Tybee Day 5/6 - The Crab Shack and Bonaventure Cemetery

We've been back to our regular and busy schedule so here's a post to catch you up on the last two days. 

Yesterday Dr. Bob didn't show up until 11 am and we didn't meet for class. I took that opportunity to catch up on sleep. After Dr. Bob arrived, we all piled into the vans to explore some of the small shops around Tybee Island. There were some very interesting stores with local art and products. 

Once everyone was hungry, we headed over to The Crab Shack, also located on Tybee. It was a very interesting place filled with gators, cats, and excellent food. I've never been a big sea food eater, so I was glad Dr. Bob ordered a sampler plate. I nibbled on some shrimp and crab legs, which I enjoyed a lot. After the food, we went into the gift shack were I found an awesome shirt that I purchased. There was also a section devoted to birds, one of which would dance if you sang "My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean" to it. Of course we all gathered around to watch as Dr. Bob serenaded the bird and it did indeed bob it's head to the music. 

The rest of the night was spent cooking, giving and receiving conferences, working on my paper, and celebrating Connor Swanson's birthday. 

Today we went back into Savannah. First, we stopped at the Bonaventure Cemetery. It's the sight where Johnny Mercer and Conrad Aiken are buried. We spent about 30 minutes walking around and exploring the Cemetery. Then we went back to the historical downtown to one of Paula Deen's restaurants, where we ate lunch. It was a lot of very good food. The rest of the time Margaret, Maddie, and I walked around the River District and checked out shops. 

I can't believe we leave in two days. Tomorrow looks to be the warmest day yet, so I'm hoping to get to the beach to hang out and maybe brave the water. Hopefully the weather holds out!

Stay classy,

Brittney 

Tybee Day 3/4 - Savannah

Yesterday was such a busy day that I didn't have time to write a post, so here's a combined one for today as well. 

We headed into Savannah bright and early yesterday to explore the city. Maddie, Margaret, and I started our morning off in a coffee shop run by SCAD, the Savannah College of Art and Design. We spent some time crying over art supplies and browsing books. After that, we walked down one of the main streets of Savannah and checked out a lot of stores. 

Once we were done, it was time to meet up with Dr. Bob and the rest of the group at one of the cemeteries in the city. We wandered and contemplated for a while before heading to Clary's for lunch. They had awesome food. Afterwards, we went as a group to Mercer House and took the tour. The house was really amazing and the interior was decorated in an interesting manner. The house used to be owned by Jim Williams, a key character in "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" by John Berendt. Maddie, Margaret, and I spent our last hour wandering the streets and checking out some antique stores. 

Since it was so cold (for Georgia), we had a lot of free time today. We met for morning class where we had a few fishbowl conferences about our beach walk papers. Maddie, Margaret, and I spent some time after lunch at the library, where I worked on fleshing out my paper. After dinner, we all watched the movie adaption of "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil." I really enjoyed the movie and am excited to eventually read the book.

Tomorrow everyone is getting up bright and early because Dr. Bob is taking us out for breakfast. 

Stay classy,

Brittney

Tybee Day Two - Beach Walking

We had our first Topics of Composition class this morning, and it was definitely not what I expect. Dr. Bob went off on some unbelievable tangents involving Ashton Kutcher, Sandra Bullock, and bachelor parties. We managed to get back on track and covered the three major projects we will be working on during our Tybee stay. The first is an essay/poem about a beach walk and  also involves our thoughts on language and writing. We're supposed to have four conferences on our piece before the end of the week. The next is a 15 second video introducing each of us and talking briefly about anything related to the Writing Center. The last is to make a plan regarding a 30 minute workshop each group will have to present for a staff meeting. 

After our class was over, we went on our first group beach walk. There were lots of shells collected and selfies taken. Everyone eventually ate lunch and then we headed over to the Tybee Lighthouse and museum. Following that, we took a brief break at the North Beach Grill and spent the rest of the afternoon exploring the north shore. I included some pictures from today's excursion for your view pleasure. 

Tomorrow we're spending most of the day in Savannah. I'm super pumped!

Stay classy,

Brittney

Tybee Day One - We Made It!

After two days of driving with a total of about 21 hours, we finally arrived on Tybee! Our trip down was pretty uneventful, minus the part where one of the tires on the Odyssey van went bad. Luckily, we were able to stop for lunch and get it fixed in a timely manner so that we were on the road again. Yesterday, we covered the majority of the distance. We left around 7 in the morning from Cedar Rapids and made it to just outside of Chattanooga, Tennessee around 9:30, where we stayed the night. We had another early start this morning. We were on the road a little after 7 and made it to Tybee after 3. 

Once we were at our destination, everyone quickly vacated the vans to check out our beach house and claim bedrooms. I'm happy to report that Doctor Bob chose well. The house is three stories, with tons of bedrooms, bathrooms, and TVs to make everyone happy. After the bedrooms were divided, we had a big group meeting where everyone was split into  smaller groups and put in charge of two meals for our stay. After that, Doctor Bob left to pick up Maddie from the airport. 

We spent most of the time after our meeting just hanging out and waiting for Doctor Bob to get back. We watched some football and played a few card games. Maddie's flight was delayed so she and Doctor Bob didn't get back until it was too late to prepare the first meal, so we ordered pizza instead. Then it was off to the grocery store to pick up food for our meals. Once we got back to the beach house, Doctor Bob left and everyone has been hanging out and doing different things since. Apparently we have our first class session in the morning. I still have no idea what we're doing, but I'm sure my next few posts will be much more interesting!

Honestly, I'm just glad to be away from the -18 degrees with wind chill that Wisconsin has on Monday. Yikes. Apparently some of the US will be reaching Mars-like temperatures. Makes me extra glad I'm here on Tybee. 

Stay classy,

Brittney 

Topics Goes to Tybee

While most Coe students are enjoying their winter break surrounded by snow and keeping warm by the fire, some of the Writing Center Centaurs will be traveling to Tybee Island for Topics class! For those of you that don't know, Topics in Composition is a required class for consultants at the CWC. We are required to take it four times in our four years here, usually both semesters of freshman year, once as a senior, and then one other time of our choosing. For the last time (since Dr. Bob is retiring after this year,) a spring semester of Topics is being held on Tybee Island, not far from Savannah, Georgia. There will be 16 of us taking the 18 - 20 hour drive in two passenger vans.

I'm not entirely sure what we'll be doing during our week there, but we'll be staying in a beach house called "Lazy Dayz." It has good reviews on tripadvisor.com, so I'm excited. Tybee Island is located roughly 30 minutes from downtown Savannah, which Dr. Bob has said we will be visiting during our stay. The historic square and monuments area sounds like a great place to write, so I'm sure we will be exploring that area of the city. I haven't spent much time in the southern US and have never been to Georgia besides driving through it, so I am very enthusiastic about this trip! Less enthusiastic about the long drive down. If I have time, I will be updating the blog with accounts of our adventures in and around Tybee Island.

Stay classy,

Brittney

Looking Forward: Tampa

Two years ago, I went to a writing center conference in Miami. It involved late night swimming in the ocean, collecting seashells, and finding out the beach chair I had been using for two hours was supposedly for rent, at $10 an hour. Oops. And of course, it involved actually learning about different writing centers across the U.S. Writing Centers came in all shapes and sizes; they were large, small, appointment-based or accommodating to drop-ins, but most of all they were full of interesting people. This year’s conference, the National Council of Peer Tutors in Writing Conference (NCPTW) will be held in Tampa Bay, Florida from October 31^st to November 2^nd. The theme is “Year of the Writer” which encourages us to think about our role as tutees, and we have five research groups presenting on subjects related to that theme, such as the balance of work and play and the dynamics of friendships as coworkers. I won’t be heading to Florida this year, but I hope everyone has a great time- remember to bring back stellar ideas for our writing center, to meet new people, and to bring back souvenirs for those of us hanging out back in Cedar Rapids.

-Deidre

2011

Hey folks! It's 2011 here in the Coe Writing Center (and everywhere else, too).

Here's some good news for you:

The WC was recently awarded a monetary gift from the Diversity Discussion and Study Group of the Transamerica Life Insurance Company for our dedication and input on articles in a book they've created. This money will help us finance future off-campus staff trips.

CONGRATULATION CONSULTANTS! I knew you could do it.

In other news, the bakers are baking what smells to be delicious chocolate-chip-oatmeal-and-honey cookies. (There are also WCmade rice krispies too.) So feel free to stop by for warmth, a good chat about academics and writing, coffee/cocoa/tea and treats. (Side note: what do you think about having a bake sale?)

And don't forget about taking a peek into the Speaking Center to see what they're up to.

- Taylor