Senior Ball

Seniors. Finally it was our turn to go to senior ball. We got dressed up and made up and headed over to the campus center for a few hours of dancing and food. They didn't really decorate anything for the event, but everyone looked really fancy in cocktail dresses and suits, so the CC looked more classy than usual. 

Whitewater Kayaking Class

This semester I'm taking a whitewater kayaking class at school. I've never done anything like this before and I found out it's fun and can be scary...

The first time we ran a river I slammed into a rock, flipped and got to practice my wet exit. Since I was wearing gloves, I couldn't feel the grab loop on the spray skirt. Thankfully somehow I got stuck on a rock and was able to briefly pull myself out of the water for a breath. That kind of freaked me out and now I don't wear gloves.

This spring has been really dry and combined with a snowless winter, the rivers are running low. Tons of rocks are exposed and running a river is really just scraping over a bunch of rocks. Before taking the course, I didn't expect the rivers to be so shallow. Even when the water's running "high," there are a ton of rocks. 

Since we got some rain this past week, we were able to get off the dam-controlled Deerfield and check out a different river. We ran some class II rapids, and since nobody swam or freaked out, I'd say we're getting better! :)

Baldwin Senior Banquet

House senior banquets are a Smith tradition, and Baldwin House knows how to do it right. Seniors chose the theme for this year: Pajama party. In the past, we generally had to dress up for senior banquet, but we wanted to keep things easy and relaxed this year with a PJ party. 

Dinner was Thai food and seniors wore BK crowns and were served by the first years <3. First years performed a song about the house. Sophomores performed prophecies for the seniors, and juniors performed a skit featuring each senior. 

Next, we did wills in the living room, where seniors willed their things to lower classwomen. Traditional Baldwin wills include things like: a giant cardboard cutout of Xena: Warrior Princess, sex toys, lesbian sex books, and a thong leotard. Classy stuff.

Finally, at the end of the night we trooped through the rain to Paradise Pond and jumped in. The water was FREEZING. Some girls went naked/ topless but most went in underwear/ bikinis. On our way back to the house we chanted Baldwin cheers and made Albright (our rival house) feel like losers!

Kelly Visits!

Collaborations

Every year Smith has an event called "Collaborations" to showcase work that students and professors have collaborated on. My group did research on American chestnut trees last semester and we finally got to share it with the Smith College community (!) :

Spring Weekend

Baldwin had its Spring Weekend party. This semester's theme was "Fresh Prince of Bedford Terrace." AKA '90s theme:

Strong women

Sloths.

Japanese Speech Contest/ Reunion

This weekend was really busy. On Friday I FINALLY got to see the Hunger games with my friends. I wasn't too big a fan of the book, seeing as it took me 2 years to actually finish it, but I did like the movie. Even though it was over two hours, it was really engaging and pretty funny.

The next day I participated in the second annual 5 College Japanese speech contest. I don't think I did that well. I competed in the fourth year + group and there were only 4 of us competing. The contest took pretty much the whole afternoon. There were also many people there watching including other students and teachers. Some of my friends came to watch. 

On Sunday, Smith had its annual fantasy convention thing that features women in the sci fi/ fantasy genre. It is a nerdy event but I really enjoy it every year, and I usually go to see Tamora Pierce talk and get my book signed. Most of all, it's always fun to watch oddly-dressed people boffing on Seelye lawn. (No, boffing is not a sexual act).

Also on Sunday, Hubbard sensei invited the 5 College AKP students over to her house for lunch and to reunite with Kawata san, one of the office workers at AKP.