Embracing moments of fresh air

In my time at Bloomsburg University, I’ve had my fair share of online work. This past year has taken it to an unprecedented level. Our classrooms, internships, and essentially our daily lives have been immersed in our screens due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

I used to take for granted all the times we had to submit hard copies of our assignments or drudge to class in the wintertime, but now I’m finding myself buried in online assignments or admittedly, with my nose in my phone.

Screen fatigue is real. Trust me. There’s so much time spent sitting behind a screen — whether on it’s on my laptop, on my phone, or even focused on TV. I’ve made it a mission this semester to free myself from this and combat it head on.

Okay… that sounds great, but what are your secrets?

For starters, I’m not afraid to take breaks. This one may seem obvious, but you’d be surprised by the number of times I’ve gotten down on myself for not being able to power through my days like I used to. We don’t get those momentary breaks walking to our next class or grabbing a quick bite to eat from Husky, but instead sit fixed in front of a laptop for hours on end. No one knows yourself better than yourself. If my brain is telling me we’ve had enough, I’m okay with taking a step back and letting myself breathe for a while. I think this is one of the most important things for my sanity, because otherwise my brain is fried by the end of each day.

During these breaks I really like to catch up on things I genuinely enjoy, like cooking, painting, or even reorganizing my room to keep myself inspired. Having some ‘me time’ never hurt anyone and, honestly, it keeps me from losing sight of myself.

Another thing I’ve been doing is embracing my moments of fresh air. Whether it’s just sliding my window open to feel the cool, wintery breeze or going on a walk in our (numbered) warm weather days, I take in the freeing feeling the crisp air gives me. Being bound up inside in front of a screen can be exhausting, so it’s nice to have an escape from time to time.

Ever since the onset of the pandemic, I’ve noticed how my friends and I tend to do everything cooped up inside. We attend classes online, binge-watch the latest shows, and mindlessly scroll through TikToks — sometimes not even acknowledging each other or the world around us. After a while I just need a break from the screens, and I need to bring myself back to reality. Getting fresh air is one way for me to undoubtedly do just that.

But what about those times I can’t step away from my devices?

I pull out my handy-dandy blue light glasses. Some may say they’re gimmicky, but I think they’ve helped turn my fatigue and exhaustion around. I used to experience headaches after long days of being online that I could hardly see straight. Finally, I invested in a pair of inexpensive blue light glasses in an effort to bring these side effects to a halt, and sure enough — they did. Now anytime I’m feeling strained or ready to sign off, I throw on those glasses and I’m ready to tackle more work.

All of these coping methods make me wonder where our technology is going to take us. Will we ever return to face-to-face interaction? Will we stop our endless consumption of Netflix and Hulu shows? Or put our phones down to give us a break from time to time?

At the end of the day, I think the most important thing to do when it comes to screen fatigue is to simply listen to yourself. The pandemic has changed all of our lives so being able to adapt and make the best of our situation is critical for living in a time of uncertainty. I’ve learned to take on virtual life a day at a time, and I’m determined to make the best of whatever the future has in store.

— Caprice Gillick, a senior communication studies major with an emphasis on leadership and public advocacy, is interning with the Office of Marketing and Communications this spring. She is a native of York County and a member of the Sigma Sigma Sigma sorority.

#BloomOnward #HuskyLife

Getting out of your comfort zone

Growing up, I attended thirteen years of small, Catholic schools in Delaware County. While I received a quality education while attending these schools, once I began attending Cardinal O’Hara High School, I quickly learned that if you weren’t on one of the sports teams, in the band, or a part of the theatre productions, you slid through the cracks. While despite not being very involved in high school, I still managed to form a tight niche of friends; but I still yearned to belong to a group that made me feel bigger than myself.

Unfortunately, I consider myself virtually talentless — I can’t sing, I have two left feet, and I am pretty much the most uncoordinated person you will ever meet. So if I wasn’t in school, I was found working part time at Rite Aid. Once I graduated, I made a promise to myself that college was going to be different — I would do more than just work, go to class, hang out with my friends, and watch Netflix.

During my freshman orientation, they mentioned that the Center for Leadership and Engagement would be hosting an Activities and Involvement Fair where student clubs and organizations would be highlighting what they were about and what they would be doing that year. I was so excited! This was the perfect opportunity for me to keep my promise to myself — and a few days later, that’s exactly what I did.

I was a little overwhelmed at first because I had no idea what kind of things I wanted to be involved with; but the best part about attending a public school for the first time in my life was that if there was something I was remotely interested in, there seemed to be a club for it. I ended up signing up for six clubs at the Activities and Involvement Fair ranging from academics to fitness to community service. At first, I seemed to be able to balance 15 credits and seven extracurricular activities; but as soon as midterms hit, I realized it was going to be impossible to be involved in everything.

During Week 6 of my first semester in college, I called my mom in a panic. That week I had three exams and a ton of meetings for all of the clubs I was involved with. I have always had really bad test anxiety, so my mom suggested I take a step back from some of the organizations I was involved with and focus on just a few. I realized she was right and after that phone call, I created a pro-con list for each activity I was involved in.

I decided to try to stay involved in the American Marketing Association because marketing is one of my majors and I had already paid the dues for that year. But I still wanted to be involved in something that wasn’t necessarily academic. Because I attended Catholic school, I was required to do a certain amount of community service hours every year; but usually I went beyond the minimum amount. I realized in that moment that I needed to be involved in some sort of community-service club.

During my junior year of high school, I attended a leadership camp for the Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation and quickly grew passionate about finding a cure for childhood cancer. When I saw that Bloomsburg had a Colleges Against Cancer chapter, I knew that this club would be perfect for me. During the summer before I started at BU, my grandma was diagnosed with Stage 3 cancer so I thought that this was the perfect club for me.

I was pretty active in CAC my first two semesters of college, however, decided not to be involved any more during my sophomore year. I had joined Delta Phi Epsilon in my second semester and became the community service chair for them, so I wanted to put all of my passion into that.

While I believe that being involved on campus and in the community is an important part of being a student, I think it’s more important to find a few activities you really enjoy and are able to put your time, energy and passion into. As college students, we are often running around like chickens with no heads; but the friendships, soft skills, and resume boost you gain from being involved on campus is truly worth the stress.

Bloomsburg University has so many opportunities for you to get involved and leave your mark; and I really encourage you to get involved as early on as possible. The earlier you get involved — the more positive experiences you’ll get out of it.

Don’t be afraid to try something new and get out of your comfort zone. Even if you don’t think a club or organization is right for you, try it out and see how you feel. You never know the amazing things that could come out of it.

— Kim Oaster, senior mass communications and marketing dual major #HuskyLife

Netflix has a secret …

Have you ever been in a show hole on Netflix?

If you don’t know what a show hole is it’s when you have just finished a series and now you have no idea what to watch. Yes, we have all been there! We click on the browse button to see what type of genre we want next, but they are just too broad. We can never hone into the exact thing we are looking for.

What if I told you here is another world to Netflix? No, I am not crazy. You might be thinking to yourself there is no way, I know the ins and outs of everything Netflix. Well, you are so wrong. Netflix has some secret code that is put into the address bar that will take you so subgenres.

I know crazy right! Be amazed because your life is about to change! Ever in the mood for a tearjerker, some Nicolas Sparks movies, or anything with Robert Pattinson in it. Look no further they have a subgenre for Tearjerkers. All you have to do it type in the Netflix.com/browse/genre/6384. The number code is what triggers the subgenres in the website.

So, let’s say you are in the mood for Zombie Horror Movies, just add the code 75405 into the address bar and you have a slew of zombie movies. Let’s go to the other end of the spectrum Slapstick Comedy, add the code 10256 and you got The Little Rascals, Scooby-Doo, White Chicks and so much more.

We even have comedies for specific majors.

Criminal Justice

• Crime Documentaries: 9875
• Crime Dramas: 6889
• Crime Thrillers: 10499 
• Crime TV Shows: 26146

Foreign Language

• Foreign Comedies: 4426 
• Foreign Documentaries: 5161 
• Foreign Dramas: 2150 
• Indian Movies: 10463 
• Irish Movies: 58750 
• Italian Movies: 8221 
• Japanese Movies: 10398 
• German Movies: 58886 
• Greek Movies: 61115 
• French Movies: 58807

Political Science

• Political Comedies: 2700 
• Political Documentaries: 7018 
• Political Dramas: 6616 
• Political Thrillers: 10504

Environmental, Geographical and Geological Sciences

• Science & Nature Documentaries: 2595 
• Science & Nature TV: 52780

Theatre

• Showbiz Dramas: 5012
• Showbiz Musicals: 13573

There are so many different categories to choose from. This will definitely help us stay out of a show hole and maybe even learn more about our majors and some avenues we can discover once we graduate.

Here is the list of codes so you can find your one subgenre!

— Samantha Gross, senior telecommunications major #HuskyUnleashed

Back to the good ol' routine

It has been a quick summer. Summer full of work, travel, friends and family, but unfortunately not enough time spent working out. Time to kick this butt back into gear. Back to school; senior year full of homework, group projects, work, meetings, going out…

Oh, and did I mention the gym? Back to the good old stomping grounds. The place to relieve all anxiety and cleanse from the night out before.

Some people think relaxing is being at home, in bed watching Netflix. But instead, I find that the sound of crashing weights and moving treadmills, along with the sweet smell of sweaty success really makes me feel good.

It’s time to get back to the routine of working out and eating healthy. My routine has always wrapped around school, and now that I’m in college it’s easier to get back into the flow of things.

Because let’s be honest, last semester didn’t give me enough time to work on the “beach bod” and this summer didn’t help me keep it. So now it comes down to making sure I get to class, get homework done, and get to the gym.

My routine usually starts off a little gentle so I can ease into the semester. I like to start off from scratch when I haven’t been working out for a while. It makes it a little bit easier to track my progress. I start with lower weights but I do up to 20 to 30 reps. I also prefer to switch days with circuits of two to four workouts in each. I think circuits make a workout more fun because it’s always changing.

So, knowing that I have to walk to class each day, I think I’ll decide to do leg day in the latter part of the week. I love to use Pinterest ideas, and I usually ask fellow lifting buffs to give me advice on moves. Then I progress to heavier weight when I am comfortable.

I’ll start my first week of senior year with:

• Monday - cardio and glutes
• Tuesday - back and shoulders
• Wednesday - cardio and abs
• Thursday - arms and chest
• Friday - squats and overall endurance
• Saturday - fundamentals and lifting movements
• Sunday - rest

Along with a good workout plan to go along with my class schedule, I usually try to plan out my meals as well. It’s about eating well, not eating a little. Especially when it's about toning instead of lose weight. So each morning must have breakfast to get the brain going. I usually add in a good “big man stretch” to wake up before that 8 a.m. I always try to remember a water bottle as well. Staying hydrated has helped with stress, headaches, the 2 o’clock sleepiness, and gets you ready for the gym.

Overall, the first week back to college is fun to reconnect with everyone before the workload grows. It’s so important to keep your head on straight, stick to your priorities and get moving. It's great to walk to class, take lunch breaks on the quad, and after homework take a stroll downtown. While returning to the routine remember to keep your emotions steady and thoughts in order, the rest of your health will follow for the weeks to come.

Rep On

— Lydia Jenkins, senior mass communications major #HuskyLife #HuskyFit

Warming up to Husky Life

The winter season could put a real chill on some outdoor plans. You never know what to expect and if it’s warm enough to do some activities outside. But there is always one thing you can count on, and its Netflix.

Netflix is one of the most addicting websites a college student can go on.

Let's be honest we all have gone through a Netflix binge at least once a semester. Watching eight hours of Netflix in a row is something I know I look forward to.

The hard part is that once you get connected to a TV show you are bound to finish it in a week.
Six seasons. More like four days.

It’s a real sickness we get from watching Netflix.

Winding down and relaxing?

College life can be very stressful but coming to a stop in the on going day to take a breather and catch up on Breaking Bad, Mad Men, Lost, or Gossip Girl, can give the college student exactly what they need to break away from life for a little.

For me, my ultimate favorite show is Gossip Girl. As a Jersey girl who lives right by New York City I was able to really connect and envy the characters within the show.

I always wanted to live on the Upper East Side and this show took me right into that life style. Living in big fancy apartments, and going shopping everyday is only a girls dream.

But this show has so much more than material aspects. Every episode dives deeper and deeper into the character lives and with large amounts of money comes dirty secrets and betrayal. As the audience, we know the secrets and just want to scream at the characters to tell them what’s going on, but in the end we are seeing out of the eyes of the Gossip Girl. And we can’t wait to hear, “XOXO Gossip Girl."

As for the guys or girls who aren’t into the high society life style, another great option is Prison Break. My boyfriend and all of his roommates are obsessed with this show. This show has just enough action, drama and romance in it to make both sexes happy.

I occasionally watch it with him, because it’s a great show for us both to enjoy. Michael and Lincoln are thrown into prison for a crime they were framed for, but by trying to escape they are causing more kayos, and with kayos causes drama and suspense. We just hope that one day they will live a free life.

The winter weather gives us that perfect excuse to lie in bed all day Saturday and watch our favorite shows or movies. Its endless fun and excitement in the warm humble abode of your room.

Its nothing to be ashamed of, we all partake in this satisfying binge. As for me, my next series will be Friends. I have seen almost all of the episodes from reruns, but finally I will be able to watch it in order.

Surviving the Semester Freeze

• Easy to make, warm recipes | Dorm-friendly recipes
• Easy to handle, crafty DIY projects
• Quick and simple indoor workouts
• Books to read, chosen by fellow Huskies

— Samantha Gross, sophomore telecommunications major #HuskyUnleashed