Test Drive: Life in the Fast Lane

It has been seven years (and several weeks) since I walked across the stage at the Civic Auditorium in Omaha, Nebraska to accept my degree from the Midwest’s top rated private university (according to US News and World Report), Creighton University. Although I value my CU education, and still write checks to support the fine basketball team (Go Jays!), there are some things I wish I would have known then that I know now.

1. The freshman fifteen may not hit until after graduation, and then it may turn into the post-grad 40.

I wish I had gained the 15 lbs as a freshman. Then I might have been able to lose the weight when I still had a metabolism that didn’t add on five pounds after a large meal. The beer and pizza diet was completely offset by the dance every night at the clubs regime. Now if I look at a bottle of beer, it’s on my hips. If I smell the aroma of oozing, delicious mozzarella, I might as well unbutton my jeans.

2. No one cares where you got your degree, just that you got it.

I have friends who make more money than me that went to public universities. It is more important to have a well-rounded education at any school that put an Ivy League stamp on your degree. Although I value education more than anything, a Harvard-bound status either tells me that you are rich or were smart in high school, nothing about how you are in college until you prove it. Some of the most brilliant people I know were D students in high school, and they rocked the books in college. Your education is what you make of it.

3. You may not meet your future spouse in college, and that is OK.

Have fun! Discover yourself, date, and live a little. Don’t get tied down. I met my future spouse while I was in college, but we did not start dating until a few months after graduation. I was too busy having fun with all the wrong guys. I could be wrong, but I have a feeling if we would have settled down with each other before I let my hair down and dated different types of guys, I never would have realized that my type was right in front of me in the form of my best friend the whole time.

4. The dorms are the best place to live.

Readily available food on a meal plan, access to homework help, parties, hot guys, and tons of friends. I only lived in the dorms for a year, but even with all the girl drama on my floor (aka the 7^th North Army), it was a sweet deal. When I decided to get an apartment with a friend a year older than me the next year, I was faced with more grocery shopping, housework, and driving than necessary. The dorms were disguised as independence, but in reality a nice transition from home to college life.

5. Take Spanish!

I took a Spanish placement test during summer orientation, and passed it with flying colors. No required Spanish for me! If I had looked through my futuristic glasses, I would have known how valuable it would have been for me to continue to study Spanish. I have lost a lot of my Spanish, and I always encourage my students to remember that Spanish is our country’s second language, like it or not, and it is a great asset when applying for any job.

6. Some professors get off on making you miserable.

Writing “your class was a crock” (one of my senior polisci professor’s favorite phrases) on an evaluation is probably unnecessary and will only put another feather in his or her cap. Don’t sweat it, and if you decide to go into the education field, don’t repeat the pattern.

7. Some professors truly are there to help you.

College professors are much different than most high school teachers. Some faculty will be closer to your age, and although you should always maintain professional relationships, they know some of the obstacles you are going to face as a college student in and outside the classroom. After a particularly grueling break up with one of the “wrong” guys, I completely spaced off doing a theology assignment. I realized it the night before and wrote a bogus, barely researched piece about who knows what. I decided I would talk to my professor, and she was remarkably kind, letting me take an extra day to work on it after I assured her this would not happen again. And it didn’t, in her class or any other class. Empathy is hard to find, but if you are honest, you may be surprised.

Final thoughts. . .

College is an amazing experience, and although it sounds cliché, I learned more outside of the classroom than in it. Joining the newspaper staff changed my life. I made amazing friends that I still keep in touch with. I got to write about things I was passionate about like diversity on campus and local music. I also was able to go beyond my comfort zone as the assistant sports editor. Even though I don’t have an athletic bone in my body, writing about the Bluejays awakened a passion for basketball that had been tucked away since the days of Michael Jordan and World Championship Chicago Bulls. Try new things, get outside your circle, and remember . . .things are going to happen that you don’t expect.