Los Angeles

Los Angeles
Looking out over Sunken Gardens at Sacred Heart Chapel at LMU
Site Information
College	Loyola Marymount University
Location	Los Angeles, California
Years of Operation	????-present
Avg. Number of Students	380
Courses Offered
Humanities	Latin I | Etymologies | Logic | Ethics | Philosophy of Mind | Law and Politics in US History | International Politics | Cognitive Psychology
Writing	Crafting the Essay | Popular Culture
Math	Cryptology | Probability and Game Theory | Mathematical Logic | Set Theory
Computer Science	Fundamentals of Computer Science
Science	Intro to Biomed | FPHS Biology | FPHS Chemistry | Electrical Engineering | FPHS Physics | Paleobiology
Canon
Upper Canon	"American Pie" | "Stairway to Heaven" | "End of the World" | "Sandstorm" | "Dragostea Din Tei" | "Istanbul" | " "The Time Warp" | "Forever Young" | Nightswimming" | "Leaving on a Jet Plane" | "Seasons of Love"
Lower Canon	"Blister in the Sun" | "Thriller" | "YMCA" | "Don't Stop Believing" | "Baby Got Back" | "Every Time We Touch" | "Cotton-Eyed Joe" | "Cha Cha Slide (remix)" | "Stacy's Mom"
Site Specifics
Games and Activities	Talent Show | The Game | Kemps | Silent Football | Blammo | Egyptian Ratscrew
Movies	Alice in Wonderland | Dark Side of Oz
Famous Staff	The Borings | Dane Holding
See The Essential CTY for cross-site articles.

CTY Los Angeles is an educational summer paradise, with intense academics in class, fun activities outside of class, and many memorable moments in between. This site features a beautiful campus, a devoted set of teachers, and students of all kinds. While LOS is not the most tradition-laden site, new and interesting trends are always emerging. Every year, about 380 individuals come from all over the nation to see what LMU will do next. A true CTY site, LMU leaves each student wanting to return, always wanting more.

Overview

The weather at LMU is sunny, for the most part, though the coastal climate leads to a few overcast days. Mornings and evenings can be a little cooler than the daytime. The campus is extremely beautiful, though CTY activities are confined to a very small part of it. LMU has many fountains, and a large library. Students live very close together, and eat in the campus cafeteria. There is a Jamba Juice on-campus, but it is rarely open.

LMU has always been a kind of black sheep with traditions, not keeping many (to the dismay of easterners). Though "It's the End of the World as We Know It" was a staple at the LA venues (LMU and, before that, the University of Redlands) in the early 1990s, it died out sometime in the mid-1990s.

A kid named Michael Sherwood brought an incredible passion and zeal to tradition in the summer of 2001. In that summer, and through no easy means, he revived interest in REM's 'It's the End of the World as We Know It (and I Feel Fine)', and brought 'Stairway', Gay Dad, and Radiohead to the site. Suddenly, there was light and energy. The abysmal food tasted better, the sky was bluer, and the girls were wearing less clothing. Furthermore, a former Lancaster student-turned Young Students Instructor named Chris also worked with students and staff to institute traditions from other sites. He DJ'd the dances, helping to bring REM's 'It's the End of the World as We Know It (and I Feel Fine)' and the associated dance tradition to LMU. He also worked to bring Passionfruit to Los Angeles. 'Forever Young' was not only on said instructor's computer, it was played at the proper time during each of the unfortunately small number of dances that summer.

Though 'It's the End of the World as We Know It (and I Feel Fine)', and 'Stairway' stuck, LMU tradition was once again stuck in a rut. With the advent of 08.1, Silent Football, Blammo, and Wanna buy a duck were all added to the traditional game repertoire of several first-sessioners. While RA awareness of Canon lagged, a reform had begun. On the other hand, for several years, session 2 tradition thrived under the caretaking of Jared, Zoe and their companions. The majority of this traditionalist group nevermored out in 2007, leaving tradition to a few younger students for 2008, such as David, Jordan, Margot and Bri.

There are three dances per session. The first two are held on Fridays, and the last one is held on Thursday. There is always a Movie Night, a Casino Night, some form of Water Day, and a Talent Show. Drag Day is held on the second Wednesday, though the staff doesn't acknowledge it as an official event. Nevermores and Nomores observe Passionfruit early on the last morning of the session. On the last day of every second session, someone manages to dump something into Doheny Fountain, such as Jell-O powder, Tang, or liquid soap. This tradition was launched in 2007 by Allyssa's hall.

The site is considered moderately strict. Students must be escorted everywhere by a CTY staff member, unless RAs are posted. Halls are required to eat breakfast together, and have been since the summer of 2003. RAs function on a rotation schedule during dinner so that students may move freely between the dining hall and their dorms. Up until 2003, there was no formal programming on Sunday afternoons. Now, students attend Non-Mandatory Fun (a name coined by RA Tom Ryan in summer 2003,) or other themed weekend activities. Student halls may order pizza, Chinese, or Thai for dinner on Fridays and/or Saturdays. Weekend off-campus trips, with RA supervision, can include Ralph's or Bristol Farms (supermarkets), Viva Fresh (a Mexican Restaurant), Bowling, Subway, or Taco Bell. Jamba Juice is only open for a select number of hours each day, and only during class time, so usually Jamba Juice is a class treat given during the week. In 2008 and 2009, several classes also ordered In-N-Out.

Given the university's proximity to the ocean (just 3 miles), the weather is moderate during the day and cool at night. Students and staff alike are advised to bring at least one pair of long pants, and sweaters or a sweatshirt. Usually the weather will only be chilly in the evening, when students may want to change into warmer clothes. Students will never need a rain coat, as it rarely rains in Los Angeles between May and November. Humidity is seldom an issue and RAs and students need not worry about rain plans, unlike CTY participants on the East Coast.

Historically, the food has been mediocre, with multiple instances of diarrhea and food poisoning throughout the years. Students are advised to bring alternative food stuffs to the site. Cup-O'-Noodles and Ramen can both be filled with hot water in the cafeteria, and are a sodium-rich alternative to the bizarre cafeteria food. (However, you should keep these foods out of plain sight -- technically, you're not supposed to bring outside food into the cafeteria.) It is suggested that you avoid the soup, as it is the liquid form of the previous day's dinner. While stomachache runs rampant in the first week, most people adjust to the food by the second week. The nurse suspects that this has something to do with the amount of grease in the main courses, and recommends eating things such as sandwiches.

However, according to Dean of Residential Life Jason Boring, the food finally got better. More than five years of negative programmatic site reviews and documented instances of food poisoning compelled Sodexho, the company which manages the LMU dining halls, to fire the manager responsible for the crappy food over the years. Parents of returning students got letters from their students gushing about their new found appreciation for fresh fruit.

Campus

The LMU site is located, as one may guess, at Loyola Marymount University in western Los Angeles. It is about three miles from LAX International Airport; the Conning Tower is barely visible from some parts of the campus. As LMU is a Jesuit school, there is a bell tower and a chapel. Student life tends to be centered around the Doheny, Sullivan, and Huesman Courtyards. Most classes are located within the area of Ignatian Circle. For more campus information, visit the LMU website.

Buildings

CTY Office Building

The staff and medical office for CTY are housed in Sullivan Hall, which neighbors Doheny Hall and Huesman Hall. Students stay in Sullivan Hall when they are sick, or during intersession. The Commuter Lounge is also located in Sullivan. Students that are picked up and dropped off must sign in and out in Sullivan. Sullivan Courtyard is the location of the dances, and is well-lit at night by several street-lights that automatically turn on.

Class Buildings

Recently, the majority of CTY LMU classes were in Saint Robert's Hall and the Foley Annex, both of which are in Ignatian Circle. Classes are also known to be held in Pereira Hall of Engineering. Classrooms are high-tech, and most have Media Center options such as an in-ceiling projector connected to the instructor's computer, and a surround-sound system.

• Saint Robert's Hall: A big, old, and beautiful three-floor building located next to Sunken Gardens and Regent's Terrace. The windows are large and have nice views, such as a view across Sunken Gardens. Breaks are taken in Regent's Terrace.

• The Foley Annex: A one-floor temporary building. Both the building and classrooms have an industrial feel to them, with white walls. Classrooms have few windows. Class breaks for Foley Annex are in Regent's Terrace. The building tends to be on the cold side.

• Pereira Hall: A little more out-of-the way, and has two stories. The second floor is not wheelchair accessible. Breaks are taken in an adjacent courtyard.

Dorms

Doheny Hall, as seen from Sullivan Hall

The dorms at LMU are air-conditioned, and usually don't have lounges. Rooms have two beds, two small dressers, and two wardrobes. Beds are extra-long twin sized, and loft-style. There are desks in each room, each with a built-in desk lamp. The dorms are highly concentrated in a small area of campus, and it is a short walk from any dorm to any place where CTY students are allowed to be. There is an RA for each hallway of the dorms in use. Usually, RAs will theme the hallway and add decorations. Each dorm has some kind of courtyard, though Desmond and Rosecrans share a courtyard.

• Huesman Hall: Located next to Doheny and Sullivan, Huesman is a one-story dorm. Though historically used as a girl's dorm, CTY used it as a boy's dorm in 2009. It is designed for use by males. There is room for 4 halls total in Huesman. It is a Men's dorm in the school year, and has urinals. There are no mirrors or sinks in the rooms. There are two bathrooms, and each has only two toilet stalls. The showers have solid doors and curtains, with a changing area in between. Huesman can get a little hot, so it is wise to bring a fan.

• Doheny Hall: Doheny Hall is a three-story boys' dorm, located in between Huesman Hall and Sullivan Hall, in the center of the action at CTY. There are no urinals in the bathrooms. Each room has a mirror and sink. The closets smell weird.

• Desmond Hall: A large, three-story girls' dorm, Desmond is a short walk away from Doheny Courtyard. It has no urinals, and each room has a mirror and sink. There are very nice large windows. The showers have doors, but no changing area. The temperature in Desmond is pretty good. Desmond fits roughly 9 halls, with three on each floor.

• Rosecrans Hall: A three-story dorm, Rosecrans is the mirror image of Desmond. Desmond and Rosecrans share a courtyard, and both feature large windows. Rosecrans fits roughly 9 halls, with three on each floor. Though it usually houses boys, in 09.1 it housed Kobe camp (ugh) and three halls of CTY girls.

• Whelan Hall: Most recently used as a girls' dorm in the summer of 2006, Whelan is behind Desmond and Rosecrans. It has three stories and three wings, and a potential to hold 9 halls. There are mirrors in the rooms, but no sinks. The showers have no walls or doors, but only curtains. In more recent years, Whelan was occupied by other camps, such as the Guitar Camp.

• Sullivan Hall: A hall mostly used now for administrative and computer lab purposes, there are few students living there, but it is a dorm. In 09, it was used as a dorm for the students in quarantine.

Other Buildings

• Malone Center: The Malone Center is the building where the cafeteria is. It is located between Regent's Terrace and Doheny. The LMU Bookstore is also located on the lower floor of the Malone Center.

• Sacred Heart Chapel: Is visible from Sunken Gardens and Regent's Terrace. It has a bell tower which chimes the Westminster Chimes every 15 minutes.

• Fritz B. Burns Fine Art Center: Music practice is usually held in the courtyard of this building, as it has practice rooms with pianos. Also, every session since 07.2, Casino Night was held in the courtyard.

• Von der Ahe Library: Some classes go to the library during their study halls, for varying reasons. It features a well-placed fountain and state-of-the-art stairs.

• Fritz B. Burns Recreational Center: This recreational center has a pool, and is where all swimming activities take place. The Basketball activity is also held in the gym here, as are occasional dances. No swimming activities take place in Doheny Fountain.

• Gersten Pavilion: Talent Show and Closing Ceremonies are held in the Gersten Pavilion on a temporary stage. The audience watches from the bleachers.

General Areas

• Huesman Courtyard: Located by Huesman Hall, Huesman Courtyard is grassy, and lined by trees and flowers. These trees might be the "Grove of Orange Trees" referred to by the plaque on Huesman Hall. Huesman Courtyard is a good place to play Frisbee®, and flows seamlessly into Doheny Courtyard.

• Doheny Courtyard: This courtyard is minimal, and entirely concrete. It is flanked by symmetrical Huesman and Sullivan Courtyards, and has a fountain. Social Time takes place every night Sunday through Friday in Doheny Courtyard.

• Sullivan Courtyard: Sullivan Courtyard is similar to Huesman Courtyard, though it is more sloped, and has no trees or flowers around it. Dances have been held in this courtyard since 2006 (with previous years' dances held in mostly the Desmond Courtyard and upon rare occasion, in the Doheny Courtyard), as is Movie Night on the evening of the first Saturday.

• Desmond Courtyard/Rosecrans Courtyard: Desmond Hall and Rosecrans Hall share a courtyard, which is a large diamond shape. The courtyard is mostly grassy, with sidewalks leading to both dorms and the off-limits diner on the other side. There are flowers and trees along the sides. Due to construction on Sullivan Courtyard, dances were held here in 2010.

• Sunken Gardens: Sunken Gardens is an extremely large grassy area located in front of the Sacred Heart Chapel, and near Desmond and Rosecrans. This is the area where weekend activities typically take place. Sunken Gardens was under construction in 2008, though what one constructs on a large grassy area, no one knows. Though it became progressively green over both sessions in 2008, it was still off-limits. It has been revealed by CTYers who returned to the campus during the schoolyear that there have been lights added beneath the palm trees, and the area is otherwise the same. It is no longer under any construction, and students anticipate it will be open for 2009 activities.

• Regent's Terrace: Next to the cafeteria, there is a grassy area surrounded by benches. This area includes the famous "Poking Tree." Some classes take their breaks here.

• The Alumni Mall: A series of grassy areas separated by sidewalks, the Alumni Mall is the area where more active weekday activities take place. In 2008, weekend activities were held on the Alumni Mall. Be aware that things done on the Alumni Mall are not done privately.

• Hannon Field: Located next to the Hannon Apartments, Hannon field was the location of Wet-N-Wild Day for 08.2.

• Leavey Field/Drollinger Parking Plaza: Though this is far out of normal bounds for normal CTYers, this grass-covered parking garage was used for Hydrophilia Day in 08.1.

Off-Campus Places (Weekend Trips)

• Viva Fresh: Viva Fresh is a small Mexican restaurant located a few blocks from LMU. The food there is far better than cafeteria food, and Viva Fresh is a popular place for halls to go on weekend offsite trips.

• Ralph's: California's favorite grocery store is nearby, waiting in anticipation to sell CTYers soda, chips, candy, Ramen, or any other thing their heart desires. Ralph's even carries flip flops, for those people who didn't bring enough shoes to CTY.

• Bristol Farms: A local health food grocery store carries wholesome and gourmet food for those with finer tastes.

• Subway: Yay for sandwiches! Eat fresh.

• Taco Bell: Tacos, burritos, etc. Think outside the bun.

RAs

• LMU was home to the legendary Boring Brothers and, of course, Tom Ryan. Jason Boring is the Dean of Residential Life in Summer 2010.

• Tommy Smith was an RA at LMU through the late 90s and early 2000s. He instituted "More Active Than Sleep (But You Probably Won't Break a Sweat)". Jesse Boring picked up the activity, then passing the torch to a former resident-turned-RA named David Abravanel. In 2008 and 2010, Jason Boring ran the activity.

• 06.1 to Present, an awesome RA, and now SRA Christian (alias C-Bad) is worshipped.

• In 08.1, the RA for the CODE B boys, named Dane Alexander Holding, was an active part of several new traditions, including Bananaphone and "HI DANE." "HI DANE" was then brought to 08.2 by Emma M., a doublesessioner. Her group of friends adopted "HI DANE" as their own, with one person, Allegra C., even saying "Hi, Dane!" into a microphone at the 08.2 Talent Show, and again the following year.

• Chris Lock, during second session, became a popular RA after the Protest activity, in which three girls in the Desmond 330's hall declared that "Chris Lock belonged to them." He is best known for his interesting turn as Dane's Butler, or the epic Bananarchy vs. Chris Lock Fan Club clash that happened on the last wednesday.

Official Activities

Afternoon activities take the form of weeklies and dailies. At the beginning of the week, one weekly and four dailies are chosen by each student. After the activities are chosen, as student isn't allowed to change their mind. Weekly activities happen as soon as class is over, every weekday. The same weekly is taken all week. Daily activities happen after weekly activities, Monday through Thursday. A different daily activity is taken each day. Both kinds of weekday activities last an hour.

Weekend activities usually begin in the afternoon, around one o' clock. They can have a theme, such as Carnival or Time Travel Day. Students spend their afternoons at weekend activities, and then return to their halls. On Saturday evening, there is an evening activity as well. This activity tends to be Movie Night on the first weekend, and Casino Night on the second weekend.

History

Years

2002
At the suggestion of a couple students, RA Michael Tseng developed the "Protest Theory" concept. He and Mary Rieg led students in disrupting other activities with noisy protests. In the first session, students protested against Newtonian physics: "Down with Gravity!," "2 + 2 = 5," etc. In the second session, they protested against the concept of protest itself by chanting "Shut Up and Go Home!," "No More Protests!" etc.

2003
Mary Rieg led a cadre of students with bullhorns and yelling one-liners such as "BUSH CAN'T READ; WHY SHOULD WE?"

2004
'Enmity Bracelets', made of chains and spiky metal objects, decorated the ankles and wrists of many LMUers. 'How to be a Central American Dictator' led raids on other afternoon groups such as 'Guerilla Warfare', wearing stylish red headbands and wielding water balloons. 'Down With the Man' started protests against every other activity held that day. CTY Protesting is another quirky favorite. Protesters wrote and yelled made-up slogans such as "Make friends, not bracelets!", and of course, the highly original "LAME!" The original Robot Wars activities also happened in 2004.

2006
During session 1, the instructor and TA of the International Politics class (both former RAs themselves) ran CTY protesting, leading two dozen students in rounds of protesting several activities that day, such as Quidditch, Paper Flower Making, and Silent Reading. Depicted on youtube is the Protest of Quiddich. One student, dubbed Bill Clinton, shouted "up with fascism!" into a bullhorn.
Session 2- First time that nevermores went on stage at the talent show during piano rendition of American Pie-- this tradition has since continued at the following sessions. There was also an outbreak of lice and pink eye during the first week or two of the session.

2007
The tradition of Protest continued in 07.1, with not only "Protest Rally" as the last daily, but also "Paparazzi," a photo-taking activity of similar origins. In 07.1, there was also an activity called "Give Jason [Boring] a Mohawk." Even though his Mohawk was made by hyper CTYers, it ended up looking rather good.

2008
In first and second sessions, Jason Boring ran "More Active than Sleep but You Probably Won't Break a Sweat." Dane Holding ran a new activity called "Bananaphone," which involved sweetly serenading unsuspecting activities with the jaunty Raffi song. First session also premiered the first Silent Football weekly activity.

2009
Second session, Dane Holding ran Bananaphone once again, under the alias, "Bananarchy." Second session also featured a Silent Football daily which was actually the ridiculous and pathetic game the RA who will from now on be referred to as Rule-All thought was Silent Football. Also, Trench was canceled.

2010

2011
During one of the first social times of 11.2, Dane Holding stated that he would never again be running "The Gulag" or "Bananarchy", signifying, more or less, the end of traditional activities at the site, especially since such activities as "Extreme Cubing" and "Art of War," which involved the intentional throwing of objRects toward students, were no longer permitted. 11.2 did have "More Active than Sleep" (without the subtitle), hosted by Jason Boring as per the usual tradition, but previous traditional activities as "Protest," "Worst Activity Ever," and "Silent Raving" did not appear. "Silent Reading" was only a daily once or twice, and though "Creative Writing" was featured as a last weekly, because Chris Lee was promoted to admin and Eric Anderson was not present, it was very different, and there were at least three dozen students as opposed to the usual four or five.

Traditional Activities

Robot Wars and Robot Wars II were two duels originally staged between RAs Tom Ryan and Geoff Graham. Encased in cardboard armor, they clashed together in apocalyptic combat to the heavy beat of Rammstein. Tom Ryan explained that the activity originated back in summer 2004 due to two factors: one, the intrigue surrounding the concept of hippies walking around Oberlin College campus playing bad German techno music; and, then-office manager Jen Lockett complaining about having to dispose of cardboard boxes.

"Robot Wars: 2009" Was a daily activity that took place between RA's Dane Holding, John Stutte, and special guest Robot, Brandon Chang, a nevermore. Some considerations learned from this were that Duct tape is ridiculously strong, and after using enough of said substance, cardboard can be reinforced to withstand blows from two large (6 ft+ 180 Lbs+) people for more than half an hour. In 2011, LeVon battled Dane.

Gluing Stuff to RAs is also a common activity, with various RAs given the wonderful task of being the glue. Tom Ryan also created this activity in summer 2005 when RAs were instructed to limit activities to existing supplies in RA Heaven.

More Active Than Sleep, But You Probably Won't Break a Sweat is a traditional activity created in the late 90s by RA Tommy Smith, now the Dean of Residential Life at the CTY Thousand Oaks site. After Tommy left around 2000, Jesse Boring ran this activity. For a while, it was led by David Abravanel. In 2008, 2010, and 2011, Jason Boring ran the activity. This activity features the telling of the story of why the activity was created, a story by Jason Boring, and a fun activity at the end.

Worst Activity Ever is a roll of the dice. If you choose this activity, beware. Often, it involves counting blades of grass, writing essays, or exhausting calisthenics. But on occasion, Worst Activity Ever is really wonderful, and the best activity of the whole session. And when it is, everyone is upset that they missed it. Would you risk it?

Art of War is another traditional activity, led every year by Jason Boring. It is similar to dodgeball, and involves a "Thought Commander" who must be protected at all costs. The activity description declared the activity to be "very active", though it wasn't. Now the Art of War has been banned by CTY because it involves intentionally throwing balls at students.

"The Gulag" Was an activity run in 2008-2009 by Dane Holding, in which participants are shipped to siberia (In the far far corners of sunken gardens) for punishment in "The Gulag" . Such punishment involved such activities as mandatory executions of disobedient prisoners (With Water Weaponry), forced digging of holes with inadequate shovels (Q-tips), demoralizing rations (Bread with spit on it), and the final exciting suicidal assault upon the capitalist pigs and their boot camp.

"Trench" WAS an activity run by RAs for at least four years at this site. This activity was very much like dodgeball- the whole point of the game was to hit people with rubber balls and get them out. However, if they got out, they went behind the other team's playing area, where people from their team would trench [throw] a ball over to them. If the person in trench-zone caught it, they then had two options- to throw the ball at a person from the opposite team, or to carry the ball back to their own team. If, however, a person from the other team caught the trenched ball, the trencher would be out. This activity was canceled by the CTY administration in Baltimore's rules against throwing things of any kind.

Current

Recurring Activities

Silent Reading: True to its name, it just gives students time to kick back and read. A more exciting form of Silent Reading is known as "Extreme Silent Reading", and involves more reading and silence than the original activity. The actual rules of Extreme Reading vary from RA to RA, some having you switch books every 10 minutes while others make you avoid dodgeballs, etc. thrown at you while you're trying to read (a further variant on this was Extreme Cubing, which involved students solving Rubik's Cubes while running an obstacle course.)

Music Practice: Available as a weekly all three weeks of every session. Though there is no limit on the number of students allowed, the music practice rooms contain few pianos. There are four pianos, and two are in the same room. All of the pianos are out of tune. Though there was a piano in the cafeteria through 2003, students no longer have this luxury. Usually enough pianists join the activity that each can only play once each week. It is suggested that pianists don't plan on practicing. During 09.1, the Fritz B. Burns Fine Art Center was being remodeled and was considered off-limits to CTYers. A single room in Sullivan Hall was stocked with a single Clavinova, and this was the only way for an individual to play the piano. Most CTYers planning on practicing played ERS and Tap Tap instead. The only people who practiced wanted to be in the talent show.

Dirty Dancing Appreciation: Not as exciting as it sounds, this activity is simply watching the movie "Dirty Dancing", rather than actual doing any dirty dancing. Sorry, folks.

Disney Appreciation: A weekly activity, this involves watching several Disney movies (decided upon by the CTYers involved in the activity).

Swing Dancing: A swing dancing lesson, traditionally taught by Jason Boring.

Weekend Activities

Wet and Wild Day is a name of a weekend activity that may be called other things that would fall under the umbrella term "Hydrophilia Day." It usually takes place on the first Saturday. There is a "Dry Area" for students who go read magazines, play cards, sit down for games of Silent Football or Never Have I Ever, or attempt to do cartwheels on the lawn. RAs can be seen roaming about the "Wet Side" with heavy-duty water guns and hoses. Students usually have to make do with flimsy plastic cups that they fill up with water, or sponges. Kiddy pools and hoses are also sometimes utilized. In 09.1 Wet and Wild Day did not occur, because of the drought. In 09.2, a "Pool Party" was substituted for the usual Wet and Wild Day. In 11.2, a "Pool Day" did occur on first Sunday, but outside of the pool and Regent's Terrace, where a water slide was situated, no water was used, as LMU was disgruntled at our annual murdering of the grass.

Movie Night happens on the evening of the first Saturday. Up to 2009, students flocked to Sullivan Courtyard to sit on towels and blankets and watch a PG-rated movie, but since 2010, movies have been G-rated and in the Sunken Gardens.

Talent Show occurs on the second Saturday. Students play instruments, juggle, recite poetry, act, sing, and show off many other great talents. Famous acts include "Eating Cereal off of Jesse Boring", Shabes' rendition of "Genie in a Bottle" (07.2), and the boy who juggled Rubik's Cubes while solving them. (06.1) Each Talent Show has one song (currently "Seasons of Love" for first session and "Leaving on a Jet Plane" for second session) dedicated to the Nevermores, (Nomores during second session) during which they come up in front of the stage and sway.

Casino Night takes place that evening. Some people play card games for Casino Night Money, while others run around doing weird and crazy deeds the RAs tell them to do for 'money'. A couple of people get 'married', and several of them get 'divorced'. At the end of Casino Night, halls are ranked by the amount of 'money' they have, and choose in order of amount of money from a list of prizes such as duct taping an RA of their choice to a tree.

Non-Mandatory Fun is the general name for weekend activities. Although it is mandatory for students to attend, it isn't mandatory that they have fun. They are allowed to read or sit around. In 2007 it was rechristened "Mandatory Fun" by Jason Boring because the staff wishes to encourage as much fun as possible. Since at least 2010, "Mandatory Fun" has referred to the activities which require the rotation of halls through various RA-run stations, while "Non-Mandatory Fun" refers to those afternoons where students must attend an area in which RA-run stations are present, but where they may sit out and do whatever they please.

There is no activity Sunday evening. Instead, students attend Study Hall.

Order of Activities

• 04.2
  • First Friday: Dance
  • First Saturday:
    • Water Day
    • Movie Night: Pirates of the Carribean. RAs dressed up as pirates, and throughout the movie when the RAs yelled out 'Plunder', chocolate coins were thrown at the CTYers.
  • First Sunday: Non-Mandatory Fun
  • Second Friday: Dance
  • Second Saturday: Talent Show & Casino Night
  • Second Sunday: Non-Mandatory Fun
  • Third Thursday: Dance

• 05.2
  • First Friday: Dance (Theme: 80s)
  • First Saturday:
    • Water Day
    • Movie Night: Finding Nemo. RAs were dressed up as Finding Nemo characters.
  • First Sunday: Non-Mandatory Fun
  • Second Friday: Dance
  • Second Saturday:
    • Talent Show
    • Casino Night
  • Second Sunday: Non-Mandatory Fun. Most facilities had been taken by other camp sites, so people primarily watched Harry Potter 3: The Prisoner of Azkaban.
  • Third Thursday: Dance

• 06.2
  • First Friday: Dance (Theme: Halloween)
  • First Saturday:
    • Quiz Bowl: This was the first time Quiz Bowl was held at LMU Session 2. It was changed based on positive feedback of activity at other CTY sites.
    • Movie Night: The Incredibles. RAs were dressed up as a new superhero with new super powers; during the movie, every time each of the Incredibles used a certain power, a goodie correlating with that power thrown at the CTYers.
  • First Sunday: Non-Mandatory Fun (Theme: Carnival)
  • Second Friday: Dance (Theme: Ocean Cruise)
  • Second Saturday:
    • Talent Show
    • Casino Night
  • Second Sunday: Wet & Wild Water Day
  • Third Thursday: Dance (Theme: A Ball Under the Stars)

• 07.1
  • First Friday: Dance (Theme: Beach)
  • First Saturday:
    • Quiz Bowl
    • Movie Night: Spirited Away. RAs were dressed as mythical creatures.
  • First Sunday: Wet & Wild Water Day
  • Second Friday: Dance (Theme: 80s)
  • Second Saturday:
    • Talent Show
    • Casino Night
  • Second Sunday: Non-Mandatory Fun (Theme: Carnival)
  • Third Thursday: Dance (?)

• 07.2
  • First Friday: Dance (Theme: A Black Tie Affair)
  • First Saturday:
    • CTY Olympics
    • Movie Night: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.
  • First Sunday: Wet 'n Wild Water Day
  • Second Friday: Dance (Theme: Island Getaway)
  • Second Saturday:
    • Talent Show
    • Casino Night
  • Second Sunday: Mandatory Fun
  • Third Thursday: Dance

• 08.1
  • First Friday: Dance
  • First Saturday:
    • Time Travel Day
    • Movie Night: Monsters Inc. RAs were dressed as monsters.
  • First Sunday: Hydrophilia Day (Wet 'n Wild Day)
  • Second Friday: Dance (Theme: Match Your Music)
  • Second Saturday:
    • International Day
    • Casino Night
  • Second Sunday: Talent Show
  • Third Thursday: Dance

• 08.2
  • First Friday: Dance
  • First Saturday:
    • Wet n' Wild Day
    • Movie Night: Ratatoille.
  • First Sunday: Time Travel Day
  • Second Friday: Dance
  • Second Saturday:
    • Talent Show
    • Casino Night
  • Second Sunday: International Day
  • Third Thursday: Dance

• 09.1
  • First Friday: Dance (Theme: America's Birthday)
  • First Saturday:
    • Time Travel Day
    • Movie Night: Bolt. Students contributed in a craft where they painted a star with their RA's name on it.
  • First Sunday: Save Charlie Day
  • Second Friday: Dance (Theme: 70s)
  • Second Saturday:
    • Survival of the Fittest Field Day
    • Casino Night
  • Second Sunday: Talent Show
  • Third Thursday: Dance (Theme: Backwards Dance)

• 09.2
  • First Friday: Dance (Theme: Pajama Bash)
  • First Saturday:
    • Boogie Wonderland/Hip Hop Day
    • Movie Night: The Princess Bride. Students put on short skits (in groups of one girls' hall and one boys' hall) based on props they were provided.
  • First Sunday: The Great Dane Show: Students solved puzzles in order to solve the mysterious disappearance of Dane Holding.
  • Second Friday: Dance (Theme: Island Getaway)
  • Second Saturday:
    • Talent Show
    • Casino Night
  • Second Sunday: Pool Day
  • Third Thursday: Dance (Theme: A Star-Studded Evening)

• 10.1
  • First Friday: Dance (Theme: Party in the USA/Fourth of July)
  • First Saturday:
    • Pool Party
    • Movie Night: The Incredibles. Students dressed up their RA as a superhero and gave a small speech about them, then were rated by the SRAs and Jason.
  • First Sunday: CTY Olympics.
  • Second Friday: Dance (Theme: ROY G BIV)
  • Second Saturday:
    • Japanese Game Show
    • Casino Night
  • Second Sunday: Talent Show
  • Third Thursday: Dance (Theme: Prom... IN SPACE)

• 10.2
  • First Friday: Dance (Theme: Rumble in the Jungle, Location: Desmond/Rosecrans courtyard)
  • First Saturday:
    • CTY Olympics
    • Movie Night: Kung Fu Panda
  • First Sunday: Summer Day/Non-mandatory Fun
  • Second Friday: Dance (Theme: Pirate Party, Location: Sullivan courtyard)
  • Second Saturday:
    • Japanese Game Show
    • Casino Night
  • Second Sunday: Talent Show
  • Third Thursday: Dance (Theme: Beach Prom, Location: Burns Rec Center, second floor gym)

• 11.1
  • First Friday: Dance (Theme: Pajama Party, Location: Desmond/Rosecrans courtyard)
  • First Saturday:
    • Pool Party
    • Movie Night: Cars
  • First Sunday: CTY Olympics (Note: Teams were by class instead of by hall, how it is normally done)
  • Second Friday: Dance (Theme: Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Location: Desmond/Rosecrans courtyard)
  • Second Saturday:
    • CTY Entertainment System
    • Casino Night
  • Second Sunday: Talent Show
  • Thirds Thursday: Dance (Theme: Beauty and the Geek, Location: Desmond/Rosecrans courtyard)

• 11.1
  • First Friday: Dance (Theme: Pirates, Location: Desmond/Rosecrans courtyard)
  • First Saturday:
    • Gold Rush
    • Movie Night: Mulan
  • First Sunday: Pool Day
  • Second Friday: Dance (Theme: Traffic Light, in which squirrels wore green, those who had been to CTY one year previously wore yellow, and those beyond that wore red, Location: Desmond/Rosecrans courtyard)
  • Second Saturday:
    • Talent Show (notable because CTY could not book the upper gymnasium for Sunday)
    • Casino Night
  • Second Sunday: Road Trip Across the USA
  • Thirds Thursday: Dance (Theme: A Black Tie Affair, Location: Desmond/Rosecrans courtyard)

(In 2008, CTY didn't have access to Sunken Gardens, the large grassy area where many CTY events are traditionally held. Instead, weekend activities were held on the Mall in 08.1. In 08.2, weekend activities were held on Hannon Field and in Sullivan/Huesman/Doheny courtyards.) In 2009, activities were held across both Sunken Gardens and Regent's Terrace.

Student Activities

Dances

Dances take place on Fridays and the last Thursday of each session. Though they were in Rosecrans Courtyard in 2005, they are now held in Sullivan Courtyard. In 10.2, due to noise complaints, the dance was moved to the upstairs gym in the Burns Rec Center, and may remain there, as noise complaints have been ongoing for some time at the LMU site. CTYers typically take an hour to begin dancing, but eventually most people do dance. A stage is usually built on the inside edge of Sullivan Courtyard. This stage has the speakers mounted on it, and a DJ sits behind it, putting together music lists. Students are rarely allowed behind the stage, as there are wires from the speakers over which they could possibly trip.

Despite the social atmosphere, several students can be seen at each dance sitting around near Doheny Fountain. These people are usually playing cards and solving Rubik's cubes. During 2006, they were sitting on or even behind the walls around Sullivan Academic Center and RAs like JZ and Jason and Mike had to run around making them dance. During 2007, some were seen programming calculators during the dances. In 2008, a few of these people chose to blast an alternative selection of music from their iPod speakers, while sitting next to Doheny Fountain. This was in protest to the pop and rap music being played at the dance.

LMU dances do have "American Pie" (with nevermores sometimes forming their own circle in the middle of the larger circle at the last dance), "It's the End of the World As We Know It", and "Stairway to Heaven" at every dance, along with other Canon. Every dance ends with an RA or SRA standing on the stage and yelling, "Go home! Nobody loves you!" The students then respond, "But WE love you!"

Student Activities By Year

• 05.2
  • First attempt to add Cross-Dress Day to LMU Session 2.
• 06.1
  • Dances: Michael Jackson's "Thriller" was semi-canon during 06.2, where people formed a conga line that went in a spiral. Chants of "HARDER HARDER HARDER HARDER!" and sometimes "FASTER FASTER FASTER FASTER!" could be heard after the usual "die die die die live live live live sex sex sex sex more more more more!" People pointed fingers at the Biomedical people.
• 06.2
  • First Thursday/Friday: Clash Day
  • Second Wednesday: Cross-Dress Day: This became more of an accepted and widely-followed tradition after the first attempt in 2005.
  • Dances: In session 2, the chants of "HARDER HARDER HARDER HARDER" and "FASTER FASTER FASTER FASTER" were lead by the Chemistry students.
  • Second Thursday- Pop Yo' Collar Day: The first time this day was held at LMU Session 2.
• 07.1
  • Emo Day, a national event, occured at some point during the session. This was mistaken for tradition.
  • Dances: 07.1 brought new songs into the session 1 Canon, including "Dragostea Din Tei." The only afterdance was held by a group of eight girls (all from Lour's hall), who chanted "CTY you have a nice butt." Surrounding people stared, and did not join in. A chant of "ORGY" was added after the "more more more more" part of the chant to American Pie. Jorge's hall takes partial credit for introducing "Don't Stop Believin'" to canon this year.

• 08.1
  • Emo Day once again returned on the same day of 08.1 as it had occurred in 07.1, though National Emo Day was on a different day entirely.
  • Silent Football was brought to CTY LMU by members of the website Post-CTY Depression.
  • Dances: The tradition of shouting "ORGY" at the end of the normal American Pie Chant was continued into 2008.1, mostly by Petr (No that's not a spelling mistake) Sharetskiy, and his Latin class. "Don't Stop Believing," by Journey, was played at every dance, and began working its way into Upper Canon. Jason Boring was in the center of the mob during American Pie, singing the words loudly, but covering his ears and closing his eyes during the chant. During the first dance, "It's the End of the World as We Know It" was played in the first half an hour of the dance (in a pathetic attempt to get kids on the dance floor) and as a result, the nevermores staged an enormous protest. The song was played again, although cut short. Also, during session one, there was an increased interest in Glowstringing, led by Lizzy H., Sarah Sch., and Josh Q. These students practiced Glowstringing during social time until a daily activity entitled "Raving" was created. All three of these students performed with their glowsticks at the first dance, and began teaching other students. In 08.2, A large group of people was seen running into the dancing area during canon songs, and running out afterwards, when rap started to play again.

• 08.2
  • Dances: Generally, more canon was played due to the protests of students and RA's alike during the first dance. Songs that weren't played before [or as much] were played, like "Blister in the Sun," "Nightswimming," and "Time Warp."
  • Silent Football was demonstrated to the second sessioners, but they didn't take to it in the same way as first sessioners.

• 09.1
  • Dances: More canon was played than years past, including "Rock Lobster" and "Blister in the Sun." The raving scene grew in first session, with Lizzy H., Sarah Sch., Maggie G., Declan M-H, Matt G., and Molly S., all taking turns dazzling the crowds during "Sandstorm." Many people were disgusted at the choice of dance on the last dance, a "backwards" theme. Traditionalists were still in dressy outfits, though.

• 09.2
  • Dances: Less canon was played in second session of 2009 than in first. The main glowstringers were Lizzy H., and Alfred W, and also, during the second dance, Jackie/Allegra C.. However, many second sessioners were upset [or at least confused] when the RAs did not play the very important nevermore/nomore song, Leaving on a Jet Plane, during the final dance.

• 10.1
  • Dances: In he first two dances, fewer slow songs and more canon were played. The main glowstringers were Molly S., Maggie G., and Declan M-H with special appearances by Jason Boring. During the last dance, however, only 2 slow songs were played, and the slideshow took the place of the canon songs End of the World, Istanbul(Not Constantinople), and Sandstorm, preventing the glowstringers from making a final appearance.

• 10.2
  • Dances: The first two dances, few canon songs were played, most notably Nightswimming. When Chris R. was asked why, in fact, the song wasn't played, the answer was "because no one's going to dance to it." A 50 signature petition went through, and Nightswimming was played at the next two dances, although it was cut 20 seconds short for the slide show at the last dance . For the first two dances, glowstringing activity was minimal, led by Danika T. and Diana D., but it increased substantially at the last dance due to Jason Boring's tutorial (and glowstick distribution) as part of a weekly activity. Also at the third dance, all canon except Forever Young and Don't Stop Believing were played, and there were attempts by site-hopping RAs to introduce new Canon, such as "Blame it on the Boogie."

• 11.1
  • Dances: The main glowstringers at the dances were Matt G., Erika C., Alex O., Micaela G., and Louisa C..

Enemies

Students are forbidden from speaking to participants in other programs; the precedent set for this policy is due to rash interactions with other camps including (the notorious) guitar camp, various LMU sports camps, foreign camps, and the annual church retreat.

Our enemies on campus include, but are not limited to the following camps.

• Kobe Basketball Academy- "Kobe Camp"
  

A basketball camp for kids between the ages of 8 and eighteen, Kobe Camp is known for containing an impressive amount of brickheads who basically do not know 2+2. These idiots cut in line, and eat everything in sight, even the inedible potatoes. In 09.1, Kobe Bryant filmed a Nike commercial on Regents Terrace with skateboarder Paul Rodriguez. This caused a mob of fans from several camps including CTY. The commercial aired in August, and can be seen on YouTube (St. Roberts Hall is in plain view!) To the dismay of girls living in the 3rd floor Rosecrans Hall in 09.1, Kobe Campers moved underneath them, causing general annoyance and a perpetual stench of AXE and sweat in the halls. Kobe kids got pizza every night,in addition to cafeteria food, and raided the vending machines until there was only water and diet Pepsi left. The entrance and third floor of Rosecrans were locked, along with Desmond halls, to prevent Kobe Campers from getting into a girls' hall. It became a huge nuisance for the girls. CTYers are happy to know they will not be returning in 2010

• National Guitar Workshop- "Guitar Camp"
  

The National Guitar Workshop draws on the people in the nation who would like nothing more than to be a rock legend, complete with stupid-looking long fuzzy hairdo and rotting teeth. Kids in Guitar Camp do not just idolize their guitar heroes; they try to look like them. Over the years, their hilarious hairdos and aggressive behavior has led to several fights and the advent of rules such as, "CTY students must not make fun of Guitar Camp kids' hair to their faces." It is not uncommon for Guitar Camp students to attempt to sneak into CTY dances. According to CTY legend/rumor, Guitar Campers rolled down a hill in LMU in beer kegs. During 09.1, several CTYers begged Guitar Camp teachers and students for their lanyards on the last day of the workshop. To their surprise, many gave them up if just asked politely. Lucy M., Jane S., and Mina N. all received lanyards by just asking. In 09, the negative view of Guitar Campers turned slightly more positive due to the surprising kindness of the previously dubbed, "Guitards." (From '08) According to Jason Boring, The National Guitar Workshop did not return for 2010.

• LMU Summer Sports Camp- "Little Kids Sports Camp"
  

LMU runs several sports camps for kids over the summer. While the majority of the attending kids are aged 4-10, the camps accept kids up to age 14. This leads to there being thousands of little kids who eat nothing but gelatin and cookies for lunch. These guys outnumber the potatoes, and that's saying something. Also, never give these ragamuffins your Tabasco® sauce. If they've run out, it's a good thing. It means they can't terrorize anyone else.

• ESL Students- "Foreign Camp"
  

Students seeking to speak English in America travel from Spain, Brazil, Portugal, and France to LA, and once they are there, they wade in the fountains at LMU. Many foreign students are not used to etiquette or rules. This leads them to do things such as sneak into the cafeteria through windows so they don't have to pay. Also, foreign students will sometimes not understand the concept of a line and push in front of anyone who looks weaker than them. They also smoke a lot, and once had a costume day, in which several of the men were in drag. Many CTYers wonder if the traditional Drag Day spirit rubbed off on the foreigners. Most CTYers just see them surveying people, partying, or ambling around campus.

• Korean Christian Church Convention

For three days during 11.1, a flood of members of the Korean Christian Church took over the LMU campus. Nobody knows why they were there, but they had a tendency to cut in line and take giant helpings of food, leaving no food left over for CTY students and members of other camps at LMU.

• However, our #1 enemy, is not a camp, not a person, not a rule, not a large Jell-O ® driven explosive that we hid somewhere in Rosecrans, no, it is the POTATO!

The potato, the ubiquitous food of the LMU cafeteria, used to be delivered in large trucks. But as of 08.1, these trucks no longer came. Yet, the potatoes just kept coming. Between 07 and 08, a large machine was installed in the rear of the cafeteria, its purpose unknown. Some theorize that this fiendish machine was actually a Potato Generator. Others assume that 2008 students were still eating the 2007 potatoes. During 09, the Potato Generator was seen by Rosecrans girls being hauled out of LMU during a surprising lack-of-potatoes-spell, some speculate for "repair," and later hauled back in. The potato cycle then continued normally. However, 09.1 also unravelled part of the potato mystery when it was discovered that the executive chef, Jeff Mercer, is Irish.

We have since expanded the food-related enemies list to include the entire cafeteria staff. After making something called a "Frito Pie" which resembled lasagna made with Frito chips instead of noodles, a warrant has been issued for the arrest of the staff on accusations that they are committing crimes against Humanity.

In 2010, however, the routine of having different bad foods every day was replaced with the equally horrible option of being able to choose from a repetitive selection of bad food. (Considered decent by many, however ~ pizza, pasta, burgers, tacos, salads, sandwich bar) The upside was the new option to not eat the infamous inedible potatoes at every meal. The pasta was widely reported to cause diarrhea in many students.

In 2011, the food has improved, but the staff has become increasingly disorganized (or spiteful?). They will take the orders of CTY personnel (Student and RA alike), and give them something completely different, before rushing to serve the next person. The staff will only give the unlucky CTYer what they asked if pestered for about a minute, and many people have ended up sitting down with a plate full of everything they don't want. Potatoes are know only seen in two places: The mashed potatoes that show up occasionally, and the "Baked Potato Wedges" served in place of fries at the burger counter and hot dog counter.