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Rose Pageant, Meme Chalking, and Fam Wars: Extracurricular Involvement at UCI

Overall, my freshman year extracurricular involvement at UCI has been pretty fun. Yesterday, before I went to practice, the Meme Club was chalking memes behind the Social Sciences Lecture Hall (towards the stairs that lead to Aldrich Park). If you want to see the pictures, however, you will have to be part of the Facebook group, since the group is private (you can view their Facebook page here). I recall only going to two meetings because I was so busy, but I may consider attending more often. We have meetings every Monday from 5 pm to 6 pm in Social Sciences Tower, in room 122. They also host many crazy events, such as standing around in Aldrich Park screaming like Goku for over an hour, using an Ouija board to summon “Wildebeest Man” while listening to an entire My Chemical Romance album, or riding the S line forty times.

I also remember spending an entire Saturday preparing for Vietnamese Student Association’s Rose Pageant, because my dance team Level V Origins was performing. Being in LVO has really taught me about commitment, patience, and perseverance, because I spent so many nights out in the cold, practicing in front of Steinhaus Hall (or just sitting there while other people were blocking and cleaning their pieces). However, Rose Pageant itself was a day to remember. Everyone was singing old songs at the top of their lungs and then Cheney was playing some sort of mafia game where we all got cards that had different roles and then we faked sleep while the wolves tried to kill all the townspeople, or whatever happened in the game. We ate really good that night, because the banquet food was bomb. I pretty much joined LVO because it was a beginner-friendly dance team, but some of those pieces are very fast-paced and complicated. I have no experience in dancing hip hop… at all. However, being in that fall quarter piece has made so many memories. Jumping off that stage really hurt my feet, and I remember skipping across the pavement to the back of the parking lot out the side door because the sprinklers were on that night and I didn’t want them to wet my feet.

I’m also in the Antleader Mentorship Program, and our Fam Wars is coming up tonight… I am so nervous! However, AMP itself is super fun and has introduced me to so many cool people! In fact, the purpose of it is to be social and connect students to ASUCI in general. Personally, I have connected with more upperclassmen than I have other freshmen through it, but Chill Times for me are my personal favorite. We just sit around in Aldrich Park and discuss what’s going on in our lives, just like we do in Anime Community Club during our Wednesday UTC meetings (at 6:30 pm by the fountain if anyone is interested). However, I also find myself skipping meetings in order to catch up on homework or get some rest, so it is important to get a good balance of both.

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(A Little More Than) A Halfway Through Update

As I am writing this, a couple weeks have passed since week 5 (the week of Halloween!) which also marks the halfway point of my first quarter at UCI. That is crazy to think about because this quarter really has gone by faster than anyone could have expected, and I think all of us freshmen are caught by surprise. Nevertheless, I feel like I have surprisingly managed to find a balance among all the chaos of this quarter.

Despite the many assignments, club events, and personal matters I have had to attend to, I feel relatively accomplished with what I’ve done with my first quarter so far. If you are a student you might be aware of the equilateral triangle meme for students (included below). Many might agree this is pretty accurate- and unfortunately for me, the one that had to go was sleep. Although, I would say that I sleep more now than I did in high school as you are able to pick your own schedule (according to availability of classes, at least) and so if you know you are a night owl (like me) you can decide to take an afternoon class and avoid feeling like a zombie in the morning. 

Sleep-deprivation can be prevented though if you stay organized. Google calendar has continued to be my best friend this quarter as it keeps me notified of due dates for assignments, or events that I may have forgotten about. Looking at my schedule for the week allows me to plan my study days accordingly so I wouldn’t be neglecting any assignments if I were to go to that Halloween party or club social. 

Also, after almost seven weeks of being away from my family I got to travel seven hours back to my hometown to see them in real life rather than through FaceTime. Going back home is a great feeling because something about home cooked meals hits different from the Anteatery (not that the dining hall isn’t great, it’s just that nothing can beat your parents’ cooking).  My friends from high school were also back home for the Veteran’s Day long weekend and so it was great to catch up with all of them and hang out as if we never left for college. 

Overall, the events the past couple weeks have prepared me for this upcoming final stretch of the quarter. I feel like I have gotten my fair share of fun and now as finals week quickly approaches, it is time to get my super productive hat on and make sure to keep staying on track of all my work. Here’s to the rest of the quarter!

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New Discoveries

Imagining being so oblivious to the fact that there were faster pathways going from one part of campus to another? Or that you had been taking the longest route to get from point A to point B? Well … that was me for most of this quarter.

 It was a Wednesday at around 2 p.m and I had just finished up with a lecture. I decided to grab a bite at University Center, directly across campus. Now at this point, I usually took the bridge, but I remembered a few days prior, a friend of mine briefly mentioned that there was a hidden Starbucks behind the Social Sciences Plaza. I figured I would take a look into it, so as I make my way there, I verify that there is indeed this Starbucks, the green umbrellas outside giving it away.

In case you were wondering, I’m definitely not a huge coffee drinker, so this discovery wasn’t too exciting. There are plenty of coffeeshops on and off campus to fuel the bodies of procrastinating students or caffeine addicts.

 It was the moment I looked ahead and realized that I could end up at University Center that sparked my interest, since I typically grab a quick lunch from there. They have fast-food chains, sit-down restaurants, and so many other amenities. You may be wondering why this is such a big deal to me. Having this shorter route to grab lunch saves me half as much time, meaning I have more time to enjoy a meal between classes, and less time walking. And if you’re someone like me who likes to be early to class, this shorter path would definitely ensure that getting to class more than a few minutes early would be possible.

So, I guess the biggest lesson I learned is to explore as much as possible! You never know what you might find. 

Till next time,

Celeste 

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Lessons I have learned during my fall quarter of my freshman year at UCI

Lesson One: Always check RateMyProfessors when signing up for classes!

I have done research on professors that I currently have for classes, professors that people have raved about, and professors that people have complained about and wished that they would’ve never taken their classes to begin with. The website ratemyprofessors.com is very accurate when it comes to describing what it will be like to take a professor’s class. In fact, everything that I have experienced so far in my classes was exactly stated by other students on the website.

Lesson Two: If you live in Arroyo Vista or any of the ACC apartments (VDCN, VDC, CDS, PDS, PV), stick with FlexDine Dollars.

Dining hall swipes are expensive. That’s an extra $800 that I didn’t have to spend on the 85 block plan that I bought. In fact, I hardly have time to go to the dining hall since I don’t live in Mesa Court nor Middle Earth this year (I live in the Academic Excellence Black Scholars House, a first-year themed house in Arroyo Vista).

Lesson Three: Watch what you eat!

For those who have the dreaded 8 a.m. or even 9 a.m. classes like me, make sure to eat a good breakfast before you come to class. If you have a hard time doing this, make sure to sign up for later classes next quarter. Trust me, even if I sit at the front of the lecture hall during Arasasingham’s 9 a.m. lectures, if I don’t eat a good breakfast, I have a hard time staying focused. I feel very tired and bored, just like I did in high school in the mornings. Also, give yourself time for your meals to digest before you study or go to class, or try to avoid eating too fast. Otherwise, you will get very tired during your next class, like me during my Thrive@UCI classes.

Lesson Four: Stop sleeping on LARC tutorials and peer tutor worksheets!

I cannot thank LARC tutorial leader Jerry Zhang enough for making the concepts covered in Arasasingham’s lectures easier to understand. I also cannot thank Thais Bouchereau and Adisa Ajamu enough for sponsoring these tutorials. Although LARC tutorials are $110 per session, if you don’t want to pay, or don’t have a sponsor, you can ask your professors or TA’s if peer tutoring is offered for your general education classes. The peer tutors usually offer free worksheets for you to print out and use so that you can study for midterms and finals easier– I printed out all of them for Bio 93! Here are some peer tutors for general chemistry and biology.

Lesson Five: Know where and how to study

The upper floors of Langson Library and the Courtyard Study Lounge are some of my go-to spots for studying because I focus better in quiet environments. Gateway Study Center has touchscreen monitors, but the people there can get pretty chatty, so I would bring headphones and prepare to blast some chillhop or classical or whatever music gets your focus going.

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The Midterm Experience From the Outside

Midterms are every college student’s nightmare: a sort of make-or-break exam before the big boss that is the course final. Fortunately for me, I have yet to experience such a task. This quarter I am taking classes that are largely project/participation based so I do not have any big assessments, but rather a research essay or performance to be graded on.

Nevertheless, as midterms began to hit for other students around week 3 I definitely saw a shift in the vibe of the campus. I consider myself to be a night owl so I already prefer to spend late nights doing homework if needed. It was an interesting experience, though, to find other people who developed the same sleeping habits as me- and believe me, there are many. 

Despite what you might think, the whole process of preparing for midterms (based on my observations and the time I spent doing big assignments while everyone studied) isn’t all blood, sweat, and tears- it’s actually pretty entertaining. Everyone has a preferred method of studying or working; for me and those around me it was food and late night hijinks. 

First of all, the Anteatery in Mesa Court (an on-campus residential community) serves a delicious late-night menu from 8pm-12 am so any students planning to stay up can enjoy some potstickers or chilli and fries (sounds yummy doesn’t it?). If the Anteatery happens to close before you can get a bite, worry not because there are also Insomnia Cookies at the University Town Center across campus open until 3am to satisfy your late late night cravings.

So along with food there are other ways of relieving stress. Within my dorm hall the common room will have a show or movie playing for a quick distraction from the textbook. If that’s not enough, I find a friend and dance and laugh our worries away; it’s surprising how amusing jokes can be late at night. I always like to remember that it’s important to keep the mood up during stressful times so finding any reason to spend quality time with others is how I typically de-stress. 

To leave you all off with advice on dealing with midterm season: find what works for you! There are plenty of study areas on campus (libraries, student center, The Court in Mesa Court (open only to residents of Mesa Court)) if you prefer a quiet space and also many people who would love to create a study group- just ask around!