First Semester Challenges

With only a little more than five weeks left in the semester, I guess it is only appropriate that I look back on my experiences so far at Paul Smith’s College. There is no doubt in my mind that this semester has been the biggest academic transition thus far in my life. That is obviously because I graduated high school and began studying at college. This transition has presented unique challenges, none of which are impossible to overcome. Sure, some challenges are easier to overcome than others, but they are challenges nonetheless. I think I can actually say that I was fairly prepared to meet these challenges, despite never facing them before.

            Perhaps the challenge that is most easy to identify is the challenge of not only living away from home, but living with a roommate. I, like the majority of college kids, grew up with my own room, so having to share living quarters with somebody who was a total stranger presented a challenge. Sure I had been to plenty of summer camps before, where I had to share sleeping quarters with other kids for a week. College is definitely nothing like a summer camp; that’s for sure. While college may be fun and like so many people say “some of the best times of your life”, it’s not all fun and games. I can personally admit that I was homesick for pretty much the first time ever upon my first days here at college. It’s not like summer camp where your parents come and pick you up after a week; you’re here to stay. I know I am probably making this sound quite ominous, which is not my intention. It does, however, show the difficulty of the transition. There is really nothing that you can do to prepare for living with a total stranger for a year.

            I eventually overcame this challenge, because I knew it was part of the territory. During those first couple of days at college, I yearned to be in a room by myself. Now I think a room to myself would be kind of awkward, and I would rather have someone else around (granted that I am comfortable with that person). Don’t get me wrong, I still value the alone time that I have, but I’ve learned to be comfortable living with someone else. The great part about overcoming this challenge was that I really didn’t have to go out of my way to do so. Becoming comfortable with my roommate kind of just happened. Sure I started a couple of conversations that I may not have before coming to college, but nothing very much at all. Experience is really the only way to overcome the awkwardness of living with a stranger, and I’d definitely say that I have overcome that awkwardness.

            I’d say that the second biggest challenge for me this semester has been the transition from the work that I did in high school to the work that I now do in college. High school was really just a breeze because most of the work that I got, I finished in class, because I could do the work quick enough that I didn’t have to take it home and do it for homework. Not only that, but a lot of times, I didn’t receive homework on a regular basis. Don’t get me wrong, I knew how to handle those nights where I had to write two essays, make a poster, prepare a presentation, and do forty math problems. I think the biggest thing in high school was that the work and the classes just weren’t as serious as in college. I took my grades very seriously, but I usually didn’t feel a great sense of urgency, because it was just high school; and as long as I looked good for colleges, it was all right.

            College is just different simply because it has to be taken more seriously. It just goes to show you the value of money in society nowadays. When we were kids, we didn’t think anything of the money our parents were paying for school taxes, because everybody was forced to go to school. Now that we see how much a college education costs, and when added to the fact that we, the kids, now have to help pay for it, our education is taken a lot more seriously. I think I can say that I’ve definitely worked harder to strive for good grades in college when compared to how hard I worked for my grades in high school. I’ve never been more motivated to take notes or to study than I am in college. So, transition hasn’t been difficult because I’ve always had a pretty good work ethic, but it has been a transition nonetheless.

            When it comes to the transition from high school to college, young adults usually face the same challenges. These challenges are basically summed up in this article I found online (http://www.d.umn.edu/tutoring/transition-to-college/). For me the biggest challenge was adjusting to life away from home, and now that I’ve already overcome that challenge, college has become more and more enjoyable. 

Goals and Progress

It has been yet another week (now six in total I believe) since I set three goals to pursue throughout my stay here at Paul Smith’s. I’ve gone through periods where progress came easily and I’ve also gone through periods where progress seemed to be more than lethargic. Now that the semester is already half way done, I’d say that my progress has actually outpaced the timetable I set for the goals. With this being said, on to the new progress.

            I have already applied several new studying methods throughout the year, but this week I have made progress in my time management skills; especially when they apply to my schoolwork. It is pretty easy to manage homework and extracurricular activities when you don’t have much homework to do. This past week I found myself with a considerable load of homework, which had to be completed in one day. When I approached the work, I first had to prioritize my tasks. For example, I had to push the studying back in time because the homework took priority over it, due to the fact that it was due the next day. I then took the group of homework assignments and looked at the time it would take to do each assignment. I completed the assignment that took the most time first, because I prefer to get the tough things done first. After that, everything was pretty much downhill. The lesser assignments flew by quickly, most likely because they were much easier than the big assignment. I found this approach to a large amount of homework to be quite successful, and I will use it whenever I need to.

            I have also continued with my goal of being more open to others as well as my modified goal of talking to someone new every day. Talking to different people has actually been quite easy because I don’t have to change anything about what I already do, I just have to be a little more proactive in my day to day social situations. An example would be when I go to workout. When my workout calls for dumbbells or a pull-up bar, I workout in my dorm room, because it’s much nicer than going to the gym. When I do workouts such as plyometrics (jump training) or kenpo (a mix of martial arts and cardio), I do them in the dance room. I have met several interesting people in the dance room, and it’s even more interesting to see the different things that people use the room for. I’ve talked to people who liked to use the room for dancing, martial arts, and some for listening to music as loud as they possibly can. The bottom line is that I have found how easy it is to talk to new people, and it has already made my college experience more enjoyable.

            When it comes to my goal of clearing my mind of negative thoughts while focusing on the positive, I have also made progress. Lately my mind has actually been focused on positive thoughts partly due to registration for classes next semester. I really like my schedule the way it is, but I’m excited to take some new courses. With course-registration comes the realization that the year is coming to a close, which means that holidays such as Thanksgiving and Christmas will soon be upon us. As much as I love it up here, I can’t wait to be home celebrating the holidays with my friends and family. It’s surprising because these feelings would usually bring on feelings of homesickness, but instead they now bring me feelings of optimism. I’d say that this shows progress through my efforts since I set my goals.

            It seems like every time I think that I can’t make any more progress on my goals…. I do. Thomas Edison once said, “Discontent is the first necessity of progress.” I completely agree with this quote because progress doesn’t happen unless something different happens. The difference doesn’t need to be big at all, but you have to be willing to do some things that may feel uncomfortable. Initially, talking to random people was uncomfortable for me, but it isn’t now; because I’ve made progress. 

A Day At Paul Smith's

             Today is a special blog because I visited a truly special place yesterday. I visited Paul Smith’s College and I saw some truly interesting things. I don’t think that there is any other college campus quite like it anywhere else in the country. There are a few colleges in northern New York State that someone could argue shares the same weather as Paul Smith’s, but no other college “lives and breathes” the Adirondacks quite like Paul Smith’s. The school exemplifies the Adirondacks so much, that the school’s full name is “Paul Smith’s College – The College of the Adirondacks”. This makes the school a perfect setting for anybody who is interested in the environment or outdoors. This is probably why Paul Smith’s is a renowned college when it comes to just about every field that pertains to the environment. Not only is Paul Smith’s a school for environmental studies, but it is also a school specializing in culinary studies. This among several other aspects of the school makes it a truly unique experience.

            My day started in a residence hall named LMS (short for Lydia Martin Smith). The hall is located very close to Lower St. Regis Lake (the lake that the campus butts up to). There is a trail that starts just past the far end of the residence hall that leads out to a peninsula that overlooks the lake. This peninsula is known as “The Point” and there was always somebody there doing something such as fishing, or even somebody doing homework. My room was made to house four people for the school year. I lucked out because I only had to share a room with one other person, so I had quite an amount of room compared to the rest of the rooms in the residence hall.

            My day began with my alarm clock going off at 6:45 am and a quick breakfast in my room, which consisted of a pumpkin spice bagel and a honeycrisp apple. Eventually after taking care of some things such as checking my e-mail and brushing my teeth, I headed out to my first class. The class was an FYS (first year seminar) honors class and it ran from 8:00 am to 9:25am. The class was located in seminar room 107 in the Joan Weill Library. I must take a moment to comment on how interesting the library itself was. Never before had I seen such a collaboration between nature and modern technology. The library was a giant building that looked like a combination of a computer store and a log cabin. From the furniture to the hulking beams overhead, the library just reminded me of simpler times, all while providing the modern commodities such as wireless internet and a vast selection of computers. Anyways, back to the class. In the class we separated into groups and each group discussed different books that they were assigned to read. The groups then came together and summarized their books for each other.

            Next, I walked to the closest building, which was “Pickett Hall”. I navigated my way through the hallway to room 102, only to find that my next class had been cancelled. I went back to my dorm room until 11am, when I walked back to the library for my next class. It just so happened that my next class was in room 108, right next to the room I was in earlier in the day. This room was different though because it was filled with computers that lined the walls all the way around the room. At 11:10am, the Statistics class began. We reviewed slides and completed several examples as a class. The class came to an end at 12:35pm, at which point I ventured to the dining hall for some lunch. The dining hall was quite remarkable due to the fact that it sat right on the edge of the lake, which provided one of the best views in any dining hall at any college. After lunch, I went back to my dorm and entertained myself until about five o’clock, at which point I ate some dinner in my room. At eight o’clock I did a work out in my room, showered, and then got ready for bed.

            I’d have to say that my stay at Paul Smith’s College left quite an impression on me. Other colleges no longer look the same, because they just can’t compare to the beauty and coziness of Paul Smith’s College. It’s just one of those places where you don’t just feel like a number, you feel like a part of the college.

(Lower St. Regis Lake located just outside my residence hall)

(My dorm room for the day at Paul Smith’s College)

(Room 107 in the library – First Year Seminar)

(The Joan Weill Library)

(Room 108 – Statistics)

Goals - Fall Style

          Five weeks ago I picked four goals to pursue throughout my stead here at college. Each week I have made progress, and this is yet another update regarding that progress. I can definitely say that progress seems to come more easily now that I have fallen into my routine and have begun to find my niche. I also think that the season has helped to improve my mood, because I love the last-year seasons and the holidays of Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. There’s just something about it being cold outside, but being in the company of good people inside. But, I digress. Back to my goals and the progress I’ve made towards accomplishing them.

            I’d have to say that out of all my goals, I think I’ve made the most progress in trying to accomplish my goal to study for classes. I’ve already done things such as making flashcards, taking notes as I read, reading notes before classes, and flagging passages in books. I think that through the time that I’ve spent studying, I’ve now gained the ability to study when there are lots of distractions around me. Initially, because I never used to study, when I did study, I always needed complete silence and I couldn’t tolerate any distractions. Distractions used to throw of my focus and they made it very hard to regain my focus and to continue studying. Those days are over now, because I feel as though I can study in any condition, which has most likely developed just through practice. There is not a moment where my roommate is in the room and he is not blasting music, so I’ve had a lot of practice with studying in distraction-prone environments.

            My second goal, which is to be more open towards others and comfortable with myself, is progressing fairly nicely. Every day that goes by here at college, I find myself being able to talk and open up to more and more people. College seems to be a good place to try to accomplish this goal, because there are so many people here. I’ve found that I have unintentionally modified this goal throughout the progress that I’ve made throughout the year. This goal has basically become: talk to a new person every day. I feel like it would be a shame if I didn’t capitalize on the opportunity to talk to and learn from so many different people. The town and school where I come from are so small, that I literally knew everybody in my graduating class personally. So the larger numbers of people here at college presents more of a challenge because I know that I’ll never know everybody, and chances are that I’ll never even say “hi” to everybody. I think that talking to a new person every day will make my goal of being more open to others much easier to accomplish, and consequently, make me happier while I am here at college.

            I have also made progress towards accomplishing my third goal, which is to clear my mind of negativity and to focus on the positive. Like I talked about earlier, the season has helped to improve my mood, which makes it easier to relax, which then makes it easier to clear my mind and to focus on the positive. The season makes me think about the good times, rather than thinking about any work that I may need to do. The holiday season just makes me much happier, which then makes it easy to replace any negative thoughts with the good, cheery thoughts of the season. I didn’t have to do much this week in order to clear my mind of negative thoughts because the season has done the job for me, so I only feel better knowing that I didn’t have to do too much to make progress on this goal for the week.

            I suppose that you could say that I am one of those people who believe that their mood changes with the seasons. I love fall and winter, like summer, but usually detest spring. I think one of the best things about the fall season would definitely have to be the return of pumpkin spice-flavored foods, because I love most anything that is pumpkin spice-flavored. When you combine the fall foods, the beauty of nature, the holidays, and the start of sports such as football and basketball, fall is truly a great season; especially for accomplishing my goals. The fall season always reminds me of one of my favorite songs: The Thanksgiving Song, by Adam Sandler. It’s a funny song, but it really gets you in the mood for Thanksgiving, which I can’t wait for.

*(The video doesn’t show Adam Sandler actually performing the song, but the audio is there)

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-z27FKwupds

Doing My Best and Forgetting the Rest

            It has been around forty-five days since I have moved into my dorm here at Paul Smith’s College; forty-five days since I started my college journey. I look back at what I was feeling when I first moved in and what I thought after the first week, and I just can’t help but notice how much has changed since then. I am the type of person who craves a routine in order to function effectively throughout daily life. When that routine is disrupted, it makes me quite uncomfortable because I don’t know what’s going to happen next. All the uncomfortable feelings manifested themselves in thinking about home, and how I had a routine that made me so much more comfortable than I presently was at the time. Eventually, I fell into a routine here, and my college experience instantly became much more comfortable.

            I know that I talk about it all the time, but working out may have been the one thing that saved my sanity after coming here to college. I could probably be defined as a “health nut” because I really watch what I eat, and I work out every single day. The fact that I do these things is really just an example of my perfectionism, because no matter what I do, I usually think of a better alternative. For example, if I put chicken on a salad for lunch, chances are that later in the day, I will think, “Why didn’t I put turkey on the salad? Turkey is usually more lean than chicken. What was I thinking?” Now this may be a bit of an over dramatization, but it’s probably what will eventually pop into my mind at some point in the day. So for one thing, I was a bit uncomfortable when I didn’t know what I should eat while at college. Once I knew what all my options were, I became much more comfortable, which in turn made me happier.

            When it comes to working out, it can make or break my day. For a couple years now, I have completing the P90X workout program, which basically requires that you work out every day. I became so used to working out every day at home, that it quickly became uncomfortable being at college because I didn’t know where I could work out, or if I would be able to work out here at all. I guess you could say that P90X made me a little shy while working out, because I used to do the work outs by myself in the basement of my house. Having to work out in the gym was very uncomfortable for me, because there were so many people around, and I knew they were all sizing me up. Let’s face it, that’s what happens at the gym. Everybody sizes everybody else up, so me being 5’ 10” and 135 pounds means that people would automatically think that I really couldn’t do much of anything. I knew this was totally untrue, and maybe people weren’t sizing me up like I thought they were, but I became quite uncomfortable nonetheless. Eventually with the help of my dumbbell set, I figured out how to do my workouts in my dorm room, and those workouts such as plyometrics (jump training), yoga, and kenpo (mix of karate and cardio), which required more room, I began to do in the dance room.

            Needless to say, I fell into a routine that was a lot like the one I was used to at home, which made me more comfortable, and consequently happier. This is one of the reasons why I constantly say that working out helps me to “stay sane”, or other things like that. I was used to workouts driving my schedule, and I just couldn’t become comfortable here at school until that became the case again. When I think of my workout mentality and perfectionism, I like to think of something that Tony Horton says during some of the P90X workouts. He says, “Do your best, because that’s always enough”. This can be encouraging, because everybody is at a different level of fitness, so all they can do to get maximum results is to do their best. Ralph Waldo Emerson also has a famous quote along the same lines. Emerson says, “Make the most of yourself, for that is all there is of you.” That’s what I’m going to try to do in my workouts and in my college life. Like Tony Horton always says, “Do your best, and forget the rest.”