College Education

I hope my college education is worth it. I've always been told to go, and it's been expected of me to go to college. My parents always said that you go to college to have a good future; a college diploma allows you to get a better job and a bigger salary. So, like a good girl, I go to college. I get there, and I have to take out loans to pay (thankfully I had HOPE to help pay), I change my major and my mind a few times, I pull all-nighters to finish projects, I study hard, and I get to my last semester of college. Now what? Some professors help us out by telling us about job postings, but applying for 100 jobs and only hearing from 2 can be quite demoralizing. 

Didn't my parents tell me that having a college diploma was like having a golden ticket to Willie Wonka's Factory?! What did you say? A Bachelor's degree is no longer good enough anymore, and I have to have a Master's degree now? Oh, goody.

I love college. It's been the best experience of my life, and I'm not ready to leave yet. I figured that while I am enjoying college, I might as well stay until I can't stand it anymore, and then, maybe, I might have a high enough degree to resemble a "golden ticket". I am about to graduate this semester with a BS in Interior Design, and I want to go to graduate school, but I want to go back to engineering for my Master's degree. Unfortunately, the master's program won't take me unless I have a BS in engineering or a related science field, so I'm getting my second BS in Mechanical Engineering, which will add another 2.5 years onto my schooling before I can go to graduate school. I don't think I'll mind spending another couple years doing math and engineering because I'm tired of being creative anyways; it's time for a new path.

Now, that I think about it, I might just be a professional student. There's so much that I want to do in life, and I feel like I have to have a degree to do any of it. Is that me wanting to be excellent at what I do, or is that society saying that you are nothing without a degree? 

Well, at the moment, all I have to show for 4 years of a college education is over $20k in debt, no job, and more schooling that will put me further in debt and postpone my career search. This college education had better be worth it.

Jazz Club Sketch

This is a preliminary sketch for part of my jazz club. It's in a corner of the club with a wooden stage. The seats around the front of the stage are lower than normal, but not so low it's uncomfortable to get out of (I'll put tables in front of them). The seats will move away so you can get under the stage. There will be normal height tables behind this lounge area (you can see on the right side of the sketch), and there will be high tops behind them. The bar is located directly across from the stage on the other side of the club.

Let me know what you think! This is all in theory at the moment, so it's all very adaptable. Let me know if you think I should change something, add something, or if you have an idea you'd like to see here that you've seen elsewhere!

Senior Project Ideas

I'm working on a senior project right now, and my main focus is a jazz club. I'm so excited because I've wanted to do one for a long time, and it's going to look amazing when I am done. Where are some of your favorite places to go? Do you go to a club, poetry corner, or a coffee house? Why do you keep going back? I need some feedback about why one likes a space (comfy seating, good lighting, good acoustics, delicious food, beautifully designed interior, etc.)

I'll post some sketches soon of what I was thinking for portions of the jazz club. I have an idea of the bar I want to design, but I'm sure it will change drastically before I'm done. In the meantime, the picture to the right is the kind of atmosphere I want it to exhibit:

This is Jacques Cousteau the Sock Monkey. He travels with me when I go on trips and does some pretty creative things.

This is his snowman swimming from sharks he made out of sand at the beach last Christmas.

And here he is taking an art painting class.

Lesson: Anyone can be creative.

Quote:

"There is no doubt that creativity is the most important human resource of all. Without creativity, there would be no progress, and we would be forever repeating the same patterns."
 - Edward de Bono

Taking Stock

An attribute I value highly in myself is creativity. My upbringing has allowed me to be able to use my imagination and express myself freely stimulating my right-brain, but children these days seem to be missing out on such wonders. Yes, technology can be used as another medium to express creativity as opposed to sidewalk chalk and finger paint, but children should be exposed to all sorts of mediums with which to express their creativity. I even read a couple years ago that schools cutting budget expenses cut the music and art programs first! Children don't just need to have book knowledge and be able to regurgitate memorized information; they need to explore their creative side as well to be a well-rounded person.

I was never one to keep up with a diary or journal as a teenager, but I did keep a small journal with blank, unlined pages that I used to write down my stream of consciousnesses. It has sketches, pictures, poems, rants, and just about everything that popped into my head. It was a good outlet for me, and I kept it for years. Now, I refer back to it for inspiration for some of my designs. See? Being creative as a child can be beneficial in one's adult life.

I understand people who say, "I can't draw!" or "I don't have a creative bone in my body!" because I'm sure it's true for some people, but creativity is so much more than just art. Music, for one, can be very creative whether it's playing an instrument, composing, or singing. Even designing websites, creating html, writing, and graffiti can be seen as inventive. 

Creativity should be encouraged, not cut out of school budgets or put on a lower pedestal because it isn't on the SAT. Everyone should exercise their right brain occasionally; one might be pleasantly surprised at the outcome.