Let me just come out and say it: I don’t believe in making New Year’s resolutions. They are clichéd and way overdone.
themedium
Picky Eaters with Dietary Restriction Problems
I seriously dislike the food selection at UTM. Not only do I dislike it, I am downright annoyed by it. I live two hours away, so when I forget my food at home – which happens more than it should – I am mortally screwed. Sure, I could just take the bus and get food, except I don’t want to leave campus to eat, endure the bus wait, the walking, the walking back, and the bussing back. But I’m also not one to go hours without eating – waiting three hours to eat is stretch, I get hangry (the combination of hungry and angry).
One might say: “Hungry? But UTM has a diverse variety of foods. They cater to everyone. There’s Tandoori Cuisine, Subway, Tim Horton’s, Second cup, International Kitchen, Cafeteria food, Pizza Pizza, Starbucks, Mikes Hot Dogs, Oscar Peterson Hall, and the Blind Duck. Jackie, you ninny!” Yes, yes, yes, we do have quite the diverse selection, especially for such a small campus. The only thing is, I’m a picky eater you ninny (not to be mistaken with a fussy eater*)! I can’t eat wheat, nor gluten for that matter, and I’m lactose intolerant, so thank you for providing a list of the many places I can’t/won’t eat at.
Now, again, I forget my food at home sometimes, so that’s when I start scouring the campus to find anything, anything I can eat!
Oh, and did I mention I’m a broke student? I will not pay eight dollars for a Caesar salad. I also don’t eat salad, so you could see how that would be a waste. The options this cruel school gives a person like me, I tell ya! Luckily for you, my fellow picky eaters, I explore the food options on campus on a regular basis, so other than salad, I have recently found a few options:
When I said anything, I meant it, because apparently this is my safest bet for a completely gluten-free, dairy-free snack:
Tim Horton’s Gluten Free Macaroons. Personally, I don’t like them, but they are gluten-free and 90% sugar.
The chips in the vending machine. Most are gluten-free, but sometimes say that they may contain wheat or dairy. My personal favourite are the Plantain chips in the green package in both salt and the spicy flavour.
Also, I know I mention these food options before, but just in case you’re new to UTM and haven’t stepped foot in the cafeteria, here are some places you must avoid, not because you’re a picky eater – no – but because this is actual poison to your body. I envy those who buy pizza for lunch. Then again, I envy those who can eat anything for lunch.
Note: Not actual poison. They don’t put poison in the pizza. I’m not trying to say they poison your food here, so hold back on the angry letters Pizza Pizza, you multi-million dollar company. Cool it.
That’s about it for our sad, pathetic, picky eating, gluten-intolerant/celiac and lactose-intolerant selves. If somebody could actually find me a dairy-free and gluten-free meal on campus, that would be great.
-xoxo Hungry girl
*A fussy eater is one who complains about their food all the time. I know, I know I’m complaining about the food at UTM BUT the difference is I still find SOMETHING to eat. Thus, not a fussy eater. I am NOT a fussy eater, OK?!
The Tragic History of William Shakespeare and I
When I came to university, one of my main goals was to avoid the whole “talking” thing. I know, I know, it’s anti-social but that’s why tutorials terrified me. My voice isn’t loud, I’m alone, and sometimes you get one of those crazy tutorials where everyone is super, duper passionate and, well, you’re not.
Gonna be honest, I didn’t go into my Shakespeare class loving Shakespeare. Not at all. Shakespeare and I actually have a very complicated, long relationship dating back to grade 9 where we first locked eyes. Ever since then, he’s been my enemy and I’ve avoided his work like the plague (even as an English student).
So why did I take a Shakespeare course? Well, I wanted to be BFFs with Old Will and I thought this would be a good way of going about it.
I’m a Raving Bore
Let’s rewind to my freshman year – September 5th 2012 to be precise. It was the busiest day of Frosh week and I had attended a whopping half an hour out of the entire eleven-hour schedule.
Don’t get me wrong, I do enjoy meeting new people – just not in forced program-specific groups, exchanging information about our hobbies and home countries. Unlike my enthusiastic fellow-froshies, I was the perfect blend of awkward and lazy. Group workshops, icebreakers and cheer competitions? I’ll pass.
For this reason, I decided to go only to the last event of the night – Apocalypta Pub or First Pub (which ever one it was called). Apart from the fact that I had friends attending, a party is, in my opinion, a better way to socialize.
Spotted! A New Way of Communication
Spotted at UTM is strange. There. I’ve said it.
For some context, Spotted at UTM is a Facebook group students can join to anonymously shout out random people at UTM. Most posts are about unrequited love, although you can pretty much say anything you want as long as it’s not incredibly rude.
How to Talk to Strangers
Don’t talk to strangers. It’s the piece of advice adults instilled in us as a safety precaution, but the more we’re told not to do something, the more we’re inclined to do it. It’s a fact.
The Life of a Commuter: A Tragedy
Waking up early and getting to class on time can be hard. Sometimes you contemplate if the class is really worth attending. You wonder, is the extra five minutes of sleep worth skipping breakfast? Are the extra ten minutes of sleep worth skipping a shower? Are those glorious eight minutes of sleep worth going to school without a prepared lunch? If I take a later bus and run to the train, then could I sleep for an extra twenty minutes? If you ask yourself these questions in the morning, then not only are you a university student, but you are also one of the unfortunate commuters.
Other signs you’re a commuter:
- You have class at 10 a.m., which, hey! That’s not so bad! Except, you have to leave your house by 8 a.m. to get there – not on time, mind you – but just to be five minutes late. Of course, If you want to arrive at school twenty minutes earlier, then you better leave thirty minutes earlier (thanks to the new GO transit schedules, you no longer have to wait an hour for the next bus).
- You own this:
For those of you who don’t commute, this is an annoying green card that you load up with money to pay for your city transit, GO bus and GO train fare. You cry a little inside as you tap the card against the PRESTO machine and it takes your money to pay for the train fare. The annoying thing about this card is you always have to have a minimum of five dollars on it, and you can only load a minimum of ten dollars. So, you can see how this can be annoying, especially when you’re on the bus and the PRESTO machine beeps obnoxiously and flashes red because you’re twenty cents short of the minimum requirement.
- One or all of your modes of transportation:
You know, taking the bus, to the GO bus, to the train, to the city bus, to school. Then you take the MiWay transit to the train, to the GO bus and then you get picked up by your parents.
Yes, life as a commuter sucks!
The solution:
There is none. Unless you fork up the money to pay for residence, off-campus housing, or a car with gas and insurance, then I’m afraid this cruel commuting life is all yours for the next four (or let’s be honest, five) years at UTM/St. George/Sheridan College. There is no winning for us commuters.
If GO Transit decides to create a Jetson transporting tube, I’ll let y’all know.
Can I Sit At Your Table?
If there’s one thing that’s clear this year (to everyone but the freshmen), it’s that there’s suddenly way too many people on campus. The Starbucks and Tim Horton’s lines literally never end, and you have to wade your way through crowds of people before most classes. Still, there’s one problem that tops both of these annoyances: there’s not enough seats in the cafeteria.
How to Walk into Your Professor’s Office Like a BOSS
You’re sitting in class, taking notes, comprehending today’s lesson. You stop typing. You gasp. You have absolutely no idea what the professor just explained to the class.
“If you have any questions, stop by my office during office hours or schedule an appointment if those hours don’t work for you,” your professor announces at the end of class.
Scary, isn’t it?
…But, it doesn’t have to be.
There will come a time when you have to make direct contact with your professors. But don’t freak out, professors are there to help you, not hurt you. So stop watching those Frankenstein movies and you won’t feel like a victim. Just follow these guidelines to tackle your anxiety, and talking with your professors will no longer seem like a scene from a horror film:
Television Ruined My Life
I blame television for my false expectations of university.
Remember shows like Beverley Hills, 90210 (Donna Martin graduates!), Saved By The Bell, Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, Boy Meets World, The O.C? I most definitely do. How could I not? I lived and breathed these shows. I followed Brenda, Brandon and the gang to university; I was there in front of the TV when Zack proposed to Kelly; I watched Summer Roberts dominate university while coping with the loss of Marissa.
Oh yes, I was there, watching and learning, maybe a little bit too much. Most, no, all of my ideologies and influences have come from these popular, American teen drama shows from the 90’s/2000’s. They showed me how to dress, how to act, how not to act, what I should expect in my high school years, and more importantly, what to expect of university (or college as these popular American TV shows called it). But what these shows did not prepare me for is the harsh reality of university, or rather University of Toronto.