Beanie Snatcher!

Last day of orientation and here is what I have learned so far today:

1. Again, always remember there is a ceiling only four inches from your face.
2. Beware of beanie snatchers.
3. Remain calm.

My beanie chilling on my closet door so I don't forget it!

For those who don't know Concordia's tradition, all freshmen are required to wear a beanie during orientation (see above). And students from MSUM, our rival, steal these precious beanies from us helpless freshmen.

Today is the last day of orientation and those Dragons are at it today. It is currently around 5:30 and my beanie has not been stolen (as you can see by my picture). But I have also discovered something.

Remain calm and life will be just a bit better. Stuff happens, but if you panic you will not get where you want to be. Sure, one can mourn the loss of the beanie, but it can be replaced. This doesn't just apply to beanie snatchers, but pretty much to everything in life.

So, funky weird things happen. You can be sad, a bit angry, frustrated, but just don't panic. Just look on the bright side of things: you now have a story to tell and people probably are interested to hear about it.

Peace!

-Nicole

PS I get to meet the president of the college in about an hour. Not only do I get to meet him and his wife, I get ice cream that I hear is quite good. :)

That Gut Feeling

Today was quite the adventure, as I am sure it will always be. Woke up at 6:45am, did some orientation stuff, then had a book discussion on Zoli by Colum McCann. It was such a tiring day, but I did learn quite a few things.

1. Never forget your bed is lofted when getting up.

2. Naps, no matter how short, are a blessing.
3. Try not to slam your finger in the door. Ouch.

4. Stick to your gut feeling.

I climbed into bed tonight thinking about the night I just had. My orientation group went to our leader's apartment on campus to have our book discussion. The discussion was fantastic and we had a great game of Apples to Apples while enjoying root beer floats.

We were all about to leave, then one of us made the comment that if someone were to come into the room at that moment, one would think beer was being passed around because we were having our ROOT beer floats in plastic cups. So we took a picture of all of us with our cups. We laughed and I promised to post it on Facebook once I got back to my dorm. I got back to my dorm, posted it, tagged everyone and went to bed.

But I couldn't fall asleep. I climbed out of my bed, realizing I had made a small step towards who I didn't want to be. It was a fantastic evening and I couldn't have asked for a better orientation experience. But my gut was telling me someone was not right. I still have my confirmation girls who look up to me, along with tons of other kids who are watching my every move, especially what I post on my Facebook. The photo is funny but unless you were one of the people attending the evening, it may come across the wrong way. Plus it wasn't me nor who I wanted be.

So one of the first lessons of college: stick to your gut feeling.

Peace!

-Nicole