This semester, without doubt, has been another busy yet fulfilling one. Next week, for instance, will consist of an average of one public speaking engagement (e.g. admissions panel, hosting a federal judge)/final presentation each day for me. Amid all the stress and excitement, it is not too self-indulgent for me to reflect on some of the positive experience that I have had. I ...
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Author: April Xiaoyi Xu
Studio Time
Are you compulsive about planning? Congrats, here’s another item for your list: “Studio Time”
1) A cozy café. A notepad. A pen. Plain A4 papers. Watercolor paints. Fresh cooking ingredients. A half-empty sheet music to be completed by no one other than yourself…
2) Problem sets. Research papers. Midterm exam. Presentations. Grad school applications. The MCAT. Job intervie...
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Strolling along Seashores: A ‘Taste’ of Spain
Take one step forward with your left foot — a small step suffices. Oh, no flip flops from this point on, please. Feel that delicate texture embracing your foot with such warmth and subtle sounds of acceptance. Another step forward with your right foot, and you experience a marvelous balance. Savour that sensation.
You tilt your head slightly, feel your long hair lifting...
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Junior Year Semester One Reflections: Debussy, and a Memo for My Future Self
The gentle softness. A dialogue where the two of them find phrases slipping naturally out of their inner souls, flowing, overlapping with each other at times and pausing for a restful break at others… That sheer sense of indescribable serendipity and relaxation that render you speechless: a quiet observer to this brave new world where you anticipate the unknown rises and falls....
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Growing to Love PE
It’s that time of the year again: course registration time! One of the jokes that you will hear pretty frequently at Pomona College is “I’m a PE major.” With a list of more than 70 PE classes to choose from, it’s hard to resist the temptation of trying out a few new sports while staying loyal to the old ones that you’ve always been passionate about.
Hmm. That’s not quite bee...
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Three Places, Three Projects: A Research-Filled Summer
A crew of businessmen and businesswomen all dressed in black and white, confidently prancing their way down the Mid-Level Escalators while their clones emerge from various corners of the street, including the ‘underground’. A sunlit sandy beach, mysterious societies of men who pledge their allegiance to the glorious local gastronomic scene, a surreal land where imagina...
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Halfway Through College! Sophomore Year Reflections and Summer Plans
It’s that time of the year again: Finals, followed by Commencement (goodbye, seniors, I will miss you…) and SUMMER! I have one more final project to work on, so this is a good time to jolt down some quick reflections on the semester and a few words about my summer plans.
This week is atypical of my finals’ weeks at Pomona so far since I don’t have any traditional in-class fi...
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Claremont Journal of Law and Public Policy (CJLPP): A Story of Collaboration and Growth
I feel its weight in my hands. Its interesting texture. The unique scent. That feeling of flipping each page with pride and joy — each page that is equally thought-provoking, and each crystalizing memories of all of those precious moments that we have shared collectively, as we carefully pondered each detail, discussed our thoughts with each other, and made decisions that would...
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Building a Home Away from Home for International Students: the International Student Mentor Program (ISMP)
For prospective incoming international students, studying abroad in another part of the world in just a few months can feel like quite an adventure — thrilling, mysterious, and nerve-racking all at once.
At Pomona College, students are constantly seeking ways to help each other to feel at home while we study and live in a home away from our “real” homes. The Internationa...
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Exploring Mr. Wilson’s Cabinet of Wonder: An Education
The Museum of Jurassic Technology (MJT) is an eccentric museum that houses objects from various geographical regions across different time periods — including human horns, a scaled model of Noah’s Ark, and mice on toast. Not only is David Wilson’s cabinet of wonder full of items that spark our curiosity to find out more details about its individual marvels, it fundamentally...
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