The Music City pt. 1

The KING of Rock & Roll is going on tour with Cecil the Sagehen…Ok, so although we would all love it if Elvis would grace our lands again (haha sorry for the cheesy pun), the fact is he left a long lasting legacy in the music city of Memphis, Tennessee. This past week I hit the road again continuing the travel season, but this time my traveling adventures took Cecil and I to the rhythmical music cities of Memphis and Nashville, Tennessee.



I was especially excited about my trip to Tennessee. Way back when I was a senior at Pitzer (class of 2010), I wrote my Chicano/Latino Studies senior thesis on rockabilly music and culture. My thesis was titled: “From Past to Present: The Evolution of Latino/a Rockabilly Culture.” It was great to visit such a place as Memphis, where Elvis himself hails from, not to mention one of the original godfathers of rockabilly music!

Hey by the way… did you know that for the past three years, Pitzer College has been home of the Rockabilly Music Festival?!?! Students from the Latina/o Student Union and Pitzer College Professor of Politcal Studies & Chicano Studeis, Adrian Pantoja, have created an ever growing much anticipated tradition on campus. Every year, the festival draws over a thousand people from the Claremont Colleges and local communities in the Inland Empire, while featuring dozens of custom cars, a handful of student selected rockabilly bands, and vendors galore. The Rockabilly Festival happens every spring and this coming year students can expect to relive the music, art, and custom cars on Saturday, March 26th, 2011.

Who said FALL was suppose to be this HOT!!!

So while the rest of us here on the counseling staff are dealing with tripple digit temperatures (113)... others are out on the East Coast enjoying the color changing leaves and rainy conditions that are typical of fall weather. Santiago just left for his traveling season this past weekend and took Cecil along for the adventure. Allow me to take the time to introduce Santiago. Santiago Ybarra is our new Asscociate Director of Admission and joined the Pitzer Office of Admission just a few months ago (actually a month after I joined the team).



Here is a message from Santiago:


" Cecil says hi from rainy New England. It was a very California 86 degrees when I landed in Hartford at 5:45pm, but two days later it started raining. The "desert chicken" known as Cecil wanted to stick his head in the ground but I managed to convince him to take a picture outside of Charlemont, MA. He's been to 5 schools and two states, and tomorrow he'll be hitting 4 more schools and 2 more states. He thinks the leaves are turning Pitzer Orange just for him!" - Santiago

And here we… GO! Travel Season is upon us ALL!

Greetings friends of the Pitzer College Office of Admission! My name is Tim Campos and aside from being an alumnus… I am what some might call “the rookie” admission counselor. I have been working full time in the office these last few summer months and just recently hit the road to begin FALL TRAVEL…YAY! It has been quite some time since anyone has posted on the blog. Well let me first start off by saying that our previous admission counselor, Adam Rosenzweig, has left our office to purse greater adventures (we wish him the best of luck!).

But WOW! Time sure has passed. I think I have lost sense of what day it is and what time zone I am in at the moment. The travel season is off to a great start (minus my run in with food poisoning!). The admissions profession provides those of us on the road not only the opportunity to meet so many talented and excited prospective Pitzer students like yourselves, but the lifestyle also allows for us to embark on many unique travels all around the U.S. With that said I have made it a point to have my own “Man vs. Food” adventures while on the road and take Cecil along with me to some of the must-eat dining experiences. When I found out I would head Southeast to Atlanta, Georgia… I knew for a fact that I would be making a stop at The Varsity! This place serves over 200,000 hotdogs everyday and has been around for decades. I was excited for this and had to limit myself to only TWO chili cheese slaw dogs! Of course Cecil had to pick up a snazzy hat from the Varsity.


While in Atlanta I had the chance to meet up with another college admission counselor. It’s great to meet up with friends while on the road and explore the city together. We had a chance to take a tour at the World of Coke-a-Cola there in Downtown Atlanta. Can you believe that they have over 60 Coke-a-Cola products from around the world!!! Ok so I will admit that I did have my fair share of tasting of these products, which by the way… I enjoyed the various carbonated beverages from Latin America the most.




So that about wraps things up folks. Be sure to continue following my blog. Check back this week as I will be posting about my musical adventures in the Graceland… that’s right, Memphis and Nashville, Tennessee! And as always, be on the lookout for “Where in the World is Cecil the Sagehen”. AND of course… my next “Cecil vs. Food” posting

Cecil hanging out with students from The Galloway School in Atlanta, GA.