THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAS
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2014
PAGE 4A
opinion
Football? What's that? More like a fashion show now-a-days.
Text your FFA submissions to (785)289-8351 or at kansan.com
Three cars in the lot and Parkin is handing out tickets. Really?
That awkward moment when I fly to Vegas with my so-called best friend and she ditches me for her temporary boyfriend. #mvbltmismtruebestie
Today is my 21st birthday! No more Jayhawk Café for me!
I have really missed sorority girls.
One of the biggest things I missed during the summer was being able to submit to the FFA.
Editor's note: You can submit FFAs all day, every day.
The only summertime sadness I've had is knowing the fact that school is starting soon.
To the 400 girls that won't get a bid from the 12 houses: Start your own PHA chapter.
FFA. Winter is coming.
Everyone stay off the roads because I'm driving for the first time in three months and I'm a danger to society probably.
Layovers aren't so bad, even though this one was 10 hours it really only felt like nine.
I understand some German words and phrases. Like, "No, she doesn't speak German. Only English."
Burger as big as my hangover.
Avoid people with only one really long fingernail.
"We're all beautifully different. Cherish what makes you, you."
UDK all day!
FOLLOW USON
Value of internships measured in experience, not pay
JOBS
This summer is an editorial intern in the main greeting card section at Hallmark. As an intern I worked on everything that had to do with the words on greeting cards. It was a pretty phenomenal experience that allowed me to utilize a variety of creative skills. Best of all, it was paid.
I knew from the beginning I adored this internship, but I spent a lot of my summer trying to figure out what it was exactly I liked so much. After all, I'd had other fun jobs, but none had felt quite like this. None challenged me or encouraged me the way this internship did. After a while I realized what it was that made this internship
stand out. At its heart, working at Hallmark was a great experience because it was clear how much they cared about all of their employees, including their interns.
Hallmark has a ton of benefits for its employees. From a creative library to a cafe, there are places all over to refuel in every sense of the word. There are also workshops and events held throughout the year to help hone creative talent. In a lot of ways Hallmark Headquarters in Kansas City, Mo., is like a professional college food whenever you want it, everything in walking distance, even a nap room (yes, seriously).
All of these benefits and more were offered to us as interns, and every day I found out a new part of Hallmark I loved. But what I loved most wasn't the obvious perks, it was the way people spoke to me and to each other. Everyone was friendly and everyone seemed genuinely happy to have the interns there, not to do the grunt work, but to offer a fresh perspective.
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Coming in, I was never treated as "just an intern." From day one I was working alongside other editors, being trained just like a new employee would be. My opinion was always encouraged and valued, and my work had real deadlines for real products. Basically, it was what an internship should be — a way for me to refine my skills and learn, while also a way for Hallmark to get enthusiastic work from a new set of eyes.
Hallmark is a company that can afford to pay their interns, and so they do, which is exactly how it should be. However, if they were a nonprofit that couldn't afford to pay their interns, I
believe they could still offer a worthwhile internship. It is not the pay that made my experience at Hallmark special — it's the fact that they clearly cared and did all they could to give their interns the best possible chance at a beneficial learning experience. More than that, it was the fact that were I to work at Hallmark as an employee, I am confident it would be every bit as nice as working there as an intern.
Anna Wenner is a senior from Topeka studying English and history
LITERATURE
2014 KU Common Book will come as a surprise
This fall, KU's Common Book "The Center of Everything" by
I Book "The Center of Everything," by English professor Laura Moriarty, will turn three years old. As a semi-avid reader, and recipient of a complimentary copy for being on KU Library's Student Advisory Board, I finally got around to reading it earlier this summer.
"The Center of Everything" turned out to be a pleasant read. Melancholy, funny and heart wrenching at times, I felt the need to finish it once I got past the initial hump. Not plot-driven in the traditional sense, "The Center of Everything" became a page-turner. You want to know what happens to the protagonist, Evelyn Bucknow, and the other people in her life.
Set in Lawrence during America's Reagan era, Evelyn Bucknack is introduced as a 12-year-old girl living in a single mom household, narrating from early adolescence. We see Evelyn's world through her innocent perspective. She's confused why a man named Mr. Mitchell keeps coming over, and why her mom's bed breaks. When her mom develops bouts of morning sickness, Evelyn does not recognize them as signs of pregnancy. However, as Evelyn grows, so does her intuition, which makes her
resent her mother.
In the classroom. Evelyn has friends and enemies alike. Precocious and intuitive, she performs well in school, which gains attention from her science teacher. Always jockeying for a position against Traci Carmichael and Co., Evelyn learns through the evolution debate that her religious awakening may have left her on the "wrong" side. From the evolution debate, we see how religion versus science divides the small town.
Forced to pick sides, Evelyn is torn between her evangelical grandmother and the science teacher who sees her academic potential. Difficult for Evelyn to process, we see the complexity of situations like this and others that arise. Situations such as these really made me appreciate the book. The prose throughout make the reader align with Evelyn's feelings, but also everyone else's.
Although the Common Book is targeted toward incoming freshmen, I believe there is value in reading it
regardless of your education status. It will allow me to connect with new students and the KU community who have read it. Last year's book did not have widespread appeal or accessibility. This year's book can be read in a day, but still manages to address important and pressing topics. Anyone who will work heavily with incoming students should set aside a few hours to read the novel, and reflect on it.
A bildungsroman story, I always enjoy seeing character progression through transitional times in life. Though the ending turned out well in a conventional sense, I couldn't help but feel a pinch of sadness. Maybe because Evelyn's friend Travis, has a life that perpetuates a vicious cycle, maybe because of the car accident, maybe the unfortunate cover choice that will discourage any guy from reading this book, or maybe because the story ended. So even if you aren't an incoming freshman, I recommend you pick this book up. It's a quick read, and it will make you think. The novel tells how Evelyn came from Kerrville to Larryville, leaving us to reflect on our own journeys to KU.
Anrenee Reasor is a senior from Thayer studying economics and East Asian languages and culture
SOCIAL
CAMPUS CHIRPS BACK
College life is not like the movies
We've all seen the movies right? College is hard — late nights studying for exams, waking up for those dreaded 8 a.m. classes, not having enough hours in the day and dealing with people from walks of life way different than yours. However, there are a lot of things that the movies, alumni and current students do not tell you.
It doesn't matter how attractive you are because not everyone cares about physical appearance. Your hair doesn't have to be long and glossy, it doesn't matter how many hours you spend at the Rec and it certainly doesn't matter if you're a part of Greek life.
Your grades do not always represent how much work you put into something. You could have pulled an all-nighter for a chemistry test and still flunk. Trust me, I've seen it happen several times. However, sometimes people don't study for a test at all and manage to get an A. Even if you don't get a good grade at first, don't give up on a class based off one score. There is always the chance next time will end up much better.
Getting blackout drunk is not fun. Just don't do it. Memories are one of the most precious things in life, especially in college. Do not let a liquid substance be the reason why an entire night of your beautiful life is lost forever. Value your memories more than that.
Learn to appreciate the people who pick you up
By Anissa Fritz
@Anissa Fritz
when you're drunk. These are the people who care about you the most. Buy them breakfast the next morning or just let them know they are appreciated. These are the people who stayed sober and didn't escape college stress on the weekends with a bottle of alcohol. The ones who pick you up, put you in bed with a glass of water and a trash can next to you are the ones you need to treasure and value. Not everyone will do these things for you. Selfless people are the hardest to find and yet the best to have. So if you find one, cherish them and let them know you love them.
No matter how many movies you've seen or how many times you've pictured the college life in your head, I guarantee you it is not what you imagined it to be. People are constantly evolving. Everyone in college is trying to figure their world out, which is the beauty of it. College forces people's worlds to collide with others, and sometimes these turn out to be the best friendships. That part is very accurate. You'll meet the worst and the best people in college. Enjoy both types. Lessons are just as good as friendships.
Anissa Fritz is a sophomore from Dallas studying journalism and sociology
@emilyyeloise
@KansanOpinion I will miss the day drinking and laying by the pool!
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@KansanOpinion Summer.
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Members of the Kansas Institutional Board are Emma Legault, Madison Schultz, Cecilia Cho, Hannah Barling, and Christina Carreria.