2015 was a pretty big year for our university I’d say, with the students taking action and pioneering the change we wanted to see come about, some to no immediate success (with work still going on!) and some to the change we wanted to see! Yay us!

In honor of winter break and the end of 2015, here are the top things I get asked or told the most often while I’m home, usually from my family & friends. Some of which may only be related to others who attend schools in colder climates (with less sun) than their warm, sunny hometowns.

1. “Wow, you’re so pale! Don’t you get any sun in Washington?” And yes we do, but it is cloudy and overcast most of the time especially heading into winter, I can’t help that there’s no Vitamin D for my skin to soak up!

2. “So how’s the rain in Washington?” In my opinion we didn’t recieve that much rain in the fall and I’m not sure why or what (global warming?) but it was a pretty pleassant overcast semester; it doesn’t ALWAYS rain in Washington! While California is\was facing an epic drought, Washington was as well that the normal abundance of rain has receded heavily.

3. “Oh you’re a bio major? Are you planning to be a doctor and cure cancer?” Uh no, there are multiple venues for being a biology major and while being a doctor is stereotyped as I’m asian and its what the general public thinks, that’s not what I want to nor plan to do; there are so many other exciting fields that biology could lead to for example: teaching, research, medical technology, bioethics, ecology, conservation, genetic counseling, hospital work, etc.

4. “What are your plans after college?” I don’t know! Granted I only have a year and a half left of undergrad but as I’m not following some pre-set track (aka doctor so medical school), my options are boundless and I’m looking into what I would enjoy doing but I don’t have the answer to life yet, don’t stress me out more about it!

5. “How was your semester?” Everyone gets this and to me its one of those questions where they kinda don’t care what your answer is they’re just making conversation. My semester was rough lol and very busy but I never want to go into that especially if it’s with a distant family member or friend and all I want to do is put the successes and lows of the semester behind me and look to the future.

6. (after being on break for awhile and just lounging at home) “You should get outside more!” I honestly take it for granted that I live in Hawaii while for many the can only visit and want to take in everything our beautiful islands have to offer. And while I love all the activities I can do in Hawaii,  I also just love having time to do nothing and be in my house.

7. “What was your first stop when you came home?” This for me is always a difficult choice, what do I want to eat (especially after a six hour flight) most?!? I never know and usually end up going home to a home-cooked meal because that’s few and in between at school and relaxing with my family because that’s one of the best parts of break always.

happy holidays!

Over Thanksgiving Break, I spent two days and one night in Victoria, British Columbia roaming the streets with a loaded pack and a camera; the embodiment of the American tourist (minus the visor and fanny pack). I had a great time, and talked a lot about my time there in my last post. However, in that post I did not discuss the time I spent in the out-of-doors, just outside of Victoria proper, in a space that the locals (most notably: the Irish man behind the counter at the hostel) call ‘Mount Doug’.

The alternative route up Mount Doug

On my second day in Canada, I knew I needed to do something, ANYTHING, in the outdoors. I loved the city itself, but I could see the mountains in the distance, the Strait, the trees… I had to get out.

So I did.

I took a couple city buses out to Mount Douglas Park in the hopes that I could breathe some fresh air and climb a few hundred feet before I had to get back for my ferry. From the parking lot, I started off on a steeper, more direct path up the mountainside (which was more like a hillside considering Mount Doug is under 1,000 feet in elevation). I was up in no time, and was greeted by sweeping views of residential areas, the Strait, some islands out to the east, and a rather abrasive wind coming up the south side of the peak.

In case you wondered what my feet look like

I spent around half an hour on the peak snapping pictures and taking in the view. It’s clearly a very popular spot considering that I saw something like 30 people there from the time I got up top to the time I left. It makes sense seeing as how the park is so close to downtown, and the hike up is incredibly simple. There’s even a road that travels up Mount Doug from the parking lot to the peak so cars can make the journey.

I eventually descended down to my bus stop via the road and made my way back to downtown from there. Overall, Mount Doug was a great way for me to get away from all the people in downtown Victoria for a few hours, and to get a few cool pictures. After checking it out, I can see why it’s a favorite of the locals. I would relate Mount Doug to Point Defiance Park in Tacoma based on its size, distance from downtown, and what it offers to visitors.

The western view from the peak

In short, if you go to British Columbia for the outdoors, don’t go to Mount Doug. It is by no means a challenge, or all that exciting. But, if you go to Victoria to check out the city, go to Mount Doug to get a tiny taste of that fresh air that lives above building level. It’s always nice to regain perspective after a solid day of sidewalking.

Happy trails,

Colton Born

Today I received an email from PrintGreen saying I had $9.90 credit on my account and to head to a link to add more credit. I was like, what?!?! But what that actually means is that I had approximately 90 sheets I could print before I would be asked to pay. Print Green is the system that our university uses with each individual’s myPugetSound account to track how much documents and sheets of paper are being printed as everyone has a limit so as to conserve paper and track student usage to keep printers runnign smoothly and in stock all semester-long. Our technology services as got a pretty sweet set-up with printers in every dorm and computer labs with printers in Thompson, Wyatt, and the Piano Lounge in Wheelock Student Center. All these printers are hooked onto our myPugetSound account that from our own computer if we logged onto vDesk we could access all Microsoft Office, other programs and printing to campus printers from the comfort of our computer in a Thompson conference room, cubbie on the third floor of the library or our dorm room!

Well, we’re here. At the end of the semester. Most of our exams have come and gone*; memories were had, friends were made, and we are slowly coming to the process of goodbyes, both for those of us who aren’t coming back next semester and for those who have had all of their finals and returned back to their homes to prepare for another semester of learning.
I personally accomplished a lot of things; I will use this space to reflect on them. Seeing as I am leaving for Prague in a little more than a month now, I thought I should consider what I have done and what I should do better next time around. Here goes!

Continue reading →