Chapter Eighty-Five: Sophomore Year...So Far

Next week I start attended classes as a Sophomore in College. I can't believe it! I'm so excited to be back on the campus I love so dearly, and can't wait to see my roommates, start school, eat strange food, and mess up my sleeping schedule!
I've already begun on the sleeping schedule. This year, I moved in 4 days early to volunteer in a program that assists the school during Move-In Weekend. It's a little overwhelming to suddenly have 6,500 students move in all at once, so we, the volunteers, did our part this weekend to lessen the burden.
It definitely wasn't all work, though! The first couple of days were all about getting to know who else was in your residence hall, which included a lot of ice-breakers and some dancing. This program is geared towards freshman, which is perfect for me since I love sharing my experiences with people (hence my blog). It's been so much fun meeting all these people (freshmen, sophomores, transfers) and learning new things. Basically, in this program, there are three teams: Howdy TECHsans, Guns Up Greeters, and R3's.
HowdyTECHsans are basically the people who help with the whole check-in process. Opening doors, giving directions, renting carts... etc. etc. Very social job.
Guns Up Greeters...well...they're pretty new so no one really knows what they do. I know it involves the hospitality services and dining plans. I'm sure they work hard, too.
R3's (my team) are Red Raider Recyclers. We had stations set up around resident halls to collect boxes, plastic, paper...anything recyclable. We sorted recyclables, drank lots of water, and baked a little in the Texas heat. It was rough sometimes, but the whole experience has been very informative! We visited the Recyling plant on campus and learned a lot about the recycling habits of Texas Tech and Lubbock...let's just say I have a greater respect and duty to recycle...especially since I know what I CAN recycle now!

Talking about Foam

Feeding foam into Densifier

10lb block of foam!

Reporting for Duty!

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!

Along with a couple of free shirts and other items this program gave me, it also gave me the chance to move in early. It's not that I wanted to leave home sooner...I just like to get situated and organized...early. So, on August 12, Dad and I drove out to Lubbock in separate vehicles. I'm so blessed Mom and Dad let me take a car out this year! Despite what people say, Lubbock does have things to do...and these attractions are a long walk away!

My passenger for the ride

The long drive wasn't too bad. It involved a lot of controlled dancing and loud singing...but I got here safely and that's what matters! 

Anyway, these dorms are definitely an upgrade compared to last year's dorm for a number of reasons. One, each student has a private bedroom. Two, the bathroom areas have so much more counter space. Three, each room has a full-sized refrigerator and microwave. 

The Common Area

Walking into my room

Cause I've got a Blank Space, Baby...

...And I'll Decorate! ;)

Blank walls can be intimidating, but with the right materials, the room will slowly turn into a welcoming, warm place you'll never want to leave! I've made some progress, but I definitely have a lot of work to do!

Progress!

In between unpacking boxes, I was working hard with the Move-In program. The residence halls often competed against one another...Our official team color was dark green, which is kind of lame, but we worked with it. From one idea to another, we ended up with our motto (Mean Green Fighting Machines), mascot (Cyborg Turtle), and created a pretty cool flag!

Teamwork!

Fighting Machines!

After a couple of nights of screaming, dancing, interacting, and training, we were rewarded with a night at Main Event. Quite an exciting night right before Move-In Weekend!

So much fun yet so hard

Blew all my money on this

Where enemies are made

Where true talent reveals itself

Move-In Weekend finally made its debut yesterday, which is when Luke Henderson (Yes, the Luke Henderson) arrived to move in! Luckily I wasn't put to work when he arrived, so I helped as much as I could. It's so strange seeing Luke (Yes, the Luke Henderson) at Texas Tech!! This will definitely be an interesting year for us!! 

Say "Squiiint!"

It's been fun and exciting these past four days, but I am so ready for my roommates to move in (my dorm is very lonely at the moment) so the real fun can begin! Stay tuned...this Sophomore is just getting started!