I'm Off To Minnesota and Ohio

This is going to be one helluva hectic weekend.

Friday- fly to Ohio at 1 pm, stop at Phoenix Arizona. Arrive at Cleveland, ohio at 11 pm (don't freak, it's different time zones. It's still a lot though). Drive to Holiday Inn in some random middle-of-nowhere place 30 minutes away.



Saturday- go to Oberlin in the morning. Eat "continental breakfast" there, then take a tour, then listen to an info session (this is all with other accepted students). Then I'll walk around with my mom and study every inch of the place and stare at every student to insure, you know... stuff. About them. Yeah. I must make sure that they're not too artsy indie snobby, if you know what I mean, because I've been getting that sort of vibe off the class of 2012 facebook group and, I'm sorry but- I'm not going to have any of that. A little indie snobbery is okay, I guess, but I'm not cool with every single person in a school listing the Decembrists, Jose Gonzalez, and Panda Bear as their favorite bands. I mean, seriously, everyone? That's just not fucking cool, or normal for that matter. I'm really only looking out for myself here- I don't want to be burned at the stake for loving the Killers. But I digress... later we'll walk around the quaint little town of Oberlin, Ohio. We're staying there the whole damn day, which was not my plan exactly but that's how my mom got the tickets so what can I do. Then sleep at Holiday Inn again, and then wake up at the middle of the fucking night and drive to the airport again, to get whisked away to St. Paul, Minnesota, probably stopping for no good reason somewhere in the middle because that's what happens when you get the cheapest tickets possible.




Sunday- arrive at St. Paul. Probably get some breakfast somewhere in the city- supposedly it is a very "hip" city- we'll see about that. Oh yeah, it will be cold as fuck. Rain, sleet, the whole deal. It's really hot here- tomorrow it's 90 degrees. Minnesota- 30 degrees. Just 60 degree difference, no biggie! It's not like environmentalists freak out over two degree differences or anything! Anyways, then we'll visit the Macalester campus. Unfortch there will be no tours or anything- I'm hoping that at least the cafeteria is open because food is very important for me and I must try out the foods at each school. (So far in the past: Princeton: eh. Cornell: yummm. Stanford: well, they have Subway so not bad. Vassar: not so much... Berkeley: lol everything was organic and healthy at the snack store, but what do you expect...). ANYWAYS. So I'll walk around and get as much as I can out of a campus on a Sunday with no classes and probably not too many students (outside in the ccooollllddd). Then we'll leave and explore Minneapolis/St. Paul a bit more. Then we'll leave around I think 3-ish pm, to the airport, back to LA (of course, stopping at Phoenix on the way). We'll arrive at 11 pm and somehow I'll have to finish my homework at the middle of the night.

Do you see how this will be hectic now? two states (actually more- PHOENIX) in one weekend.Oy vey. Oh well, I'm actually pretty excited. I think I really like visiting new places like this- especially now that I have read so much about them. I'll be back after the weekend with all the deets. 'Til then, ciao...!

Oberlin pictures

Macalester pictures

College Update #3

The good news:

I got into UC Berkeley and Oberlin

The bad news:

I got wait listed at Vassar and Skidmore.

The Skidmore wait listing was a major "WTF?" moment because that was one of my safeties, but it makes sense if they assumed I wasn't going to go.

The Vassar wait listing is a major downer for me. I think the moment I opened the envelope I realized just how much I really wanted to go there. I visited, and everything about the school was just so perfect. Now all there is left is Wesleyan and Yale and I'm pretty much sure I'll get rejected from both (I better get rejected somewhere because so far I've only gotten wait listed and it's driving me crazy!)

So while my whole family was ecstatic about Berkeley, I was kind of depressed today from Vassar. I don't think I can get off the wait list either because the letter said they have accepted as many as 50 and as little as zero people from the wait lists in the past years, which does not sound promising at all.

I can't even get myself to appreciate getting into Berkeley, which is absolutely rediculous. I guess because a lot of kids at my school got in. Ugh, I'm pathetic. I think the major reason I'm not too excited about it is that it's like the exact opposite of the ideal school I have been looking for this past year. It's a huge school, huge non-personal classes, California, heat, non-liberal arts, ugly campus... it does have the reputation and name recognition but frankly I don't care much for that. Maybe I should but I've gone past that already. But, like my brother said- it's hard to say no to frickin' Berkeley.

I don't know what to think. I hope I can visit some colleges and then decide. I'll try to write Vassar a letter saying they're my top choice. I'll have to keep my grades up, even though it's second semester senior year, when I'm supposed to relax and not care about anything for once. I guess that's not happening.

UCLA? ...SERIOUSLY?

Holy shit. WTF WTF WTF. I just got into freaking UCLA. Now my decision is going to get like five million times more difficult. Wow. But still can't let this get to my head, it is a huge UC after all (student population-wise)... some very important letters are still coming up...

I'm just really baffled right now. I've gone through this whole college application process virtually alone, save some rip-off college counselor that I met with twice and who barely helped at all, and I messed up endless times, and I'm still in? It almost gives me hope, like maybe they saw me for me- maybe they actually do want real students. Ah, who knows. I'm really honored right now, and also numb. It hasn't hit me at all.

Wow.

College Admissions... Let the Madness Begin

So the college acceptance/rejection letters are coming in...

So far:

yesterday:
Lewis & Clark: accepted! (but, to be fair, 'twas my safety)
Washington University in St. Louis: waitlisted :/

today:
UCSB: accepted! (but I already knew that because of ELC, this CA HS program)
Macalester: accepted! :D

So far, pretty much so good. I was really worried about Macalester. Now I feel a bit more confident... ah we'll see. I'm also a little sad, if that makes any sense at all. I thought I might not get in anywhere except UC's and L&C (Oregon), and then I would stay sort of near my family. But now it sort of/maybe/depends-on-what-comes-next, looks like I might not stay in the area. Who knows. Minnesota is pretty far, and cold. I'm still excited though. I don't want to get overconfident yet, though- it's too early to jynx myself.

So what's left: UCSD, UCLA, UCB, Kenyon, Oberlin, Vassar, Skidmore, Wesleyan, Yale.

I think most of them will come smack dab on April 1st. Happy April Fools Day indeed.