My first year at Rutgers Newark was a disaster. My grades were terrible; probably due to the fact that I was smoking multiple times a day, everyday. I wasn't doing any work, I was screwing around outside of school, I wasn't taking anything seriously....
I skated through high school. I was lucky to be that kid that everybody knew. I was an athlete, I was an anchor on our daily news bulletin, a live broadcast to every class in the school, that started every morning, (along with the flag salute). I talked to kids from sports teams, the choir, the band, color guard, dance team, etc. You name it, I was friends with somebody there. All my teachers absolutely loved me, so my grades were represented as such.
Well, obviously, this didn't work once I got to college. All I wanted to do was hang out with my group of guys, have fun and take nothing seriously, and yes, this reflected on my grades. At school I had a personality equivalent to a boulder. I slept in every class, (I actually found out I had mono during this time). I sat by myself and spoke to nobody in my classes. I didn't want to be bothered.
After freshman year ended, my GPA was at a miniscule 2.5. I had the same habits and still hated everything about Rutgers Newark. I don't remember when, or why...or how, for that matter, but something happened to me that summer that made me evolve. One day, I was a scummy loser, and the next day I woke up alive and mature, ready to take on life. It was as if one night's sleep changed me; I pulled a 180. I decided I was going to take school seriously, stop fucking around and figure out what direction I wanted to go in life. I asked myself, "Where is this going to start?"
Well, that's a pretty dumb question to ask yourself. Start with your education, your future. Start your evolution at college, you stupid fuck!
The first day of my sophomore semester I decided I'd make some new friends. I figured that talking to people and conversing with people would open me up a little; it would help me become more social. I met a bunch of people that were the most chill and down to Earth people that I've ever met. I still talk to them on a daily basis and we hang out as often as possible.
To make a long story short, my GPA skyrocketed. Last semester I finished with a 3.7 ! I decided I'd major in Criminal Justice, along with a minor in Computer Science. Most importantly, I broke out of my immature stage. I stopped being miserable and lazy and stupid, and made some great memories with some new, close friends.
I called it my "quarter life crisis."
Great piece. Your emotion was very palpable and your honesty never wavered throughout the piece and that's what made it a good read. Your examples as to why you were doing so poorly ( the smoking, sleeping in class) helped me visualize the scene. I wish you told us more about what exactly you did to bring your GPA up ( great job by the way) and how these new friends of yours specifically helped you open up.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great blog. I like the fact that you were able to share something so personal. I find this post relatable because I too had a quarter life crisis. I am a fan of blogs that shares a piece of their life and teaches. Although you were strictly talking about your life story, I really enjoyed reading it. The only thing I would suggest is to use derogatory words only when necessary. I felt that some was not necessary and your sentence could of been stronger without it. Aside from that, good job and keep up the good work!
ReplyDeleteI like this post because you were able to deliver a message without saying it outright. It was giving advice through experience, rather than lecturing someone on what to do. You were able to tell your story without making it seem self-centered, which strengthens your post. If your blog is going to be about Newark, then you need to include more details of the city, instead of your experiences. Maybe work the city into your experiences in some way that the city itself plays a bigger role. I like the way you write and your style makes it an easy read.
ReplyDeleteI really liked this post, great job in woking hard to get your GPA up. Like everyone has commented I also really like it because it is very personal and that makes a strong blog. It was very nice you to share this with the class, not only does it define you as a strong, challenging person but also through your experience it teaches us that it is never too late to try anything. Don't forget to include Newark and maybe add the places you were in at the moment, overall very nice written.
ReplyDeleteRurik, to be honest, I can relate to this exact post right now. Transfer student from another school this is my second semester at Rutgers and it didn't start out so good. I failed one of my classes and it caused me to get on acadamic probation my first semester!. It sucks, but however I was able to bring my grades up taking summer courses. My point is that this piece is relatable, lots of people really don't like talking opening up about school especially when their not doing great..the fact that you took this post to a personal level engages the reader even more. Great job overall.
ReplyDeleteI read this blog post and heard your voice in my head, which sound quite weird, but I loved the fact that you are able to write the way you speak. You achieve a great conversational tone and are able to connect to the reader, whether they went though a quarter life crisis or not, your post is very down to earth. I like that you started with “the old Rurik” and finished with a matured one. I think the curses might be a little much in some of the sentences, but I also don’t mind them because I have heard you speak and it doesn’t sound so out of place, however some of your readers might be turned off by that. I really loved the motivational tone to this, after reading it I felt better and more at ease with my own college experience. I believe making your readers feel motivated or any strong emotion really, is what really good writing achieves. keep it up!
ReplyDeleteI respect your honesty and courage that went into writing this blog. Not a lot of males are open about their emotions but the way you did it in a motivational tone is really inspiring and makes the blog a great piece to read. Your experiences are what made you a stronger person, and once you realized you needed to get your act together you became a happier person from what i see. The way you conveyed your emotions of dismay about how you were before make the reader respect you a lot more for your honesty. Great job.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed this post. I really liked your honesty, and you were able to relate to many people. Many students come to college, and tend to take it easy because of all of the fun they're having. You're definitely an inspiration to a large crowd of Rutgers students, I thought the ending was strong because you explained how you overcame adversity, and finally broke out of your shell. You missed a few commas throughout the post, but it still was a strong post. Keep it up
ReplyDeleteGood job for getting your grades and GPA up and making new friends. It is never too late to change, as cliche as that sounds. I like this blog post in particular not only because people can relate to it, it's because I heard your voice. I felt like this was a conversational piece. Though this doesn't really tie in with the theme of Rutgers Newark and can be broadened to any issues that a student can face, this post is great. Maybe in your other posts, you can tie in Newark better.
ReplyDeleteit is great that your worked hard and turned it all around to get better grades. the tone of your work is very relaxed and relatable which doesnt seem pretentious and snooty. you are just an average student dealing with the problems every student deals with.
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