Drew

Monday Musings

• Wyclef came to SMC this Friday and put on an incredible show.  Really, it was.  Probably the best I've ever seen.

• You may get this in a KnightLites (Our e-newsletter for prospective students) but here are somethings that a college admission rep like myself can help you with:

• Advice on what classes to take in high school
• Advice on how to get the most out of your campus visit
• Review your college essay and provide constructive criticism
• Advice on which application deadline is appropriate for you

• Spring has arrived and with it, my favorite time on campus.   Everyone is outside.  As Mallory said in her speech to accepted students on Saturday, when it hits 50 degrees, everyone breaks out the shorts.

• The Men's Baseball team is playing their first home game today.  I may try to catch a couple of innings.

• Kicking @$$.  Brian, our web guy, attended the SXSW conference this year.  I bumped into to him at the gym the other day.  He was telling me about one session he went to about enabling your users to achieve greatness and kick @$$.  I've been thinking about this and how we can help you to show us how much you rock.  Do we provide you enough opportunity to show us who you are?  You're clearly more than test scores, a GPA, and a class rank.  Your essay is certainly an opportunity to tell your story, but is it sufficient?  This is big, and expect more on it at a later date.

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Now playing: Wyclef Jean Feat. Paul Simon - Fast Car
via FoxyTunes   

Casting call...

Just a gorgeous spring day today!  High 40's, sunny, it was a perfect day to spend the lunch break outside.

I just bought a fly rod, and I really want to learn how to fly fish this summer.  One of our swimmers is also an avid fly fisherman and a member of the Fly Fishing Club here at Saint Michael's.  I mentioned to him back in February that I wanted to learn how and he agreed to help me out.  Total role reversal!  Coach became the student and the student became the coach.

It was great.  We went out on campus and cast out to a 2 liter bottle on the grass.  It's only the second time I tried to cast, and I think I'm catching on pretty quickly.  There is definitely a meditative element to fly casting.  For me, one of the most difficult past is to slow down.  As you pull out and cast with more line, you have to slow down and there is more pause between your strokes forward and back.  It goes against your instincts, or at least mine. 

Rob's a great teacher and knows a ton about fly fishing.  We were out there for an hour talking about what flies to use, different casting techniques, and fly lines to use and where to find the fish.  It was a great hour.

The Fly Fishing Club is heading down to Deerfield, MA in a couple weeks.  I'm not sure I'll make the trip, but Rob said there's some great fishing right near campus.  Once the water level goes down (the melting snow causes the rivers to rise pretty significantly here), we'll be able to get out catch some trout!

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Now playing: Grateful Dead - Eyes Of The World >
via FoxyTunes