Freshman once again

Dorm life, roommates, no car, weight gain, lifestyle adjustments, communicable diseases, sleep deprivation. Yep, I feel like a freshman again.

To be clear, I live in a flat with five other roommates, all of whom are wonderful. But after having lived on my own for two years, "master of my domain" and all, sharing a small space with so many people definitely had its challenges, especially with those new to living away from home. I'm going to feel like a proud, giddy spinster when I get to my cabin on the North Rim and have a place all to my own.

Not having my own car. Well, I can tell you that I'm a bit worried about the first time I drive again back in the States. I'm now used to riding on the left side of the car, I only look left first about half of the time now, and I'm just not sure if it'll be the same as riding a bicycle. Besides that, though, small and rather unvaried as Lismore is, I would enjoy the town a lot better if I had the independence of my own vehicle. The SCU campus is not conveniently located near the downtown area or any shopping area for that matter. I have a feeling there's a big difference between the "nightlife" and the dinner-time crowd downtown and I suspect I'd fit in more with the group going out for a drink and a bite to eat than the young, hip[ster] nightlife crowd.

The freshman fifteen. Ugh, what a nightmare. Thankfully, that extreme has not been reached (I think I'd cry if that ever happened), but weight gain was definitely an aspect of my experience here. That trend is on the reverse, no thanks to three cumulative weeks of being indisposed with bouts of the cold virus (hence communicable diseases. What did you think I meant?), stress from procrastinating on writing that research report I just couldn't quite finish (let alone start) before I left for Australia, and flat out laziness.

I won't lie. It took me the better part of three months to figure out a healthy routine here. Between staying on campus late to utilize internet, dabbling in Australian party life, being sick and injured for several weeks (inhibiting my exercising frequency/motivation), and figuring out how to fairly store a week's worth of food in a fridge shared by six, I struggled to take charge of my lifestyle. Last week I had a breakthrough and *fingers crossed*, I think I've got it down now. I'm still fighting senioritis to the nth degree and general apathy toward school work but I think with this upswing, that will improve. The key is sleep. Sleep and exercise. I can check the latter off my list for today but for now, time to sleep. So goodnight to you all and Happy ANZAC Day!