Phonathon

From the way that I see it, there is one enormous downside to spring: school work and gorgeous weather were never meant to coexist. When the sun finally bursts forth in its fullest glory and the air feels fresh and the flowers smell deliciously sweet, it requires every bit of my resolve to remain firmly seated at my desk. I made several sincere attempts to study outside in the past, each time resulting in either a glorious nap or stimulating conversation with another Witmer resident that in no way assisted with my work.
On another note, rather large groups of prospective students swarmed the campus for an Open House today. I fondly remember my first visit to the college in October 2005 (wow. I can’t believe it’s been so long already!!!). In fact, I distinctly remember what I wore and my first impressions of the lovely campus. I also recall the kind advice of an upperclassman who warned me to avoid living in Witmer if at all possible. Fortunately, I didn’t follow her advice, and I have grown to adore living in the furthest dorm on campus. My roommate and I feel slightly stunned by the idea that we only have 3 weeks left… my freshman year has flown by so quickly!

The concept of home is a funny thing to a college student.  I honestly felt rather unprepared for the moment that I sat down in my living room in Grove City and thought, “I wish I was home.”  Apparently, living in one house for 12 years is not enough to solidify its position as such.  Only a few short months at college left me slightly bewildered regarding my loyalties, and even now, I find it better to move back and forth from place to place without overanalyzing it. 

Yet, for whatever reason, I still feel terribly disoriented each time that I transition from home to school and back.  I realize that I’m not alone in this, as nearly all of my friends fervently agree any time that the subject is mentioned.  When home is home, and school is home, this relatively simple aspect of life feels overcomplicated.  Needless to say, my lovely Easter break threw me off track for most of the week, and only now am I beginning to make sense of things again. 

A particularly insightful Facebook group titled, “40+ Things College Admissions forgot to tell you about college”, notes many other unexpected aspects of college life.  (As a small disclaimer: I don’t agree with every suggestion listed… but I found a few points to be alarmingly on target.  Also, please ignore the horrific tense changes; there was a lot of cutting and pasting involved.
-You will begin to nap again.
-Going to the mailbox was never an ego booster/breaker before.
-Your bookstore bill will almost equal tuition.
-Squirt guns = stress relief.
-E-mail becomes your second language.
-College students throw paper airplanes too.
-You will never rent more movies in your life.
-No one is too old for video games.
-Care packages are right up there with birthdays.
-You are no longer thankful that fire alarms are here to protect you. (Personal experience taught me not to put off a 2 page paper until an hour before the deadline… just in case an extensive fire drill should occur 15 minutes into your work.)
-Disney movies are more than just classics.
-Asleep by 2:30 AM is an early night.
Never lose your ID card: without it you are a non-person and do not exist
-Cereal makes a meal any time of the day.
-New additions to food groups: Jolt, Cola, Ramen, and Pizza
-Duct tape heals all wounds.
Changing your major is ok. It’s sort of like an early mid-life crisis.
-Most food from the dining halls taste better in sandwich form.
-YouTube and Facebook are valid excuses for not doing homework.
-Get TV Shows on DVD, an hour of Scrubs or Lost between classes can really help.
-Winter break is both too long and too short.
Keys have never been so important, yet you seem to lose them even more.
-Showers become less important, sleep becomes more important.
-Jeans may be worn as many times as the wearer desires.
-The only time to dress up is when all your jeans are dirty.
-You’ll eat anything if it’s free.
-No matter how hard you try . . . You are never alone.

I’m slightly perplexed by the weather at the moment.  Yesterday, everyone (yes, everyone) on campus was smiling, laughing, frolicking, and studying outside in the gorgeous sunshine.  Frisbees flew through the air as darling couples strolled along sidewalks holding hands, blissfully picturing their marriage announcements in future editions of The Bridge. (Alright, I don’t have concrete evidence on that last part, but I assume it’s true; or has been true; or maybe true the next time that the sun appears).

UNFORTUNATELY, things have taken a turn for the worst and the harsh realities of college life reappeared with vigor.  A full two days of classes remain before break, both of which agonizingly require great effort regarding tests and papers.  Much to my disappointment, dark clouds and chilling rain replaced that uplifting sunshine just in time to lessen my motivation.  
       Wonderful.

On a more positive note, photography class was jolly good fun this morning.  My class has bonded in a humorous way after long evenings spent making pictures in the dark room, and suddenly, painfully awkward critiques during class have turned into a great time.  Tediously reviewing everyone’s homework for 3 hours is much more enjoyable when we feel comfortable with each other, and it’s almost hard to believe that we are so close to the end of the semester already!

As for news from the calling front: we appear to be making progress toward our goals thanks to the hard work of the callers, and even more critically, the generous parent and alumni donors.  Anthony’s motivational Teddy truly deserves recognition for his inspirational aid this week as well, enthusiastically cheering to the Phonathon team from his place at Anthony’s desk.  (Avoiding the question of Anthony’s sanity…) Teddy contributed to the lively atmosphere in the Phonathon room, and I found myself choking back laughter during several conversations.  :)