On travel

Firstly, let me apologize that I have started writing this post at 10:30 PM on Friday, but better super-late on Friday than never, right?

Anyway, today's post is going to be a bit about traveling, as you probably guessed from the title.

As you faithful readers know (all two of you), I recently got back from a trip to Greece and Turkey, as part of a travel course. Half of it was choir tour, which was cool, and the other half was Early Christianity, which was also cool. The course was interesting because of the sites we went to; places like Delphi and the Parthenon have been on my bucket list since I was around 12.

  

(for those of you who want photographic evidence that yes, I was there)

Anyway, while being at the Parthenon was one of my favorite experiences of the trip, I think one of the more valuable experiences I got was how to deal with people. We were a varied group - extroverts, introverts, fraternity guys, sorority gals, fraternity gals (yes, hi, I do exist), people who are easy to travel with, people who have never left the US, and a bunch of other things that I don't feel like categorizing right now. Some people I didn't really feel like I could bond with; others were really nice but were solidly in another group.

This is not my first time out of the US; Greece is the seventh non-US country I've been to. (Canada, Guatemala, Switzerland, Italy, Peru, and Turkey are the others). I'd like to think that I've become a fairly decent traveler - there was a time in Switzerland where I was a jerk to everyone and irritated all the time, but there were a lot of factors going on in that (and do not attribute it to biology, because the trip managed to land on the three weeks I wasn't on my period); other than that, I think college has taught me a lot about how to work with people. 

But my college experience is far from over, and I don't think I've met every single personality in the world. This trip, however, has shown me several.

First is an extrovert that I didn't know how to handle at first. I've roomed with an extrovert before - I spent an entire year with that person in a fairly good and comfortable relationship, and we're still in touch though we don't room together. This extrovert, however, is constantly chatty - not necessarily in a bad way. Where I might write or think deep thoughts in order to process emotions, she talks aloud; my feelings are put down in pen, hers are put out . She's not necessarily a bad individual; the important thing to note here is that as an extrovert, talking is her emotional processor. It took me a few nights to realize that just because she was talking, she wasn't necessarily talking to me.

What I'm trying to say here is that a protip for introverts on working with chatty extroverts is that, unless their words are actually biting in nature, they don't really mean to annoy you. It's important for you to mention if you really need them to be quiet for a while; it may take a while to explain why you're so quiet or, like my roommate on the trip, they might have an introvert sibling and know exactly what to do when you ask for some head space.

The second major type of person I learned to work with is very vocal in her opinions. I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing to speak up when you don't think something is working with you, but sometimes I could hear her negativity very easily. When she sat down and actually talked something out with people, she was fairly reasonable about trying to point out the positives - even if the only positive she could find was something like "well, I'm glad I tried, now I know I don't like this food," or something. Protip for everyone: try to bring in the positive and the negative into an analysis of something.

The third kind of person I encountered regularly was similar to the second, but far girlier. The second had been in the army for several years; when it comes down to it, the second girl knows how to tough things out. This third girl does too, but I only learned that through talking to her. She once wondered why people think she's stuck-up and rich when she grew up on a farm and has had several jobs over the past few years, often working a few over the summer in order to supplement her tuition. She's hardworking, but not necessarily in the army-strong way. I think the reason she often gets mistaken for being in the 'sorority trope,' for lack of a better term, is in the way she presents herself. When I say she has a full face of makeup on, I mean that she rarely leaves the room without foundation, concealer, blush, eyeliner, eyeshadow, lip gloss, and mascara. While I could easily learn a thing or two from her about how she get her eyeliner so damn precise, I think she's also someone from whom I learned a bit about self-presentation. People are going to make assumptions about you based on how you present yourself, and I'm glad that I realized that I present myself in about the way I want to be seen.

In all, I think this trip taught me as much, if not more, about how to deal with people as I did about ancient sites around the Aegean Sea. Both are important lessons.

The Closing

So this is my second-to-last night staying in my freshman dorm, and it feels really strange. I have only somewhat dared to start packing yet, which is sort of worrying, but I still have all of tomorrow afternoon!
Anyway, it has been a crazy year, and I can hardly believe that I am pretty much done with my first year of college.  I'm glad I chose the school I did, even though it is sometimes not what I expected (or too much as I expected).

For all my friends (who probably don't read this) who are going to college next year, I give you Wild Card's Top Ten List of Things You Should Know For College:

1. Be nice to your roommate.  You're going to have to deal with them all year.  If you wind up not getting along and having to switch to a different room, then that's how things go, but that should not stop you from being nice to them.  If you're switching rooms because of drama, deal with it as amiably as possible, and talk to them about it.  It could be that they don't know their stupid habit is annoying you, and if it's something that can be eliminated, then they'll know that they should work on it.
2. Don't keep too much unsealed food in the room.  You will get mice, which will stick around long enough for you to grow fond of and name (ours is named Indy, because we live in Jones Hall - Indiana Jones).  Anyway, the mice can get all over your bed and poop where you may or may not want it (this hasn't happened to me, but Indy made two attempts on my bed today, which leads me to wonder where else he's been).
3. Be familiar with your hallmates. From experience, there may come an awkward moment when a group member in a class says, "Hey, since we live across the hall from each other, want to work on the revisions together?" Do not be that person, as I was, who does not realize who their hallmates are until halfway through spring semester.  Also, if you need to tell someone to shut up because you have a final or a midterm or whatever, they'll probably listen to you more if you know them.  (this may not apply if they're drunk.)
4. If you do not want to drink, you do not have to drink.  There will always be the people who will watch Stargate, Dr. Who, or Star Trek with you on a Friday night without alcohol.  Though these people are what are generally called 'nerds,' the difference between these people and the people who get drunk at fraternity parties every night is that the nerds will remember the stupid puns they made.
5. If you really want to join a social Greek organization, consider not going Greek right away.  If it's something that you feel is part of the essential college experience, and you couldn't bear to rush as a sophomore, I'm not telling you to not go Greek right away - just that maybe you can make friends without the help of the social organizations.
6. If you really think social Greek organizations are dumb - go through rush just to see what it's like.  I came into college saying that social sororities are stupid, and that I could never hang out with someone in Greek life.  After going through rush, I do have a better understanding of what it's like to be part of a social Greek organization.  I didn't get a bid, I don't really want one, and I'm probably not going to go back for one, but I'm glad that I went through it.  The biggest thing I learned is that yes, there are the sororities that are better known for being ditzy or more of the 'party house' (I geeked out about DnD at this house... there's a reason I didn't get asked back), but there are also the houses that are super down-to-earth.  Part of the reason I didn't want to go through rush is because I thought I would be the only non-blonde and certainly the only nerd there, but my host at the first house I went to turned out to be a huge Star Wars fan. (That made stuff a lot easier.)
7. If you're interested in going Greek but don't want to do something social, there are probably going to be honor societies and service fraternities (like Alpha Phi Omega).  If it's an honor society, you're going to have to work up your major GPA and probably not going to get in your first year, but that's always an option.  Additionally, service-based organizations are easy ways to bond with people because you can easily say that you can HELPED PEOPLE TOGETHER! HUZZAH!
8. In the realm of academics, do study.  You'll probably have entire spans of afternoons free, which are there for you to keep your grades up.  If you don't keep up your GPA, you may be asked to not return to the school.  College is not there for you to get drunk all the time.  If drinking is your thing, don't be dumb about it.  Doing Tipsy Tuesday, Wasted Wednesday, Thirsty Thursday, and the regular weekend drinking is perhaps the stupidest thing you can do for your GPA (it also puts you on the fast track for being an alcoholic).
9. In terms of group projects, DO YOUR WORK.  If you can't make it to the group meetings, LET PEOPLE KNOW.  Don't be that one kid who shows up late or not at all without a good excuse.  Good excuses include work, sports you can't get out of, class, or a paper that is 20% done and due in the morning.  Bad excuses include everything else.
10. Talk to everyone.  You meet so many new people in the first three weeks of school than you might in the entire rest of the year put together that it's easy to get kind of confused and mixing up names and faces and phone numbers, but it'll be worth it.  Everyone else is going to mix up some faces and names and stuff, too, so you're not alone.  You'll have friends, and if you wind up not hanging out with a lot of people you hang out with in the beginning of the year, you'll probably wind up with a few people that you're on good terms with in case you wind up in a group project together or something.



I'll probably make more of these lists at some point, but here's some tips for now.

another week of writing

I'm halfway through the second week of J-term now, and, for the record, J-term has come with a few surprises, not all of them bad.

Good things:
1. I have way more free time than I do during the normal semester.  If I don't want to go to the gym in the morning, I don't have to wake up until 9:30 or 10:00.  After maybe 1:45 or 2:00, when I'm done with class and lunch, I have almost nothing to do except homework until 6:00, which is our normal dinner time.
2. The spare time has led me to actually get to the gym, which is always nice (except when I get scared of judgement from the actual athletes).  Also, I actually have time to write for my class, which is nice, but I also tend to procrastinate on my own writing because of podcasts and yarn.  Nevertheless, J-term has been fun so far because of all the time I can actually use now.
3. Since I actually have time to do homework during the day and I don't have to wake up early, the evenings can be spent doing things other than sleeping (sleeping does get involved).  These new activities include Apples to Apples, Capture the Flag, Marco Polo (played on the football field and not in the pool), and Hide and Seek.  All of these activities have commenced at around 10:00 PM and proceeded until midnight or later, which is fine, because I can still get sleep.
4. The course itself is really interesting - though it is a workshop class, the feedback really helps with what I'm writing.

Bad things:
1. Though the class is fun and I like that I get to write, sometimes the peer editing aspect can get kind of irritating.  Don't get me wrong: I do like to read and comment on other people's writing, as well as receive feedback on my own.  However, quite a few people in my class seem to be unaware that Spelling and Grammar check is correct on many occasions (there are times when it is incorrect, but when one is in college, one should be able to tell the difference).  Sometimes I have to edit my classmates' grammar and spelling as I read their work because it can get rather distracting.
2. Sometimes having all of the extra time can get kind of boring.  Though it's easy to find ways to pass the time, afternoons can get long, tedious, and unproductive.


In all, though, I'm glad I took the J-term class that I chose: at the very least, it shows me how not to write a script.

Day 21: in which hope for my wordcount is rapidly receding

Well, it's day 21. I should be around the 35000 word count now, but I'm still sitting morosely at 30750, and I'm not happy about it.  I'm not happy about it at all.
I should be studying.  I should be writing.  I should be doing whatever it is one does on breaks... I don't really know what that is, but I should be doing it.  I have readings and translations and tests and projects starting on Sunday night, and it's not okay.  I thought break was a time to relax, for goodness sake.
Or to catch up on all the stuff you've been missing.
Or to do something productive, like catch up on your novel's word count.
But no, I'm sitting here, blogging, and wishing I didn't have such a crap word count, and so much homework due by Tuesday.  I'm realizing how much I complain about this, and how little I actually do something about it.  It's not like I can't do anything about it, for goodness sake.  I'm an autonomous individual, or so society would have me believe.  Even if I say I'm leaving to do something productive, I normally just goof around for a while before I actually make any headway in anything.
Which kind of sucks, when you think about it.  Just being a goof all the time.  It gets nothing done.
It doesn't help that I have commissions due, too.  Yep, I have to knit four scarves in three and a half weeks, because it's not like I don't have a ton of stuff already.

Right, I really need to stop complaining.  I took my leave today and yesterday - I hung out with my friend earlier today and my boyfriend before that; yesterday, I didn't actually get much homework done and pranced around my empty hall with a friend, singing Christmas music at the top of our voices and not caring that it wasn't even Thanksgiving yet, and posting random videos on our other blog, and doing stuff of a highly nonproductive nature.
It was great.
But now it's time to work.  The funtime has ended, and it's time to actually do something.  Time to stop trolling along online and not writing or studying or anything.

Day 20: I'm behind! :(

It is the 20th day of NaNoWriMo, and my word count is wretched. I hit 30,000 words last night, which was supposed to happen on Sunday.

On the upside, I will be leaving for Thanksgiving break tonight, which I'm thankful for.  Though I have break work - a project, a reading, and general studying - I'll be glad for the chance to get some actual sleep and some time to write.

If the concept of a 'break' will let me - haircuts, doctor appointments, seeing friends, and the like.  Sometimes I wonder why it's called a 'break' when really all you do is do all the stuff you should have done at some other point, but now actually have the time to do it.  Maybe I just won't do anything fun at all, and study the whole time.  I could live with that, but I don't think my mom could.  She would... it wouldn't be pretty.

Anyway, I'm off to lunch now, but afterwards I WILL work on my word count.

And pack.

In all, I'm glad Thanksgiving break is on its way.

Day 10: where it's not Day 11 until I say it is

Yes, I know I'm posting at around 1:00 in the morning on a Saturday night... this is because, surprisingly, I actually have a life on weekends now.  Go figure!

Anyway, stats:

Start Page: 41
End Page: 48
TARGET ACHIEVED!
Plot Point: the paladin got possessed by a demon, and now (after the expulsion of said demon), they are all arguing about the ethics of trap-laying for poor, defenseless rabbits who do not know what is coming.  The paladin is arguing that traps are completely unethical and should be done away with at once; the bard, frankly, is glad for the food, because she barely ate the day previously; the rogue/ fighter is the one doing the hunting, so she's just using what she has deduced as the most effective trap in order to get what she needs to get to.

I guess a good way to get your characters' opinions out is to get them to talk to each other.  Storm and Melody talk to each other, with some civility.  Melody and Eden talk to each other, with Eden being the pushier of the two in the conversation.  Eden and Storm talk to each other with civility increasingly absent from the proceedings.  See?  OPINIONS FORMED THROUGH OBSERVATION.

Like my opinion formed through this observation: I have observed that I am tired, and I would like to get some rest, because the last two times I stayed up until 1:00 and actually had to wake up the next day, it did not end well, because both times were for class (well, I mean, the first time was when I was finishing a novel, so I feel justified, but I still did not have fun being tired all day and not being able to take a nap because I had to do homework.  I don't remember what the reason was for staying up until 1:00 on a weeknight was, but I remember I did not like it).

character interactions and books

While in our local coffee shop today, a friend of mine found a book.  I don't remember what it was called, but it had this kind of sweet inscription in it from the author to a friend, dated 10/30/92 - it was something about how the author wanted missed the recipient and hoped one day they could see each other again (and how maybe the profits could get the friend a one-way ticket to where the author lived).  But there was also a post-it note in the book, saying something along the lines of, "read this, and then leave it somewhere for someone new to find it."

There's a story behind this, and I hope someone can find out what it is.  As for my friends and me, we bounced around the idea of having a journal or book to pass around during breaks (or even during the school year), and then leaving the last five or ten pages blank and leaving it in a coffee shop for someone to stumble across and have a little look into our lives and our voices.
Well, we decided maybe not a journal, because one of our friends is blind, so he couldn't exactly read the journal or write it, because none of the rest of us could read or write Braille.  We did, however, decide to start a Vlog - a video blog.  We all have nicknames that kind of reflect what we want to do with our lives.  For example, my roommate is Physicist, because my roommate is a physics major.  Another friend is Editor, a third friend is Writer, and the blind friend is Composer, because he's a singer/ songwriter, which is kind of cool.  We might bring in more friends, but the five of us were the only ones of our friends in the coffee shop today.
Though I love writing, I'm still undecided about what I want to do with my career, so I'm Wild Card.  I have a lot of things I'm interested in, and though I want to pursue writing, I know that is liable to change.  I might wind up as a business major to sell my knit goods.  I don't know.

But the point is, all of this was inspired by an inscription in a book, and a post-it note therein.  Though it's not a fantasy hook by any means, this is still a plot hook that could go a long way in any genre (except maybe cyberpunk or futuristic dystopian fiction where print books no longer exist).
So my challenge for you today is this:
Your plot hook is a dedication in a book, written by hand in hurried ink, saying how the author misses the recipient.  Where do you take the story from there, and what is the story behind it?

Week Two

Week two of college started today.  So far, it's still sort of manageable.
Greek is beginning to creep up on me, but I've established friendly contact with another freshman in my class, so I'll have a study buddy/ reference point if I'm confused about what the homework is.
I had a panic attack about whether or not I should stay in chorus, but I decided I should - music is my sanity, and the Requiem that we're doing, by John Rutter, is kind of amazing.  I love it, and we've only done a bit of two movements.
In Ancient Egypt, I have also established friendly contact with two other people (who are also in choir), and we're doing a mandatory major group project together.  We were initially going to do Cleopatra, because one of them was doing something on her for another class, but the professor apparently emailed him back, saying that 1) This is ANCIENT Egypt, not Egypt Transitioning out of the Dynasties, and 2) Cleopatra was technically Greek.  That was kind of unfortunate, so now we're thinking about doing Hatshepsut, because we covered her today and she seemed kind of cool.  She also seemed like kind of a butt, but whatever.  In all, I think she came up with a decent compromise - and if you're unfamiliar with Hatshepsut, look her up, because I don't have time to explain this.
In FYEC, we had class outside, where we saw a possum playing dead because a hawk was in a tree nearby.  After a few minutes, I think the hawk left; at any rate, the possum got bored of shutting itself down and woke up and walked away.  It had no relevance to the discussion of Buddhist and Taoist principles, except for the possum's being one with its state of being for a good ten minutes.
I also went to the activities carnival, where all the clubs try to get you to sign up for stuff.  I put down my name for so many things that I KNOW I'm not going to make, but I've got info now on everything from Outdoors Club to Campus Ambassador to a co-ed service fraternity (which, honestly, I'm more interested in rushing for than the sororities; YES, MOM, I'M GOING TO RUSH SORORITIES ANYWAY, BECAUSE I PAID THE MONEY AND YOU'RE MAKING ME DO IT AND EVERYONE SEEMS REALLY NICE ANYWAY).

So far it's been a good week, I think.  I'm getting used to being at college, though it still feels kind of odd to be living away from my parents and being responsible for my sleep and drinking orange juice and getting all my dairy and exercise and stuff.
Yes, Dad, I did discuss being Workout Buddies with one of my friends today, and I AM working on getting my daily orange and stuff.
And yes, one of my daily glasses of dairy IS chocolate milk.  I know it's not healthy, but still.  It's good.  I COULD BE DOING WORSE.  Like someone just outside our dorm who I think is drunk and trying to yodel or sing "We Are Young," or whatever that song is called.  It's kind of hard to tell.
But anyway, I need to go to bed now, because I have to study in the morning.  It's what I do.

Matriculation and classes

We had matriculation today.  Honestly, the most interesting part about it was seeing all the professors in their super-snazzy gear and commenting with one of my friends about what sort of character each of them could be.  For example, the Provost, if he grew out his beard and got a pointy hat, could TOTALLY be Gandalf or Dumbledore (and that makes him kind of awesome).
Anyway, this gave me an idea for a writing exercise that I want to try, and also share.  Take notice of a stranger - that one person in the park when you walk your dog, or the person that's sitting across from you on the Subway tomorrow morning.  Anybody at all, really, as long as you don't know them.
Study them as discreetly as possible - their clothing, their hair, their appearance, their fidgets, everything that can come up that could define a person.
Then, when you get to somewhere where you can write something down, come up with a back story for them.  Why are they fidgeting so?  What's the story behind their hair?  Why THAT pair of shoes?

I also have a bit of a confession, come to think of it.
I've done something similar in creative writing class a few years ago.  The assignment was to go somewhere random and find someone that you could focus on as discreetly as possible.  Then you had to write down a description of them and come back to turn the thing into the teacher.  I did it in my normal corner of the library.  I didn't know it at the time, but I also managed to pick the guy who would wind up as my boyfriend.  (sorry, you can't see it; I don't know where it is.  Bug me about it next time we're on break).

Anyway, my charge to you today is this: as the school year starts, try to get to know people.  Figure out what the backstory is for your professors, and then get to know them and see how right you were.  Or wrong.  But the point is to be ridiculous if you want, and then get to know the person.  Though it would be awesome, I highly doubt that the Provost at my school is actually Gandalf or Dumbledore.  Now I should probably talk to him at some point (hopefully not when he has to put me on academic suspension or anything), and find out something else cool about him.