Chirp, Chirp
About one hour's drive from Indianapolis, Indiana in Muncie, Indiana, sits Ball State University's beautiful campus. The University was founded in 1918 after the Ball Brothers gifted the land that the university sits on to the State of Indiana. The campus is full of stunning old brick and stone buildings, statues with their own folklore, and lots of greenery. Ball State is known for their teacher's college, school of music, and media arts program (thanks to David Letterman's contribution of the David Letterman Communication and Media Building). My husband and I had been researching and planning to take a cheap and fun date day together one day during his spring break from classes. It may have been an unconventional date, but it was a very memorable day.
To be honest our day didn't start off that great and we almost did not make it to Muncie without turning around. We began the day fighting and it continued on in our car ride. My husband wasn't very excited to be walking around in the cold and wasn't very interested in the idea of going to see the university either. However, he knew how important it was for me to be able to show him around the campus and we really needed to be able to get out and do something fun together. I was in the mood to see some pretty spring flowers and with the cold weather Indiana was getting, the only way that was going to happen was if we visited a greenhouse or indoor botanical garden. The night before I had been googling greenhouses in Indiana and little did I know that Ball State University's campus had their own little greenhouse and it was completely free to the public. So we made the small trek and hour drive from Indianapolis, Indiana to Muncie, Indiana, seeking out the Rinard Orchid Greenhouse and hoping to make a date day out of it by exploring the rest of the campus as well. Now I have already posted about my inner revelations when exploring but what I didn't share with everyone is the folklore and beauty of the campus.
So this is Beneficence or Benny. She sits on the North Side of Campus near the administration buildings and student center. She was built in 1937 and was a donation to honor the selflessness of the 5 Ball Brothers for gifting the land that Ball State University sits upon. In her left hand she holds a treasure box and it is said to represent the treasure that education can offer students. Stories speculate that each urn on each of the 5 pillars behind Benny, house the Ball brothers arms. Beneficence has always welcomed new students into the campus with her beauty and outstretched hand. Students believe that you can find out if your significant other is your soulmate by kissing in front of her. If you are meant to be together Benny's wings will flap in acknowledgement. It is also believed that if a virgin ever crosses her path she will fly away. While I have never tested out any of these stories, she is truly a beautiful masterpiece and inspiration to students.
This is the North quad on which Beneficence can be found. It is a pretty green landscape with lots of trees and walking paths for students. In the summer time you can always find students laying on blankets eating lunch or studying. The campus has many outdoor free events for the students in this area including movie nights. This is one of my favorite parts of the campus. The gorgeous greenery is also where BSU does their graduations in the spring time. The Arts building with its old stone and brick has a grand staircase that is used as the platform on which the students walk up to obtain their diplomas and the North Quad is set up with lots of folding chairs. Overall, It is lovely to come to this park area on a nice warm day with a book and just sit, relax, and enjoy your surroundings.
If you move closer to the center of campus there is another area by the library that has rolling hills and in the center of it lies the Frog Baby fountain. Frog baby was built in 1937 and has always been a source of good luck for students. Students used to rub Frog Baby's nose for good luck before midterms and finals until Frog Baby's nose rubbed off. After the statue's nose rubbed off, it was fixed and then Frog Baby was placed in the middle of the fountain behind Bracken Library in order to discourage students from harming it again. Students no longer rub Frog Baby's nose but it has become a tradition to dress Frog Baby up in the winter months for warmth. In the winter when it snows Frog Baby can be seen wearing a hat, gloves, and scarf. In the warmer months the fountain is filled and the little fish that can be found around the fountain spit water. It's a wonderful place to sit and eat lunch in the warm summer sun.
Bracken Library is the giant red brick building that sits behind Frog Baby fountain and is the perfect quiet place to sit, reflect, and catch up on your reading. It is a masterpiece of a library and I love the architecture with the huge gorgeous curved staircase. In the middle of the entrance to the library sits the naked lady statue. She is a common meeting place for students and often visitors waiting on a group will put notes around her in order for members to locate each other in the library. The library is very large, beautifully decorated, and even contains a coffee shop so that you can caffeinate yourself during a long study session.
Right in the middle of Ball State University's campus sits Schafer Tower. This tall bell tower really is a sight to behold. The tower is 150 ft tall and contains 48 bells in all different octaves making it capable of playing any song. The bells can be heard all over campus when they are rung. You can't miss it, as it sits right in the middle of the main stretch of road that runs through the campus. The tower looks stunning in the winter surrounded by white glistening snow.
Nestled on the outskirts of BSU's campus near Christy Woods sits the Rinard Orchid Greenhouse. It is a 3400 sq ft greenhouse used for biology and science majors. It is a little off the beaten path and unless you know it is there, its far enough from the busy part of campus that its easy to miss. We went on a cold day in March and the greenhouse flowers were in full bloom. It has two different warm climate rooms and one cold room all decorated with vegetation and educational resources. It only took about 30 - 45 minutes to walk around the area and see everything but it was well worth the drive. It would have been even better if we would have gone in the spring / summer time to explore the nature and foliage surrounding the greenhouse in Christy Woods. Here are some pictures from the greenhouse to showcase all of the beautiful plants that we saw:
There is so much more to Ball State University's campus that we did not have the time to explore. There is a duck pond on the South Side of campus that is fun to view in the warmer months and watch the ducks and wildlife play. There is the David Owsley Museum of Art that showcases about 1,000 different works of art spanning the decades. While I haven't visited the art museum myself I have heard good things and have been told that it has a lot of interesting and unique pieces. The campus houses multiple recital and performance halls as well as Emens auditorium and is always having performances by students and professionals for an affordable price. The campus really does have a little bit of everything to interest anyone and is an interesting or unique fun filled day.