posted by Zach

Wow. I can't believe I am actually typing one of these out while I'm at home, when I could be out and about with friends or family, enjoying the free time resulting from an utter lack of homework and stress, performing such joyous activities as watching a movie, or bowling, or playing pool. But nope, I decided to write a blog.

Because you - yes, you, the reader: you are worth it.

Or because I'm bored. One or the other.

Primarily, though, I'm just tired. I've taken to calling this the "let-down reflex": you know, the feeling when you realize you can safely crash in the comfort of your own home; I have, however, been informed that this terminology should be used sparingly and only in certain company, as a second meaning is more commonly applied. If you are unsure of this meaning, the internet is the answer to all. Wow, tangent. At any rate, the ability to sleep in my own bed, shower in my own shower, and eat real food is something I am treasuring, but instead of reenergizing me, I find myself caught in a cycle of just wanting to lay around and do nothing. Listen to some music, watch some football, play some videogames (if you were a Pokemon fan back in the day, go play it again - it's awesome, even if it's only the nostalgia speaking)...these, plus food, could comprise a full day and I would be perfectly fine with that.

I miss college, a lot more than I thought I would. I miss my friends and the fact that I could walk down the hall and joke around and laugh with them. I miss the rec center and the routine of my workouts. I almost miss classes. I miss the things that take my energy, because I have energy when energy is demanded of me. I excell when my options are limited, when I am required to perform some task or achieve some goal, if that makes sense.

I enjoy being scheduled, and never realized that until just recently.

Christmas was fun, family is cool, old friends are great, but all in all, I want college back.

posted in Adjustment

posted by Zach

I've been debating with myself about what to say in one of these blog things. I already used up one of my few this-has-nothing-pertaining-to-college-in-it entries, so I probably shouldn't do that again for a while. Unfortunately, college is slowly developing into a part of my life, rather than the entirety it began as. However, I believe I have stumbled onto something worth both my time, and yours.

There is a trite phrase in common circulation concerning time: it flies when you are having fun. I am not sure just how time would fly, per se, but I can certainly agree that time does appear to pass much more quickly when you are enjoying what is around you. However, time has been zipping along at an uncomfortable pace since school began, and rest assured, I have not been having fun the entire time. Rather, this is merely an expression of concern: that if I don't enjoy every moment while it lasts, I will miss something irrecoverable.

While there is some truth in that concept, it is also entirely unreasonable. No person can sincerely live every moment like it was his or her last - that would simply lead to insanity. Still, though, dead week is here already; I'm just about done with 1/16 of my college age. It doesn't seem like much on paper (well, on the internet... whatever), but if it keeps this up, this experience is going to slip by entirely too quickly. The education, the fantastic friends I am lucky to have (yes, friends, you better read this entry), even the tragedies: I don't want to lose any of it.

I would give most anything to get time to slow down for just a while, just long enough for me to catch my breath and truly appreciate the things I have been so fortunate to receive.

posted in Adjustment

posted by Zach



Let's begin with the picture up there. Yup, that's me. I fell off of a bed, onto a desk. There is a story behind that, but I do not wish to tell the entire thing, as it is not truly capable of being typed: suffice it to say, however, that it was not one of my best moments.

I honestly didn't feel like talking about college, so... I'm not going to. I want to talk about my life. I am going to share with you my bad day.

0. How does 0 work? Well, that's because this didn't actually happen today. Rather, this reflects upon the fact that I had to survive the whole morning with that stupid gash that I received on my back. Very frustrating, especially since I am one of those people who prefers to lean back in a chair. Moving on to tonight...

1. My cell seriously exploded; it was really weird. It was in my pocket as I was walking with my friends, and something felt weird: not like a phone call, but some sort of movement. So, I took it out and looked at it, and my screen just...broke. It's really odd.

2. I got a balloon (a good thing), but then this girl knocked it out of the string and I lost all of the helium.

3. After I blew it and up again and retied it (without helium - yes, I had to drag the thing), we were walking back to our rooms, and a deer popped out right in front of us - it was so cool. However, when I moved a bit closer, my balloon popped on a branch and scared the deer off. Two very sad things tied into one. Horrible.

Actually...that wasn't that bad. I mean, yes, it wasn't the best night of my life. It would have been worse if my parents had called and said our cat had been hit by a car. Or if the deer I scared got hit by a car. Or if I got hit by a car. All of those would probably designate a pretty bad night. Fortunately, none of those things happened. Well, my cat might have died. My phone's broken. Oh well. I'll find out when I go home.

I have this strange feeling that I need to tie this post into some worthwhile moral, like: "There will be good and bad times, but work through them". However, I think we all know that, and any other words of wisdom I could come up with. Rather, I try to reserve those for times of consoling.

Man...why did I have to fall off of a bed onto a desk?! So stupid...

posted in Adjustment

posted by Zach

Before I write whatever it is I am about to write, let it be known that I am incredibly tired, and as such cannot be trusted to maintain a consistent level of maturity, eloquence, or grammer throughout my blog.

Moving on. I decided to talk about something less...controversial today. I feel badly that I received such strong responses about the difficultly of classes; it was not my intent to offend, but merely to be honest. I hope that people realize that I am not a egostical prick bent on using my platform to display my greatness, or some such thing, but rather a freshman guy, sitting in his dorm, trying to think of something entertaining to write about while retaining a certain degree of sincerity and applicability. As it turns out, I'm as human as anyone else - I just happen to have an official blog thing. Awesome.

Well, I suppose I haven't really moved on yet. Let's do that. Let's talk about my family. I have a mom, dad, brother, grandma, and cat that each have distinct roles in my life (which are not represented by the order of the aforementioned list, by the way). I care about my family. We're pretty close knit. However, I don't think I have even once truly missed being home, barring the food and my queen-sized bed. I forget to call, even just to say hello. I rarely take time to care about the problems I left behind. I suppose it just frustrates me. I was looking forward to college in that I could move away from my family, absolutely, and I am enjoying the freedom immensely; at the cost of being near my family, though, it doesn't always seem worth it.

"Absence makes the heart grow fonder" - I have no idea who said that, and I doubt I even quoted it correctly, but it also strikes a shallow chord. Sometimes, absence just makes you forget.

Don't get me wrong - this is completely my fault. I accept the blame for this one. My parents don't know my schedule. I should bethe one calling, or e-mailing, or whatever. There is no excuse other than the life of a college kid. I'm busy. Being busy, though, is a crap excuse to get out of anything.

I'm not going home until Thanksgiving (though I do see my parents this weekend for the Really Big Weekend thing). It will be nice to be reminded of what I'm missing, so that I don't have to worry about forgetting. That, and lots of really good food and sleeping on a queen-sized bed. Sentimentality needs not ruin luxury.

posted in Adjustment

posted by Zach



To begin: Yes, that is a picture of a wave, and a surfer. Why is it there? I have no idea. Why not?

--------------------------------------------

Yes, yes, I know - college has already started. I am not an idiot. In fact, I feel like a genius because of my classes. (Nice transition, no?)

Perhaps I just gave myself easy classes, but this doesn't seem right. 85% on my pysch 101 test when I didn't take notes, read, or study for the exam. Assignments and tests getting pushed back. Being able to BS through everything. I feel like I'm going through High School again, but with bigger classes, a little more accountability, and living here.

I came to college to be challenged by academic standards far beyond High School. My old habits shouldn't work here, but they do. Admittedly, test-taking is one of my strengths, but I played that pysch test off more than I would have a test a year ago.

Meh. I just want a new quarter. New classes. A challenge, perhaps. Something fun. I suppose I will just have to wait.

P.S. No offense to anyone who really likes the classes I happen to be taking. Merely my opinion.

posted in Academics

posted by Zach

Now, for the above statement, let S stand for "I am sick", T stand for "I am tired", and M stand for "I am miserable" - oh, also, the dot means "and", and the arrow means "then". Is the above statement true? Yes.

Hooray for Philosophy!

Honestly, though, does the entire city of Bellingham get sick at the exact same time? Having a cold/flu is honestly one of the most annoying things on the planet, and the fact that I must still attend classes, do homework, and pass my tests with my head feeling like a lead balloon does not help matters. Do we all have to do it the same time? If everyone is trying to console each other by sharing their pain, I can assure you that there is a largely better method.

I am, however, taking the necessary precautions to rid myself of this abomination as soon as possible. I slept in until noon today, and I am currently wrapped in my blanket, wearing sweats, drinking Airborne - one of the most disgusting, yet effective devices mankind has ever created - and writing a blog about doing these things. I am not sure what the blog has to do with precautions, but I have great faith in the healing power of the internet.

If anyone would like to bring me hot chocolate, that would be lovely. Actually, it would be more than lovely, it would be wonderful. I doubt if I will be receiving any soon, though. I suppose I will just have to suffer through this sickness alone, just like every other student as Western.

The End.

posted in Adjustment

posted by Zach

With this entry, I will have conquered all four of the categories (academics, dorm life, extracurricular,and adjustment). So, despite the fact that I have little to say, I will plod on for the purpose of self-fulfillment in the knowledge that I have defeated the blog.

Dorm life, though, isn't what I was expecting. That's not saying much, though, as I wasn't really expecting anything. In fact, I think that dorms are the most underrepresented aspect of college when it comes to understanding the college experiecence. What I mean by that is that I was never taught what to expect in a dorm, but I knew all about the classes, the teachers, the campus, the food, and everything else about Western before I set foot here. I don't know why this is the case, it's just what I found.

Moving on...what aspect of dorm living should I talk about? Ummm.....poo. I told you I had nothing to talk about.

Oh, I did my laundry for the first time ever today! I'm rather proud. I realized my need for this after I discovered that I only had one pair of clean boxers this morning.

I asked my roommate what I should write about. He didn't know. I guess that's what happens when you live with a Math major. Creativity has no wellspring in the soul of mathemetics.

Bottom line for dorm life: it's still life. I still follow the same morning schedule I had at home (albeit at a slightly different time). I still enjoy sitting around doing nothing. I still sleep, eventually. I just do it with another guy in my room, and a bunch of people in a bunch of other rooms.

Dorm life isn't hard, I don't think. Just be friendly and everything will flow reasonably smooth. Maybe that's why they don't talk about it. It just comes with the territory, comes naturally.

Good night, and good luck.

posted in Dorm Life

posted by Zach

Hm. Adjustment. What should I write about for that? Well, art imitates art imitates life. I have no idea what they means, but there needs to be some sort of profound statement in order to give this blog thing some sort of intellectual value. I have other intellectual statements floating around, as well; perhaps I will pepper them throughout my writing, like those little sprinkles they put on ice-cream, which I've never understood, because those little multicolored flecks taste like crap. However, my writing is as delicious as ice-cream, so I'm doing okay.

Wow, that was a really long introduction.

Anyways, adjustment. Well, it's certainly different. Sitting in a class as big as my entire High School is different. Sleeping in a bed I can hardly fit in is different. Living with a bunch of guys, ten of whom have to share two showers, two toilets, and no urinals is different.

A tangent: please, people in charge, get some urinals for the guys. We do not want to sit down every time. Peeing standing up is one of our greatest assets. Thank you.

It's all different. However, if I'm being completely honest, those aren't hard to deal with. Making and keeping friends is the tough part. In High School, I had two close friends, and maybe two or three more people I would spend time with on occasion, but they're all gone. I've met a few people here, sure, and my roommate is cool enough, but I don't have any real friends like those, per se. Despite my witty and ice-cream quality writing talent, I'm not outgoing, nor do I make friends easily. Is that something that will change? Will I meet some people with whom I can be close friends? I don't know.

For now, I can handle it. I have enough going on with classes and life that I can keep myself occupied. When that calms down, though, I don't know where I'll be. I'll just deal with it when it comes, I suppose. Time will move on, whether I want to it or not, and I'll figure it all out when I don't have any other choice.

Oh, and sorry that I didn't sprinkle any more profoundness, but you must remember: I don't care for sprinkles.

posted in Adjustment

posted by Zach

Classes began on Wednesday. I'm pretty sure I could leave it at that, but that would not make for the best entry ever, so I will extend it a bit.

School has succeeded in running my life yet again, as it has for the last fourteen years. So, in an effort to share my pain and anguish concerning the college experience with others in the student body, I will relive the last three days so that you can read and enjoy. You better be thankful.

Anyways, here are my four classes, and my initial impressions:

Philosophy 102 (Introduction to Logic): I've got to say, this class is currently defying description. The teacher, Professor Ty Barnes, is new to Western, so I get the feeling he is getting his footing just like I am. The class itself is interesting, but hasn't gone anywhere yet. First class of the morning = waking up, anyways, so it's probably for the best.

Pyschology 101 (Intro. to Psych): I'm pretty sure I will never be able to spell pyschology right the first time. Anyways, this class...embodies college. Plopping down into a 400-person class in a big auditorium is what it's all about. Again, things have barely started yet, so...yeah. It's rather boring right now. Professor Debbie Chun is in charge, though. She really likes Hawaii. So do I. We get along well, though I doubt she knows who I am.

Spanish 104 (Elementary Spanish): Wow. This class is intense. There is most definetely a love/hate relationship going on in there. I feel like I am going to die everytime I set foot in that room, but I feel so smart when stuff actually clicks. Professor (oh, excuse me, "profesora") Alonzo refuses to speak in English in class. While I understand this to a limited extent, it doesn't make it less challenging. This may very well be my GPA-killer.

Communications 101 (Intro. to Comm., I think): Basically Speech class, if you've ever taken that. Professor Penny Britton seems to be a very positive sort of person, so I don't forsee any problems. She even mentioned the first year blog thing (yes, that's right, Penny: one of us bloggers is in one of your classes). A more "student-taught" approch will be interesting, I think. Anyways, no problems here.

So, yes. Those are my classes. Seventeen credits, in case you were wondering. We'll see if I survive. If I do, you can too. Trust me on that one.

A note to teachers: I am not afraid of using my newfound status as a pedastal. Just give me an A, and we'll get along fine.

Just kidding. Somewhat.

posted in Academics

posted by Zach

So, I feel a little bad, because being the "token male" of the group, I should have taken on some leadership and written first. Alas, I did not. Also, I have no pictures, which makes me a whole lot more boring.

I am failing already. Oh well.

I was trying to figure out something to write about, and settled on Convocation. Sadly, there is no category for that, so I picked "Extracurricular", seeing as you didn't have to actually go. If you didn't go, then I feel you missed out. If you didn't go because you have no school spirit and prefer to sit in your rooms doing nothing in particular, then that is your problem. I, on the other hand, thought it was pretty awesome.

The speakers were great. Not in that "OMG this is so profound" sort of way (though there was a little bit of that), but rather the speeches were short, sweet, and to the point. Funny without feeling disingenious. Then, of course, came the movie about what we can do to help our school, with The-Lion-King-meets-Prince-of-Persia, Disney-esque inspirational music that made me want to save a child from being hit by a bus, find the cure for cancer and fall in love all within a 10-minute time span. It was good: reversed graduation, kind of, but better.

Then, of course, came the Memory Walk - at least, I think that's what it was called. Anyways, hats off to the upper-classmen: I had no idea that was coming. I thought it was cool, personally. I was cracking jokes and feeling awkward just like everyone else, but overall, it was just nice to get a bit of respect for a few minutes. Maybe it's just me.

So, yes. I am now, along with everyone else, an official member of WWU. Congratulations to us all. Now all we have to do is not fail. Our classes, that is. This blog isn't graded or anything. Just so you know.

Edit: Yes, the bagpipes did, in fact, make the entire event. Thank you for noting my lack of detail.

posted in Extra-curricular