<p>dstark and patient--
wher are your kids in school?? This is very useful info for s. #2 beginning to look at schools :)
Seriously, folks, would you mind posting the school as well?? We begin to feel like we know each other after all this time-- it is nice to put a "name" with a "face" as it were.</p>
<p>Michigan. She loves the school.</p>
<p>oh sorry--sometimes I forget that not everyone knows from prior posts. Stanford.</p>
<p>Patient-- Sometimes it is just hard to recall all the "players"-- but now that you've refreshed my memory-- yes, now I recall. However, I'll probably forget again-- it's a bear to be over 50 :(</p>
<p>My son is at Swarthmore.</p>
<p>jym...tell me about it! Sincerely... from a member of that club :D</p>
<p>My buddy </p>
<p>Penn
Surprise: Didn't <em>know</em> that he can get roomed w. a gay guy....</p>
<p>Columbia
Major Surprise: Weather. He thought it was cold when it was in the 40s, then it hit 9 degrees plus windchill factor. In spite of all the warnings and attempts to prepare,poor California child, he had no clue....
Minor Surprises: In college, 50 or 60% of your grade can depend on your final. Don't count your chickens till they're hatched comes to mind, though in the end and after much complaining, they hatched just fine.</p>
<p>Jym626:
Yeah, it's a bear to be above - ah, um - what was that number again? :-)</p>
<p>My D:</p>
<p>Dartmouth</p>
<p>Suprises -</p>
<p>She is having the time of her life and is happier than she has ever been and is really making a great adjustment, being away from home (if she could take her dog, it would be perfect)
She called me as she was doing her homework/laundry at 8 p.m. on a saturday night I told her, you gotta relax, go hang out with your friends. Her response, no self respecting party begins before midnight (that's when I knew I was getting old). Sleep is over rated, she has become a virtual nightowl. She eats so much more healthier- no junk food, soy milk, more water and veggies.</p>
<p>Now eats ramen noodles (there has never been one in my house) even though her roommate tells her that they will kill her. She took great joy in spending down the $240 she had left on her food plan on her last night of finals to buy food for her friends and strangers who were still up studying .</p>
<p>I was surprised that my classes were not that hard. I thought that if I took over 12 credits, I would be overdoing, so I only took 12 and got 3 As and a B (stupid final!) </p>
<p>The biggest surprise came second semester....didn't know I could start a term paper the night before it was due, get a weekend extension, and still crawl out of the class with a B....wouldnt reccomend that to anyone, but I sure thought I was gonna fail!</p>
<p>btw, the term paper was ONLY grade in the class....and there were only two other students int he class and it was cross listed as a graduate course (I was the only undergrad in the course so maybe the prof cut me some slack)</p>
<p>University: UC Santa Cruz - Crown College - 2d year</p>
<p>Biggest surprise freshman year (for everybody): That she actually missed us.</p>
<p>Biggest surprise soph year: The vast difference between who she was in h/s and who she is in college. Running into old h/s friends is an eye-opener for her.</p>
<p>D is attending Haverford.</p>
<p>Everyone is so bright and intelligent...especially those that you may think would be!! LOL Classes are all challenging...especially the math! ;)</p>
<p>She misses all her friends...IM-ing and text messaging are the favored form of communicating. Although she has been out with her high school classmates, D can't wait to return to PA. She has found a home and another life...</p>
<p>My freshman D...
College: CMU
Surprise:The food is G-d awful; mom knew how to cook; and frat boys aren't so nice..the non-frat guys are cool and kind.</p>
<p>College: Millikin University (Decatur, IL)
Musical Theater major</p>
<p>Daughter's surprise was how supportive the other MTs were of each other. And how close they have all become. In high school, there was a lot of cut-throat competition between the advanced singer/actors. They saw each other as competition and never seemed to support or encourage each other, even though many were best friends. Daughter has been thrilled with the help and encouragement she has received from classmates.</p>
<p>Peg</p>
<p>Oberlin</p>
<p>After a bout of homesickness from the thought of being 600 miles from family and friends, DS rapidly adjusted to Oberlin. He became involved in the Presidential campaign, travelling to Cleveland the last three weekends of October.</p>
<p>He was surprised with the volume of reading and work required to merely keep up with his classes. He is in Scotland for winter term, pligrimaging St Culbert's Way from Melrose Abbey to Lindisfarne. To the extent possible, he will be traveling as a peregrinati, depending on the kindness of strangers for shelter and food. His plan of study prevents him from contacting us and us from contacting him. We are anxiously waiting for his return on the 25th.</p>
<p>Thanks for your post and welcome to our forum!</p>
<p>Best wishes to your family during this month of your son's peregrination! I hope you will post something on his experience after his return.</p>
<p>Moderator JEM</p>
<p>"Biggest surprise freshman year (for everybody): That she actually missed us."</p>
<p>LOL. Nice to hear from you, again, Sluggbug.</p>
<p>Charlesives -- what a fascinating trip. is it through Oberlin? do they have other experiential programs like that?</p>
<p>SAC, all Oberlin students are required to earn 3 "winter term" credits. Winter term is the period between fall and spring semesters. Oberlin provides individual and group projects but students may propose a plan of study on their own.</p>
<p>Because our S is a frosh he is financing the trip on his own. I had FF miles for the air fair but he earned the $'s for the pilgrimage. He will be keeping a journal of his pilgrimage and has selected Celtic Christian readings required for his winter term credits.</p>
<p>I believe the inspiritation for this WT project was a family trip to Iona in 2000 and his participation in our chuch's senior mission project for the past 4 years. I don't know where the peregrinati aspect arose from.</p>