Now, there is one time every semester that students have never been more cranky, hyped up on coffee, and crying themselves to sleep at night from computer malfunctions and pure exhaustion. That's right people, the word that strikes fear into the heart of many, FINALS. Now as I write this I have already finished my Drawing portfolio and a 9 page take-home sociology final with definitions, short responses and essay. What I have left are a 15 page take-home to complete by next Wednesday, a Philosophy of Religion exam on Tuesday and my Italian final on Thursday.
I am one of the lucky students whose remaining work and finals are pretty spaced out and easy to manage time-wise. But most students have experienced the horror of realizing you have a Biology exam on the same day as your Statistics exam. So for those of you who are trembling at the thought of impending doom that is finals, here is some quick advice.
Breathe. Breathe. Breathe. I have seen more people freak out about an exam and then come out not only alive but saying that it "wasn't as bad as I thought it would be." Chances are you know much more about your exams than you realize, so keep that in mind. You stressing your exams is only going to make it worse. Do not start hyperventilating 2 weeks before your exam. It is not helping anything. Stay calm. Be logical. Don't waste your time on things you know. And remember to breathe through the stress. (Practice this now, I am a personal fan of the in and out of the nose, but its whatever works for you)
Pace yourself. Guess what, the easiest way of surviving finals is to NOT CRAM. Yes I am aware I sound like your mom. I (and she) are correct though, biologically it takes time for your brain to accumulate information and it can only learn so much in one day. Do a little bit every day leading up to your exam or due date and by the time you get there you will be amazed how much you have actually accomplished.
Sleep. No one likes Zombies, they are scary. You going three days without sleep and staying in the library until last class is not healthy. Your body needs sleep, needs time to recharge. Plus, lack of sleep means a crash later and I have seen too many of my friends crash BEFORE they intended to, like say at their final. I do not mean to be scary, it just frustrates me when the world thinks they are Edward Cullen and don't need sleep. You do need sleep by the way.
Breaks. If you need a break, take it. It is that simple. If you are having a writers block, can't look at your engineering problems anymore or simply cannot read another word of Italian, just go. You will not accomplish anything staring at a computer or page but not being able to see it. Take a walk outside, go to the gym, watch a favorite tv show, eat an apple (more natural energy boosters than a cup of coffee), shower, do something for you.
Get in the zone. Most importantly when dealing with anything that has to do with finals or the end of the year is to know what works for you. I work best on the second floor of the library, in the afternoons while listening to Pandora, alone. Some people need the basement cubicles and complete silence. I have friends that have to go to Starbucks religiously to be able to focus. Just know what works and do it. If you can't do work with your best friend next to you, tell her to go away. If you are a facebook addict, turn on your Internet connection. Just know and do what works best for you to get your work done.
In short, breathe, pace yourself, sleep, take breaks and do what works for you. Don't be afraid, there are 2000 other students at Saint Mike's that feel your pain and know what you are going through. And 500ish seniors that have had 8 semesters of this, and are now graduating happy and alive. Good luck, I'll be in the library if you need me :-)
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Friday, April 9, 2010
Burlington
Burlington
It's parents weekend at Saint Mike's and that means two things. Every one's room has to be cleaned so that their mom doesn't reprimand them. And that Saint Mikes is crawling with parents that want to take their kids, their roommates and friends out to every meal conceivable. Which I benefited from greatly and got me thinking. How does Burlington play a role in life at Saint Mikes and what is Burlington like?
The number one best thing about Burlington is that it is so close. Its about a 20 minute bus ride to the bus stop downtown that is directly on Church Street. And since our Knight Card works as a bus pass and with the bus running every 20 minutes past campus that basically means we can get to Burlington whenever we please. The Knight Card also can work as a debit card for students at tons of off campus locations and those include many places in Burlington! So as a student at Saint Mike's Burlington is an escape, a fun playground or a place to pick up the necessities.
Church Street- The hub of the city of Burlington itself, Church street is a melting pot of college students, old hippies and huge dogs. During the warmer months there are street vendors and hundreds of people meandering enjoying eachother's company. In the colder months Christmas lights give those bleak, grey December days a touch of sparkle. Walking Church street one is likely to run into a vibrant shimmering community of people, interesting shopping, and tons of musicians. Its hard to describe because it is somewhere that needs to be expierenced.
Restaurants- While Vermont itself is famous for its locally grown, organic food, there no other place that this can be experienced more perfectly and in more different ways than Burlington. Most of the restaurants get some if not all their food from local farms and the quality comes through in their food. Want to make a good impression on a date? Three Tomatoes. Looking for a great place to celebrate a birthday? American Flatbreads. A quick yet delicious burrito? Bolocco. My secret obsession aka crepes? The Skinny Pancake. I could go on but I think I am getting my point across, Burlington has some great food.
Champlain- Now I grew up a 7-mile stretch of beach so I am always weary of any lake for the main reason that it is not an ocean. But I have come to love Champlain and not just because it reminds me of home because it is a large body of water. I love it in the fall during the first few weeks of school when one can go to North beach and actually jump off the cliffs and go into the water without getting instant hypothermia. I love it in winter when the water reflects the Adirondacks so well its hard to tell where sky ends and water begins. I love spring when there are little kids learning to ride their bikes on the bike path on the first nice day. I love it in summer when it seems like every person that lives in Burlington descends on the beach.
Learning Opportunities- Burlington means something a little different for many Saint Mike's student than for other people. Many classes, usually in the Social Science Liberal Studies Requirements (Anthropology, Sociology, Political Science, etc.), have service requirements to the class. My first introduction was with Professor Delaney's Introduction to Anthropology class last semester. We were asked to do two hours a week in a classroom or youth center that was culturally different from our own. Burlington and the surrounding communities have a high percentage of refugees within communities so it is not a hard thing to do. I started volunteering at King Street Youth Center's Teen Futures Program. I tutored teenagers ranging from 6Th to 12Th grade with anything they might need help with. After they finished their homework, they usually beat me in basketball for the remaining time. Now, I happened to love working with the kids so I continued to do it past my required time but some students choose not to. Regardless, Burlington as a city presents the unique possibility for students to be engaged in their community. Beyond shopping and eating, Burlington allows students to give back to the community through service learning for classes or through MOVE or many other ways.
It's parents weekend at Saint Mike's and that means two things. Every one's room has to be cleaned so that their mom doesn't reprimand them. And that Saint Mikes is crawling with parents that want to take their kids, their roommates and friends out to every meal conceivable. Which I benefited from greatly and got me thinking. How does Burlington play a role in life at Saint Mikes and what is Burlington like?
The number one best thing about Burlington is that it is so close. Its about a 20 minute bus ride to the bus stop downtown that is directly on Church Street. And since our Knight Card works as a bus pass and with the bus running every 20 minutes past campus that basically means we can get to Burlington whenever we please. The Knight Card also can work as a debit card for students at tons of off campus locations and those include many places in Burlington! So as a student at Saint Mike's Burlington is an escape, a fun playground or a place to pick up the necessities.
Church Street- The hub of the city of Burlington itself, Church street is a melting pot of college students, old hippies and huge dogs. During the warmer months there are street vendors and hundreds of people meandering enjoying eachother's company. In the colder months Christmas lights give those bleak, grey December days a touch of sparkle. Walking Church street one is likely to run into a vibrant shimmering community of people, interesting shopping, and tons of musicians. Its hard to describe because it is somewhere that needs to be expierenced.
Restaurants- While Vermont itself is famous for its locally grown, organic food, there no other place that this can be experienced more perfectly and in more different ways than Burlington. Most of the restaurants get some if not all their food from local farms and the quality comes through in their food. Want to make a good impression on a date? Three Tomatoes. Looking for a great place to celebrate a birthday? American Flatbreads. A quick yet delicious burrito? Bolocco. My secret obsession aka crepes? The Skinny Pancake. I could go on but I think I am getting my point across, Burlington has some great food.
Champlain- Now I grew up a 7-mile stretch of beach so I am always weary of any lake for the main reason that it is not an ocean. But I have come to love Champlain and not just because it reminds me of home because it is a large body of water. I love it in the fall during the first few weeks of school when one can go to North beach and actually jump off the cliffs and go into the water without getting instant hypothermia. I love it in winter when the water reflects the Adirondacks so well its hard to tell where sky ends and water begins. I love spring when there are little kids learning to ride their bikes on the bike path on the first nice day. I love it in summer when it seems like every person that lives in Burlington descends on the beach.
Learning Opportunities- Burlington means something a little different for many Saint Mike's student than for other people. Many classes, usually in the Social Science Liberal Studies Requirements (Anthropology, Sociology, Political Science, etc.), have service requirements to the class. My first introduction was with Professor Delaney's Introduction to Anthropology class last semester. We were asked to do two hours a week in a classroom or youth center that was culturally different from our own. Burlington and the surrounding communities have a high percentage of refugees within communities so it is not a hard thing to do. I started volunteering at King Street Youth Center's Teen Futures Program. I tutored teenagers ranging from 6Th to 12Th grade with anything they might need help with. After they finished their homework, they usually beat me in basketball for the remaining time. Now, I happened to love working with the kids so I continued to do it past my required time but some students choose not to. Regardless, Burlington as a city presents the unique possibility for students to be engaged in their community. Beyond shopping and eating, Burlington allows students to give back to the community through service learning for classes or through MOVE or many other ways.
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Spring at Saint Mikes
Survival Guide for Spring
While I love every season equally and try very hard not to discriminate, even I have been known to choose a favorite. And right now, I have two words to describe my life, Spring Oriented. Spring at Saint Mike's is everything the admission brochures make it out to be, and I am not just saying that. Purple and yellow flowers compliments of grounds, greener than green grass in the quad with first-years sitting on it, Frisbee games which start out small but get VERY large. Everything about spring at Saint Mikes makes me convinced nothing could be better (except maybe when it snows but that's a different story).
Since I love spring so much while packing I realized there are a few spring essentials every Saint Mike's student must have.
North Beach - Unknown to most incoming first-years students our CCTA bus passes not only get students into Burlington but also on the entire CCTA bus line. Which means among other fun places to take it, a student can hypothetically jump on the #2 bus, go from Saint Mike's to Burlington and grab the #7 from Burlington right to North Beach. While this allows for the perfect mode of transportation to the beach, growing up on a beach has taught me a few of the essentials for a perfect beach day. Towel, Sunscreen, Bathing suit, Flip Flops, Sweat shirt. Towel, I am not talking using the towel you use every day to take a regular shower, get a beach towel, they are made for the purpose and it will save a trip to the laundry room.
Sunscreen, No I am not your mother but I have seen some really bad sunburns (and sun poisoning on myself) and trust me, its preventable in SO MANY WAYS. USE SUNSCREEN, IT DOESN'T DO HARM.
Bathing suit, its a no brainer, you need one at a beach even if you decide the water is too cold to dive straight in. It is a beach, a bathing suit is necessary.
Flip-flops, one word, Shoobies (hint: Rocket Power) enough said.
Sweatshirt, after the full day in the sun and water of Champlain you will experience the third element of Champlain, wind. You will need a sweatshirt. Trust me.
Quad - The brochure does not lie, students do indeed lie in the grass in quad and in front of the library at Saint Mike's. And guess what, we do it all the time! Vermont winters make us all crave the sun so we utilize it as much as possible when we get it. While some people abuse the privilege and skip class to enjoy the weather, in between classes and the afternoons are good enough for me. Essentials for this most awesome of ways to spend warm afternoons? Designated grass blanket, portable speakers, outdoor sports equipment and if really ambitious and get a tailgating grill.
Designated grass blanket, yes I realize it may seem silly but trust me, you will not want all your friends sitting on your comforter when you realize they are not going to respect the no shoes on the blanket rule. So get a cheap blanket or use one that you needed in the depths of winter or steal one from your parents and use that instead. Much less hussle and there won't be grass and mud clumps covering your bed!
Portable speakers, everyone loves music and why not have it be a soundtrack to your beautiful spring day. If you are lucky your roommate has portable speakers that use batteries. If not, computers work great (and that way you are lucky enough to have your whole music library). If you are really lucky one of the many musicians or bands we have on campus will be practicing outside and then there is no outside music required.
Outdoor sports equipment, in the simplest terms, Frisbees, wiffleball bats and balls, bikes, scooters, footballs, soccer balls, rugby balls, tricycles. Anything and everything that you can use to have fun. Grab your friends, challenge the floor beneath you, and play!
Grill, maybe a little bit out of the budget, BUT Saint Mike's Residence Life is usually nice enough to grill outside during the end of the semester. Cheeseburgers, Hot Dogs, Veggieburgers and dogs, Free food. No need to explain what is to enjoy there.
The Bad Days - Even though Saint Mike's is the best, happiest place on the earth (except maybe Disney World), there are those days when you look out your window and see one thing. Grey. Notorious for quick changes in the weather, do not fret, just remember to keep the essentials for those rainy, grey days.
Raincoat, the brighter and more colorful the better. Mine is teal blue and it always brightens my day when I see an array of rainbow color coats walking towards the Academic buildings. Keep in mind it should be long enough to cover all of your mid-section and that a hood is a must.
Rain boots, this may be more geared toward the ladies out there, but a nice pair of waterproof boots are essential to brave the rivers that pop up next to sidewalks in spring. I myself prefer the up to the knee, patterned kind that allow me to let my inner 5 year old out and allow me to trudge straight thru puddles instead of going around them.
Weather report, as I said before Vermont's weather changes very very rapidly. This morning I woke up, it was grey but dry. Then the skies opened up sometime during my first class and it torrential down poured for 4 hours. Luckily the weather had semi-cleared up again before I had my tour. And this afternoon it was beautiful although muddy. This is a very typical day. Check the weather report every morning. Avoid catastrophe.
Regardless, enjoy spring. Make the best of the rain and trust that in an hour it will be 75 degrees and sunny. Have a great day!
While I love every season equally and try very hard not to discriminate, even I have been known to choose a favorite. And right now, I have two words to describe my life, Spring Oriented. Spring at Saint Mike's is everything the admission brochures make it out to be, and I am not just saying that. Purple and yellow flowers compliments of grounds, greener than green grass in the quad with first-years sitting on it, Frisbee games which start out small but get VERY large. Everything about spring at Saint Mikes makes me convinced nothing could be better (except maybe when it snows but that's a different story).
Since I love spring so much while packing I realized there are a few spring essentials every Saint Mike's student must have.
North Beach - Unknown to most incoming first-years students our CCTA bus passes not only get students into Burlington but also on the entire CCTA bus line. Which means among other fun places to take it, a student can hypothetically jump on the #2 bus, go from Saint Mike's to Burlington and grab the #7 from Burlington right to North Beach. While this allows for the perfect mode of transportation to the beach, growing up on a beach has taught me a few of the essentials for a perfect beach day. Towel, Sunscreen, Bathing suit, Flip Flops, Sweat shirt. Towel, I am not talking using the towel you use every day to take a regular shower, get a beach towel, they are made for the purpose and it will save a trip to the laundry room.
Sunscreen, No I am not your mother but I have seen some really bad sunburns (and sun poisoning on myself) and trust me, its preventable in SO MANY WAYS. USE SUNSCREEN, IT DOESN'T DO HARM.
Bathing suit, its a no brainer, you need one at a beach even if you decide the water is too cold to dive straight in. It is a beach, a bathing suit is necessary.
Flip-flops, one word, Shoobies (hint: Rocket Power) enough said.
Sweatshirt, after the full day in the sun and water of Champlain you will experience the third element of Champlain, wind. You will need a sweatshirt. Trust me.
Quad - The brochure does not lie, students do indeed lie in the grass in quad and in front of the library at Saint Mike's. And guess what, we do it all the time! Vermont winters make us all crave the sun so we utilize it as much as possible when we get it. While some people abuse the privilege and skip class to enjoy the weather, in between classes and the afternoons are good enough for me. Essentials for this most awesome of ways to spend warm afternoons? Designated grass blanket, portable speakers, outdoor sports equipment and if really ambitious and get a tailgating grill.
Designated grass blanket, yes I realize it may seem silly but trust me, you will not want all your friends sitting on your comforter when you realize they are not going to respect the no shoes on the blanket rule. So get a cheap blanket or use one that you needed in the depths of winter or steal one from your parents and use that instead. Much less hussle and there won't be grass and mud clumps covering your bed!
Portable speakers, everyone loves music and why not have it be a soundtrack to your beautiful spring day. If you are lucky your roommate has portable speakers that use batteries. If not, computers work great (and that way you are lucky enough to have your whole music library). If you are really lucky one of the many musicians or bands we have on campus will be practicing outside and then there is no outside music required.
Outdoor sports equipment, in the simplest terms, Frisbees, wiffleball bats and balls, bikes, scooters, footballs, soccer balls, rugby balls, tricycles. Anything and everything that you can use to have fun. Grab your friends, challenge the floor beneath you, and play!
Grill, maybe a little bit out of the budget, BUT Saint Mike's Residence Life is usually nice enough to grill outside during the end of the semester. Cheeseburgers, Hot Dogs, Veggieburgers and dogs, Free food. No need to explain what is to enjoy there.
The Bad Days - Even though Saint Mike's is the best, happiest place on the earth (except maybe Disney World), there are those days when you look out your window and see one thing. Grey. Notorious for quick changes in the weather, do not fret, just remember to keep the essentials for those rainy, grey days.
Raincoat, the brighter and more colorful the better. Mine is teal blue and it always brightens my day when I see an array of rainbow color coats walking towards the Academic buildings. Keep in mind it should be long enough to cover all of your mid-section and that a hood is a must.
Rain boots, this may be more geared toward the ladies out there, but a nice pair of waterproof boots are essential to brave the rivers that pop up next to sidewalks in spring. I myself prefer the up to the knee, patterned kind that allow me to let my inner 5 year old out and allow me to trudge straight thru puddles instead of going around them.
Weather report, as I said before Vermont's weather changes very very rapidly. This morning I woke up, it was grey but dry. Then the skies opened up sometime during my first class and it torrential down poured for 4 hours. Luckily the weather had semi-cleared up again before I had my tour. And this afternoon it was beautiful although muddy. This is a very typical day. Check the weather report every morning. Avoid catastrophe.
Regardless, enjoy spring. Make the best of the rain and trust that in an hour it will be 75 degrees and sunny. Have a great day!
About Me!
Hi Everyone, I'm Brittany! Well Brittany Richardson member of the class of 2012 at Saint Michael's College in Colchester, Vermont to be exact. Being a member of the graduating class of 2012 means that at this moment I am one of the lovely sophomores roaming campus. Not for long though, since next semester I will be jetsetting off to Dunedin, New Zealand to attend the University of Otago for a semester! Before that I will be returning home which is the lovely town of Hull, MA (also known as the town where Nantasket Beach is located).
But while I am still on campus for the reminder of the semester I am a Senator for my class, a member of Programming Committee (Who is excited for the Third Eye Blind concert happening on April 16th!!), staff on Yearbook also known as the Hilltop, a Wilderness Instructor, a Tour Guide, and a member of Founder's Society. Apart from filling all the possible free hours of my day doing those activities, I also major in Religious Studies with a minor (someday maybe a double major) in Anthropology.
Although it may not seem like it, I am really a calm, glass half-full type person. I love relaxing on the beach, shredding the gnar (a.k.a. I like skiing), reading outside in the sun and running. I am the oldest of 5 siblings and as a result am the ultimate mom figure, although if you ask my siblings that they probably will say I am just their cranky older sister who dislikes being the shortest in the family (I am 5 feet, my 11 year old brother is as tall as I am). Apart from all that I am just a normal, out going, loud, smiley, know everyone, say hello to everyone type person.
But while I am still on campus for the reminder of the semester I am a Senator for my class, a member of Programming Committee (Who is excited for the Third Eye Blind concert happening on April 16th!!), staff on Yearbook also known as the Hilltop, a Wilderness Instructor, a Tour Guide, and a member of Founder's Society. Apart from filling all the possible free hours of my day doing those activities, I also major in Religious Studies with a minor (someday maybe a double major) in Anthropology.
Although it may not seem like it, I am really a calm, glass half-full type person. I love relaxing on the beach, shredding the gnar (a.k.a. I like skiing), reading outside in the sun and running. I am the oldest of 5 siblings and as a result am the ultimate mom figure, although if you ask my siblings that they probably will say I am just their cranky older sister who dislikes being the shortest in the family (I am 5 feet, my 11 year old brother is as tall as I am). Apart from all that I am just a normal, out going, loud, smiley, know everyone, say hello to everyone type person.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
