Ditch the Stamps

No need to keep stamps, envelops, post cards, or letters in my desk drawer. A cell phone and a computer take the place.

After spending 18 years living at home with my parents, it’s difficult to grow completely independent in college. So, I’ve resorted to calling them on a daily basis.

Communication with family is much different today than our parents’ generation. Our parents never had Facebook, Skype, Twitter or cell phones.

They survived on the United States postal service and once-a-week, long-distance telephone calls made from public payphone booths with a handful of quarters.

I am slightly embarrassed — and ashamed to admit — I would be lost without technology.

Technology now has replaced the loads of letters my parents sent and received through the mail. Over Thanksgiving break, my grandparents shared stories at the dinner table about when their children, my dad and his siblings, went away to school. In one story they described how they’re used to only be one phone per dorm hall.

I’m not sure how my parents did it. Not sure what I would do if my phone or computer broke and I wasn’t able to communicate with anyone, check e-mail or update Twitter throughout the day.

I’m addicted to technology, but it also eases the transition from home to campus life.

Precious Sleep

Two words I hated as a child: nap time.

Whenever my kindergarten teacher advised us to lie down on our squishy maps, I squirmed and started a conversation with my nap chat friends.

Not anymore.

When I get any opportunity to take a power nap, my head transforms like a paperweight.

So many countries around the world schedule mid-afternoon siestas. Sometimes I wish America could take mid-afternoon siestas like Spain. Unfortunately, children and adults in the United States don’t have that opportunity.

In college, sleeping an extra 30 minutes is like finding a scarce resource. When my alarm clock goes off at 7:45 a.m., I constantly choose between an extra 30 minutes of sleep or going to the Hickey Dining Hall for breakfast. This usually results in pressing snooze while my roommate goes to breakfast and me reluctantly rolling out of bed at 8:15, 15 minutes before calculus.

Although I never have time for a vegetarian omelet or a scrumptious muffin, those extra 30 minutes allow me to function without the recommended eight hours of sleep.

So does the power nap I take after lunch.

Unlike in kindergarten, there are two words that now bring a smile to my face as a college student: nap time. And by smile, I also mean the highlight of a long day of classes and work.

Package Slips

As a curious toddler, whenever I caught a glimpse of a UPS truck, I would grin from ear to ear. Sadly, the truck always passed my home to stop at my neighbor's door.

Now as an adult, another brown and yellow-colored theme gets me excited, but it never fails to disappoint me.

Even with all the perks of modern technology, the packages and letters I pick up from my PO box at St. Bonaventure’s post office always seems to put a smile on my face.

My parents even wondered if part of the appeal for their eldest daughter to attend Bonaventure was that the college has it’s own post office.

There is no greater thrill then walking over to the campus post office, turning that three-letter combination, on the first attempt, and finding a handwritten envelope or, better yet, a package slip in my PO box.

According to family folklore, my passion and fervor for the striking color combination of brown and yellow started early.

My mom says my next package filled with vitamins and treats is on route to my PO Box.

The College Cold

All I want is my mom to bring a bowl of homemade chicken noodle soup and a glass of orange juice. And my bathtub.

Because I have a cold, in college, 785 miles away from mom who used to take care of me.

Getting a cold in college is like playing tag with kindergarteners that wash their hands when teachers tell them to. Germs unfortunately run rampant on elevator buttons, vending machines, stair banisters, in the laundry room and, ironically, bathroom doors.

Many students start to show the nasty signs of aches and pains, a stuffy nose and coughing. Then his or her roommate comes down with the virus. Soon, every resident on your floor will show signs of the common cold.

The good news is if you wash your hands regularly, you are less likely to spread germs. The Health Center is available for care, but it’s just not the same as being home.

Sadly the Hickey Dining Hall does not offer room service, and I have not seen a bathtub.

But even if it did, I’d rather have the luxury of mom taking care of my cold with love.

Class Registration Time

Upperclassmen warned me class registration could be like a meager attempt to complete a 1,000-piece puzzle missing a few of the key pieces.

I come from a high school where students didn’t get to pick what they wanted to eat, let alone what courses to take.

With the newfound freedom of choice, I’ve been overwhelmed with the number of options. So when it came down to picking my schedule for next semester, the word balance keeps ringing in my ears. Yes, I am slowly learning the key word to everything in college your freshman year is balance.

Unfortunately, I have not yet mastered the art of maintaining equilibrium in college. If balance is the key to registering and planning my course load for next semester, then I must try to offset my harder classes with easier ones.

This may sound easy until I enter a class I thought might be less time consuming, but requires tons of work.

My recurrent nightmare is I enter a classroom and there sits an overeager, dedicated new professor wanting me to read 20-plus thicker-than–the-Bible textbooks and write intensely concentrated and thought-provoking research papers on each volume.

I guess we’ll find out come January 17 if it’s going to be that nightmare or a dream come true.

College Roommates

Before heading off to Bonaventure, I honestly had college roommate nightmares.

Phew. After nine weeks of living with my roommate, I feel quite fortunate. My roommate and I get along well and avoid the drama that could easily occur in a tiny, cramped, shared space.

I had nightmares about my roommate being the human equivalent of biting tinfoil. I imagined the worst scenario possible and then figured out ways I could deal with awkward or uncomfortable situations.

What if my roommate was driving me crazy?

It’s not like I have a private room to go and reclaim my sanity. To get some alone time I can sit in a cubicle in the library or put on headphones and explore Facebook in the room.

So what kinds of quirks are deal killers? Of course there are the obvious piles of dirty, stinking clothes stacking up in the corner, blaring loud music at 3 a.m. the night before your midterm and large chunks of food and pizza boxes gathering mold on the floor.

So how do most colleges match roommates? Bonaventure’s Residence Life questionnaire asks just a few standard questions. Some of my high school friends wrote lengthy essays on deep, thought provoking subjects for their process. Some schools even offer a computer program similar to an online dating service to find your ideal roommate. I was asked if I went to bed early or late. Some of my friends were asked to describe their favorite vacation destination.

Even with an electronic service or questionnaire, no roommate is perfect nor are all situations ideal.

Perfect nor are all idea, but I have no complaints about Bonaventure’s matching process.

The key to the ideal roommate situation is being courteous and showing consideration and respect for your roommate and their possessions. Just being courteous goes a long way when it comes to living with your roommate.

Class of 2014

High school for me was four, magnificent years that provided a plethora of opportunities and new experiences.

But I believe that the best is yet to come and the next four years ahead at Bonaventure will be unforgettable.

Bonaventure is already providing the freshmen class with multiple opportunities to get involved in the community and on campus. From participating in community service projects in Allegany to attending a political debate, there are multiple opportunities for service learning and networking.

Everyday club e-mails flood my Bonaventure inbox. From daily Notice Board to the required Passport Activities and club e-mails, freshmen are recommended to attend various campus events.

Multiple students, me included, ignore Notice Board e-mails like spam, but the campus involvement options are always available to those seeking memorable college experiences.

At this moment, most of the freshmen class are seemingly looking forward to the excitement and challenges that will come along in our journeys ahead. How we respond to these new challenges we will face in life – and what we learn from them –will be the most telling about who we truly are.

Even though we will all might get stuck trudging through the deep winter snow, we’ll all get the energy to figure it out and move forward as a class of distinguished Bonaventure students.