What I Learned This Semester

I categorize parts of my life using semesters of school. I remember things from the past in terms of "Oh, that happened when I was in Mrs. Bell's seventh grade science class" or "I did that stupid thing when I was a freshman in college." After a semester or a season of life, I usually have a bit of time to reflect on things. In the past, I've referred to these bridges between adventures. I still agree with my aforementioned realization that the bridges themselves are adventures, but these bridges are also good times to reflect.

I learned a lot this semester. A LOT. In fact, I told one of my professors near the end of finals week that I've learned more this semester than any other 4-month time period in my life that I can remember.

Therefore, here are some of the things I learned this semester. Some of them are silly, but they're still true.

1. I am really, really bad at Call of Duty. Honestly, it's embarrassing.

2. It's impossible (for me) to write a page for Wikipedia without it getting deleted one hour later, no matter how legitimate it is.

3. Sometimes God answers prayers exactly the way I ask Him to, and I still question Him.

4. It's possible to run 1.5 miles after having not eaten for 17 hours. Without dying.

5. The 180 line is a very real line, and it can be violated in a real way. (DFP class)

6. I don't listen to nearly enough music.

7. It's not necessary or important to wear matching socks.

8. Centipedes may reign for a season, but in the end, humans prevail.

9. You never really know what you can accomplish until you have to.

10. The Media Comm building is a lot more fun at 3:30 a.m.

11. Nashville is a wonderful place. I wouldn't mind living there.

12. My friends are fantastic. Knew that already. It was more of a reminder.

13. It's possible to swing on the rope swing with up to eight people. AT THE SAME TIME.

14. A 65 degree day in the middle of December isn't totally out of the question.

15. Convertibles are awesome.

16. Everyone at my university is awesome. (Already knew that, but discovered all the freshmen are awesome, too.)

17. Playing guitar is, in fact, as fun as it looks.

18. Soccer polo (soccer on a field with giant "lake" puddles six inches deep) is now a sport.

19. Being too sick and weak to get up and get water absolutely stinks.

20. Dressing up as a superhero for Halloween is a wonderful idea.

21. InDesign isn't really THAT difficult to use.

22. It's possible to turn an alarm clock off by throwing something at it. (Yeah, I did it.)

23. Class assignments sometimes make lovely blog posts. Like this or this.

24. If you walk too close to the road during a rainstorm, you will stereotypically get covered in muddy water when a car drives by.

25. Everyone laughs at you when you have a broken umbrella.

26. There's a replica of the Parthenon in Nashville.

27. The thrift store is a great place to find clothes for the decade dance.

28. Anything is possible.

29. Scheduling 6 semesters in a row with no 8:00 classes is a very real possibility.

30. HTML is fascinating.

31. There's this card game called Spades, and it's really fun.

32. Spotify is a great way to access any music you want for free.

33. Sweet tea is just what people from the South call iced tea.

34. There are some youtube videos that will make me laugh every single time, no matter how many times I watch them.

35. It's still fun to throw napkins at people in the cafeteria.

36. Sometimes cookies can turn an entire day around.

37. Pinterest prevents my roommate from doing homework.

38. Football games are actually kind of cool. (Went to my first one this semester.)

39. Don't send an email to a professor during class. It might pop up on the screen everyone in the class can see while he is teaching...

40. SWOT stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

41. Robert's Rules of Order.

42. Anna makes really, really good pizza.

43. I shouldn't go four months without a haircut.

44. If you do something stupid, you should share it so at least people can enjoy laughing at your failures.

45. There are some things I'll never understand.

46. Sometimes not even coffee will keep me awake.

47. I apparently yell at my roommate in my sleep.

48. Nutella is good. (Yeah, tried it for the first time this year.)

49. I now know what would come to mind if someone was breaking into my house.

50. 100 million other things that would probably take months to write down and even longer to explain.

In other words, this is by no means an exhaustive list. I know some of these were silly, but hey, this is just a blog post. Let's just say that I really value learning. And remembering. I'm looking forward to learning less academic stuff this break, like more guitar, the plots of numerous fiction books, and updates on the last several months of my home friends' lives. And after that, the spring semester. Hey, life, teach away. I'm listening.