Brent M

Inspiration through Film

What’s up guys! I know it’s been 2 weeks again, but I've been insanely busy. I'm back on track now, though, no worries. We’re going to be heading out May 4^th! 

So ever since I got here, I’ve been religiously going to the local cinema’s Film Club. There’s only one cinema in the whole town (Phoenix Cinema), and that cinema only has one theater inside it. It’s right in the middle of town (so it’s quite easy to get to), and it was just renovated before we arrived in January, so it’s actually pretty nice. In fact, Phoenix probably has some of the most comfortable seats I’ve ever sat in. More important than that, though, is what films it actually shows. Because it only has one theater, it has to be selective with the films it shows.

I just saw The Croods at Phoenix on Sunday, and it was hands-down one of the best films animated films I’ve seen in years. The Film Club, though, is on Tuesdays, and usually features more mature and introspective films. Also, unlike The Croods which was a Sunday matinee costing 5.50 euro, the film club is 8.50 euro per visit (the regular cost of a film in the evening is 8 euro). That extra 50 cents earns you cookies, tea (or coffee), the most populated night to see a movie out of the whole week, and a little presentation from the director of the film club about that night’s film as well as next week’s. Because the same people usually come on a weekly basis, before long a distinctly cozy and friendly atmosphere is felt after only the first couple weeks. Seeing familiar faces and enjoying tea and cookies is definitely a different experience from going into a theater with random people munching on popcorn and slurping their slushies.

Besides the atmosphere, though, the main reason I look forward to going ever week is the excellent selection of films they have playing just for the film club. I’ve seen some of my favorite movies ever here, including:

Beasts of the Southern Wild

Life of Pi

Searching for Sugar Man

The Ray Bradbury Odyssey (during the film festival)

And, of course, most importantly, Jiro Dreams of Sushi

I only have a few more weeks to look forward to the film club, but I still can’t wait to see what’s next. Until next time guys, Sloan!

 

Brent

Spring: The Season of Change

Sorry for the week-skip guys, thing have been a little crazy over here for me the past week or two. I'll try to make it up with an extra long blog today! In any case, a lot of change is happening both in Dingle, with Sacred Heart, and with myself personally. It truly is the season for change, and it couldn't be looking better.

Dingle, County Kerry, Ireland, where I'm currently studying abroad, is a cozy little tourist town nestled between a valley and the sea. During the winter months it more or less hibernates, with half or more of the shops closing down for the season. Once Spring hits, however, it bursts into life as tourists and travellers alike come to get a glimpse of it's natural beauty. That's what's happening right now. This morning as I walked into town, I couldn't help but notice that there seemed to be more people than usual walking around. But, as it was the morning, there weren't too many more people around, so it didn't look too different. So, I just shrugged it off and continued on my way to the town library. When I came outside again a few hours later to get a cup of tea, it was undoubtedly noticeable that there were loads of tourists here. They walked around in familes and groups, and I think I even noticed some different accents as well. It was pretty cool! Although it was nice enjoying the peace and quiet of Dingle during the Winter, I think it'll also be pretty exciting seeing more activity and new people around the town.

Sacred Heart, on the other hand, is poised to cause a lot of change--mostly now through incrementally improving upon its existing features and programs.  It still counts, though, doesn't it? SHU has been hosting a ton of charitable events again this Spring, among them: Relay for Life (last year we raised $45,916, and this year the goal is $5,000!), the 2nd annual Greek Life Goes Back to Give Back (last year they raised $10,000 to give a school in Bridgeport a new playgroud, and this year they managed to raise $12,000), Project Limulus still going strong and recieving a $50,000 grant to continue preservation efforts of the American horseshoe crab from the Disney Wildlife Conservation Fund, and the annual Discovery Gala (the high-class event put on for university supporters to raise money for student scholarships). And lastly, even though it isn't a "charitable event" per se, a cool campaign that started out as a student project that's raising awareness through...straws? The Last Straw campaign is trying to send a message of anti-gun violence to the White House, and it plans to do so by collecting 100,000 straws (to represent the 100,000 gun victims in the States every year) by December 14, 2013, the one-year anniversary of the Sandy Hook shootings. I'm pretty proud of these guys, it's really ambitious! I'll include a link to the full story at the end of the blog.

(Pretty fancy stuff)

As for me and my house...we're still working at a bunch of stuff. Keeping the S.S. Imagination blog going strong, freelancing, looking at an internship, staying on top of schoolwork, looking at summer courses, trying to incrementally improve my writing to prep for grad school (when I'll prep for post-grad, when I'll then prep for teaching/the rest of my life). There's a lot going on right now, but it's kinda exciting, and although it gets overwhelming sometimes, I never wish things hadn't happened this way. I only have about a month left here in Dingle, Ireland, and I'm gonna try to make the absolute most out of it. Then, when it's time to head home, it'll be the greatest feeling in the world, no doubt.

Here's to change, to homecoming, and to dreams.

Peace, Brent

Last Straw Campaign: http://www.sacredheart.edu/aboutshu/news/newsstories/2013/march/students-launch-last-straw-campaign-for-gun-control-awareness.html

Fun Film Festivals

Welcome back guys! As my time in Ireland is gradually winding down, I started to think that there wouldn't be much else to do before I leave May 4th. Luckily for me, however, I was totally wrong! the Dingle International Film Festival (DIFF) came to town last weekend (the 15th-18th), and there was a great deal of fun and mischief to be had.

In total, the festival boasted more than 60 events over the span of 4 days, including 35 films and a number of interviews, workshops, and celebrations. Although a Festival Pass (that would cover everything) was attainable for €100, there were also smaller bundles valued at €25 each: the Rock Bundle (music-related films), the Shorts bundle (just the shorts collections), and the Literature bundle (the one that I took advantage of; all the films that originated from books). So, armed with tickets for 7 different films, I embarked on what was definitely one of the best expereinces I've had since I got here.

(Lore)

The films themselves were really varied; a couple I went in knowing what they were about, but for the majority of them, I had no idea what I'd gotten myself into. They were all independent films besides one (Easy Money) which, being one of the ones I went to see blind, was the most surprising film I saw! It was this awesome foreign gang film that took place in Spain, although the main characters were Norwegian, Arabian and Hispanic. The other ones that really stuck out were Lore, a film about a German family right as the last days of World War II concluded; and Live Forever: The Ray Bradbury Odyssey, which painted a shockingly vivid picture of one of the most talented, dedicated, passionate American writers of the 20th century.

(Jimmy Murakami, director of The Snowman and When the Wind Blows)

In addition to all the festivities themselves, the DIFF was a great chance to converse with a lot of locals who I probably wouldn't have met otherwise. We grabbed a bite to eat, moved conversations about films to fancy hotel lobbys, and took it to the pubs afterwards to unwind and enjoy some traditional Irish music. All in all, it was a really cool experience, and one that I'll always think of when I think back to my time in Ireland.

Stay Frosty, Brenty

Striving for Perfection

Welcome back fam. Sacred Heart is an awesome school, and we're all pretty lucky to be going somewhere like here (I know, I know, clishé; just stick with me for a second). There's a bunch of stuff it gets right, and it's been getting a lot more right recently; two new student-run businesses, two major construction projects happening now with another beginning later this semster, sending out more surveys to actually see what the students want (hopefully they put the info to good use), really stepping up the school website with continual content updates, and more.

However, with all that said, there are still tons of things that SHU could work on to get more recognition, funding, and love from its students. Here are a few things that seemed to make sense.

1. Give more focus to the smaller majors on campus. It's no secret that SHU has favorites; mainly: business, med, and science students. The programs are thriving (our nursing students are especially outstanding), but with those successes come the losses of an engaging and innovative liberal arts education, something the university prides itself on. Although every student has to take a certain number of philosophy, religious studies and English courses via the Common Core (and electives, if one so chooses), the departments themselves are somewhat pushed to the side to make room for the bigger programs. From a business perspective, this makes perfect sense; why waste resources and energy on the programs that arn't attracting as many students when you can further promote the ones that are? From a College of Arts and Sciences student's perspective, however, this is a severe disappointment. The kicker, though, is that it wouldn't take too much. Maybe:

• Hold special events (writing contests, philosophical debates, widely-publicized showings of foreign language films) consistently throughout the year; regularly
  
• Establish an email service that alerts students when there is an opportunity to enter their work (art galleries, publication opportunities, summer programs abroad for language majors, etc.)
• Hold cool social gatherings exclusively with departmental students and faculty (dinners/lunches in the Hearth Room, perhaps?) regularly

(Trinity College's legendary archives in Dublin)

2-3. Instill a sense of pride to be at/have gone to Sacred Heart + make it a home. We're a young university, and because of that we don't (yet) have the same level of esteem or respect that a Williams or a UPENN might have. However, that doesn't mean that we can't be fiercely proud of our school. It's not the easiest thing to make a student proud of the school itself; but when it's accomplished, graduates will promote, cherish, and give back to the place that means so much to them. Currently, there's an air of "oh, this is just SHU," and it's evident in sports attendance, lecture attendance (ones that arn't required for class), and by the amount of people who go home on the weekends. Not only does SHU have to be a place to be proud of, but it also has to be a home. Maybe:

• Earn more accreditations and accolades. This is, of course, much easier said than done, and is also something that will take time, but the more distinguished SHU is the more students will have a respect for it
• Listen more to student feedback and (in a way) let them form the university. This is already happening with the 2 new student-run businesses, tons of volunteer opportunities, loads of clubs, and Linda's (the Student Center). However, perhaps consider affording more input from students on guest lecturers, guest performers, trip opportunities, renovations, out-of-class projects, and food options
• Update the student dorms (and not just the honors housing). I know this will take both time and money, but it's an amazingly solid investment to ensure students look forward to coming back from break instead of dreading their damp, dirty dorm buildings and uncomfortable mattresses

(Colorado State University's Academic Village housing)

There are, of course, other areas that need work, but these are some major ones. With all the great work that we have going on, there's still a good deal more to work at. Here's to enduring success.

Godspeed, Your Friendly Neighborhood Brent

Surviving in Ireland on a Budget

Hey there guys. Another Friday has come and passed, and this week I think it's high time I gave you a little more insight into what it's like living abroad, food-wise.

In Dingle, there are loads of different restaurants you can try (we actually went to the one above, but could only afford the coffee) . Dingle is a fairly world-renown vacation spot, and thus the town thrives on the tourism season during the summer. Many of the shops and restaurants are actually seasonal, and a good deal of them have only begun to open now that Spring has finally hit. Because most of the money is made in the summer, however, and also due to Dingle attracting so many tourists, prices in many restaurants and cafés are through the roof (and remember, this is already compounding with the money we lose in the dollar-euro conversion)! So while it's nice to go out and treat yourself every once in awhile, it's not really feasible (for most students) to eat out more than once or twice a week, max. (Note: There are no fastfood chains to grab something for a couple euros in Dingle, though the McDonald's in Dublin was beautiful!)

(One of the McDonalds' in Dublin. The flat-screens were playing rugby)

Thus, shopping becomes a must. If you can cook, this is child's play; grab some chicken, veggies, spices and whatever else you need and make a great dish! For me though, learning how to cook is still very much a work-in-progress. So, this is what I've learned to buy (shopping once a week) that's both cost-effective and healthy:

Breakfast:

Bag of granola (the organic kind with no sugar added).

Cost: Approx. 5 euro

Will last: If you're smart about it, it can last about 2.5-3 weeks.

Lunch:

Wholemeal bagel, apple, oatmeal

Cost: 5 bagels for 1 euro, 10 apples for approx. 2.15 euro, oatmeal--unsure

Will last: 1 week (5 days)

Dinner:

Frozen chicken, frozen broccoli, beans (no sugar added)

Cost: 6-pack chicken 2.20 euro, bag of broccoli approx. 3-4 euro, can of beans .79 euro

Will last: 1 week (3 cans of beans, eat half each night)

 

Adds up to: about 11-13 euro per week (the granola makes it a little weird, since I only have to buy it every 3 weeks)

This is just me, of course. Some people like to eat out at restaurants more, and some like to run to the store and get a sandwich and drink daily for lunch; it's all based on your personal preferences. But if you're ever living in Ireland for a semester (the Fall deadline is coming up, March 15th!) I hope this helps a little bit. Also hope you all enjoy the last few days of break!

Eternal Cheers, Brent

All the Time in the World

Welcome back fam. Happy Spring Break! In celebration of the break, I wanted to focus this blog on all the cool things you can do with yours that you might not even know about.

While spending Spring Break at home catching up with family and friends is cool, you have all summer and winter break for that! If you want to try something different for a week, try out SHU's fabled El Salvador trip that runs every year. I think it's about $550 though, so while it's said to be a life-changing experince by nearly everyone I've asked about it, it's definitely not the cheapest experience available. Even so, it's supposed to be amazingly rewarding, and we've been doing it for (correct me if I'm wrong) almost 2 decades. In fact, because of it's success, this year SHU has launched two new ones: Costa Rica and Guatemala.

If going abroad isn't your thing, the Volunteer Programs Office also runs delegations to Mississippi every Spring Break. I know less about this trip, but shoot Margaret Casey of Volunteer Programs an email (caseym@sacredheart.edu) and she'll give you all the details.

In terms of club trips, Habitat also runs service trips every Spring; however, you need to be a member to the club to attend them. The Haiti club also runs yearly week-long trips to Haiti for the Spring Break week, and Peace By Justice may begin running their own trips in the near future.

And these are just trips through our school. There are loads more everywhere, from mission trips to retreats to special student deals to volunteer opportunities to research opportunities. You just have to get out there (or rather, get on the Internet) and go looking for 'em!

Whatever you decide to do this break, have fun and get away from it all for a little while. When you're getting ready to come back, there'll be a fresh blog here waiting for you.

Cheers, Brentizzle

Moving On Up

Hey guys. Sorry the blogs have been a little weak lately--I've been putting a ton of effort into my writing blog, The S.S. Imagination, recently (http://theimaginationlife.blogspot.ie/). Now that we're back on track though, I'm gonna do 2 for this week; one today, and one Friday along with the new Conversations entry in my writing blog.

A TON has been going on on campus lately, and I'm incredibly sad that I'm missing all of it. Some cool stuff that happened recently off the top:

• Bobby Valentine accepting the position of Athletic Director
• The Women's B-ball team having a crazy winning streak (8 or 9 games in a row?)
• The new Wellness Center's interior being finished up
• A Celebrity Chef series being put on weekly by Chartwells (finally stepping it up! I like it)
• And some minor cosmetic changes that I've noticed from pics, like the fancy new sign in 63's (maybe this'll actually get more people to call it that)

Besides all this stuff though, there seems to be a lot of more subtle work to better the university. The Prez. stated in his interview with SHUBOX (I'll throw the link down below) that he's hoping Bobby V can help in some fundraising efforts, there seems to have been a new emphasis on student surveys (I think there were at least 5 sent out so far already this semester), the website is LOADS better with the Flickr pics of all the events (and some videos) being uploaded a couple days after they happen, and, the most interesting, there's been a sudden boom in student-run businesses on campus, with both the new Walnut Beach Creamery and Heartfelt Designs (who produced the Newtown shirts) starting up this semester.

It makes one wonder if this could open the floodgates to even more student-run businesses in the future--an in-house publishing house to publish student's collections of poetry, short stories, or even full-fledged novels? Our own clinic to the public to showcase the mastery of our upperclassmen-nursing majors? How about a film studio to produce independent short/full length films by the media arts majors?? The possibilities are endless!!

For now, though, it seem like the 5-Year Strategic Plan that the new Prez. set up is really coming to fruition, and only in it's 2nd year. I'll be gone by it's 5th year, but the freshmen'll be around to see it all come together.

Until Friday guys, take it easy and knock down some tests!!

--Brent, That Guy Who Blogs

SHUBOX Interview with the Prez: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3tiXfUhlmo&list=UUVtOmBeUvJyrrl-GDSbETaA&index=1

Peace at Last...Kinda

Hey there fam! I still have a bunch of stories to tell from both Galway and Dublin (especially Dublin) but I decided to take a little break and talk about something that I was looking forward to ever since I saw a picture of Ireland: the serenity of it all.

I was in 6th grade when I saw my first picture of Ireland, and it was all green hills and sweeping emerald valleys. I immediately knew that I wanted to go here, and I knew that I wanted to write here. It just looked so peaceful, like an escape from everything.

Fast forward 8 years, and living in Ireland has proved to be everything I've ever imagined...kinda. See, when I imagined living in Ireland, I imagined living in a nice little house inside a valley, flanked on all sides by meadows of grass and flowers (I know, I was a pretty smug little kid).  Actually being in Ireland now, I've seen a lot of houses like that--driving to and from our cottage in Dingle, right on the coast. We live just outside town--a 10min. walk--and a short 15min. walk to the pier, where there are loads of seafood restaurants and pubs. Now, don't get me wrong; I absolutely love seafood. And the views are beautiful, and the docks make for great places to walk. But, with all of that said, it's not the picture of quiet serenity that I once imagined. The town is quite small and quaint and very pleasant to live in, and everyone is extremely friendly, even more than I imagined they'd be from stories of past study abroad students. But my long-time fantasy of sitting in my home and peacefully writing novels, poems and short stories is, alas, just that: a fantasy.

Should I have known better, knowing that I'd have 3 roommates and an Internet connection? Yep, probably. But it still hurts all the same (haha)! The flipside to all of this is that in our town there are exactly 52 pubs, so I think I'll start hanging out in some of them late at night and try writing in the back by a fireplace or something. It's not quite as serene, but I'll definitely get more of the Irish experience that way.

Sloan!

Brent A. Middleton

The Arrival (Continued from 'Back to Business')

Hola world, Brent here for the 2nd part of my arrival in Dingle. It's been FREEZING here lately, but I know it's been even worse for you guys back home. Hang in there CT!!

Leaving off from the last blog, we settled into some of the best accommodations I've ever stayed in. I've included some photos here so you can see the cottage for yourself and be the judge. The place even has a flat screen TV (even though we haven't turned it on yet) and a fairly modern kitchen. Plus, being the only boy in the group guaranteed that I got my own bedroom and bathroom! The perks, the perks.

(My bedroom! For more pics of the cottage, check the separate Pics post above this one!)

In any case, after the tour we all knocked out for a few hours until dinner at The Blue Zone, a jazz-vibe pizza place lofted above a music store. The pizza was delicious, and we've gone back there a few times since. This would mark the first of a week of glorious free meals we were able to take advantage of due to overlapping with the 2 week program! Eating out is sometimes a bit pricey, so it was a great chance to try a bunch of the different options around town; plus, we got to meet and hang out with the short-term program kids (some of which were from the University of Scranton and one who was from Manhattan College). We got to try everything from classic fish and chips (my personal favorite) to "Chinese food" (yep, I gotta throw in the quotes now). It was all really good--probably aided by the fact that it was free. Loads of delicious seafood though; being on the coast has its advantages. The first week flew by in no time, and now 2 weeks later (I'm about 3.5 weeks in now) it feels like the other 36 college kids were here months ago. And then there were 4. Dun dun dunnnn!!

Check back next Friday to see if we coexisted peacefully as cottagemates or if our relationships rapidly dissolved into cannibalism!

Cheers, Brentillion-rex

Back to Business

Hello world! It's good to be back. Running with the theme of new beginnings, I started off the new year with a flight to Ireland for the semester! Just like when I was in China over the summer, this'll provide awesome blog material (although definitely much less chaotic and much more frequent)! So without further ado, here's a blog that I wrote earlier for the SHU in Ireland program blog. Also, here's a link to my Creative Writing blog, The S.S. Imagination: http://theimaginationlife.blogspot.ie/

                                                                      

This past Saturday marked the 2-week point of being in Ireland. Since I've now had a couple of weeks to adjust, I think it'd be a good time to look back and reflect on the first few days. The strange thing about my initial experience is that it didn't quite hit me that I was leaving until I got to the airport. Beforehand we'd had about 2 and a half weeks of break, and within those weeks I did absolutely nothing (yep, literally)! Therefore, it was somewhat of a shock to realize that I was about to embark on an adventure, even though I had been anticipating it while I was in school. After the farewells to the family and trek to the terminal, I boarded the plane only to realize that I'd unknowingly picked a seat next to Julianne, 1 of the 3 girls I'm living with. It was great finally meeting her, and we soon became friends between the movies and TV shows we were able to watch during the flight. It was unreal actually arriving in the little airport in Shannon, and once the 4 of us were united we were promptly collected by John (the official SHU in Ireland driver and local boss) and driven the 2.5 hours to Dingle. As we drove, the sky gradually brightened and we were treated to some of the most beautiful sights I've ever seen. The rolling green hills and bountiful valleys full of little white specks (that we'd soon learn were sheep) were absolutely brilliant, and even though we were all fairly sleepy from the flight over, we nevertheless admonished among ourselves the beauty of our new home.

Once we arrived at the cottages, the director's fiancè, Lenka, gave us a tour around town and treated us to a delicious breakfast of eggs, sausage, bacon, chips (fries), toast, tea/coffee, and black (blood) and white pudding at a local pub. It was an interesting meal indeed! But we soon--

But we soon what?? Were kicked out? Died from the blood pudding? Were stolen by leprechauns?? You'll have to check back next week to find out! Haha. If I can manage to balance these better, I might be able to post twice a week! Here's to high hopes.

Cheers, B.A.M.