In for the Long Haul November 26, 2007

I looked behind me this morning to see that my clock ended in “:54.” I immediately catapulted myself out of bed thinking “Oh God, I’m going to be late for engineering, and I promised that I’d meet my group!” After I’d run around like a crazy person, thrown sweats on, and grabbed my bag I realized that the clock said 10:00 not 11:00. My engineering class is at 11. The good part: I had time to shower! (Yay, hygiene !)

So, I left my room at 10:40 to go to engineering, even though I wasn’t sure there was a lecture today. I’d heard rumors that the lecture had been canceled,  but it was from students… There wasn’t a lecture today. Thank god. I appreciate canceled classes as much as snow days.

There are 12 days left of classes before finals start. I’m in for the long haul. Between now and then I have 3 exams, homework as usual, and about 4 quizzes. Oh, and a huge project.  I’m hoping to get “A’s” on all of my remaining assignments to positively affect my grades. We can check our grades on a website called Blackboard. It’s a really convenient site. My professors post announcements and lecture slides. Using Blackboard I found out that I’m on the border between two letter grades in all of my classes. Hence, the studying and working for “A’s” on the final assignments.

Am I Going to Be a Freshman Forever? November 12, 2007

Bummer. I just found out that in order to be a Sophomore I need 30 credits under my belt. Too bad I’ll only have 12. 

I started the semester taking 16 credits. Then I decided that taking all four of my “gateway” courses for my major in one semester was probably not a great idea. I dropped English 100A thinking I’d do better in the 2 sciences and the math if my mind was always in the same track. Turns out that switch gears from science to art and humanities to English works better.

I was talking to my friend Lannie a couple of days ago when I found out that I need 30 credits in order to be a sophomore. I mean, I guess that makes sense because an average or recommended course load is 15 credits. Sadly, Lannie didn’t know that she needed 30 credits to be a sophomore and came into this semester as a freshman, again.

So, I am going to enroll in 18 credits… on the 30th. That’s bummer #2. Freshman register after most other students, but that’s typical for colleges. On order to avoid a repeat of this semester, I’m hoping to take CHEM102 (and the lab), MATH152 (Calc 2), ENGL100, MUSC101 (Music Theory), and GWST100 (Women’s Studies). Hopefully the coming semester will be more varied than this one.

Basketball, Pep Band, and Dance Team November 9, 2007

So tonight was maybe not the best outcome the women’s team hoped for in their first game of the season. We played George Washington who beat us 79-59.  Not an ideal outcome, right?  The game was still very impressive. I had a lot of fun trying to keep up with the game (I have absolutely no idea how sports work). I learned some tradtions, I guess you’d call them, that UMBC has. A girl in my calculus class is on the basketball team, and she said that GWU is ranked much higher than UMBC.  I was quite impressed with how well the women played and how determined they played throughout the game.

The best thing about college basketball, at least at UMBC, is that basketball isn’t the only attraction.  The dance team, varsity cheerleaders, and pep band performed tonight. The cheerleaders were very spirited and definitely added to the experience, but I do have to admit that I was more excited about the dance team. My good friend Debbie is on the dance team and I was so exciting to see her dance, knowing that she has been working hard at practice.  The biggest disappointment was that the dance team faced away from us when they took center court.  Luckily, they danced in front of the pep band (which is fabulous, by the way) during time-outs (and there were a lot of them). 

Now I’m in my room watching Chicago (yes, again) with a bunch a friends. At some point I should really clean up like I promised my roommate I would…

Ambassadors November 6, 2007

At orientation, a group of the Orientation Peer Advisors (OPAs) did skits about student involvement. The three skits skits depicted an overly involved student, an under-involved student, and one that was “just right.” So, in my attempt to be the last option, I have joined the Musical Theatre Club and more recently the UMBC Ambassadors.  Today, was the first meeting I went to as a new Ambassador.  I and about 12 others got our pretty binders filled with perfectly filed information for being an Ambassador.  The UMBC Ambassadors participate in events like next Monday’s Visit Day. I’ll be there for check-in and class escorts.  The Ambassadors program is pretty much a perfect fit for me.  I absolutely love UMBC.

When I was applying to schools, I applied to UMBC in the first place because my parents told me to. I knew nothing about UMBC. When I started my application, I did some research on collegeboard.com, but I still only had statistics. I didn’t really even want to go UMBC until I finally visited it. It was early April the first time I visited. I had all my acceptance letters; all I had to do was choose. That day I chose. It was simple. I hope that every student applying to colleges has that same feeling about a school. I would love it if I could positively influence the choice of an incoming freshman or transfer.

I’m so excited for Monday, my first day as an active Ambassador!

The WORST Thing About College So Far: November 3, 2007

I’ve found it. The one thing that really frustrates me about college. Living in close proximity to about three hundred people has gotten me sick. After I checked my symptoms on WebMd, I came to the conclusion that I had viral pharyngitis.  My friend’s roomate has viral pharyngitis — or at least he thought so until he went home nd the doctor told him that he has mono. It just so happens that mono was on the list of possible ailments. Oh no. For anyone who doesn’t know this, mono stays in your system for about 6 months. I also know (from my days in high school Anatomy class) the mono is contagious before you have any symptoms. I wonder how many people will be ill shortly. I’m crossing my fingers that I don’t have mono!

The mutivitimans and  immune system supplements that have been gathering dust in my medicine cabinet are no longer neglected. Mom was right about those vitimans. They would come in handy. Now here I am drinking my full eight glasses of water daily, taking my vitimans, and sleeping whenever possible. I absolutely refuse to get sick. In the mentality of my father, sickness is simply a state of mind. I hoping that will keep me from developing mono.

Now for something happy! I’m so excited for next weekend! Friday night Women’s Basketball plays GW in the first game of the season. Midnight Madness really got me pumped for the season. I’ve never been much of a sports girl, so this is just that much more exciting. Then, on Saturday, the Musical Theatre Club (of which I am a member) has a showcase. I am a tech person (yay costumes) so I actually get to watch a production this time. I’ll be sure to follow up with how great it is.