This happens to be the very first thing I am writing and publishing on the ePortfolio, but why don’t we pretend as if I have been doing this for a while and that I am now reflecting on events that have been updated on and anticipated for several months.
Now that that short introductory piece is out of the way, we can get down into what I am talking about. These past few weeks I have done a lot of things that I don’t usually get to do or have to, and I have done them all on my own! Obviously given the fact that I am writing this and have been privileged by access to this platform I have started my academic career at The Ohio State University, which, as things go, is kind of a big deal. Though everything had been building up to it for a few months, when move-in day came and I was suddenly packing a bunch of new things into the back of my family’s reliable Toyota Sienna, I was a bit disoriented and kind of anxious for the first time. When we got to campus I wasn’t exactly the happiest camper, not crying but instead being kind of a pain and trying to speed everything along against the indomitable process of OSU moving day. That was kind of childish but I eventually got over it once I no longer had to wait in lines and could enjoy being here. Mom and Dad, in traditional fashion, were sad about having to leave me here but weren’t weepy in any way, which I was appreciative of, knowing it would get ugly if they did.
After we had said our goodbyes and everything was moved in, we got food, and then after a walk around campus they headed off back home, leaving me stranded here, expected to fend for myself. I spent some time getting to know my roommates, figuring out how everything operated and getting food for the first time. Though I’ d been hearing all my life how terrible the food was going to be once I was in college, to me it has been pretty good thus far, and I have managed not to gain the fabled “freshman 15” that gets talked about so much. Living in Lincoln means that I am joyously far from everything except the stadium and RPAC, so I’ve resolved to riding my bike around campus to find different places to eat, and I really like the Curl Market near Fisher, and usually eat at Scott Traditions when using my dining plan (and yes I am aware that there’s a Traditions location in Morrill but I’m not really all that impressed by the atmosphere and selection in there; once I saw that Scott has chinese and tacos I was sold).
I’ve found myself spending a lot of time in the RPAC, and I like going and burning off any stress from the day, or just taking a break from homework when I need to. At first it was a confusing place because there are so many more options available than in my basement, which boasts two sets of dumbells, a dip bar and a bench but only with one pair of weights. The first day I started pulling ropes, using medicine balls and just seeing other people do stuff, shrugging and saying “alright then, guess I’ll do that”. Eventually I became comfortable in there and have developed a good routine workouts, and as a result I’m in pretty good shape, which I am proud of.
Another big aspect of college is the new people. I have a lot of friends from high school who go here too but they all live in one building on two floors or whatever, so they all sort of do stuff and forget that I don’t also live there, and instead live a mile away. This does kind of bother me but on the upside I’ve met a lot of new people and made a good number of new friends, all of which are pretty cool! One rather huge change from high school to college is that there are girls here. Of course to many this seems to be a rather weird comment, but it makes sense when you find out I went to a all-boys high school. This having been said,for the first week it was quite weird looking over in class and seeing girls there. Not that it was a huge thing but I just said to myself “huh, weird” for the first few days. Beyond that initial shock I have not been freaked out by it or anything, I just thought it worth noting that it was a relatively new experience for me.
Besides all of these things, my classes are going pretty well so far. Didn’t make me too happy when I needed to fork over about $290 for two textbooks but I got over it. I’ve been getting homework and assignments done early and occupy my lengthy breaks between classes by going to the library or the Fisher basement, instead of going back to my dorm, because I know that if I did, I would fall asleep or never get anything done. I do enjoy all of my classes so far, as each is giving me new information and leaves me with something to think about. Actually, exclude math from that statement because it’s really things I’ve already learned about and it is a bit boring at times, but I get it done quickly! Otherwise there aren’t too many things to complain about class-wise.
One aspect of college that I enjoy is getting around everywhere. I have a bike so I like riding it around everywhere, giving me a workout and getting me from A to B simultaneously. To me it’s rather funny how I used to ride my bike everywhere, even absurd distances, before I got my driver’s license, and then I drove everywhere, but now I’m right back where I started and I just zip around everywhere on my beat-up old bike.
So that’s pretty much the gist of what’s been going on since I started college, the ins and outs of what I’ve been up to. Nothing wildly fascinating but certainly pretty cool and different than what I’m used to. I’m looking forward to everything that’s to come in the near future and updating this ePortfolio so that I have a solid personal fossil record to use when I write my memoirs, and with that said, good afternoon, good evening, and goodnight.
(I’m going to work on a sign-off catchphrase, I think that would be a neat touch but until I work that out I guess I’ll just rip off the Truman Show.)