Summer Reading

For those of you looking for some good books, I've been trying to review my reading this summer (mostly as a way to stay sharp for the school year and keep busy when I'm not at work). Check out the reviews on my ePortfolio here (there's only a few right now, but there's more to come!).

Leave a comment if you've read the books and disagree!

-Kaitlyn
kt.ohagan@gmail.com

Heat Wave & Harry Potter

Ugh. NYC summers. Usually great, but man it has been WAY too hot. And of course, now that it's finally cool enough (how sad is it when 90 is cool?) to go to the beach without being burnt to a crisp, it's overcast and supposed to rain tomorrow!? Bummer.

On a happier note, I got an email from one of my Professors for next term earlier this week. Professor Quinby was writing to let us know what the first book we were going to use for her class was, so we could order it, and perhaps start reading it! Perhaps it is a sign of my extreme nerdiness that I found this news exciting, and I suppose it's a bit strange given how just last week I was complaining that summer vacation was already halfway over. But I'm just REALLY looking forward to this class. A Macaulay central course called "Imagining the End of the World," it's an English class about post-apocalyptic literature - and I LOVE post-apocalyptic books, movies, TV shows etc. I've probably said this before, but one of my favorite books is The Stand by Stephen King. I'm not usually into zombies, but that may be changing - I'm super excited for The Walking Dead season 2, starting in October! And Professor Quinby is an amazing Professor. I took "Sexuality and American Culture" with her my freshman year. Her class was extremely challenging, but she was incredibly supportive, and I enjoyed attending every class because I knew that I was going to gain something valuable from it. I left the course with a sense of pride and accomplishment, and not only increased content knowledge, but strongly developed skills in writing and analyzing text. That's what every college class should be like - and many of mine have been - but few at the same level as Sexuality and American Culture. Imaging the End of the World should be fun :)

But until I get closer to the start of the Fall term, I'm continuing with my summer reading. Right now I'm smack dab in the middle of rereading the Harry Potter series. I forget what a wonderful storyteller Rowling is, and how much I love these books. And reading them now is interesting, since I'm at a different point in my life when I read the series when I was even just a few years younger. And the series is so rich with detail that I've caught tons of things I missed the first 50 times around ;)

I'm actually looking forward to getting to the 6th and 7th books - I've only read the 6th twice and the 7th once! (I know - blasphemous!) But enough of my Harry Potter rant.

Stay cool -

Kaitlyn
kt.ohagan@gmail.com

PS - Harry Potter and post-apocalyptic fiction aren't completely unrelated - check out this thesis paper by a Macaulay Honors College student, "Reading Harry Potter as Post-apocalyptic Fiction!"

Relax and Drink Some Water!

Hey Everybody. I have not posted in quite some time and honestly, I am not that good at this blogging thing. But, as a part of a promise to myself to turn over a new leaf, I will be posting at least once a week on the blog and just writing - not over-thinking! Over-analyzing demonstrates that one can think logically and has an lively mind, but it sure can be distracting at times and really annoying. Sometimes you just have to stop thinking, and that doesn't mean not doing an internship or not taking classes or going on vacation. Lots of thinking can go on during even those leisure times and somehow still make you tired even after time off from commitments. This is the best lesson I have learned during my three years at Macaulay and I thought I would share my words of wisdom (if you can call it that) to those who read this amazing blog. =)

I have been doing a lot of reassessing of my life lately (in a positive way) and I am rather content about how things are going. I am more productive, more motivated and happier than I was even a few months ago. It takes a lot of time to grow to like oneself but it is crucial in my eyes. If you are content with yourself and can accept your mistakes, you will be able to make others happy and do the things you wished you had done but never got around to doing. And trust me, my senior year is going to be filled to the brim with volunteer work and an internship and club activities! But it is also going to have times of meditation and reflection upon how college is almost over and how I am excited for the future.

I have always been happiest when I feel I am getting somewhere and becoming a better person. I guess what I mean to say is relish your accomplishments and relax so that you can move on to the next thing.

I will be blogging more about my life and my activities for those who probably forget who I am because it has been a little while since I last blogged. >.< But hey, I am here now. That's all that matters!

Stay cool during this heat wave and drinks loads and loads of water. There is no such thing as too much water in 100 degree weather! At times like this, I wish New York was like Rome and had fountains spouting spring water on street corners so that we could all refill our water bottles and avoid dehydration.

Halfway done already...

In honor of Harry Potter 7 Part 2 (which I saw at midnight Thursday - so awesome!), I'll begin my post with a Dumbledore quote:

"Time is making fools of us again."

Time is certainly making a fool of me at least. How is it that the summer is already half over!? :(
At least I've been enjoying myself (although Jury Duty next Wednesday will potentially kill that).
Hopefully I'll be done quick, since I have a week long vacation planned at the beginning of August, and I want to get as much beach and frisbee playing time in while I can.

As for my other summer goals, it's a mixed bag of success. The closest I've come to trying to learn how to knit/crochet is reading The Knitting Club. However, I have managed to start a blog of sorts - more cleaning up my eportfolio and trying to incorporate posts from here, as well as work from classes that I have posted online. However, I've also been working on reviewing each of the books I've been reading this summer. So far only my review of The Blind Assassin is up, but I'll be adding more soon, since I've been devouring books like crazy! (Another one of my summer goals met :)

Next on my list: the Harry Potter series. It's time to relive the magic.

Earlier this week I found out I'd been selected to volunteer at the Macaulay orientation, on Outward Bound day! I'm super excited to meet all of you incoming freshmen :)

Kaitlyn (kt.ohagan@gmail.com)

Giving Back

I think this blog has sufficiently proven how incredibly talented and driven the students at Macaulay Hunter are. Mike is a certified EMT working at a hospital. Katherine has a research assistantship with the Dean. Jemi's interning at a marine biology lab. OK, what can't these kids do?! But in all seriousness, I find that the biggest change from high school to college was the atmosphere. In high school it was cool not to care and hang out with your friends every day but it's a totally different scene in college. Students actually care about learning, want to find a passion and are engaged in current issues. It's actually really inspiring. My peers were one of the reason I took up volunteering at Beth Israel this summer.

I wanted to do nursing but to be honest I'm not the strongest person in science and my biggest reason for considering nursing was to help people and job security. For me it was about 4 years of college, getting my RN license, and going out to save the world, one patient at a time. It was a clear and direct path. There was no room for leeway. Don't get me wrong, I'm still very interested in health care because I believe that every person has the right to "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" which includes being in good health. Although I won't be doing nursing, it doesn't necessarily mean that I won't end up in health care. From talking to people at Beth Israel, I found that the people who work there now didn't initially have a plan to work there and somehow life led them to where they are now. One of the secretaries majored in finance and worked in a few firms but ended up in Beth Israel where he doesn't deal with finances a lot. It's hard to say what the future has in store. To me, the future isn't set in stone so you might not necessarily end up where you intended to be.

My advice to incoming students? Find your passion. Follow it and see where it takes you. Because if you love what you do, then there's no doubt that you will be happy doing it and that kind of attitude is always welcome in the workplace.

Hi Everyone!

Hello! My name is Michael and this is my first time posting. I am an incoming sophomore to Macaulay Honors College at Hunter College. I'm majoring in both Psychology and Religion and have plans to, eventually, obtain a Doctor of Psychology degree in grad school. I am also an EMT-B and work for a hospital-based FDNY 911-participating service. I have a love for both humanistic psychology and healing, as well as emergency medicine, and the relatively young, fast growing EMS sector feels like a second home to me. Working for such a prestigious 911-participating hospital is more than a great opportunity-- it is a privilege. I love going to school in Manhattan almost as much as I love working EMS in Manhattan, and living in this city is a treat in itself.

The best way I can describe my summer is transitory. My freshman year at Hunter was a very fast-paced and exciting one. I took a lot of time to experiment with different classes and majors until I felt like I had really found my calling, which is psychology (specifically crisis counseling). I also took a lot of time to find out who I was as a person. I went, like most of my classmates, from living with my parents and having everything provided to me in one way or another to living in one of the biggest cities in the world on my own.

I loved it. I was enthralled from day one. There I was-- smack in the middle of New York City, opportunities abound, a new friend around every corner, and a life full of excitement and growth to be had. Was this romanticized view I carried with me realistic in retrospect? Yes, it was. That's not to say I didn't have my share of disappointments or boring nights. The key to it all was healthy balance. I had some friends who would go out every night and some who wouldn't go out at all. I knew that I had to keep my priorities in order. If I had work to do and needed to stay in to finish it, that was just the way it had to be. But when I went out I had my fair share of fun. I really started to discover Manhattan my second semester, once I had settled down and gotten in the swing of things. I can't wait to go back in the fall and continue.

College life in Manhattan, at least for me, isn't all about partying or studying or some combination of the two. What made my first year here so interesting was the independence and sense of empowerment that fills you as you take part in any and all activities in this city, and I still carry that with me. Whether I am studying alone quietly in a Starbucks, enjoying dinner with a group of friends, on a date at one of the cozy bakeries in the village, in class at Hunter, writing or reading in my room, or on an ambulance rushing to a 911 call at work, I always find myself stopping in whatever moment and thinking "Wow. How nice this all is." There is nothing particularly interesting or exciting about my life that makes it better than anyone else's; I am not trying to boast. It is simply this mentality that has taken ahold of me and has made living in Manhattan such a gratifying and deeply satisfying experience.

My summer has been transitory because I am getting used to this life. I've devoted a significant amount of time this summer to meaningful rest and relaxation. I decided to put off the summer class I had considered taking in order to more comprehensively integrate all that I had experienced into my being and sense of wellness. I got the Manhattan 911 EMS job which, to be honest, is the opportunity of a lifetime for a 19 year old kid in college. That I am very proud of and I owe that to my mentors and my strong past in EMS. It has also allowed me to use my Spanish (my mother is Cuban) in real life, finally!

Other than that, and reconnecting with old friends, I have compiled a reading list (on my new nook that I got for my birthday!) that has deepened my understanding of all sorts of consciousness, psychology, the human heart, healing, and emergency medicine. I've also taken a LOT of time to meditate and practice mindfulness. I joined a gym and have been investing more in physical wellness. I've also accepted an opportunity graciously offered to me to study and learn Reiki (Japanese touch-based therapy), something I hope to deeply incorporate into my emergency work and my own life, and have been preparing myself mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually for the new paradigm of healing that I will soon be learning.

Although this summer is almost half over I feel that I have accomplished a lot because I have been able to truly relax and contemplate my life as it has been, as it is, and as I would like it to be. Manifestation is such a powerful thing, and once I discovered my own channels of manifestation and invested in them with patience, gratitude, and a sense of compassion for humanity, I've found that my life has begun to move around my sense of control over it, and that is simply empowering.

For anyone who is going into their freshman year at Hunter, let this be a reminder to you to have fun and go at your own pace. Do what is right for you. Keep an eye on your work and don't slip up, but also allow yourself to grow and experience life as a person, not only as a student. Manhattan is a great place for that. For anyone considering Hunter, know that this is not a traditional campus experience, but the life that you can build in Manhattan for yourself is virtually limitless with the right attitude and work ethic.

I look forward to writing more once I have more to write about!

Michael.

Summer Heat

Hey guys, sorry for such a long hiatus in posting!

The end of my last semester was a little hectic, but it ended really well - I had my first 4.0 semester! Since all of my classes were really challenging, I feel really proud about having pulled A's or better in each of them. This year really marked a turning point for me. I had always done well in my classes, but something just seemed to click this semester. Maybe it was my summer in Germany that gave me a boost in my German, or maybe I've read enough literary theory and have strong enough convictions in certain theories (feminism and marxism, particularly) that literary analysis seems more natural to me. Or maybe it's just part of being immersed in academia for 3 years. In any case, I felt like I really pushed myself to a new level academically this semester, and it paid off!

So far, my summer has been really exciting! I spent two weeks in Europe in June - one week in London, and one in Paris. I really fell in love with both cities, which was especially satisfying for London, since the first time I went there I had a less than stellar experience. I had just shaved my head a week before I left, and Londoners, who are more conservative than I had expected, weren't exactly friendly to me. I assume it had to do with my hair, since this time, with about 8 inches more hair, everyone was perfectly pleasant. And Paris is...Paris. What could I possibly say that would even come close to encapsulating my experience in Paris? All I'll say is that I can't wait to go again!

At the end of May, I started my research assistantship with Dean Kirschner, along with two other Macaulay students. Working with her has been a pleasure - not only intellectually, but it's always pleasant when you realize that people whom you look up to and admire are totally down-to-earth, and value your input as much as you value theirs. Even though we're helping her research for her book, she's created an environment in which I feel like we're equals. And the research is turning out to be really interesting and rewarding! I'm not sure how much I'm allowed to talk about, but at the very least, she's writing about Josephine Marcus Earp, the wife of Wyatt Earp. I never much cared about the "Wild West" or cowboys, so I'm really pleasantly surprised to find how engaging the subject is!

Other than that, I'm just trying to enjoy my last week before my class - Intro to Cultural Anthropology - starts on the 14th. Not that I won't enjoy that, but being in class means no more sleeping until noon, and not as much staying out until 3 in the morning. So, until next Thursday, carpe diem!

Hope you all have a great weekend! Stay cool! (I'm trying desperately - an un-airconditioned dorm is not the most pleasant thing in the world...)

- Katharine