What's better than the Color Run? The Glitter Run. I've been a huge fan of Color Run since high school and I have the pile of colorfully stained (aka ruined) shirts to prove it. This summer, the Caltech Center for Diversity held a lottery for free entrance to the Glitter Run, which is hosted by the LA LGBTQ Center. The Glitter Run is a 5K in Hollywood, featuring seven glitter stations along the route (ROYGBIV; except violet is pink).
The day before the run was a welcome party sponsored by Macy's. I decided not to go since it was quite far. The run itself started at 9:00am with check-in starting much earlier. Our Caltech team -- the Karen "Walkers" -- left around 7:45am and was able to get there and find parking smoothly, which is a miracle by LA standards.
During registration, we each got a Glitter Run shirt, a vial of glitter and a wristband to pick up a free towel and drink at the finish line. There was a drag queen performing a lip sync to a musical too. Then the MC counted down and the ran began.
Initially, I was concerned about the glitter getting in my eyes and whatnot. Thankfully all the glitter is non-toxic and biodegradable, and the volunteers are careful to spray below the neck -- They spray you with water first so the glitter sticks better. Furthermore, you are instructed to walk through glitter stations to maximize the amount of time for glitter exposure. I was a decent level of sparkly by the end of the race, but some people definitely rolled on the floor of those stations because they were like a walking disco ball.
At the end of the run, there were medals, food trucks and a dance party. Dry bar was also there to give out free headbands and coupons. I was pretty exhausted from having woken up at 6:30am on a Sunday and then a 5K so I just got my Glitter Run towel, de-glittered with some baby wipes and hoped in the car back. It was pretty cool to see Hollywood Blvd all sparkly in the sun after the run.
The run made me want to try events like the Spartan Race. However, that requires a lot more strength and determination. Well, one day...
It was the Friday night of midterms during my first year at Caltech, and I was alone in the library. That weekend (week five of term, if you’re keeping count) also happens to coincide with Halloween. But as a bright-eyed frosh trudging my way through Ma 1a lecture notes, I was just baffled that no one else was studying alongside me. Spoiler alert: not all Caltech students spend Friday night—or every night—studying or grinding sets, even during midterms. And especially on Halloween weekend.
In order to get a good sense of the Caltech community, there is no better way than to talk to the students themselves. To give a little bit of an inside perspective of Caltech, I asked some students a variety of questions. Questions ranged from conspiracy theories to Caltech-specific takes and other random topics.
I’d like to think that I keep a tidy desk, but hey— entropy prevails for everyone. Here’s a breakdown of all the items you could find on my desk, circa February 2023.
My grandma always says that it rains whenever Dragonssuperior zodiac sign
travel, and sure enough, it was raining when I landed at LAX for my last calendar year at Caltech. It’s officially my graduation year—but between leaving campus just before spring term in my freshman year and returning, twenty-one years old, as a junior, it really does feel like my time here has flown by.
