LC 12

Visiting the Rubin Museum was a unique experience.  I’m not a fan of museums nor art so you can already tell my mood walking through the doors.  However, it was free and I did not go alone so it was not so bad.  The museum seemed to focus a lot on the Asian Culture, particularly the Indian, and Southeast Asia regions.  There were Himalayan, Tibetan, Hindu, and other pieces of art.  There were a variety of different arts and each floor of the museum has a particular theme.  I may have had a spiritual connection but while I was walking in the museum, the atmosphere of the building seemed to bring out the true colors of its theme.  The lights were dim, there was plenty of space, the walls of the color matched well with the painting and there was an assortment of art to look at.  One piece of art I liked was the large mandala in the middle hanging by the stairways.  If you look very closely, you can see human figures on it but far away, it looks like various symbols or hieroglyphics.  For a small quiet museum that was free and that did not let anyone take pictures, it was pretty good.

My visit to the Rubin Museum of Art was exciting. I actually ran around the whole museum because i wanted to see everything since i had a limited amount of time. There we statues of weird looking creatures and tribes. There were so many different colored, shaped, formed statues of mystical beings and of people that were worshiped. The museum instilled fear into me because i felt overwhelmed by all of the powerful historical artifacts that might as well been possessed by demons and spirits. I think i have a 6th sense since i felt the presence of spiritual beings next to me in the museum, which is one reason why i was running. But overall the visit was intriguing and i would definitely visit again, but with an companion.

I never thought my first semester at Baruch would go by so quickly! I really do feel like the first day classes was just yesterday. It’s scary to think that time went by so fast. I remember walking into Baruch and not being that scared at all. I did have high expectations though and sadly the first semester didn’t live up to my expectations.  The one main thing that irritated me most about Baruch is the registrars office and their lack of being up to date on issues.  No matter how many times I go to them to fix the same one problem, they keep bringing it up and dropping me from all my classes. Seriously, what is up with that? Also, math was one thing that really brought me down and at the end I had no choice but to just drop it and retake it next semester.

The first semester was not all bad though. I got to meet so many different people, through my LC and the different clubs I’m in.  AIESEC is a club that I have to dedicate most of my time to, but in the end it pays off because I make great connections and make amazing friends. Over all, this first semester really taught to me step up. It really kicked my butt and opened my eyes to be more responsible and keep up with all my assignments.  High school was a joke for me and college really is nothing compared to that. I also learned that I have to be more independent and start cleaning my dorm more often. =\

The Career Exploration workship that we attended as a class focused on a lot of key things that freshman need to know in order to be successful in the future.  Some of the main topics that were discussed were how to create resumes, how to get internships, and how to act professional in the real world. I personally knew how to create a proper resume because I learned that in high school, but it was a nice way of refreshing the key things since I did forget some main points. I also thought that some of it was a little intimidating because it was a lot of different information that was being given to us and all of it was important for us to remember. I feel that it was very helpful though because they talked about a lot of key things that people should know for the future, especially if they are looking to be successful in whatever career they choose to pursue, and lets face it, everyone wants to be successful.

The first thing I noticed about this place was the entrance, which gave it a very dark mood since I went at night. It wouldn’t look like an interesting museum or a museum I would visit like the body museum or a space museum.  The museum is mostly filled with art work which looks like it is from an Asian descent. I read some of the stuff there and the museum is mostly Himalayan’s stuff. There were a lot of floors and I am just rushing this blog by the way. I gotta go out soon so yeah. Overall, it was extremely boring for me because I hate looking at old stuff. I just went up the stairs to every exhibit but the most interesting one for me was the stairs. I never went into a museum and they had such stairs.

This discussion was a great way for people to listen to the thoughts that the author of The Bitter Seahad when he was writing the novel and a great way to hear his story in person. However, most of it confused me because I couldn’t hear most of what the author was trying to say, maybe that was just because of the place where I was sitting and the low volume that he was speaking in.  Even then,  I feel that it was a great experience to have the author speak infront of the whole freshman class.

My person opinion on identity is that it’s very important for an individual to have their own sense of identity and not be easily influenced by others.  When someone has a strong sense of self, it is easier to have more confidence in life and be more comfortable with cpubli communicating with others. Personally, I identify myself as someone who is very open minded to hear what others have to say but I still am very confident with what I believe in.

When I was on my way to the Rubin Museum, I was not accepting to have enjoyed any second of being there.  To my surprise though, I found the museum very interesting and I actually learned a lot from being there.  The different floors were each based on a different theme, which were all interconnected in some way. One of my favorite things about this museum was the Tibet praying room; I even took a picture of it when I wasn’t really supposed to. What I loved about this diplay was all the different candles that they had and all the different statues that they had of all their Gods. The room looked so peaceful and the music that was playing in the background was also very soothing. Another part of the museum that I really enjoyed was this one picture of Time Square. In the picture, there was not a single person on the streets, just carz moving by.  I found this image so eye catching and I would love to experience something like that one day, even though that is near impossible. Over all, I’m glad this was included in freshman seminar because it opened my eyes to different cultures and how beautiful their act can be.

The Rubin Museum exceeded my expectations a bit but it wasn’t particularly interesting. I didn’t really relate at all to any of the art and I didn’t really see the point of going to the museum, but I did like the museum experience itself. I liked how it was small which is a different feel from the Metropolitan which is huge and grand in every aspect. This museum allows  you to get close to the art and really take a good look at it. It helped gain a little more appreciation for the art even though I didn’t connect with it much. One piece I enjoyed though was the temple. I thought it was really interesting and the way it was set up showed meticulous detail which I found really impressive. Other then the temple, I didn’t really see the museum as an edifying experience.

My first semester at Baruch met my expectations. I was able to make friends in school, attend events, and study for exams. I have also improved my networking skills by joining school organizations and volunteering for walks. Furthermore, I enjoyed my classes for the most part. Communications improved my speech skills. For example, I was able to format and deliver an elevator pitch in front of forty strangers during a workshop with Ascend. Afterward, I received compliments. My audience was hooked by the content and they were surprised with my delivery, since I did not sound nervous at all. My heart was actually racing. Anthropology and English class greatly opened my mind and made me ask questions about identity. I found myself in discussions after class with friends regarding religion, culture, and gender. I made new friends that way as well. For example, in philosophy class, the person sitting next to me was Indian and in English class we were discussing the Brahman myths. So, I decided to say hello and I asked the girl sitting next to me if she was Hindu and she said yes, so then I asked her what she makes of the Brahman myths. Now, we are good friends who talk about television shows and tell jokes in the beginning of philosophy class. I am doing well in philosophy too. I love philosophy since it teaches you that knowledge is gained from questioning everything, therefore nothing is certain. Then there is calculus. I must take this because I want to get in the Zicklin School of Business. But, in all I expect no less than a 3.6 GPA. I aimed for a 4.0 at the start because my philosophy is, if you aim high, you will achieve more than if you aim low and settle for less. In high school, I did not try to get an A, but I did. However, college is different, and my mindset changed. I took my courses seriously, participated, and did my work. I would not do anything differently if I could because what is done is done. I must not go off tangent in the years to come. I will stay focused.

My first semester at Baruch met my expectations, but didn’t necessarily exceed them.  I liked the new experience and the new surroundings. Seeing new people from different places and with different interests and ideas is a great change from high school. I think the biggest transition for me was having less class time and having much more time outside of school. I learned that college is all about making the most of your time when you’re not in class. Also, classes are much more condensed now so it’s very important that you can get all your notes down because college moves really quickly. Also, I think I need to start getting involved more in clubs and student activities. I think that would be the best way to meet people and learn even more outside the classroom. I really liked the LC idea since it helped me meet new people right away. Also it helped teach some of the resources available to students which is really important. I look forward to graduating from Baruch and meeting all the challenges ahead of me in my academic career.