Posted on 1 Comment on ✨The Last✨

✨The Last✨

This year has gone by so fast that I am amazed that this will be my last blog post. Looking back at my first post as well as a couple of journal entries from the beginning of my first year here at UCI, I definitely can say that I have exceeded my own expectations in many different ways. 

The three main goals I had at the start of my first year were first, to get “good” grades, second, to make time for family and friends, and third, to make the most of my dorming experience. 

You might be wondering, why is good air quoted? Well, everyone’s interpretation of “good grades” is different and so is everyone’s perception of “bad grades.” So what do I mean? To me, good grades are the ones that I know I’ve tried my best on; no matter the grade, as long as I know I’ve done all I could, I am happy with the results. For the past two quarters and hopefully for this quarter too (knock on wood for me please), I have been pleased with my results because I think the grade reflects the amount of effort I put into the class. I don’t put a letter or a numerical percentage as my goal because personally, that stresses me out. To add to this, I’ve also developed ways to study for certain classes that I know will help me with the related courses I need to take in the future.

For example, my physics classes have and are still giving me a hard time. My professor for 7C told us a quote at the beginning of his course from Thomas Edison, and it really stuck with me: “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” The brilliance of this quote is very subjective, but the meaning is inspiring. Just because one way didn’t work out doesn’t mean that the entire attempt is a failure; you now know what doesn’t work for you and that’s a step closer to the answer you want versus not knowing what to do at all because you are afraid of failing. 

I always tried to go home whenever I could because being with my family and being at home makes me feel so relaxed. I love my family a lot so I even call at least once a week (or is it once a day?) I prioritized studying and family so much that I did not go out as often as people would expect especially because I am in the dorms. I know a lot of people say that I should go specifically because I am dorming and it’s easier to meet people, and they aren’t wrong. I just think it’s a misconception that I can’t also make friends through online classes. Most of the friends I’ve made this year were from online classes, and even though it’s been one to two quarters where we have completely different classes, we still keep in contact. So I don’t think it has to do with what setting you are in; it has to do with the mindset you have going into that setting. 

Another thing to keep in mind: you are your own friend. What I mean is you should treat yourself the same way you treat your friends (I hope you treat your friends well or else this analogy would not work). If you tell your friends that they need get more sleep, you should also be telling yourself that you should also get some sleep. If you tell your friends that it will all work in the end, remember that for yourself as well. Even though college is an amazing and fun experience, remember to prioritize your physical and mental health. 

Wrapping this all up, I think I made the most of my dorming experience here. I experienced my first job, my first lab job, the cafeteria food (which you can get sick of eventually even though it is pretty good), UTC, and the campus itself. I’m really glad that UCI’s campus is very open and full of nature. Even though I almost got stung a couple of times, I still enjoy taking walks and enjoying the scenery. 

Now, for the last time, take care!🤗

Posted on 1 Comment on Taking Care of Your Mental Health😌💜

Taking Care of Your Mental Health😌💜

There are many things that are happening in the world right now, and while they are important to talk about, I want to touch on something that is often dismissed and that is our mental health. With these times, it is crucial to look after yourself, physically and mentally.

This is purely coincidental, but it also happens to be Mental Health Awareness Month (May)! What are some ways to combat your mental health declining?

  1. Remember to take care of yourself physically
    1. Take walks outside (stay safe!), get enough sleep, drink enough water, and try to eat healthily! Try meditating or writing in a journal to help sort through your thoughts! I personally journal the most out of all these activities and it really helps me set an intention for that day and be aware of how and why I am feeling a certain way. 
    2. If you want to learn more about meditating, here’s a helpful website: https://www.mindful.org/how-to-meditate/
  2. Have/Get a support system
    1. Especially right now, it is important to surround yourself with those who love and support you. Even if you think there is no one there, there are many support groups that you can join and talk with about what is causing your distress. 
  3. Try counseling!
    1. If you’re a UC student, you have access to free counseling so if you ever think you need it, there are resources on campus that can help you through it. You have many options, and going to a counselor will help you understand what causes your stress and how to deal with it in the future as well. 
    2. For UCI students, here is the link to our counseling center: https://counseling.uci.edu/

Mindset is also just as important to help your mental health. The word “positive” doesn’t mean to always be happy and to just ignore every bad thing that has happened; it means that believing that everything will get better. So how can you practice this mindset?

  1. Practice Gratitude
    1. One thing that helped me was writing what I was grateful for at the end of the day. It doesn’t have to be some grand gesture someone did for you and you don’t have to write a lot either. It could be as simple as someone asking how your day was. What does writing it down help with? It helps you savor the moment; it helps keep the moment you felt happy in your mind a little longer. 
  2. Avoid negative thinking
    1. I know this seems hard. It isn’t, but it does take time. First, identify what makes you feel that way, and focus on finding a way to not have to feel that again. Also, before going into that mindset, you could also try asking yourself, “Is this really worth my energy?” If you really cannot stop thinking about it, stop whatever you are doing, and do something physical like taking a walk or painting; something that will distract your mind. 

I hope these tips were helpful! Remember these are just a few and there are many more ways to help yourself with your mental health journey.

Take care! 🤗

Posted on 1 Comment on 🌱Advice From an Anteater🌱

🌱Advice From an Anteater🌱

Hey future Anteater! 

I hope you are doing well, and I hope you are so excited to start your college journey at the University of California, Irvine!🤗

From what has been announced, it seems like next year will be a hybrid of online classes and in-person classes so I will be talking about both my online experience and my on-campus experience because I did decide to dorm this year. 

I would like to make a disclaimer though: because this year is my first year and it is the first year that everything has been online, I do not know what the “normal” is. 

That being said, I really enjoyed living on-campus. It is extremely beneficial for me to have my own space (because of COVID, everyone was granted their own room) to study and to relax as well. While I was an undeclared student for the majority of my first year, I would consider my classes to be intense in terms of workload. For Fall quarter, I took Math 2D, Bio Sci 93, Writing 39C and Psych 7A. One thing I did learn from Fall quarter is to take classes that are different in terms of subject. Compared to Winter and Spring quarter where I did/am taking Chemistry and Physics classes as well as their respective labs, I was less stressed during fall quarter due to the variety of classes I decided to take. 

I also joined one organization on campus which is ASUCI, specifically their Student Services office. I interned in their Content Creation commission and they are all super welcoming. I did plan to join more, but looking back, I’m glad I didn’t because, at that time, I was still unsure about what I wanted to major in. So, don’t panic about not doing a lot; I know it seems like you have to join a lot, but also keep in mind that this is your first year. It will take some adjusting especially if you are going from a semester system to a quarter system. 

Speaking of the quarter system, I know it seems intimidating, but it’s very easy to adjust, in my opinion. I originally did like the quarter system; I felt like the semester system was very slow for me and I could forget information easily, but everyone’s different so take that with a grain of salt. 

Another tip I have is that because the quarter goes by so quickly, if you need help and/or you’re stuck on a concept in class, do not hesitate to find help from your professor, TA or go to LARC. Keep in mind that you may need to adjust how you study for each class, and do not be too hard on yourself if you go badly on one test. There are more tests, midterms and the final to improve!

I also decided to work during my Spring quarter and… that has been quite challenging. It is my first job and I am taking two labs this quarter so I felt very overwhelmed. Not to mislead you though; I do have time for everything I have planned for myself and that is due to just managing my time and acknowledging my priorities. One thing I would recommend to do before starting college is to make a list of your priorities. I think we all have an idea of what we want, but it reinforces it when you write it down because I think, in general, it is easy to forget if you just think about it from time to time. My priorities from the start of the quarter were getting good grades in my classes, making the most out of my on-campus experience, and having time for family and my good friends. I would say I accomplished all those goals (then again…it is the sixth week of Spring quarter so I’m almost there). In the end, it is important to know that as long as you try your best, it will all work out in the end. 

In terms of actually dorming, I know a lot of us go into it wanting to make a ton of friends and, this year it was hard because very few of us were dorming, and classes, where you would typically make friends, are online…as we all know, making friends online can be very awkward and intimidating. To this, I will say that you don’t need a lot of friends; just a couple of people who appreciate and understand you. I did not hang out with a lot of people, and that was because I simply did not have the time to. For example, this quarter, I am taking 16 units which includes two labs (if you don’t understand the emphasis on labs…it is okay; just know it is very time consuming especially the chem labs😭), I am working in a lab, I am in a school organization and I am prioritizing going home as much as I can. There are some people who do not understand this, and I respect that, but please know, there will people who do acknowledge your priorities and will not hold them against you. 

Last, but not least, there will be times where it feels tough and it’s completely normal. Three quotes that helped me through my first year are (actually there are several more quotes, but I’ll spare you and just share these three):

  1. Don’t give yourself a reason to regret anything. 
  2. Staying positive does not mean to always be happy; it means knowing better days will come on the worst of days.
  3. “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” – Thomas Edison

If you do have any questions about anything at all, please feel free to reach out on Facebook messenger or Instagram (@mia_dimalanta)!

I wish you the best! Take care!🤗Zot zot zot!

Sincerely,

Mia 

P.S. take advantage of the fact that our UTC (University Town Center) is walking distance from our campus…UCSD students have to drive to their UTC🤪Also, Cha for Tea >>>> ShareTea

Posted on 1 Comment on My First Job

My First Job

This quarter, I have an on-campus work study job in a lab. Due to privacy issues, I will not disclose the name of the lab and the location, but I am excited to share what I do when I am working!

I typically work around 8-10 hours a week, but it depends on my classes and also what needs to be done in the lab. Sometimes, there is a lot to get done while sometimes I can go in…and there’s nothing to complete. I would say one of the best parts of working in the lab is that everyone is super nice and very welcoming. 

Thanks to one of our vertern workers, we do have a set schedule of what we should try to complete before leaving for the day. 

So here is what I typically do every time I go to work:

Autoclaving: Autoclaving is basically steam sterilization for our glassware and it usually takes an hour which is why we start with autoclaving first. The first thing I do is check the sink and the dry rack to see what needs to be autoclaved.

Our dry rack and our autoclaved glassware

Flipping/Dumping: What I didn’t mention earlier is that I work with flies! We have a variety of flies and we check each stock once every two weeks. This process is “dumping” and “flipping”. Dumping is when the adult flies have already laid larva and we have no use for them anymore so we dump them. Flipping is when the baby flies have hatched already so we flip them into a new, clean vial with fresh food.

One of our fly vials!
“Fly Morgue” : where the flies are dumped

Making Food: Making food is honestly very simple. It does take time and can get tiring, but I think it’s fun! Basically, we mix a combination of agar, sucrose, dextrose, and yeast as well as other ingredients to make a thick solution. We then distribute that solution into vials which will then be kept in our freezer for future uses (like the flipping process I described earlier).

My mentor was kind enough to let me take a picture of her distributing the food into the vials.

Washing Equipment: After making food, there are usually containers that need to be washed. The food is sort of sticky and doesn’t go down the drain easily so I usually like to soak the containers in soap and water before scrubbing. It just makes the entire process easier for me.

Miscellaneous: These tasks are smaller and I do them when I have time (or when I am waiting for the autoclaving process to finish). This includes refilling our dry food bags, checking our inventory of vials, cleaning up counter spaces, very simple tasks that don’t require that much of my time.

Our inventory of fly vials!

I think the best part of working is not only that I can make my own money, but also…there is a Starbucks nearby that I can use my ZotBucks at because it is the only place I can use my Zotbucks at and I have a lot due to my meal plan. My current Starbucks recommendation is actually a new drink called the Brown Sugar Oatmilk Shaken Expresso! I surprisingly liked it a lot; it wasn’t too sweet to me and the coffee flavor was prominent! If that sounds like something you would like, I would definitely recommend you try it!

Did you think I was done? Not yet! I have a couple of quick song recommendations as well!

  • “Kura Kura” by TWICE
  • “Flavors of Love” by MONSTA X
  • “Side by Side” by The8
  • “Ashes” by Céline Dion
  • “Leave The Door Open” by Bruno Mars, Anderson. Paak, and Silk Sonic

Hehe okay, that’s all for me! Thanks for reading! Take care!

Posted on 1 Comment on Readjusting🍃

Readjusting🍃

Spring break was so fun for me because I didn’t have any of my finals during finals week so my Spring break was actually 2 weeks. I really spent most of the break with my family. We have somewhat of a tradition to do movie marathons so during Spring break; basically, we watch an entire series in one sitting. We did a Studio Ghibli marathon, a Harry Potter marathon, and a Lord of the Rings marathon. It was super fun and it’s nice to spend time with my family. 

If you have never watched a Studio Ghibli film before, I highly HIGHLY recommend watching at least one directed by Hayao Miyazaki. There is the famous film, Spirited Away, which won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature Film in 2003, but there are many others that are equally as good. My personal favorites are Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, The Cat Returns, Kiki’s Delivery Service, and Howl’s Moving Castle, but all of them are classics. 

One thing that I thought was fun was I finally watched and read Demon Slayer. For those who don’t know, Demon Slayer is a manga (graphic novels that originate from Japan) and is being adapted to anime (animated cartoons from Japan). I would like to also advise that it is a little gory so if that is something that you don’t particularly like, then keep that in mind. I don’t want to spoil anything, but it is really well-known among manga/anime fans so if you heard a lot about it and still haven’t checked it out, I would highly recommend it! Another anime recommendation would be My Lie in April; it is very different from Demon Slayer, but still just as good. 

I really relaxed during Spring break so right now, it is hard for me to adjust back to focusing on academics. I am really trying to go back to my school mindset, and that has been very brutal if I’m being honest. For example, I am trying to wake up at 6 AM every day because that’s what I did for the past 2 quarters, but I find myself snoozing my alarm until 6:15 AM. I’m not sleeping in by that much, but it’s definitely not helpful for my mindset because I’m allowing myself not to follow what I planned to do so that is something that I’m struggling with. I am also taking 16 units which include 2 labs for Chemistry and Physics and so far, it’s not bad, but I can tell it is a lot of work. I also have a lab job this quarter and it’s my first job ever so I’m extremely excited about that. I just hope my time management skills are ready to be challenged more than ever before. 

I hope you all had a great break, and take care!🤗