9:45a
23 September 2010
As a freshman, we're usually terrified of college. We're so paranoid that we're going to fail, to fall behind that early in the year we study hard, become caffeine addicts, forget meals, and lock ourselves in our room or in the library just studying, studying, studying...
After the second week we start realizing that it's not as...difficult as we expected. It's hard, yes, but we get it into our little heads that we can have fun, too. (Apparently Lehigh is a party school but it's just not known as one) Not that we neglect our studies, but we start to relax and "go with the flow". And then you're like, damnit I forgot to do this or get that.
But that's a topic for another day. I actually wanted to talk about the importance of diet to a freshman, especially a female freshman.
We're all terrified of getting the famed "Freshman 15". It's common knowledge here that it's very hard to get the Freshman 15 here. We're built on the side of a mountain and to get back to your dorm means you have to climb uphill. Or, if you're lazy, you take the TRACS bus. But even with the TRACS bus, you have to climb up and down a lot of stairs to get to your room or your class - few buildings have elevators, after all and it sucks to break your leg on campus. :/
For me, at least, I don't worry about the Freshman 15 because, quite frankly, I could care less. If someone dares to call me fat, it will not be pretty. (I guess in another blog I should talk about attitude changes in college...) :/ Anyway, I don't worry much because I usually eat healthy, especially in the mornings. My breakfast usually consists of:
-a full plate of watermelon
-bacon if they have, no meat if they don't
-sometimes a bagel with cream cheese
-a cup of coffee with lots of cream (2% just doesn't cut it for me) and three packets of Equal
-sometimes a bowl of cereal with milk
-sometimes a small bowl of oatmeal with brown sugar
I don't usually eat lunch because a lot of my classes are around then. This Saturday I'm going down to S. Bethlehem and getting a box of poptarts, granola bars and other essentials (as well as a few gifts for the fam - they have some really nice stuff here). That way I have something to munch on in my bag other than senbei.
Dinner depends on where I eat. When I eat in the Hawk's Nest, which is fairly rare, I get a burger and fries or a quesadilla. In Rathbone, the dining hall across the street from me, I usually get a slice of pizza, pasta with marinara sauce, whatever meat is offered, mashed potatoes if they have, and the "vegetable du jour".
I eat fairly healthy, really, and I get a lot of exercise ( :/ ). Stupid hills.
But every once in a while my stomach acts up and I have to run to the bathroom. (It's really embarrassing to run across your recitation class and out the door, especially since there are less than 20 people there). Which leads me to my point: it's hard to be really healthy as a Hawaiian freshman in college.
I know partially why my stomach acts up - it's not used to the plentiful and potent spices these mainland people put on their meat (the offered meat I eat for dinner in Rathbone) and the fact that I absolutely cannot drink the water here. I have to scrounge for bottle water or take only very small sips of the water. On occasion, when I get desperate enough, I hold my breath and gulp down a lot of it from a water fountain (which is somehow better, especially the one in Lewis Lab, which is really weird).
Because we weren't raised in the mainland where they put fluoride in their water like it's no joke, we're not used to the harsh, chemical taste of the water. Sometimes I find myself coughing because the chemicals burn my throat. The other day, I had considered going to talk to the Red Cross volunteers about giving blood (but this is another story for another day). Knowing this, I went to the water dispenser (I was in Rathbone at the time) and filled my cup with water. Getting back to my seat, I forgot it was chemicalized (it's a word now >( ) and gulped down some. Steph looked a little worried when I immediately started coughing. I told her the water tasted bad and hurt my throat sometimes. She asked if I was sick and I told her no, I wasn't even though she kept coughing at me; it was because the water tastes like chlorine. She told me rather bluntly that they don't put chlorine in the water - it's fluoride - and the water tastes just fine. My water sat untouched for the rest of the meal.
As a freshman I, at least, became an opportunistic eater. If there's food, I'd nibble on it. If there's bottled water, I'd drink it. I'd only go to the dining hall if I had time (which is usually why I don't eat lunch) and usually when I leave, it'd be straight back to my next class or activity. Sometimes I'd eat late at night (last night, for example, I ate dinner at around 8:30, 8:45 at Rathbone after Swing Dance.
Another reason it sucks to be a freshman from Hawaii. :/
~E
As a freshman, we're usually terrified of college. We're so paranoid that we're going to fail, to fall behind that early in the year we study hard, become caffeine addicts, forget meals, and lock ourselves in our room or in the library just studying, studying, studying...
After the second week we start realizing that it's not as...difficult as we expected. It's hard, yes, but we get it into our little heads that we can have fun, too. (Apparently Lehigh is a party school but it's just not known as one) Not that we neglect our studies, but we start to relax and "go with the flow". And then you're like, damnit I forgot to do this or get that.
But that's a topic for another day. I actually wanted to talk about the importance of diet to a freshman, especially a female freshman.
We're all terrified of getting the famed "Freshman 15". It's common knowledge here that it's very hard to get the Freshman 15 here. We're built on the side of a mountain and to get back to your dorm means you have to climb uphill. Or, if you're lazy, you take the TRACS bus. But even with the TRACS bus, you have to climb up and down a lot of stairs to get to your room or your class - few buildings have elevators, after all and it sucks to break your leg on campus. :/
For me, at least, I don't worry about the Freshman 15 because, quite frankly, I could care less. If someone dares to call me fat, it will not be pretty. (I guess in another blog I should talk about attitude changes in college...) :/ Anyway, I don't worry much because I usually eat healthy, especially in the mornings. My breakfast usually consists of:
-a full plate of watermelon
-bacon if they have, no meat if they don't
-sometimes a bagel with cream cheese
-a cup of coffee with lots of cream (2% just doesn't cut it for me) and three packets of Equal
-sometimes a bowl of cereal with milk
-sometimes a small bowl of oatmeal with brown sugar
I don't usually eat lunch because a lot of my classes are around then. This Saturday I'm going down to S. Bethlehem and getting a box of poptarts, granola bars and other essentials (as well as a few gifts for the fam - they have some really nice stuff here). That way I have something to munch on in my bag other than senbei.
Dinner depends on where I eat. When I eat in the Hawk's Nest, which is fairly rare, I get a burger and fries or a quesadilla. In Rathbone, the dining hall across the street from me, I usually get a slice of pizza, pasta with marinara sauce, whatever meat is offered, mashed potatoes if they have, and the "vegetable du jour".
I eat fairly healthy, really, and I get a lot of exercise ( :/ ). Stupid hills.
But every once in a while my stomach acts up and I have to run to the bathroom. (It's really embarrassing to run across your recitation class and out the door, especially since there are less than 20 people there). Which leads me to my point: it's hard to be really healthy as a Hawaiian freshman in college.
I know partially why my stomach acts up - it's not used to the plentiful and potent spices these mainland people put on their meat (the offered meat I eat for dinner in Rathbone) and the fact that I absolutely cannot drink the water here. I have to scrounge for bottle water or take only very small sips of the water. On occasion, when I get desperate enough, I hold my breath and gulp down a lot of it from a water fountain (which is somehow better, especially the one in Lewis Lab, which is really weird).
Because we weren't raised in the mainland where they put fluoride in their water like it's no joke, we're not used to the harsh, chemical taste of the water. Sometimes I find myself coughing because the chemicals burn my throat. The other day, I had considered going to talk to the Red Cross volunteers about giving blood (but this is another story for another day). Knowing this, I went to the water dispenser (I was in Rathbone at the time) and filled my cup with water. Getting back to my seat, I forgot it was chemicalized (it's a word now >( ) and gulped down some. Steph looked a little worried when I immediately started coughing. I told her the water tasted bad and hurt my throat sometimes. She asked if I was sick and I told her no, I wasn't even though she kept coughing at me; it was because the water tastes like chlorine. She told me rather bluntly that they don't put chlorine in the water - it's fluoride - and the water tastes just fine. My water sat untouched for the rest of the meal.
As a freshman I, at least, became an opportunistic eater. If there's food, I'd nibble on it. If there's bottled water, I'd drink it. I'd only go to the dining hall if I had time (which is usually why I don't eat lunch) and usually when I leave, it'd be straight back to my next class or activity. Sometimes I'd eat late at night (last night, for example, I ate dinner at around 8:30, 8:45 at Rathbone after Swing Dance.
Another reason it sucks to be a freshman from Hawaii. :/
~E
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