Time Management

Now that the semester is ending I can look back at how I managed my classes and see what worked and what didn't. I struggled the most with writing midterm/final essays. In my head I could usually convince myself that I had more than enough time to write them if I started tomorrow. I'm not very good at writing essays when I have plenty of time, and when I have to write them in a few days or the night before I almost always fail. Most of my classes only had one essay for the semester that counted for a large part of my grade, so it was very important that I get them done on time. I found that I didn't really get anything done if I tried working on them at home; but if I made myself go to the library to work on it I was much more productive. Setting aside a specific allotment for each day that I wanted to work on the paper made it easeir for me to get it done on time. It made writing the paper like going to another class, and once I was there I got distracted less. It was the same with studying for tests. In high school I didn't really study all that hard for exams, and I could usually pass. I was worried this semester because my classes only had a midterm and a final. I couldn't afford to do poorly on either of them. If I planned to study at the library on Tuesday and Thursday from 4 to 5 it made it a lot harder to blow off. If I try to start studying at a random time while in my room I didn't really get anything done. Looking back that was the most beneficial of the study habits I tried to develop.

I will use that strategy next semester. Also getting readings done in advance really helped often I would wait to do a specific reading and then have to do a write-up at the same time which lowered the quality of the paper.

For my cultural event I attended a meeting for a global studies club. A friend of mine whose also a freshman showed me their booth during the org fair. His older sister is the founder and president. The meeting was very laid back, mostly they discussed upcoming events/fundraisers for the club. The most recent of which was a booth where a few members sold woven bracelets made by women in Uganda. The proceeds go back to benefit the village where they were made. Many of the clubs events/focuses revolve around women's rights and empowerment in third world countries. After that it was mostly a casual meeting, everybody talked for a little while and then we left.

Hello I don't have a picture for my campus involvement post but I went to a meeting for the Cougar Chronicle, and signed up to to get information on the paper. I wrote for my High School's paper and I was interested in what the news staff here was like. It was a little different because it's not a class but an organization, but everyone was very welcoming. A few of my editors from my senior year now work at the paper here and it was nice to see some familiar faces. The editors of each section posted story ideas underneath their respective areas and asked if anyone would like to write specific articles, after which they opened up the room for discussion/story ideas. Every student was very articuate and passionate about what they were doing, and were excellent at bouncing a variety of story ideas off of each other, many of which I would not have considered, even though I see the same things here that they do. Once story ideas were hashed out and everyone had thier assignments the writers began discussing who they would interview, how they would go about gathering information, and what perspectives they would use to enhance their stories. After a little while a faculty member came in and discussed good interview techniques as well as simple nuances that were very important if one is to respect the integrity of their source. I found this part of the meeting very interesting. For instance if you have to conduct an interview over the phone and want to record the conversation for future reference, you are required by law to let the other person know they are being recorded. There were a variety of things to consider when talking with someone about a story, from the way you dress to what questions you ask and how you ask them. Much more goes into it then I imagined, and I have a newfound respect for reporters. They are defenietely apt at handling social events and talking with people, especially strangers. I'm not sure if writing for the paper is something I will be able to take part in this semester but it would be awesome to give it a try in the future.

I'm not quite sure what I'm supposed to post, but to start my name is Taylor Han. I live in Temecula, California, and graduated from Great Oak High School last year. I commute to San Marcos. I'm undeclared at the moment as I'm not entirely sure what I would like to do, but I think Film Studies or English would be ideal. I played tennis and soccer in high school, and still do occaisionally. Some music groups I like are Mayday Parade, Secondhand Serenade, The Script, The Smiths, and Safetysuit. I enjoy going to the movies, and some of my favorites are Caddyshack, The Breakfast Club, 21 Jump Street, Saving Private Ryan, and usually anything with Will Ferrell in it.

John Grisham, Michael Connely, Marcus Zusak, and Jeffrey Archer are some authors I like.

Oh and I'm awful at meeting new people if I don't say hi or anything I'm just nervous. Please don't be offended by my awkwardness haha.