Check out last weeks top 10 practical tips. BUT NOW… we have the few not so practical, but a bit more realistic!

10. You will either gain the freshman 15 or lose it because you can’t function as an adult, so embrace it.

9. Take Health Dy as a freshman – or a May term! You don’t want to be the freaky senior in a freshman filled class…plus it’s a requirement. So just do it.

8. Be frugal right off the bat, because you will spend more money than you hoped too no matter what. It’s real life here and surprises pop up! Be prepared, and just take it easy.

7. You don’t need a 21 meal-plan. Unless you’re really freaky and you are actually going to wake up at 8AM to go eat breakfast and make it to class on time…Yeah, I didn’t think so.

6. Don’t plan to have a social life. At least if you aim low, you can always incorporate social activities later, right? You’re at school for school. Remember that.

5. Everyone is your best friend for the first two months. After that, you’ll begin to incorporate people of more your interest type and skill level, but until then, be nice to all!

4. You don’t have to be best friends with your roommate. You just have to live together peacefully. Some people are really good friends with their roommate(s) and others aren’t so much. Don’t worry about it.

3. Don’t go home every weekend, even though you want too. You need to make the quirky relationships that are formed at 3am on Saturdays and you don’t want to miss the Gathering on Sunday! You also should go to some college activities because they are FUN.

2. Don’t bring everything your mom told you to..unless you don’t live in the USA. You won’t need half of the things you think you will..like pots and pans and an excessive amount of dishes…play it by ear and bring more things during break if you think you really need them.

1. You won’t stay in touch with all of your high school friends, so don’t expect to. It’s just the way it is. People go in different directions, and the biggest thing you once had in common (going to the same school), isn’t true anymore. So…ya.

Holla! It’s finals weeks so I haveta study! See ya next year!

So. After living a year in a freshman college student’s shoes, I have a few key points to share with you, along with some suggested by friends.

And the drumroll please.

Practical:

10. Go to orientation events…no matter what. Yeah. We know you don’t want to go on another tour of the campus and we know you don’t want to play icebreakers. But can you please relax, make some friends, and learn to enjoy yourself in this new environment? As much as it annoys you to participate, you will learn something valuable during orientation…whether it be that you don’t like the people in your group or that there is a prayer chapel in the basement of graves.

9. Be Organized. Not only for classes but in your room as well. Knowing where you put the paper clips and the popcorn will really come in handy.

8. DUH. Go to class. It can easily be calculated, but based upon some general numbers, each 1 hour class component that is meeting for a 4 credit class is around $50. You slept through the first day of college and missed three classes? You just kissed $150 goodbye. Make it count!

7. From Lena, a girl in my cluster: Study even if you think that class or test will be easy. Most cases, you’ll be wrong. The professors here actually aren’t that stupid and they know how to test comprehension on the material you slept through on the first day. Get the notes from a classmate and sit down to learn the material and you’ll do just fine.

6. From Hannah, another girl in my cluster: Write everything down and Don’t miss your meetings with professors! You guessed it. This has happened to most of us. Don’t assume you’ll remember something, because I assure you that you’ll forget it. I use my phone calendar and system of alarms to warn me about whats coming up next in my day. Honestly, I couldn’t tell you what day it is most of the time or what classes I have without checking out my iCal.

5. Don’t study in your room!. It’s a fact (almost) that studying in your room means you won’t actually study in your room. Find a quiet place at the library, Martha Miller, Lubbers, the Kletz, or the Science center to snuggle up with your homework and get it done! Dorms are no place to do your work.

4. Take responsibility of your actions. Ya. Your mom doesn’t live with you anymore and your dad isn’t going to talk you out of anything anymore. This is the real world, so man up.

3. Seek a Balance. There’s a lot going on. Make a calendar of things you actually want to go to and make sure to leave room for exercise, studying, and social time. It seems ironic, but sometimes I schedule lunches with others just to make sure I get some human contact in my long days.

4. Know your Class requirements. You don’t need to know your major right off the bat, but I’m sure you may have something in mind (if not- check out Career Services). Attend meetings for different majors, check out some different professions, talk to professors, but mostly, understand what you need and what each class you’re scheduling counts for. Make a four year plan. You’ll thank yourself later.

3. Get to know your professors. Professors anywhere, but especially at Hope, have a special gift at giving advice and aid when it is most needed. They seriously have got your back. Be courteous and get to know them!

2. Don’t procrastinate. Prioritize. You spend more time planning how it will happen and talking about something happening than actually doing it. Just do it. Get it over with. Come on.

1. HAVE FUN. This is college. You will never have another time in your life quite like this. You can wear a dinosaur suit around campus all day and people will not think you’re crazy ( or totally crazy). You can also dye your hair pink and people will think you’re cool. This usually doesn’t happen in the “real world” so enjoy your time while your here.

I hope you have learned SOMETHING from this top 10 list. Stay tuned for next weeks not so practical list. 

Bon Voyage.

Let’s review the last seven days of my silly college life.

Friday, April 13th
The Celebration of Undergraduate Research overtook the Devos Fieldhouse and amazed community members, students and staff by all of the research activity that goes on under our noses here at Hope. There were presentations from nursing to communications to organic chemistry. I was there presenting our class Phage poster and cheering on my colleagues in the Fraley Lab who presented four posters! The celebration was open to anyone who desired to come and there were complimentary beverages, cookies, and pulled pork sandwhiches to enjoy while learning all kinds of fun new things. I also attended the last Vanderprov show of the year. It was hilarious!

Saturday
ADMITTED STUDENTS DAY!! Yay! A staggering amount of admitted students visited Hope’s campus as a “last look” before decision day (May 1). Each student got to attend little seminars on majors, specialties, finances, and parents got to attend little activities as well. The Student Bloggers had a nice little table at lunch, where students could enjoy a complimentary Hope travel cooler filled with a delicious lunch while perusing the student life activities fair.

Tuesday
Because Hope’s current President will soon retire, President Jim Bultman was asked to give his “Last Lecture” sponsored by Mortar Board. The Dimnent Chapel was packed with faculty, community members and students on the edge of their seats. President Bultman was witty, comical, and inspirational. It was a priviledge to be one of many in attendance on Tuesday night.

Wednesday
The tulips bloomed early this year with all the crazy warm and wet weather we have been having in the northern midwest, so I decided I needed to finally expose myself to Holland’s heartland: Windmill Island. I ventured out with one of Holland’s own, Jennifer Toscano. The location is pretty much what it sounds like…a little Windmill on an Island. But there are millions of tulips, beautiful landscaping, and a miniature Dutch village that sells wooden shoes, snacks, and where Dutch dancers liven up the environment. Here are a few photos I snapped that night:

Thursday
Thursday night, I again was honored to attend a student-organized going away party for the Bultmans. The evening included musical and dance performances and gifts given from various organizations on Hope’s campus. It was a very touching and well-planned event and served its purpose to thank God for blessing Hope College with the Bultmans.

Friday
Today, after two big tests, I’m off to have lunch with the biology seminar speaker Sherrie Gallas (’01) of  Abbott Laboratories who will speak more about “Life after Hope.” It’s always a pleasure to talk to Hope grads about what they are doing now. We have such an extensive selection of alumni in a plethora of jobs and activities, so learning more about what to do with your Hope degree isn’t difficult. This week Hope College even tweeted alumni advice for the senior class that will soon be graduating (follow them @HopeCollege).

Though busy, I wouldn’t have it any other way. I’m having a blast in my last month as a freshman here, and can’t wait to see where Hope takes me.

Love,

A

Holland is a great place to live. It attracts many visitors in the summer, especially during Tulip Time in May.  Last May I enjoyed staying for a May term and watched Holland come alive with people everywhere. Each May Holland hosts an annual Tulip Time Festival. Tulip planting and the festival began in 1930 when 250,000 tulips were planted for the event. Currently six million tulips are used throughout the city. Tulips are planted along many city streets, in city parks and outside municipal buildings as well as at tourist attractions. Like Dutch Village, the city-owned Windmill Island Gardens, and at a large tulip farm named Veldheer Tulip Gardens. It is normally held the second week of May, right when the numerous tulips planted around the town are blooming.

About one million tourists visit Tulip Time each year, for which the community finds innovative ways to enhance self-funded projects. It has been ranked as America’s third largest town festival!  

Currently Tulips are already blooming and the streets are beautiful! I walked through Centennial Park, which is only a block away from campus. While I walked, the birds chirped, the sun beamed down on my face, children ran around chasing each other, couples sat on the benches together, and the tulips swayed back and forth in the wind. I enjoyed spending some quiet alone time there and loved watching the simple joys in life.

Holland is such a beautiful place to live, and I would not trade anything for it. The beach is only a 15-minute drive or six-mile bike ride. I love the variety of sites to see in Holland, and I have never found myself without anything to do. I live in a town with about 117,000 people, and I feel like Holland has more stuff to do than Springfield. Hope also has a really great connection with the Holland community. The people are very friendly and welcoming to the Hope students. I honestly would not have been able to pick a better city to place Hope College. 

If you are a prospective student and have not visited Hope yet, I highly recommend it. On campus visits really help you get a feel for the college, and I think once you spend time in Holland; you’ll fall in love with it. 

Here are some pictures from Centennial Park 

Beautiful Tulips

This past weekend was so much fun. My parents came up this weekend to talk on the student parent panel for admitted students day. My parents were thrilled when they were asked to speak on the panel. My mom loves Hope College more than anyone at Hope College. I enjoyed talking together with them on the panel. The parents in the audience asked some very good questions about adjusting to college life, and they were able to hear the prospective from both a parent and student. My dad really enjoyed embarrassing me with the microphone on stage, and my mom loves to talk anytime she is given the opportunity. I actually hope we are able to do it again next year.

 During my parents’ visit, they took my friends and me out to eat. On Friday night we walked to the Peanut store downtown, and they bought me some candy. My best friend Ali’s boyfriend from Indiana came to visit so Matthias and I went out to eat with Ali and Steven at Salt & Pepper. It was my first time eating there, and the meal was so delicious.

The group at Frosty’s

de Bour’s. Once again, we enjoyed a delicious meal. I ate my whole omelet, four pieces of toast, and some pancakes. After breakfast I attended the admitted students activities fair then walked over to the Haworth for the student-parent panel.

Breakfast from de Bour’s

On Saturday afternoon I played soccer with a big group of people and went on a five-mile run with one of my friends. Then on Saturday evening my parents ate dinner at Matthias’s house. Our parents enjoyed meeting each other; we stayed for dinner for three and a half hours! As I said earlier, my mom loves to talk…

Sunday morning started off great with attending church at Manna. My friend Grace also had her parents in town. Our families went to the Alpen Rose for brunch, and we brought Bob and some other friends along as well. The food tasted delicious as usual, and no one left the table hungry.

I was so happy to have my parents in town, and they both loved the visit to Holland. I cannot wait to see them again in only a couple of weeks. In the mean time, I am going to enjoy my last couple weeks at Hope. Time is flying!!!

Two Friday’s ago, half of the Phage class took to the road to do some TEM work on our mycobacteriophage samples. Having been in the lab a lot and doing computer work, it was fun to get out to a new location with people we have been familiar with all year.

It was actually a really fun day, and if you get the chance to check Twitter, search for my hashtag #phaginghard and you’ll find a stream of tweets from the hilarious things that were said throughout the day.

If you’re not familiar with TEM, its a Transmission electron Microscope. It takes up a small room and works as a beam of electrons is transmitted through a thin specimen. After putting our phage lysates on a thin copper mesh circle (that is really tiny), we loaded our discs into the apparatus and got some cutesy little pictures of our phage! My sample only had four phage, so the microscope operator was giving me a hard time about causing him a lot of work ;).

Each imaging session took around 30 minutes, so while each student was in getting their photos, the rest of us were studying for a big biology test and playing Euchre. Overall, it was a great time had by all, and we got a bit closer to our phage associates.

I hope you all had a great Easter break!

More soon,

A