5 Fun & Fattening things to do on Thanksgiving Break!
When I first came to William Woods 4 years ago, I had no idea what Thanksgiving was and what I was going to do for nearly a whole week! I am an international student, as you already know, so flying home would be difficult.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Over the years, I learned some fun things to do, which I am going to share with you!
- Dine with faculty! There is always that one professor who is kind enough to ask you to join them for their Thanksgiving. I was so flattered! I love our professors!
- Feast with friends! I have had so many offers every year to go home with one of my friends.
- Relax on campus! If home is too far, you can cook up a nice Thanksgiving meal in your residence hall!
- Travel regionally! If you have some spare pocket money and want to go see other states, go and do it! Chicago is not too far away, and you can get a train from Jefferson City, La Plata, or St Louis!
- Earn some cash! If you want to earn some extra money, you can stay and work on campus with the equestrian program! NO classes, just working for money!
I hope this helps in future and I hope you had a lovely Thanksgiving! I sure did in Fulton with my second family!
Trust The Process
Hey, this is Lisa again.
So... Have I mentioned taking the path not followed is a little terrifying? Even when you know you have the right school, even when you know you have the right classes that will transform you for the next phase of your life cycle, even when you have a supportive spouse--stepping into the abyss is scary.
Trust the process.
I could assail myself with self doubt. But why do that, when lit-er-ally (see clip below) everyone else can do that for me, usually without trying. When I begin to question my decision to quit my job and attend a university full-time, I think about what Professor Jane Mudd says when students begin to be hypercritical of their art work. "Trust the process."
She's right. As we grew into adulthood, we learned how follow-through is important. It is what distinguishes success. The feeling of pride when you stick-to-it, that feeling when you push through the challenges and see that the light at the end of the tunnel is not the train coming toward you, THAT is what we are working toward.
Trust the education.
When I chose WWU, I knew I was making the right investment in my future. After I began attending classes, some 20 years after my first degree, I realized how much more fulfilling college was this time around. Having had the structure of working in the real world, now I would approach my re-education as my full time job. And as my graduation date in May approaches very quickly, I know that I will be prepared and successful. I trust the process.
Thanks for reading,
-Lisa
William Woods was the right choice for me!
Welcome!
This is Lisa, with the second part of my "origin story." So, I began to research schools that would work best for me.
Small Size - I was looking for a small university. I wanted a small student-teacher ratio. With smaller classes, it would be easy to build relationships with my professors. I already knew what it was like to be just a face among a sea of other faces, since I had already graduated from a large public state university.
My name in lights!
At William Woods, each student has every opportunity to acquaint themselves with the faculty. Every professor makes him- or herself available to students. Every student has the option of reaching out and establishing a personal rapport with every instructor. This enhances the learning experience tremendously. It is really valuable not competing with dozens of other students who also want individual time with an instructor.
The Right Offerings for Me - I was pursuing my dream of attending art school, but I also needed to temper that dream with the reality of competing in a Web 3.o world. William Woods offers a BFA in both Graphic Design and in Studio Art, AND has quality Business and Management Information Systems (MIS) offerings. I could immerse myself in creative processes in the Kemper Art Center's studio art spaces. I could learn new skills in Kemper's Mac Lab with its state-of-the-art iMacs running Adobe Creative Suite software, like Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign. And, I could learn the latest in web development, marketing, public relations, and entrepreneurship.
Commute - The quality of my commuting time was also important to me. I wasn't terribly interested in competing in the Daytona 500 every morning and afternoon. The commute on US63 between Jefferson City and Columbia reminds me of NASCAR restrictor plate racing.
Adding Central Missouri weather and transportation projects adds a unique "road course" flavor to the race. In contrast, the Fulton-Jeff City commute is a relaxing transition between my "day job" of being a student, and my other life in JC.
When the time came to select the school for me, the choice was obvious!
My First Blog Post as an Undergrad–Wait! What?
Since this is my first post, you may want to check out my bio.
Why is this my first post? Frankly, there wasn't a World Wide Web the last time I was an undergrad!
Because I am in class with students who are the same age as my own daughters, some students assume I am an instructor. But it's not a big deal after I confess my student status--most of the students, faculty, and staff think it's cool that I am attending William Woods as a "non-traditional" student. I am enjoying it a lot!
Selfie from a previous life as a cubicle-dweller, with pretty-grown-up-daughters in the background.
When I was contemplating what I was going to do "for the rest of my life," I really knew was I wasn't totally happy with my current situation. And the rest of my life was still as daunting as it was when I was graduating from high school.
So I broke it down into smaller decisions, with smaller time horizons. I'm a problem solver, and that's how we do it.
Here are some questions I asked myself:
Q: Can I change careers, to anything, with a quick re-arrangement of my C.V.?
A: Probably not without a great reduction in pay, since moving wasn't an option.
Q: Since I am going to have to get some kind of training, what are my most important needs? The appeal of continuing my status quo was absolute zero. So that ruled out going to classes in the evening while maintaining my full-time job. I didn't want to continue on my current trajectory. So, I wasn't up for pursuing a degree at night or online.
A: I needed to consider a nearby university with great faculty who work directly with students and understand their individual needs.
But wait! What are my options? Just because I want to do something doesn't mean I can--financially speaking. I want to go back to school. Not only that, I want to go to art school (see my bio), but is my "hubby" down with me not contributing to the lifestyle to which we have become accustomed?
Amazingly, he was okay with that, having embraced the philosophy, "If momma ain't happy, ain't nobody happy."
Yeah! Now to decide which "art school." I will discuss this in my next post.
Thanks for reading!
-Lisa
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