If you are here expecting to learn what I did in April and May of 2024, well, you are in the right place!
Final Stretch of Classes
I got back to campus after our short March break and we only had a few weeks left of class before our April break which came after classes had ended and before finals (unusual schedule due to the timing of Passover).
In early April, I helped out some friends by being a stand-in in their senior thesis play for my friend Connor who was performing in another play that was opening on the same night as the thesis tech run. It was fun to be a part of the play but it felt Iike I was in a nightmare - there I was in full costume, about to be in a play, and I had no idea what my lines were or even what the play was about. I had to keep reminding myself that I was not actually a part of this play.
I returned to that show two more times the following week to take pictures with Lauren of the dress rehearsal and to film the play on opening night.
That weekend was the start of Brandeis' Festival of the Arts and my short film Fresh Start finally premiered at Brandeis' Sundeis Film Festival! We won Best Writing and Best Cinematography! The film also won 2nd place in the university-wide Scheinman film competition.
You can now stream Fresh Start here! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s30s-gReByo
That following week was full of adventures! I saw the eclipse on campus, attempted to throw an axe at a stress-relieving event, attended a talk from Stuart Weitzman about his shoe empire, drove to a fitting for a background acting role, filmed an improv scene with a friend for our Acting for the Camera final and helped set up our suite for Connor's Enchanted Forest themed birthday party!
Getting to the end of the year, there was a lot going on and a lot ending! I had my final Brandeis Buddies program and it was sad to say goodbye. We were all given paper plate awards and I got "Best Guest Star" because I had originally thought I wouldn't be able to attend at all this semester because of my internship but I consistently ended at the internship early enough to still make it to program.
Springfest, Brandeis' annual outdoor concert, happened over the weekend and I was excited to go since I missed it last year when I was abroad. It was a good time though it did rain quite a bit.
During the last week of classes, I got sick with a cold but it was fairly mild. I tried to get better as fast as I could because I had a trip planned for April break and I wanted to be well enough for it.
Classes ended on Friday April 19th and my final Campus Life comic strips came out that same day along with my senior article and a collaborative drawing I did with my friends Lauren and Jennifer who also drew for the Hoot the past few years.
I left for my trip on Tuesday April 23rd so I had a few days to chill before leaving. On one of those days, I went into Boston and met Elina and Kaba to go to Jim Gaffigan's comedy special. I had never seen a full live comedy special before and I greatly enjoyed it. On the Monday, I worked at SIMS and then on Tuesday, I was off on tour!
David's East Coast Tour
The first stop on my weeklong tour was New York City! I took the train down and worked on my final Computer Security project about steganography during the ride. I arrived in the afternoon and headed over to Judy's apartment. Judy is my grandmother Marian's first friend and we all consider her as family. I hadn't seen her in many years so it was great to meet up! We headed out to a diner for dinner and picked up some breakfast foods for the coming days.
On Wednesday, Judy and I walked around the city including a stroll through Central Park. We met up with Judy's friend at a theater and we watched the play Enemy of the People. I enjoyed the play and found it interesting that at intermission, a drinking bar was lowered from the ceiling and people from the audience went up to get drinks. Then, some of those people were asked to stay there and acted as extras in the next scene. It was very clever.
We grabbed dinner after the show and then took the Staten Island Ferry to take in the view of Manhatten from the water - it was gorgeous. Afterwards, we checked out Times Square and watched a street performance there before heading home.
The next day, Judy had work so I explored on my own. I walked around Rochefeller Center, checked out the bookstore Strands, went to the Math Museum (only to realize it is a museum meant for young children), ventured over to Brookyln to see where NYU's computer science school is and then went to the Freedom Tower. At the end of all this, I met up with my Concord neighbor and friend Laurel who I was in theatre with in high school. She now lives in NYC and I met her at the Ping Pong bar she works at and it was great to see her again! I got a sandwich for dinner and returned to Judy's to report back about my busy day!
Judy and I headed to Lincoln Center and watched a ballet show with Judy's friend who is VERY into ballet and would give me a pep talk about the show during each intermission. I don't know much about ballet but it was very impressive to watch.
The next day, I said goodbye to Judy, picked up some pickles and black & white cookies and left the big city behind. I took the train south to Philadelphia where I met up with my friend Rebekah from my time abroad in New Zealand! I hadn't seen her since we were across the world and it was great to reconnect.
She took me all around the city and I got to see the stairs Rocky ran up, the Liberty Bell and so many other iconic Philly landmarks. We stopped for lunch at a big indoor market and I ordered something called a "Cheese Boat". It is sourdough bread made into a bowl shape with many types of melted cheese in it topped with a slab of butter and an egg. It isn't a health food by any means but it looked intriquing and I had to try it! The bread was scrumpious. The rest was OK but the bread was something special.
After finishing our explorations, I hopped on the train bound for Maryland where my aunt and uncle picked me up. My aunt, uncle, and cousin moved to a new house a few years ago and I hadn't gotten a change to visit their new place yet but that was about to change!
I got a tour of the house, ate dinner and played a card game that night and then the next day, we went on a walk near a lake and took a trip to Ellicott City which is a cute town built over a river. We stopped at the milkshake store my cousin Kayleigh works at and got milkshakes - delicious! They had all kinds of unusual flavors - I went with chocolate though which isn't unusual but is still yummy!
In the evening, Auntie Cheryl, Uncle Don and I got dinner out while Kayleigh volunteered setting up a Battle of the Bands her school was putting on. We joined for the show and watched the bands perform. They were all very talented! After the show, Auntie Cheryl, Uncle Don and I returned to the house and watched a movie together.
On Sunday, we drove out to Frederick, Maryland and explored. We popped into the cute local shops and got some bagels for lunch. On the way home, we passed through a Civil War battlefield.
The following morning, Auntie Cheryl drove me to the metro and I took the subway into D.C. I met up with my friend Anna who was my student advisor when I was a freshman at Concord Carlisle High School. She attended Brandeis and toured me around when I was looking at colleges and I hadn't seen her in-person since then. We met at a coffee shop and it was great to catch up. She is currently in law school. After our visit, I went to the Museum of American History and then walked all around the National Mall like your typical tourist.
I rode the subway back to Maryland and Uncle Don picked me up and took me to Kayleigh's jump rope team practice so I could see her in action. The things those students can all do with a jumprope is truly incredible! The weather was nice so we ate our dinner outside on their porch.
The next day I left Maryland and rode the train back to Boston. I continued working on my final projects for the first half of the trip and in New York, Lauren and Jennifer boarded the train and we rode the rest of the way together.
Senior Season/Graduation
May was full of last times. I finished up my steganography project, completed my math final exam, took my Communication and Media test and finished up my internship at Boston Casting.
We had a senior dinner at a Tapas restaurant for all the graduating Sound and Image Media Studios employees. I also served my final shifts at SIMS. I'll miss it a lot!
In addition to endings, May was also full of new experiences. For example, I was interviewed for the Brandeis University instagram about my comic strips. Check it out below!
During those final weeks, I went out to a diner with friends for breakfast, shopped at the Waltham comicbook store on Free Comicbook Day, visited the MFA, had Elina over for a visit, swam in Walden Pond, attended a graduation party, attemped to view the Northern Lights, watched Challengers in the Waltham movie theater and went out to dinner with friends. College is so much more fun when there is no work to do!
We also hosted our last Party Zone party. We opened it with my film so that people who couldn't make it to Sundeis could still watch it. It was very special to show it to everyone.
On that last week before graduation, we kept very busy!
Monday - We went to the Manchester by the Sea beach.
Tuesday - Senior photos and a senior wide trip to the Level 99 (escape-room like rooms with fun interactive challenges)
Wednesday - Harbor Cruise around the Boston Harbor!
Thursday - Film Graduation at day and Senior Soiree at night.
Friday - Computer Science Reception and dinner out with family.
Saturday - My film Fresh Start was shown at a celebration for film graduates and their families at the movie theater on campus with a Question and Answer section at the end.
Sunday - Graduation!! My parents, Elina, Kaba and Kaba's parents all came and others watched virtually! Ken Burns was the commencement speaker. It was a very nice ceremony.
I finished packing up with my family, said my goodbyes and drove off to Lexington for a graduation dinner with my family.
I'm going to miss Brandeis a lot. I loved all the people I met there but I have full confidence I will see them all again soon!
And now, time for my Flex Year!
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