A lot of people I know comment that I'm not a "typical" Asian girl, at least I'm not like anyone they've met before. At first I thought it was because of an exchange year that I had in the States a few years before I came to this college. But when you look at the fact that I've chosen to come so far from home to the States, I guess I am pretty different to start with. I had to immerse myself into a completely different culture as well as into the University lifestyle.
The first thing I noticed when I came to America was that everything is really intense, and moves very fast. There's a lot more freedom here, and fewer regulations, political restrictions, and cultural taboos.
That applies, first of all, largely to the online world. Information flow is more abundant, there's more variety, it all runs faster, and it's more intense. Take Facebook, it is huge everywhere right now!! On Facebook, I have friends from eight different countries. The world is so much smaller a place on Facebook. Now that you can get it on cell phones and other players people carry around all the time, it's even more instant and crazy. I'm so paranoid that I have to check it several times an hour. We have websites just like Facebook in China. Just as it is here, it's very addicting and young people are on it all the time. It's especially harsh for me because I have both the Facebook and the Chinese version of Facebook... I guess it's still pretty nice though - that website made me feel like I never left.
However, the ways people use Facebook are so different between these two countries. Here, people enjoy posting everything about their lives online. Not to mention, Americans have millions of online blogs, and people share the links they're interested in on Facebook/Twitter all the time. In this way, people have access to huge amount of information everyday. On the other hand, the internet is still young in China, so people do not know how to make the most of it by sharing information. A contributing factor is that Chinese people are a lot more reticent about making their private lives public. The culture has not yet developed to that stage, I guess.
Another difference is that there's such a wide variety of information here in America. People are not afraid to voice their stand on a current issue. In China, Chinese government have strict censorship on all media, including websites like the Chinese Facebook. The freedom of speech is also shown in news reporting. Here, there're five or six major news networks, newspapers and magazines everywhere, all with different points of view. Americans don't easily believe all that appears on the news, while in China, because media is thoroughly censored by government and there's only one point of view, it's hard to tell about the truth.
People from Asian countries probably wouldn't have too many studying problems in American colleges because they have been trained to work hard. The problem for us mostly lies in social life.
Actually, all freshmen worry about whether they fit in with others in their first year. We're all far away from home, being exposed to an extremely new situation. We're all scared of being alone. We're all trying to make friends. However, it's especially so for an international student like myself, not to mention the fact that I'm the only Chinese person in my year, if not in the entire school. People have commented that this school is quite reflective of the local rural and small town surroundings; I'm sure things are different in larger Universities that draw on a more diverse population. At this university, I have been stressed out. I have been depressed. I have been confused. I have to accept that I speak more formally than most people, and I often miss out on jokes -- they tend to allude to TV shows and other things that I haven't experienced.
It is easy to make acquaintances in America – people are outgoing and easy to talk to. But then, even though people ask, “How are you?” all the time, little do they really care about what you have to say about your life. In that sense, I found it hard to make really close friends. I do not understand how Americans are able to hang out in such big groups. I feel very strange being in a group and having somewhat trivial conversations with everyone. In China, people tend to stick together with three or four close friends most of the time.
Another confusion is the stereotype people have of college life. Using a line that I once heard on a TV show which I can only vaguely remember , "Kids! Drugs are bad. Alcohol is bad. Sex is bad. There's a time and place for all this, and it's called... college." So that's basically what's planted in most people's mind - ohhhhh, we need to accomplish the craziness of a lifetime in college!! So I guess college is also the period that people most likely go against their moral beliefs. Yep, that's just college, doesn't really count. Like if you bum a donut from someone else in a coffee shop, the calories don't count like they would if you bought it yourself.
There are definitely drugs, alcohol, and sex going on around me with people I know. And amazingly for someone with my background, they talk about it too -- I guess to show off how cool they are. On those occasions, I just listen to them and hold off on my opinions. I don't try to accept or oppose any of the life styles; I simply get to know all of them and understand why such things happen. I mean, as long as I hold on to my own values and make the choices that are right for myself, nothing would harm me, right? Most of my friends, (okay, acquaintances) respect my choices. So they don't really pressure me into anything. We still talk at dinner tables and sometimes hang out, but I'm very clear in my heart about who are the ones that I truly hold as my real friends.
Also surprisingly to me, when I come to think about things a bit more, I realize that I have in fact made several real friends who I can really relate to now. I guess things have been changing over time; little by little and without noticing it, I am indeed making friends.
One thing I've noticed that I really like about Americans is the "go-for-it" state of mind. I've always liked music, and in China, my friends and I would spend a lot of time singing -- but just for ourselves. Sure, we'd have dreams, but here, it's more about fulfilling them. People write songs, form bands, and (in my case) perform in musicals. Whatever the dream, it seems natural to try to achieve it. You can just start doing it, and make it become reality.
I'm someone who keeps myself very busy all the time, which helped me with my homesickness, although I didn’t have much of that in the first place. I think the most important thing to do as a freshman is to step out and try everything that's there. Don't hide in your comfortable corner and waste your chances. No matter where you are, you can always create opportunities for yourself. Fate won't come to you. You have to create your own. If I'd stayed in China for university there, I doubt if I'd have learned that.
That's basically what I'm doing now. I try to do a whole bunch of different things such as musicals, journalism, radio production, etc. I feel involved all the time and my life is colorful.
Monday, March 29, 2010
Friday, January 1, 2010
New Philosophy, New Person
When I first came to this University, I was planning on majoring in psychology. But now that I have taken a few philosophy courses, I have become very interested in critical thinking. I have always been a genuinely curious person, sometimes a bit manic at moments. In the past, this personality trait has led me into rebellion and the various unproductive activities that go along with that. During my high school years, I didn’t know who I was and found myself conflicted when trying to deal with real life situations. Things felt so unfair and I felt it was me against the world. So I thought I would pay the world back and became aggressive and angry toward my friends and family. My parents preached order and rules in the house and I finally had enough of it. Things got so bad that I couldn’t be in the same room with them for even five minutes because our relationship was so hostile.
So when I got here, I was the guy down on my knees yelling out ‘freedom!!’. Things certainly are different. Not only different but great! New classes, new friends, new relationship with my parents, and a new personality for me. I have a chance to be happy, exploring psychology and philosophy, and answering two big questions: who am I, and what is the world really about?
Philosophy was something I was always interested in because philosophers could hold a heated debate for hours without losing their cool. I admired that. I decided that I didn’t want to lose my cool anymore either and wanted to mend hurt relationships. Critical thinking removes you from specific situations and when you are away for awhile, you can reflect. You can be more open-minded and not shut your eyes to new ways of thinking and experiencing. I came to realize the world is the way you look at it.
Studying philosophy has taught me that if you do not lose many battles, you will never learn your lesson. ‘The best chess player is one who has played thousands of matches’ applies to any situation. Or as in driving a car, ‘it's the miles under your belt that counts’. Experience is the basis for all knowledge in my opinion. I am not so quick to judge people now because I assume that everyone has had their hurts and pain, and that my adding to that would not help but rather, would harm. It was only after I decided to better myself that I recognized the good in others. Now, I see the world as full of great people.
As for my relationships with high school friends, I have mended many. I broke down one night and told them how much pain I was truly in; many of them did not know my situation and how I was feeling. I apologized to them, and was able to talk things out, and I thanked them for being so patient. With my new friends at college, I have been able to be my new self and have had fun doing it; here I am accepted even with all of my quirks, and that is the greatest feeling in the world.
I think my relationship with my parents has improved as result of the classes I have been taking. There is a convergence between our ways of thinking now. Before every discussion was a debate and/or competition. But a year of counseling and my new way of thinking has resulted in my learning how to keep my cool and use, as I mentioned before, critical thinking. I have regained a lot of trust with my parents and I respect them a lot more than I used to.
Now I am a happy person, even when something tragic happens such as a bad grade or a confrontation with an acquaintance. I am happy to be alive, and explore the millions of possibilities that make up each day. My new motto is “you win some, and you lose some,” because not everyone will love you, but you should by all means value every experience, for it is how we as humans grow. If you have never failed, you have never lived.
I failed at being a good student, a good son, and a good friend. I nearly got expelled from high school due to my anger. However I have learned so much from this and I wake up every day with the expectation to do something different, and realize the truth in every situation.
I am human, and I will make mistakes, but I will learn from those to become a better person, and University has been my haven for deep thinking away from petty problems. I cherish that.
So when I got here, I was the guy down on my knees yelling out ‘freedom!!’. Things certainly are different. Not only different but great! New classes, new friends, new relationship with my parents, and a new personality for me. I have a chance to be happy, exploring psychology and philosophy, and answering two big questions: who am I, and what is the world really about?
Philosophy was something I was always interested in because philosophers could hold a heated debate for hours without losing their cool. I admired that. I decided that I didn’t want to lose my cool anymore either and wanted to mend hurt relationships. Critical thinking removes you from specific situations and when you are away for awhile, you can reflect. You can be more open-minded and not shut your eyes to new ways of thinking and experiencing. I came to realize the world is the way you look at it.
Studying philosophy has taught me that if you do not lose many battles, you will never learn your lesson. ‘The best chess player is one who has played thousands of matches’ applies to any situation. Or as in driving a car, ‘it's the miles under your belt that counts’. Experience is the basis for all knowledge in my opinion. I am not so quick to judge people now because I assume that everyone has had their hurts and pain, and that my adding to that would not help but rather, would harm. It was only after I decided to better myself that I recognized the good in others. Now, I see the world as full of great people.
As for my relationships with high school friends, I have mended many. I broke down one night and told them how much pain I was truly in; many of them did not know my situation and how I was feeling. I apologized to them, and was able to talk things out, and I thanked them for being so patient. With my new friends at college, I have been able to be my new self and have had fun doing it; here I am accepted even with all of my quirks, and that is the greatest feeling in the world.
I think my relationship with my parents has improved as result of the classes I have been taking. There is a convergence between our ways of thinking now. Before every discussion was a debate and/or competition. But a year of counseling and my new way of thinking has resulted in my learning how to keep my cool and use, as I mentioned before, critical thinking. I have regained a lot of trust with my parents and I respect them a lot more than I used to.
Now I am a happy person, even when something tragic happens such as a bad grade or a confrontation with an acquaintance. I am happy to be alive, and explore the millions of possibilities that make up each day. My new motto is “you win some, and you lose some,” because not everyone will love you, but you should by all means value every experience, for it is how we as humans grow. If you have never failed, you have never lived.
I failed at being a good student, a good son, and a good friend. I nearly got expelled from high school due to my anger. However I have learned so much from this and I wake up every day with the expectation to do something different, and realize the truth in every situation.
I am human, and I will make mistakes, but I will learn from those to become a better person, and University has been my haven for deep thinking away from petty problems. I cherish that.
Student-Athlete Realities
I went to my school on a soccer scholarship. It was 20 hours away and my parents drove me down on a Friday and left that Sunday. I showed up to our training camp not knowing what to expect. I arrived with a broken arm which meant I could run and workout with the team but when it came to actually playing the game I had to sit out and chase balls. This wasn’t exactly how I had imagined spending my first week with the team. We practiced 3 times a day and in between those practices we would either be sleeping or eating, I had never felt so exhausted in my life. And classes had not even begun.
Soccer is a Fall sport which means our season runs from the end of August until the beginning of November. During that period of time, roughly every other week we would leave on a Thursday, play a game away on Friday and Sunday and come home that Sunday night, usually after midnight. I missed some of my very first classes. You learn very quickly how to plan ahead and make sure you know what is going on in all of your classes and what assignments are due. In my first year, on one of our very first road trips I remember one of the older girls asking me if I had done one of the assignments for one of my classes. I remembered the teacher talking about it but never really mentioning it again. I figured she would bring it up again when it was closer to the due date. The older girl on my team kind of laughed at me and informed me that that doesn’t happen anymore; teachers no longer remind you of everything. You get a syllabus at the beginning of the year and that’s the set schedule. This particular assignment was due that Friday night and we were going to be on the bus until about 4pm on Friday. I started writing stuff down on paper and as soon as we got to the hotel I emailed the assignment to my teacher just a couple of minutes before the deadline. From that day on, I wrote everything from the syllabus in my planner and kept it up to date. To the normal student body this may seem like a burden, but to you and your team these types of situations become second nature.
Being a student-athlete is definitely not easy, but it is one of the most rewarding experiences. My advice: on the days when you feel like you can’t handle it anymore and you would rather just be a “regular” student, don’t give up!
Here are a few things that I came to understand during my first year as a student-athlete:
* You might have been the best player on your old team, but you no longer are. You are competing for positions against people who are sometimes more than 4 years older than you.
* You will question yourself more than once a week as to why you are doing this. (For me, these thoughts occurred mostly during 6am practices or fitness practices.)
* You need to show up to practice every time, and you need to make sure that all your assignments are handed in on time. You will very often feel like it is physically impossible to fit everything in.
* You will become very familiar with the phrase: “If you’re early, you are on time; if you’re on time, you are late; and if you are late don’t even bother showing up” You will find yourself showing up to everything at least 30 minutes early.
* You will learn to write everything down in your planner in order to stay on top of things. At the end of any activity, you will look into the planner to see what's next. Then you will learn: know what's next all the time. That way, when one thing goes overtime and the other one is just beginning, you will be able to make a choice.
* You will realize that somehow, although you have very little time to yourself, you are managing and getting through it.
* You will realize that no matter what your team is behind you to support you.
* You will eventually realize that your team is your new family.
People do combine being an athlete with being a student. The rest of your team is doing it. If you're organized, so can you.
Soccer is a Fall sport which means our season runs from the end of August until the beginning of November. During that period of time, roughly every other week we would leave on a Thursday, play a game away on Friday and Sunday and come home that Sunday night, usually after midnight. I missed some of my very first classes. You learn very quickly how to plan ahead and make sure you know what is going on in all of your classes and what assignments are due. In my first year, on one of our very first road trips I remember one of the older girls asking me if I had done one of the assignments for one of my classes. I remembered the teacher talking about it but never really mentioning it again. I figured she would bring it up again when it was closer to the due date. The older girl on my team kind of laughed at me and informed me that that doesn’t happen anymore; teachers no longer remind you of everything. You get a syllabus at the beginning of the year and that’s the set schedule. This particular assignment was due that Friday night and we were going to be on the bus until about 4pm on Friday. I started writing stuff down on paper and as soon as we got to the hotel I emailed the assignment to my teacher just a couple of minutes before the deadline. From that day on, I wrote everything from the syllabus in my planner and kept it up to date. To the normal student body this may seem like a burden, but to you and your team these types of situations become second nature.
Being a student-athlete is definitely not easy, but it is one of the most rewarding experiences. My advice: on the days when you feel like you can’t handle it anymore and you would rather just be a “regular” student, don’t give up!
Here are a few things that I came to understand during my first year as a student-athlete:
* You might have been the best player on your old team, but you no longer are. You are competing for positions against people who are sometimes more than 4 years older than you.
* You will question yourself more than once a week as to why you are doing this. (For me, these thoughts occurred mostly during 6am practices or fitness practices.)
* You need to show up to practice every time, and you need to make sure that all your assignments are handed in on time. You will very often feel like it is physically impossible to fit everything in.
* You will become very familiar with the phrase: “If you’re early, you are on time; if you’re on time, you are late; and if you are late don’t even bother showing up” You will find yourself showing up to everything at least 30 minutes early.
* You will learn to write everything down in your planner in order to stay on top of things. At the end of any activity, you will look into the planner to see what's next. Then you will learn: know what's next all the time. That way, when one thing goes overtime and the other one is just beginning, you will be able to make a choice.
* You will realize that somehow, although you have very little time to yourself, you are managing and getting through it.
* You will realize that no matter what your team is behind you to support you.
* You will eventually realize that your team is your new family.
People do combine being an athlete with being a student. The rest of your team is doing it. If you're organized, so can you.
Free Food
(1)
It's less than a month into my first year at University and I'm starting to get very busy. I have lots of reading in English, which isn't the most interesting thing. I have some calculus questions and economics assignments. Needless to say it is much different from high school. You really have to be independent and make sure you keep track of everything; organization skills will be your best friend in university.
8:00 am class also sucks. I didn't think it would be that bad, but it is. Makes for a long day. Luckily I was able to change my schedule for next term so I start at either 9:00 or 9:30 am, yay!!
(2)
As extracurricular activities are important in university I'm planning on going to the Environmental and Conservation Sciences Association's (ECSA) first meeting. I'm excited because it will be a great way to meet people who are actually taking what I'm taking! Plus, free dinner is always a bonus. There are so many clubs one can join, and if there isn’t one that interests you, you can just make one!! They are an awesome way to meet people with similar interests, and there are perks, including free food!
(3)
Only a few weeks in, I have my first statistics lab and my first Biology lab due. Then I have a Calculus assignment and an Economics assignment due, not to mention a Biology essay due next week and an English presentation!! Why does it seem that everything needs to be done at the same time?! I’m busy every week but this one is extra busy. I have my economics "term test" tomorrow at 5-6 pm, which is not a very convenient time but we don't have economics class tomorrow, so that's a plus.
(4)
I went to the Energy Club's first meeting. It seems like a really cool club and I'm excited about all the things they do. I was one of the three non-engineers -- I'm sure that will change once I recruit people!! On the weekend I went to Rez Fest. On Friday people from residence and their guests went to the water park at the huge Mall in the `burbs, which was reserved just for us. It was a fun time splashing around and soaking in the hot tub. Then Saturday night they had an outdoor stage with different bands playing and beer gardens. These events allow you to met so many more people and get to meet people you wouldn’t normally meet. Overall it was a really fun time and glad I went.
(5)
I'm a little scared for my first midterm, not going to lie, but I do have a reasonable amount of hope that everything goes well. I also have a big biology lab report due. Who knew labs could take so long? High school definitely doesn't prepare you very well. What a huge step it is between high school and university, I don't think people realize how huge until they experience it.
(6)
You can definitely tell it's midterm time here. Everyone is reading their notes on their breaks and before classes.
My statistics exam was okay, more questions than I could finish, so some guessing was involved...yikes. The calculus one went pretty well; I knew how to do the majority of it. I find out the marks tomorrow so that will be the true test! Finally, I have one more midterm left!!!!! Biology: I have a feeling this one won't be too easy, as my professor is known to have hard exams, and honestly evolution is not really my thing.
I also have to write an essay for English 123, which I'm not looking forward to since I don't like essays. The class is really fun though since we have lots of discussions and we are watching the movie "Waltz with Bashir" right now; fascinating. Then I have a term test next week for econ 101.
(7)
My best experience yet has to be volunteering at the University`s Open House. I stood at the Energy Club`s booth and talked to perspective students and their parents, and answered lots of questions they had. It was awesome to see people interested in the program -- it reminded me of myself. I helped some people understand our faculty and program better, but also the whole university life, so that was nice to see. I met people that are in my faculty and my program, which was good; everyone was very nice. I met some professors as well so I'm glad I went! I hope this event recruited some more people to our faculty, because I told everyone I talked to how awesome it is.
After reading our view book and talking to some of the professors and prospective students, I once again am so happy I'm in this Faculty. I really think this is the best there is, and I know I will have an awesome time here!
(8)
I got back my marks for the stats and calculus midterms. Stats, not so good, calc I was happy with. I had my bio midterm on Monday which was okay; it wasn't as scary as I thought it would be, but my prof is known to have exams with tricks in them, so who knows how well I really did?
Most of the marks I'm getting are definitely different from what I got in high school, which is a big shock, but for some reason it doesn't seem to matter as much how smart you are or what mark you got. Maybe I'm living in some dream world, but it's not this big competition of who can get the highest mark. That is probably due to the fact that there are up to 400 students in a class, so it`s impossible to keep up with how well you`re doing compared with everyone else. However, I do sometimes have the fear jag: not doing well enough, or even failing one of my classes.
Just another reason to keep on top of my work and study hard, and consequently have no social life.
(9)
Our faculty had a free BBQ today. They had some delicious veggie burgers, which were very popular. It was the best free BBQ I've seen yet. They even had chips and vegetables! I also looked at the "Go Abroad Fair" in the atrium. I was always thinking of studying abroad, mainly in Sweden, because I heard it was awesome and there is a program specifically for my degree. Talking with a girl who went there definitely reinforced how awesome it is there. Now I'm really excited to go, so I think I'll do that in my 3rd year!
My parents are coming up this weekend and also some of my friends from home, so I'm very excited to see everyone! But now I need to do my math assignment before I get too excited about the long weekend!!
(10)
Well I had a fairly good weekend. My parents came up from home, and I stayed with them in their hotel for most of it. Different food and different scene from the cafeteria! I got to go out with my two friends from home on Saturday night. It was really nice to see some familiar faces again, and I also had some good talks. However it seems at the time, Facebook is not the same as face-to-face with a beer. It makes me miss home a little, but I do really enjoy being here.
(11)
Aside from university-related activities, there is a lot of partying when you are here, especially living in residence. You become so close to the people who you live with that they become your family so it’s always fun going out with them, or just watching a movie. Most weekends there is a party going on, and some weeknights too! Sorry mom and dad!
The major party weekend so far is Halloween, and that means a bunch of university kids dressing up like they are children and going out! I'm going on a pub crawl with my friends. I'm either going to be a tree or a recycling bin -- fitting for my degree, I know. I have no idea how to create either with what I have, so a Value Village run may be in store. University also teaches you to be crafty and creative. Like creating something out of nothing, and of course as cheaply as possible. There are so many things to do while in university, that you just can’t do them all, but in the long run those are the things that will make the experience that much memoriable and rewarding.
(12)
I am going to be busy this week! I have my economics "term test" tomorrow at 5-6 pm -- not a very convenient time, but we don't have econ class tomorrow so that's a plus. I'm finding that I think about everything in terms of economics now, like thinking what are the marginal costs and benefits of going out instead of doing homework. A bit frightening!
And another huge bio lab, and calculus questions, and ... wait, where's my schedule? How some people can do without one, I just don't know. Truth to tell though, there are people who just forget to do something, and only find out when everyone else starts to talk at the beginning of a class about how long it took. Then they either have to accept the loss of marks, or go scurrying up to the Prof's office trying to think of an excuse.
(13)
Great news!!!
So I couldn't wait till my next entry to share this exciting news. I just received two scholarships that I applied for! Thank you to the Faculty for making it so easy for students to apply for scholarships. So with the one scholarship I already had, and these two, my tuition for the whole year is paid! Yay!!!! It seriously pays to apply for as many scholarships as you can, because lots of times no one applies.
Also I've discovered I'm a true university student now. I waited in a huge line to get a free hotdog for lunch ... how university changes you! I got a free dinner tonight for going to ECSA's meeting. Then tomorrow night I get another free dinner because I'm going to the Institute of Agrologists bbq because with my degree I'll be eligible to become a Professional Agrologist! Agrologist, not Astrologist!
I'm definitely liking this whole university experience ... well minus the homework. I need to do some serious studying now though, so talk to you later.
It's less than a month into my first year at University and I'm starting to get very busy. I have lots of reading in English, which isn't the most interesting thing. I have some calculus questions and economics assignments. Needless to say it is much different from high school. You really have to be independent and make sure you keep track of everything; organization skills will be your best friend in university.
8:00 am class also sucks. I didn't think it would be that bad, but it is. Makes for a long day. Luckily I was able to change my schedule for next term so I start at either 9:00 or 9:30 am, yay!!
(2)
As extracurricular activities are important in university I'm planning on going to the Environmental and Conservation Sciences Association's (ECSA) first meeting. I'm excited because it will be a great way to meet people who are actually taking what I'm taking! Plus, free dinner is always a bonus. There are so many clubs one can join, and if there isn’t one that interests you, you can just make one!! They are an awesome way to meet people with similar interests, and there are perks, including free food!
(3)
Only a few weeks in, I have my first statistics lab and my first Biology lab due. Then I have a Calculus assignment and an Economics assignment due, not to mention a Biology essay due next week and an English presentation!! Why does it seem that everything needs to be done at the same time?! I’m busy every week but this one is extra busy. I have my economics "term test" tomorrow at 5-6 pm, which is not a very convenient time but we don't have economics class tomorrow, so that's a plus.
(4)
I went to the Energy Club's first meeting. It seems like a really cool club and I'm excited about all the things they do. I was one of the three non-engineers -- I'm sure that will change once I recruit people!! On the weekend I went to Rez Fest. On Friday people from residence and their guests went to the water park at the huge Mall in the `burbs, which was reserved just for us. It was a fun time splashing around and soaking in the hot tub. Then Saturday night they had an outdoor stage with different bands playing and beer gardens. These events allow you to met so many more people and get to meet people you wouldn’t normally meet. Overall it was a really fun time and glad I went.
(5)
I'm a little scared for my first midterm, not going to lie, but I do have a reasonable amount of hope that everything goes well. I also have a big biology lab report due. Who knew labs could take so long? High school definitely doesn't prepare you very well. What a huge step it is between high school and university, I don't think people realize how huge until they experience it.
(6)
You can definitely tell it's midterm time here. Everyone is reading their notes on their breaks and before classes.
My statistics exam was okay, more questions than I could finish, so some guessing was involved...yikes. The calculus one went pretty well; I knew how to do the majority of it. I find out the marks tomorrow so that will be the true test! Finally, I have one more midterm left!!!!! Biology: I have a feeling this one won't be too easy, as my professor is known to have hard exams, and honestly evolution is not really my thing.
I also have to write an essay for English 123, which I'm not looking forward to since I don't like essays. The class is really fun though since we have lots of discussions and we are watching the movie "Waltz with Bashir" right now; fascinating. Then I have a term test next week for econ 101.
(7)
My best experience yet has to be volunteering at the University`s Open House. I stood at the Energy Club`s booth and talked to perspective students and their parents, and answered lots of questions they had. It was awesome to see people interested in the program -- it reminded me of myself. I helped some people understand our faculty and program better, but also the whole university life, so that was nice to see. I met people that are in my faculty and my program, which was good; everyone was very nice. I met some professors as well so I'm glad I went! I hope this event recruited some more people to our faculty, because I told everyone I talked to how awesome it is.
After reading our view book and talking to some of the professors and prospective students, I once again am so happy I'm in this Faculty. I really think this is the best there is, and I know I will have an awesome time here!
(8)
I got back my marks for the stats and calculus midterms. Stats, not so good, calc I was happy with. I had my bio midterm on Monday which was okay; it wasn't as scary as I thought it would be, but my prof is known to have exams with tricks in them, so who knows how well I really did?
Most of the marks I'm getting are definitely different from what I got in high school, which is a big shock, but for some reason it doesn't seem to matter as much how smart you are or what mark you got. Maybe I'm living in some dream world, but it's not this big competition of who can get the highest mark. That is probably due to the fact that there are up to 400 students in a class, so it`s impossible to keep up with how well you`re doing compared with everyone else. However, I do sometimes have the fear jag: not doing well enough, or even failing one of my classes.
Just another reason to keep on top of my work and study hard, and consequently have no social life.
(9)
Our faculty had a free BBQ today. They had some delicious veggie burgers, which were very popular. It was the best free BBQ I've seen yet. They even had chips and vegetables! I also looked at the "Go Abroad Fair" in the atrium. I was always thinking of studying abroad, mainly in Sweden, because I heard it was awesome and there is a program specifically for my degree. Talking with a girl who went there definitely reinforced how awesome it is there. Now I'm really excited to go, so I think I'll do that in my 3rd year!
My parents are coming up this weekend and also some of my friends from home, so I'm very excited to see everyone! But now I need to do my math assignment before I get too excited about the long weekend!!
(10)
Well I had a fairly good weekend. My parents came up from home, and I stayed with them in their hotel for most of it. Different food and different scene from the cafeteria! I got to go out with my two friends from home on Saturday night. It was really nice to see some familiar faces again, and I also had some good talks. However it seems at the time, Facebook is not the same as face-to-face with a beer. It makes me miss home a little, but I do really enjoy being here.
(11)
Aside from university-related activities, there is a lot of partying when you are here, especially living in residence. You become so close to the people who you live with that they become your family so it’s always fun going out with them, or just watching a movie. Most weekends there is a party going on, and some weeknights too! Sorry mom and dad!
The major party weekend so far is Halloween, and that means a bunch of university kids dressing up like they are children and going out! I'm going on a pub crawl with my friends. I'm either going to be a tree or a recycling bin -- fitting for my degree, I know. I have no idea how to create either with what I have, so a Value Village run may be in store. University also teaches you to be crafty and creative. Like creating something out of nothing, and of course as cheaply as possible. There are so many things to do while in university, that you just can’t do them all, but in the long run those are the things that will make the experience that much memoriable and rewarding.
(12)
I am going to be busy this week! I have my economics "term test" tomorrow at 5-6 pm -- not a very convenient time, but we don't have econ class tomorrow so that's a plus. I'm finding that I think about everything in terms of economics now, like thinking what are the marginal costs and benefits of going out instead of doing homework. A bit frightening!
And another huge bio lab, and calculus questions, and ... wait, where's my schedule? How some people can do without one, I just don't know. Truth to tell though, there are people who just forget to do something, and only find out when everyone else starts to talk at the beginning of a class about how long it took. Then they either have to accept the loss of marks, or go scurrying up to the Prof's office trying to think of an excuse.
(13)
Great news!!!
So I couldn't wait till my next entry to share this exciting news. I just received two scholarships that I applied for! Thank you to the Faculty for making it so easy for students to apply for scholarships. So with the one scholarship I already had, and these two, my tuition for the whole year is paid! Yay!!!! It seriously pays to apply for as many scholarships as you can, because lots of times no one applies.
Also I've discovered I'm a true university student now. I waited in a huge line to get a free hotdog for lunch ... how university changes you! I got a free dinner tonight for going to ECSA's meeting. Then tomorrow night I get another free dinner because I'm going to the Institute of Agrologists bbq because with my degree I'll be eligible to become a Professional Agrologist! Agrologist, not Astrologist!
I'm definitely liking this whole university experience ... well minus the homework. I need to do some serious studying now though, so talk to you later.
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Moderation
The thing I struggled with most during my freshman year was time management. In high school, after a day of classes, you do your extra curriculars, go home, eat dinner, and work on homework. You have parents to make you do your homework and teachers to check up on you. Your life is mostly dictated by outside forces.
When you get to college you have complete freedom over your life. You make your own choices and create your own experience. And if you come from a very strict household as I did, you might have a lot of trouble adjusting to the freedom.
My new found freedom in college caused me problems when it came to the party scene. Since I came from a very uptight household, I never partied in high school. My parents kept tabs on me at all times: I had to call when I arrived no matter where I was going and my parents waited up for me to come home. Coming to college, I could do whatever I wanted, wherever and whenever I wanted. It’s really easy to go out every weekend and go buck wild. Soon you realize that nothing is stopping you from drinking during the week too. Before you know it, you will have established some pretty bad habits like drinking on a Monday or skipping your first class in the morning. I'm not by any means saying don't party. Partying is fun, different from the workload stress and a great way to meet people on campus. Older friends (not necessarily friends of my parents!) have told me that this time in your life doesn't last for ever; once you're older, you won't usually have this instant bond with people you meet. Kind of a mafia that's based on age: that's how I've heard it described.
So yes, by all means, go ahead. Don't waste the opportunity. All I'm saying is that it’s important to take things slow. Ease yourself in to your new found freedom. It’s all about moderation.
If you are in Res, you are living with your friends 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. It’s insanely easy to spend all your non-class time hanging out with your friends. So it’s really important to get into the habit early on of taking a little time for yourself. Studying with friends can be great sometimes, but other times you need to take time to get things done by yourself. Study, do laundry, call your parents, or just listen to music by yourself. If you don't start taking time out for you right from the beginning, you'll get stuck in the habit of spending all your time with your friends and really getting nothing accomplished.
Another thing I ran into trouble with was money management. My parents gave me a debit card which had the 2,000 dollars on it that I earned over the summer. The same things I mentioned earlier apply to money. Just be aware of what you are spending. It doesn't seem like you are spending a lot of money when you go to McDonalds or Denny's but the money adds up fast. A good idea is to set a limit for the money you can spend for fun every month and the money you need to spend on the essentials. I never checked my account because I just figured there was no way I was going to spend 2,000 dollars in one year. At the end of the year I checked my account and discovered I had spent close to $1,500. Most banks offer online banking which is a great thing to take advantage of. If you can actually see how much you are spending you can be more careful.
I loved every minute of my freshman year but if there is one lesson I learned it was definitely to take things in moderation, and it's ok to say no sometimes (okay, I guess that’s two lessons, but they are related). Have fun though! People know what they are talking about when they tell you that college will be the best years of your life.
When you get to college you have complete freedom over your life. You make your own choices and create your own experience. And if you come from a very strict household as I did, you might have a lot of trouble adjusting to the freedom.
My new found freedom in college caused me problems when it came to the party scene. Since I came from a very uptight household, I never partied in high school. My parents kept tabs on me at all times: I had to call when I arrived no matter where I was going and my parents waited up for me to come home. Coming to college, I could do whatever I wanted, wherever and whenever I wanted. It’s really easy to go out every weekend and go buck wild. Soon you realize that nothing is stopping you from drinking during the week too. Before you know it, you will have established some pretty bad habits like drinking on a Monday or skipping your first class in the morning. I'm not by any means saying don't party. Partying is fun, different from the workload stress and a great way to meet people on campus. Older friends (not necessarily friends of my parents!) have told me that this time in your life doesn't last for ever; once you're older, you won't usually have this instant bond with people you meet. Kind of a mafia that's based on age: that's how I've heard it described.
So yes, by all means, go ahead. Don't waste the opportunity. All I'm saying is that it’s important to take things slow. Ease yourself in to your new found freedom. It’s all about moderation.
If you are in Res, you are living with your friends 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. It’s insanely easy to spend all your non-class time hanging out with your friends. So it’s really important to get into the habit early on of taking a little time for yourself. Studying with friends can be great sometimes, but other times you need to take time to get things done by yourself. Study, do laundry, call your parents, or just listen to music by yourself. If you don't start taking time out for you right from the beginning, you'll get stuck in the habit of spending all your time with your friends and really getting nothing accomplished.
Another thing I ran into trouble with was money management. My parents gave me a debit card which had the 2,000 dollars on it that I earned over the summer. The same things I mentioned earlier apply to money. Just be aware of what you are spending. It doesn't seem like you are spending a lot of money when you go to McDonalds or Denny's but the money adds up fast. A good idea is to set a limit for the money you can spend for fun every month and the money you need to spend on the essentials. I never checked my account because I just figured there was no way I was going to spend 2,000 dollars in one year. At the end of the year I checked my account and discovered I had spent close to $1,500. Most banks offer online banking which is a great thing to take advantage of. If you can actually see how much you are spending you can be more careful.
I loved every minute of my freshman year but if there is one lesson I learned it was definitely to take things in moderation, and it's ok to say no sometimes (okay, I guess that’s two lessons, but they are related). Have fun though! People know what they are talking about when they tell you that college will be the best years of your life.
University, the Ultimate Breaker-Upper
August 13th: “We’re just going to see how things go and stay together even though we are at opposite ends of the country.”
August 31st: “Yeah….. we’re breaking up.”
When people move across the country or internationally, many are left with the question of what to do about their relationship with their boyfriend or girlfriend.
What do you do when you’re going to school across the country and he or she isn’t? Do you allow the long distance factor to break you up? Is it fair to your second half that you’re moving far away and they are just supposed to wait for you to come home? Can you have a relationship without seeing each other until Christmas? Can you ever date someone who is so far away and make it work? What is needed for a “true” relationship? Or are we all just convinced that we have to be in the same city at the same time to date?
What do you do when you meet someone you fall in love with just days before you move across the country? Is geography always the deciding factor in who we love? If there truly is just one person in this entire world that is our true love, then how can we expect that this one and only person will exist within city limits? So what do we do as students when we are faced with the challenge of University? Do we all just break up with our boyfriends/girlfriends of 9 months… 2 years… five years? Five years .. that's me .. long story ..
How can you get over someone when you don’t want to break up with them but you have to? You still have feelings for them, but common-sense tells you that it’s not worth being together. Or should you try to make it work. Is “making it work” even possible? Should we be putting this much thought into a high school relationship? When our parents were our age, they were getting married at 18, 19, 20 and they already knew their true loves, so why can’t we? Why do our parents say that we are too young? So in the end, what do we do?
Are there even any right answers in these situations?
Myself? My boyfriend and I broke up a month before I went to University because I was moving across the country and he was going to attend the university in our home city. We knew five years would be too long a time to remain together from a distance. But still to this day, I miss him a lot. But as much as I love him, I think about the famous quote, "If you love something, set it free. If it comes back to you it's yours to keep." The timing just wasn't right. Maybe if we had met once we were older and had finished our post-secondary education, then we could have stayed together forever with no interruptions.
We'd started dating in elementary school and we experienced lots of things together. We went to Paris for spring break with our high school, to Disney World one summer with his entire family, and to various theme parks across the country where I tried to get him on a roller coaster with me but he was just too scared.
Our last year of high school, we began to wonder if we would stay together when I moved away; when spring came and we had to decide which university we would each attend, we started thinking seriously about it. I had never wanted to go to university in our home city but I could have stayed within an hours drive; then we could have stayed together. But I knew that going to this University was too good an opportunity to pass up. When it became clear that I was moving across the country, we both decided that staying together wasn't going to be an option.
We both felt that it would be impossible to feel like we were in a true relationship with each other since we would be so busy with homework and could only see each other once or twice a year. We are young, we are free, and we both wanted to experience university life to its fullest, without restricting ourselves from meeting new people.
Even though we knew in the spring that our relationship would come to a close at the end of the summer, I missed him more than ever when he went away that summer on a family vacation. When he came home, I couldn't picture how hard it would be to be apart from him for good. No more watching movies together, no more sharing rides to school, no more ball hockey in the drive way and I could no longer see his adorable kitten, Philly.
Now that I've survived the transition, it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. I send him a "hey" almost every single day and that gets the feelings of how far away he is and how much I miss him out of my system. Even so, I still feel I would be jealous of any girl that he is around. Our mutual decision that we would go our separate ways was sad because our 5 year adventure had to come to an end solely because of geography. But I did find once I made the move to university, being in a different city helped me get over the break up much easier.
I dated another boy for the first three months that I was in first year. I met him in the first week of classes and we hit it off from the start. He taught me to long board and shared his entire music collection of 7,000 songs with me. I absolutely loved sharing my world with him just as much as he did with me.
So here I was, at a new university, new friends, new boyfriend, new clothes and a new life. But that relationship ended as well: he wanted us to move too far too fast, and I was hesitant even though I was falling for him. He didn't know how to communicate how he felt about issues in our relationship with me, so his feelings built up until he became very unhappy. And most importantly, he wanted Sex and I didn't. His feeling was that Sex makes or breaks a relationship; my feeling went back to something my mom once told me about the book Pride and Prejudice. She said that so many people like the book; they especially identify with Lizzy, because they want to have pride like she does. I'm like that. I want my pride. I couldn't be all the things he wanted me to be.
So the relationship came and the relationship went. While it was interesting to be with someone fresh and new, this boyfriend and my ex were very different. My ex-boyfriend from back at home was captain of the hockey team and my university boyfriend hated the sound of skates on ice.
Even though my ex-boyfriend and I continued to communicate throughout this relationship, I never told him about this new boy because he had made it clear that he didn't want to know about anyone I was seeing because he would become jealous. He was happier not knowing. He knew that I was most likely out living my life but didn't want to think about it.
I wasn't tempted to get back with him, because we couldn't deal with the physical distance between us. We continued to stay in touch, and we still do. I still miss being his girlfriend and I wish that our long term relationship hadn't had to come to an end. We both wanted to be with each other but it just wasn't the time. If he was in the same city as me, I would still be going with him for sure. Even though I had those feelings and I probably always will, dating new people is just as exciting.
When it comes to the question of whether you break up or not because of school, I do not see a breakup as a bad thing. In university, you are supposed to meet new people and I believe you will find absolutely extraordinary people that you will want to share your world with, no matter what. The ex-boyfriend from back at home is still my friend and I never want him out of my life. The recent boyfriend and I are not good friends at all.
My ex-boyfriend from back home and I promised each other that if we end up living in the same city again after we are done our Undergrads, we will give dating a shot again. I can't help but look forward to that time.
In the end, it’s all positive. I gained new insights into relationships, and into the way I react to new situations. And I gained a new music collection.
August 31st: “Yeah….. we’re breaking up.”
When people move across the country or internationally, many are left with the question of what to do about their relationship with their boyfriend or girlfriend.
What do you do when you’re going to school across the country and he or she isn’t? Do you allow the long distance factor to break you up? Is it fair to your second half that you’re moving far away and they are just supposed to wait for you to come home? Can you have a relationship without seeing each other until Christmas? Can you ever date someone who is so far away and make it work? What is needed for a “true” relationship? Or are we all just convinced that we have to be in the same city at the same time to date?
What do you do when you meet someone you fall in love with just days before you move across the country? Is geography always the deciding factor in who we love? If there truly is just one person in this entire world that is our true love, then how can we expect that this one and only person will exist within city limits? So what do we do as students when we are faced with the challenge of University? Do we all just break up with our boyfriends/girlfriends of 9 months… 2 years… five years? Five years .. that's me .. long story ..
How can you get over someone when you don’t want to break up with them but you have to? You still have feelings for them, but common-sense tells you that it’s not worth being together. Or should you try to make it work. Is “making it work” even possible? Should we be putting this much thought into a high school relationship? When our parents were our age, they were getting married at 18, 19, 20 and they already knew their true loves, so why can’t we? Why do our parents say that we are too young? So in the end, what do we do?
Are there even any right answers in these situations?
Myself? My boyfriend and I broke up a month before I went to University because I was moving across the country and he was going to attend the university in our home city. We knew five years would be too long a time to remain together from a distance. But still to this day, I miss him a lot. But as much as I love him, I think about the famous quote, "If you love something, set it free. If it comes back to you it's yours to keep." The timing just wasn't right. Maybe if we had met once we were older and had finished our post-secondary education, then we could have stayed together forever with no interruptions.
We'd started dating in elementary school and we experienced lots of things together. We went to Paris for spring break with our high school, to Disney World one summer with his entire family, and to various theme parks across the country where I tried to get him on a roller coaster with me but he was just too scared.
Our last year of high school, we began to wonder if we would stay together when I moved away; when spring came and we had to decide which university we would each attend, we started thinking seriously about it. I had never wanted to go to university in our home city but I could have stayed within an hours drive; then we could have stayed together. But I knew that going to this University was too good an opportunity to pass up. When it became clear that I was moving across the country, we both decided that staying together wasn't going to be an option.
We both felt that it would be impossible to feel like we were in a true relationship with each other since we would be so busy with homework and could only see each other once or twice a year. We are young, we are free, and we both wanted to experience university life to its fullest, without restricting ourselves from meeting new people.
Even though we knew in the spring that our relationship would come to a close at the end of the summer, I missed him more than ever when he went away that summer on a family vacation. When he came home, I couldn't picture how hard it would be to be apart from him for good. No more watching movies together, no more sharing rides to school, no more ball hockey in the drive way and I could no longer see his adorable kitten, Philly.
Now that I've survived the transition, it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. I send him a "hey" almost every single day and that gets the feelings of how far away he is and how much I miss him out of my system. Even so, I still feel I would be jealous of any girl that he is around. Our mutual decision that we would go our separate ways was sad because our 5 year adventure had to come to an end solely because of geography. But I did find once I made the move to university, being in a different city helped me get over the break up much easier.
I dated another boy for the first three months that I was in first year. I met him in the first week of classes and we hit it off from the start. He taught me to long board and shared his entire music collection of 7,000 songs with me. I absolutely loved sharing my world with him just as much as he did with me.
So here I was, at a new university, new friends, new boyfriend, new clothes and a new life. But that relationship ended as well: he wanted us to move too far too fast, and I was hesitant even though I was falling for him. He didn't know how to communicate how he felt about issues in our relationship with me, so his feelings built up until he became very unhappy. And most importantly, he wanted Sex and I didn't. His feeling was that Sex makes or breaks a relationship; my feeling went back to something my mom once told me about the book Pride and Prejudice. She said that so many people like the book; they especially identify with Lizzy, because they want to have pride like she does. I'm like that. I want my pride. I couldn't be all the things he wanted me to be.
So the relationship came and the relationship went. While it was interesting to be with someone fresh and new, this boyfriend and my ex were very different. My ex-boyfriend from back at home was captain of the hockey team and my university boyfriend hated the sound of skates on ice.
Even though my ex-boyfriend and I continued to communicate throughout this relationship, I never told him about this new boy because he had made it clear that he didn't want to know about anyone I was seeing because he would become jealous. He was happier not knowing. He knew that I was most likely out living my life but didn't want to think about it.
I wasn't tempted to get back with him, because we couldn't deal with the physical distance between us. We continued to stay in touch, and we still do. I still miss being his girlfriend and I wish that our long term relationship hadn't had to come to an end. We both wanted to be with each other but it just wasn't the time. If he was in the same city as me, I would still be going with him for sure. Even though I had those feelings and I probably always will, dating new people is just as exciting.
When it comes to the question of whether you break up or not because of school, I do not see a breakup as a bad thing. In university, you are supposed to meet new people and I believe you will find absolutely extraordinary people that you will want to share your world with, no matter what. The ex-boyfriend from back at home is still my friend and I never want him out of my life. The recent boyfriend and I are not good friends at all.
My ex-boyfriend from back home and I promised each other that if we end up living in the same city again after we are done our Undergrads, we will give dating a shot again. I can't help but look forward to that time.
In the end, it’s all positive. I gained new insights into relationships, and into the way I react to new situations. And I gained a new music collection.
Dating
When I came to college I was dating my high school boyfriend, who was now a senior in high school. I was so sure things would work out when I left. For the first month, things were good. We talked on the phone, on the internet, and texted every day. However, as my work load mounted and he started his school year we talked less. You just can’t help but get frustrated when the communication slows and when you have nothing to talk about. I was so excited to be at college but I felt bad telling him how happy I was because he wasn’t there. He pretended to be interested in stories about my new friends that he didn’t know. We just fell apart and you can’t fix things over the phone. The first time I went home we broke up. It was mutual but it hurt us both so much. It was the distance that killed us.
Distance sometimes makes couples stronger; it did for one of my best friends. I think it’s important to evaluate the strength of not only your relationship but also your communication skills. All you will have are phone calls and hopefully visits. It is essential to decide beforehand when and how often you will talk. Honesty and openness are also really important. You need to be able to talk about how you are feeling and talk about things that are bothering you or the relationship will never work.
Distance sometimes makes couples stronger; it did for one of my best friends. I think it’s important to evaluate the strength of not only your relationship but also your communication skills. All you will have are phone calls and hopefully visits. It is essential to decide beforehand when and how often you will talk. Honesty and openness are also really important. You need to be able to talk about how you are feeling and talk about things that are bothering you or the relationship will never work.
Working Together
When I first got to college my number one priority was making friends. After orientation, we no longer had hours upon hours to hang out because we all had work to do. A simple solution was for us to all meet up in the lounge and do our homework together. However, every time we would sit down to work someone would start up a conversation and no one would get anything done. We were all more interested in each other than our classes. The work started piling up and we quickly realized that group study time was ineffective. Slowly the number of people doing homework together started dwindling. Some worked up in their rooms and others went to the library to find a silent corner.
Every so often we will forget why we no longer do homework together. Recently, I went to the library with one of my friends to write a paper. We were there for five hours and I got only one page done. Instead we talked and listened to music in a group study room. Neither of us are disciplined enough to sit in the same room and not talk. Sometimes you can be lucky enough to find someone that you are able to work with. I personally do not like working with people I do not know well. On one hand you probably will not be tempted to talk about your life, since the only thing you share is the class. On the other hand I often feel uncomfortable working with people I don't know -- for one thing there seem to be a lot of awkward silences. But I have found a few friends who I can do homework with and actually get stuff done. Usually they are the type of people who are really focused and will ignore me until I get to work.
If you can find one or two people who you work well with I think it is a great motivator to get things done. Going to the library is not so daunting if you have someone to go with. Even if they slow you down slightly, it makes the work less stressful.
Every so often we will forget why we no longer do homework together. Recently, I went to the library with one of my friends to write a paper. We were there for five hours and I got only one page done. Instead we talked and listened to music in a group study room. Neither of us are disciplined enough to sit in the same room and not talk. Sometimes you can be lucky enough to find someone that you are able to work with. I personally do not like working with people I do not know well. On one hand you probably will not be tempted to talk about your life, since the only thing you share is the class. On the other hand I often feel uncomfortable working with people I don't know -- for one thing there seem to be a lot of awkward silences. But I have found a few friends who I can do homework with and actually get stuff done. Usually they are the type of people who are really focused and will ignore me until I get to work.
If you can find one or two people who you work well with I think it is a great motivator to get things done. Going to the library is not so daunting if you have someone to go with. Even if they slow you down slightly, it makes the work less stressful.
Friday, November 27, 2009
Mistakes: Your Own Can be Hard to See
I failed my first year of university. So I packed my bags and went home.
Looking back, I realize my mistakes.
I had too much free time. My bus ride home from campus was two hours so in between classes, I had to find ways to fill my time. Instead of staying on campus and doing my work, I would go to the mall and just hang out. Because I had so much free time, I figured there was always tomorrow, or the next day, or the weekend, to get things done. If a due date was three weeks away, I thought that was a lot of time, so procrastinating did not seem like a bad thing. Then due dates began to pile up, test dates started to come quickly, and what was previously a lot of time was suddenly no time. Even after some failed first semester courses, I couldn’t seem to work between classes. It wasn’t that I couldn’t study with other freshmen; I guess I figured that what worked in high school would work in college.
I didn’t pay enough attention to my poor math entrance test results. Because I didn’t do well enough on these tests, I had to take prerequisite courses for the math courses required for my major. In effect, they were prerequisites for prerequisities. So not only did I figure that they didn’t count for anything (a mistake which cost me dearly), I didn’t think about perhaps changing my major to something that involved fewer math courses. In retrospect, I should have paid attention to the reason for these low marks and the reason for these entrance tests: I sucked at math and was nuts to take a major which involved so many math courses.
When I received a letter telling me that my grades were too low to continue my studies, I didn't go and talk to anyone about it to figure out where I could go from there. I can’t exactly say what my mindset was at the time. It could have been school burnout. By the time I got the letter, I didn't look too much into my options because I figured I could be done with school and just get a job. I was young and wasn't thinking of the long-term.
A year of working in a dead end job that I didn't like reminded me of why I wanted a degree in the first place. So I decided to move on. I chose to go to Community College instead of back to the university. But this time, I switched my major to something with less math and with more core classes than electives. Each semester I could check another 3 or 4 courses off of my checklist so it felt like progress was happening faster.
At the Community College, the first few semesters didn’t seem much different from high school. But as time went on, classes became harder and the work more time-consuming. Taking courses at a Community College was helpful, because it helped me ease into my next step: reenrollment at the University I had gone to before. But this time I made some changes:
I took advantage of some of the gaps in time between classes to get involved in some clubs. I started with just one but in my second term, joined another as well. Having less spare time between classes helped me make better use of the time I did have, so I got more work done. If there was no meeting on a given day, but I had some time, I'd hang out either in a computer lab or in the cafeteria and read my textbooks or try to knock out some homework. On club meeting days, I'd go to the meeting room early and do something for a class before the meeting started. I learned that figuring out the time management thing when you don't have a lot of time to play with is easier than when you have big chunks of time.
I took a different major than I had when I was there before, more along the lines of what I took at Community College. I found the new courses related to each other and related to my end goal. I enjoyed many of the profs because they taught using their real life experiences for the course material; this gave us better insight about how the content of the text could be used in the work force. Since I had struggled with math in the past, I took some of the necessary math courses online. The advantage was that when you did your homework online, you would immediately know if you got it right; it was helpful to submit homework answers on a website and have immediate feedback about right and wrong answers. Of course wrong answers were just wrong and there was no hint as to how to fix it or what was wrong, so it took a little longer to figure it out, but I think that was the point to doing it that way. Because our professor couldn't see our work, there couldn't be partial credit or the ability to say ‘look, you dropped your negative there and that’s why it’s wrong’. I think having to go back and figure it out helped a lot come test time. I liked having immediate results and not having to wait to know what I needed to do.
I knew that this time was my first and last chance to succeed. This was calculus, and the only chance I had to take the course and pass it -- I had reached my maximum semesters of financial aid so I needed to finish in May. All of the classes I had scheduled that year were 'must pass' classes. I had no wiggle room.
Looking back at my previous awful first year experience at University, I could have avoided my mistakes by actually going to the learning center and meeting with advisers; maybe they could have helped me to understand that failing these courses wasn’t the end of the world and help me develop a new plan. I could have also gotten involved in extracurriculars right from the start and given myself a reason to stay on campus rather than wander off. A little more focus on time management would have been helpful, although I've got to say it took me a while to figure out the secret to managing time - that being having less of it to deal with.
Looking back, I realize my mistakes.
I had too much free time. My bus ride home from campus was two hours so in between classes, I had to find ways to fill my time. Instead of staying on campus and doing my work, I would go to the mall and just hang out. Because I had so much free time, I figured there was always tomorrow, or the next day, or the weekend, to get things done. If a due date was three weeks away, I thought that was a lot of time, so procrastinating did not seem like a bad thing. Then due dates began to pile up, test dates started to come quickly, and what was previously a lot of time was suddenly no time. Even after some failed first semester courses, I couldn’t seem to work between classes. It wasn’t that I couldn’t study with other freshmen; I guess I figured that what worked in high school would work in college.
I didn’t pay enough attention to my poor math entrance test results. Because I didn’t do well enough on these tests, I had to take prerequisite courses for the math courses required for my major. In effect, they were prerequisites for prerequisities. So not only did I figure that they didn’t count for anything (a mistake which cost me dearly), I didn’t think about perhaps changing my major to something that involved fewer math courses. In retrospect, I should have paid attention to the reason for these low marks and the reason for these entrance tests: I sucked at math and was nuts to take a major which involved so many math courses.
When I received a letter telling me that my grades were too low to continue my studies, I didn't go and talk to anyone about it to figure out where I could go from there. I can’t exactly say what my mindset was at the time. It could have been school burnout. By the time I got the letter, I didn't look too much into my options because I figured I could be done with school and just get a job. I was young and wasn't thinking of the long-term.
A year of working in a dead end job that I didn't like reminded me of why I wanted a degree in the first place. So I decided to move on. I chose to go to Community College instead of back to the university. But this time, I switched my major to something with less math and with more core classes than electives. Each semester I could check another 3 or 4 courses off of my checklist so it felt like progress was happening faster.
At the Community College, the first few semesters didn’t seem much different from high school. But as time went on, classes became harder and the work more time-consuming. Taking courses at a Community College was helpful, because it helped me ease into my next step: reenrollment at the University I had gone to before. But this time I made some changes:
I took advantage of some of the gaps in time between classes to get involved in some clubs. I started with just one but in my second term, joined another as well. Having less spare time between classes helped me make better use of the time I did have, so I got more work done. If there was no meeting on a given day, but I had some time, I'd hang out either in a computer lab or in the cafeteria and read my textbooks or try to knock out some homework. On club meeting days, I'd go to the meeting room early and do something for a class before the meeting started. I learned that figuring out the time management thing when you don't have a lot of time to play with is easier than when you have big chunks of time.
I took a different major than I had when I was there before, more along the lines of what I took at Community College. I found the new courses related to each other and related to my end goal. I enjoyed many of the profs because they taught using their real life experiences for the course material; this gave us better insight about how the content of the text could be used in the work force. Since I had struggled with math in the past, I took some of the necessary math courses online. The advantage was that when you did your homework online, you would immediately know if you got it right; it was helpful to submit homework answers on a website and have immediate feedback about right and wrong answers. Of course wrong answers were just wrong and there was no hint as to how to fix it or what was wrong, so it took a little longer to figure it out, but I think that was the point to doing it that way. Because our professor couldn't see our work, there couldn't be partial credit or the ability to say ‘look, you dropped your negative there and that’s why it’s wrong’. I think having to go back and figure it out helped a lot come test time. I liked having immediate results and not having to wait to know what I needed to do.
I knew that this time was my first and last chance to succeed. This was calculus, and the only chance I had to take the course and pass it -- I had reached my maximum semesters of financial aid so I needed to finish in May. All of the classes I had scheduled that year were 'must pass' classes. I had no wiggle room.
Looking back at my previous awful first year experience at University, I could have avoided my mistakes by actually going to the learning center and meeting with advisers; maybe they could have helped me to understand that failing these courses wasn’t the end of the world and help me develop a new plan. I could have also gotten involved in extracurriculars right from the start and given myself a reason to stay on campus rather than wander off. A little more focus on time management would have been helpful, although I've got to say it took me a while to figure out the secret to managing time - that being having less of it to deal with.
Thursday, November 26, 2009
An Addictive Substance, and I Started with my Eyes Open
Disclaimer: I would never suggest that anyone take up smoking just to meet friends; it is a terrible filthy habit and it is hard to quit.
But …
... I distinctly remember the first couple of days of school. I did not know anyone aside from my roommate, and neither of us really had many reasons to leave the room. One day I noticed that there were a lot of people smoking outside and I started talking to them. Soon I was smoking. After that first encounter I felt like I really knew more people; when I went to lunch, I now had people to sit with and when I saw people on campus, I now would say hi. Eventually I started hanging out with my newfound smoking buddies.
Smoking was also really important for me in my freshman year because there are times that you really feel trapped in your tiny room with little to do. It was an excuse to go outside, relieve some stress and talk to people. It’s really interesting how the people you smoke with can end up being some of your better friends just because of those little special moments you spend with them that you don’t have with other people. It becomes a sort of community – most people on campus can tell at every residence hall where people will gather to smoke. Doing something together, something that lots of people frown on, really does speed up the bonding. The alcoholics and the druggies must get that from their habits as well.
One day, my roommate said he was not going to smoke any more (a good choice) and instead we came up with the idea of buying a football and a frisbee. We went outside to throw them around and surprisingly enough, other people started to get in on it. It could be a great alternative, but I do feel that people are somewhat hesitant to ask to play. On the other hand, to be part of a group of smokers, you just have to come along and join in.
I don't regret it at all. It served a good purpose for me. But I'm glad I could give it up.
But …
... I distinctly remember the first couple of days of school. I did not know anyone aside from my roommate, and neither of us really had many reasons to leave the room. One day I noticed that there were a lot of people smoking outside and I started talking to them. Soon I was smoking. After that first encounter I felt like I really knew more people; when I went to lunch, I now had people to sit with and when I saw people on campus, I now would say hi. Eventually I started hanging out with my newfound smoking buddies.
Smoking was also really important for me in my freshman year because there are times that you really feel trapped in your tiny room with little to do. It was an excuse to go outside, relieve some stress and talk to people. It’s really interesting how the people you smoke with can end up being some of your better friends just because of those little special moments you spend with them that you don’t have with other people. It becomes a sort of community – most people on campus can tell at every residence hall where people will gather to smoke. Doing something together, something that lots of people frown on, really does speed up the bonding. The alcoholics and the druggies must get that from their habits as well.
One day, my roommate said he was not going to smoke any more (a good choice) and instead we came up with the idea of buying a football and a frisbee. We went outside to throw them around and surprisingly enough, other people started to get in on it. It could be a great alternative, but I do feel that people are somewhat hesitant to ask to play. On the other hand, to be part of a group of smokers, you just have to come along and join in.
I don't regret it at all. It served a good purpose for me. But I'm glad I could give it up.
Getting Messy with Peanut Butter: Life on a Meal Plan
There are only a few things in my residence cafeteria that I really like; very basic turkey sandwiches, honeydew melon, grapes and peanut butter toast are pretty much it. I find that a lot of food tastes like the same kind of spice and just isn’t my cup of tea. So I use my meal card as a chance to venture outside of my comfort bubble and as a way to get creative with my options to create new meals that I won’t get bored with.
Peanut Butter is food and your best friend. Although peanut butter toast is a ‘been there, done that’ kind of side dish that you have during breakfast, I challenged myself to go to the next level. I eat banana peanut butter sandwiches, peanut butter on blueberry bagels, which is absolutely tasty, and peanut butter on hot banana bread. A discovery I made in one of my lectures is that a snack of peanut butter and bananas really is an energy booster to keep you awake.
Diving into Sushi. I moved from the east coast to the west coast to attend this university. Home, we have a lot of water but not a lot of sushi. I can’t say I’m a big fish person, but I still fell in love with sushi. I stick to vegetable rolls like my personal favorite, yam sushi. Like most people, I didn’t know that yam sushi was an option. It makes some breaks in between class really special and I now know how to use chopsticks. Trying something new when you are on a meal plan is a smart thing to do. It is the right time to take that risk and try some sushi or some Indian cuisine.
How do you eat healthy? If your cafeteria offers a grill or a fast food type service, you should stay away as much as possible. Yes, hamburgers and fries are yummy in all of our tummies but will not make you feel good when you are trying to sit through a class and you are falling asleep in front of your professor. Not cool. I frequent the wrap and sandwich bar almost every single day. I also spice up my oatmeal with banana chips and granola. For snacks, I grab some fresh fruit like bananas, melon, kiwi or an apple. But there are those occasions where I get my really big mug and fill it up half way with hot chocolate and then load the rest with whip cream until it overflows. Those special and memorable treats are allowed.
Remember, it’s a meal plan - go wild with creativity.
Peanut Butter is food and your best friend. Although peanut butter toast is a ‘been there, done that’ kind of side dish that you have during breakfast, I challenged myself to go to the next level. I eat banana peanut butter sandwiches, peanut butter on blueberry bagels, which is absolutely tasty, and peanut butter on hot banana bread. A discovery I made in one of my lectures is that a snack of peanut butter and bananas really is an energy booster to keep you awake.
Diving into Sushi. I moved from the east coast to the west coast to attend this university. Home, we have a lot of water but not a lot of sushi. I can’t say I’m a big fish person, but I still fell in love with sushi. I stick to vegetable rolls like my personal favorite, yam sushi. Like most people, I didn’t know that yam sushi was an option. It makes some breaks in between class really special and I now know how to use chopsticks. Trying something new when you are on a meal plan is a smart thing to do. It is the right time to take that risk and try some sushi or some Indian cuisine.
How do you eat healthy? If your cafeteria offers a grill or a fast food type service, you should stay away as much as possible. Yes, hamburgers and fries are yummy in all of our tummies but will not make you feel good when you are trying to sit through a class and you are falling asleep in front of your professor. Not cool. I frequent the wrap and sandwich bar almost every single day. I also spice up my oatmeal with banana chips and granola. For snacks, I grab some fresh fruit like bananas, melon, kiwi or an apple. But there are those occasions where I get my really big mug and fill it up half way with hot chocolate and then load the rest with whip cream until it overflows. Those special and memorable treats are allowed.
Remember, it’s a meal plan - go wild with creativity.
Your First Year Cash Flow, Yo
Money. Oh, the stress one person can gain from worrying about it. It is an important part of getting to university and enjoying yourself while you are there.
Before you go to university, you should try to research as many scholarships as possible and apply for them. The time you spend will be well worth it. The price tag on university is a big one and it goes way beyond just tuition and housing fees. There are your books which can be astronomically costly and there is also the cost of going to campus dances, going out for a friend’s birthday dinner, buying what you need at the drug store, and dealing with those surprise notices informing you that you owe more money to the university. Any financial support that you can get before you make the transition will help you out in the long run.
I went into university with a part time job which I anticipated would help pay for all my expenses while I was there. I only worked two evenings a week but soon found it too much. I decided to leave my job in order to make time for my friends, myself and most importantly my grades. One of the biggest differences I noticed when I made the transition from high school to university is that you become even busier than you ever imagined. The schoolwork just piles up. In high school I could manage a job but in university, it seems almost impossible. I realized having good grades and a degree was more important than a minimum wage part time job. Leaving my job also freed up time to join a recreational volleyball team, which is a sport I had never played, and gave me time to spend quality time with my new friends.
So how did I manage without a job? I had a little bit of money in my bank account but my “cash flow” was cut off. I was on a meal plan so I tried as hard as I could to only eat at places that took my meal card and I tried not to touch my debit card. I had to stop shopping completely. No more new clothing and no more new toys. I quickly found out how things add up. Needing new conditioner or cold medicine was all my responsibility for me to purchase and no longer my parents’ responsibility.
I stuck to a weekly budget and tried to use as little money as possible. Soon, I was dreaming of getting conditioner under the Christmas tree and a kettle to boil my water. I looked for opportunities to go to free events like speaking engagements and for free food such as cupcakes that a department of the university was giving out. Surprisingly, there are a lot of events that come with the free tag attached and lots of opportunities to find free food. I find that the university recognizes that we are students first and we do not have time to work and make a lot of money. We lead the simple life of a university student.
My mom always told me, even if your friends act like they have a lot of money to spend- they really don’t. All university students are just as broke as you are.
Before you go to university, you should try to research as many scholarships as possible and apply for them. The time you spend will be well worth it. The price tag on university is a big one and it goes way beyond just tuition and housing fees. There are your books which can be astronomically costly and there is also the cost of going to campus dances, going out for a friend’s birthday dinner, buying what you need at the drug store, and dealing with those surprise notices informing you that you owe more money to the university. Any financial support that you can get before you make the transition will help you out in the long run.
I went into university with a part time job which I anticipated would help pay for all my expenses while I was there. I only worked two evenings a week but soon found it too much. I decided to leave my job in order to make time for my friends, myself and most importantly my grades. One of the biggest differences I noticed when I made the transition from high school to university is that you become even busier than you ever imagined. The schoolwork just piles up. In high school I could manage a job but in university, it seems almost impossible. I realized having good grades and a degree was more important than a minimum wage part time job. Leaving my job also freed up time to join a recreational volleyball team, which is a sport I had never played, and gave me time to spend quality time with my new friends.
So how did I manage without a job? I had a little bit of money in my bank account but my “cash flow” was cut off. I was on a meal plan so I tried as hard as I could to only eat at places that took my meal card and I tried not to touch my debit card. I had to stop shopping completely. No more new clothing and no more new toys. I quickly found out how things add up. Needing new conditioner or cold medicine was all my responsibility for me to purchase and no longer my parents’ responsibility.
I stuck to a weekly budget and tried to use as little money as possible. Soon, I was dreaming of getting conditioner under the Christmas tree and a kettle to boil my water. I looked for opportunities to go to free events like speaking engagements and for free food such as cupcakes that a department of the university was giving out. Surprisingly, there are a lot of events that come with the free tag attached and lots of opportunities to find free food. I find that the university recognizes that we are students first and we do not have time to work and make a lot of money. We lead the simple life of a university student.
My mom always told me, even if your friends act like they have a lot of money to spend- they really don’t. All university students are just as broke as you are.
A Computer Science Major
I had already known I wanted to be a computer science major so I got to jump right into those classes and the prerequisites required for that degree.
One of the requirements was physics. I hated that class. The teacher was an immigrant who came over fifteen years ago, if I remember correctly. The class started slowly but ramped up fast. He was a genius who always wore sweat pants and had chalk all over himself. Sometimes he would forget what language he had to teach in and think out loud in his native tongue. The class always let him continue because it was usually funny for him to catch himself five minutes later.
He was so smart, he went over everyone's heads in his lectures. The class would start with an empty blackboard and by the end of the hour class, the entire Greek alphabet would be written on the board in odd combinations. And behind each letter was a formula full of other letters. The class was more of a 'learn how to learn' experience then learning physics. But I survived. In fact we learned more than we knew from this class. Not only did we learn the Physics, we also learned how to do this kind of work on our own.
In some of my other classes, I'm told people think they are just as hard as physics was to me, but those come much easier. I'm a very detail-oriented person and that helps when programming or thinking out algorithms. My teachers and classes have really developed that skill which I'm grateful for. One of my favorite teachers in particular taught a class that really opened up the door to my major and pushed me in the right direction.
I've always liked the grading system here. Some of my CS classes have three tests, three projects, and a final; that's my grade. I always know where I stand. I disliked the mandatory mundane homework assignments that I was forced to do in high school. They never suited my learning style. Now, if I take solid notes and listen attentively, I remember what I need to know. I am my own self-assessment tool before tests. The drill and the busy work are, for me, unnecessary.
The only other grading I thought was interesting was in an English class last year. It was a class with a very cultured professor who spoke his mind and never apologized for it. My friends and I in the class always found him funny and still quote him today. The class was on war stories, and then exams usually consisted of philosophical questions revolving around the topics touched on in the books or the characters’ responses to certain events.
The tests didn’t involve reciting summaries. But rather, making emotional connections from things that I used to see as insignificant, but now I see as conversation starters. I always enjoy classes like that which offer me a new way of looking at things that I never would have thought of looking at in the first place. The stronger connection you made, the better the grade. Those were some of my favorite papers to write.
You can see that I think of myself as a happy and contented student. And I am: there's such a lot that goes on around here that's so interesting, so rewarding, and so fulfilling.
One of the requirements was physics. I hated that class. The teacher was an immigrant who came over fifteen years ago, if I remember correctly. The class started slowly but ramped up fast. He was a genius who always wore sweat pants and had chalk all over himself. Sometimes he would forget what language he had to teach in and think out loud in his native tongue. The class always let him continue because it was usually funny for him to catch himself five minutes later.
He was so smart, he went over everyone's heads in his lectures. The class would start with an empty blackboard and by the end of the hour class, the entire Greek alphabet would be written on the board in odd combinations. And behind each letter was a formula full of other letters. The class was more of a 'learn how to learn' experience then learning physics. But I survived. In fact we learned more than we knew from this class. Not only did we learn the Physics, we also learned how to do this kind of work on our own.
In some of my other classes, I'm told people think they are just as hard as physics was to me, but those come much easier. I'm a very detail-oriented person and that helps when programming or thinking out algorithms. My teachers and classes have really developed that skill which I'm grateful for. One of my favorite teachers in particular taught a class that really opened up the door to my major and pushed me in the right direction.
I've always liked the grading system here. Some of my CS classes have three tests, three projects, and a final; that's my grade. I always know where I stand. I disliked the mandatory mundane homework assignments that I was forced to do in high school. They never suited my learning style. Now, if I take solid notes and listen attentively, I remember what I need to know. I am my own self-assessment tool before tests. The drill and the busy work are, for me, unnecessary.
The only other grading I thought was interesting was in an English class last year. It was a class with a very cultured professor who spoke his mind and never apologized for it. My friends and I in the class always found him funny and still quote him today. The class was on war stories, and then exams usually consisted of philosophical questions revolving around the topics touched on in the books or the characters’ responses to certain events.
The tests didn’t involve reciting summaries. But rather, making emotional connections from things that I used to see as insignificant, but now I see as conversation starters. I always enjoy classes like that which offer me a new way of looking at things that I never would have thought of looking at in the first place. The stronger connection you made, the better the grade. Those were some of my favorite papers to write.
You can see that I think of myself as a happy and contented student. And I am: there's such a lot that goes on around here that's so interesting, so rewarding, and so fulfilling.
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Bullshitting
Everyone is familiar with the term. It is an ancient practice that has been learned, refined, and passed down through generations in all types of professions. When it comes to the profession of being a student, it can make or break the grade, the class, the professor-student relationship, and the shape of things to come. But most of all, it can influence how much time you have to focus on other, more important things than research papers or PowerPoint presentations — like online gaming. It is the age-old and invaluable art… of bullshitting.
If done correctly, bullshitting saves everyone a lot of pain and anguish — in the short term, that is. The student is happy not doing any real work, and the professor is happy because it appears that the student did do some real work. To correctly bullshit a research paper, one must write with flair — with fluff, with big words and lengthy sentences that add to its sophisticated tone. There must be shit, but not too much shit. At the same time, one must remember that crafting the structure and clarity of the shit is an incredibly important part of the process— so that the shit does not, in fact, look like shit. Unless, of course, you have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about, in which case it’s better to generalize the shit as much as possible.
I used to be good at bullshitting. Very good. I could bullshit my way through a paper, sure. Papers weren’t a big deal. I could even bullshit my knowledge of an assigned reading while speaking in front of the class if I wanted to. I like to think that I still am a good bullshitter, to some extent, because a little bullshitting here and there can be a useful skill to have in life, but something has changed since I came to college. Some of the teachers — they know.
Allow me to give an example: I’m sitting in my theater and group process class one evening, and I realize that we’ve been assigned to do a brief reading from our textbook. It’s not that I was being lazy, mind you, it’s just that it completely slipped my mind. Well, I think to myself, you’ve had practice with this. No problem, you know what you’re doing. Just speak with confidence. Don’t flinch.
You’d think I would have known better than to try and out-act an acting professor. We go around in a circle discussing what we found interesting about the reading. OK, I think, all I have to do is repeat something that someone else said, but rearrange it so that it sounds different. This is easy. We come around to me, and I say something along the lines of, “I agree. The idea of using extemporaneous improvisation to form fluid sculptures in this context is something I found especially interesting in this section. I guess because I’ve always felt it would be a difficult thing to do, because of all of the mental preparation involved.”
My professor watches me as I speak, and I look back at him, confidently. After I’m done, I don’t let my eyes go anywhere else. Wandering eyes are a dead-give away. This is what it really comes down to when bullshitting— each person tries to find out how far the other is willing to go before… the shit hits the fan.
“Can you elaborate on that?” my professor suddenly asks.
Uh-oh.
“Well, it seems that I just, um, I don’t see how it would be possible for me, personally to…come up with something like that on the spot.”
Oh, the irony.
“OK,” my professor says, giving me a knowing look. He’s grinning. Yup, he knows.
Damn it.
Don’t try this at college, kids. This might have worked on your high school English teachers, but it probably won’t work on your college professors. Bullshitting should be a last resort, and by last resort, I mean that it should come even after telling your professor that you didn’t actually do the reading, study for the test, or whatever. Let me stress, however, that guessing and bullshitting are not the same thing. If you think that you might know the answer (and most of the time you’ll have at least an inkling of confidence that you just might possibly know what you’re talking about), go for it. On the other hand, if you have absolutely no idea what the answer is, and you think that you might try your luck anyway, don’t bother.
Bullshitting should be used very sparingly in life. In school, honestly, it can hurt your chances, so please, try to restrain yourselves. The fact is that you can’t make up stuff all the time, because, let’s face it, there’s only so much shit to go around.
If done correctly, bullshitting saves everyone a lot of pain and anguish — in the short term, that is. The student is happy not doing any real work, and the professor is happy because it appears that the student did do some real work. To correctly bullshit a research paper, one must write with flair — with fluff, with big words and lengthy sentences that add to its sophisticated tone. There must be shit, but not too much shit. At the same time, one must remember that crafting the structure and clarity of the shit is an incredibly important part of the process— so that the shit does not, in fact, look like shit. Unless, of course, you have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about, in which case it’s better to generalize the shit as much as possible.
I used to be good at bullshitting. Very good. I could bullshit my way through a paper, sure. Papers weren’t a big deal. I could even bullshit my knowledge of an assigned reading while speaking in front of the class if I wanted to. I like to think that I still am a good bullshitter, to some extent, because a little bullshitting here and there can be a useful skill to have in life, but something has changed since I came to college. Some of the teachers — they know.
Allow me to give an example: I’m sitting in my theater and group process class one evening, and I realize that we’ve been assigned to do a brief reading from our textbook. It’s not that I was being lazy, mind you, it’s just that it completely slipped my mind. Well, I think to myself, you’ve had practice with this. No problem, you know what you’re doing. Just speak with confidence. Don’t flinch.
You’d think I would have known better than to try and out-act an acting professor. We go around in a circle discussing what we found interesting about the reading. OK, I think, all I have to do is repeat something that someone else said, but rearrange it so that it sounds different. This is easy. We come around to me, and I say something along the lines of, “I agree. The idea of using extemporaneous improvisation to form fluid sculptures in this context is something I found especially interesting in this section. I guess because I’ve always felt it would be a difficult thing to do, because of all of the mental preparation involved.”
My professor watches me as I speak, and I look back at him, confidently. After I’m done, I don’t let my eyes go anywhere else. Wandering eyes are a dead-give away. This is what it really comes down to when bullshitting— each person tries to find out how far the other is willing to go before… the shit hits the fan.
“Can you elaborate on that?” my professor suddenly asks.
Uh-oh.
“Well, it seems that I just, um, I don’t see how it would be possible for me, personally to…come up with something like that on the spot.”
Oh, the irony.
“OK,” my professor says, giving me a knowing look. He’s grinning. Yup, he knows.
Damn it.
Don’t try this at college, kids. This might have worked on your high school English teachers, but it probably won’t work on your college professors. Bullshitting should be a last resort, and by last resort, I mean that it should come even after telling your professor that you didn’t actually do the reading, study for the test, or whatever. Let me stress, however, that guessing and bullshitting are not the same thing. If you think that you might know the answer (and most of the time you’ll have at least an inkling of confidence that you just might possibly know what you’re talking about), go for it. On the other hand, if you have absolutely no idea what the answer is, and you think that you might try your luck anyway, don’t bother.
Bullshitting should be used very sparingly in life. In school, honestly, it can hurt your chances, so please, try to restrain yourselves. The fact is that you can’t make up stuff all the time, because, let’s face it, there’s only so much shit to go around.
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Third Time Around
Lots of people at university have trouble with their roommate. I can beat most; I had trouble with two of mine.
When I first arrived, I had all these grandiose ideas of how much I was going to learn, how much freedom I had now, and all the new friends I was going to make. But once I had moved in, I somehow omitted doing some of these things.
Moving in, I was first paired to live with another random freshman. We never really got to know each other or the rest of the people on our floor. I clung to friends at home via computer and phone for my first semester and kept to myself for the most part because of how different everyone seemed to be. He did the same.
Later on that year, he moved to another dorm and another random person moved in. I had high hopes this time. But they were dashed because as well as being grungy and smelly, my new roommate was an annoying hermit. He never really left our room and always preferred two TVs on at a time. One was for the same reruns we had watched hundreds of times, and the other for his video games. I never got along with him. And again I kept to myself and clung to the idea that I wouldn't meet a group of friends like I had at home, so why bother trying to make new ones?
Since I did not enjoy living with the hygienically challenged hermit, once I was presented with the opportunity to move in with another random person, I took it. This time, I got lucky -- well, not in the way you might be thinking. My new roommate Kevin was outgoing and already knew everyone else on my floor. We had the same interests, the same tastes in music, and neither of us minded making a fool out of ourselves for a laugh. Eventually, I felt comfortable enough where I lived to really get to know my neighbors. Today, that group of people on the dorm bottom floor are some of my best friends. Even though I got lucky third time around, I wish I would have tried harder to make some of these changes before.
I had only ever felt comfortable living back home; now I felt like I had a second home here. I learned two valuable lessons by going through all three roommates. One, get to know the people that live around you. It makes all the difference. Two, don't compromise with your living situation. If you are uncomfortable it will impact your entire college experience. You have to feel at home, so once you're reasonably sure the existing situation isn't going to work out, don't delay. Find out how to make the necessary changes, and get them made.
(Come to think of it, that could be a rather good rule for the rest of your life as well.)
I've stuck to those two rules since, and have enjoyed every moment of being here. These rules aren't specific to me; I know plenty of people here and on other campuses who have had the same problems adjusting to their new living situations. The ones who are outgoing and give a sincere effort to meet new people are the ones who stayed at the schools and love every waking moment.
When I first arrived, I had all these grandiose ideas of how much I was going to learn, how much freedom I had now, and all the new friends I was going to make. But once I had moved in, I somehow omitted doing some of these things.
Moving in, I was first paired to live with another random freshman. We never really got to know each other or the rest of the people on our floor. I clung to friends at home via computer and phone for my first semester and kept to myself for the most part because of how different everyone seemed to be. He did the same.
Later on that year, he moved to another dorm and another random person moved in. I had high hopes this time. But they were dashed because as well as being grungy and smelly, my new roommate was an annoying hermit. He never really left our room and always preferred two TVs on at a time. One was for the same reruns we had watched hundreds of times, and the other for his video games. I never got along with him. And again I kept to myself and clung to the idea that I wouldn't meet a group of friends like I had at home, so why bother trying to make new ones?
Since I did not enjoy living with the hygienically challenged hermit, once I was presented with the opportunity to move in with another random person, I took it. This time, I got lucky -- well, not in the way you might be thinking. My new roommate Kevin was outgoing and already knew everyone else on my floor. We had the same interests, the same tastes in music, and neither of us minded making a fool out of ourselves for a laugh. Eventually, I felt comfortable enough where I lived to really get to know my neighbors. Today, that group of people on the dorm bottom floor are some of my best friends. Even though I got lucky third time around, I wish I would have tried harder to make some of these changes before.
I had only ever felt comfortable living back home; now I felt like I had a second home here. I learned two valuable lessons by going through all three roommates. One, get to know the people that live around you. It makes all the difference. Two, don't compromise with your living situation. If you are uncomfortable it will impact your entire college experience. You have to feel at home, so once you're reasonably sure the existing situation isn't going to work out, don't delay. Find out how to make the necessary changes, and get them made.
(Come to think of it, that could be a rather good rule for the rest of your life as well.)
I've stuck to those two rules since, and have enjoyed every moment of being here. These rules aren't specific to me; I know plenty of people here and on other campuses who have had the same problems adjusting to their new living situations. The ones who are outgoing and give a sincere effort to meet new people are the ones who stayed at the schools and love every waking moment.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Prestigious High Schools
Most of the people here in programs like mine have been to prestigious high schools, either private ones or special high schools within the public system like I did. To get into the one I went to, we had to submit a resume and take a specialized high school exam at age 13. I think around 10 000 people take the exam, and only around 800 are accepted.
The major emphasis in the school was to prepare students for universities and programs like the one I am in and then to help the students get into the program, so I was surrounded by people who were ambitious for themselves and used to giving 150%. There were plenty of extra activities to participate in, and Advanced Placement courses that I think are similar to the Baccalaureate programs I’ve heard other people here talk about. The teachers too: they expected a lot from us, and alumni would come around quite a lot and talk to us about their university experiences, and what they’d done afterwards. There were lots of role models around, lots of opportunities to push ourselves, and everyone was expected to achieve at a high level. In my final year, I went to nine periods straight through, with no lunch. So in a way being here was a luxury. And yes, there, I was at the top.
I have friends who went to other Universities closer to where I came from. From what I hear, things are much less demanding there. One Wednesday evening I got a call from some of my friends from home who were quite drunk – at a party! Like on Wednesday night!! I couldn’t believe it.
I think it must be quite hard for students who have not been to my kind of high school to handle the work. We were prepared for it, all our classmates were very hard working and those other people would not have been. In fact, the university offers a preadmission program to help those students catch up to where we were when we came out of high school. I’m sure they’d need that, or they’d drown when they got to the regular first-year classes. For me though, the work wasn’t all that much different from what I was used to, except that it is intensified and I am more on my own, studying on my own rather than with the guidance of teachers. But my high school did help me to develop the skills and the work habits I needed to get along and do well and for that, I am grateful.
The major emphasis in the school was to prepare students for universities and programs like the one I am in and then to help the students get into the program, so I was surrounded by people who were ambitious for themselves and used to giving 150%. There were plenty of extra activities to participate in, and Advanced Placement courses that I think are similar to the Baccalaureate programs I’ve heard other people here talk about. The teachers too: they expected a lot from us, and alumni would come around quite a lot and talk to us about their university experiences, and what they’d done afterwards. There were lots of role models around, lots of opportunities to push ourselves, and everyone was expected to achieve at a high level. In my final year, I went to nine periods straight through, with no lunch. So in a way being here was a luxury. And yes, there, I was at the top.
I have friends who went to other Universities closer to where I came from. From what I hear, things are much less demanding there. One Wednesday evening I got a call from some of my friends from home who were quite drunk – at a party! Like on Wednesday night!! I couldn’t believe it.
I think it must be quite hard for students who have not been to my kind of high school to handle the work. We were prepared for it, all our classmates were very hard working and those other people would not have been. In fact, the university offers a preadmission program to help those students catch up to where we were when we came out of high school. I’m sure they’d need that, or they’d drown when they got to the regular first-year classes. For me though, the work wasn’t all that much different from what I was used to, except that it is intensified and I am more on my own, studying on my own rather than with the guidance of teachers. But my high school did help me to develop the skills and the work habits I needed to get along and do well and for that, I am grateful.
Taking Stock
The term has just come to its conclusion, so there's time to pause and catch breath. The past week has seen some phenomenally nice weather; although this does seem to be the norm when coursework deadlines start to arrive. Fortunately, it promises to hang around for the next couple of days and thus will provide an appropriate setting to relax in.
The exodus from campus for the break has meant the holiday atmosphere is similarly laid back with a few mostly international, medical or mature students left to hold the fort. Unfortunately for some, the profs are all too well aware of the break, and have assigned more than enough work to fill it. There are at least three pieces of coursework outstanding and a fair bit of background reading to do. So if the weather holds, then it could make for a pleasant working environment in the atrium in a sunny spot.
So what have learned so far? I've heard it said that you learn a lot about yourself at University. This is true for me on many different levels. Arriving in September, I was nursing two ongoing sports related injures. People at work used to tell me that aches and pains start occurring about my age; I suspect it is a culmination of all the abuse that the body gets put through over time. Fortunately, the doctor at the University Medical Centre has extensive knowledge diagnosing sports injuries and the physiotherapist has been very helpful. They were able to treat my shoulder and refer me to a specialist to resolve the issues with my feet, which were found to be less than ideal for running on - but not bad going since I've done two half-marathons and was in the habit of running 10k at least twice a week for the two years.
Anyhow, it has involved me being very patient in holding off from the running, but hopefully I can back into those activities full throttle in the next academic year. Meanwhile for the first time in my life, a convenient indoor pool should keep the heart in good shape.
Next up, I was recently assessed for learning differences and found to be dyslexic. We tend to assume that as people have increasing intellectual capability, then all abilities will rise in a relatively uniform manner with perhaps some slight variation. In the case of a person with a learning difference, they will be excessively bright in some areas and relatively weak in others: the variance of those abilities is outside the statistical norm. Reading and writing at insufficient speed for University education is not uncommon; what you have to do is work around it. For example, I take a longer time than most to ingest a technical specification for a software project, but once the idea has been conveyed, I will work at double quick pace when it comes to the implementation of it.
This isn't really any great surprise to me or anyone who knows me at all well. Fortunately, the people at the Learning Differences Centre (LDC) at the University are very friendly and have expertise in developing learning strategies around the various strengths and weaknesses that a person may have. This may well mean the difference between an A and a B, but also will involve extra work on my part to show what I can do; but again, that's not a shock -- I'm used to it.
Finally, Semester 1 results got returned to us just over a month ago and it took me a good while to get used to them. After the exams, I felt I would be coming back in the summer for one, if not two, of the modules as some of the exams did not seem to go well. As it turns out, I achieved an A- on four of the modules and only missed out on that grade for the remaining one. So a decent set of results all round.
Considering my background and the approach I took during last semester, this is probably what I might have expected. I always look, well not on the black side of things, but at least on the dark grey side. But for now at least, I'm feeling quite mellow about it all.
The exodus from campus for the break has meant the holiday atmosphere is similarly laid back with a few mostly international, medical or mature students left to hold the fort. Unfortunately for some, the profs are all too well aware of the break, and have assigned more than enough work to fill it. There are at least three pieces of coursework outstanding and a fair bit of background reading to do. So if the weather holds, then it could make for a pleasant working environment in the atrium in a sunny spot.
So what have learned so far? I've heard it said that you learn a lot about yourself at University. This is true for me on many different levels. Arriving in September, I was nursing two ongoing sports related injures. People at work used to tell me that aches and pains start occurring about my age; I suspect it is a culmination of all the abuse that the body gets put through over time. Fortunately, the doctor at the University Medical Centre has extensive knowledge diagnosing sports injuries and the physiotherapist has been very helpful. They were able to treat my shoulder and refer me to a specialist to resolve the issues with my feet, which were found to be less than ideal for running on - but not bad going since I've done two half-marathons and was in the habit of running 10k at least twice a week for the two years.
Anyhow, it has involved me being very patient in holding off from the running, but hopefully I can back into those activities full throttle in the next academic year. Meanwhile for the first time in my life, a convenient indoor pool should keep the heart in good shape.
Next up, I was recently assessed for learning differences and found to be dyslexic. We tend to assume that as people have increasing intellectual capability, then all abilities will rise in a relatively uniform manner with perhaps some slight variation. In the case of a person with a learning difference, they will be excessively bright in some areas and relatively weak in others: the variance of those abilities is outside the statistical norm. Reading and writing at insufficient speed for University education is not uncommon; what you have to do is work around it. For example, I take a longer time than most to ingest a technical specification for a software project, but once the idea has been conveyed, I will work at double quick pace when it comes to the implementation of it.
This isn't really any great surprise to me or anyone who knows me at all well. Fortunately, the people at the Learning Differences Centre (LDC) at the University are very friendly and have expertise in developing learning strategies around the various strengths and weaknesses that a person may have. This may well mean the difference between an A and a B, but also will involve extra work on my part to show what I can do; but again, that's not a shock -- I'm used to it.
Finally, Semester 1 results got returned to us just over a month ago and it took me a good while to get used to them. After the exams, I felt I would be coming back in the summer for one, if not two, of the modules as some of the exams did not seem to go well. As it turns out, I achieved an A- on four of the modules and only missed out on that grade for the remaining one. So a decent set of results all round.
Considering my background and the approach I took during last semester, this is probably what I might have expected. I always look, well not on the black side of things, but at least on the dark grey side. But for now at least, I'm feeling quite mellow about it all.
House Hunting
End of First Year. House hunting time! OK it is not the most romantic subject, but a job to do.
As you no doubt imagine, this task was not the magical mystery tour for me as it can be for many others. The questions are deeply ingrained in my head: Is there a reliable and fast net connection? How safe does it feel if you go out by yourself at night? How safe is it, actually? How is heat, and in my case, aircon? Roaches, Bedbugs? Are the neighbours noisy? How far is the nearest supermarket and pub?
The University is keen to point out the number of student properties in the city is more than sufficient to account for the combined number of students in the area. That means that the range of accommodation on offer is quite consistent in price and quality -- it varies most according to its distance from the main part of the campus. Being prepared to walk or take a bike for a few minutes back and forth can save you a lot of money. (Remember, though, a pleasant ride in September will turn into a dirty and dangerous nightmare in January.) In other places, it's really important to check on the bus service. A friend of mine, in a University in a bigger city and a year ahead of me, had a bad experience: he hadn't realized that he'd need to change buses twice to get to the University in the morning and twice more back to his house in the afternoon. What took about seven minutes in the car in September took almost an hour in rush hour for the rest of the year.
Given all that, I was determined to be cautious and picky. The experience of making some bad snap judgements in the past has reinforced this way of thinking. That being said it took two days of looking and six properties before our group settled on a house. In all honesty, it is a truly cracking setup. Otherwise, I would not have been happy with making a decision in such a short timeframe and the deal looks to be a good one. We were all very much in favour of the property from the initial viewing. Although, I felt it necessary to force at least an hour of deliberation to ensure we were not missing anything obvious.
The problem that I encountered was the Guarantor form, or rather lack therefore of. As neither of my parents work (one is retired and the other is soon-to-be retired), this ruled them out from signing one. I understand that if you are a student with no credit history and no references then the need for a guarantor is justified. After all, if you are running an agency then one of your responsibilities is to find tenants who can pay and will pay. But hold on a sec, I do have references, I do have a credit history and I do have proof of funding for the next couple of years, so should that not be sufficient? It was good enough for my previous Landlords/Agencies. Apparently not, judging by the expression of one of the women in the office. She hadn't seen anyone in my situation before, and had no idea to respond. Not quite "Computer says no", but not far off. Perhaps I would like pay a year in advance? No thank you. Call me old fashioned, but I'm not keen on trusting my bank with that kind of money. Fortunately persistence and patience pays off: a word with the director of the company and sanity prevailed.
Now the place to live for the next year is settled, better make sure I'm still at the University to enjoy it :).
As you no doubt imagine, this task was not the magical mystery tour for me as it can be for many others. The questions are deeply ingrained in my head: Is there a reliable and fast net connection? How safe does it feel if you go out by yourself at night? How safe is it, actually? How is heat, and in my case, aircon? Roaches, Bedbugs? Are the neighbours noisy? How far is the nearest supermarket and pub?
The University is keen to point out the number of student properties in the city is more than sufficient to account for the combined number of students in the area. That means that the range of accommodation on offer is quite consistent in price and quality -- it varies most according to its distance from the main part of the campus. Being prepared to walk or take a bike for a few minutes back and forth can save you a lot of money. (Remember, though, a pleasant ride in September will turn into a dirty and dangerous nightmare in January.) In other places, it's really important to check on the bus service. A friend of mine, in a University in a bigger city and a year ahead of me, had a bad experience: he hadn't realized that he'd need to change buses twice to get to the University in the morning and twice more back to his house in the afternoon. What took about seven minutes in the car in September took almost an hour in rush hour for the rest of the year.
Given all that, I was determined to be cautious and picky. The experience of making some bad snap judgements in the past has reinforced this way of thinking. That being said it took two days of looking and six properties before our group settled on a house. In all honesty, it is a truly cracking setup. Otherwise, I would not have been happy with making a decision in such a short timeframe and the deal looks to be a good one. We were all very much in favour of the property from the initial viewing. Although, I felt it necessary to force at least an hour of deliberation to ensure we were not missing anything obvious.
The problem that I encountered was the Guarantor form, or rather lack therefore of. As neither of my parents work (one is retired and the other is soon-to-be retired), this ruled them out from signing one. I understand that if you are a student with no credit history and no references then the need for a guarantor is justified. After all, if you are running an agency then one of your responsibilities is to find tenants who can pay and will pay. But hold on a sec, I do have references, I do have a credit history and I do have proof of funding for the next couple of years, so should that not be sufficient? It was good enough for my previous Landlords/Agencies. Apparently not, judging by the expression of one of the women in the office. She hadn't seen anyone in my situation before, and had no idea to respond. Not quite "Computer says no", but not far off. Perhaps I would like pay a year in advance? No thank you. Call me old fashioned, but I'm not keen on trusting my bank with that kind of money. Fortunately persistence and patience pays off: a word with the director of the company and sanity prevailed.
Now the place to live for the next year is settled, better make sure I'm still at the University to enjoy it :).
My Favorite Time-Wasting Techniques
I want to share my favorite timewasting techniques. Let’s be honest …I’ve been awake since 9:30 am “working” but a lot of that time has been spent wasting time online. OK, here we go:
1) Online TV - Exam time is a great time to catch up on all those TV shows you missed out in the year! I am a huge fan of comedies, both new and old, but I just started watching a new reality show that is quickly becoming one of my favorites.
2) Movie trailers – With trailers that are much better quality than YouTube as well as a bunch of interesting Indie films, I probably spend 3-5 hours a week watching these on my computers. I have one friend who texts me every time she finds a new trailer that she thinks is interesting which usually leads to me finding three more that I want to see. It’s a bad addiction.
3) Movies – Just like TV shows, catch up on all those movies you haven’t had time to watch. Or, if you’re like me, go back and rewatch those classics films like Star Wars. Who knew there were so many AMAZING lines in those early movies. Nothing is better than a 2 hour break from Strategic Studies by watching Star Wars and analyzing the Rebellion’s Clausewitzian strategies.
4) Blogs – In addition to writing my blog (which trust me, is a huge time waster … though I hope in a good way!) I also regularly check other blogs. There’s one called “This is why you’re fat” which is probably the most disgusting and most beautiful blog I have ever seen. Where else can you see pictures of deep fried Cadbury Eggs, Junk Food Pizzas, or other culinary delights like that? There’s another that always has some crazy technological doo-dads on there, and finally my absolute fave is just a funny funny site.
5) Facebook. 'Nuff said.
1) Online TV - Exam time is a great time to catch up on all those TV shows you missed out in the year! I am a huge fan of comedies, both new and old, but I just started watching a new reality show that is quickly becoming one of my favorites.
2) Movie trailers – With trailers that are much better quality than YouTube as well as a bunch of interesting Indie films, I probably spend 3-5 hours a week watching these on my computers. I have one friend who texts me every time she finds a new trailer that she thinks is interesting which usually leads to me finding three more that I want to see. It’s a bad addiction.
3) Movies – Just like TV shows, catch up on all those movies you haven’t had time to watch. Or, if you’re like me, go back and rewatch those classics films like Star Wars. Who knew there were so many AMAZING lines in those early movies. Nothing is better than a 2 hour break from Strategic Studies by watching Star Wars and analyzing the Rebellion’s Clausewitzian strategies.
4) Blogs – In addition to writing my blog (which trust me, is a huge time waster … though I hope in a good way!) I also regularly check other blogs. There’s one called “This is why you’re fat” which is probably the most disgusting and most beautiful blog I have ever seen. Where else can you see pictures of deep fried Cadbury Eggs, Junk Food Pizzas, or other culinary delights like that? There’s another that always has some crazy technological doo-dads on there, and finally my absolute fave is just a funny funny site.
5) Facebook. 'Nuff said.
Monday, November 9, 2009
Internetless
For the past two days, my computer (Rosa) has been without Internet. During those two days, I felt so cut off from the world. Normally when I wake up, the first thing I do is stumble to my desk and check my email. And then I get my breakfast and check my email again. And then I wash my dishes and check my email again. By the end of the day, I probably check it around 80 times. Now, I had to catch a few computer minutes at the library if there was one available (a rare occurrence), or find someone in my residence whose computer wasn't in use -- also rare.
To go from checking 80 times to around 2 is a drastic change. At the same time, it was nice to have a change from my normal routine. Instead of sitting in front of my computer, I was wandering around the house while eating my breakfast, visiting my friends who I normally wait for in my room. It was nice to not constantly be signed into chat etc, and to be forced to go out to connect. Of course, I never received anything drastic or important during those two days; I realized that the time that I spend on the Internet could definitely be better spent elsewhere. So I decided: from now on, my monitor spends most of its time turned off. I will live a real life as opposed to a virtual one.
It's a Saturday night and as always, there are a lot of really different things going on. One of our neighbor residences is having a floor crawl and I'll be heading over there to serve later. A few of my friends are going to a party off campus and even more of my friends are in the lounge watching all six Star Wars movies in a row. (Serious commitment, they started at 9 am.) No matter what, there is always a plethora of activities going on here. I remember being worried because this town didn't have the clubs or nightlife that a larger city might have. But now that I'm here, I realize how great it is to be in such a small town. We have to make our own entertainment on the weekends; we can't just escape and run away to the waiting city. I think in the end, it brings us all closer together. We're all a part of this bubble whether we like it or not.
Another insight I wouldn't have got from the computer screen.
To go from checking 80 times to around 2 is a drastic change. At the same time, it was nice to have a change from my normal routine. Instead of sitting in front of my computer, I was wandering around the house while eating my breakfast, visiting my friends who I normally wait for in my room. It was nice to not constantly be signed into chat etc, and to be forced to go out to connect. Of course, I never received anything drastic or important during those two days; I realized that the time that I spend on the Internet could definitely be better spent elsewhere. So I decided: from now on, my monitor spends most of its time turned off. I will live a real life as opposed to a virtual one.
It's a Saturday night and as always, there are a lot of really different things going on. One of our neighbor residences is having a floor crawl and I'll be heading over there to serve later. A few of my friends are going to a party off campus and even more of my friends are in the lounge watching all six Star Wars movies in a row. (Serious commitment, they started at 9 am.) No matter what, there is always a plethora of activities going on here. I remember being worried because this town didn't have the clubs or nightlife that a larger city might have. But now that I'm here, I realize how great it is to be in such a small town. We have to make our own entertainment on the weekends; we can't just escape and run away to the waiting city. I think in the end, it brings us all closer together. We're all a part of this bubble whether we like it or not.
Another insight I wouldn't have got from the computer screen.
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