Stegner Reading- Maddy Oritt

I've been reading Recapitulation and I'm a little over a third of the way through. I am enjoying reading Stegner a lot, having never read his work before. As corny and trite as this sounds, one of the best things, so far, about the Honors College is our exposure to so much literature, spanning cultures and time periods. It's been a (labor-intensive) pleasure to read such a variety of great work, Stegner included. I love reading about the city in a different time period, and it makes me wish for a time machine so I could experience the city as Bruce Mason did in his youth. Having such an intuitive connection to the book because I was born and raised in Salt Lake City, I feel a more visceral connection to Bruce's character and I'm more drawn in to the book because my mental images of the scenery are exceptionally vivid. I'm excited to read more and, at some point in my free time, I think I'll do some poking around to see what pictures I can find of 1920s-era SLC.

Westminster (New vs. Old) & Comments on Wednesday's Presentation (Bryn)

My group went on a walkabout to the Westminster neighborhood--that is, the area surrounding Westminster College and the college itself. Currently, Westminster is under construction. They are in the process of expanding their campus. Interestingly enough, Westminster's original buildings look, from the outside, very "old school," unlike that of the crisp, modern architecture so popular in today's day and age.
At the U, our buildings consist of a diversity of styles. We have modern looking buildings, such as the new math building or library, and buildings with likeness to old southern plantation homes, such as the vast Kingsbury Hall. Personally, I enjoy this contrast. I find it both appealing and pleasing to the eye. It combines a nice variety of history and present. Future generations will be able to picture the past architectural forms and appreciate the U as a university that emphasizes the need to remember the past and embrace the present and future. I believe this is a unique part of our University.
Westminster, on the other hand, has made the decision to stick with the tradition. Although they are undergoing construction now, the buildings they are developing appear to have a very similar style to that of the old. Many of the new buildings are red brick or stone, and they have even begun to inlay traditional designs in the stone accents located along the exterior walls. All these details are found in the old buildings that have stood for so many years. Westminster's idea of preserving the historical and liberal arts atmosphere on campus is, in a peculiar kind of way, considerate of the students and staff that have fallen so in love with the beauty of the traditional buildings. From what I have seen, their attempts are successful.

In addition to speaking of Westminster's attempts to preserve their campus aesthetics, I want to comment a bit on Wednesday's presentations. I feel that my group has done well so far and also did well on this last pin-up. I also always thoroughly enjoy listening to all the other groups' adventures. I am able to get a more in depth picture of Salt Lake and hear about places that interest me. I love visiting the niches, intersections, etc. that the other groups talk about, and comparing their feelings and thoughts about the location to my own. So far, I have learned quite a bit about SLC and am excited to continue with the remainder of the semester.

Snow College vs University of Utah--Marie Tuft

Monday and Tuesday of fall break seemed like a day that everyone was gone. So therefore I decided to leave also. I went to visit the ¾ of my graduating class that went to Snow College.
Snow College varies from the U in…well pretty much everything. The first is where it is. The U is located in the biggest city in Utah, Snow can be found in Ephriam. A question commonly asked is, “What exactly is there to do in Ephriam?” The answer I found, was nothing much. The town has one stoplight, a couple places to eat, a theatre, a McDonalds, and that’s about it. Well, other than Snow of course.
The second difference is in the structure of the campus. I know from sad experience just how long it takes to walk from the dorms down to the furthermost reaches of Presidents Circle. However, at Snow I could probably jog circles around their whole campus without getting too winded. They have about four main buildings for classes, a library, and a performing arts center. The longest it would take to walk anywhere would be ten minutes. I had to laugh when I saw that people rode bikes around. Honestly, why risk getting your bike stolen when you could easily walk the fifteen steps it takes to get to class? It seems like the Utah campus definintely has a much greater presense than the Snow one. When you get onto Utah property, you definitely can see a difference. With Snow its really not very obvious at all. If they didn’t have the sign for Snow I probably wouldn’t even be able to tell that there was a college there at all.
The third difference was in the feel of the campus. It seems like the Utah campus definintely has a much greater presense than the Snow one. When you get onto Utah property, you definitely can see a difference. With Snow its really not very obvious at all. If they didn’t have the sign for Snow I probably wouldn’t even be able to tell that there was a college there at all. However, I felt much safer at Snow than I do here. People there don’t really even lock their cars. I felt like if I wanted to go jogging at night I wouldn’t get mugged. Whereas with the Utah campus leaving my car unlocked would be stupid, and jogging at night might possibly be suicidal.
Overall, I’m really glad that I chose to come to this school over Snow even though I’m the only person from South Sevier to come up here.

A Small Boy In A Big City--Slover

I don't think there's any reason why this class should only be about Salt Lake. If anything, the experiences I have in other cities create more context in which to understand SLC. Anyway, I'm heading out to New York (the city part) over fall break to visit some friends and extended family. I was trying to think of some differences between New York and Salt Lake, but didn't come up with much. Oh! They're both totally grid-type cities. There we go.
I have a bad habit which forces me to try to blend in where ever I go. The thought of some well-seasoned local New Yorker spotting me for an obvious tourist scares the hell out of me. I guess that means I should wear black. After all, I'm going to New York. Or is that a myth? Maybe New Yorkers favor more earthy tones.
To tell the truth, though, there are some touristy things that I want to do--I want to go Greenwich Village and Central Park and a museum or two. Otherwise, I'm pretty content to wander around. Perhaps I'll see a node or an edge or something.
This post is mostly about my anticipation. I don't have much to say about New York yet. My family put me on camera duty (baseball caps and Hawaiian shirts anyone?), though, so I'll be sure to post a few Polaroids when I come back.

A sampling of our walkabout photos- Westminster College and surrounding area

Walkabout #3 (Districts)

The neighborhood surrounding Westminster is a charming, vibrant area. We got off our bus at 1700 South and 1100 East, right in front of Mini’s Cupcakes. The hungry college students that we are, we crossed over and entered the cute, slightly shabby shop with a stunning display of beautiful (and tasty) cupcakes of every flavor imaginable. The boy behind the counter offered samples, and we left contented. We crossed back over the street and went into the Chabad Lubavitch Jewish Center, which was set back in a strip mall-looking area. The upper level, which looked like it would be used for receptions and ceremonies, was empty and we didn’t venture into the offices below, although we did pick up some handy Jewish literature about the rules of kosher, among other things. In that area, there was also an LDS ward, a delightful breakfast/lunch restaurant (Finn’s), a cat boutique, and a second-hand store. Then we traipsed up two blocks to Westminster. Along the way, we noticed that the houses of the area somewhat resemble those of the Avenues. They are all unique and quaint in their own ways; it was fun to see the character of each house we passed. The houses did seem smaller than many of those in the Avenues, however. After a short walk, we came upon the Westminster campus.

Our bus dropped us off at 17th S and 11th E, so we were at the edge of the neighborhood. The buildings were made of industrial brick and the streets were cracked. The area was not decrepit, as in Central City; the houses were well-maintained and it has the same feel as the Avenues. As we walked up Blair Avenue, Alessandro noticed that the houses were very close together; they had no driveway. The street ends at the edge of Westminster College. The architecture of the buildings changed immediately. While the university was also made of brick, it was not the small red brick, that is stereotypically associated with the 18th century, but large red brick. This gave the campus a more modern feel than the surrounding area. Another drastic difference was the vegetation; the campus was very green. The buildings were still very compact, but the gaps were filled in by paths with a serene covering of trees. It was easy to see that Westminster is a liberal arts college.

The most profound athletic complex on the Westminster campus is the soccer stadium. Unlike, the U, Westminster's most popular sports are soccer and lacrosse. They don't even have a football team! The soccer stadium is located at a very central location on campus, making it easily accessible with ample parking available. Next to the soccer stadium is the sports/fitness complex. When walking in, the first immediate difference from that of the U is most obviously the much smaller scale by which it was built. Everything is very compact; all of their fitness oriented equipment and athletic facilities are located mainly in this building. There is a double-sized gym, an indoor track, a lap pool and hot tub, cardio equipment, a weight room, and possibly the greatest addition, a rock wall! Interestingly enough, there was a small rock wall outdoors, on the outside wall of one of the buildings.
We continued to explore the campus, deciding to tour the residence halls. The freshman residence halls were much older and more run-down than the residence halls we currently live in at the U. They had a quirkier feel to them. The wild vegetation so prominent on Westminster's campus could be seen out the windows of the dorms, creating a nice naturistic atmosphere. The rooms themselves are much smaller than ours.

All of Westminster campus was beautiful, but its most striking feature was this amazing bridge over a river. It seemed to contradict most of what you’d expect from the average college landscaping, especially when you take the Utah campus into consideration. The closest thing we have here is the pedestrian bridge over a river of cars, but that doesn’t even compare.
The bridge was a quaint confection of wood and nails and kind of gave off the air of being from a slightly different time period. Once we stepped onto the bridge it was like we were transported into a beautiful fairyland. The foliage was thick enough that the buildings completely disappeared from view. The only sound that could be heard was the bubbling music of the river beneath. For Marie, it was akin to a religious experience. She didn’t expect to find a place where she could feel one with nature on a college campus.
From above we spotted a dirt path that led down to the banks of the river and felt compelled to investigate. Hiking down to the river had the same effect as stepping onto the bridge. We left the crazy busy world of a college campus behind and entered this realm where cares seemed to melt away and there was only us, the trees, and the water beneath.

Tim felt very at home on the Westminster campus—the U of U kind of gives him the wiggins’. It’s so massive; you feel like you could all too easily fall through the academic cracks, and never be heard from again. At Westminster, though, everything seemed so communal. Like if you didn’t show up to class, someone might actually track you down and ask what the matter was. Not that the U doesn’t have caring administrators and professors (hey, honors college). It’s just that here students must be actively trying to get the most out their educations. They really have to track down opportunities and grab them when they can. At Westminster that might be easier.
There were more eclectic students on the Westminster campus, too. The percentage of flat-brimmed baseball caps was definitely down compared to the U, replaced by Doc Martens and earthy ponchos and American Spirits. Though, the art students at Westminster like sketching their library just as much as ours do (our library’s way better, by the way)—we practically tripped over them when we walked by.
The U has a few redeeming qualities. As much as Tim wants to go to a small liberal arts school, he has to admit that the U is a school ‘for the people,’ and he likes being a part of that, too.

Niches

I love how cities big or small have their own little microcosms, mini-communities inside the greater city. One can be found at the Jewish Community Center in Fort Douglas. My family has been members there as long as I can remember- my brother and I went to summer camp when it was in its older location further south. Now my parents and I use it primarily for its exercise facilities and classes, which are amazing! What I love about the J, though, is the sense of community there. Most of the people staffing the front and fitness desks have worked at the J for a while, so everyone knows them and can chat personally with them on their way in or out. There are several college students who work there, so we always exchange a "How's school?" or "Looking forward to fall break?" Jose, the facilities manager, sometimes acts as a doorman in the mornings, and many people greet him with a "¿Cómo estás?" Then there are all the regulars that work out in the gym or come to the exercise classes. From asking for a spot to discussing a basketball game on TV to commiserating about a particular exercise, there's always common ground. Then there are the gym characters, like one particular woman who always does a burlesque-type workout on the stairstepper, or the elderly, hunched Russian man who always says "Hello, sir" and "Have a happy day" to everyone he meets. There is a great diversity of patrons of the J as well, spanning ages, ethnic backgrounds, and religions. It's great to have such a place where I can go, knowing I'll always see a friendly, if sweaty, face.