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Well, everyone, this will be my last entry. My last week is going to be fairly hectic… finals Thursday and Friday, concert Friday night, studying all day Sunday, a final on Monday, and shipping out on Tuesday! In short, I am going to be very busy, so I figured I would make my last entry a good one before the craziness sets in.
As a “Real Deal” blogger, I suppose it is my responsibility to give it to you straight about college life… the good and bad. Just as a disclaimer, I am not going to say anything terrible, but this is my last entry, so I suppose I should mention some things about choosing a college that you all should take with you, regardless of whether you have or have not chosen UNE.
A lot of students choose the perfect college for them: the right size, location, academic program, etc. They go off to school and are perfectly happy, and they dive right into college life and make friends and go through their college careers happy and satisfied. However, some of us are not so lucky. Some students go to school, and after not too long, they begin to question their choice due to various factors. “Why am I eating meals alone?” They may ask, or “Why do I feel so unmotivated?” There are quite a few early signs of unhappiness, and the student must really keep abreast of his or her emotional state during one’s freshman year and how this relates to his or her satisfaction with the school he or she has chosen.
One of my hallmates at the beginning of the year lived in Caribou, ME, which is right at the tippity-top of the state. She was constantly going home, making the 6-hour drive almost every weekend, including the first weekend on campus. She was obviously unhappy, and as a result, she closed herself off to people and did not have a lot of friends. She transferred after the first semester to UMaine Presque Isle. Sometimes, a school is not a good fit due to its location. Some students, like my former hallmate, prefer to be closer to home.
Sometimes the academic program is the reason why students choose to transfer. Changing one’s major is often the impetus for a student to desire a change of school. For instance, we have one of the best Marine Biology programs in the country, and some students come here from far away solely for that program. If that student wanted to change his or her major to, oh, let’s say… something random like Egyptology, he or she would have to go to Brown, the only school in the country with that program. UNE is mainly a science school, so if a student wanted a degree in something like African Studies, he or she would not choose to come here. Academics are very important to take into consideration when debating transferring (or choosing a college).
Last, and maybe most important, interpersonal relationships are a huge part of a student’s happiness. Just as everyone does not fit into every clique in high school, every college is not for every student, socially speaking, even those students who are friendly and do not put up walls. Some schools attract a certain “type,” and sometimes, a student who is a little different from the dominant “image” will find that he or she does not fit in with others. This often proves to be the case at small schools rather than bigger ones, as larger numbers increase the odds of attracting many different types of personalities and interests.
You are probably wondering why I am coming out with this now after many fun-filled blog entries. I may not be back at UNE next year, depending upon acceptances to schools that I have not heard back from yet. I will not elaborate on my reasons for potential transfer, as I do not feel that it is appropriate in this setting. I am not definitely going to transfer, but it is a likely possibility. UNE is a great fit for a lot of students. However, I am not sure if it is the best fit for me.
If I am back at UNE, it will be after a great amount of long, hard introspection; if I leave, it will also be after a great amount of long, hard introspection. I will not make this decision lightly or on a fleeting whim. I know this is a serious decision.
I will bid you all adieu for this year with the following advice: Your college education will shape your future in a number of ways, including the major you choose, the activities you are a part of, the friends you get to know, and the lifestyle choices you make. That is why it is important to choose wisely, and if you decide at some point during your freshman (or even sophomore) year that you are unhappy, there is nothing wrong with transferring. I repeat… THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH TRANSFERRING. If an environment is not right for you, seek out one that is. By the same token, I understand that there is no such thing as a perfect college. As a friend once told me, “Determine what is most important to you in a school, and then determine which of your options come closest to your ideal. Nothing is going to be perfect, and you need to be aware of that. Otherwise I'm just worried that you'll keep searching for a place that doesn't exist.” This is true; however, I have faith that I, and all of you, and everyone!... will eventually find a place where we belong, whether that takes one try or two.
To put it in the words of my favorite-ever poet:
“Don't be discouraged by a failure. It can be a positive experience. Failure is, in a sense, the highway to success, inasmuch as every discovery of what is false leads us to seek earnestly after what is true.”
John Keats (1795 - 1821)
Have an excellent summer, and stay safe, healthy, and happy!
<3 LG
No... iPods are not only the bright white bit of plastic used to store everyone's MP3 files anymore!
The new dorm, Sandy Hall, is pretty much finished, and that means that students will get the chance to live in an iPod, or Interest Pod, next year. These are groups of rooms that form a little community within the dorm that is dedicated to a certain activity, such as social justice, environmental awareness, health and active lifestyle, or spirituality. Each group will center around one of these entities, and students will get the chance to really get to know other students who are interested in the same things.
However... I am not sure what the status is for incoming freshmen applying to the Interest Pods. They really don't tell us a whole lot about that kind of stuff, but if I find out, I will let you all know!
If this is something you are interested in, it may be a good thing to contact Housing to ask any questions you might have.
Oh, the wonder of gorgeous weather... we can now have outdoor activities on campus! This weekend was the Reduce, Reuse, Rock Out festival, which I was involved in planning. It featured four musical acts, human bowling, T-shirt dyeing, henna tattoos, etc.
The second band that played was an Irish punk group called The Pubcrawlers, pictured here.
Here I am getting my henna tattoo! It came out so pretty...
After the concert, I went down to Old Orchard Beach. It was so pretty! The weather was nice, and everyone was having a good time playing football and frisbee and walking on the beach. This is the pier, which isn't completely open yet, but this summer it's going to be buzzing with vendors, greasy little food stands, and all sorts of other cool stuff.
Being in school in Maine means that the winter is kind of rough, especially because we are right on the windy ocean... but when the spring finally comes, it seems all the more glorious by default.
We only have two weeks and two days left! Then... "reading day" (which is meant for studying, but most likely I'll be at the beach and in the studio) and then a concert and then my last couple of finals and summer break!!!!!! (I do not support the usage of more than one exclamatory punctuation, but I am so excited about it...)
Well, I have to go take out my laundry and catch up on my work. Happy Spring!
<3 LG
Hello!
Wow! It's hard to believe an entire week went by since my last entry. The time is most certainly flying by, which is kind of nerve-wracking considering that I have three projects, a service trip for a class to go on, a huge paper, two quizzes, and a graded problem for Stats... all due within the next two weeks. Crunch much? You betcha.
Either way, this week was April Vacation for high schools in Massachusetts, so my family came to visit me on Thursday for some good food and wandering around Old Port. We finally found this really cool shop called Sea Bags that sells handbags/tote bags made from pieces of sails from decommissioned sailboats. The bags they make are all one of a kind due to what they have to work with, and no two are the same. There will never be and has never been a bag just like the one that I bought!
After that, we toured around Old Port, and although we didn't get to much, we still had a good time! Here I am in Beal's with my brother and his ginormous cone of Cookie Dough! I just can't get enough of their sorbet.
Other than that, it has been a fairly quiet week. We had some work due, but it was nothing compared to the maelstrom that will happen in the next two weeks!
Anyhow, I must go and light into my workload. I will mayhaps have another entry for you this weekend, as it is the big Spring Festival this Saturday... yay for outdoor activities in the spring!
<3 LG
Howdy!
I told you I'd have another entry very soon... and bada-bing, here it is!
This past Friday, I went to the Biennial art show at the Portland Museum of Art. It features modern work by current artists, most of which are from Maine. My Painting teacher had a piece in the show, so it was interesting to see her work on display. I really liked this show because it was quite nontraditional and edgy, unlike the last show they had going on.
They had this on the wall outside the show! So I took a picture near it to commemorate the occasion.
A painting called "Captive" by Sandy Litchfield was one of my favorites. I really liked the imagery... a lake scene in which one can find stylized parts of humans and animals. There is so much imagery and so many layers to this painting that the viewer must look at it from all distances and angles, because the forms take on new shape and meaning depending upon where one is standing.
I also had Beal's sorbet, which is amazing, for the first time in months! They recently re-opened after being closed for the winter, and I got to taste its amazingness for the first time in a long time! I also ate at Sapporo and had a soy cafe mocha from Starbucks... life is good. Dining in Portland is good. Art is good.
It's all good!
In other news, we have three weeks of school left. I am rather excited about this, as the work is sort of piling up, and I am ready for a break! However, I will definitely miss the art/food combination trips I make every so often.
Allrighty... it is slightly late, so I shall bid you adieu. As a card-carrying nerd, I'm usually in bed pretty early, even on weekends.
Ciao!
<3 LG
The hottest spot on streaming Web radio: http://radio.une.edu. That's right! Every Monday and Wednesday night from 9 - 10 p.m., you can hear yours truly and my co-host Laurel playing awesome music and yakking about campus events and strange news.
A night in the studio usually goes like this: we call Safe Ride/Security to unlock Gregory. We get in there, turn on all the equipment (two computers, a soundboard, both of our laptops, speakers, etc.) We then begin streaming at about 8:45. At nine, we start playing our pre-recorded show, which is usually recorded sometime the week before the broadcast. We then chill out and do homework, chat to our friends/listeners online, and occasionally make phone calls while listening to our broadcast. We usually stay in after the broadcast to record a show for the next week, and we eventually leave... sometime. Sounds like a lot of work, huh? It is, but it's a blast!
Laurel is definitely the tech expert... she works the board, volume controls, and computer...
...while I work the CD player to start up sets of songs and control the pace of the show...
... but we always listen to our recordings after we're finished!
Anyway, we do have a Facebook group dedicated to the show, so if you are on Facebook and wish to join, just group search us, and there we shall be!
I'll be back with another entry this weekend after I see the Biennial art show at the Portland Museum... my painting professor has a photo in this very prestigious show!
<3 LG
Hey all!
This week was quite a lot of fun, and it ended with a lovely trip home for Easter. Why was it so much fun, you ask? Because last Monday, for the first time ever, I streamed my archived radio show live on the Internet! Our first broadcast had 14 connections... that doesn't sound like a lot, but we were really excited that our pilot episode got more than 5 listeners! We streamed archives again on Wednesday night and a lot of my friends listened in. Apparently the show has been doing quite well with the faculty... one professor even said, "Wow, those girls are really funny!" This is very encouraging because I have wanted to get into radio for a long time now, and I finally got to make headway and broadcast my own show.
The show is entitled The L&N Show, and it features an indie/alternative rock tracklist as well as occasionally amusing commentary from my co-host Laurel Kalman and me. Mostly, we talk about on-campus events and random stuff from the news, in addition to background information about the bands or songs that we are playing. Usually our shows have a theme. Tonight, we are broadcasting a show entitled "Amazing Bass."
We broadcast every Monday and Wednesday night from 9 - 10 p.m. If you would like to listen in, just click on http://radio.une.edu tonight a little bit before 9 and you can hear our show! (You'll need to download RealPlayer... there is a link on the Radio UNE website).
After being in the studio every day for over an hour and a half recording/listening to/broadcasting shows, turning in projects and papers, going to the gym, and trying to keep my life together in these waning weeks of the semester, I was excited to go home and see my family on Easter! My brother and I had an old-fashioned egg hunt and it was ... interesting, to say the least. He won by a longshot, but it was still a good time.
Well, it's off to the gym for me. I'll be in the studio from 9-11:30 tonight, so I need to get in some exercise, a nap, and homework!
TTFN... and listen to our show! (Not-so-insidious plug alert!)
<3 Lauren
Hello all.
This week was exhausting, but it wasn't all "bad" tired! We had our annual semi-formal dance, and a bunch of my friends came up from elsewhere to join in on the fun.
The week was pretty stress-filled, and I am glad that we all got to blow off some steam. I had a couple of papers and one big project due this week, so it was good to let loose and have some fun. In addition, I finally semi-recovered from my "cold that wouldn't die," and I found myself healthy just about the night before this whole crazy weekend happened...
Here we are before leaving, looking spiffy!
Our friends stayed until Saturday, so we got to go around town a little bit, eat breakfast in Biddeford at All Day Breakfast, and show off our beach! It was a lot of fun, and I was sad when we had to export all of our imported friends.
Anyway, I am hoping this week won't be as nuts. I am heading home for Easter next weekend, and after that, I believe we only have three weeks left (not counting finals). The end is in sight!
Well, have an excellent week. Sorry this one was short, but I'm still pretty beat from this weekend! I usually don't stay up too late, so this weekend was big for me.
Anyway... adios for now!
<3 LG
Hello all!
Wow! This first week back has been very busy. Most everyone has been getting ready for the big Spring Semi-formal that is happening next Friday. Personally, I have been rushing around trying to find a dress! But that's a story for another time, and I will have more on that next week.
Aside from a ton of schoolwork (and, of course, daily trips to the gym), I have had meetings for radio club all week! This has been in the works for a long time, and I love music. So the interest + the buildup = a very excited Lauren when I finally got into the studio for the first time and recorded my first-ever show! My co-host Laurel was working the soundboard while I made sure all the songs played right and metered out the pace of the show. We won't be broadcasting until the first week of April, so I will post a link when we finally get to stream online!
Here I am with all my equipment... I was having so much fun!
Hopefully, you will all be able to hear my radio show very soon!
Other than that, it has been a fairly schoolwork-intensive week. It is the first week back, and we only have 6 weeks left until summer vacation, which would mean that there is only so much time to get a lot more work done. The year goes by so much faster in college than high school... you get a lot more days off, especially on Christmas break.
Anyhow, I have to go to bed now, because I have early classes tomorrow! Have a great week and I promise quite the entry next week.
<3 Lauren
Let's put it this way: it was quite the relaxing Spring Break. To be perfectly honest, all the hype about collegiate Spring Breaks (jetsetting to tropical places, questionable activities, beaches, and getting tan) is a myth, as not one of my friends went anywhere tropical over break. (Not to sound like sour grapes, but those of us who are prone to sunburns would rather chill out at home where our skin won't absolutely die!)
Anyway, my vacation consisted of sleeping in, playing my acoustic guitar that I had to leave home, shopping with my mom, a massage (finally!!) and dinner with my friends at our spot, Panera Bread.
Here we are goofing off, just like the good old days!
In addition, I finally got on my bike and out of the sweaty gym for the first time in a long time whilst the weather allowed for such things. Temperatures hovered around 60 degrees for most of the week... until Friday, when this travesty happened...
Yeah, we got a few inches of snow, and then a few inches of hail. It must have been Karma getting us back for such good weather for most of the week! One redeeming factor about Friday was that I received my favorite band's new album, which is coming out tomorrow! It was very exciting.
Now I shall answer a comment from Malin about housing. If you are from a distant land such as Ohio, and you are a sophomore, you will probably live in South Hall because it provides break housing. Some transfer students live in Freddy, where I live, but if you are going to need break housing they will place you in South. That's good news because you will be in a suite! The rooms in South consist of a common room, kitchenette with full-size fridge, separate shower and bathroom, and two double rooms. This means you get a ton more room and more privacy than in a normal dorm room! The suites are, well... sweet. Sweet suites. By the way... I loved The Science of Sleep, my favorite part being Parallel Synchronized Randomness.
So, I must go finish some of the work I hadn't the heart to deign to do over break (in favor of relaxing and rocking out), but another entry shall be coming soon! And keep checking MyUne... I am getting my very own live streaming radio show! So if you're interested, you can tune in and hear it! Very exciting...
<3 Lauren
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