I am now several days (and two finals) closer to break! Just about 48 hours left on campus and I am beyond ready to go home! So far, finals week has been super boring for me, since I only have two and they're spread out, so one was this morning and one is Thursday afternoon. Stupid schedule, I know, so that's why I'm bored out of my mind and ready to escape.
The title of this post seems kinda sad in a way, but trust me, it really isn't. It's just that in the past few days, there have been some good things mixed in with some not-so-good things, so I thought I'd recap them with you and spare you more finals talk.
Bitter: Getting an incidence report for marijuana smell (which I have never used, BTW)
Sweet: Signing a lease for an apartment for next year
Yeah, so I woke up Friday morning to a blue card slipped under my door that said someone had smelled pot coming from my room. Little did I know that half the hall got the exact same warning because the RA couldn't pinpoint where it was coming from. I talked with her and obviously she knew I didn't do it, but I was basically freaking out all morning and wondering why it happened to me, when I wouldn't dream of doing drugs ever.
Bitter: Finding out I got a C on the stats final that my dad helped me with
Sweet: Getting a 99% on my newswriting final
Obviously, math is not my strong point, but this stats class was a requirement. My parents basically just said as long as I pass the class, I'm fine. I was kinda hoping to pull off a low B, but with this awful final score, I guess that won't be happening. I am really happy I got such a high score on my newswriting final, though!
Bitter: Having to come back to campus after a long weekend
Sweet: Getting to go home again in 2 days
Coming back to school after a weekend is always a let-down for me, but even more so after spending Friday evening through Monday afternoon at home, which is the longest ever! Plus it's so close to break that I almost felt like I was on break already, so it was a rude awakening to come back. But I'm so close to break, I can almost taste it!
Bitter: Still having one final (and packing, and cleaning, and...) ahead of me
Sweet: Being done with three finals,a project and an interview
Despite how much I'm looking forward to break, I was also dreading this week. Four long days of finals and an interview. But now I've just got one more final left, along with some last-minute things which aren't a huge deal. I'm just so ready to be home!
What's been bitter/sweet in your life lately?
Do any of you remember last year when I posted a few times about how far I was in to finals week? Ummmm yeah, I didn't think so, it's been basically a whole year since I last posted on a regular basis.
Basically, my first experience with college finals was hell to the acious and not because I bombed them or anything (I actually did quite well) but because the schedule was so whack. I originally had 4 finals on Thursday and one on Friday morning. Now, you know no one wants to still be on campus on Friday of finals week, let alone taking an actual final. In fact, my school only has two Friday morning times for finals, barely anyone has those times, and I was so lucky to get one of those. Thankfully it wasn't the 7:30 am one, but still. I was also a lucky duck (not!) with scoring 4 finals in the same day. While most of my friends were finished and headed home by Tuesday or Wednesday, I was stuck waiting around til Friday afternoon. Major bummer. Anyways, I was lucky enough to get one of the Thursday finals changed to Tuesday, so I only had 3 finals on Thursday, which was still a lot. Needless to say, I was super burned out by that night.
This year, my schedule is a lot better, at least in some ways. For one, I don't have any Friday finals. Sure, I'm still stuck here til Thursday afternoon, but that's one day less than last year! And I really only have 2 finals next week. I had no final in my PR class (but a stupid project that is now--thankfully--over with), my stats final is take-home and online (thank goodness!) and I did my newswriting one today. Why is it always the easiest one that we get out of the way first? Oh well, I'm way ahead of where I was last year at this time. So one down, 3 (ish) to go. I say 3 ish because the take-home one isn't like a traditional final. I know it will be super rough, but I will have my dad's help which is amazing. And I get to go home this weekend and escape the craziness that is the freshmen who live on my floor. Gosh, I can't wait for them to grow up. Of course, that'll be after I leave the dorms, of course.
I'm feeling way better about finals this time around, too. Sure, I am stressed about a couple of them, but overall I'm handling the stress in a good way.
I'll keep updating all y'all (if anyone still reads...) throughout next week as I countdown to Christmas break! I'm sooooooo close :)
Does anyone here like group projects? I thought not. You might think it's kinda fun to collaborate with others, but once you're knee-deep in the project, you probably hate it at least a little bit.
Some group members are total slackers. Or they just try to dominate the entire project, and think anything you say is useless. Trying to coordinate meeting times with everyone can be a nightmare and more likely than not, by the time the project is due, at least a few people totally despise each other.
I was assigned a group project in my PR class back towards the end of October. At first, it seemed cool and not too stressful. I had gotten to pick my group members, and they were all girls I talked to in class every day. So we'd get along great, right? Not exactly. Once it came time to start meeting and working on the project, some snags came up on my end. They always wanted to meet at night--sometimes I'd have work right before and by the time I'd get back home, I was tired and hungry and had to work on homework, so nights were out of the question. Also, I have no car, so I was not about to haul my butt across campus in the dark and cold. I met with them once on a Sunday afternoon, but we didn't get much done. I've noticed that they claim that they've gotten a lot done at meetings, but obviously they weren't the ones I've been to. I've been to 3 (or 4 ish) so far and they've all devolved into just sitting around and not doing anything.
So why not do work outside of the meetings? Sounds fine to me, that way I'm not wasting my own time. But the group member claimed there wasn't much to do outside of meetings, and she passive-aggressively called out some members of the group for not always attending meetings. As far as I know, only 2 of the 6 of us have attended every meeting, so I'm not alone in my "ditching".
I met with them 2 more times, and felt like no one cared about my ideas. At this point, it's the end of the semester and I'm just done. So if they're not gonna listen to me, fine, I won't share any ideas. I dreaded going to the meetings, but I did anyway so no one could dock me points. Truth is, I feel like they're going to anyways. I think they secretly hate me and my partner, the girl I worked a lot with. We've both not been able to go to meetings, and we haven't done quite as much work as some of them, but only because our assigned part was pretty vague and hard to research. So...not our faults. Actually, I know they hate the other girl. They've said behind her back that she hasn't done any work, which isn't completely true. They've stuck up for my efforts somewhat, but who's to know what the heck they're saying about me when I'm not there? Girls can be so bitchy sometimes.
Okay but here's the thing--one (or really more like 2 or 3) group members have kinda taken control of the whole thing. I feel like 2 in particular are really anal, and don't want other people "screwing" them up. Fine, but then don't blame us if we aren't as big a part of the project. Plus, how about you actually listen to what other people have to say. Especially regarding meeting times. 6 members is a fairly large group--chances are, not everyone will be able to meet every time. I've tried saying I can't meet at night, but no one cares, and they still hate me for not making the meetings. I know everyone has a different class schedule, but cut people some slack. And, don't waste their time when they do go to the meeting. Sure, I love laughing about a funny story or swapping juicy gossip, but not when I took time out of my schedule to meet for some project. Save that for later.
Basically, I cannot wait for this semester to be over! Our presentation was today, and it went pretty well, but sadly, that's not the end of it (I wish). We might have to meet one more time to finalize the paper, because that's not due for a week. Oh gosh, just kill me now! Not really, but I'm so over working with these people. Not to mention, I'm so done with school in general and I'm kinda swamped this week. So if we don't meet in the morning or afternoon...well, tough luck for them, because I'm not meeting again at night just to regret wasting all that time. And if my grade suffers a little (because the peer evals are only one small part), then whatever. I've done well in the class so far, and I'm just done with trying to please people I'll probably never see again.
How about you--what do you think of group projects?
Hey guys! Soooooo does anyone still read this blog? I kinda forgot about it after second semester of last year. There's a ridiculous amount I could recap on, but I'm not going to do that because it would take forever. It's been almost a year since I updated, so let's just move on to the present. Basically, I'm a sophomore now (wooooo!) and still in the dorms, but in a much nicer, newer one. I have the room all to myself--no more pesky roomie to deal with--and a bathroom that's shared with only 2 other girls. I'm livin' the dream life, no? Honestly, I really do wish I was living off-campus this year, and I wish I had a car, but I'm hoping those things will come next year. This year is a HUGE improvement over last, so I'm thankful for that.
Anyways, by the title of the post and the day on the calendar, I'm pretty sure you know what time I'm talking about--the end of the semester. A student's most dreaded and most looked-forward-to time of year. As usual, I'm counting down the days (and hours!) til I can escape school for a month-long break.
Tomorrow is the start of my last week of classes, and I just can't wait to get them over with. Unlike the last week of classes of the past, this one is chock-full of a lot of other stuff, namely a project presentation tomorrow and my first final on Thursday. Eeeeek! I'm actually just excited to get one out of the way--this year's finals week is a LOT less stressful than first semester of last year's. On Friday, I'm hoping to head home for an extended weekend, mostly so my dad can help me with my stats take home final. I am totally stressing about that one, but we'll see what goes down. I can't wait to go home, even if it's just for 3 days. It might seem weird, going home for 3 days, and then coming back to school for 3 days, and then going home again for a month. But whatever, I miss my family a lot (having your own room in a hall filled with immature freshman can get lonely and boring) and hopefully this mini-break will refresh me for my last couple of finals next week.
Hopefully, I'll remember to update you guys on what goes down this week and next. It should be pretty hectic, but that'll hopefully make time fly, right?
Most people go to college to "get more knowledge", right? Well, that knowledge isn't just found in the classroom--spend a decent amount of time on campus and you'll learn a lot of things you probably didn't expect to. Here are a few of the suprising life lessons I've come to realize in my first semester as a college student.
- If at all possible, try to schedule your classes later in the day. Of course, if you are a morning person (who is?) then it's fine to take that 8 am lecture on organic chemistry. But most of us, whether we stay up super-late or not, would prefer classes more centered in the afternoon. This semester, I was lucky enough to not have any class before 11. And even though that pushed some of my classes a little past 5 pm, I didn't really mind. Oh, except when it started getting really dark after daylight savings time. But it still wasn't a big deal for me. You'll probably concentrate better later, anyways.
- Make friends with people who have cars (if you don't). This year, I don't have a car on campus. Why? Because at all the orientations I went to before starting here, they said cars aren't needed unless you live off-campus. Not needed, no, but very very convenient. Like, say, you want to grab some Starbucks on your way to class, or hit up Chipotle on the weekend or drive home whenever you want to (if you live in-state like I do). So be nice to the people who have cars and they'll probably be willing to drive you around, especially if you reimburse them for gas. But don't just be nice to get a free ride!
- Earplugs, fans, iPods and sleep masks work wonders. An iPod of some sort is kind of a college essential, but aside from pumping you up before a night out or keep you awake on your early morning walk to class (see #1), it also helps when you want to block out noise if you're trying to sleep. People out in the hall can get kinda loud, not to mention your roomie might not keep the same sleep schedule as you. That's why the other three items also help you fall asleep faster.
- Take a break every once in a while. Especially with finals coming up (my first one's in 4 days...yikes!) you deserve a refresher with all that studying. So grab dinner with a friend some place you've never been (or an old favorite), catch up on missed episodes of your fave TV show and just take some time to chill. Even using this time to sleep will help your stress level stay down.
- Go to every class. Really. It's not that hard, actually. And really, if you don't go to class, what are you going to do? Probably not study. So just make a little effort and go to class--you'll get all the notes first-hand, not to mention the professor's side comments (which are usually pretty important) and you can catch up on the gossip of the day. If you're sure the class will be boring and pointless, bring along some homework, a magazine or your iPod. But most of the time, class is worth it.
- Getting dressed for class is always good. Yeah, I know that I haven't had to wake up before 9 this entire semester, but I've always taken the time to dress nice, put on makeup and do my hair. Showing up every day in sweats and a ponytail may be easy, but it shows everyone you don't care. Oh, and just think of the possible compliments you may get on your amazing sense of style if you take a few minutes to pick out a cute outfit. It'll really help you feel motivated in class.
- Communicate. With your professors if you're falling behind in class. With your RA if you're feeling homesick. With your roommate if any issues come up. For much of the semester, I struggled with voicing my opinions and it ended up not so good. Once the lines of communication were open, everything just felt better. So do it before it's too late.
- Be responsible. Yes, you're on your own, with no one to really tell you what to do. Does that mean you should party every night or never do your laundry or skip class or pig out every day in the dining hall. NO! It means that you have to start acting like the adult you are: taking out the trash when it gets full, doing the laundry occasionally, cleaning up after yourself, going to class and doing the assignments, having fun but not letting it mess up your future career plans.
So there's the list! Of course, there's tons more things I have learned, and will learn in future semesters, but these seemed the most important. If you've been in college (or are in college), what important life lessons have you learned outside the classroom?
