I like the word "snow".

Hi, everyone.

This week's post will be relatively short because Friday was a busy day. But it was one of those good kind of busy days so I can't complain. =)

Some comments about this week:

• Something every New Yorker talked about this week was all the snow that we have been getting lately. The snow gods just love us this year!! I actually really love watching snow fall. It's so beautiful to see everything covered in this wonderful white layer of soft snow. Particularly, the trees. We have a lot of trees out here in Brooklyn, and when the snow comes, the trees look absolutely gorgeous. So the snowfall itself wasn't the issue. It's all the things that come after it. The slippery ice, the giant puddles, the sludge on the streets, and the poor mass transit service among other things. But it's alright. It's winter after all and it wouldn't be an authentic New York winter without snow.
• Friday's bio lab lasted 3 and 1/2 hours because of the multiple centrifugations and other time-consuming steps. But I honestly didn't mind. The TA gave me a new lab partner so we spent a good part of the time just getting to know each other while waiting for our tubes to centrifuge. He's into sports so he was educating me about baseball and football. I love talking to people who have different interests from me because I always learn so much from them. 
• I want to submit a poem to a magazine at Hunter so today while on the train, I decided to take a crack at writing something. The beginning verses were good, but then, I got writer's block. Not fun. But I've learned that if the words aren't flowing, it's best not to force things.  Good things to do include stepping away from the writing or just free writing. I've done both so hopefully, I'll be struck by inspiration soon and will get a chance to finish the poem. There's nothing quite so wonderful as those moments when the words just come out of you with minimal effort. 
• Friday was the start of the Sochi Olympics. The opening ceremony was super pretty! I loved the part when the Olympic flame was lit. I'm looking forward to watching some figure skating, skiing, and snowboarding among other things.
• I just finished reading a fantastic graphic novel called Habibi. It's more than 600 pages long, but since it's in the comic format, you can finish it relatively quickly. The art is absolutely phenomenal, and the storyline is simultaneously heartbreaking and incredibly hopeful. 
• One of our new MacBloggers, Linda Luu, was featured on Macaulay Monday this week! Macaulay Monday is a newsletter that Macaulay students receive every Monday. Her post about her study abroad experience in the Dominican Republic was featured.

S.

College Tip of the Week: Reach out to people. 

Making friends will be one of your primary concerns when you enter college. Everybody dreams of having college friends that will eventually turn into lifelong friends. The best way to make friends is to reach out to people who live in the dorms with you, the people in your classes, and anybody else you meet along the way. Remember that not everybody you meet has to be your best friend. Some people will be your BFF's, and others will be acquaintances, but everybody serves some kind of purpose in your life. There's no way to know what kind of impact a person will make on your life when you first meet them, and that is a beautiful thing. I met one of my best guy friends completely by accident two weeks into my freshman year. I just happened to sit next to him when my high school friend led me to  a particular area of a lecture hall. He was super friendly, and we became good friends over the course of a few weeks. More than two years later, we're still good friends. Take the time to make these lasting connections because they will make your college experience that much richer.

And don't despair if you don't make friends immediately. There are many opportunities to meet people so just be your wonderful charming selves!