Artifacts

For my second year to do list I went for restaurants. To celebrate Earth Month and my birthday Julia and ventured down high street on the 2 to bareburger and northstar. We went to bareburger for my birthday. I got the sweet potato veggie burger (make sure you sub the bun for a normal bun) and Julia got the Black Bean  burger then we split them and swapped! We both agreed that the sweet potato was better and had more flavours! We also liked their sweet potato fries better than the normal fries! The only con to bareburger was that its a pretty far away from campus but it definitely gets you into the local columbus scene. We also loved the fact that we had 3 different veggie burger options to choose from and if those didn’t satisfy your cravings you could make your own! Overall, Julia and I had a great experience!

On Earth Day we made our way to Northstar for FREE veggie burgers! I have always loved the northstar burger and I love the vibe of standing in line with a ton of other veggie burger lovers. We also got mint iced coffee which is one of my favorite iced coffee drinks! Our only complaint was they were trying hard to get us to leave so they could get other people in so then we finally left. Northstar veggie burgers are very pricey which is why it is so important to take advantage of these opportunities! They also were doing a promotion if you posted a photo of you with your burger and did a hashtag they were donating a dollar per post to an Environmental Non-profit. After our northstar adventure we went back to north campus to use our swipes and happened upon a concert underneath THE Tom W Davis clocktower! This made our afternoon even better! Then we ran into our good ENR friends Randall and Animesh at the clocktower during the concert. (I swear I can’t make this stuff up). We chatted with them for awhile before returning to our dorm.

If I had to say which veggie burger I would recommend over the other… hard to say honestly.. but bareburger is about half the price so I recommend their burger and then after that head to Northstar, sit outside, drink an iced coffee and split a peanut butter cookie with a loved one.

Last week, I got to interview my mentor, Helena Gastier! Helena is a 2^nd year currently majoring in Chemistry but contemplating switching to molecular genetics. When I asked Helena about her most challenging class thus far, to no surprise she answered Chemistry 1620. I am currently in chemistry 1210 so it was nice to hear how she dealt with the stress and how she managed the intense workload. Her advice was to review material from previous chapters while doing work for the current chapter. This process can be difficult and it revolves around time management. She specifically talked about getting help when you don’t understand concepts because it will save you time, even though you could have figured it out on your own eventually. I need to be more active in going to the Math and States Learning Center to get help in calculus. It will save me lots of time instead of spending alot of time working through problems until I understand the concept. In terms of extracurricular activities, Helena is involved in the buckeyethon as serves as ENR’s team captain as well as serving as VP of her church organization.  She has really enjoyed the volunteer work she has done through the ENR scholars program including the invasive species work. She encourages us to be involved and active in our activities because you can learn more than you would have expected to. I noticed this in my personal experience when I went to the Waterman farm apple picking service opportunity. I really enjoyed learning about the processes used for the farm as well as the programs that educate inner-city children in the Columbus area and the Hope Garden for cancer patients. This sparked interest in possible career goals. Additionally, Environmental and Natural Resources scholars has taught Helena to be more conscientious of the trace she leaves on this earth. The smallest things such as walking instead of taking the bus, or using reusable food and drink containers do add up. Even though we all share a similar passion, Helena has found it interesting to hear perspectives on important issues from people within the program. She urges us to reach out and talk to the others in the program outside of the usual circle. Regarding future plans, she sees herself as a physician’s assistant in the field of dermatology. However, she is considering switching her major to molecular genetics. Considering I am still undecided, this was reassuring to know that even those who have decided their major are still somewhat unsure of their plans. Helena shared how difficult it can be to learn time management and daily schedule planning as a first year and discussed the importance of a to-do list. Even though not everything can be accomplished in one day, it helps to organize your tasks rather than them cluttering your brain. The biggest take away that Helena had from her first year was to do what works best for her and not worry about the actions of others. All people are susceptible to conformity in this high pressure society that we live in; therefore, it is critical that we reflect on what makes us individuals and remember that the path we lead is our own. Worrying about how others will perceive you will not contribute to your success at Ohio State. It is important to know yourself. For example, if you are falling behind in a class, you might need to spend that Saturday afternoon catching up instead of hanging out with friends. This can be difficult when you are constantly surrounded by friends who want to socialize. Knowing when you personally need to put in extra time and disciplining yourself to do so will contribute to your success. Lastly, Helena encouraged us to reach out to new people and new opportunities. At a big university, it is easy to feel like a small fish in the Ocean. However, the only way you can grow as an individual is by stepping outside your comfort zone and reigning in new experiences. Personally, I have been finding it difficult to make time outside of schoolwork and I hope to use these tips to become more efficient in my school work to make more time for other activities.