It's That Time of Year Again

For the admissions office, this week is huge: it's the final push, the last days, decision time. If you are a prospective student still deciding on a school, the best advice I can offer is to be critical and honest with yourself about this decision. This is, indeed, your life, so do what feels right for YOU!

Having said that, the rest of this post will not be particularly persuasive. (If you're looking for hardcore decision-discussion, Adam does it eloquently and thoughtfully at http://fordhamadam.blogspot.com/.) After all, what about the high school juniors reading this post, simply curious about the wildly interesting life of a college student? What about my ex- high school English teacher who occasionally drops by; better yet, what about my mother? For them and seniors alike, I will blabber on about my life in the form of an almighty list, leaving you to decide if it's wildly interesting.

Cool Stuff That Has Happened Lately

1. The Birth of Big Air-- TriBeca Film Fest Drive-In at World Center Financial Plaza. Huge screen, Mat Hoffman, movie on the water at dusk with homemade snacks at twilight. My brother visited this weekend, and we had a blast at this event! Plus, it's totally free and had a BMX DEMO afterward (also free!). Mat Hoffman, I officially love you and don't know why I haven't been obsessed with you heretofore. 

2. Shabbat Dinner with Fordham's a Jewish Student Organization. Did you know Fordham has a JSO? Neither did I, until I attended their Shabbat dinner. It was great! Free, delicious food, prayer, and lots of learning. Who knew Judaism has over 600 mitzvot!? Who knew YOU could take part in one????

3. Hildegard of Bingen. A scholar gave a great presentation on Tuesday about Hildegard of Bingen, ranging from her music, to her philosophy, to her bizarre life. Coincidentally, Steve Forbes also visited on Tuesday; Hildegard wins not only because she wrote the first-ever opera, but also because she was the one of the earliest people in the church to investigate natural medicinal processes. She is an all-around phenomenal woman. 

4. Spring Weekend. Known to be the best weekend at Fordham. Free concerts, free food and, right here on our turf, DJ EARWORM!!! I absolutely love him. Mike Birbiglia, we love you and look forward to hearing -and laughing with- you, too. MGMT, well.... at least you're free.

You might have noticed that there is a recurring theme throughout this post. Perfect segue for our next How To Love College Tidbit:

Find free stuff. Love free stuff. Take advantage of free stuff- all the time.

From the Pews in the Back

I just got back from a lecture put on by Fordham's American Catholic Studies program. However, this was not just any lecture, this lecture was insightful, emotional, truthful, challenging and definitely blog-worthy.

So here it is. A bunch of women wrote essays about what it means to be a modern woman in the Catholic Church and they were compiled into a book. The editors -the guests of the lecture- had amazing insight and brought up challenges that we Catholic women can't help but grapple with: how to raise Catholic kids, how to stand up to an institution that makes women inferior and, most of all, how (and why!) we're staying Catholic amidst our issues with the church! A panel of Fordham students (who were also Catholic women) shared their thoughts, and they, too, were great.

I've written before about how Fordham is Catholic, and it's something that I'm always sure to bring up on tours, to prospective students, etc. But what does it mean, really, to be a Catholic woman in a church where women cannot be ordained, where they are not included in the second Eucharistic prayer, where they (we!) are ignored in the petitions??? We are too smart to not notice any of this. And we're way too smart not to care.
In the good spirit of caring, and of critical discussion, I ask YOU:
What are YOUR thoughts/opinions on this????

For more about the stuff of tonight's lecture, check out http://fromthepewsintheback.com/
and fordham.edu for the video of the actual event!

The Garden

Today the Bronx enjoyed eighty-degree, sunny weather, and I celebrated with a trip to the NY Botanical Garden (free on Wednesdays!) and lots of camera-love. Granted, I was a sweaty mess by the time I got to work at NOON, I don't think the morning could have been more beautiful....