Tidy up Tips

I live with three girls right now, all full time students with their own interests and Hobbies. I, myself, am in a similar boat and often am consumed with internship work or social aspects of my life. Unfortunately, this many people in such a small space causes disastrous messes. Most young women are organized enough to figure this out, but for those of us who aren't (because trust me it took a while) I have fabricated some handy tips to keep your house clean, your items in respectable places, and your relationship solid with your roommates, even if you do have different view points when it comes to cleanliness.

1. Keep Lysol wipes around. It is the equivalent of a paper towel and they work on all surfaces; tile, wood, kitchen, bathroom, bedroom. You name it, the Lysol wipes can clean it. Also, they last much longer than paper towels and because they are moisturized, can do a lot more work.

2. Make a chart. Yes, charts seem ridiculous and anal, but when there are a lot of people with too many activities to keep up with, it is essential that everyone does their fair share to maintain the space.

Our chart has a space for buying garbage bags, taking out the garbage, buying Lysol wipes, emptying the dish washer, sweeping mopping and vacuuming, and wiping off the counters. I hate it sometimes! but it makes maintaining a space that much easier while you are in college.

3. Keep your bathroom products to a minimum. I know it is hard not to buy every item the television says will make you look that much better, but it causes clutter in the bathroom and that is unnecessary. I like to keep a basket with my essentials and place it under the sink, that way only my tooth brush and hand soap are out. A clear space creates a clear mind. Often times, I forget to recycle old shampoo bottles, or I keep products around I do not like "Just in case", but the bathroom should be somewhere fresh and clean, not cluttered and dirty.

4. Keep a designated place by the door where you can place shoes when walking in. We are a bunch of college kids on a campus where you have to walk to most destinations. Friends come in and out often. The best way to keep our carpets clean and not throw our shoes around is to place them by the door. Shoe racks are cheap. If you are willing to invest, get one for your guests or use a closet near the door. That way, you can avoid dealing with the long term effects of a messy carpet.

Books which Spark Hope

As we develop into young adults, life becomes a bit of a steep hill; risky, but rewarding once the top is reached . It is easy to lose sight of our goals during this climb, as a constant worry that the car will not make it all of the way interferes. To avoid these, mostly mental, battles I have found it beneficial to channel my energy into more enjoyable activities. One,which has seldom failed to achieve its goal, is reading a good book.

The first book I choose to delve into after several moderately upsetting downfalls is Tuesdays with Morrie. The lovely personal story has everything to do with valuing the most minute liberties we are endowed as human beings. Not to mention, it is based on a true story.

Tuesdays with Morrie is a story based around a Sociology professor from Brandies University, whose love and compassion touched many students, but one in particular. This student turned out to be a very successful sports journalist, who hit a low road in his career. One day he hears of a piece a media network is doing on his now very ill, and dying professor. They begin to spend time together, and with each meeting Morrie teaches his old student a lesson about living. Sharing his ideas that we must not hold on to anything too tightly or stress ourselves out over things which we can not control, and to always keep love in our hearts. The story is relatively short and a good read in our self-absorbed age.

Next on my list, Nicholas Spark's True Believer. Now, the majority of us understand that Sparks books may be cliche, but this one had a magical twist, which has the power to intrigue a variety of readers. In his novel, a journalist from New York gets put on an assignment to observe mysterious lights in a small southern cemetery, and finds love along the way. It is interesting because of the small town vs big city attitude, which is alive in throughout the story. In many ways the novel about finding a middle ground between the slow and fast life, something we can all identify with I am sure.

This is a short post but I thought it would help someone else if it has helped me.

Enjoy!

The College Transition (University of Oregon and beyond)

Right now, I am sitting in a four bedroom apartment and the only thing I can hear is a freeway which is built along side my bedroom wall. Unfortunately, this is not only the case when all of my roommates are home with their families, but also when they are here. Why? Because all of my roommates have boyfriends to spend time with and families who actually require regular visits during holidays. Mine on the the other hand, may have forgotten about my existence.

When I first arrived at the University, like most first time students, I lived in the dorms. As bored out of my mind as I was, the dorms were enjoyable because there were always people around. Within the first three weeks, I managed to get hit on awkwardly by a few boys and met not a single person who wasn't duck football bananas. Do not get me wrong, I was excited about the football thing before I arrived, especially because it made the city appear to be something of a highly populated area! Unfortunately, television has the power to make small things appear large. Yes, I had expectations, I will admit it.

Anyways, I began to complain about my roommate. She stayed up late watching scientific videos, which should not have phased me, but watching someone turn magnesium into pure Co2 is not exactly my area of interest. She did let me give her a full make over complete with a wax and haircut; now that I could do! Feeling trapped in my dorms, I spent about three weeks trying to break my contract so I could go live with a group of girls I met out one weekend who seemed like more fun... they were not. It was okay at first, when I was still living in my dorm and hanging out with them occasionally, but man did it get crazy.

Here I am, new to this entire college experience, and I make a drastic decision to go live with a bunch of girls I know nothing about. Instances like these only prove my naiveness and lack of strong character. Well, it was fun at first until all of a sudden, they began crying... EVERYDAY. Mostly, it would be about boys who did not give a crap about them. I sympathized at first, but they are still doing it a now (tisk tisk) Well, if you can not already tell, their negative attitudes and lack of self confidence rubbed off on me. Before I knew it, I had lost myself, running around in circles trying to figure out who I was, when I was pretty sure I had that part figured out prior to the move.

Well, of course, I just had to start dating someone, otherwise I would not be the same as all of my girlfriends. I let the main one ( who will remain nameless) hook me up with an old friend of hers and someone she had hooked up with as a freshman two years prior. Several weeks later I found out it was someone who had been hooking up with her close friend the last couple of years (I did not do the math at this point, and that is one of my better subjects in school). Anyways, he took me out, opened my doors, and acted like a pure gentleman. Well, like most girls, I am a hopeless romantic (hopeless being the key word) and I went for it! The first couple of months were blissful, the next couple were moderate, the next couple were horrid, and the last were down right confusing. I should have taken the hint early, when I saw his best friend cheating on his girlfriend with a girl who was friends with his girlfriend, (yes, that was a tongue twister) but I didn't. He swears to this day he loves me, and maybe after several months of me taking his bull, he does. I mean what kind of guy would not want a girl who will hang around when he is not doing right by her. I will stop on my man hating rave right now, I really do love them, but this one may have put me wayyyyyy over.

Aside from that issue, I did not make the cheerleading/dance team because I was busy making everyone happy instead of myself. It is funny, when you think about life prior to your first major heart break, because the world seemed so much more beautiful. Well, after some counseling I should be okay, but for now my heart is just about non existent. The only thing which made this year in Oregon bearable was my cousins girlfriend, who attended the University as well. I am hoping I can blame this horrid experience on the rain and call it a day, but I do not know if that would be fair or helpful.

I came here to dance, and I stopped dancing. I came here to be a journalist, I stopped attending classes regularly. I had every chance in the world to make it work out and I was too busy trying to make friends. So a small piece of advice for all of you collegiate first timers; take it easy, do not pressure yourself to make friends, and stay focused. It is hard to do sometimes when we are young, but hold on to yourself and you will prevail. Now onto the next one... College I mean.