The Hunger Games

I cheated a little bit and watched The Hunger Games today instead of tomorrow since I have work every Sunday. It was great! I haven't read the book so I think I missed out on a lot of the little details that I would have noticed otherwise. Plus I was slightly confused about the background of the story and so I had to keep whispering to everybody during the movie. I'm sure they can all attest to my annoying comments (which kept going all two and a half hours)! I found the plot to be very interesting and extremely disturbing. After the movie, we had a philosophical discussion debating whether or not people would actually allow the publicized slaughter of children if the government sponsored it. I certainly hope not, but you never know. There are some crazy people out there. One thing I definitely did enjoy was Gale. Beautiful man. I would highly recommend this movie to everyone!

Spring Involvement Fair

I went to the spring expecting it to be fairly busy but boy was I shocked to see how busy it actually was. The rows were extremely crowded, I consistently had my path blocked by people was shouted at by the people talking about their clubs. Over all I think the event was poorly organized to make the event appealing, at least to me, and less crowded.

Community Meeting - from Laurie Veltri

One Humanities community meetings that I found particularly significant was the one during which we took a little quiz that had us guess the number of how many  people were affected by different things or how much money was involved with certain things. I thought that this was a big eye opener and made us more aware of what was going on in the world and about things that were unfair or things that you knew went on, but didn’t know the extent to which it happened. I think that these things are good for people our age to know so that we can be more aware and maybe do something to make a difference in the world. I think that this is what the humanities is all about: learning about the culture and the world around you so that we can make a difference in some way.

Banana Split

I went to the Banana Split social on the first floor of Haverfield, and it was intense. The hallway was barely wide enough to fit the banana split and all the people who wanted to eat it. There was so much ice cream, that we couldn't even give it all away! All the ice cream and toppings got a little messy and the containers got a little sticky, but over all it was a lot of fun to hang out with people in our building and eat ice cream.

Her Campus.com - From Jaclyn Sojda

Although I was only able to make it to 2 humanity events this quarter, one of my extracurricular activities has been writing for a website called “Her Campus.”  The website is a college girls guide to fashion, health, careers, etc.  Every week I pick a topic and write an article, which is published to the site later in the week.  This quarter I wrote about things from “How To Stay Healthy” to the new KONY 2012 campaign that the Invisible Children foundation has launched in the past week.  It is not directly associated with the Humanity Scholars, but definitely allowed me to write and be cultured by the different articles that other people were writing as well.  Writing being one of my favorite past times, it was nice to have that aspect of my life back and to share it with other people.      

Humanities Basketball

Humanities Basketball was quite an interesting experience. We didn't lose every game but we didn't win a game either. At least we made the playoffs unlike football. Some others scholars teams took the games pretty serious, a lot more serious than I expected. We all played hard and represented the Humanities scholars team well.

Read Across America

During the first week of March, Myself and several other Humanities Scholars traveled to Stiles Elementary to read stories to children in celebration of Dr. Seuss' birthday. Because I am planning on pursuing a career in education, I thought this was a really great personal experience as well as just a really fun thing to do on a Friday afternoon. Kids are so much fun to be around and and they're a refreshing change of scenery from all the exhausted zombie-like college kids that you see every day especially at the end of the quarter. I had a really great time with the kids and I hope to do something like this again.

All-Scholars Ice Skating

I attended the All-Scholars Ice Skating at Nationwide Arena downtown. It was fun for those of us who aren't Olympic skaters to fall down in front of our friends. It was great to meet some of the students from other Scholars programs and get to see some of downtown Columbus. However, the buses were few and far between (and packed!), the ice rink was really crowded and I had difficulty getting a pair of skates the fit me :( But it was still cool to skate where the Bluejackets play! It was a fun way to kick off March!

Poverty Series (2)

Tonight I attended the showing of a 30 Days documentary about living off of minimum wage. I thought the video was very informative and did a pretty good job showing the struggles and hardships that minimum wage workers face everyday. What's really interesting is that it was filmed right here in Columbus, Ohio! Even though I feel like the couple made some mistakes and spent some money in unnecessary places, they were truly affected by this month-long experience. It frustrated me to see what little help the poor people of this country receive; two trips to the hospital cost the couple over $1000! This documentary shows that this country is in desperate need social program reform, and I feel that if Washington can stop fighting and see the real issues, something could actually get accomplished. I really enjoyed the second part of the Poverty Series and my eyes were opened in a lot of ways.

Humanities Film Festival

I had a great time at the Humanities Film Festival. The videos were funny, creative, and entertaining. We got to see how everyone combined social media and humanities. There were many different types of videos, from informative videos with many facts to videos with new songs made up by the groups. I loved the video that Ben made as well! I also loved the Social Media Revolution video. It contained many facts about social media. It was very interesting and I didn't realize how much social media sites like Facebook and technology like the iPad affect us. I am looking forward to next year's Humanities Film Festival!

Hosting Perspective Humanities Scholars

On January 28th, my roommates and I opened our dorm room to the many perspective students whom attended the Scholar's Day put on by the Honors and Scholars Center. The day started at approximately 1pm and tours came to a close at 4pm. Throughout the 3 hours that tours took place at Haverfield House, we saw 4 or 5 groups, with around maybe 25 scholars in total. As a part of the tours, I not only showed off our room on the third floor, but also guided the perspective Humanities and PSL scholars around Haverfield. They were shown the lobby, the study room, and the laundry room. At the end of the day, it warmed our hearts as current students to see the sparkle of interest in the eyes of the perspective students we had seen that day.

HUNGER GAMES (and yes, I did put this in ALL CAPS)

I really enjoyed the hunger games book discussion. It was really fun and exciting to hear other people's point of views. I can't wait to see the movie and I wish there was another meeting because I was having so much trouble trying to not reveal the other books. It's easier to go so much more in depth. However, I didn't agree on Katniss being a strong female lead, but I thought it was a great story nonetheless, telling about the political affects of a "war-torn" world. Again, I can't wait to see the movie!!!! This was one of the best discussions and the turn out was great. :)

Culture Fair

I really enjoyed the Culture Fair (I am clearly blanking on the actual name of the event) at the Union.  It was so interesting to see how many different cultures are represented at Ohio State, and it was also interesting to see the nuances in each culture with the food and the traditions.  There was so much food and so many different types of food that it was almost overwhelming.  By far, my favorite part of the evening was watching the various shows and dance routines that were featured in the center of the union.  It made me wish I could be a part of everything.

Showing Our Room

I remember last year when I went on the Scholars day visit and took a tour of Haverfield House, little did I know that just one year down the road, I would be the one showing prospective Humanities scholars around my room in Haverfield. When Ben asked my roommates and me if we would show our room, we were delighted (even though we had to clean it a little). That day, after straightening up and decluttering our room, we opened up our door and waited impatiently to show off our unique and colorful, homie room. Pretty soon, the tours started coming. The prospective students stood back and looked around, their brains busy trying to picture their treasures on the shelves and their pictures in the frames; however, the parents asked lots of questions. We reassured parent after parent and group after group that everything will fit into these seemingly tiny rooms. Hopefully some of the students who visited will apply to the Humanities Scholars group; I know if the room I had seen was half as awesome as mine is now I would have made my decision right there on the spot to join the Humanities Scholars Program here at OSU!

Family Feud

When we heard that there was going to be a family feud competition for humanities scholars, my roommates and I set aside that night, in hopes of scoring big. We met up with our mentors and had dinner before heading over to Hagerty hall for some good old fashioned family feud fun. When we got there, only slightly late, we grabbed a bag of complimentary popcorn and took our seats. We started off with some really good scores and we racked up the points as each new round started. Just when we thought we might have a chance of winning, Ben announced the start of the TRIPLE POINTS ROUND. Unfortunately for my teammates and me, we did not do very well once the questions started to get harder; we ended up getting fourth place or something like that. Even though we didn't win, we had a lot of fun and it was a great way to just relax and enjoy ourselves after a hard day of classes.

Cosi

A few months ago, I went to the free admition Cosi event. We have a Cosi up where I am from, so I thought I knew what to expect; however, the Cosi here in Columbus was very different than the one I used to visit when I was younger. This Cosi had a really cool ocean like area complete with a submarine like simulation. I wish it wouldn't have been so crowded, because I had a hard time seeing everything I wanted to. The space section of Cosi was one of my favorite parts. There, you could learn about how rockets work and even see a model of a space shuttle's living quarters. My favorite part of Cosi was the Imax theater. It was the first time I had ever seen an Imax movie, and it was amazing. I would definitely recommend heading to Cosi when you are looking for something fun to do on a lazy weekend afternoon.

8th Floor Improv

I went to the Eighth floor Improv. I thought it was pretty funny and it was ok. It was nice to have entertainment for the night. Really enjoyable.

8th Floor Improv

Last Wednesday, 8th Floor Improv came to our Humanities Scholars weekly meeting. They were great! As I watched the actors, I realized how difficult it must be to come up with amusing material on the spot in front of a large audience. I know I couldn't do it! They were funny and creative and seemed like they were having a great time. It got me thinking about all the great student-run organizations we have here at Ohio State. In addition to 8th Floor Improv, we have a number of acapella groups, religious and political organizations, club sports, committees, and even obscurities like a quidditch team and frisbee club. We are all so lucky to have so many opportunities to get involved here. Being Humanities Scholars is a great start!

311 Hosts Prospective Students

A few weekends ago, my roommates and I were asked to show our room to prospective scholars students. We spent the entirety of the day cleaning our dorm from top to bottom: we cloroxed the bathroom, organized our desks, and vacuumed our rug, which was a feat in itself considering it is a magnet for lint and hair. After the "Extreme Makeover: Dorm Edition" was through, our dorm never looked better. Suddenly we had so much room! It smelled fresh and looked organized. It was very liberating to de-clutter our normally messy living quarters. When the prospective students were brought to our room, my roommates and I took turns talking about our dorm, its accommodations, and our experiences in it. We had nothing but good things to say! We also elaborated about the scholars program in general, and the families seemed very interested. After the tour, I walked the families back down to the lobby where Ben was waiting. One of the mothers said that we were very helpful and informative. Way to go, 311!

Family Feud

On Wednesday, February 1st, my roommates and I met up with our mentors to engage in the exciting Humanities Mentor Group Family Feud. When we got there, we helped ourselves to popcorn and soda and proceeded to take our seats in the middle of the room. We had a blast hastily coming up with answers to the survey questions in order to name the most popular responses. We did pretty well, although some of the answers surprised me--of all the places to eat on campus, North Commons was the favorite? I didn't see that one coming. And what about the "most hated Harry Potter characters" question? I don't see how anyone could hate Ron. Anyway, my team went home with some Humanities Scholars folders and a slinky, as well as newfound knowledge about the members of the Humanities Scholars and their eating habits.

8th Floor Improv

On Wednesday, Humanities got the pleasure of watching a performance by 8th Floor Improv. I was very excited because it was my first time getting to see them perform, although I've never been a huge fan of improvisation. I was impressed--coming up with funny things to do and say on the spot must be very difficult, and I thought they did a good job with it. Of course, there were a few awkward cricket moments, but that can be expected in any show. My favorite part was the final segment, which was a two man show. I found them to be very entertaining and they seemed more comfortable in front of an audience than the first group did. Hopefully I will get another chance to see 8th Floor Improv!