The discussion portion of an online Psychology class is really just a bunch of amateurs giving each other therapy and getting class credit for it.
Month: December 2016
About Me
Hello all! My name is Eva Sparks and I am so excited to be writing to you all on this brand new website of my very own! I didn’t know that a website domain name could ever make me feel this cool, but I’m totally nerding-out over it.
To give you a little bit of background on me, I am a freshman at the University of Oklahoma. In high school, I actively participated in competitive drama, debate, musical theatre, charity events, volunteer networks, and pre-professional organizations. I plan to keep up this involvement in college. I also enjoy traveling and learning new languages — I plan on studying abroad to Spain and potentially pursuing a Spanish major in addition to my (already decided) International Business major!
I have recently joined a Global Engagement Fellowship program at my University and have created this blog to document my experiences throughout this program. You might occasionally find other posts regarding college, TED Talks, language classes, yummy foods, my unique room mates, yoga, or just life in general!
I can’t wait to get blogging and fill this blank space up with some ~exciting~ content!
— Eva Sparks
Happy NYE!!
I think that I will start trying to write on this blog more. It seems like a good way to document my life and experiences and such.
This year, I decided to break up my resolutions and give myself one per month. This way, I’ll be able to focus on only one resolution, while continuously trying to achieve all of them. So in January, I will try to do all six of these resolutions, but I will only hold myself fully accountable for the one that I plan to focus on (to get more sleep). I have only created resolutions through May, so that I can adjust them in case this system does not work. I also want to choose words each month that will be my “motto” for the month. I’ll post updates about those words on here as well!
Wish me luck, here we go!! Also, if you know me personally, hold me accountable for all of these resolutions, hehe!!
January: Get more sleep and form healthy sleeping habits. This will help you stay alert in classes and have the energy to fully interact and experience all situations.
February: Work out 3 times a week, at least. You deserve to feel strong, healthy, and fabulous in your own body. So make it happen!!!!
March: Write in your journal or on your blog. You may want to reflect on these days later in the year or in life. Give yourself the opportunity to!
April: Find time to read for pleasure. This one may be tricky because it’s in such a busy time of the year. So perhaps the challenge for this month is to be gentle with yourself, and to not push yourself too unnecessarily hard. Find a good balance!
May: Take care of yourself. This month will hold finals and the beginning of your study abroad experiences. Make sure that you are fully experiencing all the opportunities that you are afforded, but do not run yourself down to the point that you are not able to enjoy them anymore. you can do this!!
#3
The near certain doom of your bank account when you realize that you only brought a card instead of cash to Barnes & Noble.
The Top 10 Things I Learned by Studying Abroad
1. Happiness is truly a conscious decision.
2. Speaking another language exposes you to an additional set of opportunities.
3. Life is too short to pursue a career that doesn’t make your life worth living.
4. Don’t waste your time pursuing a person who doesn’t encourage you to be your best self.
5. You can’t control everything; There will always be the possibility of things not going your way.
6. When things don’t go your way, make the most of the situation – appreciate what you have going for you.
7. Food is more than sustenance – a meal should be an experience (shared with friends and family, of course).
8. Espresso > American coffee.
9. A little pasta – nor a croissant, nor a sugar-seeped dessert – is not the death of you. Enjoy it in the moment.
10. It is better to have loved and lost than it is to have lacked the experience entirely.
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Kyoto 12.29.16
My Dearest Friend,
Merry Christmas! I’m sorry I didn’t write sooner, but we’ve only been off school for a couple days now. I even spent Christmas studying for a test. But I’m alright. I have another week of break and then only a couple weeks left of the semester. It’s been a really long semester, so I won’t be too upset to see it end.
Although Christmas itself wasn’t particularly special, I’m enjoying my time off. I’m trying to do a full detox from stress, drama, and worries. So far it’s gone well. I’ve spent a lot of time relaxing, sleeping, catching up on housework, and trying to get into a good habit of doing yoga in the mornings. I’m also trying to work on my overall health a bit. I’ve spent the majority of this semester sick with one thing or another, so I’m trying to improve my nutrition and general well-being. I want to be healthier and better able to focus next semester so I can make the most of my time here.
This semester I haven’t done a lot of the things I meant to do and said I would do. Part of that was justified, part of it wasn’t. Now my goal is to figure out what I need to do differently so that I’m able to explore Kyoto and the rest of Japan before I leave. I don’t want to waste this chance. I’ve gone a few places and done some cool things, but I’ve created a new comfort zone here in Japan, which almost defeats the point of coming. I broke a barrier when I got on the plane alone to come here, but I built more as soon as my feet hit this soil and the culture shock swept over me. It’s about time I dismantled those.
I have a lot of regrets from my life thus far. I’ve spent a lot of time in the past or the future or simply just a different place. I don’t want to lose my time in Japan to those same snares. I want to live these days to the fullest so that, at the end of the day, there’s nothing I wish I’d had the courage to do. If I were to leave today, I don’t think I’d be able to forgive myself for how I’ve handled this time. Which means that I instead need to spend today out, doing things I may never get a chance to do again. Today’s the only day that matters, so I won’t spend it in a way that I’ll regret.
I hope your Christmas break is relaxing. I miss you a lot. I’m looking forward to seeing you, hopefully before too much longer. Please write soon.
Sincerely,
Kestrel
GEF: El Museo de Arte Thyssen-Bornemisza
También hay el Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza. Aunque los otros dos museos que he referido apartenecen al gobierno de España, este museo de una colección privada también incluye obras importantes en el mundo del arte. Porque las obras están organizadas cronológicamente, este museo tiene un propio estilo que parece muy diferente comparado al Prado y al Reina Sofía. Después de mi visita al Thyssen-Bornemisza, es evidente que el arte es algo importante para incorporar en nuestras vidas diarias.
#2
Snapthought #2
The absurdity and social shame of throwing your full weight into pushing open a pull door.
Hannah Asfeldt 2016-12-28 06:29:13
#1. When you come back from studying abroad and almost or actually do use Spanish for reflex interactions such as greetings and ordering food and then the other person just kind of stares at you and you stare back for too long for it to be normal. Eventually you realize you used the wrong language and have to try and recover without allowing them to believe that you are actually crazy.
Iliniza Norte
