My College Life

It’s raining, it’s pouring, and Starbucks is roaring!!! Anytime I step foot into the Starbucks on campus, there is always a line of at least three people in front of me. In between classes is the worst time to go to Starbucks because the line is out the door and it takes about 15-20 minutes to get your morning, afternoon, or nighttime coffee. Being in college, I need a coffee about three or four times a day. I am always craving coffee because I am constantly feeling exhausted.

I think college is the time where all of our coffee addictions start. There are many reasons we become addicted to coffee in college, the main probably being that we just don’t sleep. There are nights we have to stay up until 3 am writing a last minute paper. Those are always the nights we have to get up for an 8 am the next day. Being in college is very tiring. Sitting in class all day makes me so tired that sometimes I just can’t even focus on the accounting problem that the teacher is explaining… I just zone out. Those are the classes we know to bring a coffee with us.

At this point in the semester college is insane. There are exams, projects, and finals to get ready for. There are a million things to be done but we can only do one at a time. It gets rough knowing that we have so much to do and hardly enough time to get everything done. Professors think that we don’t have other classes than their specific class. Therefore, they give us more work than is necessary. If it weren’t for the Starbucks we would probably be lost.

This also goes for the Einstein Brothers Bagels on campus. For some reason, everyone craves a bagel and coffee from Einstein at the same time of the day. The line is always around the corner of Larry’s Market in Lawrence Hall. When you want to get a bagel for lunch from Einstein, you have to make sure you have about a half hour to spare because it takes about that long at any point in the day. If there is one important lesson I have learned from being in college thus far it’s patience. If you have no patience in college, you will never get fed or have your coffee.

The other day I met some really awesome people at the most random place ever. I went to a break dance club meeting, which is not like me at all. However, I had a blast. The music was loud and the people were extremely nice and welcoming. Everyone was breaking (the term break dancers use to describe their dancing) and laughing, having such a great time. They were so nice to me, and it was the most unexpected place for me to be but I ended up meeting some great people who are becoming my friends.

My best friend does breakdancing and she invited me to one of her meetings. At first I was skeptical because I thought I would just feel awkward and I have no rhythm at all so I knew I was not going to dance. I didn’t want to feel out of place or in the way there. I met all of her friends from the club and they were so welcoming and fun that I forgot about being nervous and just enjoyed being there. I felt like they actually wanted me there and that was such an awesome feeling, especially since I was so anxious to go there in the first place.

I think everyone gets that anxiety built up about going to a new place and meeting new people. This happens especially when you’re going to a club meeting for the first time and you may only know one person. It’s hard to get adjusted to that new setting, but once you’re at the right club with people that are just like yourself, it makes all of that anxiety go away. The only way I have found to get rid of that anxiety is to face it head on and practice being the “new” person. By practicing being the “new” person, I mean opening yourself up to new opportunities and allowing yourself to be comfortable in your own skin.

I always try to remember that at one point everyone felt the way I did when I first joined that new club or job which usually helps my anxiety go down as well. Being at West Chester University, I am constantly faced with new challenges like this and it just makes me become more comfortable with myself. I usually try to remember why I am going to that meeting or event and then take it from there. When I went to the break dance club for the first time to take pictures I felt so comfortable almost immediately because of the open arms they showed me. I am thankful for these opportunities and for being able to make new friends and meet new people.

When I was younger I thought a Veteran was someone like my Grandfather, an older man with gray hair, pale wrinkled skin, and tons of stories lingering in his head. Now that I’m older I view a Veteran as a completely different kind of person. To have the bravery to put your life in jeopardy for this country just because you want to – is an honorable choice. As a young adult I view everyone in the Armed Forces with such respect and dignity for putting their life on the line to defend our country. Some believe war is stupid and doesn’t solve anything, I am not disagreeing with those people, but I also know that war got this country to where it is today and without those soldiers fighting in battle America wouldn’t be what it is today.

I know many soldiers and veterans, some old and some young, but I have yet to hear any of them say that they wish they never would have joined the service. A lot of my friends in college, out of college, and even in high school, are enlisted. I believe those young men and women should be honored and treated with the utmost respect. I look up to those young men and women and appreciate that they have the strength to be in battle.

On Veteran’s day we honored a Veteran from World War II, Harry Jamison, and he said that he feels that our veterans and soldiers are not appreciated enough. I sadly agreed with him. I think it’s mostly people my age who do not appreciate our Vet’s or soldiers. We need to make it a point that we are thinking about them, that they are in our thoughts every day, and that we appreciate everything they have done or are currently doing for us. There is no reason that we can’t solute a soldier when we see her in uniform, or thank a marine for his service in Afghanistan because those are the men and women that are going out there fighting for our country.

Luckily, I have not lost anyone that has been in the services and I am so thankful for that. However many of my friends have lost their friend(s) in battle. One of my friends from high school is a marine, and while he was in Afghanistan his Humvee was bombed and his platoon lost a man. My friend was telling this story to me and at the end he said that people were outside of the funeral home protesting the war. Not only did this poor family lose a family member but they had to deal with protestors at the funeral. I was shocked listening to this story and still am.

We need to honor our troops for their sacrifices, bravery, and loyalty to this country. As an American, I appreciate my troops and I am very happy in doing so. Thank you to all of the Veterans and troops who have served in the forces and who are serving now. You’re bravery is very much appreciated.

Can you smell the snow tonight? Oh yes I can! Although some people fret about the winter and get nervous about driving in the snow, I am always excited about this change of season. I enjoy being out in the snow, watching it fall from my warm, cozy couch with Swiss Miss hot chocolate in hand. I enjoy wearing my UGG boots, with a warm sweater and a jacket over top, with a scarf around my neck and a hat on my head.

I snowboard, so it gives me something to look forward to this time of year. Although I haven’t been boarding in a couple years because I hurt my knee; I am going to get back into it this winter. Taking a snowboarding lesson is one of the first things on my list of things to do this season, along with sending out Christmas cards, and decorating my apartment with holiday cheer. Growing up, decorating my house was always my favorite thing to do to get ready for the holidays. My sister, mom, and I would always play Christmas music while decorating, dancing and singing to all of the best Christmas songs. I’m one of those people who would prefer to decorate the house about the 2^nd week of November, although I know many people are completely against that. Well, I apologize ahead of time because I need to get the lights and holly  up so I can hit the slopes.

I learned to ski when I was younger, and quickly grew tired of it and got into snowboarding with my friends. We would go every Thursday for student night and usually would go at least once during the weekend. It was the best way to relax and have fun with my friends. Now that I’m in college, I am going to start snowboarding with my college friends. Instead of going for a few hours to the small mountain near my house, we’re going to take day trips to the larger mountains in PA. I’m excited, it’s a fabulous way to relax and let out some steam with your friends. Snowboarding is great for people of all ages.

However, snowboarding isn’t the only thing I do in the late fall and winter to relax… Even though I’m in college I still enjoy sledding, snowball fights, and making snow angels with friends. Last year a couple of my friends and I made a snowman in the quad (the area in the center of all the buildings on campus) which was fun. Someone built a huge snowman in front of my dorm last year as well. We had plenty of snow for it. It’s also fun to go to Starbucks and catch up with a friend over a Peppermint Mocha latte or play card games with friends when there’s nothing else to do. I think the best go to winter time activity is watching movies. There is something extremely comforting about cuddling up on your couch, with a comfy blanket, a good friend, and a great movie. So don’t be afraid of the change of season, embrace it!!!

Is it just me, or does it seem like everyone feels obligated to have every moment of their day filled? Society tells us we need to be busy, because if we aren’t busy then we just simply aren’t living. I think it’s a lie. That’s right, I’m questioning the status quo about how busy I actually have to be before they say that I’m too busy. I’ve talked with many of my friends about this busy life phenomenon and I live a busy life myself. I know that each of my friends goes to bed at night absolutely exhausted from their day. We are all constantly busy with the fast paced motions of our daily lives.

College is supposed to be our time to relax, party, make mistakes, and focus on our grades. However, we’re constantly bombarded with these ideas that we need to be involved in eight different clubs, join sororities, work two jobs, and have every second planned in order to get the most out of our experience at school. In reality, balance is what we need, not ten different responsibilities.

This semester I have taken on numerous responsibilities which make my daily life a hectic nightmare. I currently have everyday planned, and if I don’t have a day planned I feel obligated to find something to do in order to make sure I have a purpose for that day. What if I want my purpose for the day to be relaxing, or catching up on my favorite TV shows? Well, I would then be considered lazy and that is unacceptable to our society. For some reason college students are often pinned as lazy if they decide that one day they just aren’t going to do anything except catch up on Jersey Shore, drink beer, and hang out with their friends.

I think this lifestyle is the answer to everyone’s prayers. We all need a set day or time during the week which we have no set obligations. No homework, no schoolwork, no thinking – just breathing, laughing, and enjoying ourselves. I find that my friends often fill their schedules to the brim with clubs, activities, work, and Greek life. We are so focused on being involved that we forget this is the only time in our lives we are going to be able to dedicate that entire day to relaxing. Soon it’s only going to be a couple of hours, and when we have kids it’s going to be moments.

I must include myself in on this crazy lifestyle binge because I myself have a crazy lifestyle. I have four jobs (2 of which I work at least once a week), I am involved in three clubs (one of which I am on the executive board), and I have an internship. You’re probably thinking that I am very involved and hold a lot of activities at school – yes you’re right, but there are students here at WCU that are even more involved than I am! I live with two other girls and we rarely see one another during the day. Another one of my friends works 30 hours a week and doesn’t have any time to be social. We all have one thing in common – coffee is our best friend.

So call us lazy, unmotivated, or boring – but in the end we’re balanced. We’ve got our relaxing time, our fun time, and our serious time. And in the end we’ll be more mobile, motivated, and exciting because we get to take our day to relax and our night to have a good time.

My mom ias right about 99.99% of the time. Remembering this reminds me of a time when I was in 1^st grade and was as invincible as Tommy Pickles from Rugrats who always got away with everything and never got hurt! I think we all feel invincible until we grow up and realize we aren’t, which symbolizes the end of our Rugrats days.

So, back to my story, my family and I were at a water park, and there was a sign that said “Do not go down the water slide on your stomach”. My mom warned me not to do it, but I did it anyway (I was a big kid now! After all, I wasn’t wearing Pampers anymore.) Boy did I pay for that big girl mistake! I went down that water slide and ripped up my entire stomach at the bottom on the rough part of the slide. I remember the burning sensation I got when my parents tried cleaning it. They used hydrogen peroxide and it burned bad enough that I remember this story almost 15 years later.

Usually my mom isn’t the only one that is right though. My parents have some sort of team effort. When one of them predicts something, the other can usually predict what will happen right after that. It’s a true gift. Do all parents have this gift? Before I decided I was going to attend West Chester University, my mom and dad both told me that I would end up there, that it would be a mistake not to go here because they knew I would love it. They were right again! I could have called that one.

This fall marks my first semester in an apartment, my first time ever living on my own. Whenever someone asks me whether I like living in the apartment or on campus better I always say on campus. It was much easier when all I needed to worry about was keeping my room clean. Now I have monthly bills (which seem to show up much more frequent than just once a month), need to make time to go grocery shopping, and I’m actually starting to feel like a grown up.

It’s a scary process, going from worrying about only a handful of things to worrying about a bunch of different handfuls of things. I think a lot of college students feel the same way. I’m finally starting to feel a little more settled here though. I’ve been in my apartment for 2 months now and each day I find a new place to put something, which makes more sense than its original place. It’s a good feeling knowing that I’m on my own and providing for myself with a little help from my parents, instead of completely relying on them. Without the direction they provided me, I don’t think I would feel as comfortable though. My parents really provided me with the knowledge I needed when I started living on my own and although we may not thank our parents as much as they deserve it we all appreciate what they’ve done for us.