I'm tired of the natives and the people from home asking me about the weather and how I'm coping with it. Yes, it snows. Yes, I'm not used to snow. But no, I don't hate snow, I don't wish it were warmer. I've actually discovered that I really like snow unless it gets in my eyes. Now that that rant is out of the way...
The people that I've met are kind and courteous, the staff is helpful and understanding, and the students are like any other group of students I've met. People talk about the same things (the weather, how drunk they were last night, homework, etc.) with only slightly different accents (donchaknow?).
I think it's funny that they have a bus route to take kids from North Campus to South Campus because the distance between the two sides of campus are comparable to the distance between the horse shoe and the Humanities buildings. I personally walk it every day. Now, I know they have to deal with snow, ice, and freezing winds, but I haven't walked on ice my whole life and I seem to be doing just fine. I am happy for the handicapped students, though.
Working for dining services makes me feel disgusted with how much food is thrown away every day. This school's population is only nine thousand, so I can't even imagine the quantities of food thrown away by USC. Fortunately, Stout has both compost and recycling in addition to the usual trash receptacles. They also use a company, EcoProducts, to supply their take-out containers, cups, and straws. EcoProducts' products are all 100% compostable, so even if you throw them away in the regular trash, they'll degrade over time. I mentioned my approval of composting to my father one day when we were having a chat, and he recommended that I start a composting campaign for USC when I return. I think I will.
Vegetarian options are provided here as well as at USC, but much like USC, the options are terrible. I eat meat, so most people might think that such a thing doesn't affect me. They would be wrong. I feel concern at the lack of diversity offered in the vegetarian diet both here and at home. Providing corn, instant-mix mashed potatoes, peas, carrots, brown beans, and green beans simply isn't enough to sustain them. Vegetarians choose not to partake of meat, much like religions ban certain types of food. Their decisions should be respected, not punished or looked down upon, as should those of other religious sects, and more appropriate comestibles should be provided. They need nuts, grains, fruits (more than an apple a day, doc), and some darker green vegetables like asparagus and spinach. And universities should be ashamed for thinking that this would only affect vegetarian students. Including these options in the school's diet would improve the welfare of the other students as well if some less healthy options were eliminated.
I think my Latin American History teacher is getting to me. The other day he said (and I'm paraphrasing), "Americans look at sacrifice as something that is done by someone for them. Latin Americans look at sacrifice as something they themselves do for others." That really hit home with me. When is the last time that I actually did something for someone other than me? When is the last time that I gave something up just so that someone else could flourish? Five past never. He also said (still paraphrasing), "In America, the middle class are actually the most resistant to change. They know that if they continue along the same path they're on, they'll get to maintain their lifestyle, and that's good enough for them." This also hit home. I've already noticed that same train of thought chugging along in my mind. If I continue to put out this much effort, I'll live a comfortable enough life. Why should I settle for comfortable enough?
If nothing else, I'm glad I came to this university just because I met that man. Thinking critically about the world around us is an important tool that we as humans need to develop before we are unleashed into society.
Ah, but I've ranted too long. This cold air brings out the heat in my blood.
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