LC 24

In many ways the first semester at Baruch has been in line with what was expected and it went well . The workload is manageable, although that wasn’t what I expected, but it had helped me making the adjustment physically and mentally. Senioritis had definitely carried over from senior year. Compare to high school, the biggest difference is the commute time, and it has been one of my problems. The 3 minute drive to school is now changed to 3 hours a day on the ferry and train; just sitting on seats for an hour hurts my but-.-. I regret not managing my time wisely throughout early parts of the semester and making a lot of mistakes. Many times I was late to Theater, made silly mistakes on math exams, not posting blogs on time, and constant physical absence for a boring class. Fortunately, I got bailed out by nice and lenient teachers, replacement exams, paper revision, and friends that write name for me.  With new friends, new environment, new unfamiliarity, it gave me the curiosity and motivations I embrace for the upcoming future. Looking back as this semester, I wish I would have done whole a lot more.

It has been depressing seeing this semester coming to an end…I can still remember every detail that I paid attention to in the game room, the basketball court, swimming pool, the piano room, Thetre class, seven eleven, Popeye, English class, multipurpose room, computer lab,and even political science class. The remainder of this semester is going something I’ll cherish, hope you will too, aightt?

The Business Dining Etiquette was probably the most interesting event I have been to since the beginning of the semester. I presumed at first the event was just going to be informative and dull, like every other workshop in the multipurpose room. But once I stepped in, I saw round tables set up and food on the side, I realized Baruch has finally learned to offer students the environment we need to learn=D. I got some food and sat down at a table with Han, Sean, Johnathon, Weiyao, and a random kid. I listened closely to the speaker  from Kentucky while I ate. She taught us the etiquette of business dining- the rules of how we should act and eat in business occasions. Some of the common rules include napkin on laps, no nose blowing, no sneezing, shut phone off, etc. If necessary, take everything outside. More importantly, don’t take a drink and plate at the same time in a buffet, because there are chances of running into  ex girlfriends and impulse for hugs. Another essential principles are never order the most expensive item on the menu, never consume large amount of food, focus on the conversation, because it’s all about the conversation, never about the food.

The Dining Etiquette Luncheon was informative and chill, I learned the effective business meal tactics, some dining do’s and don’ts, etc. I am glad I went.

PS. I ran into two Johnathon during the event and I talked to them both, later i realized it was his  twin.

A special day on November 11th, 2010. I made a visit to the Rubin Museum of Art, accompanied by Sean, Emillio, Oleksandr, and Marsida.  The Rubin Museum of Art enlightened me with Buddhist cultures and exposed to the various traditional Hindu artwork. As a Christian, I tried to view another religious culture in an unbiased way, and I was educated by their differences.

The most memorable arts to me are the common symbols and important figures of the art of Himalayas. The figures of Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and the couple deities all have  hand gestures that represent meanings. For instance, the hands form the shape of a wheel symbolize a reference to teaching the Buddha’s doctrine. With wrist pulling back and palm facing outward, means do not fear. What I suspect is challenging for me to do is their dancing, since the dancing needs me to stand and balance with one foot, and need to bring the ankle of the other foot near the crouch area and move the upper body in rhythm!!!

Overall, the trip to the Rubin Museum of Art was not very exciting. But it gave me a similar feeling as my Political science class in terms of its informativeness, its occasional interests that brings me, and to a lesser degree, its dullness. =D

ty for reading,and sry for posting so late.

Hi, my name is Jin Lin, it rhymes. I came to America about six years ago and I’ve been living in Staten Island since then. In comparison to the city I used to live in in China, and Manhattan New York, Staten Island is definitely a lot different. Instead of taking public transportation, we all drive. Instead of seeing hundreds of people power walking on the streets everyday, you can hardly see anyone staying outdoor for more than one minute. It is a different world over here, everything here is in slow mode compare to the city. Hence, here I’d like to talk about my experience trying to adjust back to the fast-pace life style in the city and college.

Things have been going well for me this semester so far. I am still adjusting to the school routine that has been giving me a lot problems in terms of comfort. Sleep is definitely one of them. The average amount of sleep I get since school started is 5 hours a day. That’s nothing compare to an average of 9 hours of good sleep each day during the summer. But the biggest challenge with school has got to be commuting. Since I live in the suburban Staten Island, just coming to school would take me one and a half hour. I have suffered from boredom, sickness, unproductivity, inefficiency, bad dreams, and many other emotional and practical illnesses during my times commuting. Three hours a day is too much.

There are also things I am enjoying about college. For instance, class schedule on Fridays is amazing. I also enjoy playing sports at Baruch like basketball and swimming. Having been swimming competitively my entire life, I think I will consider joining the swim team to add to my college experience.

Staten Island Ferry

Can't procrastinate in college ;(

The Club Fair at Baruch today was a fun, informative, and enthusiastic event. The fair took place in the gymnasium during club hours from 12:30 to 2: 30, a time I usually go to Chinatown with friends and eat lunch before class. Although there were some sacrifices I made for going, but it was well worth it. I am here to share with you what I experienced in this extraordinarily wonderful and organized event.

As I was hungrily walking down the stairs towards the gymnasium, I could already hear the music blaring from the stereos. Before I even walked in, the music was so loud that my eardrums started hurting and my heart beating. I was pumped up. I quickly stepped into gymnasium, the first thing that caught my eyes were the hundreds of people crowded in the middle of the gym, each moving in different directions. I wandered around and noticed that there were a lot of people just like me trying to figure out things about all the clubs that Baruch College has to offer.

I began my journey by first signing up for the Chinese Christian Club, because I am a Christian. I found out that this club is Chinese-speaking only, with mostly fobby members in it. Hence the second club I signed up for was the Christian Intervarsity, an English-speaking club with mixed racial members. In the middle of my journey, I saw Oleksandr Tkach from LC24. Oleksandr told me about his true passions and together we signed up for the Black Student Union. Besides black students, the club is also about hip-hop music, tools needed to succeed in their finance, and President Obama. Oleksandr and I believed our passion for black students and hip-hop music will translate into our successes in the club. On my way to more clubs, I passed by the stereos and realized the DJ was taking requests from people. He was playing songs like “Club Can’t Handle Me” by Flo Rida, “Dj Got Us Fallin In Love” by Usher, and “Just A Dream” by Nelly. When all these songs were finished playing, I have already signed up for three other clubs, UCLA (United Chinese Language Association), Archery, and Bowling club. Every single club I approached, the representatives were friendly, sociable, and fervently answering students’ questions.

As I was walking out of the gymnasium and huming “Just The Way You Are”, I looked back at it one last time, saddened to leave, but I had to go to political science. I realized, the music, the people, the intimacy created an upbeat and energetic environment for us to fulfill our passions.

Thanks for reading.