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on soulmates

f. scott fitzgerald / friedrich nietzsche / florence and the machine / andrea dworkin / kiersten white / euripides / audre lorde / phillip pullmann / bob hicok

An Overview of Note-Taking Styles

Note-taking is one of the most essential skills a student should master. It allows you to record and review information to be used in the future. But what’s the best way to do so? Here’s an overview of note-taking styles that can help you maximize your learning!

was on a call w my friend today, and she mentioned something so beautiful i might cry: she said that people often wait for birthdays and holidays to express their love for their friends. but she doesn't. she feels that everyone's existence should be celebrated every damn day. life's too short. just too unpredictable and short.

a few tips for the new semester

after a pretty intense exam session and a few days of rest i am ready for the new semester, which for me starts tomorrow. here are some things i did to make its start a little smoother! they aren’t only applicable to semester start though, you can use them basically whenever

make sure you have all (or most of) your materials gathered - textbooks, any necessary handouts and printables, as well as stationery. as a stationery nerd i was sure i would have nothing to worry about, only to find out i ran out of whiteout tape. checking inventory won’t do any harm and can save some stress

test your connection - you can use an internet speedmeter or even do a video call with your friend to check where the data transfer is fastest. because of that method i moved my desk and suddenly my online class experience improved tenfold!!

try new routines - being inside so much has made my life pretty monotonous, so i decided to introduce some variety and change my routine. trying out new ones made me realise that i can actually be a morning person if i want to! now i wake up early and have more time for myself

state your goals - simply write them down or tell them to the mirror. put it out there in the universe and know what you want! they don’t have to be big goals, but know what you want to achieve in the upcoming weeks/months. (for me, i want to be able to place a coffee order in welsh confidently and do all my readings on time)

clear out your e-mail - oh, emails. the most dreaded thing at uni. i don’t know about you, but my faculty loves sending a bunch of unnecessary emails right before the new semester. to prepare for that, i deleted/opened all the earlier messages. that way i know exactly how many notifications are actually relevant and i don’t get overwhelmed by hundreds of unopened spam messages when the notifications are pinging.

i hope you have a great spring semester, regardless of the time it starts/started!!! remember to stay hydrated and look away from your screen every once in a while

anyone else grieving & mourning & lamenting & kicked apart by nostalgia & going silently about their lives?

a uni survival guide: tips from a phd

if there's one thing i know about, it's college. i've done it, i've taught it, i've lived and breathed it. these tips are for first years in particular, but honestly for everybody. i think it's so important for people to have balanced lives in these years -- academics are not everything. you know what didn't help me in the real world when i was afraid i wouldn't live through it? my fancy college note-taking format. you know what did help me? the friends i made there who i knew would get on a plane and fly across the country in a matter of hours if i told them i needed them.

academic

- figure out where class is held ahead of time: don't be that kid who's late on day one, i beg of you

- use the writing center: especially for basic grammatical editing, which a lot of professors don't have time to mark on papers

- speak up in class: talking through ideas helps you work through them, and asking questions about something you don't understand can open up great lines of conversation

- find a regular schedule that works for you and stick to it: my college schedule was morning free time, class, lunch, class, practice, homework. that consistency was a life-saver

- keep a planner: it's so important to have a central place to track deadlines, assignments, and engagements

- annotate your reading: when you're stressing about a paper topic, being able to go back to what you've highlighted and written in the margins is a life-saver

- color-code your coursework: i use the same color highlighter, pen, and notebook for any given class. it's super helpful

- if you can't focus while studying with friends, don't: i reserved group studying for days when i didn't have important work because i can't be in a room with other people without talking to them. if your school has one, the quiet floor of the library is your best friend

- treat yourself to a "fun" class: art was always my place to just sit back and chill, a way to end the night all zen in the darkroom instead of conjugating russian verbs in a fluorescent-lit cinderblock prison. for you, it could be gym, it could be pottery, it could be some random course about, like, the history of cooking or something -- explore!

- profs are people too: don't be too nervous around them. also, know that if you're struggling -- even b/c of something in your personal life -- you can admit it, and they'll almost always understand why you missed a deadline or bombed a test

- go to office hours: it's the only way to get to know professors in big courses, and it's so helpful for both your grades and learning how to navigate relationships with authority figures

social

- don't let academia keep you from your friends: it's a case-by-case basis, but sometimes it's okay to let the reading slide and spend time with friends. i graduated seven years ago and my college group text still talks every day. that's so much more important to me than the fact that i never finished brideshead revisited

- joining a club is one of the best ways to make friends: i played ultimate frisbee through college and it was the source of so many lasting relationships, as well as the way i met all my local friends when i was abroad

- say yes to things you don't know if you'll like: you'll surprise yourself. me? turns out i love drinking games. and theme parties. and skinny dipping. and rock climbing

- don't be that person who looks down on their peers for partying: honestly? that person kind of sucks. you don't have to party if you don't want to, but actually, a lot of those people are super nice and also good at school -- don't just write them off!

- show up for your friends: go to their games, their concerts, their art shows, their standup nights. show them that what matters to them matters to you, too

- set aside a night to do a group activity with others: whether your vibe is wednesday night trivia, a weekly "terrible movie" showing, or a get-high-and-watch-nature-documentaries-type thing, these are great ways to liven up the week and de-stress

- this is a great time to figure out who from high school really matters to you: you don't have to force relationships that were built mostly on convenience if there are friends at uni with whom you click more. people you became friends with purely based on the coincidence of where your parents lived do not have to be your forever friends. they can be! but they don't have to be

personal

- don't expect too much of yourself: a 4.0 is not the end-all, be-all. if your family or somebody tells you it is, tell them to call me, and i will personally talk some sense into them

- take advantage of university support services: mental health counseling, free yoga classes, multi-cultural societies, etc

- drink water: please, please don't get kidney stones in the middle of the semester, says the girl who got kidney stones in the middle of the semester

- let yourself take breaks: if you need to lie to a professor and say you're sick when really you're just feeling down and you need to sit in bed and watch a movie, that's totally valid

- don't freak about individual assignments: my students come to me freaking over a B+ and i tell them, honey, no job interviewer is ever going to ask you about your second paper from communications 101. i wish i'd known that

- go see speakers if there's someone interesting coming to campus: these talks are always cooler than you expect. i'll never get over the fact that i didn't go see anita hill when she came to my undergrad

- do your laundry on the same night every week: i can't explain why this is so helpful but it really is

- keep up on the news and the memes: read the school paper, the school blog, the memes page -- college politics and inside jokes are fun and convoluted and fascinating

- set the groundwork for long-term self-care: all of the above is really just to say -- university isn't just for learning about the french revolution, it's also about learning how to balance, how to handle failure, how to ask for help, how to make a salad that doesn't totally suck, etc

someday i will live in a home where there are no sad stories within the walls. i can leave my door open and never worry about who may wander in. pieces of me will be everywhere, not just my bedroom. my books in the living room and my candle on the bathroom counter. a table where everyone is fed and loved and no one has to hold their tongue. if i open the windows there is no chance of all the peace escaping with the breeze because there is peace to spare. the war is left on the welcome mat. i will not need to lock my door because i can trust that anyone who comes knocking just wants to know what we should eat for dinner, just wants to show me something on the tv, just wants to say hi and see my face and hear my voice. maybe the fear will never leave. some things you simply can’t put down so long as your body remembers. but there is peace to spare. i will light the candle and read the book and leave my door open, and someone will stop by just to see my face and hear my voice.

Before Sunrise (Richard Linklater, 1995)

MY health tips!!

You’ve been a lot to ask me about health and fitness tips so here are mine! 

Of course, I’m not a doctor (yet :P) nor a personal trainer but I’ve been working out for 3 straight years now and I’ve acquired a bit of knowledge about health and fitness. This article will only be about food and I’ll post soon another one about fitness!! 

Hope you enjoy :) 

Mental health first : food is good for your body. If you start being afraid of it, or if eating gives you anxiety or if you do anything that could make you think of an eating disorder, please seek help. I see tons of pro-ana blogs here on Tumblr and THIS IS NOT OK. I know, I’m not you but the only thing I can do is try to help and the only way for me to do so is to tell you that you’re not alone, you are loved, and it’s totally normal to need help. Please don’t stay in your dark thoughts. Feel free to message me if you want to talk. 

Try to stay away from refined sugar, processed and fatty foods. They’ll just make you feel bad and are just empty calories! You’ll end up by eating more and more because of your insulin spikes! 

You don’t really need oil. If you want to include healthy fats in your diet, -and you have to- make sure they come from nuts or avocados instead of liquid oils. Oil is basically fat juice with all the vitamins and fiber removed. Plus, you have no idea how quick you can transform your healthy salad into a super caloric one just by adding oil to it!

You don’t have to eat breakfast if you’re not hungry in the morning. But make sure you bring something healthy with you if you’re going to work / school so you don’t fall for the vending machine. 

Try to include protein at each meal, but remember that unless you’re a bodybuilder you don’t have to eat 200 grams of protein per day! 80g is more than sufficient. Also, try to add more vegetal sources of protein to your diet, like beans, whole grains, and nuts. The animals, the planet, and especially your body will thank you for that.

Fiber. Everyone seems super worried about their protein intake when an actual protein deficiency is really rare. What is more common instead is the lack of fiber in our diet. Fibers are so important to keep your gut and body healthy (lack of fiber is actually one of the main causes of colorectal cancer!!). Foods that contain more fiber are fruits, veggies, and whole grains.

If you want to lose weight, a simple trick is to put fewer fats and carbs a bit on your plate and add more veggies instead. Veggies will help you to feel fuller and are also the best source of fiber (you’ll poop more often and eat less so it’s a win-win situation :D ) 

However, don’t forget that carbs are important. Yes, ditching carbs from your diet will make you lose weight (especially because you also eliminate the water that was retained because of the carbs) but they are our main source of energy. Your body will crave carbs when you stop eating them!! Just try to eat more whole carbs like brown rice, quinoa, whole wheat pasta, etc.

Drink more water, but not too much. Just make sure that your urine is light yellow and not dark (but if your urine is almost transparent it means you’re drinking too much and losing precious minerals in your urine!!) Also remember that if you’re adding more fiber to your diet, make sure you drink more (hello constipation!!)

Snack on healthy foods like fruits or trail mix or hummus (I’ll post something about healthy snacks to eat whilst studying soon!)  

Simple tip, if you don’t want to eat unhealthy foods at your house, just don’t buy them

Eat slower so you’ll feel satisfied by eating less

Ditch sodas. They are really terrific in terms of hidden sugars. Even sugar-free sodas are evil. They make your teeth weaker, make you more hungry and most of the time the gas retained inside will make you feel bloated. If you don’t like drinking water, try to prepare a bottle of water with lemon, or berries in it and put it in the fridge! Or try drinking more tea (without sugar)!

For your own sanity, allow yourself cheat meals. Keep them for special occasions like when you’re out with your friends or in vacations, just don’t make it an everyday habit! It’s normal to crave ice cream and burgers, and of course, you can have them sometimes!

So just remember that these are my personal tips, and you may not approve them and it’s ok. In the end, the most important thing is to keep a balanced diet and lifestyle no matter what you prefer :) 

I hope these tips will actually help you! 

I’ll come back soon with an article about fitness and another with healthy and vegan snacks to try when studying :) 

STUDYGRAM