CLASSES & JOBS

Skiing is one of my favorite activities. I absolutely love the thrill of speeding down a frozen hill, wind howling in my ears and trees flashing by. The many miscellaneous things you need to ski can be expensive, but if you shop for good deals online, you might be able to save money. One of my other favorite things to do when shopping for miscellaneous ski items is to go to local ski swaps. If your town has a ski team, most likely they’ll also hold an annual (or biannual) ski swap.

I think part of the reason I love skiing so much is that it’s an individual sport but it’s also fun to do with friends! We can all go down the hill by ourselves but meet up later to share stories, laugh and hang out on the chairlift on the way back up. It’s a social activity, an incredible thrill, and great exercise all in one. I love to take a trip to the mountains with friends and ski from open to close. That is of course unless it’s a powder day; because everyone knows, “There’re no friends on a powder day.”

In middle school my friends used to joke that I thought they all smelled bad. They said this because one year I gave pretty much all my friends soap for gifts. I got all the soaps from a bath and body store, which was fun to shop at and had everything I needed. I didn’t really mean to do it, I just kept finding really fun types of soap for different people.

At this bath and body store, there was confetti soap, soap crayons for drawing on the shower, soap that smelled good, etc. It became a running joke and still to this day whenever I see any type of soap that different or interesting I send it to a friend from middle school. It’s fun to try different kinds of soap and body wash because some smell amazing, some wake you up, and some calm you down. It’s a simple thing that we use every day, but it can be made a bit more fun with some variation.

Design isn’t just for artwork. Everything is designed, and everything has a designer. Some of us may think that we aren’t at all creative, but what you can design may surprise you. Think about it; you design your day, design your meals, and design your job. How you drive your car is a design in a way. However, there are people who specialize in certain types of design. Choosing one of these specialists to design your clothing, your house, your jewelry, your website, or your business plan is important.

You can find great designers by talking to friends and family members and asking for recommendations, or by looking online or in the phone book. Make sure to choose a designer who understands your personal style and what it is you are looking for. Don’t end up with a design you’ll hate.

Some college students who excel in certain areas of study choose to tutor others to make some extra money. There are lots of tutoring opportunities out there, and they are easy to find. Usually people on campus or on athletic teams need tutors and are willing to pay by the hour. Also, people who need extra help in learning a second language are good candidates to tutor.

My roommate tutors a young boy after school in his home and is paid by the hour by his parents. It’s a great setup for her because she feels like she is doing something good for someone else and it’s good for him because he gets to benefit from her knowledge of math. You can become a tutor by posting signs at local elementary schools or looking for jobs in the paper. Or, alternatively, if you need a tutor, post signs or take out an ad in your local college paper. Choose college students who are more experienced and have several years of education under their belt.

I would encourage anyone with any opportunity to study abroad to do so, because you learn so much more about different cultures by experiencing them and immersing yourself in them than you would by just reading about them in a textbook. You can get a different kind of education when studying in a foreign country than from studying at home. I had the opportunity to study abroad and I came back to the States with a whole new perspective about life.

Specifically, when I hear about certain global issues and partake in discussion, I am quick to think of those people I lived with and what their concerns would be. It’s easy to think of things in the context of your own culture, but it is much more meaningful when you step outside what you know and use your experience to broaden your horizons. Traveling abroad is one of the best and most enjoyable ways to educate ourselves to other cultures, political events, foreign policy, and languages.

With housing prices on the rise, affordable housing is becoming a serious concern for recent college graduates and for middle to low income people. It is a pressing issue because, often, these people cannot afford to pay a lot of money for housing because they are frequently paying off debt or student loans at the same time and are also paying other expenses. Also, it seems that in areas that are attractive work environments there is an increased housing cost. This makes it difficult for people to live next to their places of work because they often have to commute from less pricey areas because that is what they can afford.

Another issue with housing costs is the increased oil and electricity prices that result in an increased rent for tenants. Because of this, landlords are having to increase their rent quotas to be able to cover the fees. Renters then find themselves searching even harder for affordable housing than ever before because of these factors.

One of my favorite holiday gift-giving traditions started with my extended family way back when. We call it Penny Christmas. It’s kinda like a glorified white elephant/flea market gift swap.

Each family brings a certain number of pre-wrapped gifts for the exchange. They can be anything at all, but there is one rule: nothing can be worth more than a dollar. (You gotta allow for inflation from the “penny” in Penny Christmas.) These gifts go in a pile. Then, beginning with the youngest person, go by age around the room, allowing each person to select a gift from the stash.

It can get interesting because, rather than choose a wrapped gift, anyone can pick a present someone else has already opened. Then the person whose find was taken gets to open-or “steal” another gift. If there is a lot of stealing going on, it can be very hard to remember who is next in line, because with each steal a new item is unwrapped by someone other than the person up for a turn.

As long as good-will is evident, this game can be a great deal of fun. Just try not to let anyone take it seriously-the gifts are under a buck-what’s to stress about? One Christmas, both my grandmother and I wanted a pair of matching dishcloths that had been wrapped separately. We each did a lot of maneuvering to get them. A gift may only be “stolen” 3 times and then it is “retired.” Also, it can not be taken directly back by the person who just lost it. So, if there is something you really want, and it has been taken 3 times, or just taken from you, you have to try to get an item wanted by the person who has it, so you can trade. (Trading after the game is finished is standard procedure for us.) I don’t know if either of us got the set, I know I had at least one. I just threw it away this year, as it had to many holes to clean anything. The “Dish Cloth” Penny Christmas is now family legend. Try it and see if it becomes a new family or roommate favorite.