Category: Rebecca Jaeger (page 1 of 4)

The Madness of March

Simply put, March is a weird month. It is not really winter, and while technically spring, it certainly doesn’t feel like it. The end of it is spring break, but it’s a few stressful weeks before getting there.

While I could surely do without all of the crazy weather and midterms, I would not be able to do with out March Madness. The three weeks of basketball, crazy upsets, bracket pools, and glory, what’s not to love?

I am obsessed with making tournament brackets. If I’m being completely honest, I made seven last year alone. Granted, they are not always the most successful. I have learned over the years not to put too much thought into my decisions. For instance, a few years ago, I made selections solely on the name and mascot of the school. The school with the more unique name and mascot always made it into the next round. So, schools like Gonzaga went far. Using this highly technical strategy, I somehow won my family’s bracket pool. However, last year, when I actually tried to make decisions based on the skills of the teams, I ended up coming in last place. And, I don’t like to lose.

So this year, I have changed my strategy. I tried to make smart, quick decisions. No over-thinking or lingering on a certain matchup, just picking what ever team stood out to me. Right now, my bracket is doing decently and I certainly hope it continues that way throughout the rest of the tournament. This year, I am not playing for anything but glory and that is certainly enough for me.

While I love brackets, my favorite part of the tournament is the upsets. Every year, there are teams that win against all odds. I love these upsets because they truly demonstrate that anything is possible. Nobody expects anything of these teams; few pick them to win in their bracket; they are truly underdogs. But somehow, they manage to play their hearts out and win. For me, there is nothing like watching the pure joy on the faces of the players as they win a game that nobody thought they could.

For instance, the Georgia State vs. Baylor game that happened the other day. Georgia State (the lower seeded team) won the game with a three pointer in the last 4 seconds. Not only was America surprised, but Georgia State’s own coach literally fell out of his chair. (If you have not watched a video of that ending, you should do it now).

March Madness is exciting, nerve-wracking, and by far the best part of March. These games prove that anything is possible, although I am hoping that the only outcomes are the ones that I predicted in my bracket.

The Joys of Registration

I love many things: my family, UDairy ice cream (especially All-Nighter), good romance novels and America to name a few. Another thing that is high on my list of loves is course registration. Yes, I am a huge fan of the magical weeks when courses are published and classes are chosen. There are four reasons why this season is my favorite of all.

1). The Anticipation. Towards the middle of the semester, life starts to look a little bleak. Classes and extracurricular activities are in full swing and weeks drag on in a blur of midterms, papers and presentations. At this point, the light at the end of the tunnel flickers dismally. It seems as if there is little to look forward to, that is, until courses for the next semester come out.

The Registrar’s Office never tells the students the date that courses will be available; rather, they quietly update the database and wait for Twitter to blow up with the exciting news. The thrill of hearing that courses have been released is only beaten by the nervous excitement of looking up what courses are being offered and at what times. I admit that this year I perused UD Courses Search while walking across campus, only lifting my head to avoid getting hit by cars or aggressive bicyclists.

2). The Challenge. After the initial elation of searching for courses and examining the offerings comes the inevitable planning of ones schedule. For me, this becomes a puzzle that I spend far too much time trying to solve. It’s fun to play around with the different courses that are offered trying to find a schedule that I deem ideal (early classes with time for a lunch break). Naturally, after I find that schedule, I continue to make countless other options, just in case.

3). The Adrenaline. Now for the actual registration. This is the part that causes me the most anxiety. Will I get into UDSIS? Eventually. Will the system crash? Most likely. Will I get into the courses that I want? I sure hope so. These heart-pounding, palm-sweating moments are stressful, but completely worth it. There is such a sense of accomplishment after completing a schedule and being genuinely excited about the courses that I will be taking next semester. In a time where my current courses are cramming in assignments and information, it is a major relief to have something to look forward to.

Naturally, Rebecca's favorite website.

Naturally, Rebecca’s favorite website.

4). The Community. Never do I feel more like a UD student than on registration day. During registration, social media sites (especially Twitter) thrive as students make jokes and comments about their registration experiences. Reading about others’ experiences while I nervously wait to get into my classes not only makes me laugh, but also makes me realize that I am not alone in this adventure. It is fun to get to share what can be the struggle of registration with my fellow Blue Hens. In fact, I have never gotten more love (i.e. retweets and favorites) on Twitter than I did during registration last spring.

I can only hope everyone is as excited about registration as I am. And of course, may the odds be ever in your favor.

~Rebecca Jaeger

The Last Supper

This October marks the second anniversary of Hurricane Sandy barreling up and pounding the East Coast. It was one of the most destructive storms in history and it greatly impacted my freshman year.

Originally, the storm was poised to hit Delaware straight on. The University urged students to go home and cancelled classes for the beginning of the following week. Of course, not all students could make it home, and I was one of them. More than half of my floormates left and campus felt so deserted it was eerie.

However, being on campus for Hurricane Sandy was one of my most memorable experiences of freshman year. It started off with a wiffleball game on the first morning of the storm. We were told to stay in our residence halls, but we were rebels (and the weather wasn’t too bad) so we went to play on the turf in the cold wind and pelting rain. It didn’t last long (due to the weather conditions), but it was a blast.

My favorite memory was the last supper in the dining hall. Essentially, we all received an email telling us that the dining hall would be closing due to the storm and that we could pick up pre-packaged food to eat instead. Naturally, my floor coined this the “Last Supper” before the storm.

The dining hall that night was a mad house. I am not kidding when I say there were students grabbing enough sandwiches and drinks to last them for a week instead of two or three days. Some were actually filling large plastic storage containers food. It was a fight to get a place on line to grab the rations before they were gone.

But then we did something I will never forget. As this was the “Last Supper”, my floor thought it would be funny to recreate the similarly titled painting by da Vinci. So picture in the middle of all this madness, a group of people posing oddly around a table. The looks we got from others were priceless. Then, one of my floormates (shout out to the lovely Becca LaPlaca) superimposed our images onto that of the original “Last Supper”. It looked awesome! It is still one of my favorite pictures from college thus far.

Da Vinci himself couldn't have done better

Da Vinci himself couldn’t have done better

The rest of our hurricane break consisted of a Hurricane Banquet, where we all dressed up and brought our pre-packaged sandwiches to the lounge and ate together, and watching hours of TV while waiting for the power to go out (it never did). Fortunately for us and for the University, Sandy’s path changed, and Delaware did not end up getting the brunt of the storm.

It is certainly safe to say that that the weekend in October was one of my favorite memories of my freshman year and a moment that sums up my experience in Honors at UD. I mean, where else would you find a group of students who would appreciate (and enjoy) posing like a da Vinci painting on a Saturday night?

~Rebecca Jaeger

Running with Nuns

On an overcast Saturday morning a few weeks ago, I participated in a 5K race that yes, involved nuns. Specifically, it was the Nun Run, a race that occurs to benefit the Jeanne Jugan home, which is a residential facility for the elderly in Newark. I went with the Catholic Campus Ministry who bussed over 100 students to run. And yes, the nuns do actually participate in the race.

I ran in the Nun Run two years ago, as a freshman, and I was excited to get to participate again. The free shirts that they give out are quite snazzy and its always fun to tell people that I have run in a race with nuns. This year, I gave myself two goals for the Nun Run: to not come in last place and to get a picture with a nun.

I always have many distinct emotions when signing up for and running a 5K. I start off by feeling quite good about myself when I register for the event. I mean, what better motivation to get in shape than having to run 3.1 miles in public? So, I sign up and think about all of the ways that I am going to train. But unfortunately, all I do is think about training. That’s right, I don’t actually do it.

So, race day rolled around and I was nauseatingly unprepared. It was 6:45am and I was questioning my sanity for signing up to run 3.1 miles at this hour on a Saturday. But of course, once I got to the race location, warmed up and got my free t-shirt (it was purple this year), I was feeling much better about my decision.

The race got off to a good start. It was a beautiful morning to run and I felt great about exercising at such an early hour. However, around mile 2.3, things started to get rough; I was feeling the burn with each step. As I started to slow down, I passed one of the home’s residents who was walking the race course. And I thought, if this elderly man can walk a 5K with a walker, then I most certainly could complete this race. So I did. One foot in front of the other, I made it to the finish line. And, I did not come in last; I actually finished in the top 23% of the runners. Not bad for not having run a 5K in almost 2 years.

So that was one goal complete, and as you can tell from the picture below, my second goal was accomplished as well (getting the picture was far easier). As much as I dislike some aspects of running a 5K, the feeling of accomplishment after completing it is unbeatable. I could barely walk, but I felt as if I could conquer the world. I will undoubtedly participate in the 2015 Nun Run and I vow to actually train for it; you can hold me to that!

~Rebecca Jaeger

Mission accomplished!

Mission accomplished!

Freshman Year 2.0

 

Like most UD students, I have many fond memories of freshman year; pretty much everything from the muggy move-in day, to the bittersweet move out day in May. This year, however, I get to experience freshman year all over again (from a different angle) as a Munson Fellow.

It is certainly interesting to get to experience life as a freshman over again. Let me assure you that many things are still the same over on East Campus. There are freshmen out on the turf at all hours of the day, Dr. Munson is still providing gummy bears on Wednesday nights and the students stay up far too late having many a philosophical discussion. Even the dining hall is the same. In fact, I got an incredible sense of déjà vu when I went into the dining hall on the first day of classes for breakfast. It was as if I was a freshman again: the same employee swiped my card and I ate the same thing (egg white omelet with mushrooms and tomatoes). In some ways, it is uncanny how similar things are to how they were two years ago.

But of course, some things have changed. First and foremost, the building. Living in Redding is pretty much like living in a hotel: there is a plethora of lounge space, the rooms are spacious, and the temperature borders on artic. One thing is for sure; these freshmen will never have to experience the sweaty nights that characterized my freshman fall. Another interesting difference is how the hallways are also lacking for people. Because of the lounges on each wing, freshmen are far more likely to be hanging out there than in the hallway. Bygone are the days where climbing over your floormates’ legs to get to the bathroom was the norm.

East Campus this year is also different because this time I’m supposed to be the one with the answers (no pressure, of course). And now, as it is my job, I want to impart some advice to the freshmen. First, leave your doors open and hang out in the lounges as much as possible. This is a great way to meet new people and get help with homework. Second, when the bell in the dining hall rings, act fast. That means that cookies have just been taken out of the oven and there is nothing better than a warm, gooey cookie to brighten up your day.

But most importantly, work hard and play hard too. You only get one freshman year, so it is important to make it memorable. I studied hard my freshman year, but the nights that I remember most are the ones that I stayed up far too late, rapped in the hallway, laughed until my sides hurt and maybe put on a sumo wrestler costume once or twice. These are the nights that I will always remember and the memories that I will always cherish.

So yes, be an Honors student and study hard, but don’t forget to have fun too. After all, you are only truly a freshman once.

~Rebecca Jaeger

Redding 1A Celebrates September birthdays with cupcakes!

Redding 1A Celebrates September birthdays with cupcakes!

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