Sleeping is for losers and dropouts!

I have always been a girl who enjoys her sleep!
Through high school I did have my late nights and early mornings but I always found time to make up for the sleep that I had missed.
The idea of sleep for the average person is very different to the way a college student looks at it.

Sleep is no longer something you simply get everynight but a privilage you get on special nights when you get your work done early and have nothing better to do.

(aka parties or just hanging out with friends till the early hours of the morning)

College is full of late nights running into early mornings that turn into late afternoons that turn into late nights... and you can see the cycle.

I myself have had nights where I woke up early went to class, got home cleaned did work, stayed up all night having a good time, then stayed up till the early morning finishing a paper that was due the next day, studied for an exam took a nap then went to class!

I just happened to get an 80 on the paper and a 105 on the exam! :D

This is not always the case though and not sleeping the night before an exam and just cramming can be one of the very worst things you can do before a big test.

When our bodies rest it is not only just to rest our bodies.

The main reason we sleep is to reorganize and store things into our memory.

(I always half thought it might have been a myth until I learned this in my psychology class)

Whenever I study for a big exam I always make sure that I take at the very least a ten minute nap after. Usually I study at night right before I go to sleep. I found that when I do this I really do remember more for my tests!

You could stay home all night study and never leave the house or you could go out party all the time, fail all your classes and waste all that tuition money and be a party animal stuck in college for the rest of their life...

Or you can find the balance that fits your best! ;)

Good luck and sweet dreams! 

XXXX- SarahEmily

How embarrassing for you!

In my student housing apartment complex our laundry room and mail room are connected.

For some reason right after my classes on wednesday the mailman and I seem the arrive at the same time. I usually just sit and wait while he divides up all the mail in to the boxes in the laundry room until the mail man is finished and goes on his way.

This past wednesday this happens and I sit down in the laundry room as usual, waiting.

As I looked around the laundry room there were a couple of other fellow students either standing also waiting to get their mail and a couple chatting while doing their laundry.

Nothing new or out of the ordinary until something caught my eye.

I bright red something on the top of the ceiling...

I looked closer and realized it was a little red thong.

I laughed to myself! Absent mindfully thinking of how sad that was for the person who must have dropped them and then someone had decided it would be a grand idea to hang them from the ceiling for this poor soul to come and find.

How embarrassing for them!

Out of curiosity and with a lack of nothing better to do I decided to walk over and take a better look at the abandoned pair of red underwear.

As I grew closer the more and more horrified I got...

Not that they were disgusting or anything they were well kept and quit cute!

No... i was horrified because the abandoned (and the apparently forgotten) pair of underwear looked all too familiar!

Yes! That is right! They were my forgotten underwear! Right there hanging like a proud little flag! There for everyone to see! 

I was the sad unfortunate person who must have dropped them only a couple days before while doing laundry!

The mail man finished up and left. I got my mail and walked home...

With a plan...

Later that day... or... late that night, when no one is around to see, I will then go rescue them! (when no one will see me!)

Then they will go back in the hamper to get cleaned again!

...and now for the rescue mission!

wish me luck!

xxxx Sarah Emily

Is there fat in this?

I live in an apartment that I share with a roommate. We have two separate bedrooms that connect to a small living room and kitchen. A lot of the time either my roommate or I will cook dinner. This keeps us from eating out which a lot of the time is unhealthy and very expensive. 

My roommate has a great figure! She is not too thin, she is just healthy. She always has fruits and veggies in the refrigerator, she has a work out class she goes to on Mondays Wednesdays and Fridays. She also tries to go running whenever it is possible!

The other day my roommate and I were having  lazy day and neither of us wanted to cook dinner so we decided to have some chinese food instead. I am a very slow eater, so when she finished eating before i was finished, she put her leftovers in the fridge and went to her room.

After a couple minutes go by my roommate bursts open her bedroom door with a panicked look of her face!

"Do you KNOW what I just realized was IN all that food I just ate?!"

"I don't know, what?!" I was taken by surprise! and by the look of horror on her face I thought she must have eaten something she was deathly allergic to or something! I was already trying to decide which would be faster, driving her to the closest hospital or to just call the ambulance when she said, 

"FAT!!! That stuff is full of FAT! I am going to get CELLULITE!! I am a young healthy girl! I do not need cellulite! I am NEVER eating fatty foods like that again! If you ever see me eating stuff like that just take it away from me!! Because I work out daily......" and on and on she went talking about it! She even took her leftovers out of the fridge and put it in the trash!

I had to try with all my might to not burst into laughter! Partially because I was so relieved she did not need any serious medical attention and also because of how overly horrified she was with herself for eating chinese food! My roommate is a very calm quiet composed person so it was VERY entertaining watching her storm around the apartment like a broody chicken after someone has taken their eggs away from them! She left the apartment in a bustle, off to go study at the library.

Now I am also a girl and I worry about figure and try to work out on a regular basis. But it does not need to be THAT extreme! It is all about balance.

  If you ask any college student, they most likely know about or have heard of the dreaded "Freshman Fifteen." The "freshman fifteen" is a term used to describe the weight gained by people in their freshman year of college. I have been around guys and girls when they first heard about "freshman fifteen"and many of them were automatically terrified that if they started college they were DOOMED to gain weight and lose their figures forever!

  But have faith! Because the truth is that we are not doomed!! There are reasons behind the "freshman fifteen" and there are ways to avoid gaining weight. 

The website www.freshman15.com says that the main reasons for freshman weight gain are...

-Lack of exercise

-Eating late at night

-Keeping unhealthy snacks on hand (in the dorm)

-Eating unhealthy cafeteria food

-Drinking excessive amounts of alcohol

So if you eat healthy and exercise like my roommate I really don't think you have much to worry about!

If you want anymore tips to eating well and avoiding the freshman fifteen go to http://www.freshman15.com/healthy-eating-guide.php they have all sorts of recipes and tips for healthy college eating!

I wish you health and happiness!

XXXX- SarahEmily

Making Dogs Howl!

Ever since I was little I have had super intense, extremely realistic dreams.

One night when I was still pretty young, I was taking a bath and I had had a dream the night before that I was a mermaid and that I could breath under water as long as I just focused.

So without warning anyone around me... because I fully believed that I could do this. 

I slowly submerged my head under the soapy water... and I breathed in!

I automatically popped up coughing and chocking and nearly gave my dad a heart attack!

But I always had dreams that I could do things. They felt so real! Even into my early teens I would be outside and wait till no one was looking and I would JUMP as hard as I could! Because I used to have these dreams where I would jump and right in between going up and coming down that was flying! And if you could jump high enough and focus hard enough then you could harness this and you could fly!

Well to say the least... I am so super hero... I never learned how to fly or breath under water.

I realized the other day that I have not had one of these dreams in years...

Even though they used to be a very common occurrence.

I think it is sad that growing up kills the dreamer in so many people.

It is like RIGHT when we get old enough to actually do all the things we used to DREAM about as kids that is right when all those dreams are shot down or just fade away!

But you know what? I refuse to just watch as my dreams drift away and become nothing be a memory. Because what is a memory of a dream? I think it is just a missed opportunity.

So many people are living there lives just fine... sometimes even very successful careers, and yet they are not happy doing their jobs.

My goal, starting now, is to never ever let my dreams waste into nothingness!

Although many adults and student advisors would tell me to do otherwise, I am going to strive to do WHAT EVER it is that makes ME happy! (besides how many student advisors do you think are truly happy doing their own job? right?!)

I hope this inspires. Don't get dreams shot down. Do what you love. Do what makes you happy.

Sometimes life gets you down and you get stuck. But if you love to sing, and the only way you can sing is in the shower, then you sing as loud and as much as you want in that shower! 

Let the neighbors dog bark and howl all it wants, who cares! If it makes you happy then it's all for the better! 

So go out there and make some dogs howl! I know I will! ;)

xxxx - Sarah Emily

I'll be wearing a purple dress...

The other night I discovered a part of dating that just never came up in high school, blind dates. For some reason blind dating just never happened in high school. Probably because you date within your friendship circles and usually that means you know them before you ever go out on a date. It is not hard to find people in high school. 

In college it is different. College kids have moved around and don't always know people in school or in the city. Everyone is too busy to actually meet and talk to people in their classes so blind dates just naturally happen. A person has two friends who don't know each other but are both single and looking. So hey! Why not, right? Just give them each the others phone number, tell them when and where, and set them up on a date!

So Friday night there I was getting dressed and texting my mysterious blind date. 

We did not exchange pictures, so we both gave each other general descriptions of what we look like and what we would be wearing...

Mystery Guy: I am 6 feet tall. I have brown hair, brown eyes, slender :) I'll probably have a lost look on my face. I'll be wearing a blue striped shirt and jeans.

Myself: I'm 5'8" thin. I have dirty blonde hair to my shoulders, and green eyes. I will be wearing a purple dress.

This purple dress is one of my favorites! I always feel great in it and I figured not many people have a purple dress, so it would be easy to pick me out of the crowd. 

While I was getting ready for my date, I made different variations of Mystery Guys very vague description of himself.... 6 foot... So no matter what he was a good height.

When he said slender... was he like one of those super scrawny boys that makes me feel like a marshmallow? Or was he just being modest and didn't wanna say "fit" or "super muscly" so he just said "slender" instead?

Or was he just plain average body shape on the slender side of the spectrum?

Who knows! At the time I could only guess!

Time passes my mind still wondering, and I am dressed! Ready to go, and running out the door! I get to the place where we are meeting and of course it is packed, and it takes me a couple minutes to find a parking spot and this makes me late. I ran from the parking garage to the movie theatre in a rush. The front of the theatre is mostly made of glass, so as I am walking up I look through the glass, but I did't see anyone in a blue stripped shirt. I walked in through the door. I was kind of out of breath from rushing and my hair a bit windblown. 

I looked around a little lost because I didn't see him and he had already sent me a text saying that he had arrived. I walk further in, and away from the door. 

Then I see him walking around the corner. I saw his blue stripped shirt and he looked nervous. (He is not a stick or a macho man) Right away he looked very familiar to me but I wasn't sure how exactly.

I gave him a big smile and walked up to him.

He asked if I was Sarah, I said yes and he gave me a side hug. Which at first I thought he was just trying to put his arm around me, which I thought was almost overly confident, but he quickly dropped his arm and we picked out a movie.

We got the tickets but there was so much time till the next showing that we decided to go to dinner before the movie.

We went to the restaurant, sat down, and started talking.

The conversation was going well, but I was distracted. I could not figure out what it is about this guy that seemed VERY familiar! I started drifting in thought while we spoke...

He acted A LOT like my ex boyfriend... which was strange but he didn't look like him at all...

and he definitely looked familiar...

We couldn't have known each other from school... cause he just moved here...

and we couldn't possibly be cousins, (I always worry about dating my cousins because I have over 30 first cousins alone) I know I have a lot of them, but no way do I have THAT many...

so I'm not related to him...

oh. my. goodness... relatives! That is IT!

He looks SO much like my brother! All of a sudden it clicked and I felt like I froze!

I was on a blind date with a guy who acts like my ex and looks like my brother!

I always got along with my ex well. (We dated when we were really young... He was my first kiss!) My ex and I are now great friends, and have been for years.

So conversation flows easily, but every time I would let myself relax I would notice something else... Like the way he did his hair was how my brother used to fix it.

I would completely freak out! I felt like I was on a date with my brother and it was the most awkward experience.

I started to shift my way of thinking to... We are just friends out having dinner.

It would work until he would say something like...

"You kind of look like Uma Thurman... I think she is very pretty"

Sweet... but felt so wrong!

Or like when he payed for my dinner... which was pretty expensive.

So I finished out the date. Watched the movie and everything, but to say the least I don't think I could ever go on a second date! I hope we can hang out again sometime under different circumstances!

But this date brought a lot of things to mind that I wish I had thought of or been told before I went on my first blind date...

Here are some tips to any girl or guy wanting to survive blind dating!

-Talk to your match maker. Ask them questions about your date. What they are like. Don't get too into specifics because there will be a lot of time to ask them yourself when you are on your date with them. Make sure your match maker is someone you trust and if you know they are a party animal and you are not into that, ask if your date is that way too.

-Do some internet investigation. If you can, add them on facebook or myspace. Or look on your mutual friends page. See if they have pictures with them both together. This may say A LOT about the person. Not only will you be able to recognize them more easily when you meet up, but you may find out a lot more about this person off of their facebook page then you ever would on a date!

-Pick a place you know well. If you are going to dinner, i suggest going someplace you both know so you know how to dress and how much money it will cost.

-Meet there. Make sure you don't have them pick you up or drop you off. This is purely for safety reasons. Girls or guys, you don't want to be in a car with a stranger. Plus if your date turns out to be a bad drunk, you would be stuck with no safe ride home.

OR if you are a bad drunk arrange before hand, a trusted friend that can give you a ride.

Having a friend give you a ride, is also a good idea if you don't have your own car, or for some reason can't drive.

-Bring Money! This is NOT just for guys! Girls, I know that if the guy is a gentleman and has the money, that he will usually pay. But, come on girls... Lets get serious, how often do we actually find guys like that? And guys, I know it is a tough world out there, and you can't always be a knight and shining armor and buy your date an amazing dinner. Just try to pick a place where you know you can pay for both of you if that is what it comes to. Never expect your date to pay for ANYTHING! Or else you might just get stuck doing the dishes for the rest of your night!

-Splitting the check. Like I mentioned before, it is kind of known that on a "good date" the guy usually pays all expenses. But this is not always set in stone. Some girls don't feel comfortable having the guy pay for everything. So guys, I suggest that you always offer to pay for it all, (and have the money to do so) but if she says no more than twice and is being very serious and not just being polite, don't push paying for things. Allow her to pay her half if that is what makes her comfortable. Something I have found it very effective to make a deal. "Okay, you can pay for dinner but I will pay for my movie ticket" Let this happen naturally though. No one wants to feel like they are making a business deal.

-Saying goodbye. Don't worry about getting each others numbers because you have a mutual friend you could always get it from. If you don't like them... try not to kiss them goodbye. (hopefully you have not already been kissing them all night) A lot of people take a kiss goodnight as a sign. It can be very misleading. 

After that it is all you!

So now that you have some tips, I wish you Good Luck! On any and all your blind and future dates!

xxxx- SarahEmily