Month: October 2019

I have been at Longwood a little more than a month, and I have enjoyed majority of it. Yes, I said majority because nothing is ever perfect—but it’s fine when the good outweighs the bad.

One of the things that gets to me is learning how to be independent at this level, especially balancing my social life and academic responsibilities. Yet I know I am a lot better at it than I was when I arrived on campus. Balancing different aspects of college life is something a lot of people here find challenging, and that gives me the chance to build bonds with others who are struggling along with me.

Seeing friends from home who stopped by Farmville for a visit and going to Oktoberfest activities helped me take my mind off those challenges for a while. Oktoberfest weekend was a lot better than I expected it to be, honestly, with the costumes and various events—especially Color Wars and the Waka Flocka concert.

Color Wars was exciting. Throwing paint on people isn’t something you get to do every day—but I wouldn’t mind if it were. I was impressed with Waka Flacka’s performance. Everyone was having a good time, and I know that some people were more impressed with it than they thought they would be.

Overall, my time this week and the past month has been good, with some highs and a couple of lows. Now I’m just getting ready to tackle my midterms and see how next month is going to be.

I’m a communication studies major and, to help fulfill our community service requirement, we have the opportunity to help out at Farmville’s food pantry, FACES. I volunteered one Saturday morning, and I felt so fulfilled afterwards.

We helped people pick out food and then helped them load the items into their cars. I must have helped 100 or more people. There is nothing more rewarding than knowing I did my part to help families in Farmville who need a hand.

The next week, during my class, we discussed how our help could have had an impact on more people than we think—like the people who receive food at FACES. The most touching interaction I had was with a woman whose family of 12 hadn’t had enough food for weeks. I thanked her for coming and told her to please come by anytime she needs to. That was the first time I realized how much of a difference I can make while I’m here in Farmville and how many people I can help.

While walking around campus, I try to look around and see how many people I know and can say “Hi” to. I’m very happy to say that I see a several people every day when I walk to class. I’m so glad that I chose Longwood—because of its size and because of those familiar faces. Getting involved with several student organizations has introduced me to a lot of new people.

I was leaving my band class the other day and I realized that I finally feel at home. I took a photo to remember that moment. It’s my first month of living here, and I couldn’t be prouder of where I am in my life right now.

A few months ago, when I found out the dates for Parents Weekend, I immediately told my dad so he could get a hotel before they were all booked. Sadly, a few weeks Parents Weekend, he found out he had a work-related conflict, so he would not be able to come that weekend.

Luckily, he was able to come to Farmville the weekend before! We had a great time! We started off with brunch at D Hall, because he wanted to use a guest swipe that he had paid for rather than going to a restaurant and spending additional money. After that, we walked around Main Street and just enjoyed each other’s company.

My mom still came for Parents Weekend! She arrived on Saturday, and we had lunch at Macado’s! It was super busy, but the burger I ordered was worth the wait! After that, we did some shopping downtown at Pairet’s, Sleeping Bee and Penelope—a few of my favorites! We made a trip to Walmart so I could stock up on snacks (thanks, Mom!). We then made our way back to the hotel for the night. For breakfast the next morning, we went to Walker’s Diner and the food there was delicious! It may look old from the outside, but I would 100 percent recommend their food!

I am so glad that both of my parents were able to come and visit! It won’t be too long before I’ll be heading back to Yorktown for fall break!

There are two very important reasons why I chose Longwood.

The first reason is the size of the campus. As soon as I took my first steps on campus, I felt a sense of community. I felt like I was about to be a part of something that would make me a better citizen. To me that is very important because of what I want to do after my time here at Longwood—be a teacher.

 

At Longwood, I would not be just a number. The professors know you by name, and they are here to help you. It is extremely important to go to a university where you feel that you would be supported by students and faculty 24/7.

Another important reason I chose Longwood is because of its rich history of producing great teachers. I want to become a fifth-grade teacher, and Longwood’s liberal studies program will give me the skills I need to become the best fifth-grade teacher I can be.

There are a ton of other reasons I chose Longwood, but I believe these are the most important.

This week is the fourth week of classes. So much has happened, and time is flying by.

I have had three quizzes, one exam and a ton of homework. I also was finally able to hang up all my things on my walls!! Now my dorm room definitely feels like home, and I am very proud of how my room has turned out.

This past weekend my roommate, some of my new Longwood friends and I decided to go take a day trip back to my hometown. I decided to take them to Short Pump Mall, since they had never been there. We went to lunch at California Pizza Kitchen with my mom and my best friend, Kenny. We also went shopping and all got some new cute clothes that we are excited to wear.

In high school, I participated in varsity dance team. It was one of the many things that excited me about going to school. The team gave me a feeling of comfort and made me feel at home. When the dance season was over, I was devastated thinking that my dance career was over. I wanted nothing more than to be part of a team again.

When I finally committed to Longwood, I decided to research the dance opportunities. I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to dance forever. Three options came up, including Blue Heat Dance Team, Fierce Dance Team and The Company. I did some additional research and decided that Blue Heat was the team I wanted to join because its dance styles are similar to the team I was on in high school.

As the tryouts were approaching, I finally convinced my roommate, Ashley, to try out for the team as well. Knowing that we both had some type of dance background, I thought it would be something fun for us to experience together. Though the tryouts were tough, we both made the team!! We then had our team initiation and met the rest of our new family. Even though joining the team will be a time commitment, I think it’ll be worth it.

I’m really loving Longwood. I’m adjusting to college life, and I think I’m doing pretty well.

I tried FarmGrill in the Upchurch University Center for the first time and got the grilled cheese. Now it’s my favorite place to go when I’m hungry. Also I have a tip: Don’t spend all of your bonus dollars at Starbucks!

I’m not feeling quite as motivated this week, but I think it’s just because I miss my home. Overall things are going great.

As I was getting ready for Color Wars, I was wondering how much paint would get on me. I originally had on a pair of Nikes, and then someone told me you just take your shoes off. Luckily, I listened to them because, when it was all over, I was drenched in a crazy amount of paint!

They had the freshmen and juniors on the green team, and the seniors and sophomores on the red team. There were buckets of paint on each side of the field and a line in the middle. When the time came, we all sprinted toward each other and flung as much paint as we could.

By the time all the paint was gone, every white T-shirt was no longer white, and everyone was covered in paint from head to toe. It’s a memory I will look forward to making every year here at Longwood.

I can’t wait to see the photo I take next year and who I will get to enjoy the experience with in fall 2020.  

On Saturday night of Oktoberfest weekend, Waka Flocka performed on Stubbs lawn, and it could not have been a more perfect night! The weather was just right, and everyone was just down to enjoy the concert. It was so crowded that people were getting on other people’s shoulders so they could see.

I honestly thought it was an amazing show, and I was glad I was a part of it.

Earlier in the day on Saturday, many of Longwood’s student organizations set up booths to recruit members and raise money. It was so awesome to see all the clubs in one place. There were a variety of booths giving out really good food! 

The past several weeks at Longwood have been a learning experience for me. It’s been enjoyable even though there have been some growing pains with it!

I’m learning how to do things independently, like making sure I plan out my days to meet my deadlines and keep up with my academic obligations. Now, don’t get me wrong, these things take some time to get used to, especially when you haven’t had to do them before. But the process is fun because I know that I am becoming more of an adult.

This is primarily related to my academics.

When it comes to my social life, I have been having a lot of fun meeting people, having lunch with peers and even watching TV with them in the sunroom on a weekend. All of these experiences are what I expected.

I also went to the CHI walk (http://www.longwood.edu/lancer-life/traditions/chi/) recently along with some other students. The walk was at night and a little creepy, yet kind of fun. I wish I had gotten a CHI dropping while I was there, but I’m still glad I got to be a part of the tradition—and I’m looking forward to other school events in the future.

The weekend culture here is nice, with people outside socializing and the special programs, like move nights and the hypnotist who “performed.” Even though it gets hard sometimes academically, it is good to know that there are opportunities for me to wind down for a bit and give myself a mental break.

Before arriving at Longwood, I didn’t really know what to expect from college. I had only heard stories about how mean and lacking in understanding college professors are and how terrible living with a roommate could be.  

Well, I am here to tell you the opposite is true when it comes to the professors here at Longwood! From the first day of class, each professor has said multiple times that they are here for us and that they want to see us succeed. Also, because my classes are very small compared with other universities, the professors have an opportunity to get to know their students on a personal level.

Another plus is that every professor has certain times they are in their office with the door open, and they’re prepared for students to show up with questions. They set this time aside so that they can help students be successful in their class! Before I came to Longwood, I thought professors didn’t care about who you are or if you were successful or if you were struggling in the class—but that’s not the case at Longwood.  

I have heard plenty of stories about experiences with bad roommates! I got the impression that your roommate was going to make or break your freshman year—or your college experience in general. Leading up to my freshman year, I was a bit nervous about finding a roommate because I didn’t really know anyone who would be attending Longwood, and I wasn’t sure if I wanted to go random or not.

Let me tell you that I lucked out with a great roommate! It turns out that our dads actually met through Longwood. My dad was an education major, and he did his student teaching at my roommate’s dad’s high school. Her dad was interested in the same major that my dad was pursuing, so my dad talked to him about Longwood, and he graduated from here, too!

When living with a roommate, I suggest that you discuss your expectations: for example, if you want to keep the room clean, if you are normally cold/hot, if you care about other people being in the room. After all, it is both your and your roommate’s room! It’s an adjustment to share a room and have such a small space for yourself, but after a few weeks of being in the dorm, I have finally found a place for everything and gotten in the groove of things! 

Although it is only about a month into the college life, I am loving it! It took me a little bit to figure out my time-management skills with schoolwork coming first and my social life coming second. But I am making new friends and enjoying my classes (for the most part!), and I love venturing out into Farmville on the weekends! I cannot wait to see what the next few weeks will hold!