Party Hardy U of R style!

Lookie, two blog posts in one week!

So Glenn and I had our 'room warming' party last night to show everyone our revamped room. Being a small room it was a small soiree, but a big time was had by all. The two big changes to the room are the new TV and the British person that moved in. I might apply to MTV to have it shown on 'Cribs'.

Of course, it ain't a party until you've applied to have it registered. Oh yes, in U of R one must register any fun that is to take place on campus. So shortly after class on Friday I voyaged to the Dean's office to fill in the necessary paperwork. Signing the form requires you to conform to certain rules, such as no spirits and that the party will last no longer than 4 hours. So stocked up with plenty of wine (and NO BudLite!) we had the best 240mins of the semester so far.

Our room is now sufficently warm and, having done my other errands for the week, I am now well settled in for the next few months here.

Back in the US of A

So after an enjoyable few weeks in Ireland I've returned to the Commonwealth of Virginia for the second half of my year abroad. Sorry for the woeful rate of posting, but things will be different this semester! At least once I week, I promise.

So what to expect this semester? For a start, I'm still working in the coffee shop serving the good people of UR their coffee. However, Luc has left us. He's gone back to Germany to finish his degree meaning I was minus a roomie. Luckily Glenn felt he could tolerate sharing a room with me for 17 weeks. Lets see how he does!

I've also started an internship in the Virginia State Senate working for State Senator George Barker. It's very exciting - the Senate meets for only 60 days a year, so its very intense when the Senate is in session. I had my first day today (hence the suit) and the places was full of lobbyists and staffers. Sadly, I'll have to save all the stories until my death bed; so you'll have to look elsewhere for your political scandal.

I'm also doing a 'Campaigns and elections' course which is all about the US Presidential election. We'll get to study strategy, the electoral system and campaign ads. I'll keep you posted on how that goes, since it should be good fun. Go Ron Paul! Virginia has its primary on Feb 12th in case you're wondering, I'll let you know if anything happens locally about that.

Right, I gotta go to the gym so I'll leave you with the photo of me in my lovely suit and will chat next week.

Orange Mocha Cremice anyone?

I've been horribly poor with my posting lately. Constantly reading and doing assignments isn't the only reason. The other reason is, I'm in love................with coffee! My voyages during the year are burning up a cash, so I've become gainfully employed at the campus coffee place "8:15 @Boatwright", the name of which has a surprisingly dull story. Students used to say "Let's meet at the library at 8:15 (before the first class) and so when they set up coffee shop, they called it "8:15 @ Boatwright". Get it?

The pay is dire, only $6.15 and hour plus a few dollars in tips. I've tried to convince management to have an "8.15" theme and pay us that, but so far they haven't come around to it. We're a 'Starbucks Franchise', which means we use their coffee and abide by their standards, but aren't technically a branch. As a result, we can't make 'Frappuccinos' but we can make 'Cremices', which are exactly the same.

I do enjoy working there, since its kinda fun and the rest of the staff are great- Anna and Glenn both work there. Plus, I get two free items per shift. So free Bagle and Latté three days a week!

Midterm break in Boston

Firstly, sorry for the hiatus in posting on my blog. I've been busy over the past few weeks, assignments and my new job (I'll explain that in the next post). But firstly, I want to tell you all about my trip to Boston! I'm not going to lie to you, it was pretty cool!
The excuse for the trip was fall break, which meant we had to find something to do for the 5 day break. Taking a trip to Boston seemed like a good idea, me being Irish and all such a pilgrimage is mandatory. Also, my sister came over the visit me so that was another good reason. Thanks sis!
Since it was a break from all the work on campus, we decided to take it pretty slow. We visited Harvard, went to the theatre, explored the old district of Boston, shopped and went on a "Duck tour". The last one was definitly the best. It involved using WWII amphibious trucks to give tours of the city, including a trip into the bay.
Harvard was also good. Fun fact: Harvard (the college) and Cambridge (the town where its built) HATE eachother. Fun fact II: Cambridge town council is elected by PR-STV. If you're
going to visit Harvard, go on the 'unofficial tours' which are conducted by students. They are way more fun.

Shopping also had to be done, as cold weather threatened to move in. Coats, sweaters and slacks were all purchased. The exchange rate is so good, if it weren't for the carbon miles I'ld encourage you all to come over.

I was silly enough to forget my camera, so no photos on hand. Instead, I've put up a pretty picture of Boston.

"In the event of an active shooter"

You're all aware of the tragic events in Virginia Tech a few months back. In response, UR authorities circulated this helpful information sheet on how to act in the event of an 'active shooter'. Most of it is a common sense, but its still a tad creepy.
For those in Ireland, I've included the photo to your left. This is to remind you that although you don't have the NRA or gun totting rednecks, you still have Willie O'Dea- so watch out!

Active Shooter Emergency Action Plan

When a hostile person(s) is actively causing deadly harm or the imminent threat of deadly harm within a building, we recommend the following procedures be followed:

• Lock yourself in the room you are in at the time of the threatening activity.
• If communication is available, call 911.
• Don't stay in the open hall.
• Do not sound the fire alarm. A fire alarm would signal the occupants in the rooms to evacuate the building and thus place them in potential harm as they attempted to exit.
• Barricade yourself in the room with furniture or anything you can push against the door.
• Lock the window and close blinds or curtains.
• Stay away from windows.
• Turn all lights and audio equipment off.
• Try to stay calm and be as quiet as possible.
• If for some reason you are caught in an open area such as a hallway or lounge type area, you must decide what action to take.
  1. You can try to hide, but make sure it is a well hidden space or you may be found as the intruder moves through the building looking for victims.
  2. If you think you can safely make it out of the building by running, then do so. If you decide to run, do not run in a straight line. Keep any objects you can between you and the hostile person(s) while in the building. Use trees, vehicles or any other object to block you from view as you run. When away from the immediate area of danger, summon help any way you can and warn others.
  3. If the person(s) is causing death or serious physical injury to others and you are unable to run or hide, you may choose to play dead if other victims are around you.
  4. The last option you have if caught in an open area in the dorm, may be to fight back. This is dangerous, but depending on your situation, this could be your last option.
  5. If you are caught by the intruder and are not going to fight back, follow their directions and don't look the intruder in the eyes.
  6. Once the police arrive, obey all commands. This may involve your being handcuffed or made to put your hands in the air. This is done for safety reasons and once circumstances are evaluated by the police, they will give you further directions to follow.

This Emergency Action Plan cannot cover every possible situation that might occur.

Nevertheless, it is a training tool that can reduce the number of injuries or death if put into action as soon as a situation develops. Time is a critical factor in the management of a situation of this manner.

Warning Signs

It must be stressed that if you have had contact with ANY INDIVIDUALS who display the following tendencies, that you contact the police, student affairs officials, a Psychological Services administrator or other university official in a timely manner:

• Threatens harm or talks about killing other students, faculty or staff.
• Constantly starts or participates in fights.
• Loses temper and self-control easily.
• Swears or uses vulgar language most of the time.
• Possesses or draws artwork that depicts graphic images of death or violence.
• Assaults others constantly to include immediate family members.
• Possesses weapons (firearms or edged weapons) or has a preoccupation with them.
• Becomes frustrated easily and converts frustration into uncontrollable physical violence.

Honor Council- for when your word just isn't good enough

Plagiarism is a dirty, dirty thing to do. There's a special place reserved in hell for those who try to cheat their way to college. But at UR, we just can't wait for Satan to do his work, so we've taken it into our own hands.

Many a year ago, 'students' decided to set up an 'Honor Council'. Basically, it has three parts- a pledge you sign at the start of college, a pledge you sign on each assignment/test and an enforcement mechanism. Its concept is that students use their 'honor' to regulate themselves and eachother. Bizarre frankly.

During my orientation week here, we were dragged into a room and told all about this noble institution. What our rights are if accused, how the 'trial works' and what the punishments are. Then we were given an 4 page exam on the topic (I passed) and made to memorise a pledge that we have to write at the end of each assignment/exam, which is as follows-

"I pledge that I have neither received nor given unauthorized assistance during the completion of this work."

I'm a reasonable person. I don't have problems with 'honor' and I've never cheated on an exam. I do have a problem with this bizarre, 'Lord of the Flies' trial procedure. This people can have me expelled and there's nothing the College can do about it! Luckily I haven't paid $40,000 in fees and I don't intend to cheat so I'm good. But it is strange how they keep selling it as a 'voluntary' pledge when really you're forced to sign it. And the people who are on the 'honor council' are complete weirdos.

'Cultural understanding', its a bitch!

What I did last weekend

Midterms are coming up, so we thought we'd spend last weekend touring the state of Virginia, going out on the road to meet 'Real America' as they say.

On Saturday we voyaged to the East of the state, which contains the main tourism areas of Norfolk, Newport News and Virginia Beach. But the really interesting thing was the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel, which at 37kms in length is the 4th largest in the world! Instead of photos of this amazing engineering feet, I've posted a photo of Luc, Anna, Glenn and I at Cape Charles. Lovely place. Its like a photo straight out of 'friends'.

On Sunday we header West to the Shenandoah National Park. Did a little bit of climbing, got some great photos and then drove to Mount Vernon. Mount Vernon is the home of George Washington, of 'Washington DC' fame. Interesting factoid- During the Civil War, they kicked everyone out and had a single women move in. The fact that a women lived there meant it couldn't be attacked by either side, so the house survived.