Over the long Labor Day weekend, my team and I played in the
University of Wyoming tournament and then spent the rest of the weekend in
Colorado, more specifically Estes Park. On Thursday, we flew into Denver and
then drove the 2 hours to Laramie, Wyoming for the tournament. And then on
Saturday night, after we were finished playing, we drove another 2.5 hours back
into Colorado (Estes Park) where our coaches had rented a gorgeous house in the
mountains that sleeps 20 people that also had its own hot tub (which our team
utilized quite frequently). To make it even better, the view from the house was
absolutely gorgeous.
view from the house
That evening while everyone was settling into the house and
deciding where they would be sleeping for the next 2 nights, the team captains
went grocery shopping since the team was responsible for cooking all three
meals the next day, which actually went really well. Our team is filled with
fantastic cooks.
eating our homemade dinner
On Sunday after we cooked breakfast, we got into our rental
cars and ventured further up the mountains to the Rocky Mountains National Park
where we climbed the Alluvial Fan Falls as well as another trial to the highest
peak (it was quite cold up there, but there wasn’t any snow). Another highlight
of the day was a trip to the famous Stanley Hotel, which was featured in the
Stephen King movie, The Shining.
Alluvial Falls
at the top!
Stanlley Hotel
That evening while we were making dinner, a few of us went
on a mini adventure around the area to see if we could spot some wildlife and
we did! We got pretty close to some elk that were in the middle of a fight! We got
as close as we could, but we were warned beforehand not to get too close for
safety reasons. We just sat there for about 20 minutes watching them fight and
of course taking in the beautiful view of the mountains behind them. It was
quite relaxing.
Unfortunately we had to leave the next morning to travel
back to DC, so that was all we had time to do, but we had a lot of fun!
This Friday (9/14 & 9/15) is GW Volleyball’s Nike
Invitational Tournament! On Friday we will be playing Princeton Friday night at
7pm and on Saturday, we will be playing New Hampshire at 10am and #21 BYU at
7pm. All games will be held at the Charles E. Smith Center, located near the
center of campus. It should be a great tournament and if you are in the DC
area, come and experience GW athletics! Remember 7pm on Friday and 10am and 7pm on Saturday!
As for our season so far, we have been busy! We have played
in the Purdue, Wyoming, and Maryland tournaments over the last few weekends. Some
of the matches have not gone the way we wanted, but we have played numerous top
ranked teams in the nation and from each match we are learning valuable lessons
and growing as a team. We have also been battling an injury-filled preseason,
with at times having 6 people out and not able to play. Every day we have been
getting better and we can’t wait for this weekend to play at our home
tournament and to continue to prepare for our A10 regular season matches!
Hope everyone is having a wonderful start to their school
year! Feel free to email me with any questions, cbgraf@gwmail.gwu.edu -Christie
Hello all, it feels like I haven’t blogged in a long time so I figured I would update you on my life for the last 2 weeks, which has consisted of volleyball and class. As I previously mentioned, on August 7, our volleyball preseason began and my life has been even busier than it was during the summer! Every day we have had practice from 9am-12pm, a workout from 12pm-1pm, another practice from 3pm-6pm, and then weights from 6-7pm on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. And on top of this, I am currently finishing up my last summer class, Principles and Methods of Psychology. For the last 2 weeks if I have not been in class or at volleyball, I have been either eating, sleeping, or doing homework. Once preseason is over, I will be blogging much more frequently.
Preseason has gone really well, despite my team being plagued by injuries. We have been working hard and are excited to compete this weekend at the Purdue University tournament. Next week I will update you on how the tournament goes! In addition to playing volleyball, my team and I have also have had some fun team events, such as a ropes course (pictures to come) a Nationals game last night, and team dinners every single night.
2012 GW Volleyball (photo courtesy of gwsports.com)
We had a little fun on picture day (photo courtesy of @GW_Volleyball)
Wearing lovely GW ponchos since it was completly downpouring on the way to dinner (photo courtesy of @GW_Volleyball)
First day of practice! (photo courtesy of @GW_Volleyball)
Picture with George at the Nationals game!
If you want to follow all of the action of GW volleyball this season, in addition to reading my blog posts you can follow @GW_Volleyball on twitter!
As for my class, I am almost completely done with it. All I have left is to complete my final 10 page paper before I leave for the Purdue tournament this weekend. Wish me luck!
So you know how professional sports have an award show named the ESPY’s? Well, this year GW decided to host their own version, honoring the best of GW athletics. And so, everyone in the athletic department, including the athletes, coaches, administration, and academic support donned their best semi-formal attire and traveled over to GW’s Lisner Auditorium for an evening of fun.
It was strange seeing all of the other athletes dressed up in dresses and suits because you rarely see them dressed in something other than athletic clothing. Everyone looked wonderful and the evening was rather enjoyable. It started off around 6:00pm with pictures outside, followed by appetizers in the lobby and basement of Lisner. Finally, at 7:00pm, the main event of the night began. The awards show was hosted by a member of the women’s soccer team and a member of the men’s baseball team. The awards being given ranged from Mr. and Miss Colonial and Community Service Award to Colonials' Best Moment of the Year. My volleyball team and I were actually nominated for the Colonial Best Moment of the Year for our phenomenal comeback and victory versus Georgetown in the DC Challenge, but ultimately lost to Men's Golf for setting a scoring record to earn their program's first-ever A-10 Championship. Those who planned it put a lot of effort into it and it paid off. The event was a hit and we all can’t wait until next year’s ceremony. And of course, I have some pictures from the evening.
GW Volleyball Team (I am in the front row on the far left)
Roommates!
Georgey Award Statue *photo courtesy of gwsports.com
(This story took place 3 years ago when I was freshman)
Just like everyone else the Obama's piled the kids into the minivan for a Thursday night out. This particular time they chose to come out to a GW basketball game. It looked like a typical evening with the kids as Barack was corned into going to the concession stand to pick up popcorn and a hot dog for his daughters.
For my roommate and I it was our first ever #onlyatgw moment. These are special experiences that only happen to GW students due to our unique location in the heart of Washington, DC.
Even with all the Secret Service I was able to snag a handshake from President Obama as is evident from the photo I took which can be seen below.
I also was able to shake hands with the First Lady Michelle Obama!
Over the next few weeks I'll be sharing a few more of my #onlyatgw moments so stay tuned to the blog!
Feel free to follow me on Twitter to see when I use the hashtag!
Before I get to the main focus of my post, last weekend, my team and I traveled to Maryland in their spring volleyball tournament, where we played UMD, Villanova, and American. We did not play as well as we did the week before, but we are using it as a learning tool. Throughout the day, we played well at times and at other times we struggled, but since then, we have had 4 wonderful days of practice, so we are all excited to travel to James Madison University this weekend to compete against them. Wish us luck!
Now for the main reason for my post—my visit to the gorgeous Cherry Blossoms. As you may know, a few weeks ago was the 100th annual Cherry Blossom Festival along the Tidal Basin here in DC. And like usual, the festival was stunning and brought thousands of visitors to DC to wander the National Mall and take in all of the gorgeous sights. This year I walked the few blocks with two of my friends who also were willing to brave the crowds and ended up making it a 3 hour excursion. We walked from campus, to the Lincoln Memorial, to the Tidal Basin, and then we just went where our feet took us, which included making a stop at the slightly out of the way Jefferson Memorial. Neither of my friends who I went with had seen the Cherry Blossoms nor had they been to the Jefferson Memorial, so we were able to check those things off of their DC bucket lists. By the time we were done walking, we ended up making a complete loop around, ending back at the Lincoln Memorial and traveling back to campus. If you have been to the area and have walked this path, you may be wondering why it took 3 Division I college athletes 3 hours to make this trip. Well, we had 3.5 hours worth of practice and weights that morning, so we were actually quite tired, stopping several times along the way and spending a great deal of time sitting on benches, entertaining ourselves with people watching.
Every year since I have been attending GW, I have made an effort to go to the Cherry Blossoms and every year they are just as beautiful as the last, possibly more so. They mark the beginning of spring and remind me that summer is just around the corner.
We took a lot of pictures, probably too many, so I tried to choose my favorites of the bunch. Enjoy!
Lesson #002: Colonial Army is one way Colonials showcase their Colonial Pride. #gwulove
Good day, buff and blue Colonials! On Tuesday, I was given the superbly unbelievable news that I will officially be the Colonial Army Vice-President of Marketing and Outreach for the 2012-2013 academic year! I’m sure you’re wondering what Colonial Army is. In short, between November and February, it’s essentially my life (on top of academics, sleeping, and breathing). My boss at the Office of Parent Services, the Senior Executive Director Rodney Johnson, jokes that it’s an alternate life of its own, taking me from professional, focused office student assistant to loud, screaming, energetic GW athletics fan.
This past year's Co-President, Courtnay Oddman, poses for a picture in some of her buff and blue gear beside the Colonial Army banner in the Smith Center.
Whenever I come in contact with people and tell them about Colonial Army, I tell them about the 1,000+ new members we have each year. I tell them about the tailgates, t-shirts, and road trips. More than anything, I tell them about the Colonial family, face paint, and front-row fun! In the past 2 years, I've had terrific times with CARMY and, in particular, my fellow Colonials. Even administrators get in on the fun; Associate Dean of Students Tim Miller (easily followed on Twitter at @GWTimMiller) sat front row with Colonial Army this past February and President Steven Knapp is one of the more notable fans, though Wolf Blitzer, Kerry Washington, and the First Family have been known to make the occasional appearance.
(In the thumbnail: President Obama shakes hands with current GW Basketball star Dwayne Smith.)
Whether volleyball or basketball, swim, squash, or soccer, I've been in attendance, proudly sporting my GW paraphernalia, in the presence of classmates, residence hall neighbors, and GWU brothers and sisters.
Regardless of personal interests, Colonials come together through Colonial Army (@GWColonialArmy), GW Sports (@GW_Sports), enticing events put on by The Residence Hall Association (@gwrha) and Program Board (including Spring Fling this Sunday), and an endless assortment of events which bring us together as products of the storied city of the District of Columbia as well as of the legacy of George Washington himself.
The First Ladies Dance Team, Colonial Brass, and others, including me in the tri-corner hat, cheer on the GW Men's Basketball team as they exit the metro following the massive metro ride the team took with Colonial Army members, coaching staff, and others to their BB&T Classic game at the Verizon Center.
Colonial Army is just one of a number of ways GW students showcase their Colonial Pride, as you'll see in my blog posts in the coming year. I definitely can't wait for you to share in it (I'm talking to you Class of 2016!).
We hope this blog will give you a taste of what it means to be a Colonial. Our bloggers will post periodically throughout the year, so check back often!
Feel free to comment on anything, and if you have any questions for the bloggers, you can e-mail them at blogger@gwu.edu.
Happy reading!
Click on the picture of one of the Colonial Bloggers below to read only their posts.
Matt
Jennifer
Alexa
Senior from Upper Marlboro, MD - Double Major in International Affairs and Economics
Oscar
Rising Senior from Pflugerville, TX - Majoring in Sociology
Alyse
Sophomore from Los Angeles, CA - Majoring in Mechanical Engineering
Amy
Shireen
Junior from New City, NY - Majoring in Middle Eastern Studies
Adam
Senior from Madison, NJ - Majoring in International Affairs with a focus in Conflict & Security
Christie
Junior from Waukesha, WI - Majoring in Criminal Justice
Brandon
Rising Junior from Austin, TX - Majoring in Sociology with Minors in Statistics and LGBT & Sexuality Studies
Marisa
Rising Senior from Portland, OR - Majoring in International Affairs, Global Public Health
