Summer So Far!

Hey everyone! SO sorry I haven't blogged in so long - I guess I've been enjoying my summer vacation too much!  Anyway, a long overdue congratulations to all the Class of 2012 high school (and college) graduates! Time flies, doesn't it? As I've said before, it's so hard to believe that just a year ago I was graduating high school and getting ready to go to college in the fall!

Having been home for about two months, I definitely miss things about being at school (most importantly my friends!), but I'm also appreciating all the time I've been able to spend with my family.  My mom and I have always been close, so I think she really likes having me home and I love being home with her! Also, my youngest brother Connell graduated from 6th grade, so he will be moving onto the middle school in the fall. So crazy to think that it's been seven years since I was in that position!
In other news, I've been babysitting a lot and having lots of fun with that.  Here are some cute picture I've taken with the two girls I babysit for most often:

Gracie wearing my glasses :)

One thing I learned from my freshman year is that especially in Burlington, there are many opportunities to spend, so I'm definitely trying to keep my shopping here in New Hampshire under control!  When I'm not babysitting, I've also been trying to read a lot. Since I've been home, I've read Catching Fire (the third Hunger Games book...this was my first time reading it), The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks (yes, it was better than the movie, although the movie was fantastic!), Harvesting the Heart by Jodi Picoult, The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks, and now I'm working on The Tenth Circle by Jodi Picoult.  As you can see, I like girly romance novels! :)  Next on the list is The Shallows by Nicholas Carr, which any Class of 2016 readers should be aware of!

At the end of June, my family went on our annual vacation to our timeshare in Rockland, ME.  Although it rained a lot, it was still nice to get away and enjoy lounging by the pool.  Here's a picture of Marshall Point Lighthouse, across from where we were staying:

I spent my 4th of July at home, but this past weekend I went to my best friend Paige's grandfather's house in Pennsylvania.  He lives right on the Delaware River, so we definitely took advantage of that by tubing, jet skiing, motor boating, and swimming.  I had never been to Pennsylvania before, so it was fun to see a new state and get to bond with Paige's family.

Lastly, here are a few nice things about Saint Mike's!
-A few weeks ago, I was looking at the list of books required for the classes I'm taking next semester and I was a little confused about the listing for my Gen Chem class, so I emailed my professor. She responded very quickly with a really nice note and made sure I knew that she was happy to answer any other questions I might have.

-The other day, I emailed another one of my professors that I'll have in the fall because the book requirement for the class wasn't listed online.  Again, I got a very nice, prompt response from my professor answering my question and encouraging me to speak up if I had any more.

-I have been thinking a lot about having my car on campus next semester and I finally called the Office of Public Safety today to see how the process works.  (I'm glad I did because even though there are instructions online, the person I talked to told me that the system is changing!)  The woman who answered the phone was so incredibly nice and reminded me of previous times when I've called Stephanie, the receptionist who works in the Hoehl Welcome Center.

All these things make me so excited to return to campus next month! 

That's all for now, hope everyone is doing well and enjoying the summer!
~Merrill

Catch Up!

Hey everyone! So sorry it's been so long since my last blog post! Since then, I've studied a lot for my finals, written a few papers, and finished my first year of college! I can't believe it! But the most exciting thing (which I previously promised to blog about) is that I went to a Christina Perri concert a few weeks ago!  It was at a small venue in Burlington called Higher Ground.  Needless to say, it was absolutely AWESOME and I am now obsessed with all of Christina's music! Here's a few pictures I got (we were so close!):

Even though there's a red tint from the lights, I absolutely LOVE this picture!

The entire night was great, including the opening act's performance.  They were a band called Sleeping at Last. Christina and SAL met because they both have songs on the movie soundtrack Breaking Dawn, which I totally love!  Check out this song called Dear True Love:

The lead singer Ryan explained to the audience that he never really got to say his vows when he got married, so he wrote them in a song instead.  What's even cooler is that all the lyrics are from/inspired by his favorite movies, including Toy Story 3 and Tangled.  Also, he was wearing a shirt with Mickey Mouse on it, so my friend Emma, being a Disney fanatic, was totally in love!

After the concert it was time to study like crazy.  Thankfully, I made it through and was successful on all of my finals!  My mom came to pick me up on Thursday, the day of my last final.  Here's a picture of the car with all my stuff in it:

Since being home, I've mostly just been relaxing, which has been so great!  I've spent some quality time with my friends from home and also went to my house in Maine with my mom for a few days.  In a few weeks, my college friends and I are going to take a trip to my Maine house which will be really fun because we all miss each other!

Earlier today I was cleaning out my desk drawers and found a bunch of letters that I received last summer from various people at SMC, such as my Orientation Leader, the Lit Choir director, and my lovely fellow blogger Alex.  It was so crazy to think that just a year ago I was getting ready to go to college.  Now that my first year is over, I'm happier than ever that I chose Saint Mike's and I'm so excited to go back next year! But first, I have a whole summer to enjoy at home :)

Don't hesitate to ask any questions about things you may be wondering about in terms of getting ready for the fall!  And congratulations to everyone who has chosen to be a part of the SMC Class of 2016 - we're so excited to have you in the fall!

Thanks so much for reading my blog and for those of you finishing up high school, good luck on all your exams and remember to appreciate the time you have left at home because you'll be starting a new chapter of your lives before you know it!

~Merrill

Update!

Hey everyone! Just wanted to give you an update on the past week.  This past weekend started off with the MLK Talent Show on Friday night.  I'd heard a lot about it during the year, so it was definitely something I didn't want to miss.  I'm so happy I went because it was totally awesome! Check out some of the awesome talent we have here at SMC:

This is Tim Nagy, one of my fellow first-years, performing Blackbird.

Here's a cover of Breakeven by The Script, one of my favorite bands!

The entire night was filled with talent and I'm so excited to see what next year's show will be like!


As you may know, last weekend was P-Day.  I actually worked it with a few of my friends which was really fun.  My friend Alex and I monitored one of the inflatable obstacle courses together.  It was so fun to watch everyone's excitement as they went down the slide at the end!  When we were allowed to take some breaks, we immediately went to the food tent, where there were tons of options, my favorites being The Skinny Pancake and Ben & Jerry's.

Alex, me, and Lauren enjoying the food tent!

Alex, me, Amelia, the other Alex (my blogger inspiration), and Cait, all ready to work!

After all the fun with food & inflatables, we had a few hours to relax and get ready for the rest of the evening, so a few of my friends and I decide to just chill and watch He's Just Not That Into You.  What a fantastic movie!
After the movie, it was time for the comedian.  SMC's very own Kit Rivers (check out her website here) performed and it was absolutely hilarious!  Afterwards, it was time for the craziest part of the day: MidKnight Breakfast in Alliot.  As soon as Kit's show was over, everyone headed over to Alliot to get some delicious breakfast food such as eggs, bacon, cereal, muffins, and much more.  Everyone was so crazy and happy.  Overall, P-Day ended up being a great day to relax and have fun before everyone settled in to study for finals, most of which are this upcoming week.

Last night my friends and I went to Burlington and tonight we're going to see a Christina Perri concert, so stayed tuned for a post about that!
As always, thanks for reading and have a great rest of weekend!

Happy Things

Hey everyone! Hope you all had a great week.  Mine went by so quickly - I can't believe it's already Friday!  This week was the last full week of classes, so everyone is getting ready for finals, which start next Friday.  So crazy to think that my first year of college is almost over!

Anyway, I wanted to share some of my favorite things from this past week.  On Monday, Emma, Vick and I caught up on the latest episode of Once Upon a Time, which is a show we all love.  Tuesday was definitely a library day for me.  At one point while working I looked out the window (I always make sure to get a spot by a window so I can look outisde occasionally and see the beautiful campus) and took this picture of the sunset:

It totally made my day and reminded me to appreciate how beautiful Vermont is!

On Wednesday I had Lit Choir, which is always a great time.  Also on Wednesday, my friends and I spent most of the day decorating our shirts for P-Day, which is this upcoming weekend.  P-Day stands for Preparation Day, which basically means it's a day for everyone to take a break from studying and relax before one of the craziest weeks of the semester.  My friends and I all love The Hunger Games, we decided to make that the theme for our shirts.  I will post a picture once they're all done soon!  But just so you get the idea, we decided to dye our shirts camo colors and write District 12 on the back, because obviously District 12 is the best, and it's 2012!  We're pretty happy with how our shirts are turning out.

One more thing about Wednesday!  My friend Vick unfortunately lost her phone, so she was a bit worried about that.  However, on Wednesday night we figured out where it was, so on Thursday we went to pick it up.  Someone had found her phone on the library lawn and picked it up and kept it safe.  Eventually we got everything straightened out and Vick got her phone back!  She was so relieved and happy that someone found her phone and immediately notified her they had it.  Just shows how nice the people at Saint Mike's are!

Thursday night means Zumba night for my roommate Emma and me!  We had a great time, and afterwards Emma decided she wanted to stop by Alliot to fill up her water bottle.  Once we got there, we both looked at each other questioningly because we had seen the waffle makers out and were thinking about having one.  We ended up splitting one and it was absolutely delicious!

As you can see, we put cinnamon sugar as well as powdered sugar on our waffles to make them taste even better.  In addition, I got some honey and dipped my waffle in it to see how it would taste because I used to always have honey in my waffles.  It was just as good as I remembered it and I was so happy!  I would've taken a picture of Emma and I to capture our happiness, but we were all sweaty and gross from working hard at Zumba, so we decided my readers could do with just a picture of our yummy food :)  Anyway, I would have to say last night was the best roomie date ever!

Today I don't actually have class because philosophy, which is my only class on Fridays, was cancelled since my professor is away at a conference.  I started the morning by having a relaxing breakfast in Alliot and then came back to my room and caught up on the latest episode of Private Practice with Emma.  Now I'm off to get some work done before my crazy weekend, which I'll be sure to blog about ASAP!

Hope everyone has a fantastic weekend, and thanks for reading, as always!
~Merrill

This Weekend!

Hey everyone! I had an absolutely fantastic weekend which isn't quite over yet, so I thought I'd tell you all about it!  Since SMC students didn't have class on Friday (due to the research day), my weekend started on Thursday night.  A few of my friends (Alex, Emma, and Vick) had a surprise birthday party for our friend Caitlin.  It took a lot of planning and a bit of stress, but we managed to pull it off!  We all worked together to get supplies, make cupcakes, and set up Eddie's lounge upstairs in Alliot.  Earlier in the afternoon, Vick, Emma, and I made cupcakes in the Center for Women and Gender which is a cute little house right on campus, fully equipped with a kitchen and various rooms for hanging out or studying.

So delicious!

Victoria washing dishes - future housewife?!

Once the cupcakes were done, we secretly brought them back to Vick's room and then went to dinner with Cait.  Since Emma and I go to Zumba every Thursday, we had to pretend that's what we were doing so Cait wouldn't suspect anything.  So we actually ate in our Zumba clothes and then pretended to leave.  Cait had plans to go to Ben & Jerry's with her friend Danny, so Emma and I waited until she was off campus, and then we proceeded to change into regular clothes and go decorate Eddie's.

Alex, Vick, and Emma blowing up balloons!

As we were finishing up our decorations, we spied Cait and Danny through the window of Eddie's, so we all prepared for Cait and Danny to walk through the door.  So nervewracking!

We learned later that when Cait saw the door, she actually said to Danny "We shouldn't go in there, someone's having a birthday party!"  But Danny encouraged her to go in anyway, and we all surprised her.  She was so excited and so were we!

The rest of the evening was spent opening presents, eating delicious cupcakes, and just hanging out.  It was so much fun!  One of the most exciting presents was the remote-control balloon shark that Alex, Emma, Vick, and I got Cait.  She decided to name it Karen, and you can see her flying it here!



So crazy and cool!

One of my favorite pictures from the night:

Danny, Alex, Shawn, Emma, me, and Cait

Overall, it was probably the greatest start to a weekend I could've asked for, but that was only the beginning!  Like I mentioned before, classes were suspended on Friday for a research day.  This means that a lot of different research was displayed, as well as my favorite part, some dance performances.  Alex is currently taking a dance class, so Emma, Vick, and I all went to watch her perform.  I'm sure she'll blog about it soon, so look for that!
Friday also marked the beginning of Family Weekend.  My parents didn't end up coming because I've seen them for the last two weekends in a row (since I went home for Easter and then went to Boston/home last weekend).  However, Alex and Cait's parents came!  I had met Alex's parents in August, so it was nice to see them again.  I had never met Cait's parents, so it was great to meet them because I've heard so much about them!

Saturday morning was really awesome, because I got to give my FIRST TOUR EVER!  Saturday was an Accepted Students Day, so all tour guides (new and old) were there to help out.  Cait and I gave a tour together, which was so fun.  The families on our tour were awesome and made me so excited to continue giving tours in the future!
After our tour, I did some homework and then went to Emma's chorale concert.  The theme was 100 Years of Broadway, which was awesome! Check out a video here:

Afterwards, Mike Check, one of the a capella groups on campus, performed as well.  They were awesome!

Following the Mike Check concert was the Dean's List Reception, specially for students who made the Dean's List last semester.  It was a very nice way to recognize students for all their hard work!

Alex, me, Cait, and Emma

After the reception, more fun awaited!  Alex's parents were nice enough to take Vick, Emma, and me out to dinner.  We went to The Three Tomatoes in Burlington.  It was absolutely delicious and it was so much fun to spend some time getting to know Alex's parents.

Since I had such an awesome time this weekend, today has been dedicated to homework.  I have a lot to do with finals coming up, but I'm happy with my progress - the library is so great for getting lots of work done!

It's almost time for dinner, and then Alex, Emma, and I will be going to Lit Choir at 5:30 to practice and then perform at Mass at 7.  I'm so excited!

Hope everyone had a fantastic weekend and thanks for reading my blog!
~Merrill

Living at Saint Mike's

Hey everyone! So yesterday I walked into the bathroom on my floor and was greeted by some lovely sticky notes on the mirror and door.  Here are some pictures:

This is just one indicator of the pure awesomeness of the girls who live on my floor.  My room and my floor have really become my home away from home this year, and I could not have asked for a better group of girls to share it with.  Although we only had floor meetings during the first semester, they were seriously some of the best times I've had at SMC.  Each meeting focused on a different topic and created great conversation that allowed us to become closer and learn things about each other that we hadn't known before.  I ended up sharing some things about myself that I never imagined I would've talked about in front of almost 30 girls.  The best part was that I didn't feel forced to talk, and I knew that everyone respected me for what I said.
As mentioned, we only had floor meetings during the first semester, but that doesn't stop us from socializing with each other!  One of my favorite parts of living on a floor (rather than in a secluded room with just my roommate) is the random interactions my floormates have with one another.  Last semester especially, most of us had our doors open all the time, which made it really easy to say hi and make connections with the people we lived with.  Now that many of us have established a group of friends, we spend a lot of our time with them.  However, I always love when conversations sporadically start when a few girls happen to be in the hallway at the same time.

While we're on the topic of where I live at school, I thought I'd show you a few pictures of my room!

Here's our door, decorated with a spring-colored paper chain! The sign says "Welcome to the Purple Palace" because Emma and I both love purple!  The white board says "Welcome home Merrill! We missed you!" since I was gone this past weekend. Such a great thing to come back to!

Here's my desk - where I do all the work I don't do in the library!

My mom got me a mattress pad at the beginning of the year, so I have to say this is the most comfortable bed in the whole world!  As you can, I really like to decorate my walls!



Here's my closet - lots of room as you can see! I have bed risers under my bed, so I take advantage of the storage space as well.

So there you have it! I absolutely love living in my room and with the girls on my floor!  Let me know if you have any questions about living at SMC.  Also, at the end of every tour there is a great video showing the different housing options we have, so be sure to check it out if you tour!  Thanks for reading, and have a great day! :)

PS Be sure to check out my friend Lauren's blog about the sticky notes!

A Week in the Life

Hello everyone! I'm all settled back in at school after my crazy weekend! If you read my last post, you'll remember that I went to Boston this weekend to visit my friend Val and go to a Hot Chelle Rae concert with her. I had SUCH ga reat time! But summer's not here yet, even if the beautiful weather today made it seem that way.  This morning I got up and went to class, just like a normal Monday. 
Before choosing a college, I know I wanted to get a glimpse into what a typical day would be like. So I decided I would share with my wonderful readers what a normal week looks like in the life of Merrill:

MONDAY

• Wake up around 8, get ready for breakfast at 9:15
• Intro to Philosophy class from 9:50-10:50

       Even though I had some philosophy in high school, this class has been particularly challenging for me.  The beginning of the semester started out smoothly, but unfortunately I did much worse on our first exam than I would've hoped.  However, I had talked to my professor about the situation and we brainstormed ideas for me to both do better on the next exam and earn some extra credit to bring my grade up.  You may remember from my last post that I did well on my most recent exam, so my extra effort paid off!

• Concepts of Chemistry from 11-12:50 (This is longer than a normal class period, but it's only held twice a week!)
• Lunch around 1:15
• Middle School Mentors (MSM) from 3:15~5:45

       MSM is a program sponsored by MOVE, which stands for Mobilization of Volunteer Efforts, the volunteer organization on campus.  At the beginning of the year, I applied to be a mentor and was accepted!  Every Monday afternoon, I mentor a middle school girl, which basically means we spend time together doing whatever she wants - from hanging out with her friends who also have mentors to doing things like painting our nails, watching tv, or coloring (who doesn't like to color?!).  I really enjoy my time with my mentee and feel good about giving back to the local community.

• Dinner (with my mentee) then more work until bedtime!

TUESDAY

• Wake up around 8, get ready for breakfast at 9:15 (so nice to be able to wake up at the same time every day!)
• Macroeconomics from 9:50-11:20 (with one of my favorite professors, Reza)

       One of the reasons I wanted to take econ was because Reza was a guest at all my floor meetings last semester and he seemed like he would be a really helpful professor.  Although econ has probably been my most challenging course this semester, I'm so happy I took it because Reza has taught me to think logically and ask for help when I need it.  I have really taken advantage of Reza's office hours this semester, which is something that all professors are required to have so that students can meet with their professors if needed.

• Aftermaths from 11:30-1

       Aftermaths is basically an English class, something I decided to take in order to fulfill one of the Liberal Studies Requirements (or LSRs) that Saint Mike's, being a liberal arts school, has their students complete.  The class gets its name from the fact that we study the aftermaths of 9/11, Hurricane Katrina, and the Great Recession.  I wasn't sure I wanted to take this class, but it has actually ended up being my favorite class this semester.  I have really enjoyed just about all of the books we've read and the discussions we have in class are always interesting.  To be honest, I didn't talk much during class discussions in my English class senior year, but for whatever reason my Aftermaths class has really pushed me to be comfortable in expressing my ideas, which I'm very happy about!

• Lunch around 1
• Library, the place where I get the most work done, for the rest of the afternoon!
• Dinner, then more work until bed

       I never really spent much time in the library when I was in high school, but since being at college, it's my favorite place to get lots of work done.  I always go to my favorite spot on the third floor to work.  There's just something magical about that desk that helps me get so much done!

WEDNESDAY

• Same class schedule as Monday!
• After class, I usually go to the library until dinner at 6
• Liturgical Choir at 6:30 - one of my favorite times of the week!

       I always have a blast at Lit Choir.  We practice every Wednesday for an hour in preparation for Sunday Mass.  Everyone there, including the choir director, Jerome, is so nice.  I never thought I could have such a good time at church, and find myself looking forward to Wednesdays every week!  Also, one of the most exciting parts of Lit Choir is our annual trip.  Every year Lit Choir/Band goes on a tour of sorts, usually to New York City/New Jersey or the Boston area.  This year, we went to two high schools and two churches in Portland, Maine.  My family has a house not too far from Portland, so my mom was able to stay at our house and then attend one of the Masses we performed at, which was awesome!
       Overall, the trip was really tiring (we didn't get too much sleep because of all the fun we had) but so amazing and I can't wait to go again next year!!

Here's the whole group at one of the high schools we sang at.  Like the "Nun Better" in the background? :)

  

Some of my wonderful Lit Choir friends - Amelia, Emma, and Alex (and me on the end!)

THURSDAY

• Same class schedule as Tuesday!
• After dinner, I go to Zumba from 6:30-7:45

       I'm not a huge fan of exercise, but Zumba is SO MUCH FUN!  The instructor always has a great music for us to dance to.  Here's one of my favorite Zumba songs:

FRIDAY (One of my favorite days of the week!)

• Wake up around 8, breakfast at 9:15
• Intro to Philosophy from 9:50-10:50
• FREEDOM! (Since philosophy is my only class on Fridays, I have the rest of the day to do whatever I wish!)
• Homework or other odd jobs in my room until lunch around 1:15, then back to homework for the rest of the day until dinner
• After dinner, my friends and I all do something together.  Depending on the weekend, this could be something as exciting as going into Burlington or just relaxing and watching movies in our room.  If we're not sure what we want to do, we alwyas have the option to go to one of the dorm socials that are held every weekend by different RA's.  The socials have activities ranging from different kinds of food to tye-dyeing to Easter Egg Hunts in the dorm buildings.

SATURDAY

• Hopefully sleep in!
• Brunch whenever we feel like it (usually around 11 or 12)
• Homework until dinner, then something fun just like Friday night!

SUNDAY

• Hopefully sleep in again, unless we decide we want to go out to breakfast.  My friends and I normally like to treat ourselves to breakfast in Burlington about once a month.  It's really nice to get off campus and have some delicious food out on the town!
• Homework until dinner (depending on how much I have)
• Dinner at 5
• Lit Choir practice at 5:30, then Mass from 7-8
• More homework or some relaxation before bed in order to get ready to do it all again!

So there you have it.  You should know that even though it may seem like I do homework every free second I have, I do find time to relax and have fun.  I'm currently reading Catching Fire, the second book in the Hunger Games series, so I definitely do my best to make some time for that.  Also, I have a few favorite TV shows that I never miss, which include: Grey's Anatomy, Private Practice, Once Upon a Time, and Make It or Break It.  My TV shows serve as great motivation for me to get my work done so that I can relax while I watch them.  It's a great way to de-stress after a long day of hard work!

Hope reading about my weekly schedule was helpful, and don't hesitate to ask me any questions by commenting at the bottom of this post!  Have a great week everyone!