Month: September 2018

When people think about what happens on college campuses on Friday nights, most think of parties, loud music and crazy young adults. However, for me, none of those events takes place on a typical Friday night.

I’ll be honest, most Fridays I don’t really do much of anything. I usually just go get dinner at Dorrill Dining Dall (a.k.a. “D-Hall”) with my roommate or another friend, do some homework and then go to bed. I know, that sounds super exciting right? You might be wondering why I don’t participate in the typical party scene on Friday nights, and the reason is simple: I’m tired. After working really hard throughout the week, I just don’t feel like doing much of anything by the time Friday night rolls around.

That being said, I did mix up my routine a little this past Friday.

After my last class, I went back to my dorm and started working on some homework. I had an assignment due the next day (Saturday) and I wanted to go ahead and get it done so I could work on other assignments. After spending about 2-1/2 hours on homework, I thought I should take a break and go get some dinner. On my way to D-Hall, I saw one of my friends and she was on her way to dinner as well. We met up with one of her other friends, then all ate dinner together.

After that, her friend went back to her dorm, and we were just hanging out. People were going out for the night, and my friend asked me what I had planned for the rest of the evening. I said I was just going to continue working on some homework. To my surprise, she said she was planning to do the same thing. We went to a study lounge and started on our assignments. We talked, told stories, ate some gummy bears and managed to get everything done that we wanted to. After we got done with our assignments, we just hung out again until we were tired and wanted some rest.

As you can see, I didn’t go to any crazy parties on my Friday night, and I still had a really fun time. You don’t need to go out to have fun—you can just hang out with a friend. You can do homework or do nothing at all.

In college, it’s important to prioritize your time. It’s crucial actually. But it’s still important to do some fun things with friends from time to time because everyone eventually needs a break. But if you’re like me and parties aren’t your scene, it’s OK.

 

It has been almost a month since I have been here at Longwood, and I can happily say I chose the best school to go to!!

I love my classes because they are mostly for my major. I love my professors—they are all so fun and truly love what they do. The cool thing about college classes is they are mostly classes that interest you. I think that definitely makes it more fun learning about your passions and what makes you happy.

I have found that the only place I can get my work done is the library! I love the library. They have a really cool little store where I like to get a snack to take a little brain break from studying or writing a paper.

To relieve stress from classes, I like to go to the gym. The gym here is so nice. I enjoy the Zumba classes!

After two weeks of classes, I can say that I’ve had my fair share of stress and freakouts.

There is no hiding the fact that college classes are extremely stressful, but it’s not unmanageable. I’m beginning to learn the system that’s best for me to be successful in my classes. Having this much freedom and free time means that you almost must have a system in place to not fall behind in classes—but the system can be different for different people.

A lot of my time—aside from classes and studying—has been spent playing basketball, and I’ve finally gotten the date for tryouts to play on the club basketball team. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous for it, so I will definitely be in the gym a lot these next couple weeks preparing for tryouts.

The traditions have also been so much fun! The most well-known tradition that I’ve gotten to participate in so far is called The G.A.M.E.  The acronym stands for “Greatest Athletics March Ever,” and it’s where you receive the coveted scarf for that year. It’s part of an event called First Friday Back. So the first Friday after move-in, there is a carnival-like event on Wheeler Mall, then everyone gathers together and makes the long walk to the field of whichever varsity team is playing (This year it was women’s field hockey.) Finally you arrive and pick up the scarf for that year. I decided to go with someone from my small group that I met at New Lancer Days named Grace, who is becoming a very good friend of mine. There was so much energy and good vibes throughout the entire event, and that made it so much fun!

Although there is a lot of stress that comes with class and the workload, I am still loving college and am sure that Longwood was the right choice for me! The only things for me to focus on for now are my classes and club basketball tryouts.

I don’t think it really hit me that I had really made it to college until move-in day. Rusty and I moved our things in and would’ve lain in our beds all day if we didn’t have to go to New Lancer Days, which was like a weekend orientation for the freshmen.

The weekend of New Lancer Days is FULL of activities, some of which are informative while others are more relaxed and fun. There is also something to do most nights so that you aren’t just staying in your dorm room.

New Lancer Days made it very easy to meet people because, for that first weekend after you move in, you are put in a small group to do the activities that are scheduled. Lots of people struggle to meet new people, so the system they have here is great. During this weekend full of things, you get small bits of free time. I used this free time to go play basketball and network, so I could learn more about playing on the club basketball team.

Now that New Lancer Days are over, I’m ready to start my classes and meet the professors. I’m honestly not sure what to think or expect yet so it will definitely be an adventure!

A planned roommate assignment wasn’t exactly what I wanted when I thought about going to college—but it was honestly well worth it.

I remember walking in on move-in day. I looked up and saw her right beside me signing her name. She waved at me and I smiled. I had so many expectations. Some were good but mostly bad.

I feared that this roommate assignment was going to change my experience at Longwood. In my head, I figured that she was going to be a strange person that I would have to share the same space with. I automatically was pessimistic and knew it was going to suck. I worried that she was going to be mean and a control freak. I really thought my first roommate was going to be a horror story because that’s what so many people told me.

But, after that first day, I knew it was a blessing.

My roommate, Laya, is absolutely the best. It seemed like the more we talked and hung out—things just clicked. One day we stayed up all night doing our hair. We laughed uncontrollably. We kept saying over and over again that we were a perfect match.

This has truly been a BLESSING.

Move-in day was truly one of the most life-changing days I’ve ever experienced.

Before move in, I was nervous about everything involved in the way the next four years of my life was going to go. I was nervous for how I was going to get used to my roommates, and living in a room so much smaller than the one I was used to at home, and the fact that I wouldn’t have my family around all the time.

But everything changed as soon as I pulled into Longwood on move-in day. When I saw all the happy faces and people so willing to help, I knew this was going to be a good place where I was going to thrive in all aspects. The people outside of my residence hall were so eager to help and provide any service that I needed.

When I got all my stuff in my room, I was so excited to start hanging out with the people on the hall and getting to know the people who are going to be around me for the next year. The first night in my room I didn’t get much sleep, as everyone was in and out of everyone’s room hanging out and getting to know each other.

The hardest part about move-in day was saying goodbye to my mom. Even though she doesn’t live too far away, knowing I wouldn’t be seeing her everyday was tough.

Move-in day made everything real: College was no longer something that I was going to do in the future—it was happening now.  I will never forget that first day, seeing the endless  hugs to family members and all the clothes that everyone brought with them.

Move-in day was really the first step in my four-year journey at Longwood.