No chem lab! I slept in until 11:00 and then got up to go to chorus. Amazing. There was only like one guy, but I was so glad just to sing again the lack of manpower didn't bother me. A sign up sheet went around to volunteer for small group singing and solos. I signed. We had to audition one at a time for placement reasons, so we each sang a couple scales and the first line of the Penn State Alma Mater. The chorus teacher (Mrs. Smith) likes my voice, asked if I got lessons, and made sure I signed up for solos. As a freshman, I feel honored. Funny story: turns out she not only went to G.A.R. for high school, but knows Maj! Sweet!
Then I had Honors History which is going to be something else. I can't wait to start reading my books, they seem amazing. It's more of a discussion class than anything, so it should keep my attention (I hope). More on this later.
My mom came up to take me out to dinner and brought Kati and her mom. It was great to see them, even though it's only been a few days. I miss my brain twin, even though we text constantly. We also went shopping in the little mall-thing over here. I was brought a printer and my AP Calc binder (HELPFUL). I then proceeded to do calculus homework for 3 hours. Good times.
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Day 4 - Monday, August 23rd 2010
So much for hoping. I'm now even more terrified than before and we've barely even started. I understood that the workload was going to be heavy, but when I was taking the pre-calculus assessment tests and having a hard time remembering all the stuff I learned years ago, I began to get a little frustrated.
So, classes. Ballroom dance is graded by attendance (AWESOME because I did not want to get put on the spot). The man teaching it was NOT what I expected. He was bigger, in his 60s, and looked like a football/basketball/baseball coach, which is what he originally wanted to be. But if that was the case, he wouldn't have his job now. I'm actually really excited to start. After that was calculus and even though I know it's going to be crazy-difficult, I really like Dr. Jimenez already. Dr. Bader, my chemistry teacher, also seems like he's going to be a good time. He already informed us that if he was talking about something important and we were writing, he'd confiscate our pencil. He'd give us time later, but we have to be in the moment. The two are both foreign, so I'm going to have a lot of experience with accents soon enough. Dr. Jose Alfredo Jimenez and Dr. Mamoud Bader. Goodness. I had lunch at the Higher Grounds Cafe where I listened to this EXCELLENT student guitarist. He played the acoustic guitar like a champ. Didn't sing though – sadly. Finished the day with English Literature, and my only female teacher so far. She seems very into what she teaches and I can't wait for class discussion to start. However, we only talked about the syllabus today and left class with a half hour to spare.
With my extra time, I went back to admin building and FINALLY got my schedule changed. I now am officially in the chorus. YES! Dr. Jimenez is totally fine with me coming to his later class, and I got him to sign the slip they gave me as soon as I got out. However, I decided it would look a little desperate if I went right back to admin, so I decided to wait until tomorrow to get the sheet back to them. I checked my email once I got back to my room, and I GOT THE JOB! I am SO excited to go work in the library, so I plan to stop by there tomorrow as well. Again, don't want to look too desperate.
I also went to the gym with Krystin tonight. I worked the weight machines (was formerly clueless about how any of those worked). It was interesting to say the least. If we decide to make this habit, I really might lose the freshman fifteen instead of gaining them! Since she's sports-oriented, she's far more into it than anyone I've ever chosen to befriend. This might be good for me. We headed back and had a floor meeting to talk about roommate agreements. After, I came back to the room to do some more math stuff, but I heard people still talking in the commons – including Chanice. I grabbed my keys and phone and made an entrance when she was giving advice about doing well in college. Again, totally stepping out of my bounds. Be proud. The one reason I really want to go is because (and this sounds awful but) I heard a gay. Just to top things off, he was ginger. Made my day. I knew I had to talk to him or join their conversation when, as they were talking about going clubbing, he proclaimed, “I dance like a slut.” Hopefully, I am one step closer to having my gay best friend. If not, I have chorus tomorrow.
As I was about to brush my teeth, Krystin approached me looking sad. She asked me, if things ever got bad enough, would I want to switch rooms with her current roommate (whose name is Sarah, in case you were wondering) and stay with her. Then, completely surprising me, she started to cry. She told me she felt lonely and homesick, and that practically not having a roommate was not helping the situation. I immediately went into “mom mode,” told her of course I wouldn't mind, that I completely understood because I felt the same way, and that maybe we could arrange something. I told her if she ever needed me I was right across the hall, and she had my cell phone number. She talked to Chanice, too, who said she would definitely talk to her boss about it and (though she didn't know if Krystin would want to sleep on the floor) she offered up our room if she ever wanted to stay over here. I agreed wholeheartedly. I hope everything works out for her – I don't want her feeling the same way I did.
So, classes. Ballroom dance is graded by attendance (AWESOME because I did not want to get put on the spot). The man teaching it was NOT what I expected. He was bigger, in his 60s, and looked like a football/basketball/baseball coach, which is what he originally wanted to be. But if that was the case, he wouldn't have his job now. I'm actually really excited to start. After that was calculus and even though I know it's going to be crazy-difficult, I really like Dr. Jimenez already. Dr. Bader, my chemistry teacher, also seems like he's going to be a good time. He already informed us that if he was talking about something important and we were writing, he'd confiscate our pencil. He'd give us time later, but we have to be in the moment. The two are both foreign, so I'm going to have a lot of experience with accents soon enough. Dr. Jose Alfredo Jimenez and Dr. Mamoud Bader. Goodness. I had lunch at the Higher Grounds Cafe where I listened to this EXCELLENT student guitarist. He played the acoustic guitar like a champ. Didn't sing though – sadly. Finished the day with English Literature, and my only female teacher so far. She seems very into what she teaches and I can't wait for class discussion to start. However, we only talked about the syllabus today and left class with a half hour to spare.
With my extra time, I went back to admin building and FINALLY got my schedule changed. I now am officially in the chorus. YES! Dr. Jimenez is totally fine with me coming to his later class, and I got him to sign the slip they gave me as soon as I got out. However, I decided it would look a little desperate if I went right back to admin, so I decided to wait until tomorrow to get the sheet back to them. I checked my email once I got back to my room, and I GOT THE JOB! I am SO excited to go work in the library, so I plan to stop by there tomorrow as well. Again, don't want to look too desperate.
I also went to the gym with Krystin tonight. I worked the weight machines (was formerly clueless about how any of those worked). It was interesting to say the least. If we decide to make this habit, I really might lose the freshman fifteen instead of gaining them! Since she's sports-oriented, she's far more into it than anyone I've ever chosen to befriend. This might be good for me. We headed back and had a floor meeting to talk about roommate agreements. After, I came back to the room to do some more math stuff, but I heard people still talking in the commons – including Chanice. I grabbed my keys and phone and made an entrance when she was giving advice about doing well in college. Again, totally stepping out of my bounds. Be proud. The one reason I really want to go is because (and this sounds awful but) I heard a gay. Just to top things off, he was ginger. Made my day. I knew I had to talk to him or join their conversation when, as they were talking about going clubbing, he proclaimed, “I dance like a slut.” Hopefully, I am one step closer to having my gay best friend. If not, I have chorus tomorrow.
As I was about to brush my teeth, Krystin approached me looking sad. She asked me, if things ever got bad enough, would I want to switch rooms with her current roommate (whose name is Sarah, in case you were wondering) and stay with her. Then, completely surprising me, she started to cry. She told me she felt lonely and homesick, and that practically not having a roommate was not helping the situation. I immediately went into “mom mode,” told her of course I wouldn't mind, that I completely understood because I felt the same way, and that maybe we could arrange something. I told her if she ever needed me I was right across the hall, and she had my cell phone number. She talked to Chanice, too, who said she would definitely talk to her boss about it and (though she didn't know if Krystin would want to sleep on the floor) she offered up our room if she ever wanted to stay over here. I agreed wholeheartedly. I hope everything works out for her – I don't want her feeling the same way I did.
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Day 3 - Sunday, August 22nd 2010
I didn't have to get up until noon today (that roughly equals excitement). We had a DUI presentation in the gym which was probably the saddest thing I've ever heard. There was no video montage – just a clip of the speaker's spring break with his friends. There were five of them and because of drunk driving, three of them died at age 22. The speaker was the driver. He told us his experience, how he went to prison for 3 years (originally looking at 45, but the parents of his friends were too nice to press charges), how he deals with what he's done every single day, and how the friend that survived (best friend and roommate) refuses to ever speak to him. I was thisclose to walking out to go cry in the bathroom.
We had two more orientation meetings and by 3:30, I was finished! Hallelujah! I headed back to the dorm and just hung out for a little while. It feels nice to just unwind. I now have like 8 websites to periodically check for Penn State after the IT orientation. Yay. Now, I'm just preparing myself for tomorrow. Maybe I should get cracking on my Calculus review. Chemistry seems kind of review-y so far, too. Hm, here's to hoping it won't be as hard as it seems!
P.S. Krystin and I are indeed becoming fast friends. Went over to her room to keep her company tonight since her roomie was MIA yet again and brought juice boxes. I felt like I was six again.
We had two more orientation meetings and by 3:30, I was finished! Hallelujah! I headed back to the dorm and just hung out for a little while. It feels nice to just unwind. I now have like 8 websites to periodically check for Penn State after the IT orientation. Yay. Now, I'm just preparing myself for tomorrow. Maybe I should get cracking on my Calculus review. Chemistry seems kind of review-y so far, too. Hm, here's to hoping it won't be as hard as it seems!
P.S. Krystin and I are indeed becoming fast friends. Went over to her room to keep her company tonight since her roomie was MIA yet again and brought juice boxes. I felt like I was six again.
Day 2 - Saturday, August 21st 2010
I lied, today was even longer. Woke up at 6:30 – I was the early bird! I had to report to the gym so we could separate into groups for community service projects. First, I pulled weeds for an hour and a half with people I didn't know and was forced into chatting with. I talked to a girl named Janessa mostly once we came back for lunch. Discovery points though – my math professor is Alfredo's dad! That's my third “in” now. I then met my NEW adviser, Professor Avalov (also Eurasian). Sad, because I rather liked Dr. Marko (who apparently had some very nice things to say about me!). He seems good though.
Then, the dreaded college major meeting. I am now HORRIFIED about engineering – thanks a bunch. Not only that, but I was one of about 5 girls out of 60-70. Yikesalot. I knew it was going to be hard to major in but of course, I chose the complicated awkward one, right? Oh, bioengineering, why can't we just get along? One year here and 3 at UP. Not sure I can handle that. I have to get at least C's in Math 140 and 141, Chem 110, and Physics 211. Also, I need a 3.3 GPA to do Bioengineering, rather than the normal 3.0. Joy. On top of that, the presenter didn't say that in the lecture! I needed to talk to him afterward to get the information. He then proceeded to inform me that not many people do it (like none). Also, I needed those 4 classes completed satisfactorily BEFORE I went to UP. So, “You have to be in Math 140 right now” like he didn't think I was. I informed him of this. He then continued to ask me if I noticed I also needed to maintain a 3.3 GPA (which I did – I can read, you know). Then, “Okay, but you'd better get it all right the first time.” Seriously? They said Physics 211 was really hard and barely anyone got it the first time, but I refuse to let myself fail a class! Now, I know he didn't say it outright, but I honestly feel like he didn't consider me capable because I was a girl. So now, I don't even know if I want to do Bioengineering, but I want to get all the requirements for it, just to prove myself. I want to be an engineer now, just to show that girls can. I hate this sexist bullshit. As of now, I'm all “I am woman, hear me roar!” It's rather empowering.
After being scared out of my wits and further pissed off, I returned to the dorm and took a nap. So nice. Then, I caught Krystin – my across the hall-mate – walking in. I asked her if she wanted to grab dinner with me. Thus, a beautiful friendship was born. She's really a nice girl, and has a lot of the same values and morals I do. She's like me, but not as nerdy. Her roommate is never around, so she keeps telling me we're in this together and we're our own clique. It's a nice thing to hear. We adventured around campus and worked up an appetite, trying to find our classes together. Then, we walked through the “mandatory” block party – it was sooo happening (sarcasm). We got dinner at the Highacres Cafe -HUGE SELECTION. We wandered around there for like 20 minutes. The two of us also tried (and failed) to get wifi, played ping pong, and played pool. We were both pretty bad, but she still beat me. There wasn't anyone around (probably already partying – which she doesn't do either), so we were pretty much allowed to do whatever. We also played Mario Cart on the old school Nintendo (again, I was awful). She's my first real friend here, I think. Today was definitely better. See that, PSU? If you just leave me alone, I can make friends my own way!
Then, the dreaded college major meeting. I am now HORRIFIED about engineering – thanks a bunch. Not only that, but I was one of about 5 girls out of 60-70. Yikesalot. I knew it was going to be hard to major in but of course, I chose the complicated awkward one, right? Oh, bioengineering, why can't we just get along? One year here and 3 at UP. Not sure I can handle that. I have to get at least C's in Math 140 and 141, Chem 110, and Physics 211. Also, I need a 3.3 GPA to do Bioengineering, rather than the normal 3.0. Joy. On top of that, the presenter didn't say that in the lecture! I needed to talk to him afterward to get the information. He then proceeded to inform me that not many people do it (like none). Also, I needed those 4 classes completed satisfactorily BEFORE I went to UP. So, “You have to be in Math 140 right now” like he didn't think I was. I informed him of this. He then continued to ask me if I noticed I also needed to maintain a 3.3 GPA (which I did – I can read, you know). Then, “Okay, but you'd better get it all right the first time.” Seriously? They said Physics 211 was really hard and barely anyone got it the first time, but I refuse to let myself fail a class! Now, I know he didn't say it outright, but I honestly feel like he didn't consider me capable because I was a girl. So now, I don't even know if I want to do Bioengineering, but I want to get all the requirements for it, just to prove myself. I want to be an engineer now, just to show that girls can. I hate this sexist bullshit. As of now, I'm all “I am woman, hear me roar!” It's rather empowering.
After being scared out of my wits and further pissed off, I returned to the dorm and took a nap. So nice. Then, I caught Krystin – my across the hall-mate – walking in. I asked her if she wanted to grab dinner with me. Thus, a beautiful friendship was born. She's really a nice girl, and has a lot of the same values and morals I do. She's like me, but not as nerdy. Her roommate is never around, so she keeps telling me we're in this together and we're our own clique. It's a nice thing to hear. We adventured around campus and worked up an appetite, trying to find our classes together. Then, we walked through the “mandatory” block party – it was sooo happening (sarcasm). We got dinner at the Highacres Cafe -HUGE SELECTION. We wandered around there for like 20 minutes. The two of us also tried (and failed) to get wifi, played ping pong, and played pool. We were both pretty bad, but she still beat me. There wasn't anyone around (probably already partying – which she doesn't do either), so we were pretty much allowed to do whatever. We also played Mario Cart on the old school Nintendo (again, I was awful). She's my first real friend here, I think. Today was definitely better. See that, PSU? If you just leave me alone, I can make friends my own way!
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Day 1 - Friday, August 20th 2010
Moving in day. LONGEST DAY OF MY LIFE. Basically moved stuff, walked around death-hill campus and ate. The mom and pop left, mom crying of course. I relaxed in my room forever. Then, I walked up to the library to see if I could get a work-study job there. Then to administration to check if I could get everything taken care of for my schedule (i.e. chorus class). Didn't get a definite on either. Chatted with roomie who is also the RA, she seems really nice. We talked until the house meeting in which a boy asked if we got fined for having sex. Just wow. Then super awkward “pep rally” in the gym. It made me feel very lonely. Everyone seems to have someone. Cried to mom, talked to Kati on ooVoo. I feel a little better. I just want class to start so I can meet people I know I can make friends with. I want to start singing again and meet my honors people. More orientation tomorrow, I hope it's better than today.
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