Finals Schminals

Here's my second post as an Alumni Blogger for the Wendy's Heisman Alumni Network:

It’s finals season, folks. Dun, dun, dun. You know, that dreaded time of year that, oddly enough, comes just before the most anticipated time of year: the holiday season. It’s that time of year where sleep becomes a luxury, Starbucks becomes a necessity and the library becomes your home away from home. But let’s not get too worked up here. We can, and will combat these monstrosities they call final exams. Finals don’t have to be the life-ruiners they’ve cracked up to be, you just have to know how to defend yourself against them.

Rule number one. Start early. I know, I know. Who gets a head start these days? In a world where procrastination is all the rage, getting your act together early can seem unnecessary. But trust me, it’ll pay off. Rule number two. Make sleep your new best friend. From personal experience, I’ve learned that sleep is far better for your GPA than that extra hour of studying you spend as a zombie, nodding off every so often, weaving in and out of dreamland. Rule number three. Find your perfect study place. For some, it’s the library. For others, it’s a dorm room. Maybe it’s that small little coffee shop down the street or the student union. Find a place with that certain ambience that will make you as productive as possible.

With all that being said: get out there, try your hardest and don’t let those finals bring you down. Show ‘em who’s boss.

A Bittersweet Symphony

Here's my first post as an Alumni Blogger for the Wendy's Heisman Alumni Network:

Senior year of college: the year that seemed so far away you thought it would never come; the year that seems like such a challenge, but somehow you make it through; the fastest year of your life, whether you like it or not. It’s my senior year as a student at the University of Florida. I can’t tell you where the time has gone or how it could have possibly gone by so quickly, but I can tell you to make the most of every moment of every day because you will wake up one day and three years will have passed, but you will swear it only felt like 3 months. It has been a bittersweet year for me. It has been one of the most fun, exciting years of my life thus far, but it saddens me to know that in six months I will have to give all of that up. So many things go through your mind as graduation creeps closer. What’s next? Do I apply for a job? What if I only want an internship? Do I want to go to graduate school? If I go to graduate school, what will I study? Where are my friends going? Do I want to take a break? And all of a sudden, the real world is looming just around the corner. So, for all of you out there who still have three years or two years, or even if you only have six months like me, make the most of your time left and live it to the fullest. Take it from me, the senior wishing for just one more year: pursue every opportunity you have to make lasting memories because you will blink, look around and realize you are wearing the infamous cap and gown that symbolize the end of an amazing era of your life.

Emerald Reflections

Summertime in Ireland. My thoughts have been drifting back there quite a lot recently. The evenings we'd spend in those dark, yet lively irish pubs, dancing, drinking a Bulmer's and reminiscing on the day's adventures; The afternoons spent exploring tiny irish villages and the enchanting countryside surrounding them; The days we grudgingly decided to ride the bus for hours and hours on end just to see the seaside and the majestic cliffs that transcend the atlantic as if they were a giant fortress. I want so badly to be back there, to be traveling without knowing where my next meal will come from or where my next bed will be; to be living the life of a vagabond --even if temporarily. I can still feel the warm Irish sun beating down on my face, drying up the recent rains. I can still hear the sound of the authentic celtic instruments harmonizing together to create the most wonderous of songs and that laughter, that booming laughter of jolly old irish men having a pint after a hard day's work. I can still smell the sea and feel the spray from the waves crashing up against the coast. Ireland is magical. It's bewitching. Life is simple there. Take me back.

The Cliffs of Moher

Doolin, Ireland

Pub in Galway