Hey young Spliff
Missing you dude. Simplicity and “just cruising” are rather difficult to come by in this place filled with mostly idiots amongst fools. I know, I also thought that varsity would be filled with intellectuals. Surprisingly, I’ve met many a six year old in this place. I no longer have that person I totally click with and am comfortable with.
So anyway, I’m chilling, and then I get a call from you all excited about being accepted into Rhodes. Knowing what socialites we’ve always been, I’m suddenly overcome with panic (ok, not panic, you just woke me up) as those words of oblivion crash into my ears. I feel compelled to educate an oblivious and somewhat ignorant mind.
Sure this place is one big party, but revisiting your reasons for coming here is a wise move my sister. As independent as you are, you will miss home. As sure as you are, you will question your being at this varsity. As grounded as you are, you will lose yourself – at least some of you.
If who you are now is who you truly are, you will remain the same. You will still blaze all day and be the admirable person you are, but this will only happen through some change. In this place the independence of your mind is your greatest weapon. Use it wisely, don’t let your social life happen to you – that’s how you lose yourself, you must happen to it.
So ask yourself, do you really want to come to Rhodes? Is your varsity choice about what you want? Basing your life, actions, opinions etc on anything that isn’t you is highly dangerous because those things or people will let you down easier than you would yourself.
Mad love
Mary Jane
Sunday, September 28, 2008
What's ahead for you!
This is a letter written to my past self. It's taken me about an hour to upload because unfortunately I am experiencing that inexplicable haze brought on by drinking far too much cane last night, our as us South Africans call it, "Spook and Diesel"! - Captain Morgan
Hello my dear self,
We have certainly come a long way these past few years. Do you remember sitting on that termite mound in the middle of the African bush with the sun setting in all its splendour and beauty asking, “Why the hell am I giving this up for lectures and books?”
Truth be told, it was the best decision we have ever made. We both know life has not been easy, we have truly experienced the darker side of life. From violence to prison cells, madness to loss, hatred to greed. Yet let me explain to you what is awaiting. Let me be a voice of hope for you.
University has awakened a new spirit that we never thought could be possible. Friendship and love has become the light that pierces through the darkness. Before this great adventure of ours, the only reality we knew was one of sorrow and grief. However, now each day that passes by is a day filled with hope, knowledge and truth.
Albert Camus said, “But what is happiness except the simple harmony between a man and the life he leads?”. Life is good, we have made wonderful friends, we have found our place in the world and no longer need to live that lonely existence somewhere in between this world and the next.
Now, my dear self, we can truly say we have transcended the things that held us back. We have fought the ultimate battle between good and evil within ourselves and triumphed. Yet the best is still to come, no more of those terrible foreign beers, we can drink Black Label again. Coming to live in the real world again sure does have its perks, doesn’t it?
Yours in spirit, forever
Barry
Hello my dear self,
We have certainly come a long way these past few years. Do you remember sitting on that termite mound in the middle of the African bush with the sun setting in all its splendour and beauty asking, “Why the hell am I giving this up for lectures and books?”
Truth be told, it was the best decision we have ever made. We both know life has not been easy, we have truly experienced the darker side of life. From violence to prison cells, madness to loss, hatred to greed. Yet let me explain to you what is awaiting. Let me be a voice of hope for you.
University has awakened a new spirit that we never thought could be possible. Friendship and love has become the light that pierces through the darkness. Before this great adventure of ours, the only reality we knew was one of sorrow and grief. However, now each day that passes by is a day filled with hope, knowledge and truth.
Albert Camus said, “But what is happiness except the simple harmony between a man and the life he leads?”. Life is good, we have made wonderful friends, we have found our place in the world and no longer need to live that lonely existence somewhere in between this world and the next.
Now, my dear self, we can truly say we have transcended the things that held us back. We have fought the ultimate battle between good and evil within ourselves and triumphed. Yet the best is still to come, no more of those terrible foreign beers, we can drink Black Label again. Coming to live in the real world again sure does have its perks, doesn’t it?
Yours in spirit, forever
Barry
Saturday, September 27, 2008
procrastination!
Hey there all you first timers
Here I am about a month and a half away from exams with tests and assignments coming out of my ears and there is this resonating in my head....¨just procrastinate¨. I don't ignore the voices. I sit down at my laptop and I hop onto the facebook bandwagon for an hour until I see that there is a new episode, (of one of the many series which I watch religiously)that has come come out which takes up another hour of my precious time which finally ends just in time for gym, and then to get to supper and by the time I get back to my residence I'm too tired to possibly look at the English novel which needs to read by Monday. Yes the art of procrastination is easy to master. Need any tips, let me know, but I think the idea is pretty simple: Do all the things you want to do, until you are under an enormous amount of pressure to do the things you have to do! Its a clinical defect in all students. Good Luck!
Here I am about a month and a half away from exams with tests and assignments coming out of my ears and there is this resonating in my head....¨just procrastinate¨. I don't ignore the voices. I sit down at my laptop and I hop onto the facebook bandwagon for an hour until I see that there is a new episode, (of one of the many series which I watch religiously)that has come come out which takes up another hour of my precious time which finally ends just in time for gym, and then to get to supper and by the time I get back to my residence I'm too tired to possibly look at the English novel which needs to read by Monday. Yes the art of procrastination is easy to master. Need any tips, let me know, but I think the idea is pretty simple: Do all the things you want to do, until you are under an enormous amount of pressure to do the things you have to do! Its a clinical defect in all students. Good Luck!
Save 100 Lives
Greetings to all my fellow vegetarians! I know you might be a bit stressed about how your whole I-don’t-eat-dead-animals philosophy will go down among the predominantly carnivorous students at your chosen university, but guess what? I’m here to help!
First and foremost, if there’s an animal rights group at your university, join it. It’s an amazing way to mix with like-minded people, get involved in something you’re passionate about and make new friends. I joined Rhodes’s ROAR society (Rhodes Organisation for Animal Rights) at the beginning of the year, and it’s really opened my eyes. They gave us a lot of PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) activism materials and information, which really encouraged me and strengthened my passion for this cause. I especially loved the animal rights stickers they gave us – they’re a fantastic way to spread the word and interest people in your ideas. A cute sticker on your notebook or a poster on your res room door is a great talking point and may even sway one of those meat-eating friends of yours!
If you’re staying in a residence, you can usually pick what you want to eat. There are different menus you can choose from, so it’s easy to simply book ‘vegetarian’ or even ‘fast food vegetarian’, if you’re lucky enough to attend a university which allows you that option. Dining hall meals are notorious: my friends are always complaining about how terrible the meat looks/tastes (or discussing what exactly it is that they just found in their chicken), so you’re much better off.
If you’re living off-campus in a flat/house (‘digs’ in university lingo), you’re going to have to do your own cooking (unless you want to live off Margherita pizzas from Debonairs. Which is cool too. But probably not good for your cholesterol level). But this isn’t a problem, thanks to those fantastic people at Fry’s. Their vegetarian boerewors / hotdogs / mince / sausage rolls / schnitzels / hamburgers are probably the reason I haven’t died of malnutrition over the last 6 years of my herbivorous life. They are the easiest things to make – you can stick most of them in the microwave for a minute and ta-dah! Edible soya protein! And you can stick them in almost every dish to replace the meat. Best thing since Mugg ‘n Bean’s frozen mocha coffee.
So there you go. You’ll survive just fine. And you can carry on on your merry vegetarian way and save the lives of more than a hundred animals a year.
***For all you omnivorous readers out there, you should see where your meat comes from. And then we’ll see if you still enjoy your Big Mac. Go veg! ***
Mwa mwa!
Meat_is_murder
First and foremost, if there’s an animal rights group at your university, join it. It’s an amazing way to mix with like-minded people, get involved in something you’re passionate about and make new friends. I joined Rhodes’s ROAR society (Rhodes Organisation for Animal Rights) at the beginning of the year, and it’s really opened my eyes. They gave us a lot of PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) activism materials and information, which really encouraged me and strengthened my passion for this cause. I especially loved the animal rights stickers they gave us – they’re a fantastic way to spread the word and interest people in your ideas. A cute sticker on your notebook or a poster on your res room door is a great talking point and may even sway one of those meat-eating friends of yours!
If you’re staying in a residence, you can usually pick what you want to eat. There are different menus you can choose from, so it’s easy to simply book ‘vegetarian’ or even ‘fast food vegetarian’, if you’re lucky enough to attend a university which allows you that option. Dining hall meals are notorious: my friends are always complaining about how terrible the meat looks/tastes (or discussing what exactly it is that they just found in their chicken), so you’re much better off.
If you’re living off-campus in a flat/house (‘digs’ in university lingo), you’re going to have to do your own cooking (unless you want to live off Margherita pizzas from Debonairs. Which is cool too. But probably not good for your cholesterol level). But this isn’t a problem, thanks to those fantastic people at Fry’s. Their vegetarian boerewors / hotdogs / mince / sausage rolls / schnitzels / hamburgers are probably the reason I haven’t died of malnutrition over the last 6 years of my herbivorous life. They are the easiest things to make – you can stick most of them in the microwave for a minute and ta-dah! Edible soya protein! And you can stick them in almost every dish to replace the meat. Best thing since Mugg ‘n Bean’s frozen mocha coffee.
So there you go. You’ll survive just fine. And you can carry on on your merry vegetarian way and save the lives of more than a hundred animals a year.
***For all you omnivorous readers out there, you should see where your meat comes from. And then we’ll see if you still enjoy your Big Mac. Go veg! ***
Mwa mwa!
Meat_is_murder
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Readingrocks wrote herself a letter
Dear Readingrocks
I know that coming to University is a huge step for you and you are exited, scared and maybe confused at the same time because you do not know what to expect. I am writing this letter to inform you about the choice of courses you are going to have to make once you are here.
I remember when I first arrived here at Rhodes thinking that I am going to take Drama only for the rest of my Degree years. It was during Orientation Week when I overhead two random girls saying that a BA student is expected to have ten credits in order to qualify for a BA Degree; I was so shocked to the extent that I just stomped up and asked them to explain what they had said but being the silly first year student I was; I completely ignored it and thought that they were as confused as I was since they were also first years, “there is no way I am taking four subjects per year” until I heard it from the Dean of Students. I say to you my beloved friend that doesn’t also think that you are going to do only one subject for four years depending on the Degree you aspire to do. I advice you to think about other subjects you might be interested in taking because if you leave it until the registration day you will end up making the wrong choices since so much will be happening that day and no one is going give you the attention you will need as everyone will be busy with their own things. I wish I had got the chance to hear someone warning or advising me about what I should have expected.
Take care of yourself my beloved friend until I see you here at Rhodes next year.
Your loving friend.
I know that coming to University is a huge step for you and you are exited, scared and maybe confused at the same time because you do not know what to expect. I am writing this letter to inform you about the choice of courses you are going to have to make once you are here.
I remember when I first arrived here at Rhodes thinking that I am going to take Drama only for the rest of my Degree years. It was during Orientation Week when I overhead two random girls saying that a BA student is expected to have ten credits in order to qualify for a BA Degree; I was so shocked to the extent that I just stomped up and asked them to explain what they had said but being the silly first year student I was; I completely ignored it and thought that they were as confused as I was since they were also first years, “there is no way I am taking four subjects per year” until I heard it from the Dean of Students. I say to you my beloved friend that doesn’t also think that you are going to do only one subject for four years depending on the Degree you aspire to do. I advice you to think about other subjects you might be interested in taking because if you leave it until the registration day you will end up making the wrong choices since so much will be happening that day and no one is going give you the attention you will need as everyone will be busy with their own things. I wish I had got the chance to hear someone warning or advising me about what I should have expected.
Take care of yourself my beloved friend until I see you here at Rhodes next year.
Your loving friend.
A letter to my former self
I never realised how much I'd changed this year until I wrote this letter. Wow. If I could go back, this is what I'd tell myself:
Dear naïve girl
This first year is soooo not what you thought it was going to be. Your comfortable cotton-candy cocoon will break very quickly. Reality will be extraordinarily different from your idealised view of university. You’ll meet different kinds of people, with very different ideas and opinions, and the people you do know will change. The people at Rhodes will impact and influence you more than any lecture or course. Looking back, I think this is the most important lesson I have learnt, and so I think I should share it with you.
You need to realise that the world isn’t simply a monochromatic charcoal drawing: you can’t view everything in ‘black’ and ‘white’, or in terms of ‘right’ and ‘wrong’. The world is sketched in shades of grey. No matter how much you, personally, don’t believe something is right, it is not your place to judge others or look down upon their activities. I’m not saying that you have to join in – please, don’t – just remember who you are and try to be tolerant of others.
That said, don’t let the others get to you, or fold under the pressure they exert on you. Don’t get caught up in their craziness when your conscience is screaming at you to dash for the door. You’ll be glad that you didn’t participate in their liver-wrecking activities when they are on their knees regurgitating their supper into an unfortunate flower bed and you’re not. Being the sober babysitter is okay (and important for their safety) sometimes.
Don’t worry, chicken. You’ll get through just fine.
*Mwa*
Meat_is_murder
P.S. Buy your TriVarsity overalls early, and don’t tumble dry them after their Gentian Violet bath – you’ll stain the tumble dryer purple.
Dear naïve girl
This first year is soooo not what you thought it was going to be. Your comfortable cotton-candy cocoon will break very quickly. Reality will be extraordinarily different from your idealised view of university. You’ll meet different kinds of people, with very different ideas and opinions, and the people you do know will change. The people at Rhodes will impact and influence you more than any lecture or course. Looking back, I think this is the most important lesson I have learnt, and so I think I should share it with you.
You need to realise that the world isn’t simply a monochromatic charcoal drawing: you can’t view everything in ‘black’ and ‘white’, or in terms of ‘right’ and ‘wrong’. The world is sketched in shades of grey. No matter how much you, personally, don’t believe something is right, it is not your place to judge others or look down upon their activities. I’m not saying that you have to join in – please, don’t – just remember who you are and try to be tolerant of others.
That said, don’t let the others get to you, or fold under the pressure they exert on you. Don’t get caught up in their craziness when your conscience is screaming at you to dash for the door. You’ll be glad that you didn’t participate in their liver-wrecking activities when they are on their knees regurgitating their supper into an unfortunate flower bed and you’re not. Being the sober babysitter is okay (and important for their safety) sometimes.
Don’t worry, chicken. You’ll get through just fine.
*Mwa*
Meat_is_murder
P.S. Buy your TriVarsity overalls early, and don’t tumble dry them after their Gentian Violet bath – you’ll stain the tumble dryer purple.
Letter to myself
Hey all. I wrote a letter to my past self to just give her(me) and like minded people some advice on how to handle the change of going to university, excuse all the emotion, but I'm an emotionally confused person.
Dear Little Miss Sunshine (me a year ago)
You must be the happiest person I know. Your young, your finishing school, you have a boyfriend and you have just been accepted to Rhodes University. Your starting something new, and I know how much you love change and all the new and exciting experiences that come with it. University, however, is not the exciting change you thought it would be. Change will become your enemy and you will be lost in a new world where you don´t necessarily know where your going or what you want. You will change from head strong and happy to dazed and confused. The change from High School to University is anti-climatic and distressing; which was my biggest problem as I was eager and not ready for the challenges that came with this change of lifestyle.
After school everybody goes their separate ways and begins the journey towards the future that school was trying to prepare us for, but we are not prepared. The only way that you will ever be prepared for university is through experience. Through this experience I have gone through a process, a process of not only change of surroundings and education but change of mind and outlook. University opens doors to all different kinds of ideologies and experiences which had never even been brought to your attention before and this is when you start changing your mind because you realise you´v picked the wrong university or subjects or residence or everything is just not what you want.
Now you are stuck. My advice to you, would be to open your mind from the get go. Leave your passed schooling years as exactly what they are: the past. Be careful of your sensitive nature as the adjustment is an emotional roller-coaster of changing emotions and your heart will become so much more fragile. See change for what it really is, embrace it and try something new so that you are already ahead of the challenges which university present. Good luck Sunshine!
Yours sincerely
Dazed and Confused
Dear Little Miss Sunshine (me a year ago)
You must be the happiest person I know. Your young, your finishing school, you have a boyfriend and you have just been accepted to Rhodes University. Your starting something new, and I know how much you love change and all the new and exciting experiences that come with it. University, however, is not the exciting change you thought it would be. Change will become your enemy and you will be lost in a new world where you don´t necessarily know where your going or what you want. You will change from head strong and happy to dazed and confused. The change from High School to University is anti-climatic and distressing; which was my biggest problem as I was eager and not ready for the challenges that came with this change of lifestyle.
After school everybody goes their separate ways and begins the journey towards the future that school was trying to prepare us for, but we are not prepared. The only way that you will ever be prepared for university is through experience. Through this experience I have gone through a process, a process of not only change of surroundings and education but change of mind and outlook. University opens doors to all different kinds of ideologies and experiences which had never even been brought to your attention before and this is when you start changing your mind because you realise you´v picked the wrong university or subjects or residence or everything is just not what you want.
Now you are stuck. My advice to you, would be to open your mind from the get go. Leave your passed schooling years as exactly what they are: the past. Be careful of your sensitive nature as the adjustment is an emotional roller-coaster of changing emotions and your heart will become so much more fragile. See change for what it really is, embrace it and try something new so that you are already ahead of the challenges which university present. Good luck Sunshine!
Yours sincerely
Dazed and Confused
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Introductions and the like
Hellooo cyberspace! We're five first years who are here to answer all your questions and squash all your fears about university! It's our first time being first years: being away from home, studying at varsity, having to be independent and many other things. We're all different, but I guarantee you'll find something in one of us that you can identify with! Let me introduce you to the team... I'll let them say their bit:
maryjane:
My weed and Aladdin pants are my prize possessions. As much of a dope head as I am, I’m a very wise soul. If I’m not in the botanical gardens, you’re most likely to find me at ‘Cow Moon Theory’. I’m sometimes in my room trying to decide whether or not to go to a lecture if I’m sober enough. However, my friends are always there, even though the buggers claim to hate the smell of weed in my room. Give me make-up and I don’t know what to do with it. Besides all of that I spend most of my day thinking. My favourite subject is Philosophy (the only lecture I go to, really).
Meat_is_murder:
I’m not the stereotypical Rhodent. I don’t drink, I’ve never smoked a cigarette in my life and I don’t do drugs. I’m an animal rights activist who doesn’t even have to swipe her Dallas chip in the dining hall most of the time: the caterers know I’ve booked a vegetarian meal. Meat is murder. Full stop. I recycle and I’ll walk to the shop instead of sending a bunch of carbon emissions up into the atmosphere by driving my car. I’m the girl in your English lecture in the organic cotton T-shirt that says “Fish are friends, not food”. On the weekends, I’m the sober babysitter who quietly sips Crème Soda at pre-drinks and ends up holding her friend’s hair back while they get sick in a gutter after downing a bottle of cane.
Readingrocks:
I am serious about my work: I’m always stressing about assignments, tests and deadlines. I didn’t come to Rhodes to party and stay out all night – I don’t like the night life in Grahamstown. My favourite hang-out spot is the library. I never miss a single lecture and disappointing my parents is the last thing I want to do, as I am studying on a scholarship.
Captain Morgan:
Freedom! University is a unique time in anyone’s life. The discipline and structure of school days is out and the fun is in. We are only young once and have to make sure that we enjoy every single moment of it! Life is too short and sometimes too difficult to miss any opportunity for a good time, so bring on the beers and in the words of Mark Twain let’s “dream, explore and discover” because that’s what university is all about.
Dazed&Confused:
I have no idea why I’m here or what I want to study. Everything is confusing, even my own identity! I constantly stress about the choices and challenges which come with university. Coming here completely threw me off course because I was so sure about life before, now there are too many options!
Well, that's us in a nutshell. For more info, check out our respective profiles. And check back here often for new posts!
<3 Meat_is_murder
maryjane:
My weed and Aladdin pants are my prize possessions. As much of a dope head as I am, I’m a very wise soul. If I’m not in the botanical gardens, you’re most likely to find me at ‘Cow Moon Theory’. I’m sometimes in my room trying to decide whether or not to go to a lecture if I’m sober enough. However, my friends are always there, even though the buggers claim to hate the smell of weed in my room. Give me make-up and I don’t know what to do with it. Besides all of that I spend most of my day thinking. My favourite subject is Philosophy (the only lecture I go to, really).
Meat_is_murder:
I’m not the stereotypical Rhodent. I don’t drink, I’ve never smoked a cigarette in my life and I don’t do drugs. I’m an animal rights activist who doesn’t even have to swipe her Dallas chip in the dining hall most of the time: the caterers know I’ve booked a vegetarian meal. Meat is murder. Full stop. I recycle and I’ll walk to the shop instead of sending a bunch of carbon emissions up into the atmosphere by driving my car. I’m the girl in your English lecture in the organic cotton T-shirt that says “Fish are friends, not food”. On the weekends, I’m the sober babysitter who quietly sips Crème Soda at pre-drinks and ends up holding her friend’s hair back while they get sick in a gutter after downing a bottle of cane.
Readingrocks:
I am serious about my work: I’m always stressing about assignments, tests and deadlines. I didn’t come to Rhodes to party and stay out all night – I don’t like the night life in Grahamstown. My favourite hang-out spot is the library. I never miss a single lecture and disappointing my parents is the last thing I want to do, as I am studying on a scholarship.
Captain Morgan:
Freedom! University is a unique time in anyone’s life. The discipline and structure of school days is out and the fun is in. We are only young once and have to make sure that we enjoy every single moment of it! Life is too short and sometimes too difficult to miss any opportunity for a good time, so bring on the beers and in the words of Mark Twain let’s “dream, explore and discover” because that’s what university is all about.
Dazed&Confused:
I have no idea why I’m here or what I want to study. Everything is confusing, even my own identity! I constantly stress about the choices and challenges which come with university. Coming here completely threw me off course because I was so sure about life before, now there are too many options!
Well, that's us in a nutshell. For more info, check out our respective profiles. And check back here often for new posts!
<3 Meat_is_murder
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