Category: College

The Last 8 Weeks

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College students are finally coming back from break! Since I didn’t go anywhere for spring break, I saw the ghost town that Stevens Point became without the hustle and bustle of the university people. It was quite boring. Not much to talk about there.

Now that everyone’s back, it’s nice to see some movement in the town again. Students are back and ready to finish their semester. A lot of people refer to this time of year as the last half of the spring semester, but I like to fondly refer to it as:

The 8 Weeks Straight from Hell.

I swear the time lords of the universe like to slow down time as much as they possibly can and convince mother nature to do anything and everything in her power to make life unbearable during the months of March and April. Because of my undeniable hatred for this time of year, it’s only fair that I explain my despise of these 8 weeks with a little list. Here goes:

The weather is beautiful when you have class.

Why is it that on the most beautiful of days you are trapped in the world’s most boring class with a front row seat to staring at the glorious, untouchable outdoors? Torture.

The weather is garbage on your days off.

The very second you get some free time it’s a monsoon outside. Proof that mother nature hates everything.

The days get longer and so does your to do list.

Because it’s the second half of the semester, the homework assignments are piling up (mainly because you didn’t do any work over spring break).

You lose an hour of sleep.

What kind of monster does that to a person?!

You still have to study for finals and other exams despite how distractedly gorgeous it is outside.

A moment of silence for my social life.

Your soon to be graduating friends have a bad case of the contagious senioritis.

Protip: whatever you do, do NOT catch this disease in the early years of college. Otherwise, lord have mercy upon your GPA.

You’re going to have to say goodbye to your graduating friends which is always sad.

It’s beautiful outside. I don’t want to be crying.

The dorms aren’t air conditioned so when it gets hot, it gets HOT.

And then everyone opens their windows but forget to secure their doors open so it’s the season of door slamming as well as the season of everything being on fire.

The hotter the weather gets, the clearer you idiocy becomes for leaving your summer clothes at home.

Why did I leave my favorite pair of shorts at home? I DON’T KNOW. They would’ve fit in my bag. They’re shorts! They can fit anywhere!

Heavy backpacks + hot, humid days= a sweaty, gross me.

Please don’t look at me and my grossness.

 

The only upside to these 8 terrible weeks:

It ends.

 

Do you agree with this list? Do you have any additional reasons to love or despise this time of year? Let me know!

 

Until next time,

Dana

 

How to Stay Motivated When You’d Rather Do Nothing

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I don’t know if it’s the winter weather or maybe my lack of a schedule, but I have no motivation to do anything! Do you ever feel this way? My productivity level is nonexistent. I haven’t written anything, gone anywhere or done anything in days. Days. I haven’t even watched Netflix. Mind you, doing nothing can be beneficial. However, it’s not good when you do it multiple days in a row and are slowly becoming one with the blankets, never to see the light of day again.

If you’re also feeling this way, I’ve created a list of tips and tricks to help us both get back on track. Hopefully something on this list will work and fast. Stay tuned.

1) Plan it Out

A written list of all the things you have to do is a double edged sword. While it is great to have everything written down so you can cross it off as you accomplish task after task, the size of the initial list can be paralyzing especially if you have a lot to do. Something that I like to do when I make my to do list is to fold the paper in half. On one side, create the big, scary to do list that has everything on it in no particular order. Then on the other side of the paper, section it off into days (or hours depending on how much time you have) and separate the tasks into those days. That way, you don’t have to do everything all at once and the list becomes more manageable.

2) Have a Clean Space

The more disorganized I am, the less productive I am. Because there are dishes in my sink and clothes on my floor as I’m writing this, my need to write this article is dwindling by the second. Trust me, I know that the correlation between my dishes and my writing is zero, but that does not stop my brain from going, “You have dirty dishes?! You can’t possibly write because there’s a mess in your apartment and therefore your thoughts will also be messy!” And then I stop writing.

So go clean up and do those petty tasks first. If your work space is clean and organized, you’ll probably have an easier time getting your work done. Plus, it’s a productive procrastination tool: you’re still getting small tasks done on your list while avoiding the larger, more intimidating ones until you have the courage to face them.

3) Clean Yourself Up

Yes, I can see those clothes you’ve been wearing for the last three days. If you go clean up, you’ll feel better and smell nicer. You’ll probably be more productive too. Just a thought.

4) Work in Short Increments

So now your living space is clean, you’re clean and your to do list is ready. It’s time to really sit down and work. You know that phrase “work smarter, not harder?” Well, one way to work smarter is by working in short bursts. How short? Well, no less than 15 minutes but no more than 45. Then try to take a 10-15 minute break after each work session. The time limitations are up to you, really. The longer you work, the longer your break should be.

I’m a big fan of working in 20 minute increments with a 5 minute break in between. It’s just a long enough period of time for me to make some serious progress on my work but short enough that I’m not exhausting myself either. Again, every person is different, so make sure your set your time constraints to what works best for you.

5) Acknowledge Your Progress

Did you get all of your work done? Congrats! You did amazing! We are all very proud and you should be too.

If you’re like me, maybe you didn’t get as far in your to do list as you had planned today, but you did do something and that’s awesome too! Especially since a few hours ago there was nothing crossed off your task list and your living space was a disaster. Be proud of the work that you did get done today and start again tomorrow. No worries.

6) Reward Yourself

If you got some of your work done, a little reward. If you got all of your work done, a bigger reward. You earned it. Enjoy it!

 

I hope this list helped you as much as it helped me. Now, if you don’t mind, I’m going to go do my laundry and clean my dishes so I can continue working! I hope your day will be as productive as mine!

 

Until next time,

Dana

 

 

Winter Break in College

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College is hard. There is no getting around that little nugget of life. Homework, essays, projects, quizzes, exams, finals (tailor this list as your major sees fit). Do you remember when you thought high school finals were hard? Yeah, that was laughable compared to college finals. We were so naive then.

College finals are like the giant beetle standing behind the tiny ant princess in Bug’s Life when they’re scaring away the grasshoppers. They just have a certain horror about them. The goal isn’t to pass any of the finals, merely to survive them. I won’t lie, I almost didn’t come out of some of my finals. Brutal.

But then, by some miracle, you make it out on the other side of the semester and the greatest part of the whole year comes: winter break. Or… is it the best part? There’s a lot of good and bad to the almighty winter break and I’ve articulated some of them here:

 

PRO: If you live in an apartment near campus, it’s a month of hanging out with friends and binge watching every show you’ve been meaning to catch up on for months now.

You upperclassmen will understand the amazing freedom you obtain when you finally own your own place at college. It’s your home now and you can do whatever you want.

winterbreakCON: If you don’t live in an apartment, you have to go home and live under close supervision of your parents

However, if you’re a freshman, you go home for winter break. Which is fun for about 3 days. After getting that taste of freedom for the last three months, coming home and living under someone else’s rules can get real old, real fast.

 

PRO: CHRISTMAS!

Need I say more?

CON: Driving to wherever Christmas is being celebrated

The danger of sitting with your family in one car for hours is real. The tension is palpable.

 

CON: Going back to school

It’s hard to find motivation to go back when you’ve done nothing for a month.

PRO: Getting to see all of your friends and favorite professors

Sometimes the only motivation to go back to school is to make contact with other humans.

 

PRO: Catching up on sleep

Let’s be honest, during winter break, we’re practically in committed relationships with our beds.

CON: Oversleeping is just as bad as under sleeping

You can set all the alarms you want, but you know that you’re going to ignore all of them.

 

13534381_1799672676930733_1572573512_nPRO: The break is a month long

The recovery time is necessary. Not only did you study your brains out for three months, you also had work, organizations and you were near at least 2,000 other people constantly. That’s exhausting. After a semester like that, who wouldn’t want a whole month off of school?

CON: Time means nothing after the New Year.

That second week in January I definitely started having  full conversations with my dog. I was losing it.

 

PRO: New Years Eve

YAY! CELEBRATION!!

CON: New Years Morning

*cough* Hell fire.

 

PRO: Your family cooks you free food

Anything that isn’t dining hall food is amazing at this point.

CON: You know you’re going to have to join a gym

It’s okay though. It’s January so there are a bunch of deals at the gyms. Hooray for student discounts, am I right?

 

PRO: Watching the high schoolers go back to school on the third

There’s nothing more satisfying than this.

CON: There isn’t one. Seriously. None. Congrats on not being in high school and getting a real break.

You go get that nap and enjoy your break!

 

Until next time,

Dana