#109: Listen to an entire song played by the Chapel bells

                           <http://subterraneanepistles.blogspot.com/2010/08/religion-uva-part-2-battle-of-buildings.html>

            It’s 5 pm when the bells ring, and I am sitting in the McGreggor room hashing away at one of my final papers with an empty cup of java juice to my right and someone else’s abandoned noodles to my left. The tune the bells loop through is well known to me, but I can’t place it, just anticipate it. It might be from a movie; I may have played it on the piano myself once. But it’s eerie and sweet and sad and I am grateful for the break.

Three hours later, I have come to the realization that it was "Chim Chimmery" from Mary Poppins.

#77: Use the 21 Box on the Lawn

           

            Happy Easter! On a spur of the moment stop on the way home from church this morning, Joe and I cracked open the 21 box on the Lawn and attempted to hit a few balls. Looks like those few weeks outside of practice have been detrimental to our skills!

            P.S. The 21 Box isn’t a suggestion box, it’s a box full of balls etc to play with on the Lawn and then return. It’s much more fun than I originally thought! I don’t know who started it (I’m assuming the 21 Society) but kudos.

"These things will not bite you, they came to have fun! Then out of the box came Thing 2 and Thing 1" -- Dr. Seuss

#42: Check out an event in the Kaleidoscope Room

            Oh darn, I’m so upset that Newcomb has been doing renovations this whole academic year and the Kaleidoscope room hasn’t even been open for at least the whole semester! (not). Have I checked it out? As much as the construction barricades would let me!

            Thirty days til graduation. Thirteen things left to check off on the list.  It’s Wheat Thins time baby…can you hear the crunch?

#56: Feed Your Soul at Mel's Diner

<yelp.com>

            I’d been looking forward to this task but wasn’t sure that the small building would be able to accommodate customers in rainy conditions. Luckily for Joe and me, there are four or five tables inside for days like this cold, rainy spring one when sitting on the patio isn’t as optimal. I’m SO glad we enjoyed our dinner inside though, because Mel and his mother and the rest of his staff are absolutely the most endearing family to run a small restaurant I’ve seen in a long time!

            They were so welcoming when we came in, gave me helpful suggestions about desserts (even though I stuck with the yellow and chocolate cake haha), and interacted with the other customers (all local frequenters) like they were best friends. It was a great Southern down-home feel to the place, and there were pictures of the family all over the walls which made it so homey.

            Mel and his momma laughed when Joe ordered the big plate of wings with a double side of fries, roll, and a side of an 8oz mushroom burger. I got a 5oz cheeseburger (only $3!), shared the large heap of his fries and followed it up with that cake :D The prices are SO reasonable, and I thought the food was pretty decent. Joe absolutely loved the fried wings. If you go and you’re adventurous, you should try the “World Famous Sweet Potato Pie”, but make sure you bring cash or checks… they don’t take credit cards and they’re not open Sundays. Not gonna lie, I’m kind of excited that Mel’s is coming to the Ampitheater Thursday for the 4^th years… I hope they bring some mac and cheese to try :D

“One of the very nicest things about life is the way we must regularly stop whatever it is we are doing and devote our attention to eating.” -Luciano Pavarotti and William Wright

#8: Run or support a Charlottesville road race

             This weekend, UVA hosted several large-scale events to commemorate the inauguration of Teresa Sullivan as our eighth president. My favorite was Friday when VWC got to sing for nearly five hundred guests at the AFC luncheon (Casteen, the governor, and Tiki Barber were all in attendance). But today (Sunday), “Terri” held an official UVA Inaugural Walk and may have converted some Cvillians to the cult that is VOLKSSPORTING.

            This “noncompetitive sport” is awesome in that you get to experience some beautiful, scenic routes on a selected 5 or 10k course. But that’s just it… walking to earn a stamp or a “merit patch” that the real “noncompetitors” wear all over their jackets. Terri apparently did the walk early in the morning and I was a little disappointed I didn’t get to run into her (walk into her… gotta love “noncompetition sports”). I signed up to work the road “race” from 10am-2pm and got paired with my AFC friendly face Michelle who teaches cycling classes on Wednesdays! It was fun hanging out with her, and we got a beautiful spot right at the corner of University and Rugby by a lilac tree.

           It was a little cold in the morning, and all we had to do was stand there and smile at the passersby (which quickly became few and far between) and tell them to cross the street in front of the Rotunda in case they couldn’t read the maps. But there were dogs, occasional babies, Tug for the Town fratstars, sorawrity girls in too weather inappropriate short dresses, texts about last night, and great conversation to keep my mind preoccupied. Around noon we had a car drop us off a burger each and some cookies and I got a cupcake surprise visit from Joe!

            P.S. Sorry for the “everywhereness” of this blog. And for the whole not actually taking part in the running of a race… I have self diagnosed myself to have exercise-induced urticaria and refuse to run unless I really have/want to. But I supported it so it counts!

“Walking is the best possible exercise. Habituate yourself to walk very far.” – Thomas Jefferson

#55: Play an IM Sport

1^st Year, Fall: Dan Allen organized an indoor soccer team and Jon recruited me as the token girl. Unfortunately, we didn’t know the rules about the guy: girl ratio and I ended up having to play the whole time while we played a man down. We lost EVERY game, but I definitely got to know Dan, Nick, and Mo better!

3^rd Year, Spring: San Sal Sluggers softball team with my Bahamas crew!

4^th Year, Spring: The Price is Right softball team!!

·        Pitcher: Charlotte

·        Catcher: Joe

·        1^st: Lauren

·        2^nd: Kelly

·        Short: Sam

·        3^rd: Kelly Ann

·        Right: me!

·        Right Center: Jon

·        Left Center: Jade

·        Left: Dave

·        New Addition: Alex

     We pretty much had the best season EVER: 3-0! Well, we essentially slaughtered the first team (Statistically Significant), got snowed out the second game (but still got a win!) and won by forfeit the third! We probably would have been great contenders in the championship games, but Jon forgot to go to the mandatory playoff meeting so we aren't allowed to participate anymore and lost our shot at the coveted IM Championship T-shirt that the girls were never given a chance to play for (this is for when Joe makes some snide comment about how he already has the t-shirt).

        Hopefully we can have a team barbeque next week with a picture to come!

“Go hard every play. You don’t want to leave anything behind and regret it years down the road that you didn’t give it all when you could have.”

--Ashley DeBuhr, pitcher, Univ. of Nebraska



#49: Make an Appointment at UCS

They tell you when you’re a first year: take advantage of all the resources around you! Go to UCS and talk about your future! Well, I went to Bryan Hall today, and the woman I first talked to didn’t even know what UCS was- ooooh athletes. (When you go into Bryan, turn left to get to University Career Services. The right side is athletics, and they don’t want to talk to you if you look like a normal person.)

After just a couple of minutes, I met this really nice guy named Aaron who apologized for making me wait! He was super friendly and tried to be helpful, but honestly all he could help me with on my resume was to point out one parenthesis that I hadn’t bolded. And then he basically said my cover letters were great! It only took 15 minutes of my life, but I left there wondering why I am still jobless [never having even gotten an interview for the dozen jobs I’ve applied for] if what I’m doing in my applications is actually pretty top notch.

Oh, ok fate. It’s one of those "it's not me, it’s you" things.

#38: Witness the Purple Shadows on Jefferson's birthday

            You know what? I tried my best. I asked off work a week early so that I could go see the Purple Shadows on the Lawn “sometime before dawn” on Thomas Jefferson’s birthday. I woke up at 5:35 and was walking toward the Lawn with Charlotte a little before 6am. When we were walking up the Lawn, I knew something was wrong. There were pictures being taken, but not of people. It was still very dark, but the Purple Shadows had already come and gone and left their wreath by the Jefferson statue. Rumor has it they arrived around 5:20, nearly an hour and a half before actual sunrise. Happy birthday TJ, I know you must support Dunkin Donuts for all the fourth years who dejectedly sought solace in fatty pastries after a disappointingly early morning.

            Here’s a link to a movie someone shot last year of the Purple Shadows in case you’re curious…and The Honor Men poem where they got the name.

The Honor Men
The University of Virginia writes her highest degree on the souls of her sons. The parchment page of scholarship-the colored ribbon of a society-the jeweled emblem of a fraternity-the orange symbol of athletic prowess-all these, a year hence, will be at the best mementos of happy hours-like the withered flower a woman presses between the pages of a book for sentiment's sake.
 
But...

If you live a long, long time, and hold honesty of conscience above honesty of purse:
 
And turn aside without ostentation to aid the weak;
 
And treasure ideals more than raw ambition;
 
And track no man to his undeserved hurt;
 
And pursue no woman to her tears;
 
And love the beauty of noble music and mist-veiled mountains and blossoming valleys and great monuments-
 
If you live a long time and, keeping the faith in all these things hour by hour, still see that the sun gilds your path with real gold and that the moon floats in dream silver;
 
Then...
 
Remembering the purple shadows of the lawn, the majesty of the colonnades, and the dream of your youth, you may say in reverence and thankfulness:

"I have worn the honors of Honor, I graduated from Virginia"  -- James Hay Jr.

#97: Go to a CIO's Cultural Event

   <thedailygreen.com>

            Anthropology classes teach you that culture is a pattern of shared goals, beliefs, language, food etc that characterizes a group. Since I signed on to the major in the second semester of my second year, my cultural group has revolved around Environmental Science.  In labs and class we eat and breathe it. And one of my favorite pastimes of this culture is the springtime ESO Barbecue.

            The Environmental Science Organization sets this up every spring with funds from who knows where and amazing student volunteers who help prepare a beautiful spread of veggies, cookies, chips and buns. Professors traditionally grill the burgers, hotdogs, and veggie burgers for the students- which is just too fun! Dave Smith was grillin today! This afternoon was the perfect break in between the flash thunderstorms that have and will be wrecking C-ville for a large portion of the rest of the week. I know it's a bit of a stretch... but I'd rather play by my own rules at this point. After all, I think Envi Sci culture should maintain the title of grilling to perfection.

"The noblest of all dogs is the hot-dog; it

feeds the hand that bites it." – Lawrence  J. Peter.

#98: Volunteer at the UVA Community Garden

            Long lost 80° sunshine, welcome home! It was the perfect weather for a break from my astronomy reading to doing something much more grounded: gardening. I’d signed up for the UVA Community Garden mailing list the night before and received an email that Monday was going to be a terrific workday, so I headed over to the gardening corner at Alderman and McCormick (across the street from Ohill).

            They put me right to work pulling winter growth and I realized I despise gardening even more than I wither in the kitchen! When you go, prepare to get dirty. My feet are caked in dirt and it’s all up in my fingernails with hopes of an overstayed vacation there. At least the site is somewhat shaded at that point in the afternoon, so even though you will work up a sweat, the heat isn’t intolerable.

            The garden, however, is thriving. Started pretty recently (I’m guessing sometime in the Obama era when Michelle brought a lot of focus on the White House Garden) as a student enterprise, the garden produces potatoes, broccoli, lettuce, and herbs, and I’m sure a greater variety of vegetables although that is what was helped to be planted today! I asked one of the leaders what was done with the produce, and she said that volunteers are able to take it home; in the summer when there are fewer volunteers, veggies go to a UVA kitchen or a soup-kitchen deal in Charlottesville for the less fortunate. What I respect more than anything is that the leaders didn’t know that this volunteer opportunity was put on the List of 111 Things, and they’re so grateful for the help anyway!

            If you're interested in helping out, the garden community will be working every Monday and Friday from 3-5 during the remainder of the semester!

“Many things grow in the garden that were never sown there.” – Thomas Fuller

#81: Witness a Probate

            I seriously thought my window of opportunity was closed because I hadn’t witnessed a probate yet. In fact, I didn’t even know what a probate was until this year, and I’m not sure how much you could characterize a “typical” probate since the fraternities and sororities are all so different!

According to Urban Dictionary, a probate is:

The "coming out" ceremony for those who were pledging… normally includes masks covering the faces of those who were pledging until they are revealed as the newest member… other Greeks will show up, especially those of that sorority or fraternity that the probate is of and their sorors and brothers from other schools as well as their own. Other occurances at a probate are: reciting the Greek alphabet, acknowledging your big sisters or big brothers, the announcement of the line name and ones individual line name.

            Not knowing what to expect, I found this to be pretty accurate. On the steps of Old Cabell Hall, Charlotte and I watched the initiation of two “Always Excellent Alpha Epsilon” caballeros to La Unidad Latina Lambda Upsilon Lambda fraternity INCORPORATED! They came out in hoods and masks and had to speak in grunting, painfully apelike voices rehearsed responses to probed questions by their superiors. There was a lot of freestyling, step motion, and even popular song singing with the words changed to fit the occasion.

            One of the longer parts of the whole ceremony involved #1 and #2 shouting out to other fraternities and sororities that were there who gave their individual calls in response. My favorite was a frat whose call began with the Lion King tribal cry! My other favorite was how at the end of shouting out to individual frats/sorors they said “con cariño y respecto” with a little bow, but when they shouted out to the other Greek members of the IFC that were not multicultural, they left that little part off. Loved it.

             After they introduced themselves, their hoods and masks were removed and the strange necklaces they were wearing reminiscent of Survivor immunity tokens were revealed and they got a brother T-shirt to wear. This was such a cool way to spend the day, and I was really appreciative that unlike other frats/sororities this particular group chose to advertise via Facebook. They truly wanted to spread cultural awareness and involve other people, just as the frat description says. Kudos to the new members!

“Frat guys are SUPER trustworthy, and that is a very important quality to have in a group of people that you black-out around on a regular basis. Without that trust, who really knows what would happen!” – Top Reasons to Join a So-Rawr-ity video

#50: Take Back the Night

http://www.takebackthenight.org/

            Take Back the Night began in the 1970s in America as a retort to government suggestions for women to stay indoors for their safety after dark. Now it’s largely an organization dedicated to men and women standing up and speaking out about sexual violence.

            Thursday night, Molly and I went to the vigil in the Amphitheater. I’d be willing to say there were over 300 people there with candles to support the victims of violence who spoke out about their heartbreaking experiences with sexual abuse from behind a curtain. The stories were all different: about sexually abusive stepfathers, molesting cousins, physically and emotionally abusive relationships, random rapes, and even a gay man being pressured into sex. It was a rather depressing night compared to some, but it was really important for me to show support to the individuals affected by sexual violence (1 in 4 college women) and to learn more about the TBTN program.

“Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.” - Plato

#67: Attend a Student Theater Production

                                                                http://artsuppliesonline.com/blog/paintingtherosesred.jpg

            Because of the ubiquitous amount of choir rehearsals we’ve been having, I’ve been walking by the Old Cabell quite a bit lately. This week the South end of the Lawn was strewn with red and white roses with little notes on them that said The War of the Roses is Coming… it was all very Alice in Wonderland meets history in a sneak attack, yet I didn’t know what it meant until I saw the flyer in Ohill today: it was a Shakespeare play.

            Lucky for me, my night was open, so I tromped through the puddles to get to the SAB. The Shakespeare on the Lawn group has been anticipating this performance that was three years in the making due to the amalgamation of three separate Shakespearean plays into one. The story surrounds the White Yorks and the Red Lancasters in treachery, scandal, and battle over who should rule England (and, at times, France). The play was FABULOUS and the actors and actresses were SO talented with incredible amounts of lines to learn due to doubling and Shakespeare’s verbosity. There was carnage and lust and several comedic parts (which I always love) that kept me SO entertained despite taking a little time at the beginning to be able to recognize the characters and to distinguish what was going on in the historical reference frame.

            Like I said, the show was amazing and I had an incredible time watching it! My only complaint was the length… I left after the second intermission right as Henry VI denied his son the right to the throne and left it in the future of Richard Plantagenet. That was over two hours after it began…but honestly, like I said, that’s Shakespeare’s fault. Shakespeare on the Lawn, I commend thee!

            If you’re interested, please go to the SAB every night this weekend (through the 10^th) at 8pm, you won’t be disappointed! Plus the actors play music at intermission, it’s all great fun.

“I will make it felony to drink small beer” (Henry VI, 4.2.50)

#89: Chalk for your favorite CIO

             My VWC ladies at the Trichoral formal last year: Sarah, Mary Adams, Hannah, Kristen

TOMORROW, Saturday April 9 is my final chorus concert and one of my last times singing with the Virginia Women’s Chorus! If you happen to read this, please come out at 3:30 to Old Cabell Hall. I’ll probably cry, but the music isn’t all sappy…it’s probably the most enjoyable concert for a student we have ever had with upbeat songs and music you’ll recognize like “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” and songs from “Adiemus!” 

This is my favorite CIO fo sho and I’ve totally chalked for it before (although not for this concert...but you can still see our chalkings in the form of hot air balloons around Grounds!). I’m going to miss it so much L

#11: Watch a UVA sporting event to which you’ve never been

            Last Saturday I woke up early to go to the women’s club rugby game!... Conveniently held in Mad Bowl ON Rugby. Jon and Joe were there to support some of the amazing women we’ve befriended over the years, and I am sorry that I’d never been to a match before! The entirety of the game I was just amazed at the beauty and skill that goes into handling the ball in this rough sport. My only memory of rugby is asking my dad if I should go out for a team to try something new at the beginning of college: he literally laughed at me.

            Ning, Amber, Rosa, Danielle, Sharon, you guys were BEASTS out there! UVA took on Princeton and wooped them. I won’t soon forget Bryce and little Turner blowing the vuvuzela, the dogs running around, or the loads of food that were being given away for a small donation. The day was chilly so the boys and I went to Dunkin Donuts to warm up after a 40 minute half (I don’t know how they tackle and run so long!). I still don’t know too much about rugby, but Joe taught me enough about the scrum, horizontal passing, and scoring for me to want to learn and watch more.

"I may not have been very tall or very athletic, but the one thing I did have was the most effective backside in world rugby." - Jim Glennon

#35: Stargaze at Open Observatory Night on Ohill

           On the first and third Fridays of the month, the McCormick Observatory is open for Public Night between 9pm and 11pm. I figured that they would just open the doors and lead you to figure things out for yourself, but was pleasantly surprised to find my astronomy professor in the large room with the 26-inch Alvan Clark Refractor! It was pretty cloudy, so the viewing wasn’t great, but Professor Murphy instructed us that the light we were looking at (from whichever nebula it was…I can’t remember) was just reaching us after shining in 700 BC. THAT is something I will not forget.

            Back in the main building the room with the projector was surprisingly packed with people, even more surprisingly with children (it was nearing my bedtime after all). There was an educator there too doing the “grapefruit Sun” demonstration which compares the distance and size of a “sprinkle Earth” in a model display. The kids loved those orange and blue sprinkles.

            Kimberly, Heather and I then moved outside to the smaller telescopes and caught a glimpse of Orion’s nebula and a very faint binary star system that revealed a star you couldn’t see with the naked eye. The TA’s up there scoffed at us when Heather said to “stay warm,” and I knew exactly how they felt because Joe and I had had a 2 hour lab up here in 19° weather! On the mountain, this 45° was balmy.

            I still maintain that the best part of the observatory is the view… I never knew Charlottesville was so pretty at night (the main picture at the top is of the city lights, not star systems haha). The beauty and culture of this night somehow led us back to watch and make fun of New Moon: not quite astronomically related but perhaps just as entertaining!

  “Metaphor for the night sky: A trillion asterisks and no explanations.” -- Robert Brault

#46: Eat a picnic on the Lawn

      

       After a chillingly cold weekend, today was a GORGEOUSly sunny albeit windy 85°. To celebrate a more relaxed working week, Joe and I grabbed some Little Johns sandwiches and my sunflower blanket and had a lovely picnic lunch under my favorite Lawn tree! Jefferson would have loved our debate over the merits of the perfect dog, and after the boy went to class I got some reading done while having to remove the same rather large spider from my body four times.

“I've liked lots of people 'til I went on a picnic jaunt with them.” -- Bess Truman

#72: Get your art on at First Fridays downtown

                                                                   OMG we love art!

           After stuffing myself with dollar tacos, great company, and Arch’s, I was already an extremely happy girl on Friday! But it was also a big day in getting rid of things on the list. It was April fools on top of being a First Friday, and Heather and I went on a few excursions to make the best of it! Stop number one took us on the crazy trolley lady’s trolley headed downtown to the art galleries.

            Now I’m still not sure how many galleries there are on the downtown mall, but I do know we hit up at least two of them. On the first Friday of every month, the art galleries in this Cville strip open their doors to the public for mingling with local artists and enjoying the works with light refreshments provided. Our first stop was BozART; the artist Cindy Ferreira was featured throughout most of the gallery and Heather and I loved her because she had several paintings of local Charlottesville sights such as the Downtown strip, lawn rooms, Jefferson’s gardens at Monticello etc.

            We also made it to C’ville Arts: a Cooperative Art Gallery better known for the “bejeweled” sofa sitting outside of it. This place was much more eclectic and had a greater variety of knickknacks than paintings that really drew my eye. They also had matted photographs by Heather’s fave Jack Cacciotore who captures UVA Grounds so stunningly.

            I had so much fun going out of my normal Friday routine and doing this with a friend! Charlottesville is really known for its artsy locale, and it’s easy to forget when you spend so much time on JPA haha.

"What if, Laurel, all that you had to look forward to were the things that are free, like sunrises, wagging tails, holding hands, and your imagination. Would it all be worth it?

Probably."

-- The Universe

#53: Groove to jazz at Miller’s

            A hop, skip, and a jump from the trolley stop at the Downtown Mall, Miller’s is completely unique as a bar hotspot. I’m sure it also benefits a lot from the support of students who flock to Miller’s in order to fulfill their History of Jazz concert report requirements. That was how I first came to learn about the place second year when Joe took me on a jazz date! Although the tiny fishbowl window supports live music every night (this bar is where Dave Matthews first got started!), jazz is only played on Wednesdays and Thursdays from about 11pm on. (we made that mistake trying to go back way too early for the second time).

            This year I am taking jazz, and Joe and I got around to getting out last cold, blustery night. Second year had been super crowded and we’d had to cram upstairs because of all the last minute paper writers! But last night was mildly empty, with only a few older couples and sneezing old men who packed up their half-eaten food or threw it out to our dismay. Food is not served after 10 pm, but as a general rule the food looks amazing on the menu, and Miller’s hosts great happy hour specials like $1 fries and half off chicken tenders! They also have (or at least used to) a giant nacho challenge where if you ate them by yourself in under an hour you got them for free!

            The thing about us getting older, this time, is that we were able to enjoy the drinking atmosphere that envelops the old building! There’s an extensive drink menu that can be found online, and the beer selection was (in my uneducated opinion) outstanding! He got a Rogue Dead Guy Ale followed by Long Trail Double Bag while I sunk deep into a rather large Bahama Mama at the bar. Right around 11, Thompson & D’earth went on and as usual, blew my mind. I’ve had jazz on my brain all week because of an exam and visiting my grandmother, and I won’t be able to get it out again! When you go, be sure to tip the band because there’s no cover charge and I’m pretty sure the musicians make next to nothing, and they are just SO talented. 

“By and large, jazz has always been like the kind of a man you wouldn’t want your daughter to associate with” - Duke Ellington