Category Archives: Education

School and studies

Outro/Study & Thoughts

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I’m a little over a week early at posting this, but I couldn’t pass up this most opportune time to write. I usually publish this posting, part of a collection, during “dead week” of each academic term. However, we just finished the eighth week so I am writing a bit prematurely. Oh well, it’s fun.

Anyway, I’m here at Starbucks (like usual) and really enjoying this moment in time. It’s fairly busy here granted they have their buy-one-get-one-free promotion on holiday drinks. So, what did I do when I got my drink? Yeah, I look like a two-fisted drinker as I got two tall beverages — a caramel brûlée latte (a recommendation from Lindsey) and a peppermint mocha. Plus, not to forget how “gordo” I feel getting two “calorious” (my self-invented word meaning “high in calories”) drinks all for myself. Again, oh well.

So, I’m sitting here going through my H210 textbook typing up notes, but I’m also looking around and just really taking a moment to enjoy my life. Instead of worrying about the things I cannot achieve right now or that I am currently frustrated with, I’m recognizing how fortunate I am to sit here in this warm environment with happy, conversing people — and to be able to smile and know that life is great. I look at the string of ornaments and lights Starbucks has strung in front of the window… and I smile. I look at the red coffee menus, adorned with cartoon-like white hills and snow-dusted trees… and I smile. The Christmas merchandise, the snowflake decals, the people in coats, sweaters, and scarves — all so perfect… and I smile.

Oprah said today (nothing else was on television — what was I supposed to do?!) that meditation is good because it clears your mental channels. Daydreaming is my form of meditation. When I pull my mind back to focus I feel so happy and content with the world. My worries are dulled and I look at them with more acceptance than resistance. I look around and I smile.

I’m very excited for this wave of cold weather rolling into the area in a couple of days. Even if it would bring snow, I know it’s not staying long. But even if it doesn’t snow, I still love the cold, cold weather — the idea of finishing all my to-dos and just curling up on the couch, nice and warm, and watching a movie or maybe reading — with the blinds drawn back and the view of a frigid outdoors, the cars going by, and a time seemingly standing still. So enjoyable!

Additionally, I am also stoked for Thanksgiving and Black Friday. Thanksgiving will be spent at my grandmother’s assisted living community. I like when we have Thanksgiving at our house — feels traditional and the full experience, but it is just as nice at my grandma’s because their is no food preparation and clean-up to do and you don’t really overeat or have to package up the leftovers (though, turkey and cranberry sandwiches are amazing).

But, then there’s Black Friday. Nyberg Woods Starbucks closes at 4pm on Thanksgiving day and opens the same night at 11pm and is open all the way through the end of Friday to cover the Black Friday midnight crowds coming and going. This year I am not really sure what I have my sights on for purchasing. It pains me because I have no real budget for spending — but I know that if you research and strategize correctly you can find the best prices of the year. My Nikon S570 I purchased last Black Friday is still going for a higher price than what I purchased it for when it was a new product to the market. Since then, an upgraded model has even been introduced — yet the price is still higher. That was a good buy. So, I will have to give it some thought and think about what I might be interested in getting — I suppose I should use Black Friday as a shopping advantage to buy items for others, rather than myself. That’s what the Christmas season is all about… Giving.

Tomorrow I’m going the the OSU vs. USC game with a bunch of friends. Our football season has been quite a wreck, but at least I can enjoy the time with the people that are close to me.

Well… It’s back to the textbook I go!

Crunch

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Well, it’s week eight and man ‘o man is it getting intense! I’ve got so, so, so much to do — and it all starts today! From midterms, homework, and essays — to advising, registering, and doing a good lost item deed, it’ll have to be a well-orchestrated string of events to make sure everything goes smoothly. I’m kind of panicky because I don’t feel I have complete control over all the different things, but I think I’ll create a checklist for at least today to help me accomplish it all.

Looking forward, assuming all goes well, I’m quite excited for Thanksgiving and winter break. I’m especially excited for Black Friday and, hopefully, snow. But, I have to keep myself focused on current tasks ahead of me or I’ll just lose all motivation. Okay, not really… But it’s difficult to stay working strong when you think about Thanksgiving and winter and cozying up while it’s bitter cold out. Ah, yes.

So, I’ve got lots to do — time to take on this complicated day. Ugh.

Autumn Vibes

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LaubBlätter10

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The leaves have faded from lush greens to rich golden hues. The last time I posted we were just on the verge of this annual change, but it’s been a while and now pumpkin spice lattes and scents of apple cinnamon are in full swing. The first big rain is arriving within hours and I once again find myself in my cozy happy-place… None other than the Madison Ave. Starbucks on this grey afternoon. I love it here — and surprisingly I find myself more productive with my homework than I ever have before.

The majority of my midterms were this last week — going into them I predicted a distasteful wipe-out. However, thus far it seems I conquered the big kahuna and am smooth sailing again. Miracle, or skill?… Definitely skill. Aside from that, all seems mellow. Halloween is coming up and I’m sort of wishy-washy on a costume. See, you can’t just have any costume — there are definitely some difficult guidelines to work around.

First of all, you have to have a unique costume. You can’t be going around to people and having each one overlook you or question what the hell you are. You’ve either got to completely stand out and be bold — or be one of those that has a costume that everyone just nods at and you blend in. Placing in the middle of these roads will not have you looking so fly (like a G6).

Secondly, your costume needs to be functional. You’ll be at parties and walking around elsewhere. Your costume needs to be able to keep up with you and the different activities you will be doing. This (usually) means your costume should not need a mask nor props to make your image complete — because if you decide to ditch the mask or items you are holding, you’ll lose that identification factor and you’ll have to begin explaining to people what you are.

Finally, your costume needs to be something you are comfortable with. The Halloween stores sell overpriced, cheapy costumes that, if you look closely at them, you realize how low quality they are. Some people enjoy just throwing on some quickly-manufactured cloth and going as that creature or thing. Meanwhile, other people like me want to look good in a costume. Looking good is pretty much the primary target for us. We will alter all Halloween costume plans just to achieve this goal. We take advantage of Halloween to pull off our most GQ-esque appearance with, obviously, some creative spin to it. But, it often involves real clothing items which grope your wallet in that back pocket sometimes a little more than you’d hope. Anyway, I don’t know why I just am thinking of it now, but I think it’d be really swank to dress in a really awfull/awesome colored tuxedo — maybe avocado green or something! It’s just a silly idea.

Whew! I’ve lost track of time — past 4pm already. I’m hungry and feeling inspired to finish the rest of my homework back at the studio. My peppermint mocha is all finished and I’m shutting my books. Music… Off. WordPress… Posted!

Hey There!

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starbucks patio furniture

Image by bookish in north park via Flickr

Yikes! It ‘s been awhile. Here’s what’s up:

  • Things have been busy and mellow at the same time. It’s confusing. Anyway, my teeth of great wisdom were taken out end of August. It was a challenging recovery full of moodiness, fatigue, frustration, and — oh yeah — a trip to the emergency room with a mouth infection. Great, huh? So… Once the prescribed Penicillin took hold in my system, recovery seemed to double and my green/grey furry, shag carpet-like tongue was nice and fleshy again. I’m back to normal , however I was unable to exercise for a couple weeks and now it is just so difficult getting back into the swing of things. Such work.
  • The family and I have one last outing coming up before I return back to school. As always, it’s a bit bittersweet. But, I’ve gotta admit I’m very much looking forward to my studio and the upcoming (but challenging) school year.
  • I got an iPhone 4 a few weeks ago. However, for some reason I am having battery issues and my battery runs down very quickly. It’s a bit troubling but I hope Apple will take care of me when I bring them my issue.
  • Again, I’m really excited for the school year. Unlike my usual self, I now look outside and it’s much darker earlier and it’s raining and dreary — but I really like it. I think about being at the Madison Street Starbucks in Corvallis — staying warm and cozy with my iPad, book, homework, and music. I daydream about my studio and getting comfy and having a movie or sports on TV as the rain falls heavy outside. I even enjoy the idea of running in the rain and giving no care to how soaked my clothes and gushing shoes get. Well… Okay maybe I’ll take my workout to the gym instead. But I want to do much more this year than last year. So far, my sophomore year was better than my freshman year — now let’s make it so that my junior year continues the succeeding pattern. I think it’s possible now that I have even more friends than before. I can see this being a great, great year with many opportunities. Plus, I am determined on a major and am ready to go gun-ho on achieving my goals. Like I’ve said before… Bring it on!
  • Anyhow… I think this sums up most of it. I need to get my body back in gear for my running class I have this upcoming term. I need to make sure I’m at the top of my game and not a straggler.
  • I need an internship too! Oh jeez now I’m getting overwhelmed. I think I have to have four internship credits to graduate — whatever it is, it equates to about four terms of being an intern. I need to get my guns firing right now! Aye… I feel so behind.
  • So, y’all… That’s it for now. Hope your summer is wrapping up well… And I hope you’re just as ready as I am for another awesome year in the 541!

Turning the Page

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I’ve been thinking about the future.

So much of my time is consumed with thinking about the present — which classes to take, where to live come this fall, my academics, friendships, my personal mindset. But I’ve recently been exposed to thoughts of who or where I’ll be after college. When I was asked this by a friend, I immediately answered that I would like to work in Portland and live at home for a short time until I got things going and would find my own place. But… I think about it and now think more deeply about life after school. We are about half done with college. It’s never too early to look ahead and set new goals, dreams for our upcoming selves. It can be like turning the page in a novel and seeing things before they happen.

Perhaps Portland is not my destined location; perhaps it is. But what if I dug deep and, instead of going with what’s simple and most direct, took a leap into the dreams? Where do I want to go? Who do I want to be?

I wouldn’t mind being somewhere with better weather. But I also don’t think I’d favor a small suburbia town like Corvallis. Yet, at the same time, a large town like Portland is even daunting. The weird people, the traffic, parking, and sketchy areas. But I know I want to go into public health. It’s still so strange to me how I’ve been pursuing the wrong major up until this most recently-completed term – and then pretty much without taking any previous course or giving any prior interest, just jumped into the public health field.

So, I want to work at maybe a hospital, institute, or state organization to work/manage/create health programs. I’d like to cover, perhaps, something in healthy/fit lifestyles or HIV/AIDS awareness. However, these are just initial thoughts. I’m sure many other areas of health interest me. But where I want to work is still a big brainstorm. Should I stay near home? Should I follow my heart and let it lead me to new lands?

I think a lot my confusion can be solved.

I need to travel. I crave so much to see the world. Maybe if I got this necessity for adventure out of my system I could then feel more like settling in somewhere I’m familiar with… Like Portland. It would be quite great if I could travel within my employment company — fly out to attend conferences and interact with foreign populations and policy.

Writing this has actually spurred an idea. Maybe I should look into studying abroad through OSU. This will give me extreme hands-on experience and help me figure things out for the future. I think I’ll look into it right now. Study public health on the east coast? Europe? Australia? Ok… A little ambitious, but I’m still going to check out the possibilities.

Oh, man! Now I’m feeling so ready to turn that page and start writing my next chapter in life. What a good day!

Published from my iPad.

Because They Take Off-Ramps

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Wow. It’s really the end of the school year — how drastically different it is from last year. Frankly, I’m actually disappointed. Because I’m staying in Corvallis to take a summer course, I don’t have that feeling of absolute freedom as others have begun to celebrate. I mean, in the back of my head I know that being in this quaint town for four additional weeks will have its own enjoyments, but people are bubbling with the annual excitement of being able to go home and be with other friends and, essentially, live other lives because they take off-ramps from this university highway. They are liv’in it up. And it’s not that I’m unsatisfied with taking this Econ class over June/July but rather that I just don’t feel like this is the end. I could go on with the life that has elapsed over the past eight-and-a-half months. But now things have to change again and I have to get used to a new sort of lifestyle.

Summer is bittersweet. You get so used to the regular life during academic terms but then turn around and go home and assume a totally different form of functioning. I’m not saying either is good or bad… It’s just quirky transitioning from school life to home life. Your daily routine is flipped. At home, you no longer text message to meet up with friends from around Corvallis — or bump into random people you know and can say hi — or stroll up Monroe and see and hear all the active student bodies.

It’s a tough adjustment that I suppose is not mean to be reconciled between the best of both worlds. Perhaps this phenomenon creates a sort of normality in living two lives. Maybe it really is ok to go home and resume your other self only to come back in the fall to pick up where you left off. Ceteris paribus.

Published from my iPad WiFi + 3G