Programs Blog

Olivia Najjar, A Watch, Lafayette College Olivia Pietz, C Watch, Cornell University

Ship’s Log

Noon Position
32°57.8’N 117°38.9’W

Ship Heading
134°T

Ship Speed
8.1 knots

Sail Plan
Motoring (no sails up)

Weather
Clear

Souls on Board

So much has happened in the last month, and we can’t believe it’s coming to a close! In honor of a month full of wild adventures and fun, Olivia N. and Olivia P. (that’s us!) decided to add one more day of unexpected surprises to the mix and switch lives. For one day and one day only, two of your favorite people in this wildly diverse cast of characters will take on different roles. Not only for fun, but to answer the age old question:

“Which watch group ranks supreme?” As true scientists, we thought the best course of action was to throw ourselves right into the mix of everything and become tried and true members of each other’s watches. For six hours, we learned how each watch functions as a group, and even got a taste of their respective secret handshakes (shhhh, don’t tell anyone!).

It was very interesting to work with a new group to sail handle and problem-solve along the way, but the experience was unforgettable. From the “Are they allowed to do that?” looks to the confusion about how to reference the two of us in the same sentence, each moment on deck had the perfect amount of chaos to keep the double-takes coming. To add to the craziness, we swapped lives in the middle of Pickle Day, where the stewards incorporated pickles into every meal (even ice pops). Each watch competed to win a secret prize (spoiler alert: it was a gallon of pickles!), and nobody could keep up with the excitement of it all. A Watch won the pickle eating competition with a 35-pickle lead (“of course” – Olivia N., our A Watch counterpart), and though one Olivia enjoyed the pickles much more than the other, both worked hard to lead their team to victory. Needless to say, regardless of which Olivia is on deck, we pack a pickled punch.

At the end of the day, we learned that no two watch groups are exactly the same. You can’t rank each watch group without their respective Olivia, and we hope that each watch group has learned the true value of their Olivia in this experience. (Watches without Olivias are also great, we are just biased 😉 )

P.S. To my family and friends in the outside world, you will not be hearing from me anytime soon! Not because I enjoy ignoring your texts and calls, but rather because my phone is somewhere in the bottom of the Pacific Ocean.

Still waiting on a dolphin to bring it back to the surface for me, but no luck yet! – Olivia N.

P.P.S. Happy 23rd (golden) birthday Aaron and Nathan! Love you both very much and can’t wait to catch up. – Talia Felcher

Olivia Najjar, A Watch, Lafayette College Olivia Pietz, C Watch, Cornell University