Aggies during Labor Day
Labor Day for many is one of the last times to get out and fully enjoy some fun in the sun, before the cool nights start to freeze students out, keeping them inside with cozy sweatshirts and fuzzy blankets.
Many students choose to spend time with family outside of Cache Valley or with their newfound friends from the first week of college. Others spend it right here in Logan, familiarizing themselves with class syllabi and planning out the remainder of the semester.
Jonas Hamrick, a freshman studying physics, said he is planning on spending his labor day doing just that.
“If you consider physics and calculus homework fun, then I have really fun plans. Otherwise, I don’t really plan on doing anything fun,” Hamrick said.
Cheyenne Inman, a freshman studying pre-business, is planning to spend her Labor Day holiday at Bear Lake with her boyfriend.
“I picked the cheapest camping spot, plan on renting a kayak and spending four hours on the water. I am also definitely getting a raspberry shake. I’ve heard they are really good here,” said Inman.
Brigitte Hugh, a senior in political science, chose to spend her Labor Day weekend a little bit differently than most.
“I spent my weekend at Swiss Days in Midway, Utah,” she said. “I tell Aggie friends that Swiss Days is like Day on the Quad on steroids. It is an incredible day to bask in the sheer creativity of people.”
Hugh’s family has been “religiously” attending Swiss Days for as long as she could remember. The two-day event usually occurs the weekend of Labor Day, on Friday and Saturday.
“One of my most distinct memories was watching a candle maker as she dipped the candle into several different colors of wax and actually carved and twisted the malleable wax to create an incredible work of art. Other vendors include people who do incredible woodwork, and who make jewelry out of silverware or coins. There are leather workers, musicians, photographers, painters, and that’s only to name a few,” Hugh said.
As far as actual Labor Day plans, Hugh plans to spend the day getting ahead in her classes.
Beth Arnold and her boyfriend Ryan Barnhart chose to go on a random adventure to Cheesecake Factory in Salt Lake City for part of their Labor Day weekend.
“Since we found out there was a cheesecake factory near, we wanted to go considering we didn’t have one at our last school. And it’s cheesecake, there’s no question,” Arnold and Barnhart said.
Arnold usually finds herself indulging in the red velvet cheesecake, but chose to try the “Celebration” slice of cheesecake because of how colorful it was advertised online. Barnhart usually chooses the Oreo Extreme cheesecake, because of all the chocolate.
“We are constantly going on random adventures to places like IKEA, Green Canyon, Target and now Cheesecake Factory,” Barnhart said. “It keeps things interesting.”
This country celebrates Labor Day to honor the men and women that work every day, Arnold said.
“Except retail workers, we still have to work,” Arnold joked.
Shelbe Thompson is spending her weekend in Yellowstone with two of her close friends. Thompson is a senior studying technology and engineering education as well as sociology.
“I had never been, so they took me up here to show me all the things I had been missing in life,” Thompson said.
They spent the whole weekend there, driving all over the park, taking pictures, and capturing all of the scenery they could before heading back to school.
“Yesterday we witnessed an encounter between two bears over a bison carcass and it ended in an epic bear fight,” Thompson said. “Tonight we saw the same bear eating the same carcass and a couple yards away, we saw a whole pack of about 10-17 wolves, including pups. They were playing and it was one of the best things in the whole world.”
The experience gave Thompson the opportunity to be able to step away from her phone and take in the sights and sounds of nature and the animals around her.
Whether spending the weekend in Logan, or out of the state, Labor Day is a great day to get out and celebrate those who work, as well as being able to enjoy a day off from university studies.
—kortni.marie.wells@aggiemail.usu.edu
@kortniwells