I'm Crystal, a Sophomore at Cornell and a Canadian who thinks she can take on the world simply by getting up each morning.
// December 25th, 2009 // 3 Comments » // Personal
So glad to be back home! My plane had a 6 hour delay in JFK due to the blizzard that swept all of New England. Since I got back, it’s been basically non-stop schmoozng and chilling with friends I haven’t seen for four months. I’ve been eating out every day and probably need to watch my weight.
Wishing everybody a Merry Christmas and a Happy Holiday!
Popularity: 1% [?]
// November 1st, 2009 // 5 Comments » // Academic, Personal
I swear, college is one of the greatest impediments to blogging. With so much going on and us students getting so little sleep, blogging is one of those first pasttimes to go.
The motto for this semester is “Work Hard, Play Harder”. I’m happy to report I’ve been getting consistent A’s on prelims (Cornell’s name for “midterms”, weird, I know). The weekends, which start on Thursdays really, consist of endless partying, with the frat scene and house parties dominating. Sunday is a day of recovery, and the cycle repeats again. The frat brothers range from your standard total Ivy League douchebag to the WASPy Polo-shirt-boat-shoe-wearing gentleman to the huge engineer geek. Everything and anything. Any person, any study I suppose. I’m not meeting as many people as I’d like, but I’m sure that will come with time (I want to know everyone in my small faculty, for example).
I had two costumes scraped together at the last minute for Halloween. Night 1: gold dress + shovel = … GOLD DIGGER! Night 2: pink dress with bow + pink headband with bow + pink clutch + flats with bow = … I have no idea what I was but the boys said I was Barbie so I went with that. The notable costumes included your standard supermen, slutty bunny/maid/I’m-just-going-to-well-lingerie, rappers, nerd, bumble bee, police officer, Keystone light (rofl) etc. I might post photos at Snark if I have time.
I’m looking forward to my next 3 or 4 weekends.
For Fall Break I went to visit friends in Toronto, had a blast, shopped a lot, it’s nice to be near civilization again!
P.S. - Anyone doing Nanoblomo? I don’t think I will be, but I will subscribe!
Popularity: 4% [?]
// April 26th, 2009 // 7 Comments » // Academic, Personal
Has it been two months, really, two months since my last post?! Goodness gracious. I just finished two weeks of exams and am done the first year of university! It flew by so fast it’s unbelievable. Seems like only yesterday I was a timid freshman stepping into frosh and looking at the older kids with a certain fear in my eyes.
I know a lot of you have disappeared off the charts due to RL and whatever, but come back, always come back to blogging. Because of my UBC blog, I introduced at least three of my friends to blogging already. I tell them it’s therapeutic and it absolutely is.
My plan for this summer is to take classes in the morning and work at UBC in the afternoon. 16 hours of Chinese and 19 hours of work, plus another 8 hours on the weekends. Not bad I’d say.
QOTW: What’s your summer plan like?
Popularity: 9% [?]
// February 13th, 2009 // 4 Comments » // Academic, Personal
I just got back from a campus-wide public speaking contest. And no, I didn’t win (it went to a fourth year student), or get voted people’s choice. But being one of six finalist was more than enough for me! I was walking around in a suit and heels all afternoon, rehearsing - painful haha. The competition included a 7 minute prepared speech and a 2 minute impromptu speech. I basically talked about 2008 Year in Review (think a sarcastic conglomerate of Sarah Palin jokes and the economy as a metaphorical non-commital boyfriend, deep, I know) for the prepared one. For the impromptu, they gave us the topic on the spot when we’re standing in front of 100 people and we say it right there and then… wheeeeee. If I hadn’t mentioned it already, I find public speaking extremely FUN, thus I voluntarily subject myself to multiple editing sessions, extreme nerves before presenting etc. etc.
On a somewhat unrelated note, the speech below placed first in my high school oratorical contest. Usually I wait at least 12 months before letting ANYONE read a speech in case I get to use it again. This is quite a treat, compensation for not blogging for a while I guess. So just imagine Crystal dressed in full business formal attire, talking dramatically and gesticulating wildly in front of her peers and teachers.
——— Speech: Topic of Choice || Award: 1st Place High School || Apr 2008———
What I hope to shed some light and on today is an issue that has place innocent civilians like us in harm’s way for over half a century. We endure crowded conditions akin to that of sardine packing plants. We endure the loud drunken conversation of private school girls from the back. We endure the continuous wheezing coughs and sneezes coming from the gentleman next to us. We put our lives in the hands of a single man, who, coincidentally has horrible driving skills – why? Because we – we are the riders of public transportation.
For many of us, the process of busing is simple really. Every morning, you sprint to the bus stop and by Murphy’s Law, you miss the first bus by a hair. You spend the next half hour cursing under your breath. When you finally get on a bus, you find yourself without a seat and squeezed between two gigantic backpacks full of books. What are they teaching kids these days?! The Odyssey?! [note: my English teacher was in the audience and we just finished a painful unit on the Odyssey heheh] If they had buses in ancient Greece, Homer would never have finished his epic because he’d still be waiting for the 98 Athens B-Line [98 B-Line is the bus route running across Vancouver].
My parents have this philosophy that says, “the farther away we live from school, the more you will appreciate your learning experience”. The only thing I learned coming from the suburbs every morning was how to glare at someone until they stood up and gave me their seat. Taking the bus can be an enriching experience as we learn to interact with fellow human beings on close quarters while completely ignoring all concepts of “personal space”. Of course there are a few rules we should all observe to ensure the comfort and physical well being of our fellow passengers.
First of all, bringing a live fish on the bus is NOT a good idea. I SAT beside a lady who did that once, and when I got off the bus my friends asked why I went swimming in Steveston [fishing village nearby]. Next, to the band geeks, please arrange alternative transportation if you’re going to bring your trombone home! There actually is such thing as being “stuck between a trombone and a hard place” and trust me, it was not pleasant. Finally, and speaking from personal experience once again, if you know your friend has a history of eccentric and exhibitionist behavior, refrain from letting them get near the nice, straight, shiny poles on the bus. They can dance on their own time!
I have a dream that one day these passengers will rise up and live out the true meaning of their creed: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men and women should observe the rules of the bus”. I imagine a future where passengers and their fish, trombones, and shiny poles were happy together. As George Bush once said, “I know that the human being and the fish can coexist!” I imagine a future where seats are given to the elderly. I imagine a future where buses miraculously arrived on time. And lastly, I imagine a future where people didn’t spill coffee on me on the bus – because that was a really important speech that I was writing!
———
The end =)
Popularity: 9% [?]
// January 29th, 2009 // 7 Comments » // Academic, Personal, QOTW, Work/Volunteer
Clearly “blog more often” should not have been one of my new year’s resolutions as I haven’t blogged since LAST YEAR. That must change!
Academics. I’m quite happy with my 4.21 GPA (on a 4.33 scale here at UBC) but I know I got lucky this term. My deadly 70-something history mark won’t be released until end of the year and that’s gonna hurt, bad. Who says university isn’t easy?! I’m slacking off a lot in term 2 though… ahhhhhhhh. Rating: 8/10.
Social life. Holy crap, went out SO much over the winter break. And as soon as school started? ZILCH. Nothing. Became a total hermit with no friends. Will someone be my friend? This is pathetic. That happens in university I guess. Rating: 1/10.
Career. So apparently it’s already considered late to start applying for summer internships. Omfg stress. Oh and I quit one of my part time jobs! Hurrah. Rating: 7/10.
Love. There are basically no boys in my life. I’m slowly forgetting what it feels like to be in love/be loved. Another reason to move on campus next year? Rating: 3/10.
Health. Got hit with a nasty fever last week and am slowly recovering. Must start eating more than one meals a day. Keep forgetting. Rating: 3/10.
Total: 22/50 or 44%. I fail at life.
QOTW: How’s life?
Popularity: 9% [?]
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