Winter Quarter and the New Year are upon us, and for many that comes with the desire to improve oneself through the ol’ New Year’s Resolution. I’ve never been too interested in instantly choosing new ways to improve myself simply because the calendar reads a different number, but at some point during the day on Monday I realized I was looking at my last class schedule at UCSB. This will be my last list of my most important priorities as a college student after three years of looking at a phone screen for directions to what class was next. Nothing brings on feelings of uncertainty and nostalgia like an indicator that you will likely never do something again in your life.
Art by Ashlea Vedder / Daily Nexus
That’s when I started reflecting on my time at UCSB and really started looking toward the near future to be as sure as possible that when I graduate I will feel as though I’ve done it right. So rather than the classic installment of New Year’s resolutions that are often nebulous and easy to lose track of by February, I decided to compile a list of Winter Quarter and beyond resolutions as a soon-to-be UCSB graduate. Some of course stem from personal experiences and ambitions over the last few years, but it is my hope that most are in some way applicable to Gauchos looking for new things to do, new ways of doing or perhaps just a new frame of mind moving into Winter Quarter.
My first ambition does in fact fall into the category of unoriginal New Year’s resolutions, but if I keep using my phone at the rate I have been, I might as well glue it to my face and hang a sign on my chest that says, “I don’t care about what’s going on around me.” The convenience of having the entire world in the palm of your hand in the form of a smartphone brings with it the irony that by constantly using your phone, whether to check up on friends or world events, you are depriving yourself of the actual world around you. I’m working towards moderation with this one in hopes of eliminating the act of pulling out my phone simply because it’s something to do.
Smell the flowers more; literally. We are in Santa Barbara and there are beautiful flowers everywhere. Introduce yourself to the person next to you instead of reaching for your phone. You only have so much time to meet folks in college, and there are some seriously interesting people running around this place (check out Extraordinary People in the Opinion section). Instead of shirking the occasion for a new conversation and settling for your news feed, shake hands with someone and create a chance to add a new face to that feed.
It can be tough to always be open to meeting people. School, work, family and life in general can fill up your plate and wear you out at the same time. I am not sure there is an English word for the energy you feel upon returning to your routine after a new experience, new challenge or a memorable trip, but there should be. That eyes-wide-open feeling is fleeting, and it’s too easy to forget about after a few days back in the real world. Trying to keep that alive is one of the more intangible things I hope to stay in touch with, and it’s something I think many of us could do well by. Trying to consider things with fresh eyes we might otherwise overlook has the power to change our perception altogether. Sit and gaze at the lagoon for a bit and really take it in; just not for too long, because no matter how hard you try, that smell will not change.
Instead of shirking the occasion for a new conversation and settling for your news feed, shake hands with someone and create a chance to add a new face to that feed.
My next suggestion will probably read as a shameless plug, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t ask you to pick up the paper more often. Even if it isn’t the Nexus, taking some time each day to sit down and read a physical newspaper shouldn’t be something only our parents do. Social media has us far too busy staring at our phones and sifting through bullshit clickbait headlines that may or may not lead you to a fringe fake news site. Get your hands on the paper, open it up wide and digest the day’s news as often as possible. No popups, no one simple trick to make all women love you, just the news of the day. Even as an editor I don’t do this enough, but it has become easier with a couple housemates with subscription services to various papers. Split the price with friends for those big name papers, or grab the Nexus once a week FOR FREE from one of the black boxes around campus and I.V.
I recently read somewhere this piece of advice: “Think not about what you have to do, but what you get to do.” Do we have to go to class at 8 a.m., or do we get to wake up at the most beautiful college town in the country and listen to lectures from some seriously accomplished professors? Often times our biggest day to day challenges are the amount of reading, writing and listening we perform. According to my UCSB alum dad, there are far worse things we could be stressing over at this age. When I start complaining about drowning in abstract theory, this is helpful to remember. This simple shift in how you consider each day can go a long way in helping keep up your energy and willingness to try new things.
Do we have to go to class at 8 a.m., or do we get to wake up at the most beautiful college town in the country and listen to lectures from some seriously accomplished professors?
On that note, I’ve become resolved to do more things in general before the university makes me leave because I’ve taken too many units. Jump off the pier a half dozen more times, go to the Channel Islands, go to shows and exhibitions and events, do a proper and complete beer loop in I.V., all of it. If I don’t become at least close to competent at surfing before I graduate I’ll chalk it up as a huge personal L. Between our Arts & Lectures schedule and all of the wonderful things the MultiCultural Center hosts, you could fill up your entire quarter with one afternoon of checking out the events online.
With the light at the end of my college career getting closer and closer (thanks a lot countdown clock on the wall in Study Hall), it’s time to start thinking like a first year again. Even four years in, there are many stones yet to be uncovered. Whether it’s catching free shows at the Pollock, getting busy with an I.M. sport or taking advantage of the fact that we have miles of coastline on one side and mountains on the other, I don’t think enough can be said for following your curiosity, especially in this setting. So say hi to that person next to you, try something new, keep that energy up, put your phone down and pick up the damn paper! Oh, and have a swell Winter Quarter, whether you’ve just arrived or you are staring your last class schedule in the face.
Don’t forget to do your best to take advantage of the wonderful situation of being a student at UCSB.
Don’t forget to do your best to take advantage of the wonderful situation of being a student at UCSB.
