Take Two

Today was the Student Organizations Fair on Greene St., which was pretty crowded. It was hard to see everything, and I know I missed some after talking to people later saying 'I wish there was *blank*' only to find out that they were there! Oh well, I found enough things to be satisfied.

Of all of the clubs, I knew going in that I was going to join the tennis club as a recreational player (maybe I will look into competitive in the future, but for now I want to make things easy on myself). Later tonight I will be going to the informational meeting, where I will pay the $35-ish fee to be a member for the semester. As for the other things, I was pretty glad to see they had both Relay for Life and Habitat for Humanity, both of which I signed up for and, once I get the email, hope to partake in. I also learned about this student-run online editorial (at least that it how it sounded) called Zeitgeist (time-ghost auf Deutsch!), which I think could be interesting and I might look into. Finally, there was some sort of business club that I came across. Not too sure how interested I am in this, but it is a possibility--especially if I were to add international business or something of the like as a double major.

Supposedly there is a German Club on campus, but I went on their "website", and they didn't seem to be super active. I looked for them down at the fair, but their display was nowhere to be found (perhaps there wasn't one?). Anyway, so instead of starting an organization, I would love to find out about that one and figure out what they really do, and if they are as inactive as I perceive them to be, I would hope to make them have a bigger impact on campus! My heritage is really important to me, and I would love that to be represented by what I am involved in on campus.

Also, as a side note, I love Leigh-Ann's idea of a Coloring Club, and I would definitely love to either help her get that started or at least join once it was created. It just seems like it would be such a relaxing and easy-going club...

Since I know this blog doesn't have to focus on the prompts, I am going to take this time to ramble about study abroad. Just thinking about it today made me really excited for the Study Abroad Fair on the 10th at the Russell House as well as for my own future potential to take part in such an awesome experience! When it came to looking for a college/university to attend, I made sure that wherever I went had a good study abroad program with plenty of options to choose from (though, honestly, I would go anywhere they sent me).

As a German major I am pretty much obligated to go to Germany to study abroad, and that is totally fine with me, seeing as I am in love with that country and have already been there for extended lengths of time, making me feel confident that I would feel comfortable to live there for a year. Since one can't study at Bamberg until they are a junior, I am very much interested in the summer programs run through the school. My German professor mentioned the Wittenberg Program, which would be about 5 weeks over the summer. I already asked for information regarding this. Also Capstone is going back to ECUADOR and also to JORDAN, both of which are places I would do almost anything to see. I can't think of any other time I would be able to go those places, so they are a definite consideration for me for one of the two Maymesters I spend as a Capstone Scholar.

I don't know what other summer programs are offered, and I suppose I will find that out on the tenth; however, I am also considering doing study abroad somewhere I have never been before--Australia/New Zealand in particular. (I would say South America, but I do not speak Spanish or Portuguese. =[[) Austria and the UK/Ireland are also really amazing options. I have done research already, and I look forward to doing more in the future.

Well, now, I know that this post was not particularly entertaining, but sometimes I really just love to ramble...

UNTIL NEXT TIME!

Holland

Well, hello...

This is my first post in what is supposed to be a semester-long documentation of my transition to college. Hopefully this will go well! ANYWAY: To answer the prompt of what my expectations are for my time here at USC, I would say that they are probably similar to everyone else: to get a good education while making friends to last for the rest of my life. I also hope to expand my horizons beyond what I am already familiar and comfortable with and to partake in things I never would have in high school. It is a great wish of mine to become more outgoing and not to be intimidated by meeting new people (so far, I have not accomplished this, making college seem very much like my time in high school for the time being...).

So far I would say that my time at USC has been uneventful compared to that of some of the other freshmen I have met, but it is also only the third week here, so I am not too disappointed. I am not one to go partying, and I am super cautious when it comes to getting into situations that could affect me for the rest of my life (ie: going to a party with underage drinking where the cops come and bust everyone and arrest them and ruin their records forever... stuff like that, which everyone seems to be so eager to do). My greatest adventure was a midnight trip to IHOP with my roommate (Monica!) and three other kids. I know what you are thinking: she is so adventurous! ... I know, I know.

The most unexpected thing so far... THE HUGE BUGS! In Pennsylvania we have bugs, but not like this. I had never seen a cockroach in person before my move to South Carolina, and now those shiny, crunchy bugs are everywhere (alive and squished). Also the beetles and locusts. This is not OK with me. I suppose I just have to deal with it, though, since I'm pretty sure the bugs were here before I was and are here for the long term.

In all seriousness, though, I haven't really encountered anything yet that I would classify as a huge 'surprise' or as 'unexpected'. I've heard Southern people are friendly, but not everyone I've met has been super friendly (probably not Southerners, though, right?). Maybe I am surprised by the fact that my work load has not been overwhelming and my studying habits from high school have not failed me (yet). I have been performing well in classes and on the few quizzes and assignments I have had graded so far. So, in this case, I am surprised that I am not struggling too much.

That is all for now, I guess!

Holland

Capstone!
(This is actually from orientation in June.)