Welcome to the First Blog “Move in Week”
This week, I moved into the HHM apartments at Cal Poly Humboldt, and what a whirlwind it has been! My wonderful parents started driving me up on Saturday, the 17th of August, and we finished driving on the 18th. Also on the 18th, I attended the Academic Research program orientation run by our coordinator, Dr. Amber Gaffney. I got to meet other folks from my cohort, which was really nice, and one of the girls I have become quick friends with, Rebecca, lives just two floors above me. I didn’t make it 24 hours into being in Arcata without winding up in the ER with eye problems. I did try urgent care first, but ran into insurance issues. My eye is doing better, though I will be going to the health center after class tomorrow to get it checked. Thank you to everyone who reached out and gave advice; it definitely helped.
On August 19th, I officially moved into my apartment. I picked up my ID card and got to see the apartment for the first time (if you would like a tour, message me). I met my roommate, Jenny, and she is very sweet. (This became the start of my very busy week!) I spent almost all of the 19th and 20th putting my side of the room together, and getting all settled into the apartment, while also getting to know Jenny and some other people in the building. On August 20th, my parents also started their drive back down to Bakersfield, leaving me to conquer Arcata alone.
On the 21st, I attended the Graduate Students Orientation and got to make more amazing connections with the other students. There are 200 graduate students in this incoming class, and I’ve already made several friends, and we’ve embarked on many adventures together, so buckle up, buttercup, lol. On the 21st, during the orientation, I met my twin Zoe from Bakersfield, and she invited everyone to Richards Goat bar for karaoke that night. We put in our grad studies group chat, along with some other plans. That night, I biked to Melissa’s house, and then we walked to the bar (and got slightly lost, as Google Maps is terrible at navigating Arcata), but once we got there, we met up with Mondo, Ariel, and Mirada, and soon after, Zoe, Elory, Elena, and Alex got there. We all got something to drink (I would recommend the Humboldt cider), and then we went into the karaoke area. (Yes, I did karaoke, shocker, I know). I ended up doing 2 songs, but the best by far was when we ended up getting the whole cohort to do ‘Don’t Stop Believin’, and it was a blast. After we walked back to Melissa, I picked up my bike, and Mondo, Elena, and I biked together till we split off and I got home at about 1 am.
We then got up early the next day, the 22nd, and attended a resource fair on campus, and went to a free thrift pop-up on campus. Rebecca and I attempted to take the shuttle (which is supposed to come every 15 minutes); however, after 45 minutes, we asked two girls going to campus for a ride. Upon arrival on campus, we headed to the resource fair, met up with Melissa, and got to learn about the different organizations and clubs that are on campus. We heard from some sports teams, and then orgs like Project Rebound, an SA/DV alliance, an LGBTIQ center, and more. We picked up some free Humboldt swag and some college essentials, such as Narcan and fentanyl test strips, because you can never be too safe. We then headed to the pop-up thrift thing, but didn’t really find anything that piqued our interest, though Melissa did grab a free towel to use around her house. The three of us walked over to the J to get a late lunch and discuss our Saturday plans of going kayaking with the school. I wasn’t able to try out the new church, as I got in a bike collision, and I am totally okay and didn’t sustain any injury, nor was my bike damaged in any way.
The night of the 22nd, my roommate invited me to go to a bonfire with her friends at the beach, and I agreed, thinking that it would be good to get out of the apartment. It ended up being so much fun, and I got to make another connection with her friend Lily, and hopefully a new study buddy for us. The beach was pretty, and once we got the fire going, we roasted marshmallows and made hot dogs. It was quite a peaceful and chatty night.
I got some bad news on Friday, which has thankfully been resolved, but a huge thank you to Khristina, who definitely talked me off the ledge of panic I was on. Saturday I woke up to good news and a text from Melissa saying she could pick Rebecca and I up and would leave at around 10, it was 9:15. So I quickly got dressed and ate a quick breakfast, and met Rebecca in the lobby. Soon after we found Melissa and headed over to Humboldt Bay. We got to meet the rowing team and get a tour of the boat house, and then we kayaked the bay for about an hour before heading in, and it truly was an amazing experience. I enjoyed my time with the girls and with nature.
Sunday, the 24th, I choose to be lazy/get ready for school day. I woke up and cleaned the apartment and then spent the whole day slowly preparing for classes, which start tomorrow!!!! I’m so excited but also so nervous. I’m thankful that I got the opportunity to make connections inside and outside of my program. I am also so grateful for my roommate, she is truly the sweetest, and the other two girls in our apartment have yet to move in so we have the place to ourselves, which is nice, along with a stunning view of Arcata. I also spent the past three days applying to jobs, and I have applied to about 22, and today my roommate said she’ll try to help me get a job at the J dining hall, because she has some connections there.
If you made it this far, thank you, and I love you! This was a busy and fun week. We continue to navigate some issues. If I gave you a mailing address, please message me as there have been some issues with it, and I want to make sure everyone has the correct. Also, this week, hopefully, we will be getting a functioning laundry room, fire alarms, and evacuation plans on the back of the bedroom doors. They definitely weren’t ready for people to move into this building but it is what it is, and it is in God’s hands.
I will hopefully be making these weekly; some probably won’t be as long, lol. Classes start tomorrow and I have classes Monday through Thursday.
Thank you, I love you all. Goodnight. <3