Why Rush? Thoughts on College.

Sure, I am tired of hearing about how ‘the economy is to blame’ for issues almost entirely created by the individuals themselves. I am even more tired, though, of being asked why I’m not pushing myself to go to a university, and then the interrogator says something like ‘oh, it must be because of the economy.’ While the economy has made it more difficult to get a student loan (and the interest rates have gone through the roof), I wouldn’t be there anyway.Why, that sounds mad! You can’t get anywhere without a degree when you’re so young! Not in this century. *cough*

When I was in high school, I knew that I wanted to go to college, but mostly it was because I was going to miss my friends when they moved away and was going to miss out on the “college experience.” It sucked when they moved away, yes, and I did feel I was missing out on something. Over time, however, I came to accept and actually appreciate that I did not just jump into the four-year boat with the money my parents [never] saved for me. Here’s why.

1. I am receiving the same, if not better, quality of education at the local community college. It is true that community college teachers make significantly less money than the big bad professors at universities, but it is not news that the community teachers are passionate about their profession. While many university courses are taught by TAs because the professors have to do research and put out results in order to make their money, I cannot recall ever once being neglected by an instructor at my CC. They are just as educated, they are ever-more passionate, and they would not be there if they didn’t love the students. I’ve even had instructors who had job offers at universities and declined them because they liked their job and the students at the CC more.
2. I am saving money. In more ways than one. I save money by getting my general education and even some major-req’s out of the way at a CC, and I have been working to save money for college for many years.
3. I have no college debt. On the same note, I have no debt associated with school. If I can’t afford it, and if I don’t qualify for any financial aid (which has always been the case), I wait until I have enough saved to go. Paying up-front is always better than being in debt if you can do it.
4. I have years of full-time job experience. Need I say more? That is invaluable experience that I will already have once I do graduate.
5. I am not wasting a degree. That has to be the biggest one to me. Deciding what to do upon graduating seems like a pretty good thing to decide before attending. If you have the money and don’t mind putting in the time at a university to figure it out, go ahead and decide while you’re there. But for most of us, we don’t have the money, and our time is better spent at a local college or working while we figure it out. But Kita, we can figure it out better at a university that offers a wide-variety of classes that we can experiment in! Bull. That falls under the “you have money … /time” category. You can figure it out through apprenticeships, talking to/shadowing people in the field, or taking the same classes at a local college.

Too much emphasis is placed on rushing through a four-year and getting a bachelor’s degree. For years, BAs actually meant you would have a greater chance of finding a job once you left school, and that you would be more specialized. Everyone caught onto that, though, and with so many BA-degreed, I-did-an-internship-so-I-have-experience students attempting to enter the workforce, employers are taking the MAs that they see instead. Hell, if someone with a Master’s degree wants to work for me (because there isn’t anything else for them in *cough* this economy), I’ll take them over the cookie-cutter kids any day. So.. wouldn’t it make sense, if you either need to be passionate and completely dedicated to a career path -OR- go to grad school in order to make a BA worth it, to know what you want to do before you take the time to do it? I think yes, anyway.

So here I am, completely content with my 56 units and twenty ideas on what to do when I have the 60 I need. I haven’t missed out, really, I’m just getting started.

Owl

Being something else.

Originally uploaded by frozencocoon

Solar Tsunami

Nasa scientists braced for ‘solar tsunami’ to hit earth. Could be fun!

Altruism

This article made me tear up a little. I’m a softy, so what?

People Doing Something Good (contest winners)

Whiteboard Paint? Why, Don’t Mind If I Do.

This has to be one of the better ideas I have seen in a long time.

Whiteboard paint! I will be painting the middle-half of a room in this in the very near future.

10 Fresh Ways to Use Your Journal

If I have not yet emphasized how much I love journals, let me do so now. I love journals. I love paper products in general, actually. It may be a strange but somehow totally healthy obsession, and I am okay with it. The only problem that arises is I run out of things to write about. Here I have compiled a little list of uses for journals. If you are anything like me, you already have some that you would like to fill. If not (or even if you do), check out The Black Giraffe Shop for my handmade journals as fresh as the ideas below!

1.  Place your old post-it notes in the journal and date them. (They’re really fun to look through later, as you may imagine!)

2.  Keep a journal of restaurants that you visit! Write down what was good, what to avoid, how much tip you left, or whatever you want to remember!

3.  Destroy your book. It sounds odd at first, but it’s actually quite liberating and fun! Crumple pages, rub dirt in it, paint over old entries that bore you, staple pages together. It’s a creative way to be destructive, and it might just inspire you to do something constructive.

4.  Have two journals? Three? Make a Round Robin with a close friend or two! Whether you see each other every class period, or you exchange them at weekly office meetings, round robins are a great, personal way to keep in communication with people you wish you could talk to more often! Long-distance friendship? Mail them! Admit it, handwritten letters are way more exciting to receive than e-mail. Now imagine a whole book! Include pictures, notes you passed in class, doodles, whatever!

5.  Keep track of special moments you share with a significant other, son/daughter, grandparent, pet, etc. Over time, you will start to forget details you would have remembered had you written them down! It could very well become one of your most cherished possessions.

6.  Keep a Work Diary. This sounds somewhat less fun than other options, but I have found them to be rather therapeutic. Work is a large part of our lives, and we think about it whether we want to or not. In many cases, we end up venting about our days to our loved ones. Maybe some of you have loved ones who are amped every day to listen in on your work-related rants, and for that I applaud them. For most of us, though, we end up wearing on them and ourselves. Now imagine a work diary! Write down anything and everything you want or need to get out of you head from the day, then merrily stuff it away until next time!

7.  Everyone could use a “Bucket List” to keep track of their aspirations. First, make a list of your goals, then make the book a list of “things you are going to do” and fill it with these goals. Either write each item on a new page or make a table of contents, then use the rest of the space to explain the experience as it was accomplished!
8.  Keep a Dream Journal. These are always great, especially if you want to read back on them. Dreams are too easy to forget.

9.  Similarly, keep a Bedside Journal where you can write down ideas that come to you while falling asleep. Or in the middle of the night, if you remember something and jump with a start.

10.  Inspiration Books are my favorite. You can keep anything from flowers, to notes that you wrote on napkins, to just writing in the book when you think of something inspiring that you would rather not forget.

I hope those are inspiring! Feel free to leave a comment for others including any other ideas you may come up with!!

Lemons

“When life gives you lemons, turn around and make grape juice out of them. Shock the hell out of people.” - Rev Run Wisdom

As I was scrolling through my followers on Twitter and ran into this quote I thought, “what a perfect way to describe my method of madness.” I then thought about how I hadn’t yet started the blog for The Black Giraffe, and the quote fit quite nicely as a starter.

Well, here I am! My name is Nikita, or Kita to my friends (or people who will become my friends simply because they tried it out).

just me & a tiki!

I am ordinary in ways, but I love to bend the rules and try new things. As the writers of the US Constitution intended, I am on the constant pursuit of happiness. That means that I generally go out of my way to try an unconventional method of achieving what I feel will make me happy. The process is always exciting, whether I succeed or not.

When I graduated from High School, my dad and his wife gave me a card that read “The Journey is the Reward.” I didn’t believe it at the time, as I was graduating from a very long, somewhat “tortured” high school experience. I could see how a person would feel that way, though, and since then the goal has been to feel it in myself every day.

Here I go, four years later, starting up a company because that’s what I want to do. I have always known that someday I will own several small businesses, and the ideas have jumped from late-night cafes to 50′s-style restaurants with girls on skates and a milkshake bar (but not like Sonic, I’m talking real eats here). For now, though, my passion lies in hand-making items. The process itself is relaxing, at times challenging, and rewarding. The Black Giraffe will feature hand-bound journals, miscellaneous accessories, photographic prints, and home decor. As I change as a person and as an artist, though, the shop will change with me. Here, along with whatever else strikes my fancy, I will note the subtle or dramatic changes that occur.

So follow me! I can’t wait to meet like-minded people with like-minded goals!