Rounding A Bend

At work I've been experiencing "chicken dinner month". That's what one of my supervisors has named the multitude of banquets we are required to attend that provide recognition and closure for students at the end of the academic year. All jest aside, they are nice events and overall it's good to spend time with students. However, instead of chicken, I've been exploring various special vegan meal preparations. They have been pretty good, so at one of my most recent banquets I made sure to pull the Dining Manager aside and thank him for the special accomodation.

Last night was our Office of Residece Life yearly banquet, where all RAs, other student employees and professionals gather to celebrate the end of the year. Of all of the banquets and brunches, this one is my favorite because it is for the hall staff that I work with on a daily basis. We share an hor d'oeuvre reception up in the President's private suite and then work our way down to the main ballroom in our Union. We share a lovely meal with about two hundred and fifty of our closest friends, there are several awards given away and recognition is given for those who are leaving their positions.

After having gone the two previous years, I knew this would mean a bit of recognition for my term of service and that I would have to come up on stage. Usually there are several Hall Directors who are leaving, but this year it's just me. Which is a nice book end to the fact that I was the only one who came in during my first year, '07-'08. This part of the banquet seemed to come much earlier than I expected and when I heard my supervisor start saying the words that I knew would call me up there, I got teary. It's very emotional to leave a position that has been good to me and has helped define my identity, especially without knowing where I'm going next. Mary looked down to my table and saw that I was teary. She said, "oh no, she's already crying". By the time I got up on stage I'd stopped and Mary turned back to the table to ask Ryan if he had a hankie. He held up a napkin from the table and all the guests in close proximity to him laughed. Mary thanked me for my service and presented me with a plaque commemorating my time in the Marquette Office of Residence Life.

She shared reflections about my character and work with students. She also talked about how I have deep insight, an uncanny way of expressing myself and a sense of humor that I often showcase in our work group. She started sharing some examples of things that sounded familiar, but I couldn't quite remember whether I'd shared them with her directly. Then she shared a few more, which elicited big laughs from the entire room and I quickly realized they were anecdotes from my blog, which I was fairly sure she'd never read. I was, of course, extremely nervous being in front of so many people but this pushed me over the edge. I was a little embarassed and a little shocked, but of course it was all in good fun. The tone was loving and I appreciated the kind sentiment of her words. She presented me with a wooden flower box with lovely blue and gold perennials and I made my way off the stage. It was over as quickly as it started, which is sort of how I feel about all of it. I cannot believe how fast this entire year has flown, though at times it felt like molasses.

Before we left, I took pictures with my staff and we took pictures with our Hall Director group. After the banquet some of our co-workers decided to get cocktails at Blu, the bar at the top of the Pfister. It was a nice evening full of laughs and some reflection. I made sure to send my old boss from graduate school a little text letting him know that my time in Residence Life was coming to an end. I thanked him for the ways that he helped shape me into a professional though I'd never worked in this field before. And of course, I reflected on just how far I've come since that time. I have built strong skills and made some amazing connections with people over the past five years in Student Affairs. I'm trying to think of it as rounding a bend, rathering than coming to the end of something. I'm hopeful that the next job will come. I'm trying to be patient and open myself up to whatever comes.

Lastly, I learned two important lessons last night:
1. I am a near-thirty year old woman who does not know how to use a curling iron. So, I'll need to work on that but an hour prior to a celebration banquet is not the time to try.

2. If you write something on the Internet, people will read it and use it in ways you do not intend. I'm thankful that I've generally tried to remain positive and appropriate here, so something does not happen that I regret. However, it was, in this instance, the perfect way for my co-workers to find and share some Megan's original gems.

My Res Life Photo History:


Reilly Hall '05-'06, Northern Arizona University


Reilly Hall '06-'07, Northern Arizona University


With Tara, my grad assistant in McCormick Hall '07-'08, now an RHD at MU


McCormick Hall, '07-'08, Marquette University


Cobeen Hall '08-'09, Marquette University


Cobeen Hall '09-'10, Marquette University


ORL RHD & Prostaff '09-'10, Marquette University

Spring Reawakening

I found out unexpectedly today that a friend of mine is a getting a divorce. It hit me rather emotionally, my heart feeling heavy for this couple and all they must be experiencing. It also caused me to reflect on the state of my own marriage and the great value Ryan brings to my life. I've learned that marriage is a living thing that must be nurtured. It can be fragile and tenuous or it can be strong and vibrant, depending on circumstances and what we make of it. It's not always easy, that gets left out of all the wedding dreams and happily ever after fairy tale stories. But it has made my life more rich than it has ever been before. So today, I'm sad and thankful all at the same time. My friend is someone who deserves love and to be treated well, which I have faith will come in time.

Tonight I chaperoned my fifth and last residence hall dance! It was a joint effort between the all-male and all-female halls on our campus - a semiformal dubbed Spring Reawakening. They had a vision of vibrant florescent oragami, black lights and black and white attire, which I admit I did not share. However, tonight all of the planning paid off. Many hall council members came out to set up the event and brought their friends to support it. We had over 100 students in attendance, no major problems, lots of fun and an awesomely speedy clean-up where dozens of hands pitched in. I'm a proud mama duck tonight and am glad my last dance memory will be a a good one.

Setting up for the dance.


Oragami reigns supreme! I was impressed by the students' DIY ethic.


Orange dreamsicle sheet cake.


A hundred homemade strawberry frosted cupcakes.


Rainbow sherbet swirl almost ready to be scooped up for punch.


The aftermath of the the lemon-lime sherbet punch. Ryan says this is approaching the edge of what is actually "food". He also said someone should throw some saw dust on it and wait for the custodian to come clean it up.


Funky DIY orgami centerpieces. I never would have come up with this and honestly they look pretty ugly up close but they looked great on the black linens and with the black lights.


Male student breaks it down when we turn on the blacklights during set up.


The dance starts. Featured lots of Girl Talk, Black Eyed Peas, and Lady Gaga. Eventually the floor filled up :)

Phenomenal Woman

I just finished eleven staff evaluations over the last ten days. I generally torture myself over writing them, but after days (read: weeks) of worrying I kicked my a*s into gear and spent many early mornings at the computer with a big cup of coffee (Thanks Al & Beckie - ever since you gave us those new cups I have drastically increased my caffeine intake). I spent several weeks time writing the evaluations and then hours of time (probably 15 total) meeting with my supervisees to discuss them. I really enjoyed this sit down time with each woman to talk openly about her performance and where she fits in our overall staff team.

I had them do self-evaluations before the meeting, so when they came that was the first thing we did together. Strangely, these self-evaluations took the bulk of each meeting. I sat and listened to them share their insights into the work they do, how they interact with others, how they see themselves, how they balance the many demands on their time and what they hoped to accomplish by taking on the Resident Assistant (RA) role. I was struck by how wise and self-aware most of them were in their assessments. I was also reminded just how lucky I am to interact with them daily and watch them slowly grow into new people affected by their time in a pivotal peer-leadership role.

Lately, I have felt such strong emotions for my students, especially the women in my residence hall. All of them. The ones who work for me. The ones who have worked for me. The 347 who live with me currently. Even every young person who's ever caused me worry or angst related to their stupid behavior. I'm aware I now have less time left here than I've ever had before. I know that I am leaving soon and it makes me sad. For those of you that have heard me talk (ad nauseum) or even complain (I never do that, right?) about my job, this probably comes as a shock to you. But I have been rocked by perspective about the experiences and relationships I've been blessed with here at Marquette.

I'm sad to leave these students behind and nervous to move out of the halls into real life. I know things are going to change for me in big ways, ways that I can't even begin to anticipate yet. I actually got teary at the end of an evaluation today because I knew I wouldn't be here to see what that phenomenal woman would have to offer in the future.