Archive for March, 2009

Rain Yesterday, Sunshine today- SPRING IS HERE = )

Published at March 31, 2009 in Student Speak. 0 Comments

Good Afternoon -

My new pinkrainboots were in full use yesterday! The rainy weather has passed, and now sunshine is out and about! I’m not even wearing a jacket today, it’s that nice here in Keene, N.H. Hopefully those of you who were here last Friday enjoyed yet another successful Admitted Student Day! I was there, I had lunch with a few lovely ladies (if you are reading this HI!! ) and answered questions they had. As Lyndsey mentioned in her last blog it’s getting to be that time of year, where you want to pull your hair out you have so much work, and you almost feel like you spend more time in the library than you do your own room. Yes folks, believe it or not, kids in College do utilize the library, it’s not all fun and games all the time. Hard to think that today I will be signing up for classes. I can’t believe I’m going to be a SENIOR, where did the time go? Not to mention my schedule will be quite hectick next semester because I will be picking up a Safety Studies minor (20 credits), but don’t fret Mom & Dad, I will be still graduating on time! If all goes as planned I will be taking 5 classes next semester, with no Friday classes ( prospective students you will learn that Friday classes are not fun)!! IF you’ve been keeping up with my blogs you know I always give you a run down on what my weeks look like; so here it goes :

  • Rent is due ($425.00) April 1st!
  • Writing assignment on Foreclosures ( Due Monday)
  • Quiz in Tropical Ecology ( Monday)
  • Quiz in Theory (Tuesday)
  • Extra Credit paper on Social Identity Theory ( Due Tuesday)
  • Paper on Spurlock’s 30 Days episode Christianity vs. Atheism ( Due Tuesday)
  • Read & Response paper on guest speaker Syed Khailil Jamal ( Due Tuesday)
  • Read for Media & Society {Love is a Fallacy} ( Wednesday)
  • Read Chapter 12 {Tropical Nature} ( Wednesday)
  • Go home quickly to do laundry ( Wednesday)
  • Quiz on Chapter 20 {Theory & Rhetoric} ( Thursday)
  • Tutor @ 1
  • Soccer game at 8:30PM (Thursday)
  • Stop by my Professor’s office to get Research Paper information ( Friday)
  • Meeting for my Independent Study at 12:00PM ( Friday)
  • Roomate’s Birthday {She’s turning 22!} ( Friday)

I think I’m overwhelmed after looking at that list, but I just take everything one day at a time. No need to stress, although, after drinking 2 free iced coffees given out at the Student Center today, my mind is going buzzirkkkk!!!!!!!!! I can’t help that I love coffee & let’s be honest, when you are a poor college student anything that is FREE is so absolutely lovely. So, Lyndsey and I will be venturing off to BELIZE in about 2 and 1/2 weeks- - eeeeek I’m so excited!!! Well folks, I’m off to do some more work in Admissions, so keep catching up with Lyndsey and I!!

Get out & Catch some rays!

Kristen P = )

There is Just so Much to Look Forward to !

Published at March 26, 2009 in Life On Campus and Student Speak. 0 Comments

Hello Friends !!

Well the midterm is over and now heading toward crunch time… everything is due and final exams are in sight here at Keene. Its hard to believe this semester went by so fast ! You high school seniors must be getting so excited for whats to come… graduation ! so exciting :) almost time for a new chapter in your lives… college life at KEENE STATE !

So  I just logged into my KSC email to double check my registration apt for my senior year of 1st semester classes….yikes! I have already pre-registered so at my assigned time ( this coming monday @ 6) I will log back on to myksc and push the button “register” and cross my fingers that they are not yet full !(because i have picked out a great schedule if i might so so myself, earliest class at 10 and I’m done with classes by 6 meaning I would have the entire night to relax and the best part of it all…no Friday classes ! so great so I hope it works out !  When i signed on to my KSC email,thousands of notifications scroll by notifying keene students of the events and things going on around campus and guess what?..there’s so much! One thing that caught my eye was a residential life contest where students can design their dream dorm room, and based on creativity,effort and overall design, the residential life staff will pick the best and actually take the winner shopping for all the things in the room!(Wish I wasn’t moving off campus now so i could enter !

some more events coming up include…

  • In our student center’s Mable brown room will hold the grassroots Music Festival! The concert is a free event that will raise money through donation for the Global Grassroots organization.
  • An open mic night in the Night Owl Cafe(in the student center) on April 3rd, with signs ups and free food !
  • intramural sports are in full swing! Inner-tube water polo, dodge ball, and H.O.R.S.E tournaments will be starting soon for students of all athletic skill levels !
  • Circle K( one of the many clubs on campus) will be hosting a wiffle ball tournament as a way for students to celebrate the end of another year at Keene State and as a way to relax and have fun before finals. All proceeds will be donated to Kiwanis Pediatric Trauma Institute, Camp Sunshine, and Big Brothers Big Sisters.
  • andd of course a big event here @ keene… SPRING WEEKEND is approaching and we are fortunate to have O.A.R coming to perform in our Spaulding gym! And the best part is tickets are only 5 dollars for keene students : ) The concert it open to the  general public as well for 20 dollars General public tickets will be available online at http://www.ksctix.com and in person: sales are on monday, April 13th and Tuesday, April 14th (if available) So come check it out !
  • Oh and of course, Our Spring varsity sports are already performing very well ! So the Owl team spirit is high! Check out the sports page on our website to see the Spring schedual ! Yay Owls !

That is just some of things that are coming up ! But as Kristen pointed out…the work load right now is massive. Finding ways to balance it all, and staying stress free is a great skill you will come to find you learn here, with help from the wonderful, inviting Keene staff members. So start getting excited for Keene and keep asking questions ! If you guys have not seen the campus yet make sure to sign up for a tour!(perhaps with Kristen and I ahem Thursdays @1:30) or any of the wonderful tour guides!

Have a great day : ) !

-Lyndsey

7 weeks left, time is flying!

Published at March 24, 2009 in Life On Campus and Student Speak. 0 Comments

Hey, Hey, Hey!

So Spring Break has dissappeared, tans have arrived, and it’s the final countdown to graduation right now. While many people spent Spring Break with their toes in the sand last week, I was still in New Hampshire. Though I can’t complain, I will be taking my Spring Break later, 3 more weeks until BELIZE!!! Don’t be fooled, I didn’t spend my break relaxing and taking it easy, I substituted everyday, while completing work for my Independent Study. Ya, be jealous of my Spring Break. ha! Anyways, here in Keene, NH, the weather outside is sunny, bright blue skies, but very windy. You’ll learn that peering outside your window when getting ready inthe morning, can be so deictful. As you know, I always leave you an update of my weeks events, so here it is ladies and gentlemen:

  • Assignment on Neotropical Animals for Tropical Biology ( Due Monday)
  • Read for Quiz in Theory & Rhetoric of Communication ( On Tuesday)
  • Read & Response for Intercultural Communication ( Due Tuesday)
  • 1 Page Response to Foreclosure’s for Media & Society ( Due Wednesday)
  • Meeting w/ Tutor at 1PM ( On Wednesday)
  • Quiz in Tropical Biology ( On Wednesday)
  • Pay Electric Bill ( $17) ( On Wednesday)
  • Quiz on Chapter 19 in Theory & Rhetoric ( On Thursday)
  • Paper on the Bahliwood movie “Bombay” ( Due Thursday)
  • Work in Admissions 2-3:30 ( Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday)
  • Give a tour at 2 ( Thursday)
  • Work at Price Chopper 10:15-4:15 ( Friday )

I hope you aren’t exhausted after reading that itinerary for this week! At some point, I also need to set up an appointment with my advisors because we start picking classes for next semester next week! Which is very exciting to me, I will be a Senior, also a little scary. I am trying to add a Safety minor in the fall, so I will be taking quite the class load next semester - - goodbye life! Speaking of Seniors, you must all be worrying about getting tan for Prom, picking out that perfect Prom Dress, spending every waking minute thinking about college & new friends, playing Spring sports,participating in Senior activities, looking forward to April vacation, all while ending another chapter of your own life. To me, high school seems so far away, but it was only 3 years ago, but truly I left with some of the most amazing friends, so cherish the time you still have! I hope you are all preparing yourself for this next step called college, the three things of advice I have for you are; 1. Save Save Save money from your Summer job 2. Make sure you communicate with your roomate over the Summer so you both can find out what each person is bringing ( i.e. refrigerator, coffee pot, rug, lamps, ect.) and 3.Mentally prepare yourself for the hard work and emotions that college life will bring. With all that said, time’s up, I’ve got to run to class, lucky me!

Dream big, Live large, and Keep Smiling -

Kristen P

The final countdown

Published at March 24, 2009 in Special Events and Visiting Campus. 0 Comments

I can’t believe it is the middle of March (although it still feels like the middle of January; as Kristin said  “where are you Spring?” I too am ready for flip flops) The campus is alive once again as all students returned from Spring Break on Sunday. I hope some of the students brought back warmth and sun! The admissions office has been busy cleaning up files, making decisions and preparing for another Admitted Student Day. My apologizes to all who went to sign up for an Admitted Student Day but found them to be all full. Please know that we make every effort to add as many people as we can to these programs without compromising space on campus. If you have not had a chance to visit campus, or you want to return to campus for a 2nd, 3rd, 4th.. time you still can sign up for one of our Senior only days. Our tours will run until the end of April and restart up in June. We can’t wait to meet you!

This time of year is full of excitement and energy and I like to refer to it as the “final countdown”. For us in admissions its nearing the end of reading season and starting Spring Travel.  For our seniors on campus it is the final countdown to finals and graduation (May 9). For our accepted seniors in high school it is the final countdown to graduation and moving in to the residence hall (August 19). Remember too that our accepted students only have a few weeks before the May 1st deadline. Be sure to get the deposit to our office by May 1st to confirm your spot in the class of 2013. It is a thrilling time for everyone! Its the end of chapter for some and the start of a new one for many. We are happy to be a part of it all! GO OWLS!!!!!!!

Loving the Sun!(and the melting snow..)

Published at March 10, 2009 in Life On Campus and Student Speak. 0 Comments

Hello Future Keeners !! I can not wait to meet you guys !! My name is Lyndsey and I’m a junior here at Keene majoring in Sociology and I minor in Communications. Today is just a regular,ordinary day on campus. It has luckily stopped snowing and is beginning to melt which means rain boots and snow boots can be found on all to slosh around in. AND ITS SUNNY (and almost warm) ! This is amazing because that means we are that much closer to SPRING(and i also just brought all my winter clothes home this past weekend to make space in my on campus apartment so it really is a good thing its getting warmer)  and if you ask me, spring is the best time here in Keene NH. There is so much to look forward to right now… !

*Well first of all next week is spring break and even though i will be home in western MA.. I have enough work to complete and shopping to do for my Belize trip with Kristen in April : )

*and on April 24(saturday) OAR will be performing at Keene State’s spring weekend. THIS IS SO EXCITING !

*My trip to Belize in April with Professor Lerner’s Tropical Ecology class.( I have never been out of the country…well anywhere besides Canada and I have never been  on a plane! so this is a trip of many new things for me and I’m so excited…except maybe not so much for the giant beetles and scorpions that we just saw pictures of…ick)

Before all this fun  i do however have quite a heavy workload. I’m currently enrolled in 5 classes(20 credits) and honestly am finding everything is due this week. So this has been quite stressful but as Kristen was referring to previously the ASPIRE program has really helped me with time management skills. ASPIRE works with students to plan out your days so you complete all your work on-time and before the due date and try to eliminate the stress of waiting until the last min(as I was a hugeee culprit of) they have also really helped me with my test taking skills. In high school I was an awful test taker i would get so nervous and  forget everything i studied! so awful. But what I found out from the ASPIRE program was I was not studying correctly and was cramming… so ASPIRE helped me to study things the correct way and this has really helped me to be able to take tests.

soo anyways everything is due this week and I have found I do not get my work done in my room (living in an on campus apartment with 2 of my friends) goood thing the library is literally 100 feet out my door and well I live there. I sit upstairs at a table by the window, with my ipod and a borrowed lap top from the library(totally free for 3 hours) I choose to borrow a computer because when i bring my mac to the library I find i am constantly iming and facebooking and really getting distracted by anything but the work that needs to get done…

so the rest of my day looks likee…

work 10-11:30 in the admissions office

Sociological Pro-seminar @ 12 and my paper is due today on a professional identity statement

and back to work at 2 -4:30

and then gym to a cardio class and running on the track then library to finish my introduction to communications research paper on careers(I have chosen to do mine on public relations specialists)

and that would be a regular Tuesday!

I hope you guys are enjoying the sun(hopefully its sunny where you are!) Feel free to ask me ANY questions! Talk to you guys again soon!!!

~Lyndsey:)

Where is Spring, I was wearing flip-flops yesterday?

Published at March 9, 2009 in Life On Campus, Student Speak and Uncategorized. 2 Comments

So, if you didn’t know yesterday was a gorgous day throughout the state of New Hampshire, but today is a different story. Just when my toes dug into my worn out KSC flip-flops yesterday, I had to pull out my winter washed UGGS. I was hoping for a snow day today, but instead classes remain a go. I hope all of you had a great time at Admitted Student Day, I was there helping with Admissions. If I didn’t get a chance to meet you I’m sorry, and if you got a chance to be in my group, I hope you fully enjoyed your day! This week is even busier than my last, but I just keep thinking to myself that next week is Spring Break = ) My schedule for this week looks like this (brace yourself) this is what you have to look forward to:

  • Presentation on Army Ants
  • Exam 2 in Theory & Rhetoric
  • Exam 2 in Intercultural Communication
  • Co-Cultural Report due in Intercultural
  • Read & Respond due in Theory & Rhetoric
  • Extra Credit due in Theory & Rhetoric
  • News article due in Media on Foreclosures
  • Pay cable bill & electricity ( $50 )
  • Tutor session at 9:00 PM on Monday
  • Work ( Monday-Wednesday) at Admissions 2-3:30 PM
  • Quiz on Wednesday in Tropical Ecology
  • Call doctors office to get immunizations lined up for Spring Break
  • LASTLY SPRING BREAK BEGINS THURSDAY!!

Though the stress of having two jobs & going to school full time isn’t enough, my Spring Break will be spent at home working. I just remind myself things could be alot worse. As I sit here watching the snowfall outside the office, I think of all the people who are homeless or the woman who just lost her job due to the current economy. I hope when you read my blog you see that college is a lot of work, and for those who think it is all fun and games, you will soon realize it’s more than that. College for me is about making friendships, preparing myself for the real world, learning about myself, and really finding out who I want to become in the future. For some, you may never want to “grow up,” I was like you, I had it perfect at home, who would want to leave something so secure? My best advice: break the barrier from home, and experience a new you, you’ll be surprised at the person you might become and the experiences will shape you beyond your wildest dreams.

I hope this blog gives you more insight on what you might expect and I would encourage you all to ask me questions, no one question is dumb, so ask away!

Stay Classy -

Kristen P