After graduation, I stayed around Daytona for a few more days to attend Rockville 2024 with my dad and boyfriend!! This is a rock festival that happened at the Daytona Speedway with tons of my favorite bands all day for FOUR DAYS including Limp Bizkit, Falling In Reverse, and Evanescence. Had the time of my life and highly recommend to anyone in the area.
Great beginning of Summer activity!
It was the end of a decade, but the start of an age
My time at ERAU as an undergraduate student came to a close last May. Throughout these four years I have made many lifelong friends and grew both academically and personally. I am grateful to all who supported me as well as those that made me stronger.
Next Chapter…
On to the Summer and my last year here at ERAU! During the Summer I completed my fourth round of the Summer internship program at SpaceX in Hawthorne, CA as a Graduate Engineer. This academic year, I will be finishing my graduate degree in Systems Engineering. But those are topics for other posts….. 🙂
A lot outside of school has happened in the past week or so! Here is a little bit of documentation:
As the current College of Arts & Sciences (COAS) Student Council Engineering Physics Representative, myself and the Astronomy & Astrophysics Representative organized this semester’s Physical Sciences Department Social. We had a huge taco bar, appetizers, cookies, sodas, and more! We also had a Pie-the-Professor event where people could pay $5 to pie volunteering professors with whipped cream! Profits are going towards more PS department events with free food for students and faculty! Enjoy a picture from the event 😀
As we go through college, we realize that it may be time to start getting little parts of our life together one by one including health! Routine exercising and some “touch-the-grass” times are great ideas. Another way I do this is through meal prep! This saves me money and forces me to eat more balanced meals with certain nutritional aspects I need (more protein, vitamin B, etc.). I am on campus usually all day (around 8:30am-8:30pm) due to classes, meetings, work, etc. I purchased a backpack on Amazon that was only around $25 that is very sturdy and has a built-in cooler/lunchbox as a front pouch. It looks very fashionable and is very useful. I meal prep around 1 day per week with a bunch of balanced meals that I can easily throw in tiny containers in my lunchbox to eat and/or microwave throughout the day. Some things that I’ve been making lately are curries, bowls, and casseroles. I also try to get some type of fruit that I can carry around easily (sliced pears in a ziploc, a tangerine, dried figs, etc.).
Now, how do you eat a balanced meal on a budget? Well, the meal prep helps a lot. I go to Costco (or Publix when there are good BOGO deals) to stock up on meats (ground beef, ground turkey, chicken thighs, etc.). Then, I put them in my freezer. When you see meat on sale, just get it and stick it in your freezer. Then, I grab some frozen, fresh, and canned veggies, maybe some jar curry sauces too. Quinoa and rice are also cheap things to buy in bulk. Then, one day per week I make all of these things in bulk and put them in my fridge to slowly eat at school from my lunchbox or reheat on a night that I come home late. (You can also make these foods in mega bulk portions and split ingredient costs among friends.)
For example, here is my meal prep this week: (all of these are my own concoctions, but if you need ideas ChatGPT is weirdly good at this too)
Graduation approaches…….time to buy your cap/gown, figure out where you are going to live/work afterwards…..parents want official graduation photos to send family and friends. But what are the iconic spots on campus to take these photos? Well, I highly recommend getting some pictures with any projects you are working on (if you are able to, please abide by ITAR etc.). Here are some of the graduation photos I took recently at the two spots that people usually use around campus for inspiration: in front of the Wright Flyer statue and along the Legacy Walk (enjoy the blooper photo at the end)
Disclaimer: The advice I’m about to offer is drawn from my own experiences, please take with a grain of salt and do what works for you! Please also keep in mind this is from the viewpoint of an Engineering Physics/Systems Engineering student who is looking for a job in engineering.
Lately I feel like my LinkedIn feed is filled with reports of companies doing layoffs and people begging for work as many graduate without a job offer. How can one increase their chances at a job both before and after graduation?
Hey there! Took some time away from blogging due to finals week, spending Winter break with family, and taking care of some health stuff. That being said, as a new semester begins, always remember to prioritize your mental and physical health! It may not seem efficient now but will help you operate better, faster, and more efficiently in the long run. This can include scheduling times to do things with friends but also scheduling time to relax, read a book, or, my favorite, take some leisurely textbook notes in a little coffee shop.
Speaking of fun things, I have done a few things recently around the area that I wanted to share! There are so many places around Florida that are GREAT for a day trip or even just an evening activity. Here are some places that I have gone the past week or so:
I’ve had many backpacks throughout the years of college and feel like it’s a really overlooked, essential part of your day-to-day life that can dictate your efficiency, productivity, and more. Here are a few things that I find are really nice to have in my backpack at all times.
Midterms, finals, and projects are approaching! Let’s all take a moment to take some deep breaths, try to consume not TOO much caffeine, and get kinda sorta appropriate amounts of sleep during these trying times. Please enjoy these scenic photos!
