I’m talking about your social security number.

It’s a very important number to know if you are an American student leaving home for college. If you want to go to the doctor or need to go to the ER, chances are, you are going to be asked for your number. It’s a good idea to memorize it before you leave home.

Passport. Do you have one? Do you know where it is? Start talking to mom and dad about where they keep your imporant documents. If you want to be treated like an adult, start acting like one. Know your information.

If you are an international student and may have an address in the states where you want your mail sent, including bills, know the address by heart!

Are your forms all filled out? Are you sure? If you own your own car, where are the documents for it? Have copies of all your important information. Life happens, and you want to be prepared! Show your parents that you know what you are doing, or at least taking charge of your life. Mom and Dad aren’t always going to be around with all the answers when you need them, so it is a good idea to sit them down and ask them questions.

Where do they want you go to in case of a hurricane? What is your health insurance company? If your car breaks down on the side of the road, does your car insurance cover the tow to the shop? How far do they tow?

Then the big stuff for college students! Where’s the money coming from! How much money are your parents willing to give you each month or week to spend. Think about things you will have to spend money on each month like clothes, special food, bills, gas for your car, dues for greek life, etc. Growing up and being on your own means having to keep track of all your money.

Just a few things to think about. Talk to your parents before you leave college!

My mother just left yesterday for Iraq and this time, she made her flight! Yah! So what happens when Mommy leaves? The house falls apart! I woke up at 5 am to find that my cat was throwing up all over the house and was screaming in pain. Right now he’s sleeping which is wonderful since I haven’t gotten any real sleep! Then a huge water bug ran under my bed. Oh my gosh. I ran for my life! I jumped on the couch and that was the end of that! I found out this morning that the water bugs are taking over our building. Oh, that’s a comfort.

Right now, I’m playing mommy and rushing around my house trying to get everything ready for Krystal’s trip to the emergency room.

Next post, what to bring to college! I’m so excited to surf the web and find things that are good ideas for a college dorm room! So stay tuned!!!

So I just got a phone call from my mom saying that she showed up so late that they refused to check her on the flight… so she missed her flight. Oh boy. This is crazy! So now this is going to be a big problem. A big big problem. This could get complicated.

To be continued…

I just got back home from dropping my mom off at the airport. Of course we were so late getting there and it became a mad rush. My mom’s bag was at least, AT LEAST 20 pounds over the limit. Haha. I feel bad for the sucker who has to pick it up.

So now my mom is on a 14 hour flight to Jordan, and I have a wonderful condo all to myself! My condo! YES! But now I have a ton of new rules and stuff to do. Of course my mom didn’t just leave, she left me with a long list of stuff to do until school gets out. This is some how bitter sweet.

Now, what is going to be the first rule broken?

….Just joking Mom!

My mother and I drove up on Friday night, Saturday morning, to Philadelphia to see my family before she goes. I had no idea that seeing my family was going to be such a challenge!Not only were there mattresses on I95, a whole bunch of them, there were cones all up and down the road. It was pretty crazy. One moment, there was a mattress in the road and then a minute later there was another one ripped in half. The police were trying to pick them all up and put them on the side of the road, out of the way of traffic, and boy was it a challenge.

Then there were the flying cones! Just cones everywhere. We could not understand what was going on. We finally made it to my Grandmother’s house and I ran to bed. I woke up to find out my mother talked my Grandmother to sleep. Lol.

Sunday we went shopping for all the things that Mom needs when she gets to Iraq on Tuesday and that took hours. At least I got new clothes for school, which I am very excited about!

I had lunch at my grandfather’s house today. It was a great to see him and just have a relaxing lunch at his house. Miss Rae made a huge salad and was forcing huge mounds on all of us. It was hard to eat everything. I was so full I passed out on the day bed.

I have been truly irked by something since I’ve been home. My stupid phone! Not only have people been calling me after 9pm, which is a great insult in my family, but they get upset that I don’t have time to talk to them! I was so happy to see my grandfather but then it got overshadowed by a bunch of people calling and texting, then upset because I would rather spend time talking to my family than text them. I finally turned off my cell phone and was through with it, but later found out that my father was trying to call me. I was really upset when I found that out. I didn’t get the chance to see my dad because my phone was off and my mom’s was to far away she didn’t hear hers.

I still don’t understand why people wouldn’t respect the fact that I was with my family, who I only get to see every few months, if I’m lucky, normally it’s once a year, and then they have the nerve to get upset with me!

I can tell I am my mother’s daughter because I get upset when people call before 9 am and after 9 pm. To me, it is truly rude and shows great disrespect for some one’s house hold, which I think this problem arisen with the creation of cell phones. I got so upset tonight that I just turned it off. Its bad enough the thing never stopped ringing and beeping today.

I’ve had to turn that thing off twice today because it would not hush! I can’t sleep now since it had rang twice while I was sleeping and so now I’m up which totally sucks because my mom and I are driving back to DC at 5 am. I am so not looking forward to that drive, but we have to be back in DC first thing in the morning. My mom has a meeting at like 8 am and then she is getting packed out at around noon. Tomorrow is my last night with my mom before she goes to
Iraq. I think the cell phone finds a new setting, off.

So a few days ago, my mom’s car broke down on the way to dinner with some old family friends. We some how make it to the place by coasting for like a mile and, had a wonderful dinner and then had to call AAA to tow the car back to the house. Talk about stressful! We road home in the tow truck which shook most of the time and made me nervous the whole way home.

So now we are renting a car for the week. Of course our car broke down right when we really needed it! I just got back from a trip to West Virginia last night. I had fun but I wasn’t there for long. I went for a really cool driving course that challenges the driver to do all kinds of wild turns and spins. I had a blast, but after 6 hours of hard driving, I came home and slept for 12 hours… maybe more.

Ahh, it’s good to be home. Tomorrow I’m taking the cats to the vet, the fat one is getting a hair cut. lol. This could get interesting.

It’s the middle of the night and I’m about to talk about something that most people don’t ever speak of in public. The dark side of the first few weeks of college.

I remember my first few weeks of college feeling alone and confused. Why wasn’t I always happy to be free and running around like it seemed to be on every TV show and in brochures? I remember nights where I just wanted to run away from Lynn, to just go home to what I knew and understood.

I think this is really a big problem for international students. I’m American. I was born here, but I feel so much like a stranger because I spent 15 years overseas representing a country I never really lived in. I felt out of my element and just wanted to run back to what I knew. Not necessarily my house and back to my mother, but back to my comfort zone.

I think that is why Cristina and I are so close now. We met during that period of time where we just wanted to get away from this new crazy world. I felt 20 times better once I knew I was not the only one feeling the way I was feeling.

Some students cry each night. Some cry all day long. Others try and drink their problems away or get high. I used to get so upset that I would just hide in my room and just scheme at how I could get away from Lynn, even if it was for a day.

At one point, I started saving my money so I could buy a plane ticket to anywhere but Florida. All the new stress was overwhelming. Mom wasn’t there to fix anything and I felt like if I wasn’t happy my first few weeks, then I wasn’t ready for college.

I started to hate my mom for making me stay at Lynn. Cristina was always fighting with her family that she wanted to leave. The girls on my floor were always yelling at their parents late at night the first few weeks that they wanted to leave or they couldn’t handle it. Something was always wrong and panic was everywhere a freshmen could be found.

Seeing the upperclassmen was not much of a help. They always seemed to be so happy and set into their routine that it felt impossible to believe that they had once felt what I was feeling.

So what changed? I made friends and started talking about my feelings. I was open with my professors about how I was feeling so that they knew I was having a hard time adjusting to college life. I had made three great friends that helped me get through my first year. I ate lunch and dinner with them. I walked to class with them. I talked to them about everything. We supported each other through all the struggles.

I think about six to eight weeks into college, I started to truly fall in love with Lynn. I started to see the beauty of college. I started to enjoy my classes and having my own space. I had my car by that point so I could get off campus. I started watching movies in Eric’s room, eating lunch with Cristina, and dinner with Rob. We started our own traditions which I miss now. Good news, go to the movies or order dinner. Bad news or a horrible day, ice cream at cold stone. I went on drives with Eric to just get out, went for Wendy’s fast food with Rob when I was depressed, and late night walks with Cristina when neither of us could sleep.

I started my own life. I wasn’t part of someone else’s plan for the first time in my life which I think is why it was so scary. No one was telling me what I should be doing, it was all up to me. I was discovering a lot about myself. Things like, I think dorm rooms feel so sterile like a hospital because there are no plants or pets. I’ve always had cats around me so not having my two little angels was strange. I had to call my mom to tell her about my day, not when she got home from work. I got to pick my future. I was discovering me, and let me tell you, it is scary getting to know yourself.

It’s ok to be scared. Terrified is more like it. Lol. I think I spent so much time looking forward to leaving home and getting away from my mom that I lost sight in the fact that in reality, your parents drop you off and say good bye to you. They leave a teenager and then you are supposed to turn around and suddenly become an adult. Frankly, we are all still little kids running around trying to learn how to be an adult. Why do you think I’m always saying that being an adult is hard?

So what’s my advice? Blast some music and dance in your dorm room. If your RA comes knocking, tell her that you are stressed and trying to learn how to be an adult. Find comfort food. Make friends that you can talk to about what you are going through because they are feeling it too. Play hookie every once in a while. Call home and tell your parents that college isn’t what you thought it was going to be, that it isn’t all fun and games. Tell mom about the hard biology professor or dad about how you can’t seem to get anything to make your room feel like home. Kick a soccer ball around. Sing, do whatever you have to to get through those first few weeks. They are rough.

I have so many people to thank for helping me get through those first weeks. I went to Stefano’s office near tears telling him that I wanted to leave and he calmed me down and informed me of all the great things about being at Lynn. He made me stick it out a little longer. Rich the RD who is always more than happy to give advice and lend an ear or two. My poor mother had to deal with who knows how many calls of me demanding to let me come home.

Listen, next year, I don’t have any classes on Friday. I’m going to make that the day that freshmen can come to me and talk about what they are going through. You don’t have to feel alone. I’ve done it and it was hard and scary. Find me around campus, and stop me to talk. We can get coffee at Christine’s or have lunch in the caf. How many times did I wish to have someone to talk those first few weeks! Stop me, stop any of the bloggers, they are totally cool, understanding, and best of all, they’ve been there! It’s ok to be…. It’s ok! Scared, angry, terrified, traumatized, lol.

They say that it only gets harder each year, but I think it can only get better. I am so excited about my second year. I have the best roommates in the world. I’m going to be surrounded by my friends and Michelle is moving into the dorms! I miss Lynn so much right now, you have no idea.

So keep emailing me at manderson5@email.lynn.edu and know that once back at school, I’m always there to help. Come talk to me, or just ask me questions, even if it is to find out what building you are standing in, hehe.

I love summer vacation. I spend my evenings reading books until I can’t hold them up any longer. Jana would be proud. lol. I brought almost $200 worth of books a few days ago. I’m starting to think I spend more time deep in a book than I do in the real world. My cat Krystal thinks I’m reading to him so he comes and sits next to me all night until I put the book down.

Since my mother’s graduation, we’ve been spending a lot of mother daughter time together. She started her Iraq training yesterday and comes home with wild stories. I must say, my favorite one is when a woman crashed her SUV and it rolled a few times. When rescue found her she was unconscious and they had to remove her clothes. Well, the guy wasn’t the smartest guy in the world and thought he would take her pulse from the opposite side of her then he was standing and well, she woke up. She beat him so badly, she put HIM in the hospital! *cracks up* She woke up confused and found herself naked and with some strange man over her and whooped him good.

Moral of that story, talk to the person you are trying to save or they might wake up and kick your butt. Lol. Apparently, hearing is the last to go so it is important to talk to a trama person even if they aren’t awake and screaming at you. Hehe.

Cristina seems to be having a ton of fun in Spain. We still talk as much as possible each week but I really can’t wait for her to get back to the states so we are closer in time diff. This whole 8 hours is really not working for us! I keep changing my facebook status to “Spain needs to give me back Cristina” or something along those lines.

*gets email and yells at mother* “MOM! I’m in the same room as you! Stop emailing me!” I swear, and they say children don’t listen. My mother is on the phone and she is emailing me. *shakes head* She used to text me that dinner was ready when normal mothers would just yell at the stairs. I kind of miss the traditional style of calling for your kids. You know, before cell phones and emails.

Alright, I’m off to download some more music and plan when I’m going to do my homework for some online courses I signed up for. I couldn’t just stay still all summer.

Oh and next month I’m working on Sigma Care Packages. I’m so excited. First got to get mom ready for Iraq, than I can work on stuff for the next school year! Ahhh… one year down!

My mom had her graduation yesterday. She was studying for her Graduate this year and the family came from everywhere to see her graduate. My Aunt Zena, Grandmother, Grandfather,  and my Great Aunt Oquilla came from all over the US for my mothers big day. 

I spent two days running around trying to make sure everyone was happy and keep the peace so now I’m tired! I kept my mouth shut and didn’t turn into a wise mouth which normally gets me in trouble. As my family and friends know, I can be very sarcastic and what my grandmother calls a “whipper Snapper”, what ever that means.

My mother’s class was HUGE! 700 people! My gosh, it never ended! It was a blur of people until they got to my mothers section. To my surprise, my grandmother cheered the loudest. I just looked at my aunt is disbelief and she was like what? That’s grandma for you. That tiny lady sure has some lungs!

After it was over and my grandfather had about 200 photos covering 5 minutes, my mother who of course knows everyone, had to introduce us to the whole class. Again, another blur of people. Of course they all said the one thing I can’t stand to hear, you look just like your mother! AHHHH!

I look so much like my mother that I can’t walk down the street in some cities. I have been stopped on the street or in buildings by strangers asking my name and then hugging me, telling me that they knew who I was form the moment I walked in the room. I’m starting to think I’m a clone.

Well its the next day and most of the family is gone. The only one that has stayed behind is my Aunt Zena. I’m so excited! I love hanging out with her and shopping with her. She totally understands me. We are going book shopping tomorrow and clothes shopping. My mom is happy to have her baby sister here and I’m thrilled to have my aunt.

Today, the three of us went to go see The Happening. It was pretty good. Now we are chilling at the house, trying to agree on a movie to watch with dinner and where we should go shopping first tomorrow.

Alright, I’m off to dinner with my family!

I’m home. It’s fantastic! Although, my mother ditched me for Africa. Lovely, but I still have my cats, the condo, her car, and TV! Its a mini party in here! The cats are thrilled, I have a ton of good food stocked up in the fridge. Everything is perfect! Now all I have to do is wait for my mother to get home so I can pretend like she didn’t ditch me the day before Mother’s Day.

Oh ya, I’m job hunting. It’s awesome. I’m looking for a job at Union Station at one of the stores.