(no subject)
It's fitting that September 1 is also Labor Day, the last day of Summer (culturally, not technically). It's also fitting that on this day on a walk around the neighborhood with Hershey, I saw many leaves on the ground and one or two trees beginning to shed them.
Last weekend, I went with my family to help my brother move into his college dorm and officially join the ND family. It was the most chill weekend ever, hanging out with nearly all the people I had been missing all summer. It was a blast not in a crazy, adventure-filled way but in a relaxing, carefree way.
ND is an outstanding place. It is the most perfect place to attend undergraduate studies anywhere. Sometimes, when I think of ppl I know who are there right now, walking around campus, going out to some location off-campus, studying in the library, sleeping in their dorm rooms, or visiting with friends in other dorms or other places where students congregate, I think, aww they must be having fun, I kind wish I was there. And then immediately I think, No Way, Man. No Way. When you're actually on campus, the good memories come to you, but the bad memories are there too. Being on campus last weekend I felt it. At one point when I was there, I was riding my bike from the post office to the library, doing a few errands I thought I might as well do while on campus and some to help out my brother. I had not eaten lunch and all of a sudden I found myself feeling so stressed out. This is exactly the position I was often in as a student and exactly why I didn't want to come back to ND, so that I wouldn't need to experience that misery again. Skipping meals (whether because I just hadn't got around to it or I forgot about it), feeling like I have 23057084250 things to do, running around campus on an empty stomach and stressed-out state of mind. Looking back on the best times of last weekend, I wondered why my life as a student hadn't been more chill like that: hanging out with friends, then working on stuff, then maybe catching a meal, then more split time between hanging out and working. The reason is mainly that I was EXCESSIVELY involved in campus life. This is very clear now. If I had to do those four years again, I would have joined 30 activities freshman year and then picked the 3-5 best and ONLY participated in those. It would have made my life much simpler and I would have had more time to devote to schoolwork, perhaps even achieved some higher grades. Instead, my life was very, very complicated, with my responsibilities, obligations, and demands on my time going in 5+ different directions, on top of the very demanding academic and social aspects of ND student life. There were some other people on campus who were like that, but not very many. Most of the people I knew had one or two extra-curriculars that they gave all their attention to.
Yet, if I really did have to go through those four years over again, I probably would end up being just as involved and there are many reasons why I don't regret living my ND student life that way. I loved meeting so many people and making good friends from the different groups and areas I was involved in and also having that wide variety of activities that I could participate in was so much fun. And it wasn't only the harried aspect that life took on sometimes. I was looking at my transcript today and there were some horrible classes that I had to take, even a semester of two full of classes I wasn't thrilled about. When you have classes like that, you just really don't want to be there at the lecture or discussion or do the homework and youjust got to keep at it. But now I've accomplished them all and I've passed on my extra-curricular responsibilities to others. Now I can simply visit! I was really very joyful and grateful that I could and I hope to make it back at least once more. It was like walking around campus in a dream though..and when I was biking around, it was like I had never left and I had just the previous day been riding around the Quads from one place to another.
It's actually not that strange being out of school when everyone else is. It should be since this is the first year since I was two years old that I do not go back to school in August-September. I guess I'm just very aware of where I am right now and where many of my classmates are at right now: recent college graduates, workin a job. I'm also hopefully going to be taking classes in late Fall or early Winter so school's certainly not completely over for me.
And what are my goals now that I've achieved a high school diploma and a four-year college degree? To attain the same lifestyle I'm living now on my own. Money is such a loaded issue. One's not supposed to admit that they want money or one will appear greedy or miserly. One's expected to focus less on material possessions and more on the "important things": people, health, blessings. But hey, with the exception of love and all that, money gets you everything you need and want in life. If you don't have enough, it causes constant, relentless anxiety. If you don't have any, you can't survive. Humans don't live in the wild anymore. We've created our own habitat and within it, the key to survival is earning money. Money can take you anywhere, allow you to do anything, and is valuable to everyone so you can help those around you. Therefore, I say, it's okay to want money. Sure, don't do anything immoral to obtain it. But it's a great motivation to work hard.
If I attain the lifestyle I have now, I would be rather happy. More? Sure, I'll take it! Less? As long as it's not much less. Starting out, as long as I can have a nice place of my own where my friends can visit me or live with me, I'd be very glad. And I'm sticking by my "I don't need a spouse to be happy" attitude. But hey, as much as I like spending time with just myself, too much time alone can be detrimental to the psyche. And that's really why people get married right? So they don't have to be alone all the time and they find someone they enjoy spending lots of time with. I'd be lying if I said I don't have someone in mind. Friends can ward off loneliness too of course. But it seems like friends have to go separate ways eventually and can't stick around with you for many years, through the different stages of life. Although I suppose there are many cases out there that prove me wrong about that.
I still have the dreams of doing something GREAT and becoming someone powerful, impressive, and perhaps even well-known--at least among come circles if not the world or nation. But I feel that you have to achieve the simpler dreams first, like getting settled in a place of my own, having everything I need, feeling good about myself and peace of mind, and being surrounded by wonderful friends. Now if I can only brush away distractions of everyday life and focus on the big picture, what the actions I need to take to steer my life where it needs to go and achieve these dreams! It sure is nice to have the freedom and ability to do so.starfire789's Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 7Average number of words per sentence:12.52Average number of syllables per word:1.47Total words in sample:5509Analyze your journal! Click Here.Another fun meme brought to you by rfreebern
Last weekend, I went with my family to help my brother move into his college dorm and officially join the ND family. It was the most chill weekend ever, hanging out with nearly all the people I had been missing all summer. It was a blast not in a crazy, adventure-filled way but in a relaxing, carefree way.
ND is an outstanding place. It is the most perfect place to attend undergraduate studies anywhere. Sometimes, when I think of ppl I know who are there right now, walking around campus, going out to some location off-campus, studying in the library, sleeping in their dorm rooms, or visiting with friends in other dorms or other places where students congregate, I think, aww they must be having fun, I kind wish I was there. And then immediately I think, No Way, Man. No Way. When you're actually on campus, the good memories come to you, but the bad memories are there too. Being on campus last weekend I felt it. At one point when I was there, I was riding my bike from the post office to the library, doing a few errands I thought I might as well do while on campus and some to help out my brother. I had not eaten lunch and all of a sudden I found myself feeling so stressed out. This is exactly the position I was often in as a student and exactly why I didn't want to come back to ND, so that I wouldn't need to experience that misery again. Skipping meals (whether because I just hadn't got around to it or I forgot about it), feeling like I have 23057084250 things to do, running around campus on an empty stomach and stressed-out state of mind. Looking back on the best times of last weekend, I wondered why my life as a student hadn't been more chill like that: hanging out with friends, then working on stuff, then maybe catching a meal, then more split time between hanging out and working. The reason is mainly that I was EXCESSIVELY involved in campus life. This is very clear now. If I had to do those four years again, I would have joined 30 activities freshman year and then picked the 3-5 best and ONLY participated in those. It would have made my life much simpler and I would have had more time to devote to schoolwork, perhaps even achieved some higher grades. Instead, my life was very, very complicated, with my responsibilities, obligations, and demands on my time going in 5+ different directions, on top of the very demanding academic and social aspects of ND student life. There were some other people on campus who were like that, but not very many. Most of the people I knew had one or two extra-curriculars that they gave all their attention to.
Yet, if I really did have to go through those four years over again, I probably would end up being just as involved and there are many reasons why I don't regret living my ND student life that way. I loved meeting so many people and making good friends from the different groups and areas I was involved in and also having that wide variety of activities that I could participate in was so much fun. And it wasn't only the harried aspect that life took on sometimes. I was looking at my transcript today and there were some horrible classes that I had to take, even a semester of two full of classes I wasn't thrilled about. When you have classes like that, you just really don't want to be there at the lecture or discussion or do the homework and youjust got to keep at it. But now I've accomplished them all and I've passed on my extra-curricular responsibilities to others. Now I can simply visit! I was really very joyful and grateful that I could and I hope to make it back at least once more. It was like walking around campus in a dream though..and when I was biking around, it was like I had never left and I had just the previous day been riding around the Quads from one place to another.
It's actually not that strange being out of school when everyone else is. It should be since this is the first year since I was two years old that I do not go back to school in August-September. I guess I'm just very aware of where I am right now and where many of my classmates are at right now: recent college graduates, workin a job. I'm also hopefully going to be taking classes in late Fall or early Winter so school's certainly not completely over for me.
And what are my goals now that I've achieved a high school diploma and a four-year college degree? To attain the same lifestyle I'm living now on my own. Money is such a loaded issue. One's not supposed to admit that they want money or one will appear greedy or miserly. One's expected to focus less on material possessions and more on the "important things": people, health, blessings. But hey, with the exception of love and all that, money gets you everything you need and want in life. If you don't have enough, it causes constant, relentless anxiety. If you don't have any, you can't survive. Humans don't live in the wild anymore. We've created our own habitat and within it, the key to survival is earning money. Money can take you anywhere, allow you to do anything, and is valuable to everyone so you can help those around you. Therefore, I say, it's okay to want money. Sure, don't do anything immoral to obtain it. But it's a great motivation to work hard.
If I attain the lifestyle I have now, I would be rather happy. More? Sure, I'll take it! Less? As long as it's not much less. Starting out, as long as I can have a nice place of my own where my friends can visit me or live with me, I'd be very glad. And I'm sticking by my "I don't need a spouse to be happy" attitude. But hey, as much as I like spending time with just myself, too much time alone can be detrimental to the psyche. And that's really why people get married right? So they don't have to be alone all the time and they find someone they enjoy spending lots of time with. I'd be lying if I said I don't have someone in mind. Friends can ward off loneliness too of course. But it seems like friends have to go separate ways eventually and can't stick around with you for many years, through the different stages of life. Although I suppose there are many cases out there that prove me wrong about that.
I still have the dreams of doing something GREAT and becoming someone powerful, impressive, and perhaps even well-known--at least among come circles if not the world or nation. But I feel that you have to achieve the simpler dreams first, like getting settled in a place of my own, having everything I need, feeling good about myself and peace of mind, and being surrounded by wonderful friends. Now if I can only brush away distractions of everyday life and focus on the big picture, what the actions I need to take to steer my life where it needs to go and achieve these dreams! It sure is nice to have the freedom and ability to do so.starfire789's Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 7Average number of words per sentence:12.52Average number of syllables per word:1.47Total words in sample:5509Analyze your journal! Click Here.Another fun meme brought to you by rfreebern