Friday, April 30, 2010

Messin' with Stressin' by Jenn

I always thought I wasn't the kind that got stressed out easily. However, as finals approach, I think even those of us who never get stressed out are starting to feel the pressure.

To be honest, at this point in my life, other than school I really don't have anything to be stressed about. A lot of you are thinking "lucky!" but the one downside is that since I don't deal with stress often, I don't know how to. Haha, I know that sounds like a pathetic complaint and you're probably thinking "can I have that problem?!" but it's true! I'm a wreck when it comes to stress! I stress out over the fact that I'm stressing because that's just not like me! Yesterday, I was just like "Ahh!" I felt like I had so much school to do in so little time. So I thought, ok, let me write down all that I need to get done. Turns out all I really had to do that evening was study for a test the next day. That was it! I simply needed to prioritize. I didn't have to write my paper that is due in a week. I didn't have to practice my song for a concert when I have a block of time free the next day for it. I just need to schedule the most important things first!

If you're a kid just out of high school who's like me and just doesn't know how do deal with stress-- you're not alone! My mom is great with stress, probably because we three kids gave her tons of practice! I know she wasn't always good with stress cause over my carefree years as a kid, we always thought it was just a funny but annoying thing mom's did simply because they were moms. I guess in some ways that's true! But this gives me hope because one good thing about stress is that the more stress you have, the better you hopefully get at combating it. Practice makes perfect!

Playing Favorites, pt.2 by Ryan

When I was writing my last post, I realized that American Sign Language is one of my favorite classes. I also realized that it wasn't my only favorite class. I found out that this particular semester I have two favorite classes. My other favorite class is History of Islam and the Middle East.

I found it weird that both of my favorite classes are the ones in which I have no previous experience with the subject. My other classes, biology, math, and American history, I had all studied in high school, but these two classes were new to me. Maybe that's what makes them so exciting. Islam is a strange class for me to be in. I love history, but I have never studied much other than American history in the past. Everything I learn feels completely new, and I love that feeling. It does make it a little difficult because I usually speak up during class if I have a question or I can answer one. In classes that are new subjects, I don't speak much due to my limited knowledge in the area. I am learning to enjoy sitting back and soaking in all the information.

Islam and the Middle East is a very unique class. It is co-taught by two professors, Sky Moss and Robert Cooper. It works well, though, because they work so well together. It's almost like listening to commentators of a sports event; Cooper provides the main play-by-play, and Sky comes in often with color commentary-like bits of information. Cooper is full of knowledge on the early Islamic period, while Sky knows a large amount about the modern day Middle East. Their lessons flow seamlessly, and it is a great experience in the classroom.

This class is another favorite, and I know that I will learn something new every time I enter the classroom. This is another class that comes highly recommended, and anyone that takes it will learn a lot about Islam, from Muhammad to the Cold War.

-Ryan

Thursday, April 29, 2010

Sneezing and Wheezing by Jenn

Stop what you're doing.
Right now.
Freeze!
Follow these steps immediately. This is not a drill.

Step 1) Run to the nearest sink.
Step 2) Wash those hands!

It's cold season! And yes, maybe I'm being a little dramatic. But then again, maybe I'm not... After all, the sore throats will show you no mercy. The sneezes will stop at nothing. And the coughs and headaches will fight to the death.
All joking aside, I'm learning the hard way how important it is to keep those hands clean. Yup, the enemy got me. Today I had an audition for a Talent Show that's going to be held here at Corning and it's no fun singing with a sore throat. But thankfully, I'm doing a duet so I simply sang alto and kept to those lower notes. However, I'm really hoping I'll be victorious over this cold enemy by next Friday, because the Talent Show is then.

The Musical Talent Show is Friday, May 7th at 7:00pm in room R004. I'm really excited about the Talent Show because, with an admission of $1, all the proceeds are going to benefit the Haiti Relief Program. Our own Psych Club is taking the initiative in leading this thing, and anyone and everyone is welcome to come!! So invite your friends and family because this will probably be one of the most enjoyable ways you've ever donated before! I haven't heard all the songs that are going to be performed for the concert, but from what I heard today, we definitely have some pretty talented people up here. Some people even wrote their own song! That's impressive.

Playing Favorites, pt.1 by Ryan

I have to be honest and say that I'm not as impartial as I try to sound sometimes. I have favorites in just about anything like most people do. I have favorite sports teams, favorite musical groups, and favorite ice-cream flavors just like anyone else. In the interest of impartial writing, most of my favorite things are left out of my posts. However, I have to tell you about one of my favorite classes: American Sign Language!

As a homeschooled student throughout high school, I never took a foreign language. When I went to college, I tried Spanish, but I had a ton of trouble with it. I don't know why, but nothing seemed to stick. My sister told me that CCC offered a sign language class and said I should take it with her. i signed up, hoping I would have better luck with it than I had with spanish.

it turns out, I love it! It's a ton of fun learning and interacting with the teacher. Out professor is deaf, and it's actually become easier as we go along because we are learning how to communicate with her while we learn. It's an amazing subject to learn. The Professor showed us statistics that said sign language is one of the hardest languages to learn in the world. At the same times, it's a ton of fun! We've been learning all about deaf culture and the way that deaf and hearing people interact. I love this class, and I wish I could take ASL II in the fall, but my schedule unfortunately didn't work out.

if you are having trouble with other languages, or if you just want a break from the same language, I would encourage you to check out the ASL courses taught here. They are amazing, the teachers care about you, and I promise it will be memorable!

-Ryan

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Peanuts and Cracker Jacks by Ryan

I'm a sucker for spring. I love being able to run around with no shoes and feel the grass. I love the soft breeze of the wind as much as I love the gentle drizzle of rain on the roof. But there's nothing I love more during spring than the sound of a baseball whipping into a catchers glove with a loud smack and a small cloud of dust. I love the sound of a bat meeting a ball squarely and watching the ball rise and fly out of the ball field. I never feel like it's really the new year until the open of baseball season.

Last Friday, I had the opportunity to drive down the hill to Tuller Field and watch the Red Barons baseball team take on the Ithaca College Bombers. Because of all my schoolwork, this was unfortunately the first time I had the opportunity to take in a game. I wish I could have attended a few more because I had a lot of fun and really enjoyed watching our guys play. the day was very clear and like most days, the men were excited to play a doubleheader.

Both teams got off to a fast start. Greg Cary got the Barons off to a fast start with an RBI in the bottom of the first. in the second inning, Corning got an RBI double from Shawn Kerr and an infield single from Doug Lewis plated a third run. The top of the third featured a scary moment when pitcher Matt Holling was hit in the chest with a hit ball, but he was thankfully able to remain in the game and pitch a scoreless third and fourth inning. In the bottom of the fourth Zachary Hugg triples on a deep fly ball and was given home when an errant throw to the base went into the CCC dugout. In the sixth inning Kevin Dates also triples and was brought home on a double. Corning put up a valiant offensive effort, but succumbed to the Bombers own offensive onslaught and eventually would drop the decision.

Regardless of the score, the game was an absolute blast! Congratulations to the Corning men's team on a great season!

-Ryan

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Singing in the Rain by Jenn

Everyone mark your calendars!! The 6th and 13th of May are concert days! The concerts are usually from 12:20 to 1:30 in room R004 (the auditorium-like room in the basement of the classroom building). If you like classical/romantic style music, come to the 13th. If you're in more of a mood for pop come to the 6th! I'm really looking forward to both cause their going to be pretty different. The 6th is mostly pop but it's going to have random pieces thrown in there for fun. So it's going to be the "whatever-music-we-thought-was-pretty-and-felt-like-playing" concert. Whereas the 13th is very structured-- I believe all songs are all coming from the Romantic period.

My voice class is preparing songs for the May 13th concert. So we are practicing a beautiful, romantic song called "May Night", then we have a German song on Gypsies (and yes, we will be singing it in German--which is hilarious to watch cause most of us are having our crash course learning this very song...I think I'm catching on but I don't know about the others!). We'll also be singing an excerpt from the musical "Elijah". But today I went to my voice class and was surprised to learn that there were auditions for the concert today. I love listening to auditions! There were many beautiful auditions and I got to be on the panel to pick which ones are going to be in the concert. Everyone did a great job! I really enjoyed listening. Two people were picked for the classical May 13th concert-- a flutist playing Debussy and a soloist singing "Ava Maria". Then for the May 6th concert, one solo singer was chosen who sang "What a Wonderful World".
We're coming to the busy season of getting songs nailed down and polished for concerts.

Speaking of music, I'm currently working on a song with a friend to audition for the Talent Show. I think it's going to be pretty snazzy cause he plays guitar and I play piano and both of us sing, so, come on out! I'll post the dates for the Talent Show is as soon as I find out. I'll go do my research, but from what I hear it's raising funds for Haiti.
Enough talk about music! Come out and listen!!

Thursday, April 22, 2010

I Love Me Some Basketball by Ryan

Every once in a while I get really, really tired of doing something that I normally love. Maybe it's just human nature; I don't know. I love to read, but sometimes I'll go for weeks and not want to pick up a book. I love being with friends, but sometimes I just want to be at home. Well, I recently went through a stretch like that with basketball. After the season ended, I didn't even want to touch a ball for a while. I didn't watch it on t.v, read about it, or especially play it. For the last couple of weeks, the desire to play has been building up and I couldn't wait to get out and run again.

I finally was able to play on Tuesday for intramurals and it felt AWESOME! Everything felt like i was doing it for the first time in years. The feeling of running, cutting, passing, and sliding on defense just felt incredible. My shot was off understandably, but even that felt good. There weren't quite enough for full 5 on 5, but it was still good competition. A faculty member even joined in the games and was better than most of the students. Overall, it was a ton of fun as we played, switching teams in between games and having fun.

I'm hoping to play for the rest of the school year, as it's a good time and takes my mind of school for a little while. I would definitely encourage people to come out and play. It's not high stakes or anything, just good basketball. It's a great way to escape the press of finals and finishing up classes. Even if you don't play basketball, find some way to get active during this last month of school. Go outside and enjoy some fresh air whenever you can!

-Ryan

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

A Look Back--part 2! by Jenn

If you read my "A Look Back" post, you'll know that as we finish up for the summer, I've been comparing this year to what I expected college would be like. In my last post I looked at how, academically, I really didn't know what to expect however, college ended up being more doable than I thought it would be.

I was just trying to remember today what I thought college was going to be like socially before my first year. I love meeting people! It's the highlight of my day to meet someone from a different background or culture-- I just find it so interesting! People really are very diverse. I know I didn't appreciate differences in people as much before my college experience as I do now. This is simply because I've been able to meet all different types of people here! And I don't mean just a different nationality, but people who are shy or people who have a different religion.

When it comes to different character types or backgrounds, I find it easy to accept people because there's no right or wrong so it's simply interesting. With beliefs or religious matters, I as much as anyone hold onto my convictions with a tight fist however, I love nothing better than a friendly discussion or "debate". And I've had several up here with a bunch of different people and I've left all of them feeling great because I don't believe I have to argue and twist their arm in an attempt to convince them that what I think is right. We can simply talk about our differences and respect the other person all the more for having their different opinions.

All that to say, I have enjoyed this year's college experience all the more because of the dynamic atmosphere of being able to meet people who-- not only share similarities with myself-- but also those who are very different.

The Final Countdown by Ryan

I find my first day of classes following break to be amusing. Some professors gush over what they and everyone else did, while for other teachers break week is like a plague and they never discuss it. It's interesting that some professors have a huge amount of work to grade during break week, but some take the whole week off for a family vacation. Either way, it's good to be back in the familiar routine.

Now that all of our semester breaks are over, students really seem to be coming to grips with the work ahead as they finish the school year. It seems like most people are borderline terrified of finals. While they are hard, it should only really be a chore if you haven't kept up on our work throughout the semester. As the saying goes, "luck favors the prepared".

Now that the semester is getting nearer and nearer to the end, good studying becomes crucial to success. If you are prepared, you will find that finals offer very few problems and little stress. I hope you take this advice and do what you can to make life easier on yourself during the last month of school. It's good to be back!

-Ryan

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

A Look Back by Jenn

Ready for the final stretch?!? Let's do it! Hope every one had a wonderful break week. Talking with different students up here, every one had a different break week story ranging from house projects like moving and painting to personal problems like back spasms and sick kids. For some, break weeks are for accomplishing tasks and for others, catching up on sleep seems more important. I had a mix of catching up on school and rest, but probably the main thing I take away from break week is just getting reconnected with the family. I know none of us ever want to put family on hold while we're at school, but it inevitably happens. I've noticed that the only way to have time with family is to make time. Sometimes that means cutting out TV time in the evening or getting up early...relationships require hard work! But hopefully they know school only lasts for a few more weeks. Hang in there as we near finals!

As I'm looking back on this semester, there's a part of me that just can't believe I'm finishing up a year of college. I'm trying to remember what I thought college would be like when I first visited Corning. Let's travel back in time to last July/August when I first realized I was going to Corning. Everything was rushed and last minute because I didn't know I could graduate high school till early July. Sure enough, (surprise!) I had the credits! So off to college. I remember being nervous waiting for the placement test. I knew that I didn't need to be, but as a high school student I didn't know what this college thing was all about. I know we all want to act cool, calm and collected on our first college visit so people think that we know what we're doing. Ya, I don't know how I did with that! I had so many different ideas that I had grown up thinking college was like. Academically I didn't know what to expect and I didn't want to wonder if it would be too hard! I think I always as a kid thought that college was that really hard thing only smart people did and even though I always knew I could do it, it was always "sure I can do it, when I'm finally on my ace game". And ya, this year has been a lot of hard work but I've not always been alert (who is?!) and done my best but it's still doable. I think that's one of the great things about college is that it challenges what you personally can do, but if you're rightly placed, it won't discourage you so much you throw your hands up in surrender. There's always that promise that if you work hard, you can succeed.

Friday, April 9, 2010

YIPPEE!!!! break. by Jenn

whew! I'm sitting here soaked with sweat with that good, tired feeling you get after just playing an hour of basketball. I definitely inherited my dad's sweat glands which stinks cause I don't think I've ever seen my mom sweat. Today volleyball ended...:( and for a last hurrah we played basketball...? haha that might sound funny but we had a quiz today so we convinced the coach to lower the hoops for us after the quiz. I guess we were all volleyball-ed out.

Yesterday I came to school in shorts and a sweatshirt and was dying with the heat. So, being the genius that I am, I decided not to make the same mistake twice so I woke up today and decided to wear shorts and a tee. Normally I carry a wardrobe in my car because I hate being caught unprepared but I thought today I would be fine....nope! So if you've been laughing at a girl who's been freezing herself outside in this winter breeze...well, that girl was me...
We're in that awkward season where one day may be heavenly and the next horrible so, from experience of learning it the hard way, it's important to check the weather before heading out. I keep a sweatshirt in the car, but I think I'm going to throw some sweats in there as well.

I wish I could share with you that I'm going to some awesome place like Hawaii or Florida over break to soak in the rays...ya, I can't but I know a lot of people are so if that's you, I hate you but have fun!! And get a tan for me!!!!

Thursday, April 8, 2010

I Love To Laugh: HaHaHaHa by Jenn

Okay, I could try to write some deep inspiring post about impersonal stuff, but today I've decided to be your comic relief. Maybe your sitting at your computer and have had one of those days or you have a lot of stuff to get to. But for the moment, lighten up and prepare to laugh at me and yourself.

Right, so, we all have funny moments. Most of us have them everyday but I've noticed that it takes true talent to point them out and laugh at them. Why does it take talent? Because usually they're tiny things that might happen regularly and we get used to them happening. Like when you're in a rush because you're late to class but you feel like you have to grab a quick breakfast at Wegmans or you'll die. So you rush to leave but accidentally throw your change all over the floor making sounds like mini bombs because it's so quiet cause the only people there are a handful of elderly people. Sound familiar??! However, for some of us that's how we/I start my day. And we're only getting started! I'll share one more to lighten you up and hopefully help you along in your ability to spot these things that happen to take our mind off the paper that's due in the morning or the test that we need to study for.

Well, after Wegmans yesterday, I go to fill my car with gas at one of the gas stations on Denison. After I put the nozzle in and start filling my tank I get it in my mind that I need to jump over the cord/tube that's filling my car with gas so that it's on the other side of my body. Don't ask me why, because it was fine on my left but I just got a sudden compulsion that made me want it on my right. So, I try jumping over it even though it's lowest part was only a little below my hip. Do I have to go on?!

Thankfully I couldn't get over it so I didn't trip, but everyone just saw a girl randomly jump/throw herself to the left and they didn't know that I was trying to be super athletic and jump two feet up in the air (while holding the nozzle in place...oh boy!!)

There you have it. I'm sure this post won't alter the course of your life, but I can encourage you to keep in mind how important it is to laugh at ourselves when these tiny things happen. In the midst of a season that can be very stressful as we near finals, don't let small but funny moments slip by without noticing them!

So how do you write a paper? by Ryan

In the past two years, I have had multiple conversations with people about the best ways to write essay papers. I found that there are more theories than I thought about what method produces the best paper. From my conversations in the past I hope I can present a few methods to help anyone who is writing papers. Now that we are coming toward the end of the semester, many paper due dates are approaching and I hope this will be helpful.

It seems that the most tried-and-true method that I've heard is the "old school" aproach of using index cards. I see these cards all over in the library and learning centers and it seems to be the most generally used method. When writing papers that require Turabian formatting, index cards are very useful because all the referencing material can be written at the top. Nearly all of the professors I have talked to use this method.

I know some people that use what I call the "Immersion" method: they read as much as they possibly can, reading some things over and over and only making notes for the specific things they need to reference. They commit all of their information to memory. This method can be risky and can backfire for those who don't research diligently, but I have read some incredible pieces of work from people who have done this. They are able to produce an amazing, completely original work.

My personal favorite is what I call the "Piece" method. As I read, I type my notes one at a time into a Word document, referencing as I go. When I am done, I print out the paper and cut every note into a single strip of paper. It takes some space, but I then spread out the notes on the ground, sorting them into the sections I want to write. I take each section and use those notes to simply piece together my paper. Once this is done, my paper is basically assembled and all I need to do is flesh it out from the skeleton. I was shown this by a classmate last year, and for whatever reason I have really loved it.

Well, I hope that one of these methods appeals to you and you are able to put it to good use. Have fun writing those papers over break! I'm not looking forward to the process, but I am always so happy when the paper is done and ready to turn in.

For further assistance with this topic, please remember to stop by the Writing Center located in C107 on the Spencer Hill campus  or U110 in Elmira at the Academic Workforce Development Center.

Have a great break!
-Ryan

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

The Injury Bug by Ryan

Today I'm going to write on something I unfortunately know quite a bit about: getting injured. I have sustained a lot of injuries in my life. Over my four years of high school basketball, I missed at least 1/3 of a season total because of injuries; the real number's probably closer to 2/3. It's probably not a good thing that one time a nurse recognized me in the E.R. from previous visits. This post has been on my mind for a few days ever since I was exercising and my calf went numb. If you've seen a tallish guy limping around campus for a few days, it's me. I don't know what happened but I can't straighten out my left leg.

Spring is here, and it's awesome to have good weather and see people playing Frisbee or throwing the football on campus. However, with great weather comes great potential for injury. I have known or seen a lot of people rush outside at the first hint of good weather. They immediately start running and playing without ever thinking of the stress on their winter-weakened muscles. If you are going to go out and play football, Frisbee, or whatever, take 2-3 minutes and stretch. If I'd have stretched for five minutes, I wouldn't be enduring my fifth straight day of walking on one leg. Be kind to your body.

Springtime is a ton of fun, and with the weather lately, it is a great time to get out and be active. But before you do anything, be safe! I don't remember where I heard it, but someone I know compared stretching to the old rhyme about apples. They told me "stretching every day keeps the doctor away." It may sound childish, but there is definitely truth in that saying. by all means, go forth and have fun, but a word to the wise from someone who is house-ridden for the moment: be smart.

-Ryan

Friday, April 2, 2010

Sunglasses and Flip Flops by Jenn

Well, I was reading Ryan's posts about the softball and baseball teams when I realized that we're coming to the home stretch for school! I can't believe we have another break in three (two and a half to be specific!) weeks!! I feel like we just had break...but hey! I'm not complaining! This will be my first year of college completed and that just sounds really weird! Some people have told me that the first semester is the hardest but I have to say that my first semester flew by! I'm in my second right now and it certainly is not going quite as fast! Although, I've learned the trick: schedule a fun class on the long days. As fall registration is already up and running, may I highly suggest doing a sport class. I'm doing volleyball now and it is just a blast....I love it!

It's good to have fun interspersed between classes and homework! Yesterday, a group of kids played Ultimate Frisbee on the side of the Commons...fun-ness!! I would love to have a Ultimate Frisbee "club" up here!!! Anyone in??

To add a fun splash to school today, my friends and I declared today a skirt day. (um they were all girls:)) There's nothing like dressing up in spring-ish clothes to give you a positive outlook on the day! So if you saw some girls walking around (haha, my friend Megan and I swapped one flip flop so we each had a hot orange and a black flip on!) yup! That was us!

So break out the shorts and sunglasses! Get out and enjoy this Easter weekend!!!!!

Baseball Preview by Ryan

In my last post I intended to take a look at both the softball and baseball teams, but I ended up having way too much to write about in one post. That's never a bad thing, though, so here is the baseball preview for the 2010 Red Barons mens baseball team.

In 2003, the men's baseball team returned to competitive play after a several year hiatus. They quickly returned to form, earning a spot in the regional tournament only one year later. Since that time, CCC's mens team has seen 18 All-MSAC honors, including one D-1 signee.

Coach Brian Hill has done a good job of assembling a balanced team this season, with ten sophomores and eight freshmen. The team took a hit with the departure of two-year star and All-American Dan Telehany, but several players have stepped up to hopefully fill his role. The team also features a great selection of athletes, with multiple high school standouts and former CCC basketball team players Eric Garvey, Tyler Mizerak, and Greg Cary.

The team has started out slowly at 3-5 overall but should change that soon with some good wins. The team has the potential to sneak up on a lot of people and should be a lot of fun to watch. I hope you will join me in following these athletes as they push for greatness in this 2010 season.

-Ryan

Thursday, April 1, 2010

Softball Preview by Ryan

It finally appears as if spring is arriving! The weather is somewhat nicer, grass is becoming brighter green, and my car is starting again (that's the real way I can tell). Best of all, the sound of metal bats hitting baseballs and softballs can be heard in the afternoon. The American Pastime has returned for another go-round at CCC and I couldn't be more excited.

I've always been jealous of people who were good at baseball or softball. Basketball and football came naturally to me, but I have terrible eyesight and could never track the incoming pitch well enough to hit for a decent average. Some of the players on CCC's teams this year are awesome and both squads are set for great years.

This years softball team looks very good. Coach Stacey Johnson has reloaded the team with a lot of talent, as ten of the fifteen players are freshmen. The returning sophomores, however, will be leading the way. The Lady Barons are coming off a ridiculous season last year, when the team set a school record with 36 wins and a .878 winning percentage. The team will be led by returners Liz Gorges and Gina Brenzo, who blew apart Corning's record book last year. Gorges set school records in home runs (12), runs batted in (69), total bases reached (120), and slugging percentage (896). Brenzo set school records in total at-bats with 137, and singles with 48.

The team has had a strong start already this year, with a 7-1 record, all on the road. Only two wins have come by less than four runs. Tomorrow afternoon marks the first home game for both the softball team, so come on out and have a great time watching the Lady Barons play Erie. I hope to see you there!

-Ryan