Closing off the week

So, it is Friday yet again and it has DEFINITELY been quite an eventful week. Maybe you've seen on the news that DC has gotten about 8" of snow. Coming from Miami, Florida, it's a bittersweet experience. While I'm writing this, it is 34F. In Miami, it is a very cool 63F. Yes, 63F is INCREDIBLY cold for Miami. If it drops below 70F in Miami, people are pulling out their ski-jackets (yes, we have those in Miami).

So, due to the weather, the power went out in several areas in DC, including Tenley campus. Reading this, you might think it was terrible. Let me tell you, it wasn't. The building had backup generators, so we did have LIMITED power. Once again, coming from Miami, I'm used to this. It happens all the time. We have these things called HURRICANES, and these HURRICANES often cause the power to go out for several days at a time.

When the power goes out in Florida (and apparently in DC too), everyone goes out and just talks to each other. As weird as it sounds, its a great bonding experience because you get to know and spend time with everyone else in the Washington Semester Program.

Remember, I said it wasn't that bad. For those that weren't from a place that usually loses power, people really enjoyed themselves. It was a great time to meet and fraternize with your neighbors and building-mates. The first thing that EVERYONE did when the power went out was run out and play in the snow. This wasn't only the people from Florida and Texas that aren't usually used to snow, EVERYONE went out (even the people from Greenbay, Wisconsin. Boy is it cold there!). Later on, once everyone got tired of the snow, we all gathered in the building's lounge where we talked, danced, and did all sorts of crazy fun things!

Lets compare what I'm used to:

Washington, DC. (yesterday)

V.S.

Florida (year round, my lovely picture)

All in all it was a fun night. Here's a pic of everyone with our "masterpiece". This is impossible in Florida, so its a great experience!

I'll go ahead and close off with this video of the shenanigans:

This is where the magic happens!

Quite literally.

We've probably seen the MTV Cribs episodes that have shown countless starts proclaim that "this is where the magic happens". Well, although this isn't MTV Cribs, this (DC) is where the magic happens!

As a student in the Journalism Program, I really didn't think I'd be visiting the United States Capitol as a student. I'm quite aware that journalism really focuses a lot on politics, but I just didn't expect it. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE politics (which, FYI: AU is constantly ranked the most politically active school in the nation), but I just didn't see it happening.

One highlight of the program, specifically journalism because I can't speak for the other ones, is that your professors will have countless connections. They've worked in the industry for many years and know many professionals that are still working in the industry. Today, we started off the day with a visit from Tom Rosenstiel, the co-author of the book you're assigned for class The Elements of Journalism.

Having the author of an assigned book visit the class to discuss it was a first for me. In my experience as a college student (I'm a Junior now), I've never had the opportunity to have a 'round-table' discussion (minus the round table) with the person that actually wrote the book. Didn't understand something in the book? Who better than the author to ask?

So, after a discussion with the author, OFF TO THE CAPITOL! Coordinate with your peers, jump on the subway, and meet at X-spot at Y-time. Pass security and all of a sudden you find yourself in this beautiful building that pictures cannot do justice. Everything from the floor, artwork, walls, telephones, and just plain old signs was beautiful. We were then shuffled into the press offices of the Capitol, which looks just like any other press box. This was about as far as I expected to go, thankfully I was wrong. We threw off our coats and were escorted into the Senate chamber.

In the chamber, we met with the top journalists on the hill, Thomas Ferraro and Joe Keenan. They explained what their job usually consists of and how crazy the press offices can be at times, especially when a major bill, such as healthcare, is being decided upon.

Upon leaving the Capitol, we were immediately reminded about how many things happen in DC. Walking away from the compound, only a couple hundred feet, the entire class encountered about 100,000 pro-life protestors marching on the 38th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision. It just reiterated how in DC anything can happen at any time and you'll never know who or what you'll run in to. Don't ask me how we managed to cross a 100,000 person crowd, but we all got back to campus safely.

This was a once in a lifetime experience that would have probably never happened if it weren't for this program. Unless you're a journalist, politician, or staffer, you're really never going to have the opportunity to actually go inside of the Senate chambers. It gave us a small taste of what it was like to actually be a journalist covering the Senate. As a memento of this experience, I managed to keep my United States Senate visitors pass which was to be returned in order to be "recycled". Instead it will be put to good use and will hang from my bulletin board :)

Friday Friday Friday!!!!!

It's my third Friday here and the work is beginning!

As part of the Journalism program, we were assigned two (short) writing assignments. One is a piece about yourself and the other is a paper on Discovering DC. They were, once again, short assignments, but that wasn't the work I was talking about.

One of the major educational points of the Washington Semester Program (WSP) is that you will be holding an internship while you're enrolled in the program. The Program and your professors will facilitate your search for an internship, but it is ultimately up to you to find an interview.

--STOP RIGHT THERE--

You may be thinking "WHAT!?!? I HAVE TO FIND MY OWN INTERNSHIP?" Simply put, Yes. The Program has many resources available to help the students find internships like the internship bazar, the internship portal website, and countless contacts that your professors may have. But, by finding your own internship you learn job hunting skills! You're a grown-up now :)

I had two interviews yesterday that went rather well. I'm pretty sure I already have the internship lined up, but still waiting for the official response.