Finally finals are over and it is time to relax and enjoy the weather. My first year at Fontbonne was amazing. I had a great time; I made a lot of new friends and did really well in school. Now I am looking forward to hanging out with my high school friends and going to Colorado to see my boyfriend and his family. Which is in 11 days, but who is counting? I will be there for two weeks! That is definitely the highlight of my summer. My best friend had her baby boy on May 7th, so I was able to see him yesterday. His name is Ben and is so cute. So far this summer I have been hanging out with some good friends and watching hockey; sorry Saint Louis — I love my Blackhawks. To me, it feels really weird to be back home in the Chicagoland area. I am actually anxious to come back to school because I am so close to graduation. I only have a year and a half left. I am going to go out with a bang!
Tagged as:
Chicago,
Friends,
hockey,
Summer
Last Friday, April 12, was Fontbonne Day, which is our community service day in mission together. On this day, faculty and students joined different service projects in the St. Louis area. First, we gathered together for reflection and discussion in the morning of Fontbonne Day. There was an introduction and an interfaith panel on Catholic social teaching. Then, we left campus to do our different group service sites in the St. Louis area.
One of my graduate classmates, three Fontbonne faculty, and I joined the service project for SarahCare Adult Day Service, a day care
organization for disabled adults. They have over 20 clients in their organization, and different adults have different needs to be taken care of. Our group did many activities with the adults. We played puzzles and games (candy land, Bingo) together. I’m not familiar with American games, and this was my first time to play Candy Land and I played with adults. It was so much fun. I also assisted them with walking, lunch, and anything they needed. During the day, I’ve learned I need to pay more attention to listen and chat to those with special needs.
I remember one of the clients kept telling me “I love you, you are pretty and sweet. Everyone here loves you so much.” She told
me over 10 times in just 1 minute. Since she has dementia, she forgets easily what she said. Every adult in this organization had different needs, but they’re so cute and very open minded to express their love. They gave me many hugs and kisses, even though I just stayed with them for a few hours. Aw…, they’re so sweet to me. Even though they have some disability, their heart is so lovely and sweet.
For me, Fontbonne Day is a really meaningful day to contribute to the St. Louis Area. I will get involved in more volunteer and service opportunities in the future.
Tagged as:
Adult Day Service,
Fontbonne Day,
Individuals with special needs,
SarahCare,
service
Welcome back from our “Spring” Break! I know it started off more like a winter break, but it did get warmer.
I hope everyone is doing well, now that we have to get back to our school mode. I can actually say that my break was pretty good. Of course, I worked the whole week but got to hang out with my siblings on the first Monday, then hung out with my sister and two friends yesterday.
My two friends were Kim Dang and Nga Tran, and they’re both international (Vietnamese) students at Fontbonne. Mary (my sister) and I are St. Louis residents so we hung out with Kim and Nga to show them around. We were planning for a tour of downtown St. Louis, but time didn’t work out. Anyways, our first trip was to Bubble Tea, a little Asian cafe in the Delmar Loop. It’s one of our favorite places. We ordered their popular boba drinks and ate some food, too. Yummy!
Afterwards, we just took a tour down the loop. We wanted to check out Craft Alliance but they’re closed on Mondays. Ha ha. So we stopped by Star Clipper, a comic book store. The main area we looked at was the Japanese manga section. We’re so Asian for that! And because we’re big fans of manga and anime. I found the new editions of Sailor Moon and decided to buy the first two volumes. Mary and I actually used to own the old versions of Sailor Moon, but we threw them away because they were torn (what a waste!). However, I’m going to start collecting them again, slowly. I also found the Bone series! Not the scary drama series, but the ones with the cartoon guys who are going on adventures and such. I’m planning to collect those as well! So excited!
Mary chose a Soul Eater manga book’s first volume. When we were about to check out, we saw little phone links at the front desk. They have Hello Kitty, the Chinese Lucky Kittens, a cow head, etc. They were so cute! We all looked at them and wanted to buy them, too. Mary and I asked Kim and Nga which ones they like, so we bought those for them.
A meaningful friendship has begun!
After that, we continued to tour. Soon, we reached the end of the loop so we turned back to head to the mall! At the first light, we crossed to the other side (the motivation was because of the sun). As we walked, Kim and I noticed a store that also sells art work. As you may already guessed, we went in! Wow, what a beautiful store of work. So many pretty things made by local artists. I thought we were only going to look around, but Mary and I bought something: she bought a necklace for herself, and I bought presents for my friends’ birthdays that are coming up. If you’re wondering, the store is called Componere (with a ^ above the o). We’re definitely coming back.
Finally, we’re back to the car! Then headed off to the Galleria Mall. We visited a few stores, like Hot Topic, Love Couture, Wet Seal, and Victoria’s Secret. Mary and Nga actually bought some things at Wet Seal. Their prices are very affordable. I’m still waiting patiently before buying anything else (need to save up!).
We continued to stroll then stopped by the American Cookies spot and Mary bought red velvet brownies for us. We ate and chatted then headed back out. Mary and I dropped Nga and Kim off at Fontbonne, then headed home.
It was such a fun day before going back to school.
Again, I hope you all had a great break! Don’t forget to register for classes this week! ^_^
Tagged as:
Delmar Loop,
Friends,
Register for classes,
Spring Break,
The Galleria Mall,
The Loop,
Touring St. Louis
Tonight, like every Tuesday night, between 9 and 10 I am always in the same spot. That spot is glued in front of my television watching one of my favorite shows “Smash” on NBC. I put aside all homework and cozy up with a cup of coffee. My roommate and I are captivated for an hour with the show each week. “Smash” follows the life of theatre in New York City. There’s three musicals to follow this season, but the main is a musical about Marlyn Monroe called Bombshell.
I love watching the show because I love Broadway and drama. The show features stars such as Anjelica Huston, Debra Messing, and Katharine McPhee. There’s something big that happens every week, so I’m never bored with the show. They act, they sing, they dance. Can it get much better than that?
The show is set in New York City, which reminds me that I will be there in just 7 days! While in New York, I’ll be seeing a Broadway show. I just bought my tickets today. I’m so ready for this trip. There’s a lot to do but a lot to be excited for!