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Annoying Things About University

Continuing with my Back to School series, I thought I’d write about the most annoying things I encounter in university. Most universities in my experience offer classes either on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, or Tuesday and Thursday. Yesterday was the first day of school, but today’s the day I’ve finally taken all my classes for the first time. It’s funny how when you live in the same place as your school, you grow to really love the quiet that summers there bring. Then when everyone gets back, you realize you’d forgotten all those little annoyances.

1. People EVERYWHERE! Okay, I go to a REALLY Big School. Big enough to be its own city with over 50,000 people and its own electricity plants and stuff! But there’s still a million people around - no corner of my (also large) campus is safe. And they’re loud. The worst is the people who stop in the middle of a crowded sidewalk to talk with their friends.
2. Teachers who give pop quizzes. What are we, in seventh grade? Seriously, guys, if we don’t do the readings, we’re going to screw up on your tests. That’s punishment enough in my book. Book, readings … get it? Ha! Hahaha! … heh.
3. Teachers who take roll. Again, are we in high school? It feels like more and more teachers are adopting the Taking Roll Method as a way of getting us to attempt suicide. I took a class where I didn’t show up to a single lecture except on test days - and made an easy A. Why are these teachers forcing us to attend their class? To ensure they’re not lecturing to an empty room? Please. Make your class more interesting (or harder, I guess), and your attendance will be much better.
4. People so rich and spoiled that their parents buy them EVERYTHING. I was heading to school this morning on my bike. When I say my bike, I mean my $40 garage sale treasure that sounds like it’s about to fall apart when I bike too hard (think sound of metal clanging against metal in an unnerving way) and it squeaks when I petal when the air is dry, despite tons of WD-40. Oh, and did I mention I bought it myself? I love my bike to death - it’s the perfect bike - but as I was heading along at a lightning fast 3 mph, I see this girl whip around on a scooter. She was dressed in heavy makeup, lots of jewelry, and the typical sorority getup, which features athletic shorts and a t-shirt, and she kept weaving around, trying to pass cars by getting in the bike lane. I know I’m drawing unfair conclusions as a result of my jealousy (I want a scooter!), but I bet her mum and dad bought it for her to cruise around campus with. Most of us have bikes, or we walk or take the bus. My parents didn’t even buy me my $40 bike. They didn’t buy me a car, either, and I pay for my apartment out of my pocket. Stupid Sorority Wench.
5. People who can’t part with their parents. You have no idea how many people I’ve met or seen who can’t let go of their parents. I used to know a guy whose parents came into town every so often, and when they did, he’d stay in their hotel room with them. Now, I dunno about you, but I think that’s a little weird when you’re twenty-years-old and have a perfectly good place to sleep. His parents would buy him all his favorite treats to stock up his dorm room, and they would mail him cookies every other week or so. That’s cute, but how long is it going to last? Are they going to send him cookies for the rest of his life?

Keep in mind I do enjoy university - I like my classes in general, I love meeting new people, and there’s always something to see or do. But every good thing has its downsides, too. What do you hate about university?

August 28, 2008 @ 4:30 pm . Comments (2)

General — Tags: school

Lessons

I don’t have much time for a full entry, as I’ve got to head over to a friend’s for a party, but today was the first day of school and it didn’t even feel like it. I’m so ready to be done with all this - university was boring, annoying at best, and stressful at worst. I remember when people would tell me how the university years would fly by, and how they would be the best years of my life, and so on and so forth. I can truthfully say that neither of these really happened, but coming here was very important.

I learned a lot, and not just about how fast a processor is compared to a hard drive. I learned about relationships, and people, and becoming independent. I learned a lot of things I wish I had known when I began. I learned that it’s easier for someone to break your heart than you realize, and I learned I’m capable of some pretty awesome things.

I learned that most people are dumb, which is cynical but true. I learned that most people follow trends unnecessarily without even realizing it. I learned that you can’t always be friends with everyone and you can’t always make everyone happy, no matter how good of a person you may be. I learned that some people don’t care about you or me or anyone else but themselves and it’s not the fault of you or me or anyone else but them.

I learned that some of the craziest things you do are the things you remember the most fondly, and most of the time people love you because you’re willing to be silly and to be yourself. I learned how to get outside and how to stay inside. I also learned to love rain.

Most importantly of all, I learned that the most important thing is to do whatever it is you feel like you need to do to make yourself feel whole. Once you truly understand that - truly - you need nothing else.

August 27, 2008 @ 7:02 pm . Comments (2)

General — Tags: lessons, real life, school

Things I Can’t Live Without

Aside before we begin: See here for my back to school post!

1. Making lists.
2. Breakfasts of coffee, cheese, and hardboiled eggs.
3. Sketching and painting.
4. Finding old clothes and making them new again.
5. Old buildings.
6. Video games! Especially ones with good plots.
7. Dyeing my hair random colors. A month ago I dyed it dark purple-red.
8. Sharpies.
9. Rain. I used to not like rain much but now that I live in Texas it’s great because it makes everything much cooler and not so bright.
10. Reading good, thick books.
11. Earl Grey Tea. I am my grandfather’s granddaughter.
12. Long walks and lazy afternoons.
13. Marzipan.
14. Sitting on the floor. J sometimes asks me if I wouldn’t more comfortable on the sofa, but I just love the floor.
15. My favorite colors: yellow, red, orange.
16. Getting a haircut.
17. Blue skies and big clouds.

What can you not live without?

August 23, 2008 @ 8:49 am . Comments (3)

General — Tags: real life

Back to School

With school starting, I’ve started to notice a lot of back-to-school posts. A lot of people are going back to school, but some are going to school for the first time. Either way, it’s never too late to learn tricks about university life in general. Now that I’m going into my last year of university, I decided to devote this post to things that I think people don’t realize and things that I wish people had told me.

1. First, early classes are nice. Annoying, but nice - they tend to be emptier, the mornings during that time are quieter, and you have a better chance of getting a better schedule if you’re okay with taking morning classes. Personally, I find them much nicer than evening classes anyway - evening classes take away time that you could spend studying or hanging out with friends, while morning classes might just require you to get up an hour earlier*.
2. Don’t go home every weekend, but go home when you can. Your parents love you and you’re not going to have many years left living with them. I was fortunate enough to spend the last three years still living with mine full-time, so I got to see them almost every day. Obviously, spend some time making connections or doing crazy things on the weekend, but go see your family, too. I’m often told I took too long to move out, but I don’t regret it for the world. And if you can’t see your family, call them on a regular basis, even if it’s just to say hi.
3. Explore your city. I’ve met tons of people going into their second or third year at the university who don’t know Austin at all. They know Sixth Street because they get wasted on weekends, but that’s about it - they can’t navigate around the city to save their souls. Some cities suck and there’s not much to do, but I think you’d be surprised if you took the time to explore around. Get to know the bus system or buy a really cheap bike and spend a day just exploring.
4. Live in an apartment for at least one year. When I went to school and people found out I was just going to be living at home since it was so close, I had a lot of people tell me that I should live in a dormitory for at least a year. I’ve never lived in one, but I dated a guy for a year who did and I think they’re really overrated. They’re cramped, stuffy, loud, and expensive, and their showers are abysmal and their cafeterias can be even worse. I don’t think it’s worth it - sure, it can “force” you to make friends, but so can university clubs or organizations or even class. With an apartment you have to learn to make your own food, do your own dishes, and keep the entire place tidy, not just your side of the room. You can still get that “roommate” experience, but still have privacy too, because you can shut the door to your bedroom and no one will bother you. And you can usually find apartment complexes very close to campus.
5. Take notes. Write down everything the professor says that is important because if you question it later, you will want a reference. Take more notes rather than less because it helps you out. Also, take seriously every single assignment you are given, no matter how small it may seem. I’ve often heard my (very smart) classmates say things like, “Oh, no, I didn’t do the homework, it’s only like 2% of my final grade.” 2% can add up quick. The harder you work on each individual assignment, and the more assignments you do, the higher your grade will be and the less you have to study for the tests. Think of it as a safety blanket, too. If you run into a really hard project down the line, you’ll have all those other good grades to fall back on.
6. This brings me to my next point. If you are unable to stay off Facebook, AIM, Youtube, or websites, don’t take notes with a laptop.
7. Finally, form study groups, join clubs, be social. Not all the time, not every day, but find something you’re interested in and find other people that are too. I can’t even begin to tell you how many friends I made simply by visiting the arcade every day. I started going because I needed a place to go to kill time in between classes and while waiting for the bus, and because I love DDR. I met so many amazing people there and have so many good memories of that place. I even met people that don’t attend the university and people still in high school. Obviously not everyone’s into arcades, but there are study groups, study sessions, and organizations within the school that will help make you lots of friends.

And so ends my Tips for People Going to University. I hope this helps at least someone. Also, these are just my opinion - some people make the most out of school by doing other things. Just make sure you’re doing the things you want to do and you aren’t holding yourself back.

* - Okay, maybe more than an hour earlier, depending on the kind of person you are. It sure does help your sleeping habits though, and forces you to go to sleep earlier and wake up earlier. And if you’ve got to wake up sometime, it might as well be earlier, right? Maybe?

August 20, 2008 @ 5:56 pm . Comments (4)

General — Tags: school

Schedule

School starts in less than two weeks. I feel like this summer needs to last awhile longer, which is odd, because usually by the end of most summers I start feeling like it’s time to go back to school. I’m really not looking forward to the fall, but I’ve only got two semesters left, so who am I to complain? I’ve gone through so much crap just to get the schedule I want - it’s ridiculous.

Dealing with the school’s bureaucracy crap is the stupidest thing a student ever has to go through. My advisors were great - they did what they could. But the rest of it was like DO YOU GUYS EVER THINK THIS THROUGH?! So, the state of Texas looked at the number of students who actually graduate in four years and it was insanely low, so they said, “Man, those kids sure are slacking. They’re probably taking useless classes they don’t even need. Let’s give them a financial incentive so they can get their butts into gear!”

Guess what happened? Despite the thousand or so dollars you get for graduating in four years, the numbers haven’t picked up. I guess we weren’t slacking after all.

No, they like to screw you over in the worst way possible. You’re unable to get into a class you need due to some stupid nonsense, like a section was canceled. So you’re all, “Okay, whatever, I’ll get into it next semester.”

Next semester, you try. But it turns out that class that you weren’t planning on taking conflicts with another class you WERE planning on taking! What do you do? They’re both required and this is your planned last semester before graduation. There’s nothing you CAN do at this point. You have to take another semester, delaying, or perhaps even ruining, all your plans for getting a job (maybe you got one already and now have to turn it down) or moving (you’ve got to delay that now) or traveling (you’ve got to try to trade in your tickets or maybe return them) or going to grad school (you have to somehow delay this by a semester or decline the admission).

I realized a few weeks ago I might run into this situation due to the lack of teachers in the computer science department - the waitlist for these classes were stretching to forty, even fifty people. I managed to get into both the classes I needed through a lot of thinking and stressing and figuring things out and living on the course schedule. But what if I couldn’t? It’s such a stupid system.

I realized a lot of people don’t graduate on time through no fault of their own. Now if only the state of Texas would realize that too …

August 19, 2008 @ 8:52 pm . Comments (2)

General — Tags: computer science, Future, school

Obesity

Speaking of height as in my last post, this post is going to be about the dreaded subject - weight. I’ve been reading a lot of stuff about airlines charging more for larger people and it’s really making me think.

I’m not fat by any stretch of the imagination - my entire family is tall and skinny, except for my mum, who is short and skinny (sorry Mum!). My dad is 6′2″ and lanky, and I got all my genes from him. I’m like a walking rail. But I’ve watched my friends struggle to lose or maintain weight, and although I haven’t got first-hand experience in this, I can feel their pain and sympathize.

But there’s some things that really bother me. I’ve heard people say that people don’t choose to be overweight, they just are. But although there are a few people with illnesses and a few people with slow metabolism, I still have to wonder - in the 1970s, these same things existed - so why are people much fatter now? You can’t blame everything on that. And, furthermore, you will become powerless to lose weight if you believe that you cannot choose to be the weight that you are or want to be. Although it takes some measure of forcing yourself to admit that maybe you haven’t made the healthiest choices, it is also very empowering to know that YOU are responsible for your own change, and YOU can make it happen.

The fact of the matter is we as a nation are fatter and you can’t blame all of that on bad genes or illnesses. It’s not about image, it’s about health. Did you know that people are getting shorter? One of the main reasons that Americans are getting shorter is because of diet - we eat mostly junk and sugar and processed food, while our European friends eat homecooked meals with lots of vegetables and milk and vitamins. It really makes you think, huh? It’s such a harmless repercussion of our unhealthy eating habits, but it’s a repercussion you would never expect. Nowadays we scrutinize calories - we drink water instead of milk, which definitely cuts down the calories but also cuts down the amount of calcium and vitamins we’re getting. Why not drink both? Why not watch what you eat and ensure you’re eating just enough to make you full and no more?

Thin people need surprisingly little to stay happy and healthy. When I think about the food I eat every day I realize I don’t eat that much at all usually. For breakfast I have an egg and either a piece of toast with jam or a small bowl of oatmeal (plain, thank you very much). For lunch I pack a peanut butter sandwich and a slice of cheese, and for dinner I have something light and little like a plain salad with a sprinkle of vinegar and pepper or some vegetable dumplings. In the evenings I usually have a snack - often times it’s salted stove-popped popcorn, and to drink throughout the day I have juice and soy milk (sometimes water at work because it’s free). To me this feels like a lot of food but I realize it’s not. I don’t think people realize that you really don’t need a lot of food to feel good and to be healthy.

I also completely believe that my habits began in childhood. I was lucky enough to grow up loving vegetables - my mum tells stories about how I would sit in the cart in the grocery store and eat broccoli straight out of the bag. But my parents also forced me to eat lots of different types of foods - I remember hating pancakes and omelettes but I had to eat them almost every weekend. Now I love pancakes and omelettes are delicious too. I’m still not a huge fan of breakfast - most cereal makes me queasy and I can’t stand the thought of waffles or French toast (gross), but the point is my parents got me to like a wide range of foods.

Also, you could never keep me inside as a kid. I was always out and about, running and playing. Nowadays running is often banned from playgrounds at schools and so is tag. In my grammar school we would organize huge games of tag and spend the entire recess running around, and I was the fastest in the entire school, which made it even more fun. Kids don’t do that today. Everything is so sterile.

Kids stay inside and watch TV and eat terrible, terrible food for whatever reason. It’s like we prioritize all the wrong things and buy expensive cars when we can’t even afford to feed ourselves vegetables. People substitute meat as the most important part of their meals when vegetables are more healthy in general (and less fattening). They buy the cheapest food they can find that will fill them up quickly. It’s as if our bodies are less important than clothes and TV and movies.

And you know the worst part? They do it to their kids.

What do you think? Is obesity a choice? Why does this happen? What can we do to make it stop?

August 14, 2008 @ 5:32 pm . Comments (4)

Culture — Tags: Health, trends

High heels

This post is about fashion and clothes. Readers who do not care, you may excuse yourself now.

This isn’t something I’m particularly proud of or particularly open about, but I’m a huge fashion addict. I love runways and tracking the latest trends. I don’t love shopping but I do love buying clothes (does that even make sense?). My style is … I don’t even know right now. All over the place.

But here’s my thing. Shoes. I hate shopping for shoes because everything that’s cute has a really high heel. This is a problem for two reasons - first, I’m uncomfortable in high heels. I don’t know how girls walk in them on a daily basis. That’s a whole ‘nother story, though. Second, and more importantly, I’m fairly tall. Not super huge tall, but tall, especially for a girl. I’m five foot eight with really, really long legs, so heels just make me seem HUGE. I took a poll of several of my male friends (redundant, as I hardly have any female friends), and they said that heels on tall girls are fine, even “hot,” as they put it.

But it still makes me uncomfortable to walk around in heels of any size larger than the teeny tiny kitten ones. A regular heel can pull me to six feet tall easy, which is just … scary. I mean, I get unnerved when I see a six foot tall girl walking toward me sometimes. I don’t think I have a good reason for this, but it still happens.

So, how tall is tall? I hate towering over everyone, and it doesn’t help that J is exactly my height. He doesn’t care at all if I wear heels - in fact, he encourages it - but still! I’m so jealous of these cute small girls in nice heels, continuing to be cute and small even with the heels on. I just feel like an elephant. Or a giraffe.

Not that giraffes are bad, but I prefer not to be one. Any suggestions or ideas? The worst part is I bought a pair of high heeled boots (they’re not as ugly as they sound, I promise) recently and I haven’t worn them once. Granted, it’s summer and over 100F, but I’m afraid they’re going to go completely unworn. Is tall-girls-in-heels a really scary concept, or is it just me?

August 9, 2008 @ 8:52 pm . Comments (3)

General — Tags: fashion

Friday

I’m back! Internet is installed and I have a million things to do today, so I’m going to make a more in-depth post later today or tomorrow.

Have a great Friday everyone! What are your guys weekend plans?

August 8, 2008 @ 9:37 am . Comments (3)

General — Tags: lunsh

Keys

Just as I was getting to work this morning I realized I didn’t know where my keys were. I searched my bag twice and realized they definitely weren’t in there. Worried, I texted my roommate who informed me that she had noticed my keys in the apartment when she left this morning. Great.

My roommate’s mum is in town, and also she works, so she would be back at the apartment at 11:30, and then the only other time she would be there was at 9:00 in the evening. So I needed to get to the apartment before 11:30 or I wouldn’t be able to get in until 9.

I took my break early and ran for the bus. I was a minute late and completely missed it. I tried calling J to see if there were any other buses I could take, but he didn’t pick up. I ran all the way back to work, and he advised me on a different bus to take. I was off and running again.

Right as I got to the bus stop, I spotted my roommate heading back. Victory! I couldn’t believe my luck. We rode back together and I was excited that I could finally get my keys.

We arrived back at the apartment and began walking up to the door. Suddenly my roommate stopped, a horrified look on her face. Her mum had her keys. Her mum was not at the apartment, since she was out shopping.

We were both locked out now.

So, we spent about fifteen minutes trying to break into the apartment. Thankfully, no one called the cops on us. I wasn’t able to stay for very long, because I had to get back to work, so my roommate promised she’d put the keys in my mailbox so I could get to them.

All’s well that ends well, I guess, but this just demonstrates exactly WHY I’m such a pessimist sometimes.

August 7, 2008 @ 11:45 am . Comments (2)

Gaming — Tags: apartment, bad luck, real life

Thoughts about the future

So, I’m on day three of an Internet-less existence. Being alone in an apartment without contact with the outside world, as well as living by myself for the first time, has really given me a new perspective on myself. I’m finding out what I do when there’s no one around affects who I am. I’m realizing I’m often lazier than I thought I was, but on the other hand, I feel like I deserve a few weeks before school starts up.

I had a long conversation with my roommate last night that put a lot of things into perspective. I feel like I need to just settle down for awhile and relax and stop caring about what other people think. I’m nervous about the upcoming year, it’s true, but I don’t want to be nervous. I want things to go the way I want them to, which includes a lot of travel and a lot of volunteer work and maybe getting a job for a non-profit organization, but I feel like I have a duty to be responsible with a 9-5 for the sake of myself.

My roommate made things clear when she talked about her future plans. She wasn’t worried about money, or about proving herself, or about doing anything like that. She wasn’t afraid to do what she wants to do, and I admire that immensely. I just wish I could go back and rethink my plans to become a CS major. In all honesty, I wish I had decided to get a business degree.

Obviously it’s too late now - I’m graduating next year. I can still continue on to get an MBA, but I feel like I still made a mistake. Now I just have to figure out how to deal with that mistake.

I know what I don’t want. I don’t want to end up working for a huge corporation, expecting to code until my fingers bleed. I don’t want that kind of life. I don’t want it at all. I want to be able to travel, I want to work with people, I want to do design work and project management. I’m just not sure if I can get it.

August 5, 2008 @ 1:17 pm . Comments (3)

General — Tags: Future, insecurities

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