My First Blog Ever

November 17, 2008 - 4:00 PM

Hello! This is my first blog ever, and I am pretty excited about it. I have never really thought seriously about blogging until I heard of one with a purpose. The purpose of this blog is to document the life of students at the University of Oregon, which I think will be a very meaningful publication for many people. I am a journalism major, so this assignment is really quite fitting for me. In my classes, we have been talking about the progress of technology and the effect it will have on our professions. This applies to all majors, not just journalism. But in the case of broadcasting information, nothing is more effective than instant information from newscasters. The internet, needless to say, is booming, and I need to keep up in order to be a marketable graduate. So, in effect, this blog is written about itself. College students' new lifestyles are very much centered around the internet and new technologies, so blogging about our lifestyles is really just living.

My lifestyle... Well, I suppose it is not a traditional college student's lifestyle. I don't party-I am in recovery from drug addiction. My college years started while I was in a boarding school for troubled teens, so I have spent the last three years as a reformed "rebel." I guess I will step out on a limb and say that my day-to-day experience is spent trying to establish myself as a successful person because I fear relapsing into my old behaviors. The good news about this confession is that it is working. I have accumulated a lot of credentials since I started college, and I am very proud of what I have achieved.

I think, though, that this time in my life will be a time of learning to balance success and inner serenity because I value both, but I know that I can't live in extremes. I think that this dilemma might be largely related to my gender. As a female in the 21st century, I was raised to think of myself as a future career woman. But I know from my past, that I yearn for a happy home, which I will have an opportunity to create someday. I am often in internal conflict over the balance between being a successful woman in today's day and age. I am not willing to completely surrender my personal life to the demands of a well-paying career. But I am also not comfortable when I am not striving to be better, smarter, and stronger.

Don't be fooled, however. I do manage to sneak some fun in between extra-curricular activities, (which should be fun, I know, but because they are the only things in my life that come in six-packs, I really think of them more as extra-curricular occupations). I have been dating a young man for almost a year and a half, and he is my best friend. Because he is also in recovery, Collin and I spend a lot of time dining out, hiking, playing sports, and spending time with our families. My dad is Collin's biggest fan, which makes me happier than anything else in the world. During my time in boarding school, my dad and I became closer than I ever thought we could. He is an enormous source of support for me, and I adore him. Sometimes I wonder if my dad knows how much I appreciate him-If he knows that I journal about the little things that he says that I think are deeply profound. So when my dad loves the person I love, I feel like things make more sense.

My living situation is really fun! My apartment is across the street from the cemetery that is on campus, so it is practically like living in the dorms. I live with two other girls, Iris and Stephanie, whose boyfriends, Jon and Jake respectively, practically live with us too. We all met while making a televised sitcom through the journalism school. After helping to produce this show, we became great friends and wonderful supports for getting through the rather rigorous journalism requirements. College is an interesting time for friendships as well. I might talk a little more about this later, but in short, I am delighted to have the different types of friends that I do. In high school, we would have all dispersed into different cliques, but in college, we don't categorize ourselves and drive each other away.

For the most part, I am a lucky girl. I have so many opportunities here at the U of O, and I have a huge support system. There are struggles, but I feel blessed.

I hope that this blog provides people with an insight as to what it is like to be a student at the U of O. Perhaps someone who reads this will be able to relate to my distinct experiences, and my blog will have served its purpose.