Kalysha Clark

It's begun. The countdown until summer break.

The remainder of my freshman year is completely booked and I feel super overwhelmed. I had a biology test today, a chemistry lab practical and a short paper due tomorrow, a chemistry test on Thursday, a closing reception for LIA on Sunday, dinner with the Chancellor on Monday, a Roots and Shoots documentary on Tuesday, a biology lab report due next Wednesday as well as group volunteering, a 24 hour museum opening on Friday night and the list goes on.

I just want it all to be over with!

I'm trying to be productive and manage my time so that I can get through this mess of a month! Exams don't look like they'll be too difficult since I only have three, really, and one isn't cumulative.

That means my two hardest will be biology and chemistry and I will hopefully have lots of time to study for both of them.

Dorm life can be pretty beneficial, especially for a first-year student. Housekeeping cleans the bathroom for you and takes out the trash, you're (mostly) walking distance from class and from cool hangout spaces, you're always informed on events happening around campus and if anything breaks all you have to do is put in a work order and maintenance handles it for you.

On the other hand, dorm life can be pretty crappy. I was gung-ho about living on campus my first year. I was excited to get a roommate and become best friends with her and develop a huge social network of friends.

Well, turns out I don't like dorm life. At. All.

My roommate was super sweet, but the room made her sick! (We live in an older dorm and the ventilation system isn't the best.) So she moved out after first semester. I was alright with that. I wasn't mad or anything and I get a room to myself. Two desks, two closets, two beds pushed together to make a giant one. Heaven.

But when you go to a college where none of your high school friends went, you have to make new friends. And I struggled with that. I stayed cooped up in my room on the computer.

I have since made awesome friends, including some in the next dorm over who I will be living with next year and some from an awesome club I'm in.

Dorm life is still crappy.

The shower is TINY! The water pressure is terrible and you almost always get burned by the water.

The walls are paper thin and I can hear everything anyone around me says or does (very clearly, mind you), including those next to me and above me.

It's difficult to make your own food because (in our case) there aren't lounges on every floor.

The dump truck! Oh GOD, don't get me started on the dump truck! Every morning around 3-4 AM, the dump truck comes to collect the trash from our dorm dumpster. 4 AM! BEEP BEEEP BEEEEEP DUSIJLVBI CJUICHUI (That's the sound of the extremely LOUD clanging it makes as the dumpster hits the truck). I live on the side of the dorm where the dumpster is so I'm extremely lucky to hear that every single morning.....

The list goes on.

If you're not yet in college, make sure you weigh out the pros and cons of living in a dorm before you decide to do so.

I'll be living on campus for another long year, but that's only because I'm waiting for my boyfriend to finish school before I get an apartment.

Until then, I'll make do with what I've got, but next year, I'm definitely not living in the dorm I live in now!

A friend and I who are both in the Chancellor's First Year Student Leadership Program applied for a Mini-Grant ($50) from the Women's Center to do something to raise awareness about a global humanitarian issue.

We decided to hold an event to raise awareness for Human Trafficking. We plan to show the movie "Trade" in a common area in one of the dorm's and prepare handouts about what human trafficking is, why it happens and what we can do to prevent it. I was given contact information to a student here who is working with human trafficking and who is passionate about the topic. I contacted her and she's hoping to come speak at our event and host a post-movie discussion.

We plan on using the grant to get food and drinks (popcorn and sodas, really), the movie, and money to print flyers and handouts.

I'm really excited about it and even though we only have two weeks before the event, I'm hoping we have a good turn out!

To read about how to event turned out, click here.

I've decided that I want to start working out for two reasons: 1) General fitness/wellness and 2) To flatten my tummy.

I know absolutely NOTHING about working out, so I talked to my boyfriend and he also enlisted the help of a classmate/friend who is a personal trainer. I'm officially start next Monday, according to the chart my boyfriend made. As of now, my only requirement is to take the stairs- which is challenging because my dorm is seven floors up. But I'm trying.

I also signed up for step aerobics for next fall, so that'll hopefully keep me in shape!

Here's my schedule:

Monday:

• 30 Tummy Tucks at 10 seconds
• 10 Sit Ups
• 15 Curls per Hand
• 5 Hammer Curls per Hand

EDIT: I added a PE and rearranged some classes to be with friends (because that's always fun and lovely). Now I'm taking 15 hours and my classes go from 10-3 with the exception of my two labs on Tuesday and Wednesday, which run from 3-5:45. I can still deal with that, though!

I've officially enrolled for my classes next Fall! I'm only taking 14 hours, which is a happy place for me. It'll enable me to have my work study job and possibly a second job in addition to babysitting. Plus, I need time for academics and clubs!

Here's what my classes are looking like:

History of Nonprofits
Animal Anatomy and Physiology
Organic Chemistry II
Introduction to Companion Animals
Step Aerobics
Anatomy Lab
Chemistry Lab

Looks like with the exception of labs, my days (as far as classes) will last from approximately 10-3!

This morning (at 6:30 AM) I caught a flight back to Raleigh from Boston, MA. (Pictures and details coming soon!) I had a wonderful time during my 3 days there and I wanted to share with you guys some important traveling tips no matter what your destination.

• If you've never flown before, don't be nervous. Just be alert and informed. There are a lot of things to know.
• Print your boarding pass at home. It makes getting to your terminal faster. The pass is available 24 hours before your flight.
• If you are not checking a bag, make sure you only have two carry-ons. It's technically one and a personal item, but they usually don't discriminate against whatever your "personal item" is. If you carry a purse, put your purse inside one of your carry-ons.
• Make sure your carry-on fits the size requirements. And just because you get it through one airport doesn't mean it'll get through another. One of our group members' carry on bag was too big, but was allowed on the plane at the Raleigh airport. He wasn't so lucky coming through Boston and they made him check the bag.
• Make sure all of your fluids are 3 oz. or less (even if the bottle is 10 oz. but only has 3 oz. in it, they WILL confiscate it.) Be sure that your liquids are in a quart-sized zip-lock bag and that you can take them out and put them in the bin for security.
• If you have a laptop, you must put it in a bin by itself. Typically, they tell you to take it completely out (which is what I do to avoid hassle).
• You will need to remove your shoes and any sweatshirt/jacket/hoodie/coat and put it in the bin as well.
• Most importantly, if you're lost/confused, just ask! That's what the people are there for!
• If it's available, utilize public transportation. When I was in New York and Boston, I used the subway. For the most part, they're easy to navigate, cheap, and faster than walking.
• Try to have some cash on you. When you travel away from your typical region, the bank(s) you use may not have available ATMs and there WILL be fees for withdrawing money.
• Remember that it's not always possible to eat cheap. We ate at Quincy Market, which is this cute little shopping/food court area next to Fanieul Hall. A corn dog alone was six dollars. Try to find whatever you can for the best deal.

A lot of the people who I've been around in college have said that they never had to study during high school but are having to now that they're in college. If that's the case, it can be really tough to figure out the right way to study.

I usually studied before tests and assignments in high school, but college is another level. The classes are harder and the professors usually expect more from you.

After being here for almost an entire year and taking advice from my professors, I've got a pretty good basis on how to study for tests.

• Firstly, you have to know your professor. This is hard sometimes, but it is very important.