Abroad Overload!

in a rhinestone world."  Dolly Parton From memes to bizarre social media captions, museums, like the most basic of us, are well known to jump on the band wagon and guiltlessly go for the likes. But can you really blame them? If you're able to get a massive response and put your name out there for even just a day, you would probably take it, right? While the US National Parks Service has an absolutely amazing PR team who can draw an instagram crowd with a terrible dad joke, most museums decide on different methods. View this post on Instagram Alligators can grow up to 15 feet...but most grow four. 🐊⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ Hey, don’t look at us like that. The American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) is the largest reptile in North America. They live in freshwater wetlands in the southeastern United States. Alligators continue to grow throughout their lifetimes. Male American alligators average 8 to 10 feet long, while f...

Pennsylvania and some homemade pumpkin pie" - There's No Place Like Home So this blog was initially created on my own terms to recount my adventures in grad school, then it was turned into a graded blog that made up part of my grade in my digital lass, now, we're back to recounting my adventures while  simultaneously talking about classes because something tells me this semester is going to be one wacky ride! But for starters, I went home! Yes, I, Jessica Chernich, returned home to the lovely state of  Pennsylvania for the holidays for a much needed break from staring at a mid-19th century house and singing Civil War era songs.  Instead, I stared at 18th century houses and still sang Civil War Songs  Christmas Carols.  Shameless house photo It's a funny thing how you can simultaneously realize that you might not want to get nose deep in preservation but still scream out of a moving vehicle: "THAT IS A LOVELY GEORGIAN FARMHOUSE!...

"GIVE MY CREATION LIFE" At least that's what I was thinking to myself as I put the final touches on my digital history project and even more recently, my heritage designation project. These are the reasons I haven't been able to exactly keep up with my blog. That, and the creative writing block I've been having. Honestly, I just haven't had any witty revelations or news to share until now. Now, you get to hear about my projects! Project I: Fire Insurance Plans are my new friends! Heritage Designation reports are due tomorrow and I have to say, it was an interesting project. I have never been particularly interested in architecture and it may be because where I'm from, I'm just so use to seeing one room school-houses turned into single family homes and old Georgian farmhouses that still maintain their rustic beauty. That's just the nature of the Pennsylvania countryside! When you're in a city though, especially one undergoing a...

You can ask any history major why they got into history and it certainly varies a lot, but within their response is usually something about visiting museums and historic sites frequently growing up. From that, we all learn things we're passionate about and perhaps choose techniques to emulate. I'm no exception to this "theory" and I find myself frequently reflecting on some of the best interpreters I've come across on vacations. Ford's Theatre I credit my first experience with an exceptional interpreter at Ford's Theater in Washington DC. It was a while ago so I can't recall any precise details, but I do remember that he was the most passionate individual I had seen giving a tour up until that point. In high school, we were required to complete either 72 hours to graduate or construct and present a presentation outlining what our college major would be. Incidentally I chose the presentation route. Probably since 11th, maybe 10th grade, I wa...

but it's better to be thoroughly sure." Czech Proverb HA! Bet you thought I would be taking off for reading week! Well, you-thought-wrong. However, I will be writing about a rather relaxed topic that is A) about beer and B) relevant to class. Yes, I can do that, but in true Jessica blog writing style, it's going to take me a second to get to the beer part. In my current manic state as I try to compile as much information about my heritage designation property for my theory class as I can, I couldn't help but let my mind wander just a bit to how my own hometown deals with old buildings. Depending how you look at it, development can be good as it improves infrastructure, creates jobs, and can be something a city or town can be proud of. But on the other hand, you risk getting rid of beautiful victorian mansions and sturdy warehouses that could be turned into something useful and replace them with glass structures that break up a brick and stone skyline. R...