Alicia, a senior hailing from Wayland, MA,  is majoring in English at Mount Holyoke and has been dating her boyfriend, Matt, a UMass student, for over a year and a half. “Do you want to know the exact amount of time?” she offers, pulling out her phone and checking the calendar. “We have been in a relationship for one year, seven months, and eight days.”
What has been the best date you’ve ever been on? It was with the guy I’m dating now. I feel like I’m kind of obligated to say that, but it honestly was with him. We went to Northampton and just walked around. I think we went into every building there was, and it was just a lot of fun because it wasn’t very formal or serious. We had been on a sit-down date, we had watched a movie together, but it was fun to kind of do something active. It was great to go into stores and see what he was drawn to and that kind of thing. Also, it was nice to just walk around. It was a really low-key date, but it was really fun!
What was your first date like? On our first date we saw Dirty Dancing and it took him until halfway through the movie to put his arm around me. And then I kissed him! Before we went on our first date I had started going to this salsa dancing class to try and get his attention (and it worked). So we were dancing together and we had already watched Dirty Dancing at this point. We were kind of at the stage where we were asking if we were gonna be together or not and while we were dancing, he was like, “I wanna take you out on a nice dinner date,” and I was like “Whaaat?!” Because I mean, I had kind of been on dates like that but no one had ever asked me out. I would go out to dinner with people I was already with so I was like *shrieks*. So we went to Judy’s in Amherst and because I wanted to seem like a dainty lady, I ordered a chicken ceaser salad and I ate maybe five bites of it because I was so nervous I couldn’t eat it. I’m pretty sure he took the rest of it home, like he wrapped it up and took the rest of it home. On the date he talked the entire time because he was nervous too. I think that’s my favourite date ever because it was the first date anyone ever really took me on.
So movie dates: yay or nay? I say yay! Especially if you’ve seen the movie and they haven’t seen it! Because I had seen Dirty Dancing, and he never had, I got to watch his reactions to it. Actually with every guy I’ve dated I’ve used the movie as a screener; if they like the movie, they can stay, but if they don’t like the movie then they’re gone. Honestly, I think movie dates are fine. I know people say, “Oh, but you don’t get to talk to each other, you’re just staring at a screen,” but you do get to bond over it and once the movie is over you can talk about it. It’s also kind of nice because you don’t have to fill the dead air that you’re not talking with just word vomit.
What do you plan on doing with your English major? I really want to do journalism. I want to write! I would really love to write for a publication that still does traditional print because I want a traditional newsroom experience, not that there’s anything wrong with working from home and freelancing in that sort of way, but I do want the experience of being in a newsroom and working with experienced journalists.
What hobbies do you have? I am an avid player of The Sims 3, I knit, and I also love watching HGTV.
Are you a dog or cat person? I’m actually both a cat and dog person. I’m a both person! It’s rare to find but we’re out there. I love dogs and I love cats. In my ideal world I would have a dog and a cat. My favorite kind of dog is the American Staffordshire Terrier. They get so much bad press but they actually used to be nanny dogs; people would leave them with their young children to basically take care of them. They’re just so sweet! In terms of pets everyone just thinks there aren’t different breeds of cats, but yes there are! I love Norwegian Forest cats- they’re big fluffies and I want to pet them.
A Friendly American Staffordshire Terrier
Would you rather go shark diving, bungee jumping, or skydiving? I would have to say shark diving because I feel like the chance of death is so much less. I’m not a fan of dying, you know.
What is the weirdest scar you have? I have two scars on my hand I’m not sure where one comes from, but it almost looks like a smiley face. The eyes of the smiley face I got because when I was 8 years old, I was ironing something and I burned myself. But I have no idea where the actual smile comes from. Also, I stuck my pinkie down the drain when I was 3 years old, so I guess also that one. Moral of the story- don’t ever stick your pinkie down a shower drain because it will hurt and you will cry! I don’t even remember how we got it out!
Do you believe in ghosts? I want to say no because I’m really scientific and stuff, but I live in a house that was built sometime in the 1890s. Once when I was really young, we were sitting at the dinner table and having a conversation about ghosts because we live in an old house. And we finished dinner and everyone was clearing up, and the lighting fixture in the middle of the table, the ceiling lamp, just fell but it wasn’t loose or old. It was a fairly new ceiling lamp and this was after a conversation about ghosts, so you tell me!