Jennifer's Blog

College: Coffee and Late Night Adventures

College is a time where people try new things: partying, new sports, new skills. One of my favorite things to try in college has been new coffee shops. Some of my favorite places around campus include Stella's and Kaladis Brothers Coffee. Last week, I was sitting in my room on a Friday night with nowhere to go and nothing to do. I decided to call one of my close friends and a fellow RA, Santiago, to go exploring. 

After a bit of Googling, we decided to head to the Bardo Coffee House. We missed it at first, but eventually got to the quaint little shop located between many other stores. The nice thing about living in the city is that many coffee shops are open until 1 or 2am in the morning. 

After getting delicious mochas and finding a table, we decided to dig into the large stack of board game they had laying out. 

After beating Santiago in chess, checkers, and Chinese checkers, we decided to call it a night. 

Often, college seems like a place for going out, clubbing, and hitting up all the best parties. It's made out to be a constantly fast-paced, action-filled, period in life. However, sometimes the best experiences can come from heartfelt conversations with amazing friends over delicious coffee at 1am in the morning. 

Game-Time!

This weekend, indie game developers and game development students gathered together at the School of Engineering and Computer Science for DU Arcade, an event put on by the DU Computer Science Club. 

During the event, the club invited many game developers to showcase their games to the public for free. The games ranged from 2d platformers to augmented reality to multiplayer to mobile to virtual reality. Some were already very professional and polished and others were a bit less done. 

Here, we have my friend Colin playing as a potato in VR trying to collect coins through a platformer game: 

The event was lots of fun and a good way to network and meet other game developers. It's also very impressive to see some of the student work that has been produced from our institution. I got to play a couple games created from graduate students who have been my classmates and my teaching assistants and see how they have progressed from their undergraduate days. 

If you're interested in studying game development at DU, check out the B.S. here and the B.A. here! 

USUDC 17

Last weekend, over 400 debaters showed up at the University of Denver to argue about politics, race, religion, morality, and more. Each year, the United States Universities Debating Championships are held at a different collegiate institution. This year, DU and Regis were selected to host nationals, a great honor in the debate world. 

Schools that participated included everywhere from the end of the west coast to the edge of the east. There were teams from the University of Hawaii, the University of Alaska, the University of Rochester, and the US Air Force Academy. There were Ivy League schools such as Harvard, Yale, and Cornell. Over 400 brilliant debaters and over 250 experienced judges and coaches. Our campus was buzzing with intellectual rhetoric for 3 days. 

Debaters getting ready for rounds:

DU selected our top teams to compete and judge. While none of our teams ended up making it to finals, everyone did well in general. Our freshmen teams were all very close to making novice finals and are set up for a great season next year. Our senior teams ended strong - for many, this will be their last debate tournament ever. 

Anxiously waiting for topic release:

The topics that were debated ranged from "This House Regrets the shaming or exclusion of members of social movements who are deemed not to meet standards of ideological purity" to "This House Believes That journalists who cover subjects in distress have a moral obligation to provide reasonable assistance to those who need help." There were rounds about international relations, morals, love, and more. 

Our Snapchat geo-filter (designed by yours truly): 

For this tournament, I got to judge. I watched many amazing rounds and a couple of not-so-amazing rounds. It was a wonderful experience, and will be remembered as my last tournament ever. I even got selected for judging a semi-finals round out of all of the judges! 

After one long weekend, lots of laughs and tears, and lots of goodbyes, my debate career came to a close. Many of my closest friends were made through debate and many of my fondest memories. Being on a speech and debate team for 6 years taught me more about myself and the world than any job or class could have. I developed as a professional communicator, opened my mind to new ideas, and developed myself and my morals. 

The first photo in the collage (top left) was taken my junior year of high school. The last photo in the collage (bottom right) was taken during this tournament, my junior year of college. In between, speech and debate brought me everywhere from Albuquerque to Kansas to California to New York to Oregon to Alaska. Thanks to this activity, I have gotten to travel to places I would never have had the opportunity to otherwise. 

At the end of the day, it's a bittersweet goodbye. I'm ready to move on to the next adventure in life, but will ultimately miss waking up at 5am to catch sunrise flights, sleep on the plane, and give 7-minute speeches upon landing. It was an amazing 6 years, to say the least. To my friends, my coaches, my competition, and the activity as a whole: Thank you. 

New Quarter, New Me

Happy end of week 3 everyone! With the beginning of each quarter comes new classes and new habits, so here's a couple things I've learned so far: 

• Better classes = easier workload. This quarter, I'm taking 4 classes. However, 2 of those are classes that I really enjoy (Life Drawing and Game Programming), so the workload feels significantly lighter than usual. I realized that I should've been doing this ages ago - spacing out required classes and fun electives so that I don't get burned out! I'd definitely recommend it to any new students. 
• Digital drawing takes forever! For my Game Programming project, I am creating a 2d platformer. For this game, I've been hand-drawing elements in Photoshop and then using them in my project. The initial walking character animation took me a solid week. At this pace, it'll probably take me a decade to finish all the elements for this game. However, I'm pretty proud of the work I've gotten done:

• Working out is easy if you enjoy the workout. One of my New Year's resolutions was to start taking martial arts classes to learn a new skill while getting into better shape. At the beginning of this quarter, I tried taking a class at the Denver Shaolin Kung Fu Academy; I was instantly hooked. I've now taken 3 weeks of classes and I feel a little less sore after each class. While it's hard work and sometimes more painful than running on a treadmill, I feel immense gratification and satisfaction after each class. I currently go 3-4 times a week, although I'd like to go more in the future! The class is taught by a shifu who actually trained at the Shaolin Temple when he was younger, but everyone at the school is very humble and kind. When I was trying to go to the gym consistently, it was really difficult to stay motivated and interested. However, taking a class forces me into a routine every week and having friends to exercise with is a great incentive to go! If you're having a hard time sticking to a workout schedule, I recommend trying to find a routine that you actually like rather than one you have to force yourself to do. 
• Colorado is beautiful! Okay... this one wasn't exactly a new revelation. However, I've recently spent a lot of time outside, and I'm incredibly thankful to live somewhere I can easily access such beautiful views. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves:

St Mary's Lake:

Clear Creek Canyon (Near Golden):

• The end is near, it's kind of terrifying, and that's okay. As graduation day looms ahead (June 10th), I can feel myself growing progressively more nervous. After college, I'm hoping to pursue my dream of becomming a film actress for a while first before settling down for a "normal" job. Everyone around me is getting internships, finding jobs, and getting ready to move out. While I will be relocating, my internships will be auditions and casting calls, my jobs will be on film sets, and my nights will be filled with memorizing lines. Making this decision was pretty challenging (I'll make a post about it later), but I think it's a decision that will benefit me in the long run. After a while, I realized that it's very ordinary to feel nervous about graduation, and that almost all students feel it at some point or another. 

Those are the main things I've realized in the last 3 weeks. I'll update you all as more things come up. Happy Week 3!!!

Home Sweet Home

Both of my parents are immigrants from China. While most of my dad’s family lives in the U.S., most of my mom’s family lives in China. Last weekend, my grandmother, grandfather, aunt, uncle, and cousin were in town from Beijing. Logan and I decided to head to my house for a couple days because I see my family from China so little.

Thursday afternoon, we packed up all of our bags and hopped in the car. 5 hours later, we finally got to Taos, New Mexico. I received many warm welcomes from all of my family members and many warm kisses from my dogs. It felt great to be back again, even if it was for a short amount of time.

Over the weekend, we ate a lot of delicious food and had lots of fun. We started off with ice skating, which Logan and I are both not great at. The day after, we went skiing at Taos Ski Valley (my slightly-biased favorite mountain). The weather was amazingly warm. My dad also cooked everything from salmon to Korean BBQ to American-style steaks (perks of your parents owning a restaurant).

We also took obligatory family photos for my grandparents to bring back with them:

At the end of the weekend, we said our goodbyes. It was a bit sad to leave everyone, but I’m visiting China this summer, so we won’t be away for long!

 

 

 

My beautiful hometown mountains: 

DUEMS!

The University of Denver is not widely known as a medical school. While international studies and business degrees are commonly advertised, not that many students study STEM/Healthcare/Pre-Med. However, for those of you interested in going into the medical field, there are many resources on campus to guide your way. One way to get involve early is through DUEMS club. 

The club was recently founded by DU senior Christine Krentz. Christine is graduating this June with a double major in biology and chemistry with a minor in philosophy. Christine is EMT certified and works on the weekends at Granby Ranch as a ski patroller. After graduation she is planning on taking a gap year to work as an EMT prior to attending medical school. Not only is Christine the founder of DUEMS, but she is also a resident assistant in Centennial Towers [like I am!].

DUEMS involves students in healthcare related activities, creating a healthier campus, and training the student body in emergency preparedness by arranging and hosting healthcare events such as CPR, basic First Aid, and EMT courses. The club additionally works to improve the health and welfare of the campus through outreach programs and hosting health related events for the student body, seeking to promote a culture of passion for health. 

The group not only teaches students about emergency medical services (first-aid, CPR, etc), but they also partner with DU Campus Safety to provide fellow students with escorts across campus when they feel uncomfortable walking by themselves. 

The club is fairly new right now, but is constantly growing. If you're interested in becoming a part of DUEMS, check out the link below!

https://www.facebook.com/DUEMSCLUB/?fref=ts

 

 

Monday Sniffles

Although it was warm over the weekend when I was in Washington D.C., I immediately caught a cold upon getting back. Due to a combination of the changes in temperature, inconsistent schedules, and being near others who were sick, I seem to have caught the spring bug. While I desperately try to not get sick during the school-year, it happens. It is inevitable that at some point during college, we will all catch some viruses. 

However, even if you get sick, do not despair! Being sick is not fun, but there are many ways to manage being sick and to avoid getting sick in the first place. Here are some tips:

1. Be careful. When flu season comes around, wash your hands and disinfect your personal items. Be wary of those who are sick around you and stay extra warm. 
2. Eat healthy. While this is a preventative measure, it could potentially save you from getting really sick. Eating a good amount of fruits and vegetables will boost your immune system and prevent you from easily catching spring viruses. 
3. React early. Already feeling a bit down? Immediately take action instead of waiting it out. Take some extra vitamin C tablets and head to the doctor. Over-the-counter medication could help, but if you have the flu or a specific type of virus, going to the doctor's early could save you a lot of trouble in the long run.
4. Talk to your professors. While some professors will be angry that you miss class, others are very understanding. Half the time, you just need to give your professors a heads up that you are skipping class and bring in a doctor's note. It's always better to let them know ahead of time than to apologize afterwards. 
5. Stay ahead. If you're starting to feel down and know that a cold might be coming, make sure to stay on top of your academic work. It can be easy to fall behind, but if you actively seek out classmates for help and make sure you finish all your assignments on time remotely, being missing class becomes much easier. 

Here's to hoping I feel better soon - being sick is such a hassle! 

First Time in D.C.

    All week, it had been warm and sunny in Denver. However, last Thursday, the wind started gusting, the skies turned gray, and the ground turned white. Luckily, I was headed to Washington D.C. for the weekend and was about to escape the cold. On Saturday and Sunday, the DU Debate Team was competing at George Washington University for a debate tournament. 

    We landed on Thursday afternoon and head straight to the hotel. Everyone was tired and jet-lagged, so we fell asleep pretty quickly.

    When I woke up Friday morning, I was refreshed and ready to explore D.C. Before this trip, I've never been to Washington before, so I was very excited to see the monuments and museums. The tournament started on Saturday morning, so we had all day Friday to wander. We started off at the Lincoln memorial:

The memorial itself was significantly larger than I expected. We also saw a multitude of the other memorials including the Korean War Memorial, the Vietnam War Memorial, WWII Memorial, and the MLK Memorial: 

After seeing most of the memorials, we headed to the museums. I wanted to see a couple art museums as well as the aerospace and natural history museum, so I decided to take off on my own. Throughout the afternoon, I saw a wide variety of exhibits:

 

I wanted to stay forever, but since we were there for a debate tournament, competition began the next day. I was judging at this particular tournament, so the stress was low. Because East Coast debaters have a vastly different debating style than West Coast debaters (which DU Debate stylistically matches with), I got to watch a lot of new arguments and new people. 

The arguments varied quite a bit over the day:

At the end of the weekend, one of our teams had made it through to the quarterfinal round before getting knocked out. We ended on a good note though and unwillingly got on the plane to head back. So far, Denver has been snowy and cold, and I miss the Washington sun. Looking back, I had a fantastic experience and will always be thankful for DU Debate for allowing me to travel to new places I would've never been able to go to otherwise! 

 

Find Your Habitat

Habitat: the natural home or environment of an animal, plant, or other organism.

For 3 years, I have been struggling to make DU my habitat. When I came into the University of Denver as a freshman, I was determined to leave after my first year because it was not my dream school. As I developed academically and personally, I ended up staying. I was offered opportunities that I knew I would not be able to find elsewhere.

However, I still struggled to make DU my home. During my college application process my senior year of high school, I envisioned myself at a large school on the east or west coast studying business. I ended up at a small private school in the Midwest studying computer science. Atmospherically, DU was not the “home” I had in mind.

Nevertheless, I was determined. I wholeheartedly involved myself in extracurricular activities like debate and ResLife and pushed myself into leadership roles on campus. Still, I found that while I had a good time, it never quite felt “right”.

Flash-forward to today: It still doesn’t feel quite “right,” but I’ve found ways to make DU my home. I go out to the mountains often, I cook a lot in my suite, I’ve made a lot of friends. I pursue things I’m passionate about and try to stay true to myself. Recently, I’ve pushed myself artistically to improve as an illustrator in hopes that someday, I might want to attempt a certification in 3D animation.

For those of you who are getting ready to decide on colleges right now – don’t panic. You might not get into your top school. Or you might get in, but the circumstances aren’t quite right for you to go. Whatever your decision is, be willing to adapt. Things might not be exactly as you imagined at first; however, you will be happy by challenging yourself to create and find joy.

I guarantee that whatever your choice is, you will learn and grow as a person as a result. No matter where you decide to go, you can find your habitat by pursuing your interests and keeping an open mind.

A Warm Day For a Cold Hike

Last weekend, many of my friends went to Winter Carnival, a February DU tradition. Originally, I was planning on going, but I ended up with a ton of homework on Friday night and decided to skip out. During the event, students can buy discount tickets for skiing and snowboarding as well as enjoy a ton of other DU sponsored activities (i.e. tubing, ice skating, free food, etc). 

After a long day of homework on Saturday, I decided to go hiking on Sunday. I invited my suitemate and her friend, who are both international students from China. They had never been to the mountains in Colorado before, so I figured we would take a short hike up to St. Mary's Glacier for an introduction. Logan, my friend Isaiah, Emma, her friend, and I piled into my Jeep at 8am on Sunday morning and headed up. The sun was in the sky and we were all feeling great! 

When we got to the trailhead an hour later, the sun was still up, but heavy wind had started blowing. We started our journey up the mountain. 

Pretty soon, the two girls with us got fairly winded. The higher we ascended, the colder the weather became. Hiking in the snow also tends to be incredibly tiring because the ground is slippery and difficult to walk in. A mile and a half later, we reached the frozen lake. 

Logan slipping down a hill:

At the end of the day, there was a lot of falling, slipping, pushing, and laughing. We had a wonderful and short hike and even though it was freezing at the top, it was more than worth it. 

My friends are now officially Coloradans!