Sophomore Connor 

I am a sophomore Health and Exercise Science student from Pennsylvania. Coming to Colorado State was one of the best decisions I've ever made, and I am enjoy every aspect of college, ups and downs.

I'm still very pleased with where I am in my life at CSU in my second year. Things are getting a little busy, as they always do right before winter break. Last year around this time, I really wanted to go home to Philly to see all my friends and family for fall break, but this year I decided to stay in Colorado with my roommates (my best friends) and going up to the mountains all break. This is mostly because I don't feel like paying $300-400 for fall break, and then pay another $300-400 bucks 2 weeks later for winter break. I know a lot of people don't like how close the breaks are together. 

Academically, it would appear that all my grades are right on the borderline between A and B. This is how it always seems to work out towards the end of the semester. Meaning, I really have to be on my game in the 4th quarter of the semester, which is fine, just a little stressful. The break helps with the workload, though. I just have to spend more time in the library and less time in the gym. As we've been progressing through the holidays, starting with Halloween a couple weeks ago, my house has been getting kind of cold, but we're all a little hesitant to turn up the thermostat because that means the gas bill will go up a lot, and I think we'd all rather just deal with it. That's one of the major differences between living in the halls and living in a house. Every comfort that you gain in a house, comes out of your pocket: longer showers, more heat, more light, and more food all cost more money. Socially I've been meeting a lot of new people because of the fraternity I'm joining. It's hard finding time for all the friends I made last year, but it makes it easier to weed out the real friends from just the acquaintances.

I'm starting to play Intramural sports like dodgeball and basketball at the gym. It's a good way to stay active and competitive now that I'm not playing organized sports. I'm also planning on making a lot of trips up to the mountains this winter to snowboard, so I have to put time aside for that. On a scale of 1-10, I'd have to rate my second year experience right now an 8. Maybe it’s just because I'm writing this right after fall break but I feel good, a little stressed with all these grades coming down to the wire, but at least I had a chance to relax this past week.