Arki in a nutshell

Whenever somebody asks me about my college life-- particularly, about being a student of UP Arki, I always reply with a quick and easy 'no sleep.' Truthfully, however, it's a lot more complicated than that. I find it quite hard to explain what being an Architecture student is like to other people. It's a tough course created for the strong-willed and sleep-deprived, that's for sure, but nowadays you can say that about most courses. I should probably restructure my original sentence into: I find it hard to point out the unique horrors that come with being an Arki student to others.

Mentally (or emotionally?), it's an uphill battle. Imagine sitting in front of a table, drawing for 10 straight hours, and this is by no means an exaggeration. You will find yourself exhausted, dirty, and generally in a bad state. In fact, you kind of have to put your health on hold, pray you won't get sick, and drink a lot of supplements to get by.

Grades, on the other hand, are... tricky (unless you're outstanding at everything... tsh). I say this because Architecture is a broad field that requires skill in different areas. To get stellar grades, you have to be good at drafting, drawing (as in freehand), designing, coloring, explaining (as in, talking in front of people in presentations), and making models. You also have to be good at math and have a general knowledge of the sciences. When (or if) you reach the upper years, you'll need to be good at using those computer programs, as well.

Some people who can render/draft/draw amazingly well find difficulty in designing. Others who can think of great designs off the bat have a hard time making others understand or appreciate them because of their inability to draw. Also, it's not always only about designing and drawing-- there's also the academic side of the course which is paperwork, paperwork, paperwork. In Arki, I've met people who are crazy good at one thing but fumble in another thing.

My own grades seemed to me, to be like a roller-coaster ride. I started out really low, and slowly had to work my way towards creating quality works worthy of high grades. However, even when I was already somewhat up there, my grades were still pretty inconsistent. I was never always okay in that aspect. I had really high highs and low lows. Like that time I wasn't able to finish during an esquisse and probably failed.

Given everything I've said, however, I'm still happy that I chose this course. Nothing can compare to the high you feel when that eureka moment finally strikes, and the designing process becomes smooth and easy. Or when you finally complete a plate (after that horrible, sleepless 3-day trial) and hand it in, feeling proud of your progress.

I hope this makes Arki a bit more clear to people. I'm sure there's a lot of other things to talk about, but this'll do for today.

2.5 Months in College

And yup, it's pretty tough. Commuting, getting to class on time, and all of the 'adult' things you have to do in between. My grades are pretty low, too. Ugh. Screw those drawing and drafting classes. To heck with them!

I suppose my course is pretty hectic and stressful. I guess choosing this course and university meant having to step out of my comfort zone and unlearn a buckload of things. I guess it meant not being the best (or even second best) in most subjects.

That being said, I AM learning... in my own little way. I'm learning to be independent and... yeah, my brain's pretty whack right now. I don't even know how to properly compose this post anymore. So I guess I'll end it there.

I love my course, but it's very demanding.

Also, I've decided to stop working hard for my own glory. I don't feel like explaining anything tonight (too sleepy... sigh), so that's it for now.

Adjustment

Today I spent the entire day drafting. The professor wasn't around, but we were still required to come to class and do some activities. Of course, because we were already informed of the activity for today, I could have skipped school and done it at home. But y'know... I'm a good girl. Well, I try my very best to be. Anyway, at the 3 pm mark, my hands were already shaking and I couldn't even write my O's well. I suppose it was my fault since I skipped lunch just because. I had to rely on Paramore songs and willpower to keep myself going. Sitting and drawing all day doesn't seem too hard, but it was pretty grueling for me, or anyone else who isn't that good at it and had to work continuously all day. I survived, though, and so life goes on.

The Architecture organizations have started to become quite aggressive in trying to get us to go to their orientations and sign up as members. You can't go wrong with free food, but the orgs are getting slightly annoying. I don't really know if I'd want to join any of them this year/sem; if I do, I probably won't be very active.

I'm starting to shift into that place (for lack of a better term) wherein I really like my daily routine and course. The creativity process is hard and the sleep is meager, but it's fun. =) Peeps are nice, and it seems like our college has its own little thing going on, since we are so far away from the UP social sphere (as I would like to call it).

I'm still adjusting, but I feel like I'm getting better at this college thing. Hurrah!

First legit day of classes

And I say it's my first legitimate day of class because it's the first time I really got to sit through a subject (or subjects) here in the UPD and listen to the teacher. Classes officially started last Thursday, but most of my professors were absent, and the ones who weren't absent were unfortunately unable to share their wit and knowledge with me because I accidentally cut a few classes (a very interesting Freshie story that shall be told on another day).

My Arch subjects today were quite fun and interesting. I had the same prof for Arch 1 and 2, and he basically just oriented us on the subjects. He was engaging and relatable, so I didn't find the classes too boring. Moreover, he dismissed us early in the afternoon and I was able to catch up on sleep. Yippee!

An interesting activity he let us do was to sketch a copy of Manuel Quezon's face from the P20 bill, and then flip it backwards and draw the inverted Manuel Quezon, which I found tricky. My drawings were so-so; I wasn't struggling as badly as some people were, but I was clearly not an prodigy, either. Oh well, I'm excited about getting better at sketching and drawing, anyway.

It hit me a while ago, as I was watching the teacher show us the proper way to sharpen a pencil with a cutter, that there are so many random and seemingly insignificant things in life you never know will come in handy someday. Take for example, when I was younger, I stayed at my mother's old home during the summer and my grandparents never thought of buying me a sharpener. End result: I learned how to sharpen pencils with a cutter at a pretty young age. The things I learned at the calligraphy classes I used to take in my old school are also going to be advantageous, now that I think about it. And the sweetest serendipity of all- the person whose house I stayed in when I went to *insert Country here* was one of the primary engineers behind *insert internationally famous structure here*. Apparently, my current professor was part of the Architectural team that designed the said structure. I love how all of these little and seemingly insignificant things come together and fit nicely into one bundle now that I need a LOT of life skills.

Overall, I enjoyed listening to the prof and look forward to creating more awesome and artistic things in the future.

Oh, and today was the first time I didn't get lost within the campus, too! Horay for a day of firsts!

First week in college.

I’m lying in bed, listening to a classical playlist, and as I’m typing this I know that I have to sleep before 12:00 am because I don’t have an excuse to sleep any later and my classes start early tomorrow. As I’m typing this, I tell myself that I mustn't keep it sad or nostalgic or any of that stuff because that isn't what this blog is about. And right now, I feel like I’m juggling between a conversational mood and well… how I write when I don’t really feel too happy but not too sad, either.

But wow, college is hard. Getting around UP is not as easy as I thought it would be. Somehow, it feels like a new world, and one I’m still finding my way in. Living so far away from home does make me feel more mature, but it also highlights how young and childish I had been and am at this very moment.

Of course, this is probably just a huge adjustment period for me. It, too, will pass and I’ll be laughing and holding my own in this enormous place someday.

Nevertheless, now I sort of understand why most college people and those above them view High Schoolers as inexperienced children; why most of my friends became less carefree when they went to college. It really is a different world out there.

PS. First post! Yay! I'll try to keep my next posts more informal and conversational than this.