Exam Week

This week has been stressful. Its crazy to me how much the atmosphere and scenery has changed from last week to this week. The study lounge on every floor is filled as well as and in every nook and cranny. They are filled with  people trying to cram as much information into their brains before they are tested. The quiet hours are extended to 24 hours a day for the entire week. People barley come out, they only leave their spots in order too eat and go to the bathroom. When you walk into the cafeteria all the girls are wearing yoga pants and big burly sweat shirts with their hair all up in a bun  and absolutely no makeup. The boys look pretty much like they usually do. Its a whole other world.

Last Three Weeks Before WInter Break

These last few weeks have been quite the challenge for me. There has been so much going on. Everything is all coming together. Everyone is finishing up there last pieces of work for all their classes. I have found that waiting until the last minute may have worked out for me in the past but now that I'm in college it is much more challenging getting away with that now. Next semester I think will be a bit easier for me. I at least will have some background in what I'm getting myself into. I will know to not take a nap instead of getting a paper written that is due in a couple days. I will be ready to bring it!

Sigma Kappa

I have always looked at Greek life as something that I would never be apart of. I always thought it was this particular girl that was destined to be in a sorority. For some reason I decided to go through formal recruitment. I fell in love. I realized through formal recruitment that there was all sorts of girls there were creepy ones, sweet ones, nerdy girls, silly girls and funny girls. I found my niche. Sigma Kappa had all the girls that I was looking for. I have found a place that I can call my second home. I have made so many memories with these girls and I am so proud to call myself a sigma kappa.

Genre Project

For the genre project that we have been doing over the past few weeks I have found that to be able to mimic a certain genre, for instance a playbill, it is much harder than expected. It takes a bunch of time and effort. You have to consider every detail and alter the way you think to the way that the person who made the genre thinks. If I were to go back and re-do it again. I would have started a lot sooner. I found myself struggling for time in the end.

For Colored Girls

Monday I went to the play For Colored Girls I found it very interesting. At first I was a bit confused on what it was about but as the play went on I realized that the play was about the hardships that colored girls go through. The difficulties that colored girls have. The actresses in the play were very good. It wasn't the type of play that you would go to and there were costumes and scenes. It was more like poem. They had to read each script in a way that fulfilled the emotions that these colored women were feeling. They had to make the audience believe in what they were saying. They had me engrossed in every word that they said.

Halloween Weekend

This weekend was Halloween weekend. It was so much fun. My boyfriend came down to visit and I had a blast with some high school friends. The best part in my opinion would be dressing up. Getting ready is always a thrill. You get to be whatever you want for a few nights only and creating that person is always a blast. I think that most people would agree to that as well. I don't know why it is such a pleasure to create a different identity but maybe it is because we get tired of ourselves and this is a chance to get out of the reality of who we are.

Annotated Bib

For class we are required to create an annotated bibliography. Last year as a senior in high school we had to make an annotated bib as well. I did horrible. Each description of my sources was unorganized and not well written  Since then I have noticed how my understanding of writing has changed. I am now able to take something so foreign to me and figure out how to put it all together. I think that this has occurred because now that I am in college I take things a lot more serious. I need to understand. I have to do well and in order to do so I have to put all my effort into everything I do.

Weekend Adventure

This weekend I am going on sort of a small adventure. Im am traveling way over to Flint, MI! I will be traveling by bus, train and car in order to get there. I going to visit my boyfriend who lives in Midland, MI. I am forcing him to go see Paranormal Activity 3 with me on Friday night, then we are heading over to Mt. Pleasant for Dayglow. Im really excited to see all my friends and get my groove on. After a weekend of fun it will be time to head home. I have plenty of studying to do and lots of homework. I am looking forward to a great weekend.

MSU

This weekend I visited Michigan State University. I went there with a few friends for the Michigan State vs. University of Michigan game. It was a blast. When I was there I noticed how different the people there speak. Even though we are in the same state and only an hour away from each other, terms and sayings are much different. For example the term "bro." The term "bro" in my understanding is a person who long boards, has dreads, and if they don't have dreads they have long hair, they are pot smokers and they love dub step music. That to me is a bro and to many people here at Western. The term "bro" at MSU is a boy who is apart of a fraternity. That was just one of the many terms that while I was there was different.

Growing up

It has been major adjustment going from a small town to a school with around 25,000 students in it. I have learned a lot being on my own. I am learning how to be a responsible adult. Even in this past week I have been sick and being able to take care of myself has been a challenge. My mom hasn't been here to take my temperature and make me chicken noodle soup. I have had to get up bathe, feed myself and get myself up to go to the store I get some medicine. Honestly it has been a huge pain. In the end though I know that this will help me become a independent adult.

French

In class we talked about a short chapter from the book Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris. It talked about his experiences learning french while visiting France. I visited France for my 13th birthday and knew how to speak a small amount of french like; bonjour and merci. The french there were not as excepting to the Americans as I would have expected. Actually they looked at me like I was an idiot or a pest. So I can relate to how David was feeling when his teacher said "I hate you, I really hate you(67 Perryman-Clark)," in clear perfect English.

 

Perryman-Clark, Staci, ed. Mercury Reader. Boston: Pearson Learning Solutions, 2011. Print.

Language

   After class and discussing how language is different due to the factors of where you were raised or who taught you language, I started to look around and notice the differences how everybody uses language. Being a freshman at Western I get asked quite frequently where I am from. I tell them "oh I'm from Traverse City, MI." Many people I've met find it odd that I am from Michigan due to my accent. They describe the way I speak has a southern twang to it and how I use my words is slightly different from what they are used to hearing. Other than my own  language I've noticed the people here in Kalamazoo. People that lived right around the corner in Detroit to all the way from Indonesia live here and there way of language is completely different from what I am used to. It fascinated me that all these languages and cultures were in one place.The place I live. This made me realize why the United States is so great. Its because we have the opportunity as Americans to be apart of other languages and cultures from all over the world with people who are our friends, family and neighbors.

Where I am from

I am from the bay, from long walks with my mom, where I grew up.
I am from my grandparents house, a place to get away, a spot where I feel safe.
I am from the peninsula, with the snooty, stuck up moms and the gadgets and motor toys loving dads.
I am from where laughter, tears and anger occured, from where I learned the hard way.
I am from where hipsters, organic food, and cruiser bicycles is the trendy way to be.
I am from the pinky, with the cool gentle breeze in the summer to the harsh blizzards in the winter. With the lost tourists and the understanding locals, the place I call home.

A little bit about myself

Thanks for reading ANYA L Jongen's blog. First I'd like to give a small introduction about myself. About a few weeks ago I became a Bronco at Western Michigan University. It has been a huge change. I moved all over the country when I was younger, but mainly I lived in Naperville, IL and Traverse City, MI. I have two siblings, a dog, a cat and a fish. I am the oldest out of all the children, grand children and cousins. I really enjoy being at the beach and just chilling out or going jet skiing and killing the waves. That is one thing that I miss about home is being surrounded by water. I also love playing tennis though I'm not that good. Im excited to be in college and hope to find my place in the world by being here.