Life Lesson I've Learned from Glee

Life is Too Short to Stress

We all know that familiar feeling of the week before finals. UGHHHHHHH. That's how I feel about it. In some ways, I act like Rachel Berry. I can't sing or dance, but I can worry about useless things. I, like Miss. Berry, am an over-thinker. Today's dilemma: Whether or not I should force myself to read for a class if I hate the assigned book. Now, I know what you're thinking: Get over it, it's part of college to hate the assigned books, just shutup and do it. But here's my defense: I really hate this book. So in order to put off reading the book, I called my mom to complain about how hard my life as a college student is.
"Mom, my life is so hard. I have so much homework," I said.
"Well, you're almost done," she said.
"No. You don't understand. I have so much work."
"Nat, I do understand. Everyone else has a lot of work, too. If you had that much work, you'd be doing it right now instead of calling me to complain about it."

Good point, mom.

That phone call put things into perspective for me. Instead of wasting time bitching about homework, I need to just shut up and do it. To avoid the stress of homework and finals, focus on something good.

Last week, my roommate got a kitten. Before I start my homework, I play with Lilly to relieve stress. I've also realized that everyone needs someone (for me, it's my mom) to have the balls to tell you to get over yourself. Thanks, mom.

Here's what Lilly looks like:

Life Lesson I've Learned from Glee

Sometimes the Old is Better Than the New


This coming Tuesday is the new episode of Glee! Finally. It's been a long couple weeks without one. But I've been easing my pain by watching the old episodes (life without Blaine is just dull), when I realized something: I was actually enjoying the old stuff. This got me thinking...

I always overlook my old stuff. Always. I overlook things that I've done or had for awhile because I get bored. But I know that sometimes, things that are old are better than the new. This leads me to my best friend Sam.

In two weeks I'm graduating college, and like most soon-to-be grads, I'm scared. I'm leaving all my friends behind and going back home. At first, I thought there is nothing for me at home anymore. Then I realized: Sam. She has been my best friend since 9th grade and has been there for me through everything. When she left UPG two years ago, I cried.
"You'll be fine," she said. "Trust me. You'll make new friends."
And I did. Sam is the kind of friend who is the voice of reason. When my boyfriend and I broke up and I didn't want to get out of bed, Sam was there.
"Just get it together. Don't worry about him," she said.

Sam will be there for me when I go back home. And although I've made new friends and had new experiences, I'm excited to go back to something that's old.

PA Budget Cuts: What Does This Mean for Us?

As we all (should) know by now, Republican Gov. Tom Corbett proposed budget cuts for PA universities beginning July 1. For college students across PA, this cut will be detrimental to our education. So what exactly does this potential cut mean for us? According to the Wall Street Journal.com, http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704758904576188633406924322.html, this means that state funding for universities will be cut by 52%, which will result in higher tution, less open teaching positions in colleges, limited classes, and pay freezes.

I am one of thousands of Pitt students with a story.

 I, like many students at Pitt-Greensburg, am a first-generation college student from a hard working family. Both of my parents work full-time and have put me through college by doing so. As the first family member to be a graduate of college, I value education. I'll be going to Pitt next year for a teaching program so that I can (hopefully) teach in a Pittsburgh school within the next two years.

Yesterday I was standing outside my Literature class when two girls walked past me carrying books.
"I can't come back next year if tuition goes up," one said.
"Neither can I. I already have two jobs and I can't imagine getting a third," the other said.

Is education a privilege for only those that can afford it?

With a majority of Repulicans in the Senate, Corbett's cuts stand a good chance of succeeding.

As a part of Corbett's proposed plan, teachers across PA will be laid off, and those that aren't will be taking pay freezes. This makes me reconsider my career choice. Will I have to move out of PA and leave my friends and family behind because jobs, especially teaching positions, are few and far between?

The world is in a bad place right now. And I don't see it getting better anytime soon.

How does this relate to Glee? It doesn't.

Life Lesson I've Learned from Glee

Life is Funny. Don't Take it Too Seriously.

It took me a long time to be able to laugh at life. Let's be honest, 9 times out of 10, our day to day life is hilarious. And I'm not just talking about actual funny things, like having fun with friends and being drunk. But if you really look at the things that you once thought were serious, you'll probably laugh at them now. Here are my funny things that I realized this week:

-Professor Jakiela told us one time to pay attention to signs that are meant to be serious, but are actually really funny. Today, I saw a huge sign outside that said: "Don't Fall In." It was posted over a patch of wet grass from the recent storms, but it was hilarious. What a great sign to see first thing in the morning. Story of my life: "Don't Fall In."

-I came across an old picture of me in high school today (thank you, Facebook), and I cringed. Those awkward high school years are traumatic (for most of us) to think about. And this relates well to Glee. What seemed like a huge deal in high school, such as what color eyeshadow you had on, if your braces made you look ugly, etc. is funny to think about now. In fact, I can't believe I wasted so much time worried about stupid things. In order to pay tribute to those awful high school years, I found a website with pictures of the Glee actors from high school. It's comforting to know everyone is awkward sometime in their life. Here is a sample of what I found:

For the whole collection, click here:
http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fomg.yahoo.com%2Fphotos%2Fglee-high-school-photo-flashback%2F4715%2F1&h=98e5aIWTYJCdIf1yILK84CW-EBw

Life Lesson I've Learned from Glee

The Road to Victory Isn't easy, but It's Worth It.

With the season finale of Glee this past week (ugh, I don't want to talk about it), we have to wait  for a month to see our favorites come back. However, the finale was a good one, and New Directions won regionals and beat the two competitive teams (one of which was coached by the evil Sue). This proves that after a long year and tons of hard work, the underdogs came out on TOP! How does this relate to real life, you ask?

  

Well, after four exhausting years, I'm graduating in less than a month! Like so many of my peers who are currently experiencing this same excitement and fear, it is only because of our hard work that we have made it to this point. We, like the Glee team, have reached the end of a very, very, very long road.

Life Lesson I've Learned from Glee

Most of the Time, Your Parents are Right
      
"Sean is no good for you," my dad said one night at dinner.
"You don't know that," I said. I looked across the table to my mother, who had her eyes down.

I hate to admit it, but my parents are usually right about most things. Growing up, I thought I knew everything. So when my dad told me he didn't like my boyfriend of four years, I shrugged my shoulders and walked away.

"You're in an unhealthy relationship," he said one say when Sean and I got into a fight because I wanted to go skiing and he didn't. After an explosive argument and a semi-breakup, I convinced myself it was just a "normal" couple fight.

After four years and one ugly break up due to the fact that our relationship was in fact unhealthy, I realized my parents knew it long before I did. Now, when my mom and dad try to tell me something, I listen and take advice.

Life Lesson I've Learned from Glee

Be Happy. Someone Somewhere Has It Worse Than You Do.
          The Summer That Changed My Life

"It will be good for you," my mom said one afternoon.

It was the summer before I went to high school. At 14-years old, my thoughts were consumed by boys, dances, and how to apply makeup. My best friend Nicole saw an advertisement for a summer camp for Special Education students and wanted to volunteer.

"No. No way," I said. I planned on going to the pool, laying in the sun, and reading the latest issue of Seventeen all summer. But after much convincing, Nicole and I signed up in May for a volunteer session at Camp Shining Arrow.

For more information on Camp Shining Arrow, click here: http://www.ncpad.org/programs/index.php?id=3309&country=&state=Pennsylvania&city=Pittsburgh

Camp Shining Arrow is a summer camp for mentally challenged adults that experience severe difficulties functioning in day-to-day activities. I had had no experience working with these adults, and I was scared.Camp was from 9am until 5pm, Monday through Friday. We were assigned partners with one of the campers and were responsible for feeding, playing, and watching out for them throughout the day.

 When I met Henry, I didn't know how to react. He was a 32-year old man with severe Down Syndrome and could not even feed himself. I had to feed him his ham sandwich on the first day of camp.

"No. I not eat that," he said from his wheelchair, as he pushed the sandwich away.

"Please, Henry. Just eat some," I said. I was unfamiliar with what to do or say.

"Ok," he said. He took a large bite of the sandwich and chewed it.

The next thing I knew, Henry had taken the chewed up sandwich from his mouth and flung it in my hair. After several minutes of trying not to cry and some promises to Nicole about never returning back to the camp, I realized that I needed to be patient with Henry. I learned more in that summer at Camp Shining Arrow than I had any other summer of my life.