This was an outright crazy amazing week!  I was so worn out due to the exhilarating Dunn Hall  Olympics.  Most of the Halls on campus had their annual Olympics this week (in case you didn’t know, in the Olympics here at AU each floor competes against other floors in their respective dorms).  First, let me tell you that I don’t care what sports you like to watch or participate in, it doesn’t get any more nail-biting than the culmination of Dunn Olympics this year.  Going in to the last event my floor, 4th floor, was beating 2nd floor by 4 points (you see each event throughout the week is worth a certain amount of points).  We knew that going in to the last event (tug-of-war) that we had to place higher than 2nd floor in order to win.  After several matches of intense battle 2nd floor prevailed and ended up beating us by 2 points!…I was a little ticked off being the competitor that I am, but I have to give them credit for a job well done.

Olympics week is always a great week.  The games include ping pong, pool, basketball, trivia pursuit, Halo, Iron Chef, strong-man competition, gentleman’s games (croquet and corn hole), dodgeball, and a few others.  It really was tons of fun, and an unforgettable experience.

Congrats 2nd floor!…even though I am a little bitter…

ZGray

Boosters…Alacritas…Dativus…Camarada…Novus Dux…Lamifidel…all of these social clubs just finished a crazy week of rushing, and are now enjoying the new members that went through the fire to get to the reward. For those who don’t know, rushing a social club is kind of like pledging a fraternity or sorority, but socials clubs at AU are service based organizations of men and woman that are active on and off campus. Now, I never really wanted to rush because I am already over-committed to life (haha), but I was still able to get a taste of what rush was all about. I had quite a few friends that rushed, and I heard a lot do different stories and saw a lot of different emotions. Some people absolutely loved their rushee experience, some weren’t too fond of it, and some are still awaiting the response from the jury.

There was no telling what you were going to see when you were walking across the valley. During rush week, you can expect to see anything from woman in wings and togas to men in cardboard and duct tape armor and Dukes of Hazzard apparel. It was not uncommon for you to been serenaded to at a whim or to be escorted to class under some gentleman’s “unmbrella…ella…ella.” It was really a site to see, but underneath all of the goofiness and secretive outings, it was really great to be able to see and hear about men and woman coming together on campus as brothers and sister. There were friendships formed this week, that are going to be memorable and long lasting. Now, don’t get me wrong. Everything about rush week wasn’t roses and daisies, but in the end, I believe that the majority of the rushees, now members, are really proud of themselves for making it through and excited about what is to come within their social club of choice.

After talking to friends and seeing everything that has taken place, there is a tiny part of me that would considered rushing next year, but I’ll definitely have to think about it.

 In case you didn’t know, last week was Rush Week (and yes I capitalize it because it’s a pretty big deal). So, I am pretty sure many of the guys and girls who rushed have great stories, some good and some bad…but all memorable. But, I didn’t rush so I can’t tell you any of those details. What I can tell you though, is what Rush Week looks like from an outsiders view…

The first thing that made me laugh last week was when a good friend of mine (an Avanti Booster rushee) walked up to a girl on her way to class and asked her if she would let him escort her to her class under his um-ba-rella ella ella ella. Later that day, I walked in to class and saw a few girls all dressed up like ferries or something and one even had little green wings on! The costumes last week were incredible. One club (Dativus) was dressed up in velvet and velour one day. Maybe not the manliest outfits, but funny indeed. On Friday, many of the Booster rushees were dressed in cardboard armor in preparation for their battle at the end of the day. The best costume has to go to a knight in one of my classes who couldn’t fit into his desk because the cardboard armor on his back was too big.

So, social clubs may be the thing for you as they are for many, and rush week either has been or will be a great experience for you. But, even if you are not part of a club (as I am not) Rush Week is still undoubtedly a great spectacle to watch!

Thank you social clubs for a great week!!!

 Yes I realize that all of my posts thus far have been very random and some may say pointless, but today I actually have something important to talk about.

As we students progress through our college careers, we begin to think more and more about what we are going to with our lives after college. Even for those of us who have decided on a major, many of us still do not know exactly what we want to do. For example, lets look at Christine, a Business Management major. Christine may know that for sure, 100% she wants to major in Management. But what does she actually want to do? Does she want to manage people in an accounting firm? a restaurant? a sports organization? or even at a university? or does would she rather start her own business? It can be very difficult to know what you want to do with the rest of you life!

Fortunately, here at Anderson we have a wonderful career development office. Just the other day I stopped by the office on 2nd floor Decker and met with Maryann Coty. I sat down and told her what I was interested in (Computer Science and Business), and she began helping me look at all the possibilities I have. Furthermore, she has already started to help me look for an internship this summer. I am only a sophomore and do not have much experience in the business world, but thats why she is here to help me. The greatest part is that it’s so easy to do. Just go to Career Development office and start talking to some people. Classroom work is really important, but real world experience is priceless. I cannot wait until this summer when I can work with some company and not only gain experience but also start to build a resumé for myself.

This is just another example of how helpful people here at AU can be! So I encourage you all to stop by the Career Development office, and no matter how decided or undecided you are on your career goals, I assure you they can help you.

I hope you all enjoy your week (and frankly I hope you all enjoyed my one serious blog for the year…I’m KIDDING!!! … but seriously).

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What a start, I have been doing so much since I got back to school. I have been involved with my social club as a secretary, and looking to get involved with Anam Cara. One of the best things that I have gotten involved in this year getting involved with my local church youth group and his past week I got to travel to Cincinnati, OH with three guys from the youth. The trip was filled with laughter and learning. This trip was very affirming for me. I have been thinking about going into the youth ministry and the time I got to spend with the guys and also with other youth leaders was motivating. Although I still need to learn more before I go and open my own church, this trip showed me how the past three years has helped me grow so much. I have more to talk about, that all will be put into other posts.

Have a great one
~Barry

Summer time was great for me! I worked, hung out with my family and friends, relaxed and just took it all in, one day at a time. Man…time really flies when you’re having fun. Now, I’m back at good ol’ AU balancing schedules, hanging with friends and trying to find the time to sleep. My sophomore year has just gotten underway, but it seems like campus has been buzzing for quite some time now. Homework, projects, papers and emails are already beginning to clutter my desk, and campus is already busting with great activities like Disco Dancing and Donuts, Novus Dux Skate Night, and the classic Square Dance. All of the fall sports like football, soccer and volleyball are in the heat of competition, and there are already budding whispers about conditioning for winter sports. After a very informative and VERY busy interest week, the social clubs and campus organizations/groups are beginning to recruit members and plan for the school year. Goodness gracious…so many things and it’s only been the first two weeks! Everything is really falling into place and building a great foundation for a great year. I can already tell that this year is probably going to be a little crazy, but I’m really excited!!!

Hey everyone! Its me…Zach. Phew…these last few days have been crazy! I think we all know what last week was…that’s right the beginning of the NFL season and more importantly fantasy football. I don’t know if you all play fantasy football, but the odds are you do.

I think its amazing how much fantasy football has warped the way in which we, the viewers, watch games. For example, back before fantasy football was around a conversation like this may have occurred…”Hey Jeff, did you see that Colts game last night?” and Jeff replies, “Yea man! They played great. The offense played well and the defense was dominant!” Today, that conversation would have gone differently…”Hey Jeff, did you see that Colts game last night?” and Jeff replies, “Yea man! Peyton threw 3 TDs and for 343 yards and scored 25 points for my fantasy team, but the guy I am playing has Reggie Wayne and he caught 2 TDs and went for 110 yards and scored 22 points so I guess I did alright. And in my other league I have Joseph Addai and he didn’t do too bad either.”

Basically fantasy football has warped our football minds. Furthermore, I, an avid fantasy football player, constantly find myself rooting for the most ridiculous things in a game. For example, if I have Running back Joseph on my team and I see Wider receiver Marvin Harrison catch a pass from Peyton Manning and he’s running for a touchdown, I’m sitting there yelling at the TV for Marvin to step out of bounds at the one yard line so that the next play Joseph Addai can get a handoff for an easy touchdown run and 6 points for my fantasy team.

So I leave you with this…remember that it is called Fantasy Football for a reason, it doesn’t really matter (wait…yes it does its awesome) so just remember you should not forget to root for your real favorite team!

Good luck!

 Yesterday I played in the annual Labor Day volleyball tournament right here at AU. Labor Day…hmm….what exactly is Labor Day? I began to think about the holiday and…why in the world do we call it Labor Day? I mean seriously, on this holiday that we have celebrated on the first Monday in September ever since 1882 (officially since 1894) we do everything BUT labor. After 125 years you think someone would have figured out a better name for this day of non-labor. Almost everyone refrains from working on labor day. So why can’t we call it No-Labor day or Rest Day or Sit-on-the-Couch-and Watch-TV-With-Your-Soda-Pop-in-Your-Hand-and-Doze-off-Between-Episodes-of-the-Andy-Griffith-Show day? (Fyi, I choose to say soda pop instead of soda or pop , because many people from different regions of the US debate which is correct, so I go with the one that only kids 50 years ago used. I just try to make things easier). Anyway…does anyone follow me on the topic of this so-called “Labor Day.” We want kids not to lie…so let’s set a good example and not call a day of rest a day of labor.

So, if you missed the volleyball tournament and Luau make sure you don’t next year!

As I leave you today I want you to think about the history of Labor Day (or no-labor day)…and answer yourself this one question…

Do you dare to wear white after Labor Day?