An Imperfect Storm by Ryan

I am sitting on campus at CCC typing this post, and when I look outside I am nearly blinded by all this white fluffy stuff outside. The snowfall up here is unreal. I walked into class today with barely any snowflakes falling. I sat down, looked outside, and I swear it was snowing five times more than before I entered the building. Unfortunately, in bad weather, colleges must deal with the scenario of more snow equaling less students.

The worst thing about this storm is the timing. Break week officially begins when classes let out tomorrow, and that means teachers won't see their students again for a week and a half. Students and professors are scrambling to make adjustments to their testing in case of a school closure tomorrow.

If school is not closed tomorrow, I will make every effort to attend classes because it will make it easier for me to finish any pre-break work that needs to be done. Of course if coming to school tomorrow could be dangerous in the weather, I will most likely stay home and get refreshed for a new start when we return. Have a great break!

-Ryan

Hope On the Horizon by Ryan

6 days from now, I will be reclined on the couch resting and hanging out, as will most of the CCC student body. Most students will be relaxing by choice; I will be laying down after getting my wisdom teeth out. Regardless, it will be great because break week will be here!

I always feel weird about how much I love break weeks because I genuinely love school. But it feels so good to have an entire week to relax and mentally prepare for another strong schoolwork push. It's a tough balancing act when I'm around my professors. I am excited about the upcoming week, but I don't want to appear too excited to be out of class.

No one thinks about break week from the teacher's prospective. As I am going into the teaching field, I have begun to comtemplate what it will be like as a professor. On the week when most students are relaxing, teachers' often stay busy. In one of my classes, the professor gives tests in short essay form and we are required to write a total of eight essays on the exams. He teaches five classes in this format, and said that on average he has twenty students in a classroom. That means that during break week (emphasis on break) he reads, grades, and sorts approximately 800 short essays to give back the following week. I can't even fathom that. I happily volunteered to shorten his workload by exempting me from the test, but for some unknown reason he chose to decline.

So, while I like school, I would never pass up a chance for a break week. It will be so good to relax and stay inside when it's cold (which I believe is the greatest benefit to cold-weather school breaks). I hope everyone has a great break, and returns ready to work hard in March.

-Ryan

Break week! by Jenn

I have to say I really like the classes that only go for a few months cause they make me feel like I've accomplished a lot! I had my Vegetarian class final yesterday, for it we had to make a (vegetarian) dish. I wanted to make something I've never made before cause I was feeling creative so I went on the Wegmans website and found this recipe that could be either breakfast or dessert. It was honey and cinnamon sprinkled over pineapple slices which were then (suppose to be) grilled but since I hate the cold, cooking it over the stove worked just fine! May I highly recommend it, delicious! Oh, then you sprinkle the pineapple over yogurt.

I can't believe break week is next week... I'm looking foward to catching up on school and laundry and family and friends. And of course, as always, I'll do fine with the catching up on friends and family and do horribly with catching up on the work! But, you never know, maybe this break week will be like no other. Maybe we'll all turn into supermans and be so productive we'll run out of stuff to catch up on...I always think this way and make a list of stuff to get done on break week but by the time break week actually roles around, amazingly the to-do list looses it's importance. However, I learned recently that there are two ways to keep time. One is to see it as law-- meaning if I have to get something done at a certain time, it has to be done or the world will come to an end. And the other is to see time as a guidline-- so if we don't get to it today, we'll get to it tomorrow or the next day. I think a little of both views of time is important. The US is ranked number one in being (there's a certain name for it) tied to time as a law. I think it's healthy to loosen our grip every now and then and just let time happen.

Speaking of relaxing, this Thursday (25th), from 12:30 to 1:30, in room R004 is the first Midday Concert of the semester. I believe it's a flute performance by a graduate student from Ithaca College. Even if you can only make part of it, its worth it!

A Painful Ending by Ryan

Last night saw the end of the CCC basketball season. It was an interesting experience since it was the end of my first half-season of college ball. I was both sad and slightly relieved to see it end. The relief was simply because I know have time to concentrate more on my work and on life outside of basketball. But I was truly sad that it was over. It was a great ride and gave me many memories.

I didn't expect the last game to be so painful. I realized a few days ago that had almost made it through an entire basketball season without a serious injury. For some reason, I always end up hurting myself while playing. I missed games due to injury every year of high school. One of my goals for this season, however modest, was to end the year without an injury. I sprained my hamstring and missed one game early in the semester, but I didn't count that because it was only one game. Last night though, a few minutes after I got into the game, I reached out to try and steal the ball and dislocated my finger. It's happened on that finger twice before, so I stupidly pulled the finger back into place and kept playing, not feeling the pain because of the adrenaline. Today, I really wish I had taken myself out, because my entire hand hurts now and I'm typing this entirely with my other hand (and it takes a very long time). At least the season is over so I can recooperate.

Aside from the finger, the last game always makes me look back at the season. As our overall record indicates, there were ups and downs, but overall the season was a great experience. Athletics and competition teach you alot about yourself, and I definitely learned alot this season. I got to see some people with an incredible work ethic and that really helped to push me all season. I learned how much I still have to learn, and the pursuit of that knowledge and skill is really what basketball is all about.

-Ryan

Riding the Pine by Ryan

Basketball this year has been a huge adjustment for me. In high school, I started every game from my sophomore year onward, scored over 1100 points, and was our division MVP my senior year. I say that because the first scrimmage at CCC, I practiced for two hours and scored one basket. I was shocked at first, and I thought at first it was due to my shoulder still not being healed totally from surgery. After the second time when I only scored two or three times, I realized just how hard it is to play college sports. Not only is everyone older, but they're bigger, faster, more physical (my hardest adjustment), and tougher. Little things that worked in high school don't work here. There is no weak spot to exploit; everyone can ball.

So for the first time in nearly four years, I had to come to grips with sitting the bench. I can't lie and say it was easy. I was very frustrated for the first few games. It's hard to realize that you can't just blow by everyone anymore. It was a tough transition.

After the first few games however, I began to see how selfish my thinking was. I wasn't ready to start, and deep down I knew it. I was so used to playing every minute that I felt entitled. It was difficult, but I had to realize that I was putting myself before the team, and that never works out.

Now that I knew I needed to work on my game, basketball became enjoyable again. The guys on the CCC team are great, and practices were hard, but memorable. It's always amazing to work hard to win all year, then looking back and realizing that the best times were jokes in the locker room or hanging out on the bus during road trips. The season has been fun, even though I was only here for half of it. For the seniors who are graduating, best of luck wherever you go.

-Ryan

Friends and Familia...by Jenn

Funny story of the day: my bestest friend ever, Amy, and I found out how to feed ourselves lunch on a shared budget of $1.15. And as if our supplies didn't present enough challenge, her food allergies and my chocolate addiction craving added to it. It took a lot of trips to the bookstore checkout counter but we finally assembled a very satisfying luncheon array...!

I'd have to say the three life lessons learned at college are how to balance your budget, how to balance your school, and how to balance your friend and family time.

I think balancing family time is the hard one for everyone...it is for me! I come from a family of 5. Dad, whom I jokingly call Papa to make him feel old, bought me my first ever Valentines Day flowers this week!! It made me so happy cause usually us kids get stuck with the Walmart chocolate and Mom gets flowers and taken out to dinner. I have two younger brothers...although most people assume Jared-- who's turning 16 this year-- is the oldest cause he's at least half a foot to a foot taller than me. However, then they start talking with us and they see how much more mature I am than him and... jk! He's the steady peace maker in the house. Which is good cause my little brother Matthew (9 years old) and I are emotional bombs.

Matthew is probably going to play professional sports one day-- if he can ever figure out which sport is his favorite. One of my favorite things to do on a summer day is to go watch him play baseball in the Little League--simply hilarious!!! The little boys out there are drop dead cute!!! But you have to act like they are tough "men" doing hard work. One time a friend of mine told Matt how adorable he was in his game and he's hardly spoken to her since then!!

So that's the scoop on the Snapp household. Hope everyone is finding time amidst the craziness of life to get some relaxing time with friends and family!

Irish ballads and Vegetarian cuisine by Jenn

I don't want to spill the beans on our Vocal Ensemble class, but we girls are practicing a three part harmony song called "I'd Wed If I Were Not Too Young" that would be hilarious if it weren't so true! The performance, March 18th, is going to have an Irish theme. In fact, I think we're having some Irish step dancers! But this particular song is my favorite and is pretty comical as I'm sure you can tell by its title. I'd tell you what the ballad is about but...then I'd have to ruin the ending!

In my Vegetarian Adventure class on Friday we made delicious quesadillas! I'm not vegetarian and I don't know if I'll become one yet, but the food is delicious! Last week we had veggie pizzas and the week before was slushies, so let me highly recommend this class!! We're also learning some eye opening statistics about the cost of meat both on finances and the environment. I don't think I'll be able to give up my cheeseburger but it's important to at least know what you're putting in your mouth (even if you take my lead and still choose to ignore it!!)

Senior Night by Ryan

The game against TC3 on Saturday didn't go exactly as planned. They were ranked 5th in the country, but we hung with them for a long time before they wore us out eventually. Their point guard is very,very fast and a great passer and their center is listed at 6'8". Both are both contenders for All-American honors, and they turned out to be too much too handle. We played well though and made it a good game.

Tonight though, is the big night. It's the Red Baron's last home game of the year, and that means it's time for Senior Night. I would encourage everyone to come out for the game tonight. We will be honoring all the seniors on both the men's and women's teams. The games are against Broome CC, another school that is near the top of our region. The games should be intense and well played, so come on out and support CCC athletics.

The seniors being recognized tonight on the men's team are Marqus Stewart, Allen Green, Eric Garvey, Tyler Westervelt, and Derek Lewis. For the women, Amber White, Kim Schoffner, and Ashley Grover will be graduating. If you are able, please join us in making their last home game at CCC victorious and memorable!

-Ryan

Speaking Up by Ryan

This is really my first post since the beginning that hasn't been about sports. I actually hope to do a fair amount of these in the future. I love sports, but it is nice to take a short break (very short in my case) once in a while.

Yesterday the area, and much of the east coast, had an insane amount of snow and bad weather. Corning was hit hard, but the school remained open and classes were in full swing. Many students, however, were snowed in and unable to come to class. Out of my four classes yesterday, three had less than half of the students there. The classes themselves were fine, and most professors used the time to review past material with those who were present. I fear that most of the absent students assumed the professors knew they were staying home due to the weather. I know from past experience that this can lead to alot of confusion and possibly lowered grades.

When I was at a four year school last year, my dorm was the "jock dorm," and because of that it was located right next to the gym, at the very top of a large hill on campus. Only one road leads down from the hill, and we were hit with a large snowstorm one week that completely covered the road so bad that no cars or people could get through it from either direction. The rest of the school was more accesible, so classes continued, but many of my dorm's residents were snowed in from classes for a couple of days. Thinking that my professors would know I was among the snowed in people, I stayed in my room but didn't contact anyone. When I resumed classes two days later, I found one or two absences in every class because the professors were unaware of the dorm situation.

So my advice to those people who were snowed in (or sick) is this: don't assume anything. While professors know of weather conditions, there is no way they can be sure of the exact reason you're gone if you have to miss a class. If you talk to professors, most of them will be willing to work with you, and at the very least they will appreciate you taking the effort to send them an e-mail. It's a win-win situation for everyone.

-Ryan

Game Preparation by Ryan

Due to the huge snowfall we had yesterday, the game against Onondaga was cancelled and moved to today. Thankfully, the game is only an hour away so we should get back in plenty of time to get sleep for classes tomorrow. Going to a game and being alert for classes the next day is a bigger challenge than people would think.

Getting prepared to play a game on a school day can be a challenge. As an athlete, physically you are always prepared to play. Being prepared to play mentally though can be very difficult. All day, your mind is on your classes and any other jobs you may have or homework to be done. I try to find small amounts of time throughout the "school" part of the day to think about that game and get ready to play that night. Once I get on the bus, however, school fades totally and it's game time.

I believe that sports are played mentally just as much as they are played physically. So my preparation for games includes time getting mentally ready. I have a book called Mind Gym by Gary Mack, a sports psychologist. It talks about the mental aspect of sports and how to improve yourself mentally so you can be free to play your best. It's an awesome book; I've probably read it ten times. I'm a big fan in the power of belief. If you think you can do it, you have a lot better chance of getting it done.

I can't wait for the game tonight. TC3 is a great team. This will show us how we stack up against the best. It's gonna be awesome.

-Ryan

Basketball vs. OCC by Ryan

On Saturday, the CCC basketball teams played Onondaga Community College. Because I was working for the first semester, I just joined the team a little over a month ago, so I still get really nervous before games. For me, it's also a weird feeling to play games on Saturdays. I think it's because throughout high school almost all games are played on weekdays after school. So waking up in the morning and having nothing but a basketball game is exciting, but strange.

Unfortunately, the womens' basketball team has a limited number of players and therefore have been struggling. They are doing everything they can but it's hard to prepare when you cannot run drills 5 on 5. Onondaga has one of the best womens' teams in the country, so they won fairly easily, but our women tried hard the entire game.

In the men's game we were trailing by 15 points at halftime. Coming out of the locker room, we began to shoot much better and made quite a few threes in the second half. They seemed to have an answer for every basket we made and in the end they pulled out the victory. Our guys played very hard and I was proud of our effort. Tomorrow, we travel to face TC3, one of the top ranked teams on the east coast. It should be fun. If we play as well as we are capable, we could beat them. I will be posting the result in the next blog. Thanks again for reading, and have a great day.

-Ryan

Intense Intramurals by Ryan

The second semester is here, and that means only one thing: Intramurals (with classes coming in a close second.....lol). Honestly, the intramurals are one of my favorite things about CCC. Right now, they are on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 12:15 to about 1:45.
During the first semester, we spent around a month each on basketball, indoor soccer, and volleyball in that order. This semester, I believe we are going in reverse. Volleyball started last week, and we will be ending with basketball. This is my first year here so I haven’t participated in spring intramural basketball before, but I have been told that it’s awesome. Before, they’ve had three point and foul shooting contests, a 3-on-3 tournament, and other fun games. I can’t wait for that to start up after the basketball season is over.
Aside from basketball, volleyball is definitely my favorite. There is no league play, so each week new teams are made up. It makes it fun because friends can always be on the same team and good players (the women's’ volleyball team) can form a squad for the other teams to gun for. Some of the most fun times are when the womens’ team gets together to make a really, really good team and every other team is scrambling to keep up. I would definitely encourage everyone to come over and try it out. It’s a ton of fun, and a great way to spend the afternoon if you don’t have a class.

-Ryan

Family

Like most students, my family has played a large role in my college existence. Whether it’s hard things like figuring out classes and major requirements, or the simpler things like waking me up when I sleep past my alarm (every day), they are always there for support. I am very lucky that my dad is an accountant and my mom majored in math. The mere mention of filling out a financial form scares me, but my parents are always able to help and made the transition from my previous school to CCC painless.

I have two sisters and two brothers. Even though I’m the oldest child, I’m not the only member of my family with ties to CCC. My sister Kristen is also a student here and plays on the women’s basketball team (go Lady Barons!). At first it was weird to go to college with your sister, but we get along really well and I’m really enjoying it. I’m trying to keep this a secret from her, but I inherited the big brother protective streak, so I secretly enjoy it. My best friend John, who my family mentally adopted as my brother years ago, attends the school as well. My mother is one of the smartest people I’ve ever known and just this year became an adjunct math professor at CCC. She has two classes this semester; one on the Elmira campus, and one up here on the hill. Both my mother and father are huge supporters of the CCC basketballs teams and are unbelievably dedicated, with at least one of them attending almost every home and away game this year no matter how far.

I hope that’s enough background about myself. Thanks for reading, and I hope you will stay with me as I begin to explore the life of a student at CCC.

-Ryan

The Kickoff

Hello everyone! My name is Ryan Andryshak and I am very excited to be a part of the new CCC blogging team. This is my first experience blogging, and although I am slightly nervous, I’m greatly looking forward to this.

So now, where to begin? I will show life at CCC from my perspective as a student. I will be providing reminders about big events coming up on campus and sharing my college experiences both in and out of class. I am also a member of the Red Barons basketball team, so I intend to provide a look into various aspects of athletics and intramurals on campus.

Since this is my first blog post, I should provide some background about myself. As I said, my name is Ryan Andryshak and I am in my freshman year at CCC. I was homeschooled throughout high school and attended a different college last year before coming back home due to a shoulder injury. I actually enjoy being in school and I’m happy to be back at it after Christmas break.

I am a big history fan and plan on remaining in a school setting as a history professor. I also love music (been playing drums for 5 years) and I have a growing interest in computers (really anything electronic). But most of all, I have a love for sports that turned into an obsession at an early age. I am still looking for a sport I don’t enjoy, but by now I doubt if I’ll find one. I’m still not sure if the term “gym rat” is a compliment or an insult, but either way I guess I’m stuck with it. My body didn’t really leave me a choice. In my biology lab the other day I found out that most people’s arms are 40% as long as their entire body; mine are 47%. My shoes are size 14, which really messed up an experiment comparing foot size with body height. Maybe that’s why I play basketball; I never had a choice to begin with.

I am enjoying this tremendously, and this is just the beginning! Be on the lookout for my future blogs as well as the ones written by Jenn, our other blogger. We hope you’ll continue reading as we continue to take a look into life at CCC.

-Ryan