And We're Back

So I intended to do another post on this blog a few weeks ago to sum up my first year of college, but then I forgot... and by forgot I mean I was sitting on my bed (or in my brothers' room) doing nothing and didn't feel like thinking about and reflecting on school. However, now there is a more important reason I have revived this blog: Germany. I plan to use this as a place for people to keep up with me while I spend another 6-ish weeks in Germany this summer, though looking at my Facebook photos would be just as effective a method, I suppose.

Anyway...

I was going to rename the blog, considering my first year of college is over, but then I decided not to. I feel like it's probably still appropriate because maybe I will always be transitioning (are we getting philosophical? unheard of!). In actuality it's because I just can't think of another title.

I'll do a quick reflection about my freshman year at USC and then get back to my summer plans:

I really don't know where to begin in terms of my school year and my satisfaction with it. I maintained a 4.0 and met some really amazing people, and yet I still would love to have the option to redo pieces of it. In the beginning (who am I kidding, during the whole year) I was way too shy and made no effort to get to know people very well, and thus stuck to my dorm room for a good part of the day. It's not that I didn't want to, but people don't seem to understand the mental block I have when it comes to approaching people when I explain this to them. It's a problem, I know, but I hope to work on it. This was an issue all throughout the school year. Sure, I had my core group of friends, and I really enjoy them, but that is maybe 3 or 4 people. Everyone else I met this year falls under classmate, acquaintance (they just liked the fact that I baked all the time), or people who I consider friends but barely hung out with because they are so freaking busy whereas I am only busy every once and a while. I guess it's because that by the time I was comfortable in my surroundings, everyone else had already established their friendships. Yes well, I don't suppose I really deserve pity. In the end it is my fault. Here's to hoping I do better next year!

For those of you who don't know my plans for the summer, I will be flying to Germany on June 7th and will not be returning until July 19th. For the first month I will be in Wittenberg and then I will spend the last 10 days visiting friends in the south(ish) west of the country. In Wittenberg I will be with a USC program to study at the Institut für deutsche Sprache und Kultur, and I will receive 6 credit hours for my efforts! (Sweet deal? I think so.) I am looking forward to it very much. Anyone who knows even the littlest bit about me knows I have a love affair with Germany and have all intentions of spending my junior year there and then going to grad school there.

Yesterday I bought my train tickets for July 9th to take me from Wittenberg and Schwäbisch Gmünd, where I will be staying with my friend Lena for 5 days before moving on to Heidelberg to visit Rachael, whose dad is stationed there with the US military. That is going to be a long day, almost 7 hours of which will be spent on trains. I am very excited about the end of the trip especially. Last summer I spent 3 weeks with Lena's family, and I honestly don't know if there has ever been a friendlier or more welcoming family. They are some of the sweetest people I have ever met, and I hope that they will be a part of my life for a long time to come. As for Rachael, I met her at USC and she is also one of the most kindhearted people I have had the pleasure of knowing. I'm pretty sure I have never heard her say a negative thing about anyone. I will be living with her next year at East Quad, so I guess this will be a bit of a warm up to that.

You will also notice that I will be in Germany over a very important date--my birthday. I turn 19 on June 11th, only 3 days after I arrive. While it will be awesome to celebrate meinen Geburtstag in Germany, it will also suck a bit because they will barely know who I am. Oh well! You win some, you lose some.

Anyway, this blog has gotten very long. My intention is to update it at least 2-3 times a week while I am over there. I may have one more entry before I leave, though I don't know how much I could write about.

Tschüß!

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.)