Football weekend!

Sadly, I can’t afford to go to every football or every sports game. I enjoy food and video games and music too much. Fortunately, there are things to do! Sadly, the game is much more fun.

So, here’s what I do on games days when I don’t go. I’ll break it down into allotted time, so you too can figure out how to play a game day when you don’t have a ticket.

Start: 24 hours remaining

-Sleep in. Wake up at 10.
14 hours remaining

-laundry
12 hours remaining

-grocery shopping
10 hours remaining

-watch a movie…or 2
7 hours remaining

-play video games
3 hours remaining

-do homework
1 hour remaining

-eat, shower, etc.
0 hours remaining

See? It’s really not that hard to occupy your time. Yes, tailgating and watching the game is admittedly much more fun than laundry or shopping, but it’s done and out of the way, and you’ve filled 24 hours with things to do.

(photo courtesy of purduejax.com)

more college survival tips

Lately, my roommates and I have been attempting to catch up on TV shows. Yes, we realize that House and Grey’s Anatomy have started back up.

But, with all of our crazy schedules, we’ve been starting a DVD of Grey’s or House at 9 at night. This means that we don’t get done with the DVD until around 1 AM. This wouldn’t be a problem if there was no such thing as classes before noon. Sadly, I have 4 8:30 AM classes, and my roommates have 7:30 AM classes. Oh, do we look dead in those classes, if we don’t sleep through them (which I’ve observed other people doing. They show up, and then sleep through the class, wake up, and then leave.)

I advise starting a show before 9. Or, you can start it at 9, and then just watch one episode.

Sometimes roommates are just a pain in your…well, you know. Take a friend of mine.

Every so often his roommate kicks him out of his dorm room because he wants to do the mcnasty. I understand that it’s this other guy’s room too, but you can’t just kick your roommate out at 3 AM because you can’t control your hormones. So, to all of the people out there who kick out their roommates at absurd hours, stop it. It makes people plot against you. For your own safety, do the mcnasty while your roommate is in class. At least then you feel like less of a jerk, and they actually have somewhere to be.

(photo courtesy of classicinsight.com)

Everyone’s favorite subject part 3

If you haven’t guessed, I’ve recently become single, and I’m actually having fun with it. I’ve been torturing poor college boys, enjoying myself, and convincing people to do things for me.

Now, the poor college boys I mentioned earlier aren’t exactly being tortured. All I do is spend an extra 10 minutes getting ready in the morning: make up, real clothes that fit, and I’m actually awake when I get to class. I don’t get all prettied up for boys, I honestly do it for myself. I, however, cannot deny that getting whistled at on my way to class is an ego booster.

I’ve found that not being tied down has allowed me to get to know more people. I’ve talked to more people in my classes in the past 2 weeks. I make brownie cake (and for those of you on the food blog, do I have a recipe for you!). I’ve been singing along with all my man hater music, and not caring if I’m off key.

But I’ve also found that even that it’s a painful experience, people around you still care. One of my friends put back on my key on my keyboard (hooray!), and he’s been cooking for me and my roommates (although, I honestly cannot say why because I don’t have a clue. I can only speculate, and I’m going to assume it’s because he takes pity on me and sympathizes with my roommates.)

Being single has its perks. My parents send me 7 boxes of brownie mix, put money in my bank account, and keep shipping my boxes of stuff that I want and need.
So, don’t worry about being single. Enjoy all the perks! I certainly am!

(photo courtesy of myminis.com)

Walking Woes

One major difference between going to school here and being at home is that here you have to walk everywhere. For me, this was not much of an issue. I walk all the time at home anyway, not having a car. My friends, however, were horrified at the idea of not being able to drive places. Even though I walked a lot anyway, I still found the amount that I walk here to be annoying. See, I live on Hilltop, right at the top of the hill. While living here affords me considerably more space than a normal dorm room would, it means that I have to walk all the way to the north end of campus and up a huge freaking hill every day. It is still quite a walk, even though I have been making it multiple times a day for two months now. My roommate and I have named this tower past the top of the hill 'The Beacon of Despair' since we can only see it when we are actually walking up the hill... But I digress.

Good walking shoes are a must here on campus. I only have one pair of shoes here (the horror, the horror!) but they are a pair of comfortable sneakers. However, they are starting to wear strangely. I am in the fencing club, so I have to make a lot of sideways movements with my rear (left) foot. This is causing the bottom of my left shoe to start to come off on the inside. The toe of my right foot is also wearing for a similar reason, so I'll probably have to go out and get new shoes soon.My roommate got a new pair of shoes when he came here, but soon found that they were cutting up his feet and giving him blisters because of the sheer amount of walking we have to do every day. He soon reverted to his old, worn in sneakers, which are much more comfortable to walk in. One of my other friends often does not wear sensible footwear when she comes to visit. I've seen her make the walk up here in heels and wedges and then complain about how hard it was. *rolls eyes* If you are going to be walking halfway across campus and up a giant hill, at least wear some comfy shoes.

OSU-Purdue Snafu

Well, it's nearly time for another football game. Our opponent this week: Ohio State. This game day is different from the others for a few reasons. First, this is October break, meaning that a lot of our students have gone home already. This is also our first night game, allowing the students that remain the entire day to pregame at the bars. I think these factors will combine to give us a smaller turnout than usual in the student section.

There is another thing that makes this game different. We have not yet played a school with such a huge fan base. The entire OSU part of the stadium was sold out when my roommate tried to get his father some tickets before the season even began. This fan base extends into our school as well. I am sure many students who go here are OSU fans at heart. My roommate, for example. He has been an OSU fan for as long as I can remember. Watching him today was funny and depressing at the same time. He just couldn't decide who to root for. I've never seen him so upset. He finally put on a Purdue Blackout shirt over a red OSU shirt, so he could support both teams at once, but he's still torn up. I told him he should root for Purdue since he's in the student section, but he said that he just couldn't not root for OSU.

I will never understand sports fans like that. I mean, it's one thing if you actually go to the school. I can understand rooting for the team then. But rooting for a school that you don't even go to? That you don't live by? I can't understand what makes people do that. If you want to root for a different team, I have nothing against you. Just don't let it take over you too much. Right now my roommate is just sitting on the couch clutching a pillow. He hasn't really spoken in hours. Don't end up like him. Root responsibly.

Ways to help with Stress!

Stress is something we all have to deal with throughout our lives. It can be some tension, mental or emotional strain, feeling anxious, a sense of not getting anything accomplished, wanting to give up, and a sense of failure approaching. You feel overwhelmed and just want to give up sometimes. If you do not do something about it, it could be detrimental to your health emotionally and physically. It can cause other serious problems that will lead you down a difficult path. Here are some tips on trying to live a stress free life. If you take it a step at a time it may help you tremendously and alleviate the extreme anxiety that you may feel.


First of all and most important be active! Take time out of your day just for yourself and it can be as simple and taking a walk with some friends and discussing how your day has been going. Avoid partying during the week and focus on your studies so you do not feel overwhelmed. When you get everything completed, then you can go out and have a blast during the weekends. If you party during the week, you tend to stay out to late and run a higher risk of sleeping in and missing vital classes that will add stress that is not necessary. Try and eat healthy foods that will provide the right amount of nutrients and energy for your body. Avoid the greasy and processed foods that are loaded with fats and oils that are unhealthy.


Second, get an adequate amount of sleep each night to prepare you for the next day’s events. Sleep deprivation can cause several side effects such as irritability, lethargy, and a loss of an appetite. It may not be as visible the next day but when you have consecutive days of little or no sleep it takes a serious toll on your body and makes you feel overwhelmed. It can also lead to a lower immune system and you may become sick. The suggested amount of time for young adults is 7 to 8 hours per night.


You could also join groups that perform activities such as yoga or Pilates which focuses relaxing the body and slowing down the fast pace of life. It allows you to have time to reflect, clear your mind, and overall feel better about yourself. When you finish it puts you in a better state of mind and you will feel less overworked and crammed.


When you manage your stress you can perform better academically and also feel better about yourself and have a positive outlook on life. When you are stressed it takes a toll on the body so before you get to that point take simple steps each day to try and avoid it. You do not want to fall behind on your work and have a sense of failure. So my last words of advice would be to set aside time for yourself, be active, eat nutritious foods, and stay on top of things.

Managing the Clock

Have you noticed how time just flies by and you are still sitting there thinking what you should do next? I noticed that if you do not keep track of the time everything just seems to run together. I decided to blog about this issue because I think in college it is a huge deal and we should use our time wisely. There are some useful tidbits that I have caught onto just being at college in the last month.


When you are sitting there waiting for a class to start or when you have an hour in between two classes and not enough time to go back to your dorm room you should bring along some homework. You do not realize how much you can get finished in an hour if you sit down and focus on it. I have also found that the Union has comfy chairs to sit in and get tasks accomplished. It gets you out of the heat and is a quiet atmosphere for you to go and concentrate. If you haven’t checked it out yet I would highly recommend it. You can even grab a snack or drink to fuel you for the rest of the day.


Secondly, when you are sitting on your couch watching television have your notes handy that you took in class and on commercials or breaks you can reread them and remember things that you have already forgotten. Also, when you are studying for a test make sure you do not cram for a test! That is the worst idea ever; you will never fully retain the information and will forget everything afterwards. If you look over your notes a few minutes each day and familiarize yourself with them it will be much easier in the long run when it comes to taking exams. At the end of the semester when you have those dreaded cumulative exams, you will receive a higher grade than those that try and study all night before the big exam.


So just some words of advice do not waste precious time, make sure you have a plan set,
stick to it, and get things done in the most efficient way possible. Try and make use of your time in the best way possible. When you buckle down and get things done during the week in your breaks and free time, you will have more time to relax and kick back during the weekends.

I Want My Baby Back

Awkward title, I know. But hear me out. Look above... that's my bike (baby). And today it was stolen. Abducted. Seized. You get the picture. Anyway my beautiful Haro Escape 8.1 mountain bike was stolen, and now I'm pissed. I don't know if that word is appropriate or not, but I'm still pissed. The best part is, they didn't even break my bike lock to get at it. They left the lock there tied to the bike lock. Maybe they thought I wouldn't notice the bike was gone. I do not know.

But the point is that it's gone. And this has led to me to the following conclusion about the entire human race: their all scum. Every single one of you. I might be pushing it a little bit, but again, I'm pissed.

So a couple things I think you could do to avoid this tragedy happening to you. Make sure your bike is registered with the police. This makes the recovery process much easier on the police. I think. You should also have a lock with a key. Who would've known it would be easy to break those combination locks that you just have to roll 4 numbers to lock up. Unfortunately it makes it easy to break the lock as well. Exhibit A: MY BIKE! You should also consider just bringing your bike to your dorm. If I ever get mine back, I will resort to doing that.

I'll just end this with a message: If by any chance your reading this, and you stole a Haro mountain bike from Cary. Know this: one day I will find you, and when I do I will kill you. That is all.

StaY in ToucH with ThE FAM

It's two in the morning and your cell phone rings. "Hello? Mom? Why are you calling me at this hour?!" "Honey! I know it's late, but I've been waiting to hear from you, and I just CANNOT wait any longer! Are you okay?!"...

...the typical worried mom. Enough said.

It's really hard going off to college for the first time. You're a freshman, you don't know very much about the campus, your classes are fifty times harder than they were in high school, and you stress out way more often. You're too busy doing homework and studying for exams, and you forget one of the most important things in your life--family.

Now when I say you "forget" about your family, doesn't really mean you actually do. I guess what I mean to say is that your so busy that you don't have much time to just call and chit-chat whenever you want. Your family and closest friends know that you're busier now than you have ever been in your entire life, but they get worried and upset if you go a week or so without calling them, even if it's just to say hi.

Just because you're doing fine doesn't mean they know you are. After all, your parents have been taking care of you for the past 18 or so years of your life--since you were born. Of course they are going to freak out when you don't call everyday! If you've got your parent's calling you every other day because you haven't called them, just start calling them and give them the scoop of what's going on. A short phone call goes a LONG way. If you call them every couple of days, they probably won't send a search party after you! So it's a win-win situation. You call your parents, they're happy, and at the same time, you don't get embarrassed.

On the other hand, even if your parents don't check up on you all the time, you might feel better if you keep close contact with them and call them anyway. Things get really stressful in college and it's nice to always have someone to talk to you, or even just listen to you complain and whine for a little bit. They'll appreciate it, anyway. They won't mind at all.

I've kept in close touch with my parents since I've moved here, and our relationship has gotten so much better. When I was living at home, I got frustrated and mad at my parents all of the time. Face it, they were annoying, and they were the last people you wanted to deal with (and yes, I know I'm not supposed to end a sentence with a preposition, but I can't think of another way to say it right now). So, in some cases, maybe when you move away from home, you get closer to home.

Go away for the weekend

Leaving Purdue for the weekend could be just what you need to get away from all the school work. I am excited to say that one of my teachers pushed back a lab write-up due date, that was going to force me to do it over October break. I was going to have to do it over break because the lab did not take place till Thursday and was due the day we get back. This might not sound like a big deal, but this is no ordinary lab, it is a lab that I have been working on all semester, so there is a lot to write up. Let’s get back on the topic of going away now.

This up coming weekend, I hope to go backpacking. I am looking to go to a place I went this summer again called Porcupine Mountains. I have had to stress and worry a lot about classes lately and this will be just the break I need. It will distract me completely from my work and allow relaxing. I like this park in particular for several reasons. The most important is that it beautiful and awesome. This park is relatively flat, so I do not have to get all worked up while hiking except for a few climbs. I am looking to enjoy myself and relax, not get a workout. I will hike about 10 miles a day, which can be done in about 4-5 hours with a lunch break, so there is plenty of time to relax in the afternoon. This park is located on Lake Superior and has several interior lakes as well. This means that every day when you are done hiking you get to go swimming.

Let me give you a brief out line of what happens when I go backpacking:
8:00AM – Wake up
8:10AM – Eat Breakfast
8:20AM – Pack up tent and other gear
8:30 AM – Head out on the hike
11:30AM – Stop for lunch
2:00PM – Arrive at camp site for night and setup tents
2:30PM – go swimming
3:30PM – Relax, dry off
4:30PM – Gather wood for fire
5:00PM – Relax
6:30PM – Make dinner
7:00PM - Relax
7:30PM – Have campfire, Relax
9:30PM – Go to bed

Backpacking is a lot simpler than everyday living. You just need to get firewood, eat, setup camp, and hike. There is not too much to worry about other than rain and cold temperatures. If either of those are going to happen, I most likely won’t even go because rain and cold does not equal fun when you are outside. My schedule above gives you lots of time to relax and just talk with my friends. Looking at the weather now for this upcoming weekend does not look very good. The chance of rain is 40% and low temperature is 42 degrees, but it is still a log ways off, so the forecasts are not very accurate.

College Safety for Dummies

So you're walking from your dorm (or wherever you live) and heading to class and you approach a stop light. You don't have a walk signal, but, being the "smart" person you are, you proceed anyway. Two seconds later, you almost get hit by a car.

I've seen or heard about plenty of dangerous things happen since I've been in college, and I've only been here for about two months. You need to pay attention to what is going on around you at all times. Being oblivious is not an option here. I repeat--NOT AN OPTION!

About a month ago, I received an e-mail from Purdue University stating that a girl got trapped, in her own residence hall, by three men who cornered her in the elevator. She reported being touched, and although she wasn't actually hurt, she could have been. Here's a hint: NEVER GO ANYWHERE ALONE! Take a friend with you wherever you go, but the more people, the better. If such a service is provided for you, seek out your university's escort service if you know that you will need to walk somewhere alone. This services aren't just provided for your entertainment and humor.

I saw a guy get hit by a car a couple weeks ago. He wasn't watching, and just like I mentioned at the beginning of the post, he saw a car coming at the last minute, but the car DID NOT stop. He got run over. Authorities made us leave the scene, so I'm not sure what the outcome was. All I know is that when I left, he was laying on the ground not moving at all.

Oh yeah, I saw two bikes collide the other day. Yes, there were people on both. No, they did not die. Yes, they got hurt. No, they did not go to the hospital. Yes, they went to Purdue University's Health Center. They're okay now, but you can't tell me that it couldn't have been avoided. It could have.

The last thing I'm going to mention is an issue I read about in another e-mail I recently received. A girl had been standing in her yard, during the DAY, with her back turned to the road, and a man came up behind her, harassed her, and tried to get her to go with him. She did not go, but she reported it to the police, and I have yet to hear if he was found or not.

So this goes to tell you that you should NEVER be anywhere alone even when it's light outside. Just because there is light doesn't mean things like this can't occur during the day. They most certainly can. In fact, did you know that more house thefts occur in the daytime rather than in the middle of the night? I watched a program on the discovery channel about it a year ago or so. I thought it was weird too. And please, pay attention when you're walking or riding you're bike somewhere. You don't want to be notorious for crashing your bike into another bike, do you?