My First Year Experience

Wow...my first year of university went by so quickly...that...it's kind of freaky. When I was younger I always wanted to go to university, be on my own and whatnot...since I thought it would be very cool. The truth is university is a completely different world. It's not exactly the 'real' world, but it's different from the world you were used to living in.

FROSH WEEK

Like at all universities, the first week was Frosh Week. Now, Frosh week was an eye opener. Why? Well...with all the people getting drunk, waking up at 6 in the morning and going to bed at 2 in the morning...it's quite an intense week. Personally, I enjoyed it, the cheering, the concerts, the many events and such...they were all fantastic. I didn't end up drunk or high or any of those things because...I come from a family where I was raised and taught to not fall under peer pressure and end up in such a state. And besides...I'm too boring of a person to even do those things. ^_^

Umm...let's see what else I should talk about...

Ohhh...I know...

THE ROOM-MATE STORY

Alright...most of you, if you're heading to University or College or wherever have probably heard those horror stories about room-mates. Well...the thing is with room-mates is the fact that you'll be seeing that person almost everyday of your life...well...for that year. That's right! Before I went to university I read a lot of those room-mate stories and how horrible it is to share a room with someone...so I hoped for a single room. But...I didn't get a single room...and I ended up with a room-mate...in other words...I started off my university career living with a complete stranger. =O Scary, huh?

But...what I'm going to tell you isn't a horror story. Why? Because...we somehow managed to not end up in a fight...well...even if we did...it was like a shouting match at 2 in the morning where she ended up throwing things at me...but...ya...I'll explain that in a bit. Anyways...about my room-mate story. It's quite interesting actually...living with a complete stranger was interesting...

See...I'm actually a very shy person...so...I tend not to speak a lot unless asked, or if you decide to converse with me about a topic that I truly do enjoy talking about...that's a different story. So...what happened was...before moving in...we exchanged emails...and sorta emailed back and forth...when we moved in...we said hi...and then it was like an awkward silence for a while. The thing with me is that...even though I'm shy...awkward silences scare me...so...I end up breaking the silence...and...next thing I knew...we were conversing.

Now what is very important is the fact that you must lay down the rules...like no drinking, no guests overnight...you know those things...simple rules. Then...you got to discuss about the noise issue...like...headphones on, or speakers on...stuff like that to make sure that you won't have two different types of music blasting in your room. So...my roommate and I got along quite well I would say. Like in my previous blog about myself...I'm a difficult person...you could almost call me a jerk because sometimes I can be too honest...and stuff like that. But...what's so funny is that fact that you also learn things about yourself through having a roommate. I learned that I talk SO MUCH past midnight...like...if I'm awake...I won't shut up...and I'll be discussing something very deep and meaningful...which also kept my roommate up.

Also...because I was in university and had to stay up late to finish labs and papers...I was tensed and stressed out...so was my roommate. So...what happened? Well...we'd start talking at a time past midnight...then we'd start shouting...then screaming at each other...for no good reason...next thing I knew things were flying at me...and then...I got up...and air kicked. Ya...it was retarded...so we ended up laughing our heads off...and that was that...

See...the point of my story is...having a room-mate isn't bad at all...if you're rooming with a complete stranger. Think about it this way...if I was rooming with a close friend...and I totally ticked her off...we wouldn't be friends anymore. But...because I roomed with a complete stranger...we're not strangers anymore...but we're good friends...and I think that's the best part about having a room-mate...at the end of the year...you'll have these abnormal yet unforgettable memories.

STUDYING

Ok...let me be clear when I tell you...I really didn't study...I spend maybe an hour or two, three days before an exam...looking over my notes. That doesn't cut it...and let me tell you...my marks are so disgusting. The moral of that sentence was that...if you're heading to university or college and you haven't found your way of learning...please take time and do so over the summer. I wished someone had told me that before I fell into deep water and was drowning. I'm actually very serious about it.

High school to me was a complete joke...I'm probably those people that you secretly hate in your high school because I put in little to no effort and get good grades. That's right...I'm that type of kid. But...don't you worry...those type of people (ie. myself) will suffer in university. The thing is with university...if you don't put in effort you WILL fail...and fail miserably. I'm not saying this to scare off anyone...but rather to give you a heads up...since nobody gave me one. So my tips for you are:

1. Figure out what type of learner you are
2. GO TO ALL CLASSES (those who don't miss out on a whole lot of stuff)
3. Read your expensive textbooks (I wished I had done that)
4. If you are a procrastinator like myself, give yourself an earlier deadline...so even if you procrastinate...it won't be so bad (something I figured out...when it was all over)
5. Get a good night sleep if you have a long day ahead of you

OK...what's next?

FRESHMEN FIFTEEN

I don't know if you've read about freshmen fifteen or not...but let me explain to you what exactly it is. Freshmen Fifteen means you gain about fifteen pounds in your first year of university or college. That's right...fifteen pounds...I'm a girl...my weight sorta matters...and...I was caught under the Freshmen Fifteen spell. FIFTEEN POUNDS!!! OMG

Yes...ok...now you might think that you'll look heavier...which is somewhat true...and you might also thing it's because of the things you're eating at school...which is partially true...but the main reason is...

The main reason is...you don't eat properly. Yes...see...the thing is, you need to eat properly...on a daily basis so that you can metabolize your food regularly...let me give you an example. First term...every day started at 8:30 for me...and my classes were nicely spaced out...so I was able to eat three meals a day between a certain interval of time...which is good. Second term was a natural disaster. One of my days started at 8:30 and ended at 6:30 pm...with NO BREAKS in between. So...I had breakfast...then NO FOOD until around 7:00 pm, what does that mean? My body can't really adapt to it...so...my metabolism was totally messed up...and...by the end of my first year...I get a nice fifteen pounds added onto me. BRAVO!!! (NOT)

SO...my advice to you is...check your schedule to make sure it looks like something you won't die trying to go through like I almost did. (10 hours without food...is crazy business when you've never fasted a day in your life) ALSO!!! Eat well, sleep well...and you probably won't be under the FRESHMEN FIFTEEN spell.

WOW...this was a VERY long post...but I'm just trying to be informative...you know...

If you have any questions...feel free to leave a comment...and I'll respond back...(also...if you want to know which university I go to...it'll be in the comment section ^_^ )

Oh...and if it's something you don't want anyone to see...like...it's totally a personal question (though I don't know why you would ask a complete stranger a very personal question) feel free to email me...(my email will also be in the comment section thingy)