People do often refer to college as the best four years of your life. First of all: I didn’t believe that for a while, so if every day of the four years weren’t perfect, you aren’t alone. Adjusting to college was hard and I had challenging semesters. But when I started my senior year I was EXCITED. So excited. I had my best friend one room away, a social calendar full of events, a schedule of classes I loved with journalists I loved working with, and the anticipation of time-honored senior traditions. And then the rug went flying out from under me. The Coronavirus Pandemic happened, which meant nothing I…

Last semester I wrote a post about LDOC; the last day of class. I had always planned to write something about my last day of college class, but right now…I just don’t know what to say. This is about to be a messy stream of consciousness piece but that’s ok with me because my thoughts and feelings are a mess. Today is my last day of class as well as my last day of college. LDOC is a day we look forward to as students. It means we completed another semester of hard work and is a day for celebrating that. Spring LDOC is a campus-wide party. But not this…

“…here in ZTA. It feels like I’m all the way back where I come from.”🎶 After living in three different places over four years at UNC, and none of them in the Zeta house, I can still say that 120 North Street truly feels like my Chapel Hill home. I never thought I would be the type to cry on Pref Night. But when my sisters sang our Pref song I couldn’t hold back the tears. It truly did feel like home: there in the Zeta dining room, the walls covered in white sheets, all of us in black dresses, surrounded by my best friends as well as girls who…

Two schools. Eight miles. 230 games. The Tar Heels versus the Blue Devils IS the greatest rivalry in sports, and I stand by that. The Tobacco Road Rivalry runs deep and has been a huge part of my Carolina Experience. I LOVE college basketball. I mean I really love college basketball, like March Madness is a month long sacred holiday. Prior to my senior year, I had rushed Franklin Street six times. SIX TIMES; that’s crazy. And one of them was for a National Championship! But this is about the rivalry, so I’ve seen Carolina beat Duke 5 times as a student so far. My freshman year, my future roommate,…

The infamous ‘they’ say that hindsight is 2020 and here we are in the year 2020. They also say we see the past with rose colored glasses. I’ve been doing a lot of reflecting this January 2020; the first month of a new decade and the the first of my last semester of school. College wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows. Freshman year was a whole new world of freedom that I was looking forward to and enjoyed. But there were plenty of tough times that happened alongside all the amazing memories I’ve been sharing. It’s tough to share the hard times. I felt alone a lot my freshman year. I…

It’s Fall LDOC (last day of class) here in Chapel Hill and that means a lot of things are coming to an end. (With the exception of exams, those of course are starting.) The great thing about my classes at Carolina as a senior in the journalism school is that most of my classes are very hands on, real world, experience based. This year I had the opportunity to be a part of two particularly amazing classes: UNC Media Hub and New Media Technology and its Impact on the Future of Advertising, Marketing and PR. These classes had two very different premises. Media Hub focuses on journalism students at UNC…

It’s been a bit of a rollercoaster as a Carolina fan in Kenan Stadium these past four years, but I wouldn’t trade the experience for the world. My earliest memory of Chapel Hill is going to a Carolina football game at the stadium in the woods. I remember walking through a crowded area…probably Tar Heel Town on the quad or maybe Franklin Street (I don’t have great memory, I was really little). But I do remember getting a Tar Heel shaped sticker to put on my cheek for the game. Little did I know I would one day live in the dorm with balconies actually overlooking the field and later…

In college it’s actually referred to as “Halloweek” or “Halloweekend” and it’s one of my favorite times of the year. On Halloween in the Hill, Franklin Street gets closed down (much like it does when we beat dook) and thousands of people walk right down the road admiring each others costumes before they head of to their own parties. It’s amazing. Between the strut down the street, the Little Frat Court concert, and various parties or shows, college Halloween is one of the most fun parts of the year. I’ve had some really great “Halloweeks” in my four years. As I watched the rain come down this past Halloween, already…

Family and friends, most of you all know that I just started my senior year at UNC Chapel Hill. Most of you also might know it’s the same school my mom attended 30 years before me and my brother currently attends with me. Needless to say, the Rademakers were born and bred Tar Heels. As I embark on my last year of education a lot is going through my mind. A lot of thoughts on how I grew up and how much growing up I still have to do. I love to write and thought I would revive the occasional blog post this year to reflect on where I’ve been…