the 5K path that the DePauw Republicans group set up for the annual 5K they sponsor. However, we’ve been branching out and now do some loops through town as well as use the trails in the DePauw Nature Park.

3. Cook. After our runs, we are normally famished. Since the Hub doesn’t serve food in the summer very often, we each switch off buying food for dinner and then we all cook together so we learn some cooking skills. Primarily, we’ve been eating a lot of pasta, but we’ve tried some new cuisines like chicken breast and Stromboli’s. It may not be fancy, but every cook has to start out somewhere.

4. Study/Movies. As DePauw is one of the top 50 liberal arts colleges, many students plan to go to medical or graduate school. Similarly, I’m preparing to apply for graduate school in the fall. On nights in which I am feeling motivated, I’ll take out my GRE book and work through some practice problems or take a practice test. Other nights, some of the people in my building will rent a movie and relax or sit around and talk or play games. On nights we’re feeling adventurous, we’ll explore the greater Greencastle area. With a little patience and imagination you can find some pretty cool things to around town.

So, that’s my summer in a nutshell so far. It’s pretty chill, and I’m enjoying the laid-back atmosphere of a small liberal arts school during summer.

This past weekend I took some time to drive up just north of Grand Rapids, Michigan to the small town where one of my teammates lives. Sometimes it's nice to leave the campus of DePauw University and take a weekend trip somewhere different. Don't get me wrong, I love DePauw, but one of the great things about small liberal arts colleges is that you make a lot of close friends. You meet them in your residence hall, your mentor group, your classes, your teams, your greek house and your clubs. Sometimes, you hardly realize you're making friends for the rest of your life.

While I was up north I was able to catch a single A baseball game. I saw the Western Michigan Whitecaps, the minor league affiliate for the Detroit Tigers. It happened to be Star Wars night, which was really funny. Darth Vader threw out the first pitch. I guess at minor league games, they'll do anything to get their fans! I also hung out at Saugatuck, a really tourist-y town along the water.

The start of the week here in Greencastle has been as hot as it's been all year. Rather than the week long heat, we had a blast of weather with heat indexes about 100, as high as 110! As an admissions tour guide, that made the air conditioning in the Green Center for Performing Arts that much more enjoyable. Today we finally got a break from the weather, but I'm hoping it stays sunny for the weekend. I'll be heading back home to Batesville to visit an annual German festival. I'll try to post some pictures!

    My summer in Greencastle, Indiana is well underway. I decided awhile back that I’d like to spend a summer on the campus of DePauw University, and thus far it’s been everything I’ve expected. That is, except for the hot weather. At one point earlier in June, there were eleven straight days that were above the average high in Indiana, and I could definitely feel it! Hailing from Indiana myself, I’m not all that surprised at what the weather will do. That’s one of the things I really enjoy about my home state:  you get the best of every season.
    Being a member of DePauw’s Varsity cross country and track teams, the heat has definitely posed a challenge to my training. Personally, though, I’d rather run in hot weather than cold. One of my favorite routes to run with my teammates (when they’re on campus) is the “campus loop.” We’ll start from Blackstock Stadium, head east on Hanna Street, turn right at the corner of Julian on to College Avenue, go left on Berry Street and turn left again on to South Locust Street to head back into campus. Locust may be my favorite street on campus, because there’s always a lot going on. Many of DePauw’s Greek houses and residence halls, as well as the Memorial Student Union building are located along Locust. Finally, we’ll turn left at Seminary and run where cars can’t: Burkhart Walk. This takes us past the limestone of Emison, through academic quad and past old East College. From there, it’s a right turn back on to Hanna to end the run, or straight on to College for another loop.
    I love running, and it was a large factor in my college decision. To make a long story short, DePauw was the best liberal arts college both academically and athletically that met the criteria of colleges I was looking at. I looked at a lot of Indiana colleges and universities, but none compared to DePauw. It was one of the top 50 liberal arts colleges, and had a very solid athletic record in all of its 21 varsity sports. Being able to compete for my university has been an honor, and I'm really looking forward to my final year of competition.
   

When I moved into a dorm on campus several weeks ago to start my summer job, I was reminded of freshman move-in day 3 years ago. The wide hallways with lots of wooden doors, the communal showers, some unfamiliar but smiling faces, lugging my suitcase upstairs (half of the contents which I would never wear), and music and TV already blaring from other rooms as other students unpacked and got ready for whatever laid ahead. It was exactly the environment I wanted and expected from one of the top 50 liberal arts colleges.

However, a lot was different about this move-in. For one, I drove myself up; I was familiar with the 2.5 hour drive from home since I’d spent a previous summer at DePauw University. My mom didn’t cry when I left from home this time, I didn’t have to make a stop at the campus bookstore to get school supplies, and I had a single room, so there were no exciting meetings or awkward introductions. No name tags carefully created by the RA’s lined the doors, so I had to do some exploring to find out who had chosen to spend their summer at this private liberal arts college. Luckily, I have some good friends who are on campus, and there are some new faces – this is pretty typical of DePauw University as a private liberal arts college – I always see some new faces, but it’s not hard to find someone I know well or have had class with to eat with or team up with for a round of campus golf or game of ultimate Frisbee.
 
After dinner the first night, I made a stop at the public library to pick up some light summer reading. There’s nothing better than lying in the grass next to the volleyball court reading a good book as the sun goes down, especially when you know you won’t be tested over it the next day. Although, reading in front of my dorm meant that I had to watch out for flying soccer balls and got distracted by some of my friends who stopped for a quick chat which was perfect for a summer night, I now know why I go to indoors to study for classes at this top private university.  

I can already tell this summer is going to be a good one – working during the day, hanging out with friends at night, exercising in the fitness center with the occasional run through the nature park, and spending time on DePauw University’s beautiful campus, occasionally checking out some surrounding fun hot spots nearby. Even with only just over a hundred students on campus this summer compared to the 2400 that normally call Greencastle “home” during the school year, the attitudes are lively and fun, and everyone wants to get to know each other better than we’ve had the chance to in the past. I can’t think of a better way to spend my summer than at one of the top private universities.

Well, I did it.  On Friday the 13th, I woke up at 8am, had breakfast with a theater professor and several other students, went to the library to finish my seminar project, finished my seminar project, got it printed and bound (it looked good), took my voice jury, and then turned in my seminar project.  It felt good to be done with all my school work, but it was a more complicated feeling than happiness or relief.  As much as it marked the end of writing research papers and literary explications and what not, it also marked the end of late nights spent studying with friends and meaningful class discussions and all other great things that come from going to one of the best liberal arts colleges in the country.  After turning in my seminar project, I went back to my house and tried to take a nap, but I couldn't sleep.  My mind was working too hard, trying to both to recall four years of memories and suppress the knowledge that soon I would be back home and I would not be coming back to DePauw University as a student again.  I love this school very, very much and I'm going to miss it tremendously, so you can see why it was bittersweet to turn in my seminar project.

Looking on the bright side, I am currently on day 4 of 8 free days.  I haven't been as productive as I was when I was working on my seminar, but relatively speaking I have been productive.  I've been sending out a lot of emails, trying to organize different reunions and events I want to happen before I leave, such as playing soccer with friends, hanging out with members of the comedy group, and having a dinner with my first-year mentor group.  I am also working on cover letters and job application stuff.  As of now, I don't know what I'll be doing after school.  I know that I'll be going home and that I want to write a screenplay over the summer, but in terms of work or a career path, I'm still clueless.  I have some interests, I'm pursuing, though, and fingers crossed one of them works out in my favor.  Last but not least, I've started running again and am currently working toward running the Indianapolis marathon in October.  I haven't officially registered yet, but I'm very close to doing so.  I really want to run a marathon at least once in my life, and now seems like the time to do it.  I mean, I won't have any school work to worry about...

Before I leave, I want to say thanks to anyone and everyone who read my blog.  I know it doesn't seem like that big of a deal, but you validated the effort and thought I put into writing them and I appreciate that very much.  Hopefully, you'll follow me in my other writing pursuits because I sure don't plan on stopping.  Until then, take care.  Peace. 

 


Hello Everyone! 

Ah! Sigh! I am leaving tommorrow to NY and then will be leaving to Saudi Arabia for summer to my Mom. I still have to write two papers and work on some stuff for my class and I will still be worrying about the work in NY but I am glad that I am done with sophomore year. Looking back, It was very stressful year and was very challenging. I missed home and family more than usual. I also was taking part in extracurricular activities which put more pressure on me. College life is so stressful; however, I am so looking forward to my next year study abroad. I am studying abroad at SOAS for fall and AUB for spring. I am planning to do internship in summer of 2012 and then in fall of 2012, I will be back as senior. 

For all the first years coming to DePauw, my advise is to explore the opportunities on campus and utilize the resources, if you need help. If you struggling with studies or social issues then DePauw University has lot of resources to help you. If you have been admitted then you are very unique and DePauw University wants you here. The first semester will be the hardest because of all the adjustment that will be taking place but keep yourself open to opportunities and get involved and not to lose focus on your studies (that is the foremost thing that you are here to do). Meet upperclassmens, they would love to talk to you. Just expand and embrace DePauw wholeheardly and you will not regret it. 

Love 

Sehrish Khan Saddozai 

P.S: Remain DePauwsome! :) 

Well, junior year is coming to an end.

I just finished writing a 10 page paper on a super old Spanish legend for my Spanish final.  I think now I prefer in class finals to papers.  That way all I have to do is study, and then after the 3 hours of exam it's done.  Whereas with final papers, they're not completed until the hours upon hours of research, writing, and revising are done with.  Which, for this one, was probably upwards of 25 hours.  Wow.  That seems like a really long time to be working on only one paper.  Oh, well.  It's good practice for next spring when I'll be writing two theses, one for the music major and one for the Spanish major. Que sera, sera.

The rain let up for a little while yesterday.  Last night I went for a stroll with two of my friends around the less inhabited areas of Greencastle.  We saw and heard many deer and a couple owls.  It was very nice to take a break from the Spanish writing to enjoy nature.  That's one of the things that I like about small liberal arts colleges.  All it takes is a little effort and it's easy to get away from everyone. 

I was going to go for a bike ride this afternoon (another study break) with a friend to the nature park, but it started raining and he backed out.  I think my tales of flipping over the handle bars when biking in the rain probably scared him off.  But really, minor injuries are part of the fun, right?

I just finished reading one of the best books ever, The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan.  I had to read it for my Anthropology of Food class and it changed my life.  I'm a vegetarian now because of that book.  And soon I'm hoping to venture into the hunter/gatherer realm.  One of my friends who I went walking with last night is from the area and knows how to spot morel mushrooms.  They're pretty cool looking.  To me they kind of look like dead coral.  Because of the rain and warmish temperatures that we're having today, hopefully the mushrooms will mushroom tomorrow or the following day and we can hunt them in the Nature Park or around town.  I've just really gained an appreciation for the local and natural.

















A little while ago for Food class we met in the Women's Center and shared family recipes.  The class was split into four groups of four and we were responsible for presenting on our own family recipes and preparing one of our group members' recipes.  It was a lot of fun.  I enjoy hearing about different family traditions. 






Next semester is going to be fun and intellectually engaging, I think.  I'm taking a ceramics class that meets for six hours a week.  I'm expecting to be quite the accomplished ceramicist by the end of the semester, considering the time I'll be putting into it.  I will also be taking harp lessons and I'm hoping to have a bass recital.  We'll see!  Hopefully everything will work out.  It usually does at DePauw University. 

 







Regards, 

Sehrish Khan Saddozai 

 Finally as we enter the last two weeks at DePauw University the warmth has come!! Somehow we seemed to skip over Spring though... it went from freezing to blazing in  a matter of a night!  I am currently wearing shorts and a tank top and sweating like crazy, but it's definitely a nice change from being so cold all the time! 

This past weekend I went to the Beta formal! It was in Illinois, and honestly I didn't quite know what I signed on for... it was a 3.5 hour drive each way, and although it was actually a pretty fun drive it was hard to give up so much time in the car when I needed to be writing a paper!!!
Anywho, we went to Rend Lake in Illinois! It was beautiful! There was a lake, and it was so nice out that everyone was swimming! I personally stayed out of the water because it was a questionable green color... I'm not so sure about that...  but here's a picture after everyone had gotten prettied up! It was an awesome weekend away from our Private Liberal Arts College

This week is the final week before finals start on Saturday.  I've been trying papers like mad, and my first exam is 9 AM on Saturday. Finals are taken very seriously here at our Top Private University, and I know that I will be spending a lot of time in the DePauw University Library these next few days! 

I just walked out of my last seminar class.  I still have to finish my project, but I'm done with the class.  Forever.  Between now and Friday I have four classes; four more classes until I am officially done with undergraduate school work.  I have a lot of work to do before Friday, though.  I have a ten page paper due for my literature class, a summer workout schedule for my speed improvement class, a cha-cha test for ballroom dancing, and roughly seventy pages of comedy writing to edit for seminar.  I won't be sleeping much this week, but afterwards, I'll have nine days to do whatever I want.  I'm not sure what's coming after that, but I'm feeling optimistic.  DePauw University has prepared me well.

I know I'm going to miss Depauw.  The fact that I'm graduating is slowly starting to hit me.  Every now and then, I'll have a moment where I go, "I may never see this person again," or "I will never experience this again."  I do my best to shrug the feeling off, but I know there is some truth behind it.  It's going to be very strange not living in the community of a small liberal arts college.  How am I going to see my friends?  How will I access academic texts?  How am I going to learn?  I don't know the answers to these questions, and as scared as I am to find out, I know I'll be alright.  

I spent most of last week in my room working on my seminar project.  This week, I'll be in the library, spending every available hour reviewing my grammar, clarifying my points, and making sure the entries are funny.  I'm not worried about the page length or a grade.  I think my project right now doubles the minimum requirement and the writing is good.  It's entirely personal at this point.  I want to finish this project and be proud of what I've accomplished.  It'll be a slow process, but I know it'll be done by 4pm on Friday.  I mean, it has to be done by then.       

 This past weekend was one of the best yet! 
Not only was it Relay For Life here at DePauw University, but there were also a ton of formals and informals!
On Friday night I went to the DU informal with a couple of my good friends! It was so much fun, and I always enjoy getting dressed up! I also danced like crazy on their awesome dance floor!! 

After the informal I hit up Marvin's which is an awesome restaraunt located right here on the campus of our liberal arts college.  Marv's is known for its GCB (the Garlic Cheese Burger) but as a vegetarian I settled for somee jalepeno poppers!! Soooooooo delicious!  I made so many new friends this weekend too; it's great that even though DePauw University is somewhat small there is always the chance to meet people you never even knew existed!!

Saturday I woke up somewhat late, and I went with my friend to Casa Grande. I am starting to feel like I eat there too often, but it is so delicious I can't help myself!  After that it was a homework day and I wrote a Spanish paper before heading over to Sigma Chi to hang out with one of my best friends!! That night turned out to be just as good as Friday night! Sunday I did more work in the library before attending the Inauguration for our new DePauw Student Government. I have a feeling that they are going to get a lot done in the next year! 

Here's myself and some lovely Kappa ladies before the DU informal! Everyone looked so nice!!














And here is a picture of me on Saturday night! One of the guys at one of the fraternities has a snake!! Thank you DePauw University for helping me overcome my fear!! I love that little guy!!  =D

    "There are no barriers of age, sex, ethnic background… Everyone has been touched by cancer in some form or fashion whether they are a survivor, caregiver, or just a friend.... Here is a mixing and blending of children, college students, adults, seniors and everybody is just here to support the cause of finding the cure." -Richard Shuck 

...it's hard to say. May is a strange month at DePauw University, because there's so much of everything going on: final thesis presentations, the end of the Low Road Gallery's season, final papers, final portfolios, job hunting, graduation, graduation parties, senior events... the list goes on and on. Usually during this time of year, the campus is warm and sunny with tons of flowers in full bloom. Usually at this time of year, I'd be doing all of my reading in an adirondack chair in the midst of our small liberal arts college campus, where I can sunbathe and people watch. But no such luck this year. It's been raining endlessly, or so it seems -- and it's been really chilly. 

This liberal arts school has a great spring-time ambience, and students love to take advantage of the warm weather, whether it's doing homework on the grass, long boarding, running, picnicking, or visiting our wonderful nature park. I really hope that the weather improves soon, because we only have three weeks left here! I want to take advantage of this beautiful campus before I had to leave at the end of May. Please, please, let there be sun....

There are a lot of great events going on this week that I'm really excited about. My roommate, Maggie Baber, is presenting her independent study on regional warming on Friday at 4 pm in Julian. Although I'm an art and writing major, I'm really interested in seeing her presentation and learning about the serious weather changes that she's documented in New Hampshire and its surrounding area. The great thing about our small liberal arts college is that I have friends in all kinds of disciplines, and I get to learn so much from each of them, even if I've never taken a class in that subject before. 

And this Friday is our season's last opening at Low Road Gallery! I'm excited that my friend Ben Valentine is coming to curate the show, and I hope that there will be a large crowd in attendance. 

Next week, my friends Julie Rooney and Jonn Sokol are coming to DePauw University to showcase a video art / string quartet performance that they collaborated on, called Dissolve. It will be in Peeler auditorium at 8 pm. I already saw the performance in Bloomington, and it was AWESOME. I'd highly suggest it to anyone in Greencastle next Monday. 



An image from the performance of Dissolve in Bloomington. 

Since it's raining, I guess I don't have any excuse to not start working on my art portfolio... and my writing portfolio... and my art seminar power point presentation... phew! It seems like the workload should have slowed down by now, but I've still got some major things to complete before I can graduate. 

Have a good week!

Three pretty great things happened this week that were not related to seminar writing, which is going really well by the way.  Thanks for asking.  The first was seeing Jennifer Egan speak.  Jennifer Egan is an author who recently won the Pulitzer Prize in fiction for her book "A Visit from the Goon Squad."  I read the book for my seminar class, and it's very good; a tricky read, something that is best read twice, but a good read.  Furthermore, Time Magazine selected her as one of the world's hundred most influential people.   Listening to her read was a privilege, but even more special was meeting her and speaking with her at an after party for senior English writing majors.  She was so friendly and normal, for lack of a better word.  We talked mostly about writing, but one unrelated thing she said that sticks out in my mind is that she is torn between going around the country to read and staying home with her children.  A part of her feel obligated to go speak, but she feels a stronger obligation to be a mother to her children.  I guess I just never thought of Pulitzer Prize winners as people with families.  Needless to say, it was eyeopening to talk with her and motivating to work hard at writing.

The next day, Thursday, I attended a partial reunion party for those who went on the 2011 Sundance Winter Term trip.  We pretty much just sat around and told jokes and reminisced.  It was a really fun night, and I'm so glad to see that our bonds of friendship outlasted the three week trip.  It sounds really cheesy, but that's what's most important.

On Friday, my fraternity had a senior dinner for our senior class, myself included.  It was a bittersweet event for several reasons.  On the one hand, it was great to see all of Fiji together, laughing at good times shared, and eating good food.  On the other hand, it was humbling to relive some embarrassing stories and sad to think that all this, the good and the bad, will soon be gone.  One particularly sad moment for me was willing down several items of clothing that I love but wish to see remain in the house.  Pictured below is my most treasure item, a pair of purple pants.  I rocked many a DePauw University party with these pants, and it's saddening to part with them.  I think it'd be really cool, however, to see these pants floating around Fiji in twenty years from now should I come back to visit.

This little table is located in the northwest corner of Julian, 3rd floor.  It doesn't look like much, but it's a charming little spot.  I enjoy the quietness, the lighting, and the view, but what really makes it are the chairs.  These chairs are amazing.  They possess the perfect balance of comfort and firmness, traits ideal for studying.  It also almost never taken.  I just started studying here this year, and I regret not finding it before.

I know everyone around the world has been talking about this (and about 3 BILLION people even watched it on Friday morning!), but I just have to talk about the Royal Wedding. A few good girl friends and I here at DePauw University were all getting really excited about the upcoming nuptials between Kate Middleton and Prince William (now the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge), and so we just decided that we were going to have a party! It was soooo much fun: we all went and bought costume rings and tiaras, bubbles to blow once the couple left the church, and nail polish so we could get all dolled up. The only thing that we were missing was the fancy hats! But unfortunately the Greencastle Wal-Mart didn’t carry those….haha oh well! Maybe next time :)

 

So  yes, we all decided that we would be good DePauw students and get together for a study party the night before, after dinner. After all, the wedding was on a Friday morning and we all still had class and homework to turn in! I have to admit, I have never quite seen the amount of intense concentration on all of our faces before, but hey, we needed to get all of our work done before the Royal Wedding! Thankfully we did get everything done, and by that time the pre-coverage of the Wedding was a mere three hours away (the Wedding started at 5 AM Eastern time). Because we were all in such high spirits, we just decided that we needed to prepare a real English breakfast to complement our other accouterments! We ended up making a quiche, beans on toast, scones, coffee bread, and rolls stuffed with brie and apple slices. It was sooo good! And it was so much fun! The wedding was gorgeous, Kate was beautiful, and William was handsome—and we all had some awesome bonding time that I know I will never forget. Because even though we all go to one of the top private liberal arts colleges in the country, and one of the best colleges in Indiana, we all still make time to have fun. This is still college, after all, and part of college is making friends, connections, and memories that will last a lifetime. I just love hearing alumni who come back to campus and share some of their memories of their times at DePauw. Experiences like these really bring the campus, or just a group of friends, together, and you really get to realize how much everyone here is just like a big family: supportive, fun, but also hardworking!

DePauw University during Sprink Break: 

 


























Regards, 

Sehrish Khan Saddozai