Spooky Season

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Today commences the beginning of spooky season. That time of year filled with ghouls, goblins, monsters, and impending due dates for assignments/ midterms. With all of these stress inducing things, many struggle trying to find a way to get by, but don’t you worry. I am here with simple solutions and actions I take to make the time run smoother.

Pro-Tip #1:

Going to the Beach

Living in Daytona Beach, we all take the second part of our city name for granted. The beach is clinically proven to wash away even the biggest problems, …don’t look that up.

Getting out of your dorm/housing and straight into nature provides an amazing chance to just breathe and appreciate all that’s around. You can watch the sunrise over the horizon, watch the sunset, bird watch, or even star gaze. The options are endless, but the end goal is to take a moment to breathe, regroup, and then approach studying or what not with a clear mind.

Pro Tip #2:

A Rewarding Snack

For some, a nice treat can make their day, and who are you to deprive yourself from treating YOURSELF. If you can’t go out, or bake in your home, you could always make a mug cake/brownie. Pinterest is full of amazing recipes that are friendly to anyone’s personal diet (or you could make a trip to Wal-mart for their mug cake). I also recommend Cow Licks next to the shore, off of S Atlantic Avenue. The price and flavor are totally worth the drive or Uber.

Pro Tip #3:

Relax the Best Way that Fits YOU

Regardless of what other people tell you, you know what works best for you. If leaving the dorm or room causes you even more stress, then allot some time to watch a show or a short YouTube clip as your breather. Or if physical activity helps you clear your mind, take a jog or go to the gym, which is open from 6 am to 11 pm on Mondays – Fridays and 10 am to 9 pm on Saturday – Sundays. As long as what you do to unwind is safe and healthy for you and those around you then by all means do it.

The semester may bring pressures but small moments of self care helps to move along those tough times and make them brighter!

And that’s the tea. Until next time!

Fall & Fresh Updates

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Happy September everyone! I’m currently blogging from Daytona Beach, the official Autumn season begins September 23 and runs until December 21, I’ve been busy lately, and I’m trying my best to not be stressed.

I’ve found myself becoming a bit overwhelmed with the constant high speed flow of life recently, so as I woke up this past Sunday morning I took a couple minutes to set intentions for the week, write my to do list, and drink water. In the midst of the chaos when I find myself getting anxious about everything I need to accomplish for the day, I have to remind myself to take a step back, breathe, reset, relax, and take it one step at a time.

On a happier note, Fall is my absolute favorite time of the year, so despite Florida not having the most stereotypical autumn experience, I still try to make the best of it. I’m on my 3rd year at Riddle and thus far I have made it to a Floridian pumpkin patch every year (typically in late fall when the weather is in the low 80s).

As I currently drink my cup of coffee with pumpkin spice almond milk creamer and do homework in my room that smells like apples from my oil diffuser, as long as I don’t go outside, it’s basically fall, right? My prize possessions are definitely my calculator, my Keurig, my laptop, and my essential oil diffuser. Which you probably already deciphered because I drink a lot of tea/coffee, do a lot of homework, and I love yoga.

My newest fall essential oils that I am obsessed with! They make my entire room smell amazing. The scents are Maple Leaf, Fall Rain, and Harvest Moon.

As I note I would like to add my supply of “fall” flavored teas is growing. A classmate asked me the other day how many cups of tea I drink a day and I really had never thought about it, but I make tea all the time and typically always have a cup with me (in my reusable to-go cup of course).

Me enjoying the mere idea of fall even though it’s hot outside.

Now that we’ve caught up, as a Professional Officer Course (POC) cadet in AFROTC this year (under-classmen are referred to as General Military Course (GMC) cadets until after they return from Field Training the summer between their sophomore and junior years) I earned the privilege of being able to have a clipboard during training to conveniently carry around my orders, other needed papers for the day, and of course pens, sharpies, and a ruler.

Everyone’s clipboard is different, and in my opinion, essentially represents you as a person. I decided to decorate the top of my clipboard, which is covered by my daily orders in training to stay professional. My clipboard also has a large letter of my flight on the back, and my name which are the visible portions when conducting leadership laboratories (LLABs) and physical training (PT). 

To provide a small amount of background on my clipboard decorations, in the backyard of my house in Virginia we have a surfboard hung on the fence that we’ve been putting stickers on for years now. The stickers are from wherever we travel, and everyone in the family puts new ones on all the time, so the next time you look at it it’s constantly changing and growing. Naturally when I got my clipboard I had been gathering some smaller stickers from my travels and wanted to adopt the same philosophy. 

The top of my AFROTC clipboard that isn’t normally visible, but makes me happy knowing that it’s there!

Keep on keeping on folks, will report back soon!

A New Semester

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Hello Everyone! I hope everyone has had an amazing summer and stayed safe during hurricane Dorian. To mark the beginning of the new semester at sophomore standing, I wanted to write a little advice for the new freshmen coming in.  I know that starting college can be a little scary at first, it is in fact a lot different than high school. Professors are casual and laid back, you live in an unfamiliar place, there are new faces, and your success is entirely up to you. Your hands are no longer being held by faculty like in high school. This can be a lot for new students and from what I have learned, this can cause anxiety and depression issues among new students due to the massive amount of stress and change.

Rest assured that everyone at Embry-riddle wants you to succeed. We have countless options available to benefit all students. I wanted to start off on the topic of mental health. Obviously, everyone is excited to start their new college life, but that doesn’t mean that there aren’t any anxious feelings going around. Also, depending on the person, you may be feeling a little bit more nervous then others. It is completely okay to feel like this, my first semester was a whirlwind of nervous scared feelings. Eventually everyone settles in and gets used to the newness of being a college student. But not everyone stops feeling that way. Now, let me just say it is still completely normal to feel that way, but its important to know that there are options for help if needed. Embry-Riddle’s Health and Wellness Center has more to it then just a place to go if you’re feeling a little sick. It’s also a place you can rely on to talk to someone about any negative feelings you may be having.

My biggest advice to all new students is ask for help when you need it. Talk to your professors when you’re having trouble in class, talk to your academic advisors when you feel concerned about your schedule, classes, and major. Asking for help is one of the biggest factors of success at Embry-Riddle, especially when you’re a new student. Another big help that you can go to if you’re having trouble in classes is the tutoring options here at Riddle. For example, if you’re having trouble in math, writing, physics, engineering, or chemistry/bio, “A Squared” is the perfect place to be. It’s the Academic Advancement Center, home to tutoring labs in the College of Arts & Sciences. Riddle even has digital labs where you can get help making Powerpoint presentations, using Photoshop, making videos, and even learn how to better your speech capabilities. Use these options if you need them because they will help you.

Another Big Word of Advice I have for everyone, and you will hear this a thousand times over, GET INVOLVED. In high school you are pushed to get involved as much as possible, but I think we all kind of brushed it off and continued to do what we were doing. Now, it’s one of those super-important key factors that can only lead to success. What you get involved in now will only look good on your resume for future jobs. It’s highly recommended that you consider joining a student organization, sorority/fraternity, a school project, a club, or even study abroad. I have spoken to so many people that have gotten amazing jobs not because of their impressive GPA, but because of their involvement in extra curricular activities. Employers want to see what you did to expand yourself. I went to a meeting for communication majors, where graduates from the Communication major at Riddle talked about how they got their jobs and what they did in college. The first speaker said she got her job because of her involvement in clubs, the next speaker said her interviewer just asked her questions about her study abroad time, and the last speaker got her internship from projects, which led to a big career for her. I know we all roll our eyes a little when teachers talk about getting involved, but it all is important.

I hope I was able to provide a little bit of insight, or even inspiration. I know it’s all new and different, but don’t worry! Everyone here was once in your shoes and everyone helps and supports each other!

Hurrication & Misc. Happenings

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Happy September folks! Howdy and welcome back! The first week of school came, then Hurricane Dorian came, and now the second (first?) week of school is happening once again.

Although, as I’m sure a few of my other Engineering pals out there have experienced, the hurrication was a nice “break”, and by break I mean it was lovely to be able to take my leisurely time doing homework and getting a jump start into planning for all my classes. The downfall of this break though, is of course that this coming week will probably be a tad bit squished with all the missed material.

Currently reminiscing to the week before the fall semester started during Orientation with my fellow O-teamer friend Kara.
Paint U with O-team!
Orientation Team retreat in August!

Orientation Retreat is essentially a highly condensed summer camp bonding experience for a few days that works magic for the O-team and takes us from a bunch of individuals to a highly functioning super team. I cannot exactly explain it, but to sum it up I learned about 80 people’s names and life stories over the course of about 3 days. I love O-team.

I am super excited for this school year, and for fall, as it’s my favorite season. Although fall in Florida isn’t exactly the coldest season, my birthday is in late October and hopefully by around that time the weather should be getting into the 70s at night, which is absolutely perfect for camp fires! The fire pits in the courtyard between New Hall Phase 1 and New Hall Phase 2 have been my go to, as well as my RA staff’s go to gathering place for s’mores and staff bonding. RA’s have weekly staff meetings, and honestly taking a break from homework and having s’mores with the staff while we do weekly recaps is a pretty cool and unique spin on traditional meetings… and it’s even better with the crisp air that accompanies cool autumn evenings!

In other news, I recently road tripped to St. Augustine for the day over the hurrication and got three new air plant babies for my dorm room that I am very excited about. I had a lot of plants in my dorm last year but I didn’t have the chance to take them back to school when summer ended because of all my traveling, so I’m currently rebuilding my collection. I love air plants, succulents and cacti, and hardy herbs that are low maintenance but smell good (and also the addition of fresh herbs to meals is a life hack for making dorm food taste SO much better).

My new air plants!

Will report back soon. Keep on keeping on y’all. Enjoy getting back into the swing of things, as I’m sure I will be!

First Day & Fall Semester

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Happy August folks! I’m currently blogging from Daytona Beach back in my on campus RA dorm in lovely humidity, afternoon rain, and sunshine. Orientation week has officially concluded, Fall Semester has kicked off, my residents have moved in, and my voice is almost gone (yes, before AFROTC has even started…it’s going to be a fun week).

  • Orientation Team Family Photo from our yearly retreat!

I arrived to campus almost a month early for training and in preparation for the school year to start and it’s here! Similar to a holiday in the anticipation aspect, but with a bittersweet aftertaste because I can already sense the year will be a busy one. This semester my schedule consists of Air Force Leadership Laboratories and Physical Training sessions, Air Force class, Compressible Aerodynamics, Advanced Engineering Math I (also known as Math Methods Engineering and Physics I), Technical Report Writing, Incompressible Aerodynamics, and an Independent Study of third year level Arabic, plus Resident Advisor duty days, and a plethora of various meetings. 

  • My building’s Resident Advisor Staff Family Photo!

This year will surely be jam packed, but I started off my first day of the semester going for a run in the morning and I’m determined to make this one of my best semesters. For those of you that have read a couple of my blogs you probably know this already, but I like lists. I typically categorize my days in the notes app on my phone and go from start to finish with classes, homework, working out, free time, meetings, chores/errands, and pretty much all of my other responsibilities. If I do anything in my day, there is approximately a 93% chance it was on my to do list and I have checked it off once its finished.

If you ever need help with the looming task of time management and you have found yourself reading this, I offer you two pieces of advice: first prioritize, and second make yourself a daily schedule and cross-off everything you accomplish. I find this to be extremely helpful and it keeps me in a good mood because I love seeing my to-do list shrink and I love once I get done with my homework being about to have blocked off time for self care. Having time to relax is my favorite.

Speaking of relaxing, I am currently reminiscing of hiking in Arizona over the summer so here is a very happy me sitting on a mountain.

As a closing note, shoutout to the girl I met on the elevator in my Residence Hall who recognized me and warmed my heart telling me that my blogs remind her of how she journals. You rock.

Will report back soon y’all, once we are fully submerged in September. Full speed ahead!

Transitions & Training

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Happy August everyone! I’m currently blogging from Daytona Beach, Florida, yes that’s right folks the eagle has landed!

In the past week I’ve been all over the country in my journey and travels to finally get all my things packed and ready to come back to school. I concluded my summer studies of third year Arabic at the University of Arizona with a series of reading, writing, and spoken examinations, then hopped on a plane and “high tailed” it back to my city in Virginia for about a day, before road tripping back to the lovely humid state of Florida. The change from 5% humidity in Arizona to 90% humidity in Florida is drastic but, fear not, do-able.

Turkish coffee my friend from Libya made my roommate and I while we were studying for our final Arabic exams!

Now that I am back in Florida and reunited with my beloved Keurig and seemingly endless supply of coffee and tea, I realized that Daytona Beach really does feel like home. My cozy room, blogging in the morning from bed with a cup of tea and an airport view, amazing sunsets, my favorite run loop, beach vibes. While the school year isn’t in full swing yet I’m back at RA training prepping hall decorations, door tags, and bulletin boards, and have my Orientation Retreat rolling up in only a few days too. There’s almost an entire month of preparation for new students to come in the fall and I am extremely excited.

Coffee from a cafe in Tucson

In other news I’m half way moved into my dorm room (ha). Somehow I forgot to bring hangers and haven’t had a chance to hang up any of my clothes yet… so I’m one Walmart trip or one amazon order away from being unpacked. I also omitted plants from my journey to Florida but I am in the market for some so look out for updates on that! Also my road trip from Norfolk, VA to Daytona Beach, FL with the ‘rents and my pup Kita was one for the books. Sleeping in the back seat with a sweet dog was absolutely fantastic.

My dad driving us down to Riddle, with my favorite sleeping pit bull.

To sum it up I will be continuing my Arabic studies this semester as an independent study at Riddle, which is one of the classes I’m most excited about, aside from AFROTC starting up again, and of course being an RA on the sports student hall and getting to meet my residents, and leading my Orientation group. Overall, I’m just excited for the semester to start. That’s what’s popping in my life right now. Will report back as the looming Fall Semester approaches. Keep on keeping on.

Self Care & Semester Prep Thoughts

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Happy end of July from Tucson, Arizona, from which I will shortly be migrating south for the winter back to Florida to my Daytona Beach home where RA training, Orientation Team, and AFROTC fall semester prep awaits me.

While going back to school in the fall is certainly exciting and I love being involved in so many great things on campus, I had a moment recently thinking about the future and all the obligations ahead of me… and honestly it was a little overwhelming. Then I took a step back and realized I was stressing myself out for no reason. I am where I am because I have overcome so many things and I have earned these opportunities that I sometimes refer to as “responsibilities”. 

Stopping to breathe and appreciate the Arizona clouds in monsoon season.

This blog goes out to my younger self who started college three years ago with a wild passion for trying new things, taking risks, and finding myself:

The first piece of advice I would tell my younger self, who was extremely eager to move to Florida and gain some real independence from high school life, is that while yes it’s good to get a running start and socialize and meet new people, be yourself above everything. I am naturally not very extroverted, and for some reason when I first moved to college I felt pressure that I needed to be, but in reality it was only in my head. 

College is about finding yourself and becoming more of who you are without limitations, so why was I imposing these rules of how I should act on myself? Maybe to fit in? But I learned the best part about college is you don’t have to “fit in” and I wish I would’ve realized that a lot earlier.

I spend my lunch breaks during the week eating peanut butter sandwiches laying under shady trees and listening to music with my roommate as a short break before we start afternoon office hours, tutoring, homework, and studying.

Now I suppose I am not your “conventional” college student, but really is anyone conventional? I used to dream of turning down plans on a Friday night to workout with some gal pals, do a face mask, practice yoga, read a book, and be in bed by 8pm, but I was never courageous enough to stand up for myself and do it! I always felt guilty and “obligated” to hang out with people, but I realized the stigma around being selfish and taking care of yourself is extremely blurred. You can’t be the best version of yourself if you’re burnt out and constantly running on empty. As a naturally introverted person I recharge when I am alone, and it’s important for my mental health!

Moral of the story is: Self care is SO important! I see no problem now turning down plans for self care, and I am so much happier now that I don’t make myself feel guilty for “me time”. At the end of a long, stressful, busy week it is WELL deserved to rest, and to always listen to your body (I am very guilty of this) when you start to get sick. Typically if I start to feel under the weather I go into a period of doubt where I think if I ignore my symptoms they will go away, I tell myself I’m too busy and don’t have time to be sick, but lets be real… this makes it worse! As soon as you feel yourself start to become a little under the weather, rest!

In the midst of my busy schedule I always ensure I have time to check in with myself, even if it’s just 5 minutes at the end of the day, to survey how I’m doing physically, mentally, and emotionally and to take a little time to work on those things if they’re not great. Take time for yourself in the midst of everything to breathe and check in, typically that’s when you need it most.

Arizona sunset from the top of a parking garage my roommate and I ventured to en route back to our dorms one evening.

Keep on keeping on folks! I’ll catch you back in a few weeks closer to the chaos and excitement of the new school year. Remember to be kind to others and yourself always!

Making Orientation Fun

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Every year, we welcome a new freshman class to our campus. Their first impression of campus life has to be good, and our peers who run the Orientation Team make sure of that. In addition to O-Team running orientation, the SGA and Housing & Res. Life assist in the events during that fun week. Something new for this year that I have the pleasure of working on is the big welcome video that the freshmen will see at the Welcome Ceremony. I had a blast filming and editing it. I had some assistance from ERAU Marketing (thank you!). It’s been a blast working on videos for the SGA and SESU departments on campus and I hope to make many more in the future! I hope to see all you new freshmen at the Welcome!

Sunshine & San Diego

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Happy July everyone! Also happy summer! I’m currently blogging from Tucson, Arizona with the temperatures in the 100+ everyday, typically around 108 and the intense sunshine and low humidity that accompanies the desert. 

The first semester of my third year level Arabic class has concluded with me obtaining a final grade of an A. I took a small vacation during fourth of July weekend to San Diego, California with some friends who also speak arabic, which was a great break. 

I’d never been to California before so this spontaneous road trip that began with my friends and I renting a car for the long weekend, stopping for snacks and coffee, then setting off, was so much fun. The drive from Arizona to California is only about five hours, for some that might feel like a lot, but the scenery of the desert, the mountains, and eventually the ocean, plus great music and four friends who had only met a month before was truly a wonderful adventure.

A mountain side view of the Pacific Ocean in San Diego.

We only had a few days to explore the city so we spent them at about three different beaches, Coronado, Pacific, and Imperial, watched fireworks seaside on the night of the fourth, and visited many 24 hour Mexican food places. We also briefly hiked along some coastal mountains and I thrived in all the vegan food options that San Diego had to offer. For the record, my love of chips and salsa has only increased. My favorite beach foods are now veggie pizza, apples, and chili powder covered mangoes. I commend California for satisfying my morning brunch and coffee shop needs as well. 

Sunset at the San Diego Harbor!

We also spent time in downtown San Diego exploring the harbor and all the restaurants and shops in Little Italy. Not to mention we had some quite entertaining encounters with Birds, the motorized scooters, not actual birds. They are an extremely popular form of transportation there and while they are an effective way to get around they are also so fun to play with when you’re with a group of friends. I highly encourage you to try them for the experience, if you have not.

In other news, I have just completed my first week in my second semester of third year Arabic at the University of Arizona and I have less than a month left here. My first semester flew by and while I am enjoying the nice break from studying engineering, the classes here are rigorous but definitely not as stressful, or perhaps I’ve just gotten better at managing stressful situations? Will comment more on this when school starts back up in the fall and my normal engineering and AFROTC schedule is back in full swing again.

Side note: I added some new stickers to my laptop case, a small Arizona one in the shape of the state and an Arabic one. 

My laptop case featuring two new stickers… I need to get some Riddle stickers to add to it when I get back to Florida.

The Arabic sticker says: ان مع العسر يسرا which means with every hardship comes ease.

Keep on keeping on folks and enjoy the summer, stay cool! Will report back soon!

Productivity & Priorities

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 !أهلا و سهلا

Happy June everyone! I’m currently blogging from Tucson, Arizona where the weather forecast is 100+ for as far ahead as predictable, and clouds are still a rarity, despite it being monsoon season. 

A small sample of the abundance of cacti that call Tucson home on the University of Arizona’s campus.

I am currently blogging from a shaded outdoor patio on a lovely Sunday morning at a local coffee shop. My Spotify playlist as of recently consists of Arabic music, coffeehouse study tunes, and meditation beats.

I am a week away from finishing my first month here in Arizona, aka one semester of an intensive language program. This coming week I have class two days before my final exam and then a short break for the 4th of July. 

I have found myself spending a lot of time in cafes and coffee, tea, or expresso houses as of recently, and while this is a recurring theme no matter what city I’m in, upon reflection of this I have begin to learn a bit more about myself, which leads me to my next topic (essential to college students): under the topic of time management falls the balance of prioritizing your responsibilities and effectively managing your free time.

Weekday mornings with my wing buddy typically consist of alternating places to grab coffee and breakfast.

While in Tucson studying intensely my schedule had been pretty full, but I’ve found while it’s absolutely glorious to take time to relax and unwind, I thrive in the chaos of a busy lifestyle. I find myself being most attracted to filling up my days and weeks with plans in the calendar on my phone, making daily to do lists, and even when I study or do homework I feel most productive in areas that are calm where I can buzz away at my work and get in the zone. 

Here’s a peaceful view from the pool I took the other day as the sunset over the mountains and reflected beautifully on the water.

When I’m at Riddle during the Fall and Spring semesters my favorite places to study are in my room with music, in study rooms, or in Starbucks outside. There is just something fundamentally appealing about working outside in the sunshine with technology. As I currently soak up the juxtaposition of working on my computer with the sound of cicadas in the background and the familiar universal chatter of coffee shop conversations, I find a productive home in the atmosphere that I am attracted to in every city. 

It’s so important to know yourself and find out under what circumstances you do your best work in. While this may take some time to figure out, and definitely some trial and error, the process of learning more about yourself and how to initiate prime productivity conditions is 100% worth it.

For example, certain subjects in school I prefer to study in groups, while others I prefer to work alone on. If you put a little time and effort into figuring out what atmospheres you prefer to do work in before classes get chaotic with exams and projects, it is extremely advantageous in preparation for your future self under stress during crunch time.

I wish everyone a continually relaxing and productive summer. Will report back soon. Have a happy 4th y’all!