Happy 4th of July!

Today we got class off to enjoy 4th of July in New York City. A lot of people went off to the beaches at Long Beach and Fire Island. I decided I would rather sleep in than wake up early to go to the beach, and I figured the beach would not be very fun for me since the dirty sea water is bad for a surgery I had on my back a few years ago. Thankfully I was able to spend a quiet and relaxing day on campus. After sleeping in a few extra hours than everyone else I went out to lunch with Elena and my friend from Constitutional Law, Melody. We talked all about how our different high school's curriculums work, when we get school breaks, how out teachers are and really got to know each other more. I also got the opportunity to introduce the best miniseries ever, Sherlock, to both of them, and I think I have them hooked! When I returned to my dorm I started thinking about how I want to approach my essay for class. After emailing Luke I am deciding to write my own court opinion on the topic of the stop and frisk technique used by certain law enforcement agencies. I read the original case from the 1960s that is used to uphold the constitutionality of stop and frisk, Terry v. Ohio, but I have yet to start actually drafting my essay. I am excited to begin working on it tomorrow!

In the evening I ate a very patriotic meal of beef ribs, mac and cheese, and cole slaw from the John Jay dining hall. Margaret, Claire, and I all followed a group of RAs to Riverside Park, a few blocks from Columbia to watch the 4th of July Macy's fireworks show. We got there very early and were able to watch the beautiful sunset over New Jersey, and we got prime spots on the edge of the river to watch the fireworks. Before the show began we met a very friendly couple standing next to us who had just moved to New York. They were very interested in the different classes we were all taking, and which colleges and universities we were applying to. They both attended Cornell University and they told us they would happily answer any questions we had about Cornell. It was great meeting them because we could not go to Cornell on our ILC experience, so this is an excellent way to get more personal information about the school! When the fireworks began we all thought about how much we loved America and we were wowed by the spectacular show! I felt so independent today, living on my own, walking to the park with friends, making it back for curfew. I have no clue how I am going to return to ECHS and rigid high school life after experiencing college first hand here...