However, Butler does have an awesome interlibrary loan system. Theoretically, I could get a book from Australia. I haven’t done that, but I’ve received my fair share of books from IU’s library.

Exploring the jungle.

Still, I’ll always have a soft spot for the library near my house–so near that I can walk to it. I have to go through the open spot in the fenced off dead-end of the street, traverse a bamboo forest, hop a drainage ditch, climb a hill of mulch, battle the far-reaching branches from the huge bushes, and dodge, Frogger-style, all the minivans in the parking lot. But I can walk there.

I found a tree!

Sometimes I walk there with friends. Sometimes, that’s how I know summer has really started.

Sometimes, I fail to climb the tree.

I love to read. If my blog archives had not been cruelly ravaged/deleted (still in mourning), I would direct you to the approximately twenty books I reviewed at the end of last summer. This year has hit me particularly hard with reading for classes, so I haven’t had so much time for fun books.

I blame physics class, my long Irish literature paper, and the spring’s twenty-two credits hours and the nine credits of English class included in that count. I blame Emily Dickinson and the Romantic poets and Herman Melville and the giant Johns Hopkins Guide to Literary Criticism and Theory I read at night and over breakfasts.

Not that literary theory isn’t fun. I love throwing around words/phrases like “hermeneutical,” “accomplished nihilist,” and “always already.” It just tends to take me a good hour or so of research to understand the basic outline of the concepts used to describe lit theory. I love the wacked-out, odd-ball things text does. I don’t so much love the headache of arriving at that conclusion. (Well, sometimes. If I understand the process, it’s wonderful.)

As I read more and more, the process becomes easier. That is to say, I don’t have to stop and decipher all those “hermeneutical,” “binary opposition,” “signifier,” and “de Manian” references.

Still, I miss quick jaunts in and out of BookWorld à la Fforde (finished One of Our Thursday is Missing–very good, not his best work, but I still read into the night to finish it). During the year, I managed to make time for a visit to Indianapolis’ huge-normous Central Library. Consider proximity to the Library of Dreams and Wonder one of the perks of attending Butler University. Pictures, commence:

The main lobby/atrium

It's HUGE!

Chilling in the sweet chairs in the kids' section.

For the Honors Ceremony after the Saturday night show, my family all wore white. This was unintentional, but made for a funny picture. White and cream, white and khaki, white and grey. With my heeled shoes, we all became exactly the same height as well.

The Honors Ceremony’s timing is less than perfect: It’s after the night show, which means it starts well after 10 pm. We were finished just before midnight, but it was past pumpkin hour by the time I got back to my dorm room.

The event honors students in the dance department for achievements in performance, work ethic, leadership, spirit, and academic work throughout the year. There are a variety of awards, including many moments of recognizing the graduating class.

There are also little ham sandwiches there, with fresh fruit. I love strawberries.

One of the most beautiful flower arrangements I've received

Tutu!

This is from a dancer gathering I attended. Not being much for large crowds, I decided to head to where the real party was cooking… the game of Jenga. Excuse me, “Jumbling Towers,” as the box says.

After the tall tower was well and truly jumbled (by my overly ambitious move), the architectural phase of the evening began. Here is the finished product.

Marvelous, no? As much as I complain about the seemingly endless streams of papers, I do get to have some building-block-related fun at Butler.

Okay, it’s back to my summer fun book for some intense relaxation. I’m finally reading the most recent Thursday Next book by Jasper Fforde, One of Our Thursdays is Missing. So good!

Riddle: How does November relate to this in-book map of Fiction Island? Take a gander to find out!

Let me just tell you…the way to go basically anywhere during the month of May in Indianapolis is as a 500 Festival Princess.  I feel like I am constantly asking myself if this is real life and if this is really happening…and it always is…somehow.  So one afternoon about two weeks ago, we all went to the Speedway for a tour…and had an amazing time.  We started by getting a little bit of an orientation, and by seeing the media building.  This included the press conference room….which we took full advantage of for pictures…naturally.

All the Butler Princesses...being ourselves...

Then we ventured outside to the track, where we just happened to see a commercial being filmed.  We weren’t sure what was going on at first….but we eventually figured it out when we got a little bit closer….

Recognize him???

It was William Fichtner, from Armageddon, the Dark Knight, Blades of Glory (my personal favorite), and Prison Break.  He was filming a commercial for the 500…and when he was done…he came over to meet us and say hi!

Oh you know, just me and William Fichtner, hanging out...

Then we did the traditional pictures with the yard of bricks…..

And even some photos on the winner’s podium!

It was a great day…I loved seeing the track for the first time, meeting a celebrity, and of course just hanging out more with all of the awesome ladies that I am sharing this experience with.  If you haven’t ever been to the IMS, you need to visit there sometime soon, because it is just amazing to see the track…and how huge it is!  It’s only slightly overwhelming.  Check back soon for more updates on my life as a 500 Festival Princess!

Bordeaux Ball

Alpha Phi’s spring formal is always called Bordeaux Ball…and it is always just a great time.  I love going to a dance and knowing basically everyone, which is usually the case with Bordeaux.  Also, who doesn’t love getting dressed up every now and then??

My date, Chris, and I...

Two of my roomates (Lauren and Meghan) and I...sorry Liz! We still love you!

Meghan and I, and our big bro, Jon.

Delt’s Trike Lipsyncs

Throughout the year, every fraternity and sorority has what we call “lipsyncs” during our philanthropy events.  Basically, they are long dance routines…and they can get to be a pretty big deal.  I love them because I used to dance from the time that I was a small child until my Freshman year at Butler (I was on the dance team), and its a great chance for me to get to dance every once in awhile, in a more formal setting than while I’m getting ready in the morning with Lauren (she is one of my roommates…see the photo above…we love our iPod jam sessions each morning in the bathroom).    And this year was extra special…because we got 2nd place!  We were pretty excited…

Alpha Phi's after Trike...

Delt Formal

This year I also got to go to another formal…Delta Tau Delta’s formal.  It was on the same night as the Final Four game, so it was sort of bittersweet because most of our friends were in Houston, but it was still a great time!

My date, Derek, and I...

Spring Sports Spectacular

I love Spring Sports…it is a 12 hour long sporting event where we all compete in every single event that you could ever imagine…all to benefit the Special Olympics.  This year I did euchre, shuffleboard, Wii Just Dance II, a relay race, and I volunteered.  I tend to stray away from the really active things, and instead I go for the fun easy things that don’t take much experience sports wise.  This year I was also actually successful, as my partner, Amanda, and I got 3rd in shuffleboard, I got 2nd in Wii Just Dance II, and the pair that beat my euchre partner, Kodi, and I ended up winning it all.  Basically, we were 2nd place.

Whoohoo! 3rd Place in Shuffleboard!

Butler’s Top 100 Students Banquet

Every year, Butler selects the Top 100 students, and this year I was fortunate enough to be selected as one.  So on the Friday before the Final Four game, my parents and grandparents came up to go to the Banquet with me.  Mostly, it was wonderful to get to see them, because I was starting to get rather homesick at that point (I was too busy this year to go home as much as I would like), but it was also just a great night to spend with Butler faculty, staff, and other students and their families.  If you didn’t know, some really great students go to Butler…

Em and I...

My family and I...

]]> http://go.butler.edu/blogs/steph/2011/05/a-wrap-up-of-my-junior-year-part-i/feed/ 0 http://go.butler.edu/blogs/olivia/2011/05/summers-are-for/ http://go.butler.edu/blogs/olivia/2011/05/summers-are-for/#comments Fri, 13 May 2011 03:34:33 +0000 Olivia http://5.869 Continue reading →]]> Summers are for

waking up at 8 o’clock… then falling back asleep for another hour and a half.

walking to the library to read books containing knitting and magic tricks and French travel writing instead of nationalism and postmodernism and hybridity.

eating gelato at Deluca’s in Richmond.

wandering Maymont Park on a perfectly warm and light, yet cloudy (so neither squint-making sunny and nor uncomfortably hot) day.

viewing the Virginia Museum of Fine Art‘s Picasso exhibit until 10 o’clock at night. (Also, switching heels for flat shoes halfway through the African period.)

Click here to view the embedded video.

trading the morning mug of black tea for one of white, since I don’t need the caffeine.

playing with my pet rabbits for hours on end.

realizing I’m now a senior in college.

Yeah. It’s happening. New college students, they tell you your years will pass by quickly. Believe the rumors.

1. For the first time since my Calc class freshman year….I enjoy taking tests.  Seriously.  I didn’t know that happened…..but apparently it does.  (Yes…I did enjoy Calc…I was weird like that.)
2. I love going to my Marketing classes.  Even when I had Intro to Marketing last semester at 8 a.m., I loved it…and I didn’t fall asleep during it….even though it was at 8 a.m.  Since then I have also had Marketing Research and Advertising & Promotion, and I loved both of them too.
3. I am so much better at studying for Marketing.  Maybe it is because I enjoy the concepts more, or maybe it is something else…I don’t know….but I do know that I like it.
4. I am so excited to intern this summer and next school year!  Even though my internship this summer isn’t exactly Marketing, I think I will be able to apply Marketing in some way, because I do it basically every day now!
5. Butler’s Marketing faculty is basically amazing.  That’s all there is to it.  I’ve loved every professor I’ve had in class or met so far.

Knowing that I really do enjoy Marketing is great….because I am a senior now….and I don’t want to have to switch at this point….so thank goodness for that.  I can now finish up my time at Butler knowing that I’m doing the right thing….SUCCESS!

The 4 P's...the basis of every day of class for me.

• Saturday – I got up earlier than I ever want to get up for the rest of my life…at around 4:15 for the Mini Marathon.  I went downtown, filled up around 40,000 cups of water, and gave them to the runners and walkers for almost 5 hours.  Then I packed up my car to take as much of my stuff home as possible…and drove home.  That night was my old Dance Studio’s recital, and since it was the 20th anniversary, old dancers and teachers all came back to celebrate.

Some of the other princesses and I at the Mini Marathon...

• Sunday - This was Mother’s Day, so after church we had my Grandma and Grandpa over for lunch.  Afterwards, I studied.  And then I studied some more.
• Monday – I got up early and drove back to Butler, and when I arrived I found an almost empty room, with no carpet, rugs, or a futon.  One of my roommates (Liz) had completely moved out, another (Meghan) was in the process of moving everything out, and only Lauren and I had all of our stuff still there.  I had a few meetings during the afternoon, and I spent the rest of my time studying until I went to an outreach at an elementary school in Brownsburg.  After that, I studied more…and more…and more.  Around 1 a.m. I tried to nap where our futon used to be, but since that meant I was sleeping half on the tile floor and half on a large pillow, that was a failure, so I went to bed a little while later.
• Tuesday - I got up really early to finish studying, took my Marketing Research final, then almost immediately had to switch gears and take my Corporate Finance final.  The best part was, after that I was done.  I picked up one of my other finals that had just been graded, chatted with some friends at Starbucks…and then started to pack up my life.  It was a great last night at Butler, because after I got to a good stopping point with packing I went to dinner with a friend and then hung out with a bunch of friends…and for the first time in a long time I had no homework hanging over my head…and I was so glad to be done with classes…obviously.
• Wednesday – I got up, packed my car, and drove home.  Once I got home, I didn’t even take the time to unpack…and I took a nap.  Then….I didn’t wake up for about…13 hours.  I think that I am caught up on sleep now.  Or I hope that I am.

So today I have been trying to motivate myself to unpack and figure everything out.  I started by unpacking the car…which I was almost completely successful with.  I say almost because I got all but a HUGE plastic bin that I can’t lift alone….and most of my stuff didn’t make it past the kitchen or my back porch.  Maybe I’ll get a second wave of energy in a little bit?