November 13, 2009

As any good St. Thomas student knows, when you want good food at a walkable distance, you head down Grand Avenue. And any good UST shopper knows that when you want unique gifts for yourself or a lucky friend, you head down Grand Avenue. You could throw an accounting textbook and hit at least one hip shop or eatery. Well, my stomach is starting to grumble, so I will chat a little bit about a couple delicious restaurants to try.

Italian Pie Shoppe. Mention that restaurant to my parents and their mouths will fill with saliva as they tell you it is some of the best pizza they've ever eaten. From the outside, it is almost hidden in its crammed little spot. Once inside, grab a menu, an old wooden booth and order anything. It will be scrumptious. My friends would joke that it's where all their first dates happened during Freshman year. Who wouldn't want to bond over a calzone or a slice of Margherita pizza? And during the awkward moments, read some of the old newspaper ads in the table. If you can't get to Grand, try one of their other locations!

Coffee News Cafe. I have a thing for funky coffee shops. I love the chalkboard menus, acoustic music and the sound of coffee beans grinding. Just down from the Italian Pie Shoppe sits Coffee News, a perfect example of the relaxing, friendly coffee shop. The atmosphere and people are welcoming as you contemplate what to order. I recommend getting the garlic fries with your sandwich. They are great! I've never been there when it wasn't busy, especially during the lunch hour. I took my sister and she loved it!

Wild Onion. I don't recommend trying to walk all the way here, but find a way because it is worth it. This bar/restaurant has classic dishes like burgers and wings but also great choices like an Asian-style rice bowl. My big group of friends makes their way here often, never without any trouble finding a table. I always see happy hours and birthday parties stopping by. I have trouble ordering anything other than their spicy chicken sandwich (no surprise to anyone who frequents restaurants with me....I kind of love chicken) and am never disappointed.

I could blog on and on about the interesting and delicious choices available on Grand. These were just a taste! (Pun intended.) After all this food talk, I'm ready to find some for myself. Until next time!

November 03, 2009

Here we are: over halfway through the semester, midterms behind us, daylight savings time has ended and the leaves are being kicked around the sidewalks with every step. It's November!

I had one of those awful weeks that make college students and graduates cringe at the memory. If I wasn't studying for a midterm, I was writing and researching a paper. Thank goodness it is over and now I can focus on Thanksgiving, which is right around the corner!

I had a fun Halloween with my friends. My roommates and I dressed as the Spice Girls. It was so fun to listen to all their songs again and relive those pre-teen years. I was "Ginger Spice" and my costume included gold leporad-print leggings! Now I want to wear them everyday. If only...

The fine folks at the Admissions office are gearing up for Junior Visit Day for Juniors ths Saturday. This will most likely be these high schoolers first trip to UST. I always feed off of the excitement when I give these kids and parents tours.

I remember being so overwhelmed as a junior and just so unsure of the future! Well, I'm here to say that those feelings do not go away! Junior year of college is similar in the looking into the near future and not knowing quite what it will bring. It's fun to think of all the awesome options out there, but at the same time I get scared not knowing! The important thing is to take each day at a time and to be proactive in your college/internship/job search. Don't forget to be grateful for what you already have too!

OK, enough of my blabbing on and on. Have a great week!

October 22, 2009

Hi All!
After giving two tours last week during Fall Tommie Days, I really paid attention to a few key points I would talk about that, as a high school senior, might not mean much. But, after some college experience, they mean the world! There are too many to mention, so here are just a couple I thought of:

The first thing has to be the free laundry on campus. Boy, do I miss that now that I'm in an off-campus apartment.
Back during my dorm days, I would do laundry every week (it's a chore I don't actually mind!). I would carelessly put a load or two in whenever I wanted. Fast forward to today, and I'm into my third week since the last laundry session and I am hurting...and wearing the same jeans way too many times. With my parent's house too far away, I will have to succomb to our laundry room and fork over the $3 to wash and dry.

The next tour item that I can now fully appreciate has to do with our classes. At St. Thomas, they are never taught by graduate students or teacher's assistants. The only time you'll find TAs are as assitants to professors during the science labs. It's also important to mention that 85% of our full-time faculty have Ph.Ds or the highest earned degree in their field. Being taught everyday by these amazingly accomplished people makes me work harder to impress them (and myself!). I also have to mention the class sizes here. Coming from high school classes with just a handful of kids in each class, I'm so glad UST's classes are kept small too. It is a relief to never be lost in the crowd here.

If you'd like to hear me ramble on some more, the next Admissions event is coming up for high school juniors on November 7th!