November 21, 2009
Ready to go home
I haven’t gotten as much work done as I planned for this weekend. I planned on clearing all my homework, so I wouldn’t have it on my mind for a week during Thanksgiving. (A lot of schools only get the last half of the week. Since we work harder during the year, I guess we deserve a longer break!) If figure if I get a paper written during the break, I’ll be set for the next week. That’s a very optimistic prediction.
FIJI has pretty much been deserted since Friday afternoon. Seriously, people jetted out of here after lunch. There’s been roughly half a dozen of us since then, but we’re slowly leaving, like me, tomorrow morning. I don’t see what the hurry to leave it. No one does homework at home, so stay a day or two, get caught up, then go home worry-free. (As stated above, I didn’t do as much as planned...)
Tonight I went to the Montgomery County Jefferson and Jackson Democratic dinner. I had the pleasure of meeting Dave Sanders, an enthusiastic candidate in the 4th district. He offered to write for the College Dems’ upcoming publication, which I am in the process of writing an article for.
And...I’m going to bed. Be back in the 46217 in 16 hours.
Posted by mwcarper13 at 09:58 PM
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November 17, 2009
Thanksgivin's approachin'...
Three more days until Thanksgiving break! Of course, I’ll still have stuff to worry about next week. I have a paper due the Tuesday after I get back...Sheesh. Though, hopefully, I’ll be able to catch up with all my high school friends. Since Perry Meridian will still be in session during the early part of the
week, I’ll probably stop by. I’ll probably get bored out of my skull, too. Nevertheless, at this point, the anticipation is keeping me running.
I just got back from ringing/guarding the bell in front of FIJI. It’s been ringing since lunch; I don’t know how long it will continue. It’s a nice sound.
I registered for classes today. Luckily, I managed to get into all my desired classes. If you’re keeping track, I’ll be taking Econ 101, Latin 102, Spanish 202, Reasoning and Advocacy, a Rhetoric course, and American Politics, PSC 111. I think, individually, those classes will require less work than my current Religion class. However, I’ll have one more class, plus a lab. I’ll have to see how my schedule turns out, with pledgeship over and such.
For my religion class, I’m using a primary text about St. Francis to write about social and religious trends of the day. It’s an interesting assignment because instead of simply reading information, I have to infer it from hints. For instance, the author records miracles, including those in reaction to someone’s accident. The noble class never suffered from physical accidents in the text, though they encountered their equal share of diseases. Due Friday.
Later.
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November 15, 2009
Bell weekend is over.
Last entry, I vowed not to blog until Wabash had the bell. Good thing we won it back!
I’ll talk about game day first. We pre-tailgated at Tyler Wade’s house, which is, conveniently, a couple blocks from DePauw’s stadium. Thought it was mostly FIJIs, Dean Raters and President White graced the gathering with their presence. Tyler must have pulled some strings!
After surviving a 100-yard walk through Danne territory, some FIJIs and I arrived at the Wabash tailgate area. Wow. What a sight. For a small school, it was a big group.
We got to the stadium at about 12:30. I made the mistake of not getting any water beforehand...I should’ve known I’d be yelling. And yell I did. The student section at the Bell Game is basically a loudspeaker that yells anti-DePauw and pro-Wabash chants for literally three hours straight. No one sits down. At any given time, there are probably three different chants being screamed. I couldn’t hear the Danne side. Distance, or lack of spirit?
Before coming to Wabash, I really didn’t know the definition of school spirit. High school? Pssh. I can’t imagine any school besides Wabash that involves such a high percentage of their student body in rooting for the football team. Sure, IU and Purdue fill parking lots upon parking lots with tailgaters. But I don’t think a single Wabash man walks through the Arch without immense pride in his alma mater. It’s not just a place to study for four years. No one leaves without hating the Dannes, loving Wabash, and all the other perks of Wabash College: the bonds, the difficult classes.
However, I can’t say I won’t be relieved to leave for Thanksgiving.
Posted by mwcarper13 at 06:05 PM
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November 13, 2009
More bell week
Sorry if you’re bored of me talking about Bell Week. A lot of stuff happens.
For instance, Wednesday was the Monon Mustache competition. Though I’ve been growing a “dirty ‘stache,” I opted out of the competition. FIJI Daniel Lesch didn’t, but probably should’ve. His mustache, which earned the title of “worst,” is too small and weak to even appear on a blog Wabash-related. It was truly an embarrassment. PB Chet Riddle got 3rd. Woo!
Thursday was the best Chapel Talk I’ve been to so far. A Wabash tradition, the football coach and four captains address the school. Literally, the whole school. First time I’ve seen the Chapel filled with students. One captain recalled how people ask him if he’s thought about last year’s loss. “I’ve thought about it every frickin’ day!” brought Pioneer Chapel to a roar.
A couple of hours ago, I attended my first Wabash-DePauw matchup: The “Keg Game,” between our Rugby teams. The best part was that we could stand right up on the sidelines and insult the Dannies for an hour. Of course, winning was pretty cool too.
Tomorrow I go to the cross country meet in Terre Haute, to support my favorite person in the world, Justin Allen.
I won’t blog again until we have the Bell.
Posted by mwcarper13 at 07:46 PM
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November 11, 2009
Monon Bell continues
Last night the FIJI and Beta pledges guarded the campus from invading Dannies. The tradition of guarding the grounds against DePauw seems to be a throwback to when the bell was on campus. This year, guard duty was uneventful, and cold. My toes reminded me of my first camping trip in the winter.
Pledge brothers Rob and Romeo vigilantly watching for Dannie invaders.
I just got back from Alma Mater Sing. For those that don’t know, Alma Mater Sing is a singing competition between pledge classes, similar to Chapel Sing. However, the competition is done completely in a group. Whichever pledge class croons the school song the sweetest wins.
Though only about half the pledge classes participated, competition was tough between us and Kappa Sigma. In the end, I think our loss was due to stumbling of two lines, once the first time, again the second time. Nevetheless, congrats to the winners, Kappa Sigma.
I Skyped a friend at IU yesterday. When she said she lives in a co-ed dorm, I burst out laughing.
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November 09, 2009
Bell Week starts
The calm before the storm. By that, I mean the weekend before Bell Week. After writing a paper Friday (What else is there to do?) Wabash College was paid a visit by comedian Alonzo Bodden. He was pretty political; you could see a couple kids squirming in response to his routine. However, he pulled it off pretty well. He managed to make fun of Crawfordsville and Wabash College without offending anyone...I think. He did do a good job of addressing and poking fun at Wabash’s quirks. Definitely a good choice of the SCAC.
Also Saturday morning, I picked up trash along FIJI’s section of 231. That makes 14.5 hours of the 25 I need for initiation.
Sunday, I planned out my courses, ensuring none fill up. I’l continue with Latin, start up Spanish 202, take Economics 101, Political Science 111 and Rhetoric 201. Maybe I’ll get started on a possible major, maybe not.
And tonight, my pledge class guards the campus from the invading Dannies from the south. I don’t know if we’ll actually be invaded. If they do cross our borders, they’ll have to deal with 20 freshman before taking another step. Of course, other students take part, too. However, I’d like to think us pledges form the backbone of Wabash College security.
More soon.
Posted by mwcarper13 at 11:26 PM
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November 06, 2009
Prospects
Dear prospects: I know you probably get advice about college visits a lot, but I think a lot of high school seniors miss out on what they should be doing while on campus. Specifically, asking questions.
I know I didn’t ask that many questions when I was visiting for Top 10, Honors Scholar (Weekend in spring) and Lilly (another weekend in spring). Then, when I started school, I realized, “Wow, I should’ve asked about this area.” So here are some specific Wabash-related questions you might ask a student:
-What are their classes like?
-What is an average day like? How much time do they spend on homework?
-What kind of work is they workload? Memorization? Reading? Writing? Problem- solving?
-If they’re in a fraternity, what was their pledgeship like? What did they have to do?
-What extra-curriculars are they involved in?
-Who their favorite professor is, and why?
-What do they do on the weekends?
You will also get asked the same series of questions again and again. Field of study, future plans, hometown and high school, what other schools besides Wabash. I thought it was annoying when I was visiting; but, now that I’m a student, I’m actually interested in what you, as a prospect, are interested in. I know it’s hard to believe, but we actually care about these seemingly boring facts.
The same goes for questions. People love talking about themselves. Wabash grads love talking about Wabash. Put the two together. You’re not going to bore us with your questions, promise.
Posted by mwcarper13 at 09:01 PM
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