What She's Reading: January

This month's books were, well, basically dominated by John Green. With the debut of the The Fault in Our Stars movie trailer, there's been a constant spotlight on the hilarious author and I thought it was high time for me to read some of his other books.

An Abundance of Katherines is a lighthearted and quirky story of a boy who was just dumped for the nineteenth time by a girl named Katherine. The book was a quick read littered with footnotes and graphs which add character to the story. 

Looking for Alaska fits in line with The Fault in Our Stars in that it absolutely broke my heart. John Green has found another way to make you have an emotional breakdown over fictional characters, thats for sure. Fantastic book.

Sum it Up by Pat Summitt Pat Summitt recollects her life as a basketball player and head coach at the University of Tennessee until an retirement after being diagnosed with early onset dementia. The book starts out slow and at times is tedious to get through, but when you remind yourself that it was written by someone with altzheimer's, you're absolutely floored by the detail by which she is able to recall players and teams, the people she loved. Here's an excerpt that I hope will help explain:

I don't remember records, final scores, and statistics. Numbers have a strange slipperiness; they suggest nothing. If you ask me how many games we won in 1998, or what happened in the 2008 NCAA national championship game, I struggle to remember which one it was.

But  if you tell me who was on that team, or show me an old team photo, I'll remember: "That's Linda Ray- she didn't play much but she was a great teammate, and smart. Biochemistry major."

Pat Summitt is a remarkable woman and I highly recommend reading her book, regardless of if you're a basketball fan or not! (I'm not and I have thoroughly enjoyed reading it thus far!)

The Belle Does College!

Over the past 6 months I've been visiting various colleges in the south and I've attempted to keep a journal with a bit about each school, but in the process of jotting down notes while hearing from different college reps, going to college fairs, and taking actual school visits, that journal went from the organized notebook to haphazard pieces of paper tucked into the pockets of my Lilly planner. Long story short, I thought it would be a good idea for me to organize all of my thoughts in some fashion and why not do it here and share it with you all?

1. University of Tennesse, Knoxville

I absolutely LOVED it! The school is the perfect size for me, the town of Knoxville is so cute, and everyone just loves UT so much. The atmosphere reminds me of a relaxed Charlottesville, but without some of the stuffiness I feel at UVA, which I really like.

The dorms are a good size, definitely bigger than others I've seen. I was pretty much ready to move in the first time I stepped on campus. It's so easy to picture myself there, tailgating in orange and white, singing Rocky Top, going through rush, it just felt like such a good fit! Rocky Top definitely is home sweet home to me!

2. Elon University

Over all, I did not like Elon. My first impression was that the school looked brand new, which made it feel cold and unwelcoming. The school really did feel as small as it was, I just felt so isolated from the rest of the world. Honestly I just knew from the beginning that it wasn't for me. The school has a strong focus on "extended learning" which is through programs like service and leadership and internships and study abroad but everyone going off in their own directions like that really just gave me this very disjointed, and school unity and spirit is definitely something that's important to me. I think I got more of a feeling of a fancy boarding school than a college. Definitely not the place for me.

3. Clemson University

Unfortunately I didn't get any good pictures of Clemson, but the campus is really pretty! I liked it, not like LOVED it but I liked it enough. As a land grant school, the campus is huge and includes a botanical garden and lots and lots of green space around the academic buildings (major plus!). The dorms are a nice size with large closets and from what i've heard, freshman move-in sounds pretty easy with plenty of people willing to help you. I could really tell that all of the students are just so happy and loved there school. I liked Clemson, and could potentially see myself being happy there, but I think my heart still really lies in a big SEC school. 

4. University of Georgia

I also loved UGA! (and it was super fun because my cousin attended law school there and volunteered to show me around for the day, as well as accompany me on an official school tour) Athens is like the quintessential college town, full of bars and restaurants and little shops. The downtown area is literally right across the street from campus so you're basically close to everything no matter where you are. The campus is massive, and it's the largest land-grant school in the country, and the grounds are so beautiful and well-maintained! The new buildings on campus are bright and warm and inviting, and over all, the school is a great mix of the old and the new. The sorority houses are all in these gorgeous old southern homes and the football stadium is right in the heart of campus. I think I could rock the red and black, I mean who knows, maybe once a bulldog, always a bulldog.

5. University of Alabama

Really Alabama was everything I thought it would be. There's a huge focus on greek life and Bryant-Denny Stadium towers over the campus. They go above and beyond with facilities for their students and making their time at school as easy as possible.

The campus was beautiful and the Quad was gorgeous. I can't even imagine how it must be on gamedays. It must be insane! The campus, even though it's already massive, is still growing, and it definitely feels as big as it is. Bama is a beautiful school, and I loved it there, but I also have to think about if I would be able to handle leaving my state to go to a school as big as this!

6. Auburn University

I wasn't super impressed with Auburn, but I do have to say that the day I visited I had one of the worst head colds and it was no joke 104 degrees outside, so I haven't ruled it out completely yet. My major reactions were that it felt very country in kind of a redneck way, and that it was beautiful but felt like it was in the middle of nowhere. The downtown area was nice but the off-campus housing seemed very far away from the school and like you wouldn't be able to walk anywhere once you lived off campus. There wasn't a whole lot of green space around campus so it was a little bit of a harsh environment but what there was was really nice. I'm definitely still thinking about auburn.

7. Southern Methodist University

SMU wasn't really on my radar until one of my friends told me I should come stay with her one weekend, and my dad loved the idea having grown up in Dallas. I took her up on that offer during early december, right after they had their celebration of lights, so Dallas Hall was decorated for christmas which was absolutely beautiful! SMU was a small school for me with only 11,000 total students, including grad students, and I really didn't think that a small school was for me, but being right in the heart of Dallas you really don't notice how small it is because there's never a shortage of things to do! All of the dorms and facilities are really nice, they obviously take good care of their students. I'm surprised I loves SMU as much as I did, and it's definitely in my top schools!

I've had such an amazing time on my college search, and I've heard from and seen some really great schools. I'm anxious to being the application process, come fall! If you have advice or questions for me, I'd love to hear from you!

-The Belle in Pearls