Election Day

I have been mentally preparing myself for this day for weeks, but I still feel completely unprepared and stressed out. The candidates are crazy, the people are crazier, the country is on lockdown, and finals are starting soon. I have most of my class projects due either this week or next week, and I am struggling to force myself to get them all done. I have school stress, pandemic stress, and now I have election stress. While I don't think anything crazy will happen in Ada, I know some areas are preparing themselves for riots and protests. Regardless of who gets elected, I think there will be riots and protests no matter what. Both sides have crazy radicals on either side. To make matters worse, we are in a terrible pandemic where we are supposed to be social distancing, but cases are spiking, especially in Ohio. I think we will be forced to stay away from each other on holidays this year, which really is upsetting. But first I have to survive my finals. 

If this blog post seems chaotic, then it is an accurate reflection of my current mental state. My mind is fried, I'm jumping from project to project, and there are two major external factors making things harder and harder. I am ready for this semester to finish. More importantly, I am ready for this whole year to finish. It's all just been one big thing after another. I just want a break. Weekends don't feel like weekends because we're all just trying to finish our work. No one is getting any day off. 

I know everything will be OK in the end, but it's getting there that is the issue. I know that if I just push through this week, everything will be alright. I hope everyone's week is going alright. We're almost halfway. 

My Last Semester in PR and Social Media

I started this blog over a year ago as a requirement for one of my social media classes. We were required to post to our blogs three times a week for the whole spring semester. It was a lot of work, but it was fun in the end. I then never touched my blog until this semester when I started social media strategy and campaign. We were required to post one blog and blog comment a week, which was much more manageable. However, after my social media strategy and campaign class is over this semester, I will have completed both my public relations and social media minors. This means I won't be taking any of those courses in the spring. Instead, I will be finishing my creative writing major by taking my remaining English courses. I am excited that I still have another semester, but I am sad that I will no longer be taking any Aggie classes. 

Public relations and social media have allowed me to meet a lot of amazing people. It helped expand my circle of peers and friends. I was able to meet people whose personalities greatly differed from what I was used to in the English department. It helped me to broaden my horizons and think differently when I was faced with problems. It allowed me to take a break from English and better myself more as a person, where English helped to better me as a writer. I will miss all my public relations and social media classmates I have come know and who I have had panic attacks with on numerous occasions. I hope I will be able to see them around campus in the spring. 

Becoming an English Major

I grew up in a small town where most people went on to be farmers, teachers, or nurses, with a few exceptions popping up every now and then. It was common for people to come back to St. Marys or to never leave it at all. Admittedly, I didn't move very far from home when selecting my college, but one thing I did do was pick a very uncommon major. While English isn't a very strange major, my actual major, creative writing, is a lot more specific. This is where most people became perplexed. They would assume that I either want to be an English teacher or an author. It is either that or they believe I want to be homeless and live on welfare for the rest of my life. When I first told my high school guidance counselor that I wanted to major in creative writing, he was very confused. He didn't know that was a major that students could major in. I could tell right away that he didn't know what to think of my decision.

Creative writing was always something that I enjoyed. I always had an overactive imagination and I had always loved writing stories. However, not a lot of people talk about going to school to become a creative writer, especially not in St. Marys. They talk about the usual jobs people get. When I was a senior, I originally wanted to be an emergency room nurse. I had volunteered in a hospital and I had applied for the nursing program at Wright State University where I quickly got accepted. I had everything lined up for me to go to nursing school, but my mom encouraged me to apply to some other schools as well as a backup plan. I thought this was unnecessary but decided to do so anyway. I applied to Ohio Northern University and was going to apply to the nursing program when I saw that they had creative writing listed as a major. This caught my attention and made me reconsider my path. I spent several days researching the creative writing program at Ohio Northern University, looking over the requirements and the courses. I eventually decided to commit to this new major and applied to several different schools. Even though I had been accepted by Wright State and was accepted into their nursing program, I completely changed courses and went with a major that fit me way better than nursing would have. Ever since that day I have never once reconsidered my major. I think I am incredibly lucky to be on the path that I'm on now. 

Adulting: Applying for Jobs

I have recently gotten back into the habit of applying for jobs. Since I am a senior this year, I no longer have the safety net of returning to college. No longer will I be applying for summer internships or summer jobs where I am only expected to work for three months before coming back to school. I am now on my way to finding a job that will hopefully sustain me after I graduate from Ohio Northern. I am excited to start this journey but also terrified. Not to mention I'm extremely stressed. Job hunting means resumes, cover letters, and portfolios. It also means my imposter syndrome is coming back in full swing. Another thing that is making me nervous is the COVID-19 situation. I am not sure how many places are hiring right now since our economy isn't doing so well. I'm afraid that it might take me a while to find a job.

My dream job is to become a narrative designer in the video game industry. However, I'm aware that this is a position I will likely have to work towards after acquiring a few years of experience. With that in mind, I am not entirely sure what I want to go into immediately after I graduate. I am preparing to accept any job that is willing to take me just so I can get some experience and start making some money. I am a creative writing major and a public relations/social media minor, so I am happy that I at least have a lot of options. I have been searching through Indeed for jobs that are in my major and minors and I am excited at all of the options I have available to me. I will have to see if anything sticks. Hopefully I will get lucky and find a job before Christmas. If not, then my hunt continues! Wish me luck!

Capstone Project

This semester I have been working on my creative writing capstone project. For this project, I need to write a novella that's thirty to sixty pages long, a critical intro, and an annotated bibliography. I have currently written about thirty pages of my novella, but I still have a long way to go before I can wrap up my story. The focus for my novella was trauma theory, with the story being set in the post-apocalyptic genre. I am writing my capstone in my Topics in Writing class where we have been focused on post-apocalyptic stories such as "Dawn" by Octavia Butler, "Station Eleven" by Emily Mandel, and "Black Moon" by Kenneth Calhoun. Since this is the genre we are focused on in the class, that is the genre I have to write my capstone in. However, I have also decided to write in the dystopian genre as well. This means my story will be set after the collapse of civilization where a community is experiencing great suffering or an injustice

This is the biggest writing project I have ever worked on. I am extremely excited to write out my novella, but I'm also worried about writing my critical intro and being able to wrap up my story in under sixty pages. While it is easier to write short stories or novellas, I always end up getting wrapped up in worldbuilding and creating something unnecessarily massive. My project is forcing me to reign this in. After I finish all my writing for the semester, I will have several faculty members look my project over before I finish it up and present it in the spring. This will be my final project as a senior at Ohio Northern University. I am excited, but also nervous. I have loved being at Ohio Northern for the past four years. It has been a wild ride, and I am definitely going to miss being at college. 

College Burnout

This year, the world has been struggling to deal with the coronavirus. The United States has been struggling to handle it for over six months, managing to become the country with the most cases. While many places have been closing down, colleges have been desperate to open up. Without students, colleges wouldn't be able to survive, so they are trying to open as normally as possible in order to draw in as many students as they can. Some colleges are strictly online this semester while others stuck with in person classes. 

Ohio Northern University has pushed to have its students on campus, and they want to keep their students on campus for the whole semester if possible. As of right now, they are doing a good job at keeping any cases contained and keeping the virus from spreading on campus. One of the things Ohio Northern University has done to stay ahead of COVID-19 is bring its students in two weeks early. By bringing the students in early, finals will be over by the time we leave for Thanksgiving, meaning students won't return to campus after Thanksgiving break. Another thing they had done is eliminate all breaks, such as fall break. While I am very excited to be having a full fall semester in person, I am starting to suffer from burnout. We have been going nonstop for the past several weeks, and I feel that it is starting to catch up with me. While I was highly motivated in the beginning, I am starting to see myself become less and less motivated to get my work done. I think the faculty is starting to realize this as well because today we received an email telling us that there would be no spring break in the spring semester. 

However, they were going to be giving us one day off each month, though these days were in the middle of the week so that they wouldn't be giving us a three-day weekend. The reason behind this decision seems to be that they are noticing that students are starting to suffer from burnout. Yet, they don't want to risk there being an outbreak of COVID-19. The university fears that if they give students a break, they will leave campus and possibly contract the virus. Then, when they return, they will spread it to one another rapidly. To prevent this, they are keeping students on campus as much as possible. While I think this is a good idea, I am starting to struggle a bit. I think many other students are as well. Are any of you starting to feel burnt out? Do you have any tips on how to recover? Let me know in the comments. 

Adulting: Staying on Track

 It's easy to get distracted and forget about assignments while you're in college. Classes can be overwhelming, you're in a new place, and you have a social life to maintain. However, this does not mean you can ignore or push off your work. You have to remind yourself that you came to college to learn and get a degree. That should always come first, especially since you are paying so much money to go. While you don't have to be perfect, you should strive to do your best on each assignment. Not just because your grades depend on it, but because it's also disrespectful to your professor to not complete your work. It shows a lack of interest, and no professor is going to want to mentor someone who doesn't care. This especially applies to group work. If you have to peer review someone else's work, you should really take the time to look over their stuff and provide feedback. Otherwise you're being disrespectful to your peers, and they will take notice.

Recently, I've had an issue with a peer in one of my classes not turning in workshop comments. As a creative writing major, workshop comments are very important. They help you to improve your writing and see it from a reader's perspective. However, this student wasn't turning in their peer review comments. Our peer review comments are a large portion of our grade, so not only were they hurting themselves, but they were disrespecting their peers, and their professor. They were several weeks behind on comments, until they finally turned them in to everyone several weeks late. The comments had become irrelevant because everyone had already fixed their writing by the time they were received. The class has certainly taken notice. It's not a good idea to start burning bridges so early on in the school year, especially in a class that is needed for their major.

Please take advantage of the opportunity you have in college and do the best job you can, not only for yourself, but for your peers as well. Let me know what you think in the comments below. 

Adulting: Dealing with Conflict

One of the hardest things to deal with when it comes to roommates is conflict. Most people tend to be non-confrontational, but it's important that you speak up for yourself. When it comes to the house, you are all paying rent to live there. Therefore, your feelings are important, so don't be afraid to talk about any issues you have with your roommates. My roommates and I recently got into a situation where we needed to sit down and have a conversation. One of our roommates had invited a friend over to the house to watch a movie with us. This friend knew two of my roommates very well, but three of us didn't really know him. Everything started out just fine but eventually he developed a bit of an attitude and left our house abruptly, slamming the door on the way out. Those of us who didn't know him were uncomfortable with that kind of behavior. He had been to our house once or twice before, but this was the first time he had done something like that. We were willing to let it go but the next morning he abruptly walked into our house without announcing himself to grab something he had forgotten. He then stormed back out and slammed the door again. It slammed so hard that I actually heard it from upstairs.

My two roommates who knew him just let the behavior go because they were used to it, but myself and my other two roommates did not appreciate him disrespecting us and our home by slamming doors and having an attitude. I made it clear to my two roommates who were friends with him that he was no longer welcome in our home. We paid rent and we had made the house into a comfortable and enjoyable living space. We were not going to allow someone to come into that space who couldn't respect that. While the conversation may have been awkward, it was important for us to have it. It wouldn't be fair for the three of us to have to endure having someone we don't like over at the house. Our other two roommates were very understanding of the situation and told us that they would make sure he knew he was no longer welcome.

Do you guys have any conflicts you're dealing with right now? Let me know in the comments below!

Adulting: Creating Lasting Relationships

 

College can be stressful, but it can also present you with multiple opportunities to grow both personally and professionally. Being in college allows you to forge lasting friendships and relationships, but it is important to know the difference between a friend and a classmate. I have seen lots of people come into college and hit the ground running. They try to get to know everyone and forge relationships with people who have power or authority. While getting to know people is important, people can see when you're not being genuine. They notice you running in between people, even if you don't think they do. Going about college like this will make you plenty of acquaintances, but hardly any true friends. People will see what you're doing for what it is, which is someone who is only interested in progressing themselves. People don't like to be the stool in which you use to stack yourself higher. Furthermore, this tactic never works.

When you enter college, the best thing you can do for yourself is make genuine friends. Hangout with people who have similar interests as you or who are in your major. Be professional to everyone you meet and with your professors. Joining clubs you have an interest in is also important and progressing through that club or organization and getting a position looks good on a resume. However, you don't want to spread yourself to thin. If you join multiple organizations and try to get positions in all of them just because it will look good on a resume, you won't be able to do your jobs properly. For one, you won't enjoy yourself with all the added responsibility. Secondly, you will be doing the bare minimum in order to keep up with everything. Getting a position and doing it right will be far more meaningful than having several positions where you hardly do anything.

I hope any students out there will take this advice seriously. Quality will always beat out quantity. 

Adulting: Overcoming Distractions With Roommates

One of the best things about living with roommates is always having someone around to do things with. However, this is also one of the worst things if you're a college student. Living with other students who have different majors will likely lead to days where you are all on different schedules. Your roommates may have just finished their homework while you still have a mountain of projects to complete. Likewise, there may be times you have nothing to do while they are all studying for an exam. These situations can be difficult because you will likely be tempted to either stop what you're doing and join in whatever activities your roommates have planned, or you will be tempted to go distract your roommates. Neither of these situations is ideal. 

Your education should come first, but that also doesn't mean that you can't have fun. Something you will have to consider is due dates. If it's a Tuesday night and your paper isn't due until Friday, you can likely spare an evening to have a good time with your roommates. However, if you or someone in your house has a test the next morning, it may be a good idea to avoid distracting them. This isn't to say you aren't allowed to have any fun but be courteous and avoid offering them the temptation to begin with. 

Another thing to keep in mind is your own capabilities. If you have an eight page paper due at the end of the week, and you know that you will need to work on it every night in order to get it done, then you should set aside plenty of time throughout the week to complete it. It may take a lot of self-control but remind yourself that your education is more important.

One tip to help you succeed in closing out distractions is shutting your bedroom door. This lets your roommates know that you're busy or do not want to be disturbed. If you're open to speaking to your roommates, or the work you're doing doesn't need your attention right away, you can leave your door open. Another tip is to tell your roommates beforehand that you have something important due that you need to work on. This will help to keep them from distracting you while you're working.

Let me know some of your tips for staying on track down in the comments below!

Adulting: Home Improvement

Home improvement is something that every off-campus student will likely face at one point or another. Whether you are staying for two years, one year, or one semester, your home is sure to need some upgrades to enhance your quality of life. 

One thing that is important to keep in mind when facing home improvement projects is that your stay will be temporary. Therefore, only make necessary improvements to your home. That way you can save money rather than break the bank by adding things that you don't need. An example of this would be anything that you want fixed because it doesn't look pretty. This could be a weird paint job, an ugly carpet, or a microwave that doesn't match the kitchen. If the house is functioning properly, style isn't as important of a consideration. 

When you decide that something does need to be improved, make sure that you run it by your landlord before you do anything. You don't want to have to pay for something if your landlord ends up offering to fix it for you. It's also important to inform them of what you are doing in case the improvement you want to make is something that your landlord isn't ok with. You don't want to change something or fix something only to have to tear it down and fix any damages that may have resulted because of the project.  

Another important tip is to be mindful of your skills and capabilities. Home improvement may not be for everyone. If you find yourself seriously struggling, don't be afraid to ask for help or use your connections. My roommates and I are constantly asking my stepfather for advice when it comes to our own projects around the house. He is always more than willing to share some tips and tricks with us. If all else fails, then he is happy to come down and give us a hand. 

The biggest issue we are currently dealing with in my home is that our front and side door don't fit their respective door frames properly. There is space between the top and bottom of the doors that allows for bugs to get in and air to get out. This is an issue for obvious reasons. For starters, the side door is right off of our kitchen, and we don't want bugs to get into our food. Second, our bills are going to be much higher because our air conditioning escapes through the cracks. After having discovered this, we decided we need to look into ways to help properly seal the doors. Hopefully we will be successful in our home improvement endeavors! Let me know down in the comments what some of your biggest home improvement projects are.

Adulting: Living with Roommates or Living Alone

    One of the most important decisions you will have to make when deciding to live off-campus is whether or not you are going to have roommates or live alone. There are pros and cons to both, but I am here to give you some tips to keep in mind when coming to a decision. However, at the end of the day, it comes down to your own personal preferences. 

    The biggest thing to keep in mind when living off-campus is cost. Roommates can make a big difference when it comes to paying for rent and monthly utilities. The cost of an apartment or house will usually cost less the more roommates you have living there, whereas living alone will result in you having to pay lot more. If you live alone, the burden of money is placed squarely on you, but this can be good or bad depending on how much you have saved up. Money may not be a big deal to you. However, a drawback to having roommates that help pay can be a difficult roommate that doesn't pay up. This leads me to my second tip, which is choose your roommates wisely. A lot of people think that living with their best friend will be a dream come true, yet this often is not the case. There are plenty of horror stories out there about first year students moving in with their best friends and it completely ruining their friendship. This is because living with someone and hanging out with someone are vastly different. Take a good look at your potential roommates and ask yourself if you could spend every day with them. Are they a lot of drama? Are they messy? Are they always partying? Do they have a lot of people over? Are they irresponsible? These are questions you need to ask yourself when thinking about potential roommates. One bad roommate can spoil things for everyone and add unnecessary stress.

    Another benefit to having roommates is that there is a plethora of knowledge between yourself and your roommates. If a lot of you are living together, there may be someone who knows something that you didn't, helping you to avoid potentially costly mistakes. I have personally been saved numerous times by my roommates. One example of this is that I was previously unaware that you needed to immediately switch utilities over into your name and pay a minimum fee every month. I had thought we could keep everything shut off until we moved in, but I was wrong. Luckily, several of my roommates knew this and had done all the legwork and gotten our names on the utilities. Something else I learned was that you can be fined if you don't shovel the snow off the sidewalk in front of your house. It is little things like these that make roommates invaluable. 

    As fun as roommates can be, some people just want to be alone. When you have lots of roommates, there can be a lot going on around your house or apartment. If you don't think you can handle this, then you should try to find a place for yourself. If you're unhappy or your roommates are unhappy, then it is a stressful environment for everyone. Consider what you need to be successful. Do you need close friends or socialization? Or do you need absolute quiet and a place to escape?

    I hope these tips were helpful. Let me know in the comments if you have any tips of your own!

Adulting: Living Off-Campus for the First Time

Hello everyone! 

I am back at school for the fall semester, which means I will be posting new blog posts for your viewing pleasure. I hope you will find this new batch of blog posts informative and helpful. 

After spending three years and thousands of dollars living on Ohio Northern University's campus, I was finally able to apply for off-campus housing. However, with this new living situation came new responsibilities, some of which I was not quite prepared for. I am going to share some of my experiences with you guys so that you will hopefully know what to expect when you are finally able to get your own place. Whether you plan on living on your own or have roommates, here are some tips for when you are looking for a place to rent.

One important thing for college students to note when looking for an off-campus house or apartment is that it is not going to be perfect. In college towns, landlords likely have several properties they are tending to at any given time. When renting properties, their goal is to make as much money as they can. This is not to say that your landlord is not a nice person, just that they aren't likely going to spend thousands of dollars renovating after each group of students leaves. This means that you'll likely encounter some unique patch works in the houses and apartments you look at. This is alright! You do not need your house to have a perfect paint job or a brand-new dishwasher. What is important is functionality. Do all the major appliances work? Will this space work for you and your individual needs? Remember, you will be paying to stay in this place, so make sure it is somewhere you will be comfortable staying for the school year, but do not expect it to be perfect. There may be places you have to compromise a bit. One example in my house is the kitchen. My kitchen has a variety of different appliances that do not match. We have a white refrigerator and a black refrigerator. This makes them look a little out of place where they are, but they both work perfectly. My roommates and I are able to use both refrigerators and the freezers in each of them both works. This gives us lots of space to work with.  

While I am not saying that you should rent a disgusting and unsafe apartment, I am saying that you will likely need to lower your expectations when looking. Your goal should be to find a place that costs less than your university's housing. Do not think of it as finding a new home to live in for the rest of your life. There are plenty of college houses and apartments out there that will meet your needs and get you through the school year.

Good luck out there!