Christmas in the dorms

Hey everyone,

So I first want to start off by saying happy almost December! I updated the header and background of the blog last night and I am actually really excited about how it turned out. I was going to wait to put this post up until tomorrow, however I decided that I was way too excited and that I couldn't just not put this up because it was still November. Today I am going to be doing a post about how we decorated our dorm room for Christmas.

DIY Christmas Tree!

Basically all I did for this DIY was take some black washi-tape and use that to make the outline of the tree. Now it would look even cooler with green washi-tape or even with green garland. I had to do with what I had though. Then I took some glitter tape and used that to look like garland on a tree since there is no outlet by my bed for me to be able to do it using lights, which would look even more awesome. 

Then I used sticky noted to make ornaments as well as a few candy canes and then the tree was done. Then for the presents I just used some post-it notes and made them look like boxes and then used some Hello Kitty ribbon to make the bows on the top.

Wall Snowflakes!

To do these I just took some washi-tape, in black and pink because that's all I had, and put them in the shape of snow flakes on the wall. I think they look super cool no matter what color you do them in and you can always do them in different colors of blue if you have the tape.

Paper snowflakes!

For this all I did was take some lined notebook paper, fold it up and started to cut out shapes. When I unfolded it they made snowflakes. Then I hung them from the ceiling with paperclips.

DIY Candy Canes!

For this I drew out a pattern for myself and then cut out six candy canes. Then I decorated them with glitter to make them look more like candy canes.

Door Decorations!

To do this we just bought a dollar plastic door hanging thing that said Merry Christmas and had a penguin on it and bought some silver garland for 98cents and put it around it. After tax it cost us $2.12 to decorate the door.

So far this is all the Christmas decorating that I have done. I did it all on my side of the room because I did not want to intrude on my roommates stuff. I hope you all get some ideas of things that you can do in your dorm room, room, or even apartment. If I add more I will make another post about it.

~Kaylan

My slight bit of an absence

Hey everyone,

So I realize that I have not really written in awhile, and I have a good excuse. I have been a bit busy because I was trying to get some papers done before I left for fall/Thanksgiving break. So I didnt have much time to write, and then I went to write, and my laptop had pooped out on me. Apparently there is a wire in it that is fried, so long story short I ended up having to get a new laptop because I am in college, and my finals are online. So there was no way I could just send my laptop off. So now I am sitting here with a brand new laptop, and the possibility of getting another new laptop if they cant get the wire fixed in mine. It really is a win win, except for the fact that I had to spend like $400 on a computer I am going to use for MAYBE two weeks. Yeah, its been a little crazy. But I am back, and I promise to start getting more posts up soon.

~Kaylan

How to Deal with Stress

Hey everyone,

Today I want to talk about ways to deal with stress. There are proper and improper ways to deal with it so since I know it is starting to get to a crazy time of the year for me, I figured it would be good to go ahead and talk about it with everyone.

First off let me say if you are finding this and it is getting close to finals week for you, congratulations you have made it this far. You can make it through the last few weeks, or days, just take deep breaths.

IMPROPER WAYS TO HANDLE STRESS

1. Caffeine

(taken from google images)

This is honestly not the best thing to even be having when you are stressed. Caffeine actually elevates stress levels. So if you are going through a stressful time stay away from it, unless you want to be more stressed.

2. Drinking

(taken from google images)

Drinking excessively is not the way to handle stress. In the long run you will actually add to your stress if you are not only having a glass or two and have no other way to manage your stress.

PROPER WAYS TO HANDLE STRESS

1. T.V. Breaks

(taken from google images)

One way that you can start to help yourself de-stress even a little is to take breaks for your favorite tv shows. Whether that means actually turning on your tv or watching netflix on your computer. Sometimes just taking 30-60 minutes to just not think about what is stressing you out is good. Just dont do it all the time. Make sure you are doing a decent amount of homework, or studying, as well as taking the breaks.

2. Exercise

(taken from google images)

Though any type of exercise would work I personally prefer yoga. You not only get to relax but you do get the work out of an actual exercise as well, and you dont feel as tired afterward. I know that some people feel energized after running or lifting weights, but that just isnt me. Either way, no matter what you choose any type of physical activity keeps your mind off the stress and can help you relax.

I know that these are just a few tips that can help you. I will be doing a more in-depth blog post about how to be motivated to study, as well as other ways that can help you de-stress within the next week. Hope this helped everyone. 

~Kaylan

Dorm Tour 2014!

Hey everyone,

I am excited to share with you guys a look into my dorm room for my freshman year of college. This was requested on YouTube so I figured I might as well go ahead and put it on here as well. As a quick disclaimer my roommate and I buy all of our own things, or our parents get them for us. The furniture was given to us by the school, since it is given to everyone. This is also one of the most expensive halls someone can live in. We have our own bathroom and air conditioning so if you are getting ready for college please remember that most rooms are not like this.

I hope you all enjoyed watching this video. If you have any questions about anything in my room please leave them in the comments. Also if you have blog post requests feel free to leave them in the comments as well.

~Kaylan

YikYak

Hey everyone,

Today I want to talk about a little anonymous social media network known as Yik Yak.

(image from google images)

This social network is supposed to be mostly for use of college students as I understand it. The problem is that even college students are stupid about it. I wont say exactly what happened to one student at my college as a use of using Yik Yak because it will more than likely tell what school I go to. However do to them posting what they thought was a joke on campus, they caused campus wide worry and caused professors to feel the need to cancel classes. The girl was then arrested after they used the app to track it to her phone.

I need to make a point that if you are going to use Yik Yak at least be smart about it. Do not post things that could cause panic at your school, because you will be caught.

Another thing that has seemed to become an issue on Yik Yak is bullying. I wont post the screen shots I took of things that people were saying the other night on Yik Yak but I will give you a quick run down of how it went.

Original Post: Fat girls are a lot like men, going to have to work after college.

Comment 1: They're nothing like us. I can control my appetite and contribute something to society. They waste food and air.

Now I dont know about you guys but that post made me want to hit someone. It was rude and completely uncalled for.

Original post (made by me): The people here are rude about bigger girls. We will admit we are overweight you dont have to rub it in our faces.

Comment 1: Not everyone is like that. (this one was one of the nice ones)

Comment 2: Lol. You rub it in your own faces. Many times a day. Believe it or not being fat can be cured!!! It's called the gym!! No put down the hot pockets and go!!

Comment 3 (made by me): Contrary to your beliefs some people have weight problems from medicine they take. Learn more about us before you tell us to change.

Comment 4: Does your medicine make you unable to spell too, or is that just your "bigger" thumbs. (Not even sure where I spelled anything wrong)

Comment 5: He will leave you. Fatass. Not to worry. Remember my words. Gotta go to the gym now. Dont be afraid of it it's your friend. (I made a comment about having a boyfriend before this)

This set me off and I had to get off Yik Yak before I got even more upset. There is no need to be rude, even if you are anonymous. 

If you are going to use Yik Yak think before you post. And please, be nice. You never know what the people on the other side of that phone are going through.

~Kaylan 

Whats in my Bag ~College Edition

Hey everyone,

So today I filmed my Whats in My Bag~College Edition video and I figured that I would go ahead and put it on here so you all could see it. I will write you all a much better blog post hopefully tomorrow. Enjoy!

~Kaylan

College Work Loads

Hey everyone,

So today I want to talk about something that has been on my mind recently with all the projects and papers that I have been working on for school. I want to talk about the work load in college and how it differs from when you are in high school.

Fist off, the big difference that you need to remember is that in college it is recommended that for every hour you are in class you spend three hours outside of class working on things for that class. It is called being a full time student for a reason, as my communications teacher said the other day. You are expected to be doing some sort of school work for 40-45 hours a week. Now I will be the first to tell you that most of the time I do not reach that many hours on school work a week. Even with taking an honors English class I usually only spend maybe 15-20 hours outside of classes working on school work.

Not everyone is the same, and when you first get to college you will be having to figure out time management. I know that I still struggle with it sometimes because there are days where you really just don't feel like doing anything. Some of those days I just give in and don't do anything....and then I feel really bad the next day because I have to work my butt off get myself caught up with work.

Secondly, the work load is going to be different from person to person. Just because you and a friend have the same class does not mean you have the same amount of work. If there is one thing that I have learned already in college it is that NOT ALL TEACHERS GIVE THE SAME AMOUNT OF WORK. That is something that is hard to grasp I know. In high school, or at least at my high school, even if the assignments were a little different every teacher in every English or math class gave the same amount of homework as every other teacher. I have learned through doing homework with my roommate as well as just by talking to people on my floor that I have less work in my English class than they do. They are expected to always write papers and do assignments because that is what they are learning. My honors English class we are given 4 papers that determine our grade for the semester. We do not learn how to write papers, we learn how to make them flow better, and how to make them sound more like a college student. In the other English classes they walk through every step of writing a paper and make them practice each part as they learn it.

So don't feel like you are just being a freak if you are doing homework all the time and your friends are not. You probably just have more work than they do at that point, and the tables will turn at some point.

Another thing to remember about the work load in college is that it is college. Nothing in college, okay not nothing but almost nothing, is going to be given to you in a simple watered down way. You will seem overwhelmed and like you dont have time for anything. You have to make time. That is how this always comes back to time management.

Another tip that I have to help with work load has to do with majors and minors. If you dont know what you want to do in college DO NOT declare a major right when you go in. You are only setting yourself up to have to have more work to do if you decide you dont want to do that. I just watched a kid that lives down the hall from me spend 2 hours in his adviser's office two days ago trying to figure out just what he needed to do to go from a biology major to an athletic training major. He is now drown in work that he is going to have to do over the summer to get caught up.

You will not be behind if you wait until your spring semester of freshman year, or even your spring semester of your sophomore year to declare a major. I also recommend that if you do change your major at some point and your classes from your old major do not transfer a decent amount to your new major that you do not declare a minor unless you want to do summer classes, or stay in college longer.

Again all of this is just how I feel. I know that some people will not feel the same. If you have any thoughts on the work load in college feel free to leave them in the comments. I would love to read how everyone else feels.

~Kaylan