Almost to the Finish Line!

It seems so appropriate that the Opening Ceremony of the Olympics coincided with our last day of grad classes! Six intense weeks have drawn to a close. Just a couple more days of our Foundations of Theology class and a final, and we're homeward bound! What an experience it has been. 

This morning I was finally able to take some pictures around campus, so now I can give you a mini virtual tour! Here's South Dining Hall (often compared to the Hogwarts Dining Hall from Harry Potter):

 

Here are a few more shots of campus, including the Golden Dome and the Cathedral Basilica:

Stay tuned... More to come soon!

Chicago!

Thought I'd share a few pictures from last weekend's adventure in Chicago with Marinda. It was a great time. It was SO fun having her here! Jenna and I picked her up from Midway airport Thursday night (and spent the drive studying for our first Old Testament exam). I was in class all day Friday, so Marinda was able to explore campus a little. On Friday evening, we went out to dinner here in South Bend at a restaurant called Papa Vino's, which was delicious. Then on Saturday morning we took the commuter train from South Bend to Chicago. The two-and-a-half hour ride was perfect for getting some school work done. Below are some highlights from our exploration of the city. It was a quick trip, but SO fun.

Welcome to Chicago's Theater District!

Mass at St. Peter's Catholic Church

The space-age fountain beverage machine at Cosi's restaurant

Authentic deep-dish Chicago pizza at Giordano's

 

Chicago dog!

Portillo's - Home of the Chicago dog!

Along the Magnificent Mile with my BFF!

Taking in an improv show at I.O. theater

SUN-Day

Hello all! I'm definitely playing catch-up, as usual. I'll post a little bit about last weekend, and then I'll fill you in on this weekend's adventures in Chicago with Marinda soon!

We wrapped up our first module last Friday (July 6). It's hard to believe that we are now over halfway done! Last weekend we were able to catch our breath a little bit before the next round of classes started. On Saturday evening, Julie, Jenna and I went to a local Irish Pub for dinner. We were told they are the most authentic Irish Pub you can go to short of crossing the Atlantic, and we were not disappointed! Our fish and chips arrived wrapped in newspaper:

(We were so excited to dig in that we didn't even think about taking a picture until it was nearly devoured. Sorry!)

The best part of the evening was the live Irish music. The band was incredible! I haven't actually watched this video I took yet, but hopefully it works, and hopefully you can get a sense of what the atmosphere was like.

On Sunday, the three of us decided to go to the beach. We were going to try for a longer trip to one of the beaches along Lake Michigan, but in the end, we chose to save that for another time. Instead, we went to St. Joseph's Beach here on campus. It started out kind of cloudy, and I made the EPIC mistake of not wearing proper sunscreen. This was a major whoops that culminated in not one but two trips to Walmart to buy a vast assortment of sunburn relief supplies. So once I'm back in Kansas, please see me for all your after-sun skincare needs prior to buying them yourself.

We're off and running again! So far, so good! But busy! I'll be back with more from this weekend's adventure soon. Have a terrific week!

Happy 5th of July!

I hope you all enjoyed the 4th of July holiday! I celebrated by... writing a paper! Classes were canceled yesterday for the holiday, but most of the students in my class planned to work on our final papers. So our professor offered to throw us a "paper-writing party." She opened up the building, brought biblical resources for us to use, and provided food and drinks. It was a fun time. Maybe not overly productive, but fun!

It's hard to believe that our first module is almost over. Just a couple more days of New Testament class! The time has been going quickly, but the days have been very full. 

A couple more pictures of you to illustrate the past few days... Here's a gorgeous view of "the Dome" and the basilica from across the lake. There are a couple of lakes on campus, and I like to go running around them in the mornings. This picture doesn't exactly do it justice:

  
Last weekend, I discovered the best Chinese restaurant in Mishawaka: Taste of Asia. They have the best (and cheapest and most generously portioned) Szechwan Vegetables with rice I have ever had. I savored it while watching an episode of the Big Bang Theory, and it was the best study break ever.

Finally, I can't even believe I'm saying this, but I kind of love the Walmart here. First of all, cereal is CHEAP. And they have this interesting new Post variety (shown below). That GIANT box of cereal cost $3 and it's delicious. I hope it's a trend that will reach Kansas soon. Second, they sell Biscoff spread. My friend Julie introduced us all to this treat, which she refers to as "Joy in a Jar." Kansas friends and family, please be on the look-out for this product. If you ever see it (preferably the crunchy variety) in the peanut butter aisle at a local store, PLEASE LET ME KNOW! (Otherwise, I might need to buy it in bulk before heading back.)

 

Let's Run to Michigan... Literally.

I can add one more to my list of visited states: Michigan! Yesterday morning, my friends Julie and Nicole and I embarked on a 9-mile round-trip journey to the Michigan state line. It was a blast! We got a little lost on the way back, so it might be more like 9.5 or 10 miles... But we found campus eventually, and returned victorious!

Week 2 went by VERY quickly. I have a feeling that time is going to pass at this increasing rate for the rest of the summer, and before I know it, I'll find myself back in Manhattan! But for now, I'm trying to enjoy the (wild) ride. I am SO impressed by the professors here. They have brilliant minds and beautiful souls. They are so gifted at not only explaining the faith, but also just sharing it with us. I have definitely been learning a lot, and I'm kind of sad that my New Testament class is already coming to a close. (Well, it still requires 2 exams, a final paper, and the completion of a journal this week, so I'm not done yet!)

Hope you all have a great start to the week!  :)

Catching Up

Happy weekend! I feel like I've been spending a lot of it catching up/ keeping up with reading and studying. I also need to catch up on the blog! So here are a few of the highlights from the second half of my first week here!

On Wednesday, representatives from Catholic Extension (the organization funding our grant) came to meet with us. They wanted to get some pictures at lunchtime. We (the 6 of us in the program - we call ourselves Catholic Extension Cohort #1) met them by the library, thinking they'd just snap a few photos of the group. In actuality, it was like a real photo shoot with a professional photographer! We each took our turn doing individual shots, then some group ones as well. It was really nice meeting the reps from Extension, and very humbling, too. It really drove home how thankful I am to Extension donors who are generously supporting this endeavor, and it gave extra inspiration to work even harder. That evening, Extension took us out to the fanciest dinner I have ever experienced. We ate at at the Sorin Restaurant, which is located in the Morris Hotel here on campus. It was incredible! And the first opportunity to meet everyone in the program.

The rest of this week has primarily consisted of studying and reading, as well as figuring out my way on campus a little better. I met with one of my professors on Friday.We got to talking about relics, exorcisms, and things of that nature, and she gave me a relic of St. John the Baptist! I was really excited. 

Here are a couple more photos for you. One is if Jenna and me in front of the Hesburgh Library. (You can take a little virtual tour if you want.) In the background is the famous mural of "Touchdown Jesus." 

And here's a picture of Pasquerilla East Hall, our home-away-from-home for the next six weeks.

One week down, six more to go! Hope you're all having a wonderful weekend! Miss you!

Venti/Venti

Fun fact for the day: Have you ever wondered about the names of Starbuck's drink sizes? Of course you have, right? Silly question. :) Well, here's a lesson on Starbuck's drink sizes for you! (And a brief respite from reading the Acts of the Apostles for me... It's a great book, but I'm reaching the end, and it's just got its own fair share of confusing names! I just cannot for the life of me at this point keep track of where and with whom Paul is going. So I am taking a break from confusing names to write about other confusing names. Very sensible.) Anyway, I'm going to keep it brief, but if you're looking for something to do, just Google this issue and you'll gather plenty of reading material. 

So, when you find yourself at the Starbuck's counter for the, say, 3rd time this week (so far), here are your choices (we're talking size alone here - not even what type of beverage you conjure up!):

Tall (12 oz.)  - Basically their version of small

Grande (16 oz.) - In Italian, translates to large

Venti (24 oz.) - Means 20 (I guess we're rounding down here?)

Trenta (31 oz.) - You guessed it: 30 in Italian

There you have it. I personally employed the assistance of a venti iced coffee with skim milk yesterday to propel me through hours of reading. And it worked!

What's the topic for our next installment of Starbucks 101? How many total beverage choices (flavors/combinations/types/sizes) are there? Just kidding.

Irish Mint/ Chocolate Swirl Frozen Yogurt? Yes, Please.

With the first day of classes under my belt, I can definitely say that this will be as intense of a summer as I had imagined, but hopefully challenging in a good way. 

I prayed that God would send us a new friend so I wouldn't feel so isolated, and He did! I met a girl who is in both of my classes and is here with the Catholic Extension program as well, and I am thankful to have her as a study buddy and a new-new friend in addition to the new friend I have found in Jenna these past few weeks.

I am loving our Foundations of Theology class. The professor is very passionate and very engaging, and throughout the entire class, we will be focusing on God's mercy and how it pertains to our study of Theology. Very cool.

My Intro to New Testament feels like anything but an intro. We're covering a gospel a day (as the world's slowest reader, this will be challenging, but hopefully doable). The professor is amazing! Her name is Dr. Candida Moss - you should check her out. She was recently part of a National Geographic documentary about the finding of St. John the Baptist's bones and apparently loves to talk about morbid stuff like bones and martyrs. Also very cool. 

I just got back from lunch. Irish Mint/ Chocolate Swirl Frozen Yogurt is indeed as good as it sounds. I'm a little worried about the grad student 15 I might gain while I'm here, but then again, they have an amazing salad bar! (Definitely thought of you, Lacy!) Hopefully they will balance each other out. Or at the very least, the long hikes across campus will help me burn some calories, too. Wish I was on the family wellness plan like all you O'Halloran's so I could be tracking my steps! Might have to get my own pedometer.

Well, it's time to read! (Jenna, Julie, and I were discussing our schedules at lunch, and I think for the next 7 weeks, my day will center around eating, sleeping, going to class, and primarily READING.) 


Hope you're all doing well! Miss you!!!

"Have no fear"

This morning's Quiet Moment: 

Have no dread or fear… the LORD, your God, carried you, as a man carries his child, all along your journey. -Deuteronomy 1:29, 31

Today we went to Mass at the Basilica here on campus. It's a beautiful church - almost overwhelming. I must admit, I felt a tinge of homesickness for St. Isidore's and the choir. Afterwards, Jenna and I ate a quick lunch at one of the restaurants on campus, then headed back to the dorms. This afternoon I went for a run around campus. As I jogged past the football practice fields, I caught a few glimpses of pristine, bright green AstroTurf. Kinda felt like Dorothy in the Emerald City. It was one of those moments where, like Marinda's dad had said, I almost needed to pinch myself to make sure it wasn't a dream. This place is definitely real! Then I made a pit-stop at the book store, where I might need to return one of these days to buy some Notre Dame garb. I've always wanted a Fightin' Irish t-shirt or baseball cap. It was a beautiful day for a run, and I feel a little more accustomed to the campus.

We decided to celebrate our last evening of freedom before the busyness of school sets in, so we went out to the Olive Garden for dinner. (Very unique, I know.) 

And now, my book bag is packed, my schedule is printed, my map is labeled, and hopefully this girl is ready for classes! I think this is going to be my motto for the summer:

"Pray as though everything depended on God. Work as though everything depended on you." -St. Augustine

Where to Begin?

Let me start by saying that the title of this blog will probably have nothing to do with the majority of the content - I was stretching for creativity. Who knows? Maybe some of my posts will be written about lunch in the Hogwarts-esque South Dining Hall, or maybe they will be written frantically during the few moments of free time I find during lunch... Regardless, I thought I would follow my comrade Jenna's lead and start a blog about our adventures here at the University of Notre Dame. So here goes!

After about 11.5 hours on the road spread out over a day and a half, we made it to South Bend! (There was an iffy situation on the Illinois interstate where we apparently missed a toll and became law-evading "fugitives" as Jenna says, and my GPS seems to enjoy fabricating the locations of certain fast food establishments, leading us on some wild goose chases, but otherwise a pretty smooth trip!)

Welcome to Notre Dame!

We relived our Freshman glory days as we lugged all our stuff in and got situated in our dorm rooms. I felt a little more at home when the rector, Sr. Cindy, came through the first floor lobby with her dog - I definitely miss mine already! A Target run seemed pretty urgent, so we checked out a little more of the town, then shopped around for some random items. One random item that I'm pretty excited about: a mini-mini fridge: 

I think it'll pay for itself this summer by keeping me supplied with ice-cold Diet Coke 24/7. After Target, Jenna introduced me to Culver's, where I had my first butter burger and concrete blend. Delicious! Wish they had these closer to home. We decided it's a cross between Freddy's and Braum's. 

Now we're just chilling in Jenna's dorm room (where I will likely be spending lots of my spare time - not only is she great company, but she's also got a TV!). We did a quick tour of campus earlier, and we're excited to go to Mass at the Basilica in the morning.

Let the adventure begin! :)