Heyhey once again readers! I hope you haven’t been missing Diva Lessons too much this past week! If you have been, I hope you’ve brushed up on some of the older lessons, and now here I am to provide you with some new knowledge to learn from! Now I know I’ve posted about my own outing with my family a few lessons back, but this ain’t the same lesson! So don’t get it twisted. This post is about some otha families. Maybe not even a biological family. We’ll explore that later on as we go through and you gain some more knowledge! So this week, I’m gonna post about some hereditary realness! We talkin’ about yo’ mamas and papas, and those otha people who care for you! That’s why this lesson is titled Diva Lesson #9: Families Are Realness! Now let’s elaborate and discuss.

This last weekend, there was a lot going on. One of the main things, which is the subject of this post, has to do with families! Over the course of the weekend, it was Parent and Family Weekend here at SUNY New Paltz! Student Development helps to organize this special weekend every fall semester, and it’s aimed specifically at first-year students so that their parent of family members can come up and see how they’re doing here at school, especially if they haven’t seen their student yet since the semester began. There’s been a lot of changes on the campus since the summer when a lot of these family members last saw the campus. Over the summer, there was a great deal of construction going on, and while there’s still a lot happening, the campus is starting to look really great. The events that were scheduled took place over Saturday and Sunday, with most campus related events taking place on Saturday. Some on campus things included planetarium shows, and other fun events. However, as an Orientation Leader, I had the chance to go off campus and have some fun taking a trip with students and family members.

The trip that I got to go on was a short cruise on the Hudson River! Stephen and I went out and bought special sailor hats from a local Halloween store a few weeks back just for the occasion. On the day of the event, Stephen, Christie, and I all went to brunch at the dining hall to eat. While we were eating, Christie found some sandwiches in boxes, and Stephen and I were both very confused about where they came from. Then she grabbed both us of other sandwiches, and when we finished eating, we all left and went to the Student Union Building to get everything we would need for the trip. Linda, the Office Manager, gave us clipboards with sheets of information and some extra tickets, and I was able to see some of my students picking up tickets for the different events that would be happening over the course over the weekend. Then, we were able to get some pretty legit apple cider doughnuts from Student Development, and Stephen drove us over to the parking lot where the buses would be loading up. It was pretty hilarious because it started raining, so the three of us were running through the rain to reach Stephen’s car without getting too wet.

A lot of family members were coming with us, so we were able to fill two buses, and we had a whole ton of cars following us all the way to the ferry like a giant convoy. We drove for a while before reaching the ferry, and when we got there it was a little cold and windy. When we loaded the boat, they took pictures of each family, which could be purchased once the boat ride was over. Once we were all on the boat, Stephen, Christie, and I all played “The Winds Are Blowing” which was one of our favorite ice breakers, listened to our summer lipsync, and even watched some people getting married on the shore. Once the boat left, we took a cruise down the river, walked around and mingled with the parents, and took some pictures for Student Development. It was a really beautiful afternoon, and once we were out on the water, it was only cold on the top open area. We all had a really great time. Obviously, I was wearing a Ring Pop for the occasion, but to my surprise, there was a small concession stand where they were selling snacks and things, one of which was Ring Pops! So, a lot of the students and their siblings were wearing the Ring Pops! It was amazing and very funny to be surrounded by all of these Ring Pops. Also while we were on the boat, the actual captains of the ship stopped and talked to us and told us that they were jealous of our hats that we were wearing. Not gonna front, they looked pretty legit and profesh. Seeing all of the families on the boat made me think about my own family and how much I missed them since it’s been a month since I’ve seen them, and I haven’t been home in a couple of months. But anyway, while we were on the boat, we saw some things like lighthouses and large houses along the shore which were very pretty. The funniest moment was probably when Stephen couldn’t decided if he wanted popcorn or not, and he debated it for a long time before finally caving and buying the popcorn. (Here’s an insiders fact: Stephen cannot resist popcorn whenever it’s around. No lie.)  Once we came back to shore, we got off the boat, and the photographers were nice enough to give us our picture without having to buy it. We all looked great! Then, we waited for the bus drivers to come and pick us up, and they brought us back to campus while we ate the sandwiches which Christie had taken from the dining hall earlier that day.

When we arrived back on campus, Stephen and I took a much needed trip to Starbs to get our coffee on, and then we went back to Esopus for a little while to work on a card for Kristen since she was getting married that weekend! After that, we made our way to the Athletics and Wellness Center, where there was a comedy show featuring the Second City Comedy group, and Absolut A Capella. The show was very funny, and I was able to sit right in the front! It was great. The best part was when they asked for a suggestion for an improv skit, and they requested a high school clique. So, I yelled “COOL ASIANS!” and one of the women on stage tried to keep a straight face, without much success. I just couldn’t resist making the Mean Girls reference. After the show was over, Stephen, Soraya, Christie, and I all went out to the diner, where we are frequent customers. We had a lovely late night outing and it was nice to be able to spend some time all together, since sometimes we don’t get to do those types of things.

The next day was Sunday, and it was just the typical day of studying, getting work done, and tying up those loose ends of the week. I was also able to talk to my family for the first time in a couple of weeks too. We talked about a variety of things, including my sister’s graduation this December, and my Halloween costume so that my mom could start working on things to send me for this upcoming week, and of course for Halloween weekend. It was really great being able to catch up with each other, and let them know how everything is going. So, from there, it’s just been a regular busy week, a typical one in my life. Nothing too out of the ordinary happened, but such is life.

Anyway, I suppose that pretty much does it for this lesson. I guess the bottom line is that even when you’re away from your own family, it’s important to have your own constructed sense of family wherever you go. For me, whether that’s the other Orientation Leaders, or people like Jen and Gigi, who I’m currently with right now as I write this blog entry. It’s just important to surround yourself with people who you feel safe and comfortable with, and who you know when you will be there for, no matter what. Family doesn’t have to be biological, it’s more about the actual concept of the word itself and the connotations which go along with it. That’s really what family is about. So, that about wraps it up! Until next time, this has been Diva Lesson #9: Families Are Realness.

Extra Credit!

This week, I had my last session of CREW training for Open Houses, the first of which will be held this upcoming weekend. It’s been a while since I’ve given tours, so I’m a little nervous but still excited for the occasion, and to meet prospective students.

Tomorrow, I’m taking a trip for the First Year Fridays event to the Woodbury Commons, which is a shopping outlet center not too far away. I’ll be taking the trip with Stef and Stephen. Apparently, there’s a Starbs, an Applebee’s, and a Converse store. That’s really all I need to survive, as many of you may already know. I’m very excited and looking forward to being able to spend some more time off campus.

Since I don’t always have full access to Starbs while the week is in progress, I find myself making frequent trips to Seattle’s Best on campus. Lately, my drink of choice has been the Pumpkin Javakoola. It’s excellent and just right for fall!

This week was Hall Government Appreciation week, and the Capen RAs made me a cute sign to hang outside of my door, and provided us all with snacks and fun treats at our meeting this week. This Sunday, we’re all going pumpkin picking together as a bonding trip! It should be a great time.

This week, I helped Marissa out in Bevier, and did a program with her where I gave students henna tattoos. Marissa wrote “Fabulous” on my arm, and it’s still there from Monday. I kind of really enjoy it.

This last weekend, SUBs was held at New Paltz and I was able to finally meet on of the Chairs of the Advocacy Committee, Danielle. She’s really wonderful and I’m so happy that I was able to talk with her for a short period of time.

Finally, I’m currently sitting with Gigi and Jen, and as a small shout out to them, I would just like to say “Bonta-Bonta-Bonta Who? Bonta-Bonta-Bontaceau!” That is all.