The BIG question

A couple of weeks ago I received an email from an incoming freshman that I think merits a post of it's own. He wrote, "I'm not much of a drinker. Is drinking a big deal on campus?"

First of all, let me start by saying that after almost two and a half years in college I've learned one thing (well more than that, but one REALLY important thing) - college, and life, is all about choices and their consequences. The word "consequences" has a negative connotation, but there can also be good consequences so stay with me here.

To go ahead and answer the question - Drake is college. Drinking happens in college. You can avoid it if you choose to, but it's definitely there.

That being said, it's my choice NOT to drink. I don't like the frat party scene, being around drunk people is both annoying and uncomfortable, the alcohol I've tried has been absolutely disgusting, I like having total control of what i say and do, and I'm underage. I'm also a paranoid, jumpy type of person who would be constantly worried about getting caught with alcohol. I can wait until it's legal, thanks.

However, there are lots of people who DO choose to drink. And that's cool. They can go out and party or stay in and party. They can go from frat house to frat house bumming free booze or do really whatever they want to. It's their life and as long as I don't have to be around it or deal with it, I don't mind it at all.

But, like I said, with choices there are consequences.

For example, not drinking leads to good things like healthy livers and better general health and maybe better grades and likely safer nights out and smarter decisions... ect. It also leads to bad things like peer pressure (get used to it), feeling somewhat removed from the rest of college life, competing with alcohol for time with friends who do drink... ect.

The same thing goes for drinking. There are good things like feeling good and not so stressed and worried and frustrated with life and having a good time and meeting new people and not feeling so inhibited...ect. The bad things, well, the bad things have been shoved down our throats since the eighth grade. So we won't get into those things here.

So there are good and bad consequences for either choice.

As far as if it's "a big deal," i don't really have the numbers for you or anything. But I will say the percentage of college students who don't drink is higher than you'd think. A lot of people don't admit they don't drink for whatever reason, so sometimes it's easy to feel kind of alone if you're not a drinker. But you're not. Not even close. Plus, not everybody who drinks drinks to get drunk. There's a big difference. Some people won't consider it a good night until they black out on someone's futon. Others want to have a drink or two and just have fun. Not all college students are irresponsible drunkards - some are, but not all.

Bottom line?
If you want to drink, go ahead and drink. It's ok.
If you don't want to drink, don't drink. It's ok.

Answering your questions...

I've been getting a lot of questions from you prospectives lately via email, so I thought I'd post some of them here so everybody can see the answers.

Is Greek Life a big deal on campus?
Well, based on the numbers, only about 30% of the campus is involved in Greek life - and that includes non-social greek life like professional pharmacy and business fraternities/sororities and things of that nature. But it FEELS like the social greeks are everywhere. I wouldn't say I feel "left out" or "outcast" from Drake society because I'm not involved, but from time to time it feels kind of overwhelming. The social greek thing isn't my cup of tea whatsoever, so I might not be the best person to ask. Just know that social greeks are a particularly strong presence on campus.

What's the food like?
The food is campus food... so... lower your expectations and you'll be happy. I think Drake food kinda gets a bad rap and I don't think it's as bad as people say it is, but it's nothing to be excited about. Except for Hubbell brunch. mmm.. Hubbell brunch. Bonus - you'll REALLY appreciate home cooking when you visit your family.

Are there community service opportunities on campus?
Well... what a wonderful question. There are a lot of service organizations to join, or if you don't want to commit to an organization, there are plenty of opportunities to take advantage of on your own. I'm in Alpha Phi Omega, a co-ed community service fraternity, and, as you can imagine, we do all sorts of community service. There are also organizations like 10,000 Hours Show that reward their volunteers with a concert at the end of the year, Circle K, and others that aren't coming to mind right now. Plus, Drake participates in "Feel Good Fridays" where different service opportunities are offered every Friday. You don't even have to join an organization to participate.

Should I bring a car?
I spent two years without a car. Guess what? I survived. But now that I have a car... well, let's just say it's awesome beyond all reason. The DART city bus system is free for Drake students and it's becoming more and more popular, but sometimes it's confusing and you have to worry about catching the bus at the right time. There are things to do around Drake, but I think students really exhaust those options fairly quickly. It's probably likely you'll find a friend who happens to have a car, but I always felt funny about bumming rides and stuff. If you have a car to bring, I'd recommend it. If not, you won't be miserable.

What are the dorms like?
THEY'RE AWESOME, thanks for asking. All the freshmen residence halls were renovated over the summer or the previous summer so they're pretty brand-spankin' new. They're gorgeous and have air conditioning and giant white boards by every door and new furniture with real mattresses and all sorts of awesome things. So... yeah. Halls are awesome. And they're a nice size, too.

Should I loft my bed?
Yes. The end.

What is Drake West Village? Is it nice?
Drake West Village is an on-campus-but-off-campus apartment complex for upperclassmen. I'm living there because this year's freshmen class didn't fit in just the freshmen halls and the extra freshmen were put in the upperclassmen hall I was supposed to live in and I was booted to Drake West Village. I live in a 4-bedroom apartment with a full kitchen and two bathrooms and all that good stuff. The apartments are totally furnished and everything so it's nice to not have to worry about buying furniture. Because I was supposed to live in the dorms, I'm just paying room and board. If you sign a lease, you have to pay a monthly rent which, honestly, runs rather high considering a college students' budget. The gym they talk about in DWV is nice, but tiny. The laundry room is nice and smells good. And there are study rooms which are nice when you have to get out of the apartment...

Ok, keep your questions coming, kids!!!!

DNC Pictures

Blogger is no longer being stupid, so here are LOTS more pictures of the DNC.


I think it's a cool picture despite being blurry. This is coming back to the busses after the Obama speech

CNN was giving away ice cream. No lie.

There were a bunch of different media tents and each one had something very awesome in its lobby. This one (not the one I was in) had a Wii den

Collecting flair - it's really popular to trade pins at the conventions. I became obsessed with it. It was super fun.

My media tent had an oxygen bar in it. I'd never done an oxygen bar before, but it was kind of cool. this is a silly picture.

The change we need?

This gives you an idea of where I was sitting. Enjoy the distant back of Cheryl Crow.

O-B-A-M-A

Stevie Wonder - still very close

Patriotism

Adoring fans....

He's ready to go ... I wonder if she'll vote for him?

Snipers

Believe it or not, that's Barack Obama

Also Obama

The Obamas and the Bidens

Bowing his head in prayer

Fireworks and flags

Massive pilgrimage to Invesco field - bad picture, i know.

Nancy Pelosi's back

Shawn Johnson....

Jennifer Hudson singing the Star Spangled Banner

It's ok to turn the smile upside down, too

Over the past two years I've come to realize that Drake isn't a magical utopia completely free of drama, frustration, and stress. I'm currently shopping for islands with hopes of creating such a world.

Drake isn't perfect. There are days you just DON'T WANT TO BE HERE.

This just in - THAT'S MORE THAN OK.

What? You think it's flowers and rainbows all the time? Hardly. Drake isn't like that because life isn't like that. It's true that when you go to college, particularly out of state, you get a clean slate and can pretty much reinvent yourself if you so choose. But you're still surrounded by people who will quickly fill the roles of the good guys and the bad guys that you left behind in high school. Old worries leave, new ones reappear. One class ends, but another begins. Some responsibilities are abandoned, others are bestowed upon you... it never ends. It's really just a cycle.

And it's a good thing, really.

But don't think you always have to be happy about it. Stuff happens and you're allowed to be mad or sad or down right pissed off. It's good to feel that way. It's a fallacy to think you can run away to college and leave problems behind you because the fact of the matter is that new ones are waiting for you here.

There are new challenges to be met and overcome and while you definitely have to do your best to solve your own problems and be your own handyman (in that you have to fix whatever is broken in your life), it's ok to just freak about it sometimes. Heck, I think it helps to spend a little while freaking out because then I can get it out of my system and then focus on what exactly I need to do.

There's help if you need it, but you kind of have to keep in mind that YOU are your own first line of defense.

The big news!

SO... after the DNC I had to come back to school and was a full week behind. It doesn't sound like a big deal, but it is. Particularly when I have classwork, actual work, and an apartment to organize. Anyway, I forgot to post my BIG news.

I got a byline in the Denver Post during the Convention. On page 29P.

I scanned it in. check out the picture (click on it to make it bigger). Photos and things later. SO much to do.

Washington Comes to Denver: Part 5, Intern!

Being an intern means doing grunt work. It means being star-struck at the sight of real journalists. It means jumping when you hear “jump.” It means blogging until you can blog no more (no more blogs.. please!). It means wondering what to say when a senior staff member joins you in the elevator. It means no pay and less sleep.

Mostly it just means you’re at the bottom of the food chain.

But let me let you in on a little secret: it’s cool. I’m not joking. It’s an incredible experience. Heck, I’m just happy to be ON the food chain for once. That’s more than most people can say. And way more than I could say three weeks ago. You can’t start climbing a ladder without the first rung anyway.

You know what else is cool about being an intern? You can screw up. You can ask questions. You get do-overs. At this point nobody really expects you to know what to do or what to say or where to go, so it’s awesome to take advantage of that. After you’re in the industry a while, you don’t exactly get that luxury. The people I’m with know I’m an intern and know I need help so it’s the perfect opportunity to ask.

Plus, I’m getting the chance to do some low-key assignments and I’m THRILLED. An experienced staffer would probably roll their eyes at the idea of writing what I’ve been given to write – which is probably how I got the assignment in the first place. You don’t get to be choosy as an intern. Well, you can be, but your employer will probably not be terribly happy with you. And you never know where any of these bizarre assignments could lead you. You could find you absolutely love a particular subject or beat you never thought of before or you could stumble upon something major completely by accident.

It sounds crazy, but professional journalists have said over and over again that it’s days like these – where you’re flying by the seat of your pants and messing up left and right and fumbling your way through – that become their fondest memories of the job.

Washington Comes to Denver: Part 4, old blog number two

Oh, this just in: my blogs are actually posted on the other site. But they've posted so many blogs at once that they've already been booted to the second page. Here's another blog I wrote regarding political anniversaries:

It was recently brought to my attention that Senator Obama will be making his acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention on the 45th anniversary of the March on Washington.

Let’s jog some memories here, folks – that is if we can even call them memories since I’m pretty sure we 18-22 year olds weren’t around 45 years ago (although I could be wrong, I’m a writer not a mathematician.)

Straight from the ever-so-accurate Wikipedia – the March on Washington took place on August 28th, 1963. The march itself, organized by civil rights leaders, went from the Washington Monument to the Lincoln Memorial and included over 300,000 people. Then, naturally, came Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech.

Purely coincidental? You mean that on the very anniversary of a major event in the civil rights movement a black man will accept the presidential nomination? I doubt it.

While I think it’s powerful to use the date to mark just how far the country has come as far as civil rights, I think some people might be put off by the date selection. Will this be seen as Obama comparing himself to Dr. King? I doubt that’s his intent. But intentions mean nothing – it’s perceptions that matter. On the other side of the coin, maybe many citizens don’t consider the civil rights movement to be over, and see this as just another step in the right direction.

Since we’re on the subject of anniversaries already, let’s also mention that it’s been exactly 100 years since Denver has hosted the Democratic National Convention. Last time it was 1908 and William Jennings Bryan from Nebraska was the nominee. Thinking about 1908 is astounding to me. Think about it – that was the time when rich white guys really did run this country. And all of it. Forget about women, and don’t even consider African-Americans.

According to the Denver Post, Denver was selected in 1908 “in hopes of securing the western vote.” As far as far as we’ve come in 100 years, I think that may still be the theory here. Today Colorado governor Bill Ritter came to speak to us and he spoke of a “Democratic West” which includes Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, (and some others – cut me some slack, he was speaking fast). All those states have typically been red in the past, but with Colorado leading as example by electing a Democratic governor, I can’t help but feel like that may be part of the motive.

Who the heck knows? I certainly don’t, and am certainly not pretending like I do.

Overall I think it’s rather interesting to see both the progress and the cyclic pattern of things throughout history. Heck – maybe it’ll even be the Cubs’ year.