If you’re looking for a place with a lively atmosphere accompanied by delectable food and friendly service to complete your perfect Saturday night out, I whole-heartedly recommend Amherst’s Judie’s. Founded in 1977, Judie’s was established on a principle of encouraging patrons to boldly try new foods and become inspired. The dining experience tends to be highly personal, with Judie the restaurant’s owner and namesake, often visiting with diners in the restaurant, maintaining a philosophy of offering creative meals and exotic flavors, specializing in popovers and unique bar drinks.

“And one last bow to thank the universe,” instructs Nobue Socho Yamashita, tea mistress of the Wa Shin An and hostess of the evening. The guest brings the bowl to her lips for a tentative taste. She notices how the slightly bitter liquid of the tea balances with the solid sweetness of the red bean cake consumed moments prior, and she drinks more deeply.

The Dickinson Hall kitchen was bright and warm last Thursday when the student board of the Mount Holyoke Outing Club (MHOC) held their meeting. The pleasant smells of tortillas and cheese wafted around the room from the stove, where several of the club members were making quesadillas for their weekly meeting. The club had gone on a hiking trip in the Adirondacks over Fall Break and was debriefing on what had worked and what they wanted to improve for the next trip.

With the fall semester halfway completed, students planning to study abroad in the spring are in a flurry of preparations, budgeting their expenses, filling out forms and booking flights for what will hopefully be a positive, life-changing experience. A large variety of majors are represented in students that study abroad, but often some students require more of the rigor available in the United States or prefer to stay in the Five College area. Other times, the specific major has opportunities that go beyond courses and excursions, allowing immersion in a real medical environment.

As an over-committed Mount Holyoke woman, I have a large list of activities on campus that I someday hope I will find time to accomplish. There is nothing that scares me more than the possibility of graduating full of regret because I sat in my room watching episodes of Parks and Recreation and weeping over the demise of Leslie and Ben’s perfect relationship.

Fall is harvest time. Squash, beans, tomatoes, carrots, pumpkins, potatoes, corn and other delectable crops provide a bounty of seasonal savory straight from the garden to your plate. The recent Local Sustainable Gracious Dinner included ingredients that were harvested from Mount Holyoke’s own Student Garden.

Let me begin by saying that I cannot believe that I am a junior already. It seems like only a bit ago I was a first year, overwhelmed by the new faces in my first class and wandering around the campus with a map clutched in my hands. Although I feel I have become much more confident in myself, occasionally that same nervous firstie in me arises, discouraging me from taking a risk or trying something new.

Students and faculty alike crowded into Gamble Auditorium on Sept. 14 to hear Daisy Khan, the Executive Director of the American Society for Muslim Advancement (ASMA), speaking about how the United States was a multicultural nation that would hopefully one day overcome bigotry and accept the values of all religions. The country itself was built upon religious freedom. Unfortunately, Muslims are subjected to random acts of violence due to ignorance and hate.

On Sunday, September 11th, members of the South Hadley community gathered at the town green to commemorate the 10th anniversary of 9/11. Students, professors, local individuals new and familiar, and a couple of firemen in uniform quietly came together, surrounded by the roar and hum of crossroads traffic and a memorial circled by American flags.

“In 2001, I was in the 6th grade at a school in Brookline. It was morning, and our teacher had been called to go to a meeting. She told us to continue our assignment until she returned. When she did return, she walked to the front of the class with a somber expression. “I have terrible news.” She stopped, and I can only imagine what it was like to break the news to us.