College Should be Cancelled Anytime the Temperature is Above Fifty

Where does the time go? Probably the same place my motivation went. Out the window. I wish I could go to two classes and dedicate my time and effort to them.  They are Political Science and English. All of my other classes seem pointless, especially math. The professor is a great guy, but his voice is so monotone it is a struggle just to stay awake. My friend meets me by the elevator every class and convinces me that I should go. His job is only going to get tougher as the weather gets nicer. There is a park right next to campus and I love taking afternoon naps in the sun. This park plus math plus nice weather equals a disaster waiting to happen in terms of my attendance. This of course is only in my dreams because I would feel so guilty if I cut class, but boy is it tempting. Just a quick story. Last week my stress management teacher told us to clear our desk. I put my books on the ground. This was a bad idea since I would forget my head if it was not attached to my body. I'm sure you can guess what happened. I forgot them. When I went back to class two days later to get them they were gone. When I went to class  this Wednesday I asked a student if she had picked them up as she was in the classroom after me. When she said she hadn't I figured the books were gone forever. Fifteen minutes into class a security guard came in the room. I figured he was coming to tell us class was cancelled since the professor still had not shown up. Instead he said "Is anyone in this class missing books?" I guess it was my lucky day since everything was exactly how I left it. For once I avoided an adventure rather then going on a wild goose chase to find the books. This is surprising as everyday is an adventure.

Science hasn't changed

For the first time all year, I found myself completely zoning out during class, and, of course, it was during my science class. I'm doing all my work in the class and doing my best to pay attention, but a college science class is still a science class, and it's still over my head. I know it could be a lot worse, and I'm glad my professor is very understanding of the fact that not everybody is as passionate about what he's teaching, but whenever he begins speaking in thicker jargon and only a few students in the room really follow what he's doing, I find it really hard to pay attention.
But aside from that part of that class, everything else is going fine. I gave my first presentation of the year (with a partner) and it went smoother than I could have imagined. I was clearly overprepared, and my partner and I were more than ready to talk past our 15 minute time allotment. For my fiction writing class tomorrow, my story is being workshopped, and I'm pretty nervous since I wasn't particularly proud of the story. I've never written in the third-person for fiction before, and I think the story clearly reflects that, so I hope the class goes easy on me.
A thing that has been nice about this semester is that, in the absence of many of my friends who have moved into different buildings, I'm meeting more people. It's nice to know that the friend-making process doesn't simply end after the first few weeks, and people are willing to branch out as the year goes by.

They Told Me I Would Change My Mind

This week has been full of flashbacks. Surprise quizzes, moving students to the front of the room so they pay attention, me being quiet for two hours in order to prove a point... o wait that has never happened before and my personal favorite the conversations where people told me that I would change my mind about my career, a minimum of three times. I had always thought that people were wrong about the last one, especially since I had wanted to do something with the law since I could remember. It turns out I was wrong. I am taking a math class and the current chapter is logic. My professor is constantly saying how lawyers take numerous logic courses as it is the basis for their career. I hate it. I don't want to use complex, verbose language just to get what I want. I don't want to try to persuade people to agree with my point of view, but rather come together to find solutions to complex global problems in hopes of making other people's lives better. If anyone knows a career that fits these objectives please let me know. It looks like my college career will be full of work and adventure if I change my major. This is not surprising as everyday is an adventure!

Same as it ever was

At this point, I've resumed the same routine I had last semester, except perhaps with a little less writing. Looking back on my portfolios from last semester, I can't help but notice how heavy they are with paper, and when I look over my syllabuses for this semester it doesn't look like I'll match last semester's weight. When I compared the work I did last semester to what my friends were doing, both here and at other colleges, I also found that it was considerably more writing based than most, which I suppose might have been because I took 2 writing classes and two analysis-heavy classes. Though I may be getting small break from heavy writing, however, that doesn't mean that this semester will be a breeze. What I will have to do, that I've done little of previously, is give presentations. I don't have a lot of experience in giving presentations, so I'll probably pick up on that skill, or at least I hope I do.
The only other major change of this semester is adjusting to how often I see my friends. I had quite a few friends that were a year ahead of me, and when the new semester started, many of them moved into different housing that is both removed from the main area of campus and off the meal plan. Not that it is a major hassle, necessarily, since we all have phones and know where each other live, but spontaneously planned events have significantly decreased, mostly due to the fact that I don't see these people daily like I used to.

I Should Have Said No

Is it May 15th yet?  It certainly feels like it should be. This week has been full of school work, meetings and tutoring. I think the the most beneficial skill I could learn in college is how to say no. I have not been in college long enough, however because I could not say no to anything this week. I went in early to tutor someone in economics, attempted to help someone in Spanish and even tried to help my friend in physics. Anyone who knows me knows that I HATE physics and that it was the worst class I took prior to college Spanish. Those two are tied for my least favorite classes ever. I also told agreed to make a Black History Month pamphlet for the club I am president of. If Stress Management can work for me, it can work for anyone. I guess without the stress though life would be boring. That would not be good because everyday is an adventure! 

Where Have the Last Two Weeks Gone?

Sorry I have not written in so long. I have no idea where the time went. My sister warned me that Spring semester was more difficult than Fall semester. She was right. I feel like all I do is work and yet I am always behind. The sad part is that it is only two weeks into the semester. I do not know what I am going to do during midterms and finals. I have decided that I am going to live just for today and take it one day at a time. I heard this philosophy when I went to an NA meeting last night. Don't worry college has not driven me to drugs, I had to go for my stress management class. It was one of the most educational and emotional experiences of my life. I am so glad I went. It gave me a reality check. It was funny because I was nervous that people would be angry that I "intruded" on the meeting. I could not have been more wrong. It was the least judgmental environment I have ever been in. Everyone was so welcoming. 

Speaking of environments, that is probably the biggest adjustment I've had to deal with both in terms of the weather and social environment. It has been snowing frequently here and I've had to walk across campus with snow on the ground several times. As you can imagine snow and walkers do not mix especially for someone who is as clumsy as I am. My social environment has also changed. For most of my classes I have a new professor and new classmates and my classes are in different buildings. I feel like it is my first day of kindergarden again. If only the work were as easy as it was back then. With all these changes I will have to take it one day at a time and be ready for adventure, because everyday is an adventure!   

New Semester

New classes started on Thursday, and I've already dropped one class and registered for another. It was a class on Visual Culture, which was supposed to be kind of a prerequisite for film classes, but I knew from the instructor's introduction and reading the syllabus that there was no way I was going to enjoy it. I saw phrases like "representation in media" and the dreaded "postcolonialism," so I decided that it would be in my best interest to not endure the same nonsense as my Postcolonialism class last semester. I immediately dropped that class and registered for The History of Love and Dating in the US, which sounded much more interesting. I've only taken one class of it so far, and all we did was watch Woody Allen's "Annie Hall", which is one of my favorite movies. I glanced over the syllabus, and it seems like a far better class than the Visual Culture. I'm also in Journalism in Crisis, Writing Fiction About Families, and Local Food Systems. The first two are two topics I'm very interested in and I've already really enjoyed taking. The last one is simply a requirement fulfillment, but the professor seems great and the topic is more approachable science subject than, say, Human Gene Cloning. I'm liking how, compared to my last semester's beginning, this has been much less hectic. Starting last semester was tough because I was not only taking new classes, but adjusting to a new way of living entirely. Now that all I really have to worry about is new classes and buying books, I'm finding the transition much simpler. I also have a feeling that this semester will be considerably easier than the last one, in terms of the reading and writing I'll have to do. The jury's still out on Local Food Systems though - I've never been one for science, so I hope it won't be too complicated.