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Looks like spring is finally here! But we never know. Our dear weather has been playing some really tricky games with us. Just when we thought it would not snow anymore, there it was, our grand winter storm. So this was my first snow. I come from a country (Bangladesh) where it is 95 degree Fahrenheit most of the times. Winter there is similar to summer here in US. The first day when it started snowing, I remember, I woke up to my friend’s call, “Rhymee, wake up, look outside of your window, it’s snowing!”. She was equally excited as I was. I woke up and instantly I hear a loud knock on my door. I didn’t even get a chance to look outside. It was my friend, Toni. She screamed, “Rhymee, it’s your first snow!”. My reaction when I took a look outside- I got terrified, everything was completely white and nothing was visible. I said, “Toni, why is everything so white!”. She burst out laughing. Then she dragged me out of my dorm and I was amazed. It was beautiful! McDaniel looked very pretty in her snowy new attire. We ended up walking around the whole campus and taking clicks as McDaniel kept flaunting its new beauty. At the end, we did sledding. It was my first time sledding as well. I was really scared to do it at the beginning but Toni pushed me! I had so much fun. I could not wait to get back to my room and share my experiences with friends and family back home. Sadly I had to wait till night to call everyone up back home as there is an 11 hour time difference. Bangladesh is ahead by 11 hours. Yes, I was really excited the first day, I went like, “Wow, snow, you are really pretty!”, now I am like, “Stop it. Just stop it. I am tired of you. I just want warm summer to embrace me.” Looks like it is about to happen soon. I am excited to see McDaniel’s spring attire now. Looking forward to capture loads of pictures. Till then lets enjoy some of the pictures in retrospect of our snowy days! (I should have not used the word enjoy, I know we are all tired of snow, but at least the pictures would be added to our photo collection now.)
   
Last night, F to (E)Mbody finally got to take place at McDaniel after being snowed out not once but twice this semester. The show is the brainchild of hip-hop and spoken word artists Rocco Katastrophe and Athens Boys Choir (also known as Rocco and Katz), who talk about their experiences with love, relationships, and being transgender men.
Rocco and Katz have been coming to campus annually for the past few years now. Two years ago, I caught the end of their show, and I’d been waiting to see them again since. This year was a great year to go because it’s Rocco’s last year touring and doing the show, so seeing them was a now-or-ever sort of experience.
The event was put on by Allies, McDaniel’s student LGBT organization, with the help of McDaniel’s Office of Diversity and Multicultural Affairs. Allies works to create an atmosphere of inclusivity on campus through hosting events and sponsoring campaigns to create awareness and understanding of gender and sexual minorities.
Overall, I had a great time at this year’s show. Rocco and Katz are both really funny guys. When not rapping or reciting spoken word poetry, they told corny jokes and fascinating stories about their lives. They’re also friendly. After the show, they were happy to talk to concert attendees and pose for pictures, and I enjoyed getting to meet them.
Rocco and Katz both have important things to say about the experience of being transgender, and so I’m fortunate that we have organizations on campus like Allies that work to bring guys like them to campus not only for our entertainment but also to help increase our tolerance for others.
As I’ve mentioned earlier, I am an ambassador for McDaniel College Admissions. Working as an Ambassador has been of my highlights from my overall college experience. I have learned so much and met so many new people. As an Ambassador, I meet with prospecting students and chat about McDaniel. I give tours weekly and absolutely love it! I love talking about this school, and telling my story of how McDaniel has changed my life for the better!
Not only do we give tours, but we also have lunch-ins with students, work in the back office, and make phone calls! This coming weekend will be busy for Admissions. Hello, Admitted Students Day! There will be a lot of people of campus! Hopefully the rain holds up, because we give tours in ALL weather. So fingers crossed! Hope you all have a great weekend!
 
I promised to tell you all more of a spring break story, so here it goes. On our second day of traveling, we decided to stop by Savannah, Georgia before finishing our drive to Jacksonville, Florida. We had stayed the night near Hilton Head, South Carolina, so it was an easy drive to Savannah. Since it was the Saturday before St. Patrick’s Day, there was a lot going on. They hold a big festival there, so they had several tents set up, musicians playing, and so many people!
Not only was there a variety of things to do, Savannah is gorgeous! The main part of the festival was set up along the river which made for a beautiful setting. The town itself is very clean and welcoming, and it was a fun place to explore. We walked around and ate lunch while we listened to one of the bands. We also made a pit stop at Paula Deen’s store. For those of you who do not know who Paula Deen is, she is a famous Southern chef who lives in Savannah. Her store was full of all her goodies and we tried some of her “Ooey, Gooey Butter Cake.”
We had a great day adventuring around Savannah and it was a nice pit stop during our drive. Now I can say I have been to Georgia too…just another thing to check off the bucket list!
In my five and a half semesters here on the Hill, I’ve found that April can be one of the most overwhelming months of the school year. But a lot of what makes the month of April such a jam-packed time is stuff that’s actually fun.
One thing I love about early April in particular is that it’s the height of what I excitedly refer to as lecture season. A lot of lectures take place in the three weeks after spring break, and I usually make a point of going to at least two of them. I’ve always gone to the annual Honors Program lecture–this year’s features David Kaiser, a science historian from MIT, who will be presenting “Einstein’s Legacy: Studying Gravity in War and Peace.” And I also plan on going to the Bothe Poetry Reading, another annual lecture that’s sponsored by the English department. Poet and visual artist Eric Pankey will be reading some of his works at the Bothe lecture this year. These lectures are open to the public, so if you live nearby campus, feel free to come to them.
Something that a lot of students look forward to in April is Spring Fling, a Saturday when most McDaniel students congregate on the quad between DMC and ANW (two of our residence halls) and the North Village quad to tie-dye t-shirts, listen to live music, and play on giant inflatables, all while running around and having a carefree time. Last year, I spent my Spring Fling taking tie-dyeing a pair of old jeans (with moderate success) and taking pictures of campus.
 See that girl in the blue plaid shirt bending down? That just so happens to be me.
(Photo: http://mcdaniel.orgsync.com/org/greenterrors/Events_and_News) McDaniel students interested in good causes and getting involved with the local community can find plenty to do in April. On Saturday April 5, McDaniel students, including me, will volunteer as part of the annual Westminster Cleanup, where people go out and clean up various parts of Westminster that need a little TLC. I’ve never participated in this before, but it should be fun.
Another charitable opportunity in Westminster is Walk A Mile in Her Shoes, an event during which men and women parade around in high heels to stand against sexual violence. This year’s Walk A Mile is April 12, and I’m thinking about participating.
These are some of the many things happening on campus this April. Student groups also tend to put on a lot of events, and friends like to do what they can to cram in as much fun as feasibly possible before finals week and a summer apart. To get a better sense of what else goes on in April or any other time of the year on the Hill, check out the McDaniel calendar.
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