Ladies and Gentlemen, I proudly present to you, HC’s very own, Eliza Appleton. At first, we thought it was a bit inappropriate to use one of our staff members as this week’s Campus Celeb, but we couldn’t resist when it came to Eliza. She is the epitome of a Campus Celebrity; I challenge you, name me one person on this campus who doesn’t know who she is and isn’t curious to learn more about this “snassy” (snarky and sassy), intelligent, and amazing young woman whom I am lucky enough to call my best friend.
For those of you who don’t know Eliza, she is an English major with a concentration in Creative Writing . As one of her classmates said, “I was not expecting Eliza to run train on the class. She was nothing short of a superstar.” “She is an eager participant who just loves to read. You can tell,” another said. Her favorite contemporary book is The Art of Fielding. As she says, “if you haven’t read it, it’s a beautiful mélange of classic style and modern societal issues.” Her favorite classic is Edith Wharton’s The House of Mirth. Eliza is a huge Wharton fan and is even doing an independent study on her short stories. As if that weren’t enough on her plate, she is also writing an honors thesis entitled, “A College Retrospective.” As you might assume, it’s a non-fiction piece about her own college experience, which started in Dijon, France back in 2009 and will end here on the hill in just a few weeks.
Since it’s never too late to know more about this well dressed, sports loving, campus cutie hunting fiend, we at HC thought it would only be fair to share Eliza with all of you!
Can you explain your notable nicknames?
A long while back, the football team dubbed me “EA Sports.” You can probably figure out why. My friends call me “EA Awesome.” I hope it’s because they think I’m awesome. Most people just call me “EA”, which I view as a term of endearment. You don’t have a nickname if people don’t love you. Or if you don’t make enough noise to deserve one.
What are your favorite sports?
I love hockey. I love watching hockey. I can’t play hockey, so don’t get it twisted. I love the NBA. I would love to be somehow affiliated with the NBA as a career. But I hate college basketball…not enough super stars. And then of course, I’m a huge NFL girl. I grew up going to Red Sox games. Fenway feels like home. I have a special connection with my dad because he loves baseball so we watch a lot together. We’ve formed a real bond over the Sox. No matter whether they’re winning or losing, I’ll watch.
You’re known for having great clothes. Who inspires your wardrobe choices?
First and foremost, my mom. Although she wears pants suits everyday, she has extraordinary taste. If she likes something, I typically go with it. In terms of celebrities, I like the way Blake Lively dresses. Lucy Hale, too- she’s edgy, but reserved. I don’t dress like Lady Gaga, but I like a bit of edge. I guess I’d classify myself as “urban chic.”
What are your staple pieces?
I’m all about the blazer. I have a light blue rag and bone blazer that I love; it’s probably my favorite jacket. For going out, I’m all about the funky back tank. And I’m really all about LF for that. I can’t go anywhere without my distressed frye boots. And of course, my tribal Patagonia.
Tell us about what activities you do on campus.
I write for Her Campus and am the Editor in Chief. I do CCAK and I volunteer at the Mid-Maine Homeless Shelter.
Who do you mentor for CCAK?
I mentor a little girl in eighth grade (I guess she’s not that little). She is a handful, but we have fun. I go to the South End Learning Center, which is an after school program. We do a lot of art projects and my friendship bracelet making skills come in handy.
No more holding back, we’re all wondering. How did you get to be the Campus Cutie Queen?
OH, boy. When I first signed on with HC, I just wrote articles. We revamped the magazine the next year, and Brett asked me to send some questions to a guy because I knew him and she didn’t. After that, she had me send questions to other campus cuties. I took over and now I have many boys getting down on one knee at parties asking me to be cuties.
How do you choose your cuties?
I do a lot of roster stalking. I go with suggestions from my friends. Sometimes if a guy is persistent enough with asking me, I give in. I tend to pick my friends a lot, so that’s why there’s a strong contingency of guys that are friends with each other.
Do you meet each of your cuties?
Mostly, yeah. If they’re freshmen, I don’t always know them and just spot them and say “my campus cutie.” I’ve met most of them, but I know some better than others.
How do you come up the questions to ask them?
Long nights of staying up late in my apartment common room, thinking of how I can get some embarrassing but appropriate questions. I have a list that I pick and choose from accordingly. The more I know about them, the easier it is for me to ask questions. Like if I know they’re on a team, I might ask them to write a love poem about their team.
Who was the most entertaining campus cutie?
Jordan Ansel, 2012. I was sort of afraid to have my name attached to it, but the answers were his answers, so it’s not really my problem!
Who is the cutest campus cutie?
In my opinion? Wow. I don’t know if I want to answer that. They’re all cute, because they’re my campus cuties.
On the subject of cute boys, what is a deal-breaker for you when it comes to guys?
In general, I’m really turned off by idiots. I can’t stand guys that aren’t articulate. I have nothing to say to them. But if they’re not sweet, I can’t get past it.
What is your advice for girls who are nervous about talking to boys?
I’m just myself, and fortunately, I know a lot about things that boys like. Like sports and cars. I’m just not afraid to say what I feel and some guys hate it and some think it’s cool. What I’ve realized at Colby is that at a point you have to stop caring what people think about you and just go with it.
Tell us more about Colby. What is your favorite Colby memory?
Wiz Khalifa night. I just had so much fun. The whole day was awesome. The night was really fun. That was the first time I figured out how much I appreciated Colby.
What will you miss most?
My girlfriends, no question. The idea of being without my girlfriends all the time next year is going to be really hard to get used to.
What’s on your bucket list for the rest of the year?
I really want to hike Acadia before I graduate, because I’m not that outdoorsy and I feel bad that I spent four years here and didn’t do much. I snowshoed a couple of times and skied a few times. I want to go to the top of Miller tower because I’ve never been. The rest, I’ll leave to the imagination.