New Friends and A Grand Opening!

To start this off, sorry for the poor grammar in Wednesday's blog title. Someone pointed out that I used "Apart" instead of "A Part." I'm working on it! Anyway, when I first started applying to be an RA, I really just wanted to get free room and board. I have to be honest about that. The further I got into the process, the more I realized it was actually perfect for me and a great way to better myself. For a little while now, I’ve started to appreciate alone time and hanging out in smaller groups a lot more. Big groups and lots of acquaintances don’t do much for me. When I got to school, I had the plan to make a few friends, form a tight group, and stick it out until the end of my time here. It started out great. I made some really solid friends, and it was going well. But for some reason, I still struggled a lot with missing my hometown friends. I started wishing I had more friends down here. The RA process forced me to put myself out there and be a part of so many more group activities. It went from being all about the room and board to mainly being about meeting new people. When I moved in on Sunday, I was super nervous about making friends. I had known some of the people on our staff, but not well enough to consider myself friends with them. I was worried I’d have nothing in common with anyone and that nobody would like me. I actually worry about that a lot. Now that it’s Friday, I am so happy with the progress I’ve made this week. I’ve met so many people that I can see myself getting along with really well. Everyone has been so welcoming and helpful. I needed help decorating my floor and making bulletin boards, and I had three friends hang out with me until three in the morning. I never would have gotten everything done in time without their help and motivational support. Shoutout to Jessie, Sharmi, and Austin! My non-RA friends don’t move in for another week, which I’m excited about. Our whole building’s staff went to Pier 25 for mini golf yesterday as a team-building activity. Although I hate mini golf, it was a ton of fun. It was really hot and humid, which left me exhausted, but I had a great time with everyone. Our residents move in tomorrow, which makes me a little nervous. After all this training, I’m still a bit scared. I don’t know if I’ve learned enough to deal with emergencies yet. I’m excited to get the year started, but I’m also scared. I still have another week of training, so hopefully that will help me out more. I have to be up at seven tomorrow morning to start my shift. I’ll spend a few hours downstairs handing out keys, IDs, and giving directions. Then I’ll get some time on my floor to welcome everyone. I have that tomorrow and Sunday. On Sunday, we have to hold floor meetings, which will be my first full interaction with everyone. Hopefully, they like my Ben & Jerry’s-themed floor! On Monday, we have a building-wide meeting. Every resident will be in one auditorium, and I’ll have to introduce myself. That’s scary too! I think everything will be fine, but I’m nervous. I’m going to try and get a good night’s sleep for the first time in a few days. I’ll write about how everything went on Monday. Happy Friday, everyone! Have a great weekend!