Semester

Last week, I was supposed to share how my semester's been going. I blogged about other stuff instead. Hopefully, it's not too late to add these two cents.

So, it's no secret that I'm in the middle of my very first semester as a college student - and despite the anxiety I felt before and during my move-in, a lot of the transition has gone very well. I'm getting used to living on my own - taking care of my own chores, getting my own meals, managing my own schedule, and making sure I get enough sleep. I feel like it's easy to adapt to dorm life as long as I have all the necessities. On top of that, Woody House is a really great place to live - the best, in my opinion.

Classes are really exciting, too. I never really imagined how much college professors would transcend my teachers in high school in terms of knowledge of and enthusiasm for their chosen subject. I'm prone to falling asleep during lectures, but Professor Griffin keeps me wide awake in HIST 338. I usually don't take detailed notes, but in PSYC 210, Professor Williams practically forces me to do so. College is forcing me to exceed my old academic limits - and that's exciting.

But while I can be happy about my semester in those two respects, other things didn't go so well. The days that I spent desperately searching ISIS for an available slot in a Japanese class left me continually frustrated and a bit depressed. It took me a really long time to make friends here, too - during the first few weeks of the semester, I constantly felt alone and miserable. I once counted my iPod as my only companion.

Thankfully, much of that is changing. I did, of course, eventually find a way into a Japanese class, and I feel lucky to work with such great people on a daily basis. I hold my classmates in high regard, and unavoidably I think of our class as a family of sorts (with Sato-sensei as the quirky matron, I suppose. *laughs*). After the Activities Fair, I became active in a lot of clubs, as well, which eventually ended my days as a lone wolf. I can usually count on finding someone from CAINE or the Go club or the Shotokan Karate club at lunch or out for a walk - and that means my iPod doesn't have to keep me company so much anymore. (Oh, and I'm in three more clubs as well - and I get the chance to do amazing things in all six of them.)

I guess I'll close with some random thoughts. I'm a really big fan of our football team right now, as they've really improved after bad games against Wyoming and Duke. Supporting the Cavaliers on the field has done a lot to boost my school spirit in general. On the other hand, I was really excited to meet people from other parts of the world, but I haven't gotten to know any りゅうがくせい as well as I would like. The cultural barriers are... more intimidating than I thought, especially in groups. (Case in point: I'm part of Japan Club, but I don't know a single Japanese person yet.) Also, in general, Charlottesville and UVA are much bigger and more diverse than my tiny little hometown, so my head is constantly spinning and I'm not always sure what to do or who to talk to or where to go next.

Oh, and now midterms are coming up. I hope I can study responsibly... I'm worried that I won't get anything done because I'll be distracted by manga or video games.