I hate lists. I’m totally kidding I love them! The United States was literally built on a giant list. Look at the Declaration of Independence. It’s a list of things every person should have, followed by a list of reasons why the King sucks, then a list of things the colonists are going to do instead of listening to the King, and lastly a list of people who signed it.
Lists are friggin awesome.
For most of you, this is probably a list full of things you’ve heard. But you learn by hearing things over and over again right? I could title this post “A list of things I’ve learned that make me super wise, while assuming you guys are dumb and don’t already know this blatantly obvious stuff.”
Or maybe “A list of things I do that make me perfect and that everyone else should also do” would be more fitting.
Perhaps “List that every college kid feels obliged to write at some point or another.”
Either way, the entries on this quick list are the reasons why I’m happy in life. I learned a lot of them when I became a real adult and moved across the country to go to college, while others I learned watching my classmates and realizing what qualities people do and don’t like in a person. So read, giggle, and learn.
You need to clean your damn house.
God created the 7th day for sleeping, eating junk food, and cleaning the house. Especially the bathroom. You need to find a good, bleach-based cleaner to spray down the bathroom, and do it often, because bleach kills the flu and ebola. If your roommate is gross, spraying bleach on them will probably fix that too. Mold isn’t a joke. Besides, when people visit your house, you shouldn’t have to scramble to put stuff away.
Be scared of finances.
Being scared of paying bills is what keeps me financially stable and ahead of the game. The “I need to pay rent next July, so I can’t buy this $1 candy bar” mentality is kind of absurd and irrational, but it’s what keeps you from over-drafting your bank account in the long run. It’s good to be scared of running out of money. Plus, when you keep track of your funds, you know when you can go spend 2 month’s rent worth of money on a tattoo. You know, gotta treat yo self.
TV is a giant waste of cash.
Holy hell I am so much better off without a TV. Literally everything you want can be found online. Check the weather and news on websites that are actually decent and reliable instead of watching FOX News or CNN or something that is just going to scare you and take your money. Stream sports online for free through ESPN and the like. Seriously. I can’t believe people spend money on cable bills.
Cook your own food.
I guess everything comes down to money when you think about. But still, cooking is a good skill to have. It saves money and people of the opposite gender love that kind of stuff. You can literally take some green beans out of a bag, steam them for three minutes, serve it to your guest, and convince them that you are some sort of cooking god. It’s mindblowing, and healthy. Again, if you’re good with finances, you’ll have enough money saved up to go to Cane’s for some chicken fingers every now and then.
Mind your own business.
Your neighbors might be loud, but they aren’t going to hurt you. However, if you call the cops on them or start dating their side chick, they’re going to be more inclined to egg your house, steal your cat, or terrorize you for the rest of your life. Just chill out, be nice, and mind your own business.
Don’t be a tool.
This kind of goes along with minding your own business. It’s hard to meet new people, especially when you move across the country to a place you’ve never been. You have to make a good impression on people for them to notice you in a big city, and being a tool isn’t going to help. Don’t try to impress anyone, because I guarantee it will just turn everyone off. It’s a big cliché, and I seriously hate clichés, but they exist for a reason. Be yourself. Unless you’re a douchebag, cause then you should be someone else.
Find a quiet place.
Like I said: sometimes your neighbors are going to be loud. Sometimes you might hear some yelling, or thunder, or sirens, or something you don’t like. Find yourself a sanctuary: a place you can go to feel secure. Even if it means locking yourself in your bathroom and turning on the fan. Go to your happy place, put in some headphones, and relax. You’ll be okay.
“Sanctuary… is a word which here means a small, safe place in a troubling world. Like an oasis in a vast desert or an island in a stormy sea.” – Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events
You need to ask questions in class.
If people judge you for asking too many questions in class, then they’re most likely doing nothing important in life other than wasting their parents’ money at college. You will lose nothing by asking questions in class, but you will gain a lot. Participation points, better test scores, a good GPA, letters of recommendation, a job, etc. Seriously, the list goes on and on. Ask questions.
Read your textbooks.
You can most likely get away with not reading the textbook if you go to every class and take good notes. But if you read the textbook and do your homework, you can probably get away with sleeping in class or never even going. Don’t be disrespectful of your teachers when doing this, but time is money in college. If you read the textbook, you can afford to skip a class when you need to work on another project. Besides, you probably already spent absurd amounts of money on the books. May as well get to reading.
Set a routine, not a schedule.
Every morning, I wake up, eat breakfast, read my Bible, workout, and then go to class. I have my routine, but some days I need to read more of the Bible, or eat more breakfast, or workout for a little longer than usual. Manage your time according to your needs. It’ll keep you on the fast track to happiness.
Find your joy.
Don’t do anything unless it makes you happy. Obviously you have to do some things you might not like now (going to class, paying bills, etc.), but doing those will make you happy in the long run. Life isn’t long enough to waste time stressing or doing things to make other people happy.
The beauty of life is that everyone is different, but I wish more people shared a similar amount of happiness. Even when I was depressed I was able to find the little things to make me happy. Find out what those are for you, and if sometimes life gets too much to handle, take a deep breath and take each day one at a time. Another good solution to relieve stress would be to write a list. I’m telling you. God put lists on this Earth to make people happy. That and chicken fingers.
So go out, be happy, and find your joy. I believe in you.
el maruja 