Dis-Orientation, or My Dizzying but Blissful Day at Berea Transfer Student Orientation

I really need to go to be because it's really 10:30 here. But my computer and my body both say it's only 9:30 even if it has been a very long day. So I'll blog anyway.

It came at last. Berea orientation. I'm not sure I was terribly oriented by the end of the day; actually I was a little dizzy with all the information and activity. But when I crossed the sunny parking lot behind Presser Hall and found my Dad and little brother again, I was happy because the day had been a success. And because now we could go eat pizza at Papalenos.

This morning I was a little nervous about the whole thing, which was demonstrated in the five or ten extra minutes I spent in front of the hotel mirror, fiddling with my bobby pins. "Come on, Cass," Ethan urged, heading out the door on his way to breakfast. He and Dad were, of course, ready to eat and not concerned about their hair at all. "Just give me a minute," I said. "Girls always want their hair to look perfect when they go somewhere new." In fact, this is the part where you say, "Wow, Cass, you look super amazing today." And then I feel better. And then we get our waffles and orange juice sooner.

Soon I forget about my hair, finding myself in a little knot of 8:30 in the morning-ish looking people in Presser Hall, with a blue folder, thinking it's too bad that the raspberry danish I just plucked from a platter is going to be entirely wasted. There is no way I can eat at this moment. My goal today is to greet people, meet people, and generally be sociable if it kills me. I notice that the lady I didn't have the gumption to talk to at the hotel continental breakfast (where they had the waffles) is in the corner with a girl my age who must be her daughter. We start talking, and by the end of the day we're both in Appalachian Lit. Then I talk to a few more people. And they are so nice. People are just cheerful here. I like it.

We got a lot of info in a short time. Most of it hasn't sunk in yet. I just pinned down the important bits like when we have to pay for things and what classes I'm taking. I aimed to branch out in my classes, explore Berea's unique offerings.

So I started out with Writing/Critical Thinking, Scientific Knowledge and Inquiry, Human Rights/International Law, Fundamentals of Drawing, and Outdoor Adventure Activites I. But because of schedule and classes filling up, I had to change the last three to Approaches to Ethics, Appalachian Lit., and a basic health class.

I'm so excited about being in a place where they like to learn that, where, where basics are concerned, I'll be happy with pretty much any class I get. If I managed to enjoy college algebra last semester, I figure I can learn something from anything.

I was even going to take Middle Eastern Dance instead of Outdoor Ad. Activities, except that was the wrong time, too. I mean, the worst thing that could happen is that I'd fail, right? Note on transcript next to the gigantic red F: She couldn't move her hips. At all.

Moving right along...I had very pleasant talks with a few folks in the Study Abroad and International Student offices, and then visited the campus job fair downstairs, which was close to closing up but still miraculously had three 10 hr. per week job openings for working with the international center on campus.

That's exactly what I hoped to do when I heard about Berea's labor program, but also when I heard about Berea's labor program, I thought I'd start out doing something more like mopping, which, don't get me wrong, is a noble pursuit in itself, but to tell the truth, I'm pretty experienced in that line of work and I'd love to try my hand at something else. So I applied and...it might just happen!

Wow. The idea of having work and school in the same place is amazing. No car necessary (or allowed, the first year). They actually have these things called sidewalks here, little paved pathways beside the road...they're ingenious. You people from Longview should come check it out; I know you've never seen the likes of this before. Well, not ones that actually go somewhere.

Nah, there are certain things I love about my hometown, but absence of sidewalks and destinations you can reach by sidewalks are not some of them.

So really, I've supplied the juiciest details now and really (I'm starting to use more reallies because I'm really getting really tired and at this point that's really all that really comes to mind. Really.) Umm, Yep, I'll go to bed now...now that you have the story of my orientation at Berea.