I chose the restaurant Braums because it has had a positive influence on my life. This is a place where I go with friends very often to meet up and talk while eating ice cream. I have grown up with a braums at the end of my street so I knew the braums in Norman would already be one of my favorite places. I enjoy the food and ice cream here and would recommend this place to everyone. The style of this building has a homey feeling to me .
This building that has influenced me in a positive way is my sorority house on College Avenue called Delta Delta Delta. I lived in this house last year with 100 other girls in my sorority. I did not have very high expectations of me enjoying living here at first because I had never had to use community bathrooms before and I had heard rumors that is can be loud all the time. After the first few weeks of living here I was so glad I got this opportunity to grow closer to all of the girls living in also. The community bathrooms ended up not bothering me at all because I ended up enjoying being able to talk to my friends while getting ready. I was also thankful for the location of Tri Delt because I could walk to any of my classes from there.
Taylor Alexander
Designed by H.H. Richardson and completed in 1985, the Richardson Olmsted Complex was formally a state asylum for the insane. Nestled on 200 acres, the complex comprised multiple buildings spanning like wings from the central administrative tower. It was faced the south east so as much day light as possible shinned through.
By the 1970 the structure was falling apart and it had become an administrative building. In 1986 it was designated a National Historic Landmark , and after years of vacancy it was repurposed as the Hotel Henry Urban Resort Conference Center. The copper roof flashing on the sloped towers has created this unique patina similar to that of the Statue of Liberty.
As a way to connect with my cousins who live in Dallas, I would attend Dallas Cowboys games with them. Although I had attended OU football games as a child with my dad, I was blown away by the sheer scale of AT&T Stadium when I first saw it in 2015. The stadium literally looked like a massive spaceship, and I remember my cousins and I marveling at the architecture and the massive screen rather than pay attention to the football game. This building is special to me because I have many fond memories of attending Cowboys games, concerts, and even high school graduations with my cousins. As an OU student, I have also gotten to experience our football team win a couple of Big 12 Championships in the building, further cementing AT&T Stadium as my favorite venue in America.
As a child, I would go to Los Angeles to visit my cousins. However, I was unimpressed with the city; the streets were tight, congested with traffic, and very dirty. My negative opinions about Los Angeles soon changed after my first visit to the Griffith Observatory. If you go on a weekday, there are practically zero tourists. The observatory itself is a beautiful building, and I remember asking my cousins how such a clean and pleasing building could be stuck in a dirty metropolis such as Los Angeles. At the top of the observatory, one is rewarded with panoramic views of the entire city of Los Angeles, which is a welcome change from the crowded and congested streets of the city. I associate the observatory with fond memories of me and my cousins running around the front courtyard, something that is not doable in an LA suburb due to the lack of space.
During my last day in Rome, my friends and I woke up at the crack of dawn and made our way to the Vatican City to see the pope. Upon reaching the Vatican City, I immediately was impressed by the regality of St. Peter’s Basilica. The church was absolutely massive, and in extremely good condition. Upon entering the church, I was amazed at the gold trimmed walls and other artwork that was prominently displayed. Although we were all extremely tired from waking up early, being able to watch the sunrise in front of St. Peter’s Basilica made the journey worth it. A few hours later, we were able to see the pope as he was driven around kissing babies. St. Peter’s Basilica is special to me because I associate the beautiful church with fond memories of my last day in Rome.
As a freshman studying abroad, the Roman Colosseum was one of the few buildings that took my breath away when I first saw it. When my group first walked up to the Colosseum, I was initially unimpressed, as the building was worn down and in a dilapidated state. However, upon walking inside, I was amazed at the sheer scale of the main facade, and I was also impressed by the many gift shops that had been inserted into the Colosseum. The Colosseum is special to me because I remember walking literally 50 miles around the city of Rome before arriving at the Colosseum. The colosseum itself was quite the treat at the end of our long journey walking around the city, and pictures of me and friends at the Colosseum still bring a smile to my face.
Some of my fondest childhood memories growing up were going to Toys”R”Us and picking out a toy, with my parents. This was very important to me at the time because it was sense of accomplishment. I was only allowed to pick a toy, when I was responsible. Another reason Toys “R” Us is a special place to me is because it was, also my first job back in 2015. This building holds more value to me because of all the memories I had in it. Sadly Toys “R” Us went out of business in 2018, and these building know longer exist.
I remember the first time I watched Finding Nemo, which was my favorite movie growing up. There was a scene in, which they showed the Sydney Opera House. I thought it was very interesting building and did not think it actually existed. Fast forward to 8 years when I went to Sydney, Australia to visit family and saw the Sydney Opera House. I thought that it was very cool to be visiting a real building from an animated movie, since i did not really think it existed.
When I arrived in D.C the first week of March, the cherry blossoms had yet to spring from their pods. It had always been a dream of mine to see the capital. After seeing all the notable monuments I crossed Constitution Ave. to set my eyes on the biggest scam on the face of the world. Without diving too far into a rant, the Federal Reserve is neither Federal nor a Reserve. It is a money printer, run by a board of Ivy league educated bankers and bureaucrats. As they sit around their cauldron of fiat currency, they concoct devilish elixirs such as quantitative easing. All in the hopes of praising the gods of fractional reserve banking. Its stoic marble walls and clean-cut lines deceive onlookers of the true evils hidden inside.
