Second Semester Scheduling

I woke up at 6:50 ... am ... not pm. Moaned and turned my light on. I heard Julie groan, and her pillow slam on top of her face since light now flooded our room.

I put on my shower shoes and walked down to the bathoom, washed my face and brushed my teeth. I didn't even bother putting my contacts in. I was going back to bed the second I got done with registering for my second semester classes.

At 7:00 I was patiently seated in front of my computer. I didn't open Facebook ... I didn't finish up a paper that was due later on that day ... I just sat there and stared at the "registration/change of schedule" link on the Miami website.

When 7:10 rolled around I quickly logged on and entered all the CRNs (course registration numbers) that were needed to register for particular classes ...

A few weeks before I had gone to see my academic advisor. We figured out the classes that best suited my schedule. I still needed to take a few Miami plan classes, so I fit those into my schedule, plus I needed a couple more classes that were specifically required for my major. Since I still had a couple hours free I decided to take a Leadership class that would help me in becoming a well-rounded person ... which is part of my goal for my four years of college.

As a freshman, we all have an advisor who helps us plan for our second semester classes. I thought that this was very helpful since I had forgotten how to register since I hadn't registered since summer orientation.

After my meeting I used one of the greatest gifts I had ever received from Miami ... well a TANGIBLE gift ... "The Miami Bulletin" The insides were jam packed full of every class that Miami offered. It gives a brief description of the class, the CRN, if the class counted as a Miami plan class, and the number of credits. Plus, as students progress and move on through college, the Bulletin contains all the classes that are necessary to graduate with a specific major.

After I found all the classes I wanted to register for I looked up times and teachers on the web. Since freshman are the "lowest of the low" I had to look up many different options, since I knew I would get closed out of most of the classes I wanted. Those 11 am, noon, and 1 pm classes go as quick as candy in a first grade classroom.

As a business school professor explained at freshman orientation "freshmen get the eight am classes, the six pm classes, and the Saturday classes." He paused and let the realization sink in that we were fresh meat, and then he clarified "no, there are no Saturday classes, but if there were ... freshmen would get stuck in those too."

I wrote down the CRN of many different times of the classes that I wanted to take. I knew that I probably wouldn't get my ideal classes, but if I didn't find alternatives then I would probably get stuck in 8 ams every morning ... HAHAHAHA I still did get stuck in 8 ams ever morning (except Fridays).

I am really happy how prepared I was to register. I had all my CRNs put into the slots and submitted them at 7:15 am. I did get closed out of two classes, but all I did was enter my alternative CRN and ended up getting the same class at a different time.

The four 8 ams are going to be rough ... but I know I can do it. After all, what is the main reason for going to college in the first place? EDUCATION!

FOOD!!!

When kids go off to college they often end up complaining about the terrible food that their school serves. It's greasy, and they serve the same thing night after night. About halfway through the year they prepare to eat paper or lick those scented markers to get a change of taste in their mouth.

This whole summer I was mentally preparing myself for the horrors of the food situation I had heard about. I would hoard all the good food like potato chips, fresh fruit, and chocolate under my bed... I inhaled my mom's HOMEMADE dinner meals... and I enjoyed my city's specialties that I would not be able to enjoy when I made my way to Oxford.

However, when I arrived I was in for a very VERY pleasant surprise. OUR FOOD WAS ACTUALLY DELICIOUS!!! And, we have dining halls with different food scattered all over campus.

Much to my pleasant surprise I was informed that Miami doesn't only have dining halls... they also have restaurants ANDDD markets!!! Some dining halls are all-you-can-eat buffets, while others are pay per item. This is convenient because if you are not terribly hungry you could drop in and buy a candy bar or a drink, or a healthy salad... but on the other hand... if you could eat a mountain if you were allowed the all-you-can-eat buffets are the place you'll want to go!

There are 20 restaurants, markets and dining halls! You will NEVER get sick of the food served at Miami!

If you are craving fresh salad and fruit head over to Alexander Dining Hall where they are known for their healthy meals! Attached to Alexander is The Greystone. I go here on Tuesday and Thursday each week because I have class from 11 until 2 and I never have time for actual sit down style lunch, so I order one of their delicious, deli, fresh sandwiches (usually tuna or turkey).

The guys that work at Greystone know me... I'm proud to admit. Each day they ask "tuna or turkey?" I tell them. They know the rest... no matter what type of meat I have I always have "wheat bread, lettuce, 1 slice of American cheese, a LITTTTTTLE mayo, and can I have it toasted please?" [insert smile here]

Bell Tower is a Miami favorite because of their wide variety of food, and the new business school just opened Dividends and it is quickly becoming a school-wide favorite.

If you need to quench that craving you have for greasy... DELICIOUS... food head over to Erickson.

Miami also has walk-in restaurants. They are amazing!! La Mia Cucina serves Italian dishes that are made to order. They have a cute, Tuscan-style eating area. Panache is Miami's upscale, trendy restaurant. It serves a wide variety of appetizers, soups, entrees and desserts.

I went to La Mia Cucina tonight with a couple of my friends. The food was great! I ordered spaghetti and meatballs, and all entrees come with a warm breadstick. It was nice to get a rich tasting Italiano meal every once and a while.

The nice thing about the markets is that they usually have longer hours than the dining halls. Dining halls have specific hours of operation, but I don't know about you... but I'm a stress eater... a "I'm bored so let's eat" eater... and a snacker. So as you can probably imagine I need places that I can get my fix of food after the dining halls' hours of operation.

The markets sell frozen meals, ice cream, cereal, snack food, healthy food, drinks, candy... basically anything you could make in a microwave or store in your mini-refrigerator.

Another nice thing about Miami's food service is that they have a link on our Blackboard webpage where the students can look at the different food places around campus and see the menu for the day. I know lots of kids do this if they are craving something in particular. It is a good way to not walk into a meal blind sighted that you might end up getting something you don't want!! (If you would like to see the link: http://www.hdg.muohio.edu/EatingAtMiami/)

Now, I'm sure you're wondering why I'm so excited with food. Let me let you in on a little secret about the chemistry of Megan... two things NEVER get old for me. The first is boys. I love boys... The second is my LOVE for food... coming to Miami I was worried my taste buds were going to wither and die... THEY DIDN'T!!!

Oh, and a tip for you incoming freshmen who are sweets fans like me... King Cafe serves the BEST cookies (please please PLEASE try their peanut butter cookie... it is pure heaven (and a couple whole sticks of butter...). You seriously haven't LIVED until you've tasted their peanut butter cookie... I just drooled on the floor thinking about them.

Homecoming

Once again... another great weekend put on by CAC!

This weekend was homecoming... the weather was a little dreary but that did not dampen the students' spirits. There was so much activity that went on ... Miami alumni came into town to go to the big, or not so big, football game.

Although we all know that the reason why they were back on such a cold and rainy weekend was because they missed Miami so much that they couldn't fathom the idea of not coming back to cheer on their alma mater ... even though all the cheering from the fan section hasn't been able to shake Miami's football record of 0 wins and 8 losses.

Friday night was the homecoming parade. An hour before the parade was supposed to start the skies turned a dark grey and the rain came pouring down. Since I'm on Spirit Board (which is a branch of CAC) we decided to enter a float into the parade.

Our Spirit Board was hard at work the days before the parade perfecting our car float. The night before and morning of the parade it was raining cats and dogs. Unfortunately our float got torn apart and we had to start fresh. We made-do with what we had, and the float turned out not so shabby!

The football game on Saturday was freezing. Julie, Kara, and I walked to the game. We were meeting a couple of our friends there. We left the dorm figuring that if we wore a long shirt and a sweatshirt we'd be fine .... WRONG ... oh so wrong.

Walking out the back door the wind hit me, hard. Of course, I was too lazy to walk back up ALL the steps to my room, so I ignored the goosebumps on my arms and walked to Yager ... which is so far from my dorm!

When we got inside the stadium we noticed that the student section was lacking in attendance, however, the alumni made up for though. The game was a blow out in the beginning ... we played Northern Illinois University (NIU).

Julie, Kara and I got so cold that we ended up leaving after the first half. Miami was trailing ... they ended up catching up to NIU, but they still lost 27 - 22.

I must say, the football team is getting better and better. They are close to victory ... they can smell it, they can see it, now all they need to do is reach out and grab it!

Friday and Saturday night the hockey team played. Since it was the homecoming games the arena was more crowded than usual. Miami played Michigan State and won Friday night (2-1) but unfortunately lost in over time on Saturday night (3-2).

It was an unfortunate and disappointing weekend for the Redhawks, but no worries ... there are promising days ahead for the two teams. The Redhawks are aiming for their first win of the season, and the hockey team is hoping to return to the National Championships to claim their hard-earned victory!

Fall Break and Classes

Fall break weekend was a nice decompresser from the hustle and bustle of college. It came right at the opportune time ... right after week 8 (if you don't know what week 8 is i'll give you a hint: two words ... MID and TERM).

I stayed caught up with my classes, so midterm wasn't terrible, but I know for a fact that I still have a couple breakout patches on my face from the stress. The teachers did a great job at calming us down (especially us freshman), and some of my classes scheduled their midterms for a couple weeks before week 8, so it wasn't too terrible.

My Business 101 professor broke our course up into thirds, so we had our first "midterm" two weeks ago. My Jazz professor gives us 4 exams throughout the semester, so we did not have a midterm for her last week, and I have my second math exam tomorrow!!!!! (I'm taking a study break ... if you can't tell).

What is really cool about my English 113 class is that it is more based around writing than it is about reading assignments. My English professor is so neat because he lets us write basically about whatever we want in our OWN style (I know many high school students get bored of writing in the typical five paragraph essay format ... so being able to write creatively makes writing exciting!) We wrote an paper on the essay "The Dreamer Did Not Exist," and we were allowed to write the paper however we wanted as long as we were effectively able to inform our readers.

My microbiology course is a sprint course. I had no idea what a sprint course was when I signed up for the class, nor did I after I signed up. It wasn't until I got to the class the first day of class and received the syllabus that I learned that I would be finishing with the class in the beginning of NOVEMBER (!!!!!!!!!) I cannot tell you how excited I was ... NO SCIENCE for an entire month and a half!! I was elated ... I'm pretty sure I danced all the way back to my dorm...

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I cannot believe I'm admitting this now, but my microbiology class turned out to be SUCH an interesting class. I am almost a little upset that it is ending. It was formatted different than other science courses that I've taken, and so I was able to interact with people in my class once a week. We were given Critical Thinking Assignments (CTAs) each week which we completed for 5 completion points. When we would come to class the following day we would get into our small groups which were comprised of about 14 or 15 people and we discussed our answers and usually got another CTA that was similar to the one we had just completed. We would write a group response that was 10 points.

Nevertheless, I was so excited for my mom to pick me up Thursday after my classes! I love Miami, but I missed my city. I missed my comfortable bed in my quiet bedroom, and I missed my cat. I also missed my brothers and my mom and dad. Even though I had only been gone for about 6 weeks (since I went home for a day over Labor Day) I felt like my life at home was completely different ... I felt out of the loop ... and I didn't like it AT ALL.

My mom emailed me earlier in the week because she wanted to know what I wanted for dinner. It was easy: Chili, Grandma's Soup, and Steak. The food at Miami is excellent (and my friends who have come from other schools to visit said that it is way better than theirs) but I missed my mom's homecookin'.

I must admit ... after the weekend I was decompressed and revved up to start the second half of first semester. Freshman year is absolutely FLYING. I'm scared to see how fast college is going to go. As my dad says, "[life] just keeps getting faster ... ENJOY IT!"

Family Weekend

They couldn't have picked a better weekend for family weekend. It was just after finishing up our sixth week of school ... we were in the thick of things and really missed the familiar faces who always lovingly told us they "believed in us" and we "will be successful!"

Being away at school, and only being able to see them through a Skype screen did not allow us to get the full effects of our loving homes ... many people even became disconnected from their parents.

Reuniting with them was such a great experience! It was only a month and a half before that they lugged all of our things up the stairs to our dorm room, hugged us goodbye, and left us alone!! We were to decide when we ate, when we showered, when we went to bed, when we cleaned our room, when we did our homework .... it was the first time we decided everything in our lives, and it was SCARY. We were petrified, but we knew deep down in our hearts that they knew we would have a great time ... and that we would power through school, form friendships that would last a lifetime, and successfully set up the rest of our lives.

Now they were coming back for the weekend, and we were going to proudly show off our school, our dorm rooms (although some of us were not so proud about the state of our rooms), and introduce them to our friends.

Campus Activities Council did a fabulous job at setting up family weekend. It is no easy task to prepare for mother and fathers, brothers and sisters of different ages ... and also account for the college students. They planned tirelessly for the weekend that laid ahead...

Friday night there was a concert uptown where 8 Days a Week (a Beatles tribute band) and a piano player performed for a large audience, and just down the street at the bar, Skippers, free food was being given away. Uptown was hopping Friday night!

Saturday cars lined the streets entering Oxford (a very funny sight for the residents and the students) Walking to breakfast I could hardly get across the street... it was bumper to bumper traffic! This could have also been due to the University of Cincinnati vs. Miami football game that was going down at Yager Stadium...

Since my family lived very close to Oxford they came up Saturday afternoon halfway through the football game. I put all my Miami gear on and ventured over to Yager where I watched a very intense game.

MIAMI HAD THEM!!!! They had the University of Cincinnati in the palm of their hands ... they had the win .... but it was like the twilight zone ... the University of Cincinnati stole it out of their hands (in slow motion ... no joke)

I'm kidding. Miami played a great game, and they had the University of Cincinnati fans biting their nails on the edge of the seat for a couple plays. The stadium was packed, and I'm sure that got the Miami players excited.

If you weren't a football fan there was a crop walk that benefits an overseas project, and lots of people ended up staying at the tailgate eating their food (not a bad idea... you could hear the dim roar of the crowd and imagine Miami crushing UC... from the comfort of lawn chair outside your car.

After the game my family and I headed uptown to get some food... we went to wait in line at a restaurant. I thought I heard the waitress tell the family in front of me that it was a half-hour wait.... I was wrong, oh so wrong, it was a TWO AND A HALF HOUR WAIT. We wandered up and down the street like a bunch of homeless puppies until we finally decided to buy a pizza and take it back to my dorm room.

I wished I would have taken advantage of what campus offered ... families could eat with their students at different dining halls around the campus. They could purchase the tickets for dinner through the box office and then they wouldn't have to wait in such long lines uptown. Next year I am taking FULL advantage of this opportunity.

Around 7:30 we headed up to Millett Hall (the basketball arena) to watch a special performance by Bill Cosby! He was absolutely hilarious! He performed a routine of his experience with his daughter going to college ... I think that Miami parents, after hearing the ... challenges ... that he had to go through with his daughter, hugged their children extra tight and were grateful to have such ambitious children.

Parents weekend was such a wonderful weekend. Miami was lit up in red and white, and seeing whole families together was such a treat. I miss my family so much, and I call my mom and dad often to tell them about what is going on in my life, but it's not the same as being able to share the experiences firsthand.

Showing them the campus helped them to visualize where my classes were, where I studied, who my friends were, where I ate dinner and went to hang out. Reconnecting with my family was great ... and I'd be getting to see them a few weeks later for FALL BREAK!!!

"The Feel"

The moment that I started looking at colleges I heard all about "the feel" and finding the "right fit" to me and my personality.

I nodded my head and smiled, but I had NO idea what I was supposed to be looking for. Since I was a boy crazy teenager I would boy hunt when I went on college visits... the higher the number of cute boys the higher the school was on my list.

As I got to the start of my senior year I started to buckle down and look at the school's reputation. I wanted a school that had a prestigious reputation, but I also would have to be able to do well in the classes. I started to get anxious about leaving my high school friends so I started to lean towards the colleges that they were looking at.

It wasn't until January, and after my 5th or 6th visit to Miami that I really realized what these people meant about "feel".

"Feel" is the shivers that you get when you walk on campus, or the excitement you feel at a sports game. Feel is the crave that you get when you hear about the stellar academics or the commitment you suddenly develop for a club that sounds like fun. It is the way that you feel comfortable and at home when you are on your campus tour, and the way that you can bond with the college students that already go to Miami.

I got the "feel' for Miami on my tour in January. I knew the second I walked out to the car with my mom that I would soon be calling Miami my new home.

It was a blustery and very ugly winter day, but the campus was still beautiful to me. The students walked around bundled up in their coats, scarves, sweatpants, and boots. They still wore warm smiles on their faces.

I felt like I belonged at Miami. When I walked through the rec I could see myself running the track or lifting weights in the weight room. I could see myself studying in the library and hanging out in Shriver. I could see myself connecting with these people.

This is MY college experience, and my parents let me make the decision for myself. It was one of the hardest things that I had to do, but when I finally made the decision: MIAMI. I was happy I did.

As I am almost at the half-way mark through my first semester at Miami I can't help but to be happy that I chose Miami. I feel like I'm already home.

Intramurals

I joined 2 intramural teams so that I could meet people... and boy was that a good idea!

We had both a soccer and a broomball game on Sunday. It was an ugly day. It was humid and rainy.

We walked to our broomball game which was at 5. Our team name is "Freshman Fifteen". I had to turn in the form for the broomball team when it was due because I was on that side of campus and I offered to take it for Julie, however, we did not fill in a team name so the lady made me think of one on the spot!!!

I was cracking under pressure. Plus I had a ton of homework to do and I didn't want to be wasting time sitting around Goggin Ice Arena trying to think up a good broomball team... I'm sorry, but it just wasn't on the top of my list of "things to do."

I counted the number of the kids on our team... 11... I decided was close enough to 15 so I put down "Freshman Fifteen" and bolted to the library.

Luckily, Julie got a couple new recruits which added up to 15, so my team name fit perfectly for us! I guess you can say I'm a genius!

Anyways, we won the broomball game!!! So we have a winning record. It was hilarious to watch our team play, and it was even more hilarious to be playing! One of my teammates, Kristen, nailed some kid in the face mask with her broomball stick, and I got whacked in the leg with the ball (it left a bruise!)

We won because some girl illegally tripped a kid on our team when he was trying to shoot and so she had to go in the penalty box!!!

Our soccer game was also lots of fun! Our team name is "The Dobacks," and I am proud to admit that I made that one up... it comes from one of the funniest movies of all times "Stepbrothers."

Our team dominated the other team. I played full time defense... let me remind you that I am TERRIBLE at soccer. I haven't played since I was in 2nd grade, and even when I was little I used to stand there and watch people. (I believe I used to color my entire arm with dandelions) On Sunday it started raining during our game, but it was surprisingly fun playing in it!

I played defense, but at one point I got the ball and had a sweet breakaway! I even dribbled it in between some big guys who were trying to steal it back!

Needless to say, I was very impressed with myself.

For all you incoming freshman out there... join as many intramurals as possible... they're a blast (even speaking from someone with zero athleticism like me!)

College Exams are Not as Bad as They are Chalked Up to Be

Today I had my first college exam!

And to say the least, I was nervous!!!! I had been so worried this whole week, so I spent hours upon hours reading the chapters, outlining, and making flashcards. My professor told me that EVERYTHING we would need to know would be on the study guide, but I didn't believe her.

I thought she was trying to trick us into studying just the study guide and then she would throw in other hard questions.....................................................

Everything that she asked came directly off the study guide. Luckily, I studied the study guide as well, so I knew the information.

Coming into college I was so worried that college exams were going to be insanely difficult, but as long as you keep up with the work that the professor assigned, and you review weekly the exams should not be something to lose sleep over (I wished I knew that before).

I think I was so ramped up because in college exams are worth a much bigger percentage than high school because most college professors do not give homework grades.

It wasn't until I got to Miami that I realized that the professors were just as accommodating as my high school teachers.

Exams?? Piece of cake!!

Activities

I have become so involved with all of the activities that Miami has to offer! I was honestly very impressed with everything that I could be apart of. There were dozens of meetings for different clubs, and so I chose a couple that I wanted to consider and I went to the informational sessions to learn more about them.

One of the meetings was for a business fraternity. We met in the basement of the new, beautiful Farmer School of Business and we were each paired up with a "brother." The chairman of each board talked and then we watched a humrous and informational video on what it means to be in Alpha Kappa Psi. We each recieved an application and were invited to an informal BBQ where we could meet everyone!

I also attended a meeting on the Campus Activities Council. They are a campus programming club which plans events like Homecoming, Family Weekend, Kidsfest, Springfest, concerts (last year they brought in Girl Talk!!) and lectures. It seemed like a great way to get involved with ca mpus activities and meet people along the way!

I also signed up for two intramural teams. I am playing co-ed intramural soccer (I haven't played soccer since I was 7, so I'm sure it's very amusing to watch), and I'm also on a co-ed broomball team, but more about those another time

This week was when I came to the realization that college is not a walk in the park. I was loaded down with papers, quizzes, and reading assignments. I was also told that I have exams starting next week (!!!!) I'm going to be a very busy girl!

However, I did discover something that is going to become my new best friend......... the library, and specifically Howe Writing Center. The library is located in the middle of campus, so I can drop by if I have an hour between classes and get some "serious" studying done. They also have a delicious cafe (their peanut butter cookies are UNBELIEVABLE!)

But back to Howe Writing Center... I went online and scheduled an appointment with Nick (one of Howe Writing Center's workers) so that he could help me edit and revise my paper that was due in English the next day. I figured it would be nice to have an extra set of eyes to read over my paper, and boy was I RIGHT!! The appointments only last 45 minutes, but I got EVERYTHING I wanted accomplished in that amount of time. I would say it was the most productive 45 minutes of my life.

I don't think Nick and the other workers at Howe Writing Center know this yet, but we are going to be BEST FRIENDS this year!

Rumble at the River

We had a wonderful Labor Day weekend... my last class Friday was cancelled on account of my Pre-Calculus teacher getting swine flu, so my weekend started off at 11 o'clock!

Saturday, Julie and I woke up early and went to Cincinnati for the Miami vs. UK football game at Paul Brown Stadium... aka the Rumble at the River (although, I would say it was more a smackdown by UK)

The unfortunate score did not phase the Miami fans, who came ready to rumble! The contrast of colors in the stands looked so neat, UK in blue, and Miami in red!

At half time they even honored sports teams from Miami who had gone to national championships including the hockey team.

We sat in the student section. It was so nice because we were in the sixth row, and our tickets were only $10!!! For a price of $20 a student got a ticket to the game and a "Rumble at the River" t-shirt and for $30 the student got a football ticket, a t-shirt, a bus ticket for the spirit bus and a free concession pass (which would have been one-hundred percent worth it considering how expensive the concession stand is!!)

Lots of Bengals players came to the game. Carson Palmer was on the field, and Ray Maualuga was working the stands (I took a picture with him!)

The weather was gorgeous outside! It was the perfect day to be cheering on the Redhawks... even if they didn't play as well as expected.

WATCH OUT UK... WE'LL WE BACK NEXT YEAR!!!!

Being Who You Want to Be

I guess it was when Julie and I went to the Mega Fair that I realized college is so much different than high school. In high school everyone was reforming to be that perfect student who everybody liked, but it is not until we get to college that we realize that it's okay to be quirky and passionate about something other than sports.

At Mega Fair I saw booths for clubs that I had never even thought could exist. Not only were there sororities and fraternities, but there were sports clubs (golf, soccer, basketball, rowing), there was earth club, little/big sibs, anime, international community service, food club, [insert your major here] co-ed fraternities, theater, there was even a quidditch club!

I decided I wanted to join the golf club since I played in high school. I also got more information on some sororities, a business fraternity, campus activities council, and a service club which raises money for an organization that installs clean water wells in African villages.

In high school I got a poem from my sophomore english teacher called "Think Different" I'm glad I've only been here 2 weeks and I'm already ready to be myself...

Think Different

"To the crazy ones.

The misfits.

The rebels.

The trouble makers.

The round pegs in the square holes.

The ones who see things differently.

They're not fond of rules.

And they have no respect for the status quo.

You can praise them, disagree with them,

quote them,

disbelieve them,

glorify them or vilify them.

About the only thing you can't do is ignore them.

Because they change things.

They invent. They imagine. They heal.

They explore. They create. They inspire.

They push the human race forward.

How else can you stare at an empty canvas and see a work of art? Or sit in silence and hear a song that's never been written? Or gaze at a red planet and see a laboratory on wheels?

While some see them as the crazy ones, we see genius.

And it's the people who are crazy enough

to think they can change the world,

who actually do."

Mega Fair showed me that the kids at Miami are okay with being crazy

because they know that it is the only way for them to reach their full potential.

Welcome to Miami!

H1N1 Flu

I never thought it would happen to me.

I woke up last Monday with the sniffles and figured that I was getting a cold...

It was, after all, just after my first weekend at Miami, there was lots of new people, and places, and.....

Rule Number One (when dealing with Swine Flu): Don't Make Excuses!!! (just go the the doctor and get a check up)

Tuesday was a different story. I woke up freezing.. I wore sweatpants a sweatshirt to class (it was 86 degrees outside) and I came back from class and slept from 2 in the afternoon until the next morning.

One of my upperclassmen friends convinced me to go to the health center even though I told her I was completely fine..... a few hours later I was leaving the student health center with a mask on. I was told I had to go home.

I was so scared that I was going to fall behind on classes. I had heard horror stories of kids who had gotten sick and fell very far behind on their schooling because they had to go home and missed so much class.

However, my professors and other administrative members at Miami were very understanding and helped me out as much as possible. My professors told me they would accept late work, and when I finally returned they gave me the notes that I missed.

Here's another secret.... the swine flu isn't that big of a deal! (it's exactly like the regular flu)