The end of summer isn’t pretty: my hard-earned tan is fading back to my usual pasty skin tone, I’ve got bags under my eyes from waking up four hours earlier than my body wants to, and beginning of the year activities leave little time for things like hair brushing or make-up doing.

This has probably been the hardest summer-to-school transition I’ve ever had. A lot of my friends went off to college and I’m still stuck here with the ridiculous load that comes at the start of senior year, most notably college applications. At the beginning of the summer I vowed to have my college essays written and Common Application completed before I had school and homework to worry about, but by September I still hadn’t done anything except create a username on the Common App website. The already onset senioritis hasn’t helped much, either.

Just this past week, however, things have started to look up. I’ve finally gotten over the end of summer, and I’m starting to get excited about the beginning of fall. The cold weather has reminded me of how much I love fall clothes. Today in the Journal Sentinel there was a whole section dedicated to fall fashion, and I just got the fall J. Crew catalogue (unfortunately I’m not in a position to spend $235 on a puffer jacket, but I can still dream).

 

This whole summer I’ve stuck to a uniform of running shorts and t-shirts, but there’s so much more variety in cold weather clothes. I’m making a scarf right now in fibers class, and I can finally start wearing those boots I bought two months ago.

Besides the wardrobe, I love how fall brings holiday after holiday. Stores have brought out their Halloween stuff already, and although a lot of people hate it when holidays begin so early, I say the more of them, the merrier. We’re entering the season where from now until January, houses are covered in Halloween/Thanksgiving/Chanuchrismakwanzakah/New Year’s decorations. It also seems like everyone has a birthday around this time (in fact, I like to consider my September 19^th birthday as the beginning of this holiday marathon).

So even though fall means the end of summer, I guess it’s not all downhill from here. I’ve just started most of my college applications, and although I can’t say that I’ve gotten used to school, it’s at least not as painful as it was a few weeks ago, now that I’ve realized the things I have to look forward to. I guess the old cliché about a closed door bringing an open window is true; since we live in Wisconsin, though, opening a heating vent might be a better choice right now.

Sorry I haven't written in a while, but I've been busy, among other things, creating this:

I'm pretty sure that making a stuffed three-headed dog (that's what it is, in case you can't tell) is a bit out of the ordinary, so I'll explain.

Last weekend, a bunch of my friends and I went to Madison for three days to meet up with 500 other people from fourteen different schools in what might be my favorite school-affiliated event all year: Latin convention.

By now, I'd be surprised if you haven't pegged me as just about the biggest loser alive, but the truth is, Latin convention is a party. Sure convention includes taking tests about derivatives, state mottoes, and what ancient Romans ate and wore as well as memorizing poetry and writing essays, but everyone who attends convention loves it. There is a lot more to convention than just knowing Latin. The real highlight is the spirit competition.

Schools are judged by how spirited they are, and, not to brag, but our school has won spirit for the past four years in a row. We really get into it. The most important spirit contest is the pre-assembly spirit, in which all 500 delegates are cheering, singing and screaming in unison with their school while dressed accordingly to the day's theme, such as "L is for..." (my school was litterae, or letters, so we each wrote a letter on a shirt and spelled out words) and "Greece-ers" (a 50's theme because it was the 50^th annual convention with a pun on the Greek aspect, as the convention focuses on both of the classical languages).

It would take far too long to describe everything that makes Latin convention my favorite weekend of the year, and it's hard to understand the atmosphere without actually being there. I mean, "Latin convention" doesn't sound that thrilling; most of my non-Latin friends ask if all we do at convention is speak and translate a dead language.

And as for that matter, as a true Latin student, it's now my responsibility to argue that Latin is not dead. There are numerous words and phrases in the English language that come from Latin. For example, the word language itself comes from lingua, which means the same thing. "Spirit" also comes from the Latin word spiro ("I breathe"), which, in my opinion, proves that the spirit of convention keeps Latin alive and "breathing."

And, because you still might not get the dog, there's an art competition, too. In Latin and Greek mythology there is a three-headed dog named Cerberus who guards the underworld and looks like Fluffy in Harry Potter, even though mine looks more like Scooby-Doo.

The Convention is run by the Wisconsin Junior Classical League (WJCL). There is also a National Junior Classical League that will be holding its week-long national convention in Ohio this summer. High schools around Tosa that attended convention include DSHA, Brookfield Academy, Brookfield East, Brookfield Central, Catholic Memorial, Marquette, Homestead and Rufus King.

*Hooray! The language lives!

I’ve had a cold for days. I’ve put off homework until the last minute. I got four hours of sleep last night because I stayed out late and then had to get up early to feed my neighbors’ dogs. So I wasn’t surprised when my mom asked me why I wanted to go polar bearing.

Most people think that those who look forward to the polar bear plunge are insane. Diving into Lake Michigan in sub-freezing temperatures. Party.

Actually, I think the answer to my mom’s question is summed up nicely in this picture:

 

It’s true. The people who polar bear are insane. And what better way to celebrate the New Year than with a little bit of insanity? I have no idea who that guy is, but he’s there every year clad in the same Japanese/Hawaiian/Elvis ensemble.

My friends and I have polar beared together for the past three years and now I wouldn’t want to spend January 1^st any other way. Picture a giant crowd of people (many elaborately dressed – see picture above) all out to prove that, yes, we are crazy, but at least we’re having fun with it.

It seems that this group of die-hards all want to encourage each other’s lunacy by making the plunge a little more bearable (pun intended) for others. This year, my friends and I had set up a pretty pitiful camp of two fleece blankets laid out in the snow, right next to some apparently expert polar bearing veterans who had brought both a fire pit and a small tent with a heater inside of it. They generously offered to share the fire and we very graciously (and quickly) accepted. If it weren’t for them, I might still be trying to get the feeling back in my toes.

So even if you’re laughing at this New Year’s Day tradition (and I don’t blame you if you are), I suggest giving it a try, and I’m totally serious. For the rest of your life, you can share the story of how you heroically braved the icy waters of the Great Lake (feel free to exaggerate, you’ve earned the right). You might not ever want to go again, but I doubt you’ll regret it. Take a year to think it over.

And it looks like fate’s on my side. My school’s water main broke! I have an extra day to finish that homework! If that’s not a sign that going polar bearing was the right thing to do, I don’t know what is.