Saturday, May 30, 2009

Summertime

Well, it’s officially summer time for Hartwick! I’ve started my online course through SUCO, and so far it’s not that difficult. I even managed to get work done despite coming down with a brief case of pneumonia. Luckily, I quickly exiled myself to my house, forced fluids, and began taking some prescription medication, and I feel as good as new! This illness sure beat last summer’s sudden case of flu, which landed me in Fox Hospital.

Just think, online courses are a concept that probably wouldn’t have been feasible just a decade ago. I think that technology’s greatest recent achievement is not advancing in various fields and creating new machines, but the wave of distribution in recent years. When I was in high school, only some of my friends had cell phones of their own. Now, everyone has a cell phone, and it can send e-mail, take pctures, and alarm when it’s time to wake up. Everyone has a computer, either for themself or for their household. Some colleges, Hartwick among them, require students to have computers of their own. Even businesses other than Internet cafes have their own wi-fi arrangements. Amazing!

Anyway, in my free time I am trying to get an ambitious project started. Those readers of mine who have a student/are a student at Hartwick probably know that their student ID cards are also WickIt cards, which are accepted as legal tender with some area businesses and services. SUCO also has a similar program, known as Dragon Dollars. Looking at which places accept Dragon Dollars and which accept the WickIt is to see night and day. SUCO’s list of establishments is impressive, while Hartwick’s list isn’t as memorable. I’ve spoken to some local business owners, and they seem to be open to the idea of accepting the WickIt card as payment. Bolstering the number of establishments and services which accept the WickIt card can only benefit Hartwick, tying it closer to the Oneonta community, opening up new shopping oportunities for students, and enabling them to fall in love with the area as many have before.

Additionally, I look forward to an ambitious project which will supplement Hartwick’s archives concerning Student Senate. More on this plan as I plan it out more.

Later days,
Nico