Final Exams

A few things i've learned about surviving the last week of the semester which are full of final exams!
Start studying early for the exams. Reviewing your notes a few nights before the test can reduce the stress of cramming it all in the nght before.
Take breaks between studying. Taking your mind off of what you are studying by talking to a friend or working out.
Vary the subjects you study. Don't study all night for one test. Take turns with each of the subjects you need to study for so you don't get bored with the information you keep going over.
Eating right can drastically help during exam week. Eating the right food, not junk food, gives you energy to focus on the test. Eating breakfast the day of the exam is best since it gives you a boost of nergy for the rest of the day. Eating foods with high sugar and fats make you sluggish so avoiding them is best.
Get enough sleep. Seven or eight hours is necessary to rejuvinate the body. Without sleeping you are more irritable and more prone to making mistakes.
Reduce the stress around you. Don't put yourself in situations that cause more stress than necessary.
Take care of your body. Excercising has been proven to help retain information. Staying away from caffiene stimulants is best because they only give a short boost of energy and then you return to feeling tired and drained.
Just a few ways to stay positive during final week!

Rent!

The Broadway musical Rent is one of the best musicals I have seen by far. Having now seen it twice I have fallen in love with it even more. The upbeat music tells a story of unfortunate city dwellers, some of which have AIDS, living their lives day to day with little money in their pockets. Roger Davis, Mimi Marquez, Mark Cohen, Maureen Johnson, Joanne Jefferson, Tom Collins and Angel Schunard are the seven main characters who have become a family through all the difficulties that life has thrown at them. Roger, Mimi, Tom and Angel have all contracted AIDS so life has become even more difficult for them. Living in a world where homosexuality has not become the norm Maureen, Joann, Tom and Angel deal with the ridicule that most out upon them. Maureen, who used to date Mark, is dating Joann but hasn’t become serious enough about their relationship. Joann is looking for a commitment but isn’t sure she can find this in Maureen after speaking with Mark about Maureen’s blatant flirting with the same and opposite sex. Tom met Angel in an alley where Tom was beaten and stripped of his jacket. Angel cleaned him up and brought him to a Life Support meeting for people with AIDS. Angel is a spunky cross dresser, who has a very bad case of AIDS. Tom soon falls in love with Angel knowing all the “baggage” he’s attached to. Roger has just lost his girlfriend April who committed suicide soon after finding out they both have AIDS. Mimi works her way in to Rogers’s heart and they go through the trials of a relationship with some extra hardships along the way. Mark, a filmmaker, was the narrator of the play and a helpful friend to all. He signs a contract with a local TV station to earn money and broadcast the underprivileged and homeless in the city so maybe one day help will be provided. Another main character Benjamin Coffin, Mimi’s ex-boyfriend and ex-friend of all of the other main characters, is the landlord of their building and has demanded the rent or receive the consequence of being evicted. The movie is surrounded around the fact that these characters can’t pay the rent. Maureen hosts a protest against people like Benny who want to turn the apartments in a Cyber Arts Studio. Maureen and Joanne eventually realize they need and love each other after the death of Angel which takes its toll on Tom. Roger and Mimi also recognize that even though they both have “baggage” they can get through it if they have each other. Mark realizes he loves film but doesn’t want to “sell his soul” to a TV station and quits that job to do independent films about his friends. They all eventually find themselves back at the apartment where they were meant to be. I love everything about Rent. It shows true life in a way other producers couldn’t portray. It showed the darker side of the city where AIDS and homosexuality is what is happening. The producers didn’t hide behind the perfect life where boy meets girl and they fall in love. Rent was reality that hasn’t been seen by most. Rent is a must see!

Jobs and Internships

Getting a college education is all about the big prize at the end, the dream job. Finding out what you enjoy doing is one of the key points in being a success in a job. Internships can help in getting to this dream job. Starting small is the only way to get to the top. High school was a set curriculum and all students were forced to take the same classes. In college there are, of course, core classes that are required of every student but the main focus is on the students major. Picking the right major for you is the key to success. Choosing a major that you don’t enjoy but happens to have a high salary won’t help in the long run. Hating the job you have makes life harder. Getting up everyday hating what you do will cause a ripple of negative events in life. Choosing a major that you have interest in is the way to go. Loving what you do makes life more enjoyable and will allow you to work your way up in that specific job. This will cause an increase in salary and position and will eventually surpass that of a person who hated their job that they only took because of the high starting salary. Internships are a great way to find out what you are interested in doing. The Monster website can help students find internships that best suit them and their interests. Getting a feel for what you enjoy before making a commitment is a smart move. Working for a company that has a job you are interested in can enable you to work closely with employees of this company. Gaining knowledge from the experience can only help you in the long run. Usually, but not all the time, if the company likes the intern they will offer them a job after they finish their degree. Sometimes these companies will offer to pay for graduate school while working for them part time. Choosing the right job for you will help form the most enjoyable life possible. Internships help in the process of finding this perfect job. Two or more internships are needed to truly find out what you are interested in doing. Taking the time to do this now is better then settling for a job you are unsure of and you find out later you are unhappy with.