5 Quick Things I've Learned in College

1. Dish washing doesn't have to be confined to the sink. My dorm room had a sink in it, which was great for rinsing things off, brushing my teeth before bed, getting something to drink, and being able to wash your feet when you're freaking out because they're dirty. However, when it came down to really washing dishes, it was impossible to get it done in such a small space. So every couple of weeks when the dishes began to resemble the Tower of Pisa, I would make trip by trip to my shower carrying dishes and preparing to wash them. This little lesson stuck with me when I moved into my first apartment. My ex-boyfriend decided he did NOT like to help with dishes, so I thought, if I don't do the dishes, then surely he'll get fed up with having so many dishes and he'll do them! No such luck. I ended up making trip by trip to our bathtub and doing the dishes there. Even though I was doing a household chore, I still felt like I was getting treated to a spa day! Haha. 

2. That guy with the lip ring? Yeah, he's a tool. We've all been in that situation. You're going out with some friends, and there's the one cool guy that everyone knows and he seems like a respectable guy. He's funny, he's nice, he's liked, and he can buy the alcohol! Well, I'll call my guy Frank. He was the one of the group that was over 21 (something highly needed in college, but not so much for me). Frank was talked up a LOT before I first saw him. I heard bits and snippets like, "Oh man, When is Frank gunna be here?" "Yeah, Frank is coming, isn't that great?" "Frank's on his way!" and pretty soon, a guy with dark shaggy hair, a lip ring, and tight jeans walks through the door and is met with hugs from the girls and high fives from the guys. As the night progressed, Frank talked to everyone and made us feel like we had known him forever, and by the end of the night, I thought that I may have fallen in love with Frank. In the early dawn, when the sun was just rising above the horizon, and all the drunks were walking home, I got a call from him telling me to let him into my dorm! Being excited that this "cool" kid was at my dorm, I was ecstatic and ran to let him in. He came in and we talked about the night, our majors, our dreams, and our old relationships, then something happened. We began to kiss. Things couldn't progress far because it was that time so I couldn't do much, which I look back and I'm glad. Strictly because, after that night, I never heard from him. Well, I did hear from him once, asking what I was doing one night because he wanted to come over. Luckily, I was busy. Overall, I think we all know what he was after, and I had to tell myself, He may look "cool" but he won't give you respect, and he's just a typical guy. Plus, he has a lip ring. 

3. Naps aren't just for children. I'm one of those people that love sleeping. When I go to sleep at night, I try to set three alarms because I know I'm going to be perpetually exhausted, and will not be able to get up with just one alarm. And on a side note- alarms don't work if you set them for the wrong time of day...say 9:30 PM instead of 9:30 AM. I had to figure that one out the hard way. Several times. A week. Throughout the whole semester. But, I never knew I could enjoy sleep THIS much! Every spare moment I have, I spend sleeping because my body tells me I need it. I also found that I could fall asleep anywhere; this includes hallways before class, chairs in the student center, in class, a booth of a restaurant, while driving, and at the computer. I don't know if this is just a phase, but I've definitely learned that taking naps can completely change your mood, make you feel better, and keep you healthy. The best way to combat feeling sleepy all the time? Don't take really long naps, you'll just wake up feeling more groggy. Plus, I found that being active helps, but makes you more sleepy once you slow down. I'm still searching for the perfect solution, but I keep falling asleep! 

4. Never underestimate the power of snail-mail. If you've ever received any type of mail, then you know that it's a great feeling receiving a letter in the mail. In this age of technology, we get things fast. You call someone, and tell them you've sent an email, and they check their email, and they have it. However, You call someone and say, "I just dropped a letter in the mail for you" and for the next couple days, they'll be checking their mail, excited to just get something. When you receive something in the mail, it's like a present! As a college kid though, one has to remember that the mail works both ways and a lot of times, to get mail, you have to send mail! So take a little time and write your mom, grandma, grandpa, and other family members. Heck, even mail your friends at other schools because the act is always appreciated. Don't know where to start? Send some cheap valentines (think the kind that you used to give out in grade school.)


5. Crafts are one of the best ways to de-stress. Speaking of making Valentine's...You'll get more than just mail from making them. According to Family-Friendly-Fun dot com, "Craft therapy nurtures children and adults, offers an opportunity for self expression, develops fine motor skills and reduces stress." I've been to a therapist before and one of the things she had me do was color a picture representing my brain. Not only did it help her take a peek into the way I think, but it also relaxed me and made myself ask some serious questions about my inner-self. So, during exam week, or mid-terms, take an hour to pause and do a craft. Go out to Walgreens and buy a coloring book and some crayons. Just by coloring a few pages, you'll notice your stress levels go WAY down, and you'll be in a better mindset to study! 
  

Mothers, don't do this.

I'm sitting in Panera Bread Company and I just witnessed something that I have a feeling happens more often than not.

So, I'm sitting in my favorite little corner booth, and there's a mother, her son, and her daughter in the booth across the way from me. The son looks to be around 10 years old, and the daughter looks about 4 years old. As I sit down, I don't really notice them, other than I saw the mother get up to get her food and then come back. After some time of me eating, and them eating, I hear a commotion. The mother is yelling at the son and jerking his fork out of his hand. "If you want to finish your salad, then you have to scrape the bowl!!!" And she shows him how quite forcefully, then returns the fork to him. Apparently he did not do it as she would have liked him to, because once again she's ripping the fork out of his hand to show him how to properly eat his salad. After a while, they both give up and decide it's time to go home. As they're getting up to leave, the mother jerks him out of the booth by the arm and says rather loudly, "You're a disgrace!"


I wanted to get up and tell her that he's a child, and he shouldn't be forced to eat SALAD. Also, that he should be able to eat any way he wants as long as the food is getting into his mouth.

So parents, should children be punished like this for not eating salad "correctly"? Is there a correct way to eat salad?
My only advice is not to punish your children out in public. It's a lot cuter to see a family eating together in whichever way they like to eat than for a mom to be ruining someone else's meal by yelling at her children.


Oh and by the way. The little girl was an angel and hardly talked at all.

My Battery is dying so I'll have to make this quick.

I've decided to start keeping a blog about things I see, notice, or feel that the rest of the world should know.

It was hard to decide to do this because I thought to myself, Why make a blog that no one will probably even care about? And there is NO answer to that question other than, It's important to me and that's all that matters.