The calm before the storm

The day before classes can be very stressful indeed. Sitting with time on your hands and plenty of opportunity to worry, it can be quite nerve racking. I found myself freaking out about everything from what I would wear to how I would act. The whole process was completely exhausting and definitely not productive. Eventually though here's what I figured out:

The day before classes start really is the calm before the storm. It is a time when you should be doing everything possible to prepare for the day ahead. Meet up with some of your new friends or head out with your roommate. Take some time to explore the campus and plot out your course from one class to another. If the doors to the buildings are open go in and find your room and places in the building where you could hole up and study when you have some spare time before or after class. Those are precious minutes that you wouldn't want to waste. Get comfortable and get a good night's sleep. And don't forget to shower!

Stop, drop, and go!

Sorry for the lack of a post yesterday, but as I'm a college student giving you my advice as I experience each new thing, I'll be honest. I was a little overwhelmed. Yesterday was move in day for me and about 10,000 other students who will now all call this campus their home. Move in day was the equivalent of a campus Black Friday. There were more people than space, overworked helpers, and soccer moms in jeans and sneakers determined to get what they wanted. Now that I've had a little time to recover I'll give you the few tips I have to help make the move in process a little easier the next time around.

Don't be worried about what you stuff looks like. Maybe this was a personal problem, but I was worried that people would judge me for my boxes with stuffed animals, my awkward suitcase, and my overstuffed backpack. However, once your stuff is thrown on the lawn with hundreds of other people's dearest belongings it doesn't seem nearly as scary.

Next, wear comfortable clothes. I know, this is your first chance to make an appearance and to wow your fellow classmates with your style or whatever, but you're going to need to be able to haul your stuff up stairs, set up a loft, and do some overall very physical work.

Plan to go out to eat once everything is in your room. This is perhaps one of the most important things you can do. For me, going out to Pita Pit with my parents gave us a chance to decompress after a very long and stressful morning.

Make a last quick trip to Target, Wal-mart, or Pamida. This step is key. Yes, when our band of three made it through the doors of Target it looked like World War III, but there's a reason. You're going to have forgotten stuff. For me, it was a pillow, my bike, and a fan. All completely essential for campus life. All around us other's were doing the same things, buying forgotten items and stocking their carts with snacks and goodies for the rest of the year.

Me shopping at Target. Thanks for the creeper pic mom.

And don't worry! After a long day of buying stuff, and hauling stuff, and organizing stuff your day will end with a wonderful result.

Outfit Obstruction

Before you go to college, you have to pack for college. And one of the hardest things to pack is clothes. I mean, it's hard enough figuring out what to fill you suitcase with for a week-long trip, packing for months seems like a completely daunting task. I set about today to accomplish just that today and it was as hard just as hard as I imagined.

My plan for packing enough tees, shoes, and cute outfits was ... scattered to say the least. I tried a few things, and eventually, I got all of my suitcases, boxes, and bags (yes, I did use all three) into the trunk of my dad's navy Honda Pilot. 

First I tried taking photos of my day-to-day outfits. Any time I would wear what I would consider "acceptable" I would snap a pic, either before I put the outfit on, or while I was in it. Doing that helped me figure out what things I actually needed to pack.

I also packed "groups" of clothes that I knew I would need. For example, I love to get my sweat on and I have a goal of hitting up the fitness center 5 days a week this whole school year, so I packed enough gym shirts, pants, and socks, to accomodate. I also packed a group of lounge clothes, that can be worn when I'm sick or just feeling lazy. The last group was my "hanger" group. These are my nicer clothes that wrinkle and need to be kept on a hanger or else they'll be out of operation. 

Finally, I through anything I wasn't sure about into a box. I know. I'm probably overpacking, but I'd rather do that than not have what I need to wear when I need to wear it. First impressions count, and your clothes are 95% of that.