Cartoon Library Tour

Guess I am more than a little late to post this, but I had a lot of fun going on the tour of the cartoon library. It was interesting seeing a lot of the comics and strips they had in stock, and how many are just being stored in a warehouse away from the general public. The story of one guy donating millions of comics strips to the University that he spent his life collecting was pretty amazing too. I'm glad I was able to go, I just wish there was a bigger turnout. I did windup dragging a friend who lives off campus to see it the following week though. 

Hey all,

I have never blogged in my life, but here is my try at this!

There were two events that I really enjoyed so far myself.

The first, the meet we had in the beginning of the year to get to know each other and incorporate teamwork and active participiation into our lives. I thought it was great to go out as one group, get to know people, and have fun breaking our minds over puzzles as a unit. More of this!

The second was the film event. It was a really well done presentation which left some great impressions and memories. Ben, awesome video! Still got that one in the back of my head, will for a while anyways)). Our personal project could have used some more touch up, but it was hard to tell before having something to compare to. I am sure we would all do great on a second run if we tried again.

So far, that has been it for me. Will try to get more next semester.


-Dzmitry Tsitsishyn

Humanities In Film

On Wednesday, November 28, the freshmen of the Humanities Scholars took the opportunity to share their hard work and innovation by participating in the film festival. Our theme of America: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness allowed us to showcase our creative talents by offering various different views on this topic. We had people do silent films on capitalism, creative oldies films, we had superheroes making the world safe for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, and many other film ideas. I loved this event because it was fun to see everyone's efforts come to a conclusion and be able to share our views together. We were able to interact with upperclassmen and get their views on the videos as well. Everyone did a great job in putting together and overall amazing festival that was extremely entertaining and humorous. This was by far my favorite humanities event thus far.

Mentor Week

For our mentor week, the roommates and I went to Schmidts Sausage Haus in German Village. It's a very historic restaurant in a very historically rich area, not to mention beautiful. Granted, the line was long and the place was crowded, but we entertained ourselves by doing some shopping nearby. Despite the crowds, the ridiculously difficult time we had getting there, and the inordinate amount of obnoxious nebraska fans (yes, it was on gameday), I had a lot of fun, and thoroughly enjoyed the food.

My 5 Event Blogs

One of the first weekends here at school we went on a trip to a retreat ground. We broke off into separate groups and participated in a variety of team-building activities. The activities were pretty fun, and one or two of them were some-what challenging. The retreat really helped me meet a bunch of new people from our scholars group and definitely helped me get more comfortable with the group. It was a good time.

At the beginning of October I went down to the front area of Haverfield to eat some food with the rest of the building. I talked with some friends and enjoyed the great cookout food, all while enjoying the nice day. Hanging out with others from Haverfield helped me meet some new friends and it was a great opportunity to take a break from school.

During the first week of November, a couple of friends and I took a trip down to the Columbus International Festival at the Veteran's Memorial. We went because it counted for credit in English class as well, but it was definitely worth it. It was really cool to see so much culture and diversity in one place. Luckily we went there hungry as there was all different types of food there. The trip down to the festival was a Sunday well spent for sure.

A couple of Wednesdays ago I tagged along with some friends to attend the Humanities Film Festival to watch all of our video projects. It was awesome to see all of our projects up on the screen and see the work and creativity we all put into them. You could tell everyone worked hard and did a great job filming and incorporating life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

A few nights ago I took a much-needed break form my finals study sessions to grab a cup of hot cocoa in the Hav lobby at Cookies & Cocoa. Everyone was just hanging out and talking while I was there and it was a great break from the stress and strain of studying for finals. Its always great to see all the Humanities Scholars kids. Thank you so much Ben and Jenna, the cookies and cocoa was a great idea!

One (very late, very long) post for four events

I have four events that I need to blog about, going as far back as late Setember. I am writing about them now, because I am a horrible person who can't submit things on time. So, instead of filling up this blog with like four post's worth of events that are mostly from September/October (sorry...!), I'm just going to mention them all here...

1) The first event I actually attended at Ohio State was Comedy Central's The Daily Show Live: Indecision Tour 2012 on September 22nd. Emily and I arrived at the union almost two hours early to wait in line and get good seats, and luckily we weren't disappointed by the seats or by the show. Though Jon Stewart did not come to OSU three people who worked on his show, Al Madrigal, Adam Lowitt, and John Hodgman, did.
Their standup routines were all hilarious; highlights for me were Lowitt describing what has to be the most awkward handshake in existence ("Somehow my thumb got separated from the rest of my hand, so she just went to shake my thumb... we were both so disgusted with me..."), Hodgman talking about how bad he is at sport ("It's called bases ball. Because there's more than one base."), and basically Madrigal's entire routine ("Te gusta chachis negro?" "Daddy doesn't have a 'gina! Daddy's a man!" "He imported clip art!") . By the end of the show, my cheeks hurt because I had been smiling and laughing so much.
After the show, there was a Q&A session. Some questions were very awkward and there were some problems with heckling, but Al Madrigal handled it like a boss. Emily and I even got a picture with him. Yeah. You should be jealous.

2) On October 2nd, I went to the research expo at the Union. The research expo was pretty similar to that of the study abroad expo, except instead of having a lot of booths set up for different types of travel programs, the booths were made up of the different research groups here on campus. I was especially interested in the mouse behavior research, but the entire time I was at the expo, nobody was at that booth to explain the research to me. I talked to a couple of different people, and one of them even told me to apply to volunteer with her come January. The main things that I took away from the expo were that there are many different types of scientific research there are on campus, but in order to get involved (if I decide to do so), I will have to reach out.

3) On November 15th, I went to the resume workshop, which was extremely helpful. I don't really have a lot to say about it, but thanks to the presenter's advice, I was able to cut my resume down significantly so that only the most important information was on it. My resume looks better overall, now, and it has a lot more relevant information.

4) The last event in this monstrous side post is the humanities film festival! I had a lot of fun watching the final product of my group's movie (Shoutout to Starlight Studios!), and watching everyone else's videos as well. We all did really good jobs!

Cookies and Cocoa

Yesterday, December 9th that is, the humanities leaders provided the group with cookies and cocoa. It was a wonderful way to celebrate the end of our first semester. It also gave us a reason to take a study break :) It was really great to see everyone again before we all go on break and return next year. Not to mention the cookies were delicious.

A Good Year for Cinema

If you are at all interested in movies, film, cinema, or any other synonyms of the sort you may think of, you've come to the right blog post.  And you should be interested in them, because you are in the Humanities Scholars.  So there.  I've compiled a brief list of must-sees for myself, and decided to share it with you, because what good would my list be if it wasn't shared?  So, without further ado, I present to you, THE LIST:

Life of Pi - Released November 21, 2012
This tale of Piscine "Pi" Patel and his adventures on a lifeboat with a tiger has become a classic in its own right.  I recommend reading the book first, because it is resplendent in its detail, deep in its meaning, and simply an interesting read.  I have not seen the film yet, but I am told it is as wonderful as its novel.  It is a witty and profound meditation on life and spirituality, and I expect it to sweep me off my feet.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - Released December 14, 2012
Bilbo Baggins, a hobbit who is not usually inclined to seek adventure, finds himself on an epic trek across Middle Earth with a band of dwarves to defeat a malevolent dragon.  I also recommend reading the book first, as I have just finished it myself, and it is as charming and wonderful as I imagined it would be.  Just as the Lord of the Rings films it is the prequel to, it will be released in three movies, and in the same grand proportions.  This tale proves that being a hero doesn't mean being big and tough, but small and wise.

Les Miserables - Released December 25, 2012
Even if you aren't a musical-lover, you should see this movie.  If you like, read Victor Hugo's novel first, although it is quite long.  It transcends its genre, and is one of the most well-loved musicals of all time.  Also, this movie isn't made like other musicals that have been translated onto the big screen; the actors sing live, and the full orchestra is added in later, so the emotion is real and in the moment, not canned and pre-recorded.  It is the story of many people spanning many years, beginning in 1815 and culminating in the 1832 June Rebellion in France. It is a story of love, hate, hope, destitution, freedom, and the fight to be better. 

Warm Bodies - Released February 1, 2013
As trusty old IMDb puts it, this flick is about "a zombie [who] becomes involved with the girlfriend of one of his victims, [and] their romance sets in motion a sequence of events that might transform the entire lifeless world."  While most likely not as profound as some of the other movies on this list, it is sure to be both funny, quirky, and thought-provoking.  Apparently, it is also based on a recently published novel that is widely loved.  Also, ZOMBIES.  Need I say more?

The Great Gatsby - Released May 10, 2013
The decadence and excess of the Jazz age is captured within Jay Gatsby, contrasted with detached, cynical neighbor Nick Carraway.  If you've read the book in high school and liked it, you will definitely appreciate this film.  If you read it and didn't like it, see the movie anyway - you may come to like it.  I mean, really, it's got Leonardo DiCaprio, people...

Star Trek Into Darkness - Released May 17, 2013
Since all my other movie suggestions have been based on novels, here's one for you that isn't.  Everyone knows about Star Trek, at least a little.  It promises to be an action-packed ride for everyone, even if you've never seen an episode of Star Trek (like me).  Also, it has Benedict Cumberbatch in it, if that isn't enough to make you go see it all on its own.

Click on the title of each film to see it's trailer, and if you don't get excited about even one of these, please consult a doctor or licensed psychiatrist immediately.  Also, if you have a suggestion of your own, leave a comment about it!  Get pumped people!  This year and next is going to be a great year at the movies!

Buckeye Book Community Speaker

On October 2, I attended the Buckeye Book Community Speaker lecture with David Lacks. Lacks is the brother of the famous Henrietta Lacks featured in the book The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. Having read the book during the summer it was extremely satisfying to see a character from the book in person, and it was great getting to hear speak as well. Mr. Lacks discussed the issues surrounding the book such as, race, ethics, and morals.

Gallery Hop

Last Saturday, I went with a big group of people to my first Gallery Hop! It was quite an adventure, to say the least. We caught the #2 bus down to the Short North, which was, well, hopping. Just walking down the street was difficult, due to the large volume of passerby. We wandered down the bustling street, past restaurants, galleries, and street musicians, trying to find a good place to eat. Our group eventually split, and we went our separate ways to find food. My group settled on the Happy Greek, and had to wait a half hour to be seated. That was fine with us, because we got to visit more galleries. The art and wares in all of them were all spectacular. There were beautiful works of art, sometimes worth thousands, and hand-crafted goods for sale. We had our fill, and headed back to the Happy Greek. The atmosphere in the restaurant was quaint and lively, and the decor was very Mediterranean. Not to mention the food was delicious - I tried calamari, which was surprisingly great! All in all, the night was a success; I had good friends, good food, and great art.

The Land of the Rising Sun and Thai Food

This past Wednesday, as my quiz for Japanese was hastily approaching, several of my classmates and I decided to hold a study session with the plans to cram - unfortunately, less studying and more procrastinating in the form of artwork on the chalkboard occurred. But you can't say we weren't cultural - afterwards, we were invited to a Thai dinner party one of the dorms on South campus was throwing. We arrived rather late, but there were still plenty of noodles and rice to go around (and my food expertise is rather limited, but I would have assumed they were serving Chinese, not Thai - especially based on the fortune cookie I cracked open at the end of the meal). I had a great opportunity to meet some new South campus friends and enjoy a great meal, and I'm thrilled to have expanded my horizons beyond North campus.

Mentor Week

 During mentor week my roommates and I went to Woody's with our mentors. It was nice to be able to sit down and enjoy a meal with them. While we were there we discussed our transition to The Ohio State University, and talked about what we were nervous for. They gave us helpful advice and made us feel even more welcome on campus.

Humanities Woods Trip

 One of the first sundays that we were here, all the humanities scholars were required to go to the outdoors outing for bonding experience. While we were there I got to meet more amazing people that were involved humanities, besides just my roommates.  This outing really made me feel as if I were a part of the humanities experience, it was a fun day.

We'll Just Call This Wed. the 28th

Wednesday, November 28, was a very eventful day for my friends and I. First of all, we sat in line for nearly 3 hours to get free Maroon Five tickets, which we did, then we had to rush off to the Humanities Film Festival. The festival was awesome, especially Ben and Jenna's opening video, it was hilarious, and we all have to admit that Ben has got some moves. All of the videos were cool, and clearly showed the effort of the students. At the end of the evening, awards were given away. Groups won for best humanities content, most original, laugh out loud, and best in show.  Not to brag or anything, but my group won best in show, and I could not have been happier/prouder. After the film festival, some of us rushed to the Union for the Winter Wonderland event where they had hot cocoa and other beverages, pastries, entertainment, pictures with an inflatable Frosty the Snowman, build your own stuffed animal, cookie decorating, and many other events for free. However, the thing that my group was most excited about was the horse drawn carriage rides, which took us up and down 12th. Overall, it was a very eventful day, packed with friends and fun. I couldn't have asked for a better Wednesday.

Study abroad expo

In early September I attended the OSU Study Abroad Expo. The event was meant to encourage students to study abroad and to provide them with information on how to do so. As an international studies major, studying abroad is something that I am seriously considering. The event was a great opportunity to learn about all the available study abroad programs through OSU. It also allowed me to see just how different each program is, whether its a full semester program or just a two week program, everyone can make studying abroad work for them.

Chicago!!!

CHICAGO WAS AMAZING! Simple as that. It created some great foundations for new friendships and gave me some memories to last a life time. Starting with getting locked out of the museum in the first 20 minutes by going out the wrong door, sitting at a bus stop for an hour to realize it wasn't the bus we needed, going to the top of the Willis Tower 10 minutes before it closed to see the city all lit up or taking a million pictures under the Bean. It was all amazing. Not to mention the Second City stand up comedy show was hilarious! I would recommend this trip to anyone and want to go back any chance I get!

Trick or Treat for the Hungry

On Halloween night, in Hilliard, Ohio, fellow humanities scholars and I took advantage of a unique opportunity to give back to the Columbus community, surrounding The Ohio State University. Instead of just trick or treating simply for the sake of candy and having fun with buds on Halloween, when we approached a house instead of asking for candy for ourselves we asked for can food for the hungry. Minus the bitter cold, howling wind, and torrential downpour, it was a great night. Not only were we doing something for those less fortunate then ourselves but we were having a great time doing it as well. Dressed in full costume my group of scholars truly had a blast walking around the Hilliard neighborhood collecting canned, and non-perishable food items. In the process of things we got some candy of our own too!  

Tracking History

Not too long ago, after Britain's equivalent of Veteran's Day had passed, my aunt had the sudden urge to begin researching my maternal great-grandfather - and as it just so happened, a journal was being discussed at the time which had a very intriguing poem enclosed: one written by a Private Kermilleau Hayden of the 85th battalion (called the Nova Scotia Highlanders), which also happens to be my great-grandfather's name. Now I don't know about you, but I don't know many Kermilleaus...which makes this highly likely to be my great-grandfather. My aunt immediately contacted me, knowing the history buff that I am, and now our family has begun to re-trace our family tree, which we had considered rather hopeless until recently. It's been really cool to see my aunt's discovery brighten my love of history once again, as it's something I've been missing for awhile, and I'm excited at the idea to finally get to research my family tree, as I've always wanted to do. 

Treating the Hungry

On October 31st, despite windy and rainy conditions that accompanied Hurricane Sandy, humanities scholars went to the suburb of Hilliard to collect canned goods to help feed those in need. I enjoyed being a part of this off-campus expedition. The residence of Hilliard welcomed us with open arms and generously distributed large sums of goods. By going house to house, we had friendly chats with residence and created stronger bonds amongst ourselves. In the giving spirit, I had a rewarding experience, feeling as though I was part of a very beneficial cause. I also appreciated my time treating the hungry because I had never had the opportunity to see the Columbus suburbs, and through the lengthy bus trip, combined with our door to door interactions, I was able to get a good look at the surrounding neighborhoods of Columbus. Finally, I must admit, one other highlight made the trip all the more better, and that was receiving candy from Hilliard homeowners who wanted to reward us on that Halloween night for being the middlemen of charity.

Humanities Scholars Flag Football!

The 2012 Humanities Scholars Flag Football team made history this year as they not only finished the season with a stellar 2-2 record, but also advanced to the first round of the playoffs. I had the opportunity to be a part of this special team, and met many humanities scholars I otherwise probably would never have had the opportunity to spend time with. As a team, we experienced great adversity and exceptional resilience. After an easy first game victory and the rush of confidence that accompanied that superb performance, we were blown off cloud nine when we were thrashed by the well-oiled machine that was the Arts Scholars. But what made this team special was the way we rebounded from that ugly outing. A week later, we found ourselves in a grisly neck and neck contest with the heavily favored Health and Wellness scholars. As time expired, our calm and confident quarterback Matthew Crumb heaved the ball to the back of the end zone, where captain Ben Leach made a spectacular catch to give us the game. The poise our team possessed in that affair cannot be understated; with that victory we headed to the playoffs. Unfortunately, our opening round playoff game proved to be a rough road as we were greatly outplayed by the swift and efficient International Affairs scholars. With that, our season came to an end. Although bitter with disappointment and bearing fractured hearts, as a team, we held our heads high walking off the field that day, knowing that we gave it our all representing the Humanities Scholars. Special thanks goes to captain Ben Leach and all others who helped make Humanities Scholars Flag Football a reality.

Chicago!

After a hectic week, what better than to kick it with your peeps in Chicago?!

We left campus around 4pm on Friday, Nov. 9th, and got back around 5pm on Monday, Nov. 12. Probably the most surprising aspect of the trip was our hostel - the beds were comfier than ours in the dorm, and it was like a hotel with 8 people per room! They provided breakfast (French toast sticks, bagels, apples, cereal, etc.), and we had to wash our own dishes, which I thought was pretty ingenious of them. Meeting in the lobby after breakfast, we headed off to the Field Museum. We saw ancient mummies, dinosaurs, Africa, evolution, and some strange and wonderful things. Then came free time - it started raining as our group made its way to Michigan Avenue, so we walked a while and backtracked our way through the rain to find lunch. Six of us broke off from the large group and stopped to chow down at Pita Heaven.  From then on, Julianna, Andrea, and I went off by ourselves, and we finally found the Bean in Millennium Park. It is quite impressive in person, and we of course took our goofy tourist pictures. We wandered to the shore and stood on a little dock, moseyed back into town, and headed back to the hostel to meet the group.

From there, we rode the L (elevated train system) to Gino's East of Chicago for some deep-dish pizza. We then headed out to see Second City, a famous comedy gig where a bunch of SNL folks got their starts. It consisted of six actors, four chairs, and a "special group of people [that] will never come back as one audience again." It was mostly good, but some sketches were a bit over-the-top, if you know what I mean. It was supposed to be improv, but it definitely was not all improv - the spot-on sound effects kind of gave away how much it was scripted and rehearsed. After that, we returned to the hostel worn out.

Next morning, we ate brunch at Panera (we missed breakfast). We stopped by a store on Michigan Avenue so Andrea could take care of some unfinished shopping, saw the Bean again, and then met in the hostel lobby to go to Navy Pier.  I wore my hair down, and the wind got pretty intense. At one point, we were all being supported by the wind while we leaned into it. We also saw a gorgeous stained glass exhibit, a greenhouse with jumping fountains, and the Ferris wheel (which wasn't operating). After Navy Pier, we went to our Humanities Festival Session: "The Other 1960s," which was mostly interesting. I think it would have made more sense if we were alive during the decade. Our speaker, Kevin Boyle, spoke mainly about this family who were regular people, children of immigrants, and how they survived. None of your usual hippies, civil rights, Kennedy conspiracies, or anything. We then stayed for the reception, where we consumed some fancy foods, chatted, and went our separate ways.

Fourteen of us found our way to Ed Debevic's, right next to Gino's. It was a dark and stormy night, so we tried not to get too soaked. Ed Debevic's is a diner where the waiters are supposed to be rude to you, and when we walked in, I received the first insult. I commented on a waiter's Boy Scout outfit, and he saucily replied, "Man Scout. It's called puberty, you've probably never heard of it." It was quite funny. However, I was not impressed by our waitress. Although she was dressed like a little old lady with her hair in curlers, she seemed like she was done for the night and was hardly spunky at all. She did call me a cheapskate, though, which was pretty accurate. We also got cute little paper hats. We all went back to the hostel afterwards, and a small group of us went to see Buckingham Fountain at night. However, it was dry (besides the rain), and turned off.  We hit up a Dairy Queen on the way back, then dried off in the hostel and went to bed.

We had almost gone to Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower) or the John Hancock Building that night, but the viewing deck on Willis was closed, and there was no visibility on Hancock. Overall, we had a blast and made some lasting memories with our fellow Humanities Scholars.  The last morning we woke up, packed, handed in our keys, ate breakfast, and hit the road. Lo and behold, here we are once more, home in Haverfield.

Presidential Watch Party

Regardless of whether or not you are happy with the results of the presidential election, I sincerely hope each and everyone of you went out and voted!
I went down to Woody's Tavern at the Union last night for the watch party. I was very interested to see what the atmosphere would be like with members of different parties all watching the same results in the same room. It was very crowded and there was a lot of chatter throughout the night. I didn't get there till closer to 7:30, but my roommate was already there and saved a seat for me up near the T.V. screens. There were trivia questions and guest speakers as the night went on, not to mention the free food! I didn't stay until the very end, but I heard it was insane when they announced the president! Every time they called the winner of a particular state there would simultaneously be loud cheers as well as boo-ing, and I can only imagine how loud and crazy it must have been when the results came it.
I definitely thought it was an interesting experience, and I'm glad I went even if it was only for a little while.

R.A. Planned Event - from Gabi Smith

Tuesday, October 9^th, 2012

R.A. Planned Event Blog

Today at 6:45pm, I attended an event my R.A., Megan Francis, planned. Dr. Rebecca Ricciardo, a chemistry professor, came to speak to us about how to be successful in a large class, namely, general chemistry. I am currently in chemistry 1210 and have been struggling greatly, so I thought this would be a wonderful opportunity to take advantage of. Dr. Ricciardo was great and summarized many good tips. Although it has been emphasized to me before, I realize even more that I need to go to my professor during office hours when I need help. She brought up the point that if I don’t have any questions while I’m studying, then I am not studying effectively or actively thinking about the content. She also pointed out many reasons why students may not succeed, and the one that best applied to me is missing little points on every assignment that add up over time. I do wonderfully on the chemistry lab reports, but fail the online pre-labs and post-labs. Some I’ve even forgotten the due date and unfortunately received a zero on them. I suppose I need to do more studying and more effective studying. According to Dr. Ricciardo, I should spend more time on studying the lecture notes and reading along in the textbook, instead of spending hours on perfecting my lab reports. Lab reports are only 20% of the total grade, whereas lecture is the majority. I should focus my time on preparing for the weekly quizzes during recitation, and less on the labs, while balancing study techniques that improve my success on the online pre- and post- labs.

               One thing I loved about Dr. Ricciardo’s presentation was the memes she used to go along with every point in her powerpoint. They added humor, mainly because they were “sad, but true”. I realize “oh no! I do that… I need to change something.” Dr. Ricciardo addressed something that I feel every student should be informed about, and that is the etiquette of e-mail. E-mail is usually the first and preferred method of communication between students and professors, and Dr. Ricciardo stressed the importance of maintaining a formal tone, because professors DO remember students with nice e-mails… and bad e-mails. Luckily I’ve had a bit of experience with this when I’d have to send out e-mails to my co-workers in the Human Resources Department at Stanley Steemer International, Inc. The importance of sending appropriate, concise, and important e-mails with a formal and calm tone could not be stressed enough. She showed examples of students venting to professors, commanding the professors to stop the “freshman hazing,” etc. These examples were good to show because it puts the students in perspective of how e-mails should be worded when being sent to these professors, these connections that may follow us past undergrad school.

               Overall, I was happy I attended this event. It was helpful and informative and was somewhat of a confidence booster (for the things I already do that are good) as well as a wake up call (for the things I need to improve on). Hopefully I am conscientiously applying these study tips and notice an improvement in my general chemistry grades.

Treat the Hungry, Humanities Style!

On Halloween, you'd expect us to go Trick-or-Treating, right?  Nope.  We went door-to-door, and instead of asking for candy, we asked for canned goods and nonperishable food items for the Mid-Ohio Food Bank.  Shout-out to Group #2!  We had fun on our side of the street, and even got some candy, too.  I was elected the designated speaker of the group, and did the talking for the majority of the houses we visited.  Our favorite house, if I'm not mistaken, was a nice lady sitting on her porch who we entertained with "Carmen Ohio" while her husband collected the goods.  I made some new friends, and got to treat the hungry!  Overall, it was a much different way of celebrating Halloween, but one that was definitely worth the cold! 

Haunted House

Last night my friends and I went to the Ouab haunted house that was hosted at the union at 7. I was very impressed that they had managed to make something as elaborate as this all in one small room. There were many people hidden throughout the maze that popped out when you turned corners and they were  pretty startling. Overall, it was a fun experience, especially to do to celebrate The Halloween Season.

John Lewis Gaddis

Last year in history we used one of John Lewis Gaddis' books as a textbook.  Gaddis is one of the leading cold war historians, so I thought it was pretty cool to see on the Humanities newsletter that he was speaking at OSU.  His book was well written, so I thought I'd go and listen. 

It was at the Mershon Center, and only about 20 people went, almost all of which were grad students or professors. Gaddis' main point of conversation was Kennan, the US ambassador to the Soviet Union during the Cold War. Kennan was responsible for the Long Telegram, which essentially shaped the US  foreign policy in regards to the Soviets. He used a hedgehog/fox analogy to describe Kennan's life. Foxes are people that can adapt quickly to new situations and maintain an overarching view of a situation, but consequently are not good at predicting the outcome of an even.  Hedgehogs are stuck in one mindset, and tend to deliberate heavily before reaching a decision; however, they have a better chance at predicting an outcome. Gaddis claims that the best leader is one that can be a hedgehog or a fox when the situation demands it. Unfortunately Kennan reverted to hedgehog in a time when he was needed as a fox. 

John Mueller was also in attendance, which was cool because I was just assigned one of his papers to read for my foreign policy class. He's a professor here at OSU. 

Dracula Balletmet

From a coffin rising from below the stage to the sudden death of a main character, Balletmet performs Dracula with sensuality, sexuality, drama and brief nudity. Intriguing throughout, the characters draw the audience in, captivating interest in excellent muscle control, superb special effects and a show that constantly reminds everyone they are not watching a Disney performance. Dramatic music pulsing during the show engages the audience to feel the carnal passion of the dancers, telling the story of a demon who desperately wants the blood of angelic Mina, torn between her benevolent husband and the vampire who recently killed her friend. A seducer who sets the stage for the beloved sensual monster for the next centuries, Dracula wins the audience with his raw emotion, clever escapes and witty behavior. A show that proves there is only one vampire that stands the test of time.

Mock Leadership Council Meeting!

Wednesday night proved to be a very busy one!  After the Humanities Community Meeting in the Royer North Room (which was a very interesting presentation on the effects of media), all of us who had filled out an application for the Leadership Council met up in the Hav lobby.  I don't know about anyone else, but I had more fun than I thought!  We all got little nametags and were split up into groups by committee.  Current members told us about what they do and the responsibilities of their positions, and then we had a brainstorming session.  I was with the Social Committee and the Spring Trip Committee, and we had some great ideas that I think everyone in Humanities would enjoy!  Everyone seemed very excited about our possible plans, and I know I am excited at the possibility of joining the Leadership Council.

Mock Presidential Debate

This is really late but at the beginning of October I went to the mock presidential debate put on by student from the Politics, Society, and Law Scholars program. The moderator was an anchor from NBC4. The main reason I went was because the guy portraying Mitt Romney is a good friend of mine but it was actually pretty interesting. I learned a couple things but what I found most interesting was watching the student version of the debate and then comparing it with the next night watching the actually debate the next night.

Film Editing!

I realize I'm about a week late in posting this, but I figured it's better late than never, right? I went to the film editing session last Tuesday to see if I could learn anything new for the upcoming film project. I was a little late in getting there because I almost completely forgot about it, but when I showed up....there were only three other people plus Ben! Kayla was there to help lead us through a tutorial of the iMovie program and we got to play around with the basic editing process and special effects. I've used iMovie before, but it was interesting to see how other people used it, and I learned a few things from them that I didn't know before. I'm definitely even more excited about the film project now and can't wait to see what everyone else comes up with!

Rebecca Skloot

Last night, Kristen and I went to the Rebecca Skloot lecture. I had really enjoyed reading The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, and I was excited to hear the author speak about her book. However, instead of talking about the particular events or scientific studies in the book, she focused the discussion on herself; how she became interested in Henrietta; and what gave her the determination to write the book. This put all the pieces together for me, and I felt that I understood the bigger picture. She told us, for example, that although she learned about Henrietta when she was 16, for a long time she never considered writing about Henrietta's story or even becoming a writer. Just like Henrietta's family who had to wait years to find meaning in their difficult experiences, Rebecca Skloot had to wait until that one day when she found inspiration and a purpose, what she described as a "what?" moment. What also left an impression on me was her acknowledgment of the older generation who contributed to her investigation, through interviews and letters, and who had died during the process of writing the book. This made me think about my grandfather who passed away when I was younger. After he died, I wanted to learn everything about his life. I wish that I would have talked to him more about his experiences, particularly because I feel that it is very important to learn from those who have come before us and are part of a time we can only know through literature and media. The only way we move forward is by knowing our past and recognizing it is always a part of us. That is why the story of Henrietta Lacks and the stories of everyone involved in her story and the development of HeLa cells, in general, are so meaningful.

-Tirosh Matzuba-Ehrlich

Rebecca Skloot Lecture

After David "Sonny" Lacks' Q&A session, I was hoping for a more in-depth look at how Rebecca Skloot, author of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, actually got through writing the book.  Tonight was amazing - we sat in the front row, and Rebecca spoke about growing up being a "problem child" in school because she was so persistent and curious about everything but what teachers wanted her to be curious about.  It was encouraging to hear her say that coming to school undecided is not a bad thing (as I am undecided) because our passions can change with one sentence, one influence, just like Mr. Defler piqued her interest in Henrietta.  I was very intrigued by her journey from simple curiosity to full-fledged investigation, and how it all tied back to Defler's class and singular mention of a name.  Rebecca was well-spoken, and the audience asked great questions, which she answered with tact and depth.  Afterward, my friends and I went to the book signing - Sarah especially was excited.  All in all, the night was a huge success, and her talk made me understand the motivation behind the book much better.

Honors/Scholars Masquerade

Last night my roommates and I went to the honors/scholars masquerade that was held at Kuhn House. One of our roommates painted all the masks on our faces and we dressed up for the event. When we got there nobody was there. We were the only college kids and it was kind of awkward. The DJ was playing music and there were three elementary/middle school kids dancing around and having fun. We walked inside and we were greeted and offered drinks, candy, and donuts. After awhile we went back outside and decided it didn't matter what people thought, we were going to dance by ourselves. Eventually more people showed up and it ended up being a fun time dancing the night away. (:

Flag Football

     On Sunday, October 7th, the rain and wind ensured that everyone was going to stay home and dry.  Everyone, that is, except for the seven of us who were signed up to play flag football.  When 4 o'clock rolled around we braved the cold to board the bus.  We didn't look like much, and certainly didn't feel like a cohesive group but once we got to the field we didn't have a choice.
       We went in with no real plays or positions.  But, by some miracle, the Humanities Scholars beat the Sports and Wellness Scholars, 28-12.  My stellar moment was some quality defense.  My finger tips brushed against the poorly thrown football and the receiver's mistake lead to a incomplete pass.
       We have another game this Sunday, and hopefully we'll be able to pull it off... again.

The Intergalactic Nemesis

Megan and I went to The Intergalactic Nemesis, a "live action graphic novel". It was pretty incredible! We were able to see still pictures come to life with voice actors, a foley artist, and a pianist. I believe even those who are not fans of comic books would have enjoyed the show. It's just so interesting to watch the sound being created, and see the humor between the cast. Everything about the performance was wonderful, and there were so many small children there. It was so cute to see how excited they were! It was freezing when we finally started walking back, and we ran into Fay (who also saw the show) on our way home! I'm very glad I attended the event, and I would recommend it to anyone :)

Lolis Eric Ellie Talk

The talk with Lolis Ellie was open to the ODI scholars and I thought it was really informative. Lolis came to talk about his show and diversity as well as inform us as students that we have every right to pursue the thing that we are good at and want to do. It was an inspirational talk that actually had me consider new options and choices that I could make. After this dialogue, I actually took into consideration switching my major. I felt drawn to the possibility of changing from Philosophy to Criminology/Sociology because I think it relates more to me in a personal level.
Diversity wise he carried a philosophy that not many people do anymore. After we discussed the events of racial hatred that happened on campus, and what the leadership council could do to stop it, Lolis offered words of advice. It was similar to the philosophy that I heard Morgan Freeman state on the existence of Black History Month. When Freeman stated that he didn't support Black History Month, many people questioned him asking if he was a racist and if it weren't for this month how would we stop racism. His simple answer? To stop talking about it. Lolis kind of shared this similar ideology which I also agree with and thought that was an extremely great way to look at the problem of racism.

Obama

I might be the only one excited, but I saw Obama!  I was completely sick, but I forced myself out of the dorm to go hear the president speak...and John Glenn (he's an astronaut! haha).  There dialogue was basically what you'd expect, but it was cool to be part of something kind of historical.  Will.i.am was pretty mediocre, though.  Most of the music wasn't even his songs; it was just these random remixes (I'm not a big fan of remixes to begin with, so yeah...).  Either way, I felt like I did something halfway relevant.  It was also a great people watching, too.

Beauty and the Beast

As someone who spent a good chunk of her early childhood believing she was Belle from Beauty and the Beast, it was a no-brainer to jump onto the opportunity to go see the stage production of the Disney Classic at the Palace, one of my favorite locations in downtown Columbus. My heart pretty much sank when I found out there was a mix-up in getting my ticket, but much thanks to Ben and my mentors, who happened to come, for helping me out. Overall, I was mesmerized by the performance: the effects were fantastic, the classic songs made me want to sing along, and the actress playing Belle seemed to have jumped right out of the film! Gaston's exaggerated actions were wonderful too, especially considering he was an understudy. Nevertheless, the Beast's simple overacting and some edgy lines for a Disney production left me preferring the film version. But I was so happy to have gone and heard those famous songs, to get to talk to the cast after the show, and to get to hang out with fellow Humanities Scholars and the Arts Scholars!

Rock the Oval

For anyone who went to the "Rock the Oval" O.A.R. (Of a Revolution) concert, you know what I mean when I say that it was crazy.  Not only did they throw out more t-shirts than there are grains of sand on a beach, but the energy of the crowd was overwhelming, as was the act.  My friends and I were in the center of the mosh pit in front of the stage, and it was definitely an experience to remember.  None of us had ever been to a concert before!  It seemed as if everyone and their cousins were crowd surfing over and around us, and if you didn't pay attention, you could get landed on/crushed pretty easily.  O.A.R. (OSU alumni) themselves are a brilliant band, and I was very pleasantly surprised to hear that the song "Shattered" is one of theirs.  They are a great band - the horn section was phenomenal!  Overall, it was a great first concert.

The Prestige was Prestigious

Wednesday Oct. 3, was movie and potluck night!!!! There was amazing food, and the movie was absolutely brilliant. Everyone in attendance pitched in to create an awesomely appetizing array of food. The main course, was Cane's chicken, which made the night that much more epic. There was also apples, popcorn, chips, cookies, cupcakes, "Buckeye Chow", and various other goodies. As if the food wash't treat enough, The Prestige starred both Christian Bale and Hugh Jackman as magicians who are pitted against each other in a bitter rivalry to have the best trick. Of course, I won't ruin the movie for anyone who hasn't seen it. However, with the twisted web of secrets, magic, and science, as well as beautifully orchestrated relationships, I suggest this movie to anyone with a pulse. The night wrapped up early enough for proper rest for classes the next day, and it was all around fun. I would thoroughly enjoy more movie nights such as those in the future, and definitely recommend the experience to anyone. It was a blast!!!

An Evening with David "Sonny" Lacks

This evening I attended the Buckeye Book Community event that consisted of a Q&A with Sonny Lacks and his wife, Shirley. The line to get in was extremely long, and I ended up having to sit in the upper balcony. However, I could still see perfectly fine, and the sound system was phenomenal. The first portion of the evening was a Q&A held by First Year Experience director Ben Savarese. He asked the couple questions such as their opinions towards Johns Hopkins, what they thought of Rebecca Skloot and her book, and whether they believed the family should be compensated. Sonny thought that the hospital should formally apologize for taking Henrietta's cells without her consent, but he said that he understood that that would "open a bunch of doors" that the hospital couldn't open. It was interesting to hear the opinions of the actual people involved, however, since Sonny was only 4 when Henrietta died, he could not give much insight into her life besides what he had been told. The next part of the evening opened the floor for students to ask questions, some of which I though were a little too personal. I understand the interest in the book, and discovering more about the characters, but at the same time, it seemed like students forgot that the people aren't just characters in a fictional book, they are real people, and that was really their lives. For instance, one student asked if it was worth it to lose his mother, since she helped millions of lives. How is someone supposed to answer that in an auditorium filled with strangers? I mean, I understand the interest, I just think that some of the questions prompted answers that should have been private. Anyways, after the Q&A, Sonny and Shirley went to Page hall for a book signing. There were some students there, as well as some members of the general public, however, the line was very short, which is a little disappointing that more students did not wish to meet Sonny one on one. However, the shorter line was of course beneficial for my friend Sarah and I. While waiting in the line, which took only about 10 minutes if that, we met a woman who runs a charity group, and discussed life in Columbus, her work, the degrees that Sarah and I are pursuing, and of course, our opinions of the book. It was a great night, and I am very glad that I went.

Haverfield Cookout

Monday, Oct. 1, my friends and I attended the Haverfield cookout in the courtyard of Haverfield. There were delicious foods and drinks, and a vast amount of people. The event planners were caring enough to offer a vegetarian burger, and there were also hot dogs and hamburgers for us carnivores. There was a variety of chips, fruit, macaroni and potato salad, and cookies and popsicles for dessert. There was water offered, as well as a selection of coke products. After getting our food, my friends and I sat on the grassy area to commence with our meal. During the course of the evening, there were people playing catch, or other games, and people just sitting around talking. Since this event was open to all of Haverfield, and not just the Humanities scholars, I was able to meet new people. There were a few people who were making their way around groups in order to talk to a variety of people. So it was a good opportunity to meet people who live in the same building, but I may never see. At the end of the evening, Ben was offering left over food to people, because there were extra side dishes. My friends and I also helped Ben fold up the tent that was covering the grill, which was an experience in itself. All in all, it was a fun, relaxing evening.

English Conversation Parner - from Kayla Whitehouse

I have had two more get togethers with my partner, Dora. We usually go out to eat, and alternate week by week whether we go to an Asian or American restaurant. On Dora's week, we went to Joy's Village - a Chinese restaurant underneath Buckeye Books. The food at Panda Express or No. 1 Chinese restaurant are really Americanized, but Joy's has done a better job of preserving Chinese food. We both ordered a main dish, and we got unlimited rice for free. The two dishes were set in the center, so we shared and I got to try both. My boyfriend is Taiwanese, so I surprised her by knowing a little Mandarin and using chopsticks proficiently. She told me about her hometown, parents, and her favorite Chinese festivals. I told her about Thanksgiving and Christmas. It was a lot of fun, and it must be really hard to be so far away from home.

This week was my week, so I took her to Chipotle for the first time. We talked about Thanksgiving and a Moon Festival (I think) that was this weekend. We stopped at Cuzzins on the way back and she tried frozen yogurt for the first time as well. She says she misses the food the most, since American food just isn't the same. We are going to a Korean place next, so that should be fun.

OTL's 9th Annual Cabaret

This weekend I went to Off The Lake's 9th Annual Cabaret. I must say, it was pretty amazing. Of course, I love musical theatre so I automatically enjoy anything OTL does. However, I believe even someone who doesn't particularly love theatre would enjoy this show. It will make you laugh, cry, and feel all fuzzy inside. Faith and I both left Baker Hall's Performance Space feeling fully satisfied with the entertainment we received. If you want to go yourself, their last performance of the cabaret is tonight at Baker Hall Performance Space, and the price of admission is one canned good. They are donating the cans they collect to a local food bank. So if you don't want to go for the awesome entertainment, go to help a great cause! I hope everyone is having a good weekend :)

Metomorpho-Thon

My Classical Mythology professor first told me about Metomorpho-Thon because he was scheduled to read during it. Essentially, this event is sponsored by the Classics Club, and they read classical literature from 8 am to 8 pm in front of the Thompson Library. When I sat down next to the statue, a student was reading from Ovid's Metamorphosis. It was slightly distracting when his friends showed up to listen and take pictures (embarrass) the reader, but overall it was a good experience. It's still going on today, so if you want to listen to a little bit of classical literature, head down to the Thompson Library before 8 pm!

Dinner with Ben and Jenna

Meeting in the Haverfield lobby, we had a little time to wait until Ben and Jenna arrived, so we messed around on the piano a bit.  They finally showed up, and we all signed in and headed over to North Commons.  Apparently they had never eaten there before (at least Ben hadn't), so we had to explain the swiping process, then got our food and headed to the basement to find enough seats for everyone.  It didn't look like many people came when we were in the lobby, but there were quite a few of us sitting downstairs when all was said and done.  I sat at Jenna's table first, and we had a great time talking and finding common interests (like "Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog!").  Ben joined our table for dessert when the majority of his table was gone, and he learned all of our names fairly quickly.  Overall, it was a fun time, and it spiced up the dinner routine with a Humanities flavor!

Wexner Center Party -- photos and a movie

Last Friday, I went to the Wexner Fall Student Center Party.  The main attraction of the party was the showing of an Annie Leibovitz exhibition.  I’ll be honest – I didn’t really like it.  When I think of photography, I think of powerfully emotional or evocative pictures, such as the picture of the view of planet Earth from the Moon or photos of soldiers reuniting with their families.  The image of a naked John Lennon clinging to Yoko Ono like some type of oversexed koala really just didn't do it for me.

However, the party did have a saving grace: there was a screening of Joss Whedon's horror film The Cabin in the Woods.  Needless to say, I absolutely loved it.  This movie is notable not only for having a plot (a rarity in a horror film), but for taking every trope and cliché of horror movies and twisting them into new and refreshing ideas.  Every time I thought that something was going to happen, two things happened: either the event occurred in a completely different way than I thought it would, or the event didn't happen at all.  When the latter of the two options occurred, the movie went out of its way to point it out, essentially saying "Ha ha, we got you there, didn't we?" The film is essentially a satire of those 'torture porn' slasher movies that are all the rage in the box office these days.  It is impossible for me to go into a full review of the movie without spoiling the entire plot, so I will cut myself off here, but I highly recommend this movie to anybody who is even the slightest bit interested in horror movies -- and even to those who are not.

Karl Rove vs. James Carville: A Debate

Last week, I attended the political debate between Karl Rove and James Carville. While I realize that I am not a PSL scholar, as a college student of voting age I believe it was an important opportunity of which to take advantage. While neither of these men are candidates in a current election, they have both played important roles in national politics and presidential campaigns over the past years. Listening to what they had to say was informative and contained a surprising touch of humor. They both made very strong arguments for their contrasting points of view concerning the upcoming election and were encouraged by the audience throughout. At the end of the debate, they even answered questions that the students in the audience posted on Twitter with the hashtag #OUABdebate. It was an enlightening experience and I'm glad I was able to attend. 

Writers Block Poetry @ Kafe Kerouac

So, today I went to Kafe Kerouac near North Campus with some members of the Psychology Peer Mentor program (and, as it turns out, a fellow Humanities Scholar member too!). Kafe Kerouac, for those of you who don't know, is a cafe/bookshop/bar. (I bought two fantasy novels there and a House Special called Roald Dahl. I thought it was pretty cool that they had drinks named after famous authors. ^^) They had a poetry night around 8:00 PM, which costs $5, and since I guess poetry is a part of the Humanities, I decided to write about it on this blog! Maybe it'll count? I hope so.

It was a really enjoyable experience!! The crowd was friendly and it was real fun. After listening to a few poems, I suddenly got the urge to go up and read a poem. Alas! I didn't prepare any printed poems or whatever because I thought the poetry thing was one where the audience would judge your poem or something (that's something else though, I found out). So...I raised my hand and told the MC that I'd really like to go and that I had a poem on the Google Docs, if only someone could let me borrow their laptop for a bit. And, someone actually did let me use their laptop!!!! So, I got to read my dramatic monologue called Shadow and I calmed down afterwards. IT WAS SUCH AN AWESOME FEELING!!! It was my first time attending a real poetry reading event as well as all the people I went with!

The poems that I listened to were really good. Many of them made me feel like I was listening to a internal monologue in a film or something. I didn't stay for all of it because some of my group had to leave and I wanted to walk home with them, but from what I saw, the poetry night was pretty good. All the seats there were filled and there were 27 people (including me) who performed or were gonna perform. I was surprised there were so much people!

Humanities Scavenger Hunt!

Well, needless to say, I love my mentors(: They were so much fun! Devon was our motivational leader, fearlessly leading us around the whole OSU campus, and Kathryn was my lovely photo buddy. We practically ran from building to building, and the opportunities for taking the pics for bonus points seemed to fall into our laps. On our way out from the Union, we threw away people’s trash for them; right from the get-go, we had a group of strangers do the O-H-I-O for us; on our way out of the Thompson Library, we asked a lone studier to take a pic of us doing a pyramid.  We got through every single bonus and booked it to all 8 of the necessary places. We had a fun time bonding and getting a glimpse of Devon’s competitive nature. Hopefully, we won(: The popcicles at the end were a nice treat since all that speed walking around made it very hot.  The weather was truly perfect for today- not too sunny and breezy. Overall, the scavenger hunt was a lot of fun and I would definitely recommend it to the next year’s freshman class.