Ben, ‘11

November 15th, 2009

Greetings to all prospective students from 25,000 feet. I am currently flying back from a whirlwind visit to Atlanta, Georgia. Every year, my scholar group goes to a major city and hangs out together for an entire weekend. Thus far, I’ve been to Chicago, New York, and now Atlanta. The University covers any and all expenses, which is amazing since they give us the royal treatment. We are flown round-trip from Richmond, stay in four-star hotels, are given tickets to the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and also an Atlanta Hawks basketball game, and have an amazing opportunity to hang out with friends. Seventeen of us went this year and I was the only Junior, since the rest of them are currently abroad, but that meant that I got to know the new freshmen really well. While in Atlanta, I visited the CNN headquarters, the Coca-Cola Museum, and also attend the Second City Comedy Club, which was really funny. Others visited the Georgia Aquarium and Underground Atlanta. They dine us at amazing restaurants such as McCormick and Schmicks as well as Table 1280. Simply put, they give me an opportunity to have experiences that I couldn’t have anywhere else.  It truly is incredible. I would estimate that, in total, they spend $1,000 on each student.

So, I bet you’re now wondering how you can have these experiences. Well, I’ll tell you. All you have to do is get your application in to the University of Richmond by December 15th. That’s all. Nothing more. You’re automatically considered for merit-based scholarships with that. If you make it to the next round, you’ll write an additional essay and perhaps even move on to the on-campus interview round in March. Each year, UR gives roughly fifty full-ride scholarships, that means about one in every thirteen students comes here for free. I don’t think any other school can even come close to that. So, make sure to apply in time. There are several types of scholarships, but here is what mine (Oldham) gives me: full tuition, room, and board, a $3000 stipend for study abroad or research, priority course registration, priority housing, free tickets to our Modlin Center, and, of course, this annual trip. Pretty cool, huh? Here’s a photo recap of this year’s trip to the ATL.

Atlanta Symphony Orchestra performing “From Russia With Love”
A group of us celebrating a birthday at a karaoke diner

Finding a Christmas wonderland in Atlanta

The Georgia Aquarium

CNN Headquarters in Atlanta

The Coca-Cola tour with Chamberlain

Atlanta Hawks game

Exploring Atlanta with my new friends

Quote of the Week: “A gentleman is a man who can play the accordion, but doesn’t.” -Anonymous
YouTube Video of the Week:

A recent viral hit 

August 19th, 2009

Hello everyone. I am somehow back on-campus after what seems like a very short summer. It was, once again, a long and strenuous travel day for me to get here to Richmond. Let’s just say that it involved airport shutdowns, bad weather, refueling, a closed runway, and luggage that likes to take different paths than me. However, I am now here and ready to settle in. First, though, I look back. I think that most of you knew that I went to Europe for eleven weeks to study and also travel. Check my previous posts for those vlogs and stories. I had two and a half weeks home and that also flew by. I didn’t see too many friends and wound up doing lots and lots of work to make sure my organizations were ready. Lack of communication, scheduling snafus, and lots of other complications always make my life a little hectic. So, it was basically a working holiday. Here’s a quick recap of those weeks via pictures:

Arriving into Minneapolis and being welcomed by my siblings

The packs that I carried around during my travels

The table of all of my souvenirs from my travels to ten countries

Seeing my grandma…

and siblings and brother-in-law…

and dog, Misty…..

and cat, Furby….

and goats, Gretel and Rapunzel.

Helping my sister demolish and remodel her new home…

and cutting down a branch with a chainsaw while balancing
on an unsteady branch

Visiting my sister and brother-in-law at their new home

The county fair and 4-H is always big in my family and these are
two hotpads I helped my sister make…

as well as this Christmas-themed advent calendar

Wonderful county fair food. What can be more unhealthy than a
deep-fried funnel cake with powdered sugar, chocolate syrup,
and whipped cream?

That’s all I have. Make sure to check back in to see how my Junior year is going. It looks to be tough academically and jam-packed with events, organizations, and lots of other activities. Should be fun.

Quote of the Week: “But was is the difference between literature and journalism? Journalism is unreadable and literature is unread. That is all.” -Oscar Wilde
Thought to Ponder: A blue whale’s heart only beats nine times per minute.
YouTube Video of the Week:

It turns out that this was not real, but it’s still pretty cool