Hello!

My name is Luke Parsnow and I am a junior at Oswego State. I am a double major in journalism and creative writing and a minor in history with a concentration in American history. I am from Sterling, New York which is only 12 miles from Oswego.

I have been a writer since I could learn how to write. Arguably, I was a writer even before then. My grandmother predicted that I would be a writer when I was three days old, the day I came home from the hospital and the first time she held me. And I have since, not disappointed her. I started writing seriously when I was in second grade. I actually wrote to my teachers and asked them if I could come in early before school started and use the computer to type up my stories since I didn’t have a computer at the time (I live on a dirt road in the woods.) And when my household finally DID get our first computer, the latest and greatest 1989 Windows 3.0 special…in 2003, I didn’t use it for the things all my friends were using it for. While they used it for gaming and things called chat rooms, I used Microsoft Word to write my stories. I wrote my first novel when I was ten and have since completed seven others. When I was 12, I began to learn to play the mandolin and guitar at 14 and soon took my writing to a new form: songwriting. I’ve recorded some of the songs I’ve written and some have been played on the radio out of Kingston, Ontario.

At SUNY Oswego, I wrote for The Oswegonian my first two years of school. This year, I became the Assistant News Editor and have written nearly 50 articles for the paper, along with editing other stories. Besides The Oswegonian, I’ve been published in the newspaper’s semeserly sports magazine, The Play Maker and The Legislative Gazette, a government and politics newspaper out of Albany. One of my creative stories was also published in SUNY Oswego’s student arts magazine, The Great Lake Review.

So now as a student blogger, I will continue to write in another new form. I will be bringing to you students that have made something of themselves at Oswego State and are sure to prosper later on in their life. Oswego is not just a state school on the edge of a lake that dumps a ton of snow on it. Oswego is a gem and a lot of great people are building their futures here. I will seek out them and tell their story because everyone has a story. And I will tell my story in between, along the way.

When people think of Oswego, they will in many cases associate it with weather. Not just any weather. Winter weather. Wind, snow, frigid air, and icy conditions all come to mind.

Some people embrace the cold months of winter. Others? Not so much. Either way, there is no hiding from it in Oswego.

Back home, I have of course experienced my fair share of winter storms – I live in New York State, so there is no missing it. Being right on the shore of Lake Ontario in Oswego, however, brings an extra twist.

It only took a short time of being in Oswego to learn of ways to handle the weather.

An umbrella is not always a friend

A logical person might think that an umbrella is a good solution for dealing with precipitation in Oswego. In many cases, it is. When walking through the wind tunnels of Oswego, however, it can be a different story.

Unless you want to be going to class Mary Poppins style, an umbrella may not always be the best option. Windy conditions can make this a challenge. An umbrella can only do so much when the rain is coming in sideways, anyway.

I have seen several broken and torn umbrellas in the trash since I have been here. Fortunately, none of those umbrellas were mine.

Covering up in layers, cutting through buildings when possible, and taking advantage of the buses on campus are the best ways to stay dry, warm, and happy.

Have boots on the ready

Obviously, boots are important in the winter, even though I rarely wear them. Typically, I depend on plowed and shoveled sidewalks when walking to class.

However, the best use for boots, I have found, comes during a late night fire drill.

Being half asleep, standing outside in the cold in the side of a snow bank, waiting to get back inside, is pretty inconvenient. It is even more inconvenient in improper footwear. Flip flops or shower shoes certainly are not the best way to go about it.

No amount of hair gel can stop the wind’s work

I do not really worry about my hair– okay, maybe a little. With the wind in Oswego, I am just glad that I do not worry about it more.

It gets windy sometimes – more than sometimes. In the warmer months of the year, a small breeze feels great. During winter, the massive wind gusts are not as refreshing. They are also harsh on the hair.

Hats are a great idea to stay warm anyway, but to keep that hair looking good – essential.

Hat hair? Well, that is a different story for a different time.

It really is not that bad – most of the time

Oswego definitely gets its fair share of winter weather, but so does everywhere else in the northeast. Is the weather something to be prepared for? Definitely.

At the same time though, Oswego weather can be overhyped. The legendary stories of people using ropes to walk to class are a prime example of this.

The weather in Oswego is manageable – especially after learning what I have.

Still, it does not always have to be fun.

There is no better welcome back than winter weather.

It has now been two weeks since returning to campus after a long winter break and it seems like I have not missed a beat. While my first semester last fall was a bit of a transition (the first semester of college can do that), moving back to Oswego was seamless.

The hardest part was bringing back my belongings to campus. Why I brought so many things back with so much already in my room, I have no idea.

I am simply back in the rhythm of things, so much so that it feels like I was never gone. Despite the six-week break, it all feels the same. It is still the same Oswego that I remember (minus the mild days associated with fall weather).

Just because it all feels the same, however, does not mean it is the same. New classes are an obvious difference when a semester begins, as is the Oswego weather. Even groups of people can change.

A friend of mine left Oswego at the end of last semester to attend another school. There are also those who I no longer see in my classes. Fortunately, I have been able to remain good friends with these people.

Those are just some changes, however. The biggest changes are yet to come and are the ones I am most excited about.

With a new semester, comes a fresh slate and new opportunities. In many cases, there is the potential to continue what has already been started. For me, that means continuing my involvement with PRSSA and student blogging.

In other cases, it means starting something new and testing the waters. This is about getting involved in other areas. This semester, I am joining WTOP, the student-run television station on campus. I will be a part of the crew as a camera operator.

Public Relations (my major) may not have much to do with holding a camera, but being a part of WTOP has a lot to do with trying something new, meeting new people, and having fun.

So as I go deeper into this semester, I look forward to new opportunities while enjoying the ones I am already a part of.

It is good to be back.

This past week has definitely been a cold one. Snow, wind, and frigid temperatures have already caused the school to cancel night classes once. This is surprising to most students because as we all know, Oswego very rarely cancels class. Walking across campus in these extreme conditions can  truly be a challenge to some students, and I’m sure not many people wake up in the morning looking forward to walking from West-Campus to Shineman in 0 degree weather. Of course, there is always the bus that runs once every 20 minutes, but as some of us know, the bus can fill up and will not allow any more students on. This can be devastating if you were counting on the bus to get you to class on time. These are only but a few of the struggles presented to SUNY Oswego students during the winter. Between the harsh winter months and the workload presented to you by classes, the beginning of the spring semester can be stressful. Luckily, there are ways to combat this stress. Oswego State provides some useful facilities and activities to help you unwind and ultimately remain stress free and on track when it comes to classes.

The two fitness centers: Glimmerglass and Cooper, are two great facilities if you’re trying to get fit and relieve stress. There’s nothing better than a good workout. These facilities provide dumbbells, weight benches, treadmills, bikes, elliptical machines, and a variety of other fitness equipment to students who have purchased a membership. Both fitness centers offer a variety of programs and group workouts to students as well.

Your residence hall also contains some fun things to do. The front desk at your residence hall is  a good place to stop by if you’re looking for something to get your mind off of school or just chill out on the weekends. The school provides hundreds of DVDs which can be rented out as long as you have your student ID. The front desk also has a variety of board games that can be rented out as well. Depending on your residence hall, you may also be provided with pool tables, pianos, ping pong tables, etc. Your R.A. as well as the other R.A.’s in your building work really hard to provide you with fun and informative activities that are designed to bring the residential community together. Flyers for these activities are usually posted within each residence hall.

Many other things are going on as well! Check out http://www.oswego.edu/news/calendar for more exciting activities.

Having trouble finding a major that’s right for you? Don’t get too worked up about it, it happens to a lot of students here at Oswego. Personally, I’ve changed my major twice. Don’t get me wrong, it’s been pretty stressful trying to figure out what I really wanted to major in, but the only way to find out what you really want to do is to test out a bunch of alternative options. I came into Oswego as a declared economics major, and after a few weeks, I decided that it definitely wasn’t for me. Looking back at it, I have no clue why I chose that major in the first place–I wasn’t even very interested in the subject to be honest. Needless to say, I changed my major after my first year of college. From economics, I went to Electrical and Computer Engineering. I love computers, so I decided to give it a shot. After a semester of  taking the ECE prerequisites and some core requirements, I found that engineering wasn’t something that I could put my heart into–I just wasn’t into it at all. Just goes to show how you can be interested in something one minute, and then after testing the waters, you decide that it doesn’t suit you at all. From my experience, I gained knowledge of a variety of things, ranging from the Economics of Gender, to Calculus. I also got all of my general education requirements out of the way by sophomore year. After my decision to change my major for the second time, I took a lot of time to really think my next major change through and weigh my options. I finally opted for the Public Justice major here at SUNY Oswego, and I couldn’t be more satisfied so far. It took me almost 2 years to figure out what I wanted to major in, but that’s what college is all about. In order to figure out what you want to achieve, you absolutely need to search for something that you can enjoy doing. It may take a while, but you WILL find something  that interests you. I hope my post here will help those who are unsure of what they would like to major in put themselves out there and take a variety of courses that may point them in the right direction.

Winter Break

                I hope everyone is as happy as I am that Finals week is over. I know some feel even more accomplished for going through their first semester at SUNY Oswego. It’s a great feeling to get to know people and also get to know some who live around the same area as you do. Everyone should spend time with friends, but most importantly your families. Spend the holidays with care and I hope everyone gets home and arrive back to the campus safely in January. I’m happy to figure out how huge of a break we have; even though I sometimes worry if I’ll forget certain course material needed for those classes requiring knowledge from previous classes. I think it would help for everyone to not get too carried away by doing nothing related to studying. The more information we keep stored in our minds the better our performance. Good luck to everyone and I hope you all have a great vacation. Enjoy!

“We cannot hope to create a sustainable culture with any but sustainable souls.”

-Derrick Jensen

Hi Readers,

Recently I had the pleasure of talking the school’s sustainability department, and I learned a lot about their role on campus, and why it is important to know what they do, as well as a few tidbits of information on the new science building and how students (just like you!) can contribute and get involved with these really cool guys on campus.

Q: First off, a little background info for the readers. Who/what all does the sustainability department comprise?

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So, there you have it. If you ever have any questions for them concerning projects on campus or the like, you can also give the department a visit over in 165 Wilber Hall (located within the facilities design and construction office). They’re all very friendly people and are always happy to have a chat with a student!

Stay clean

                Hello Oswegonians, I’m here to request a favor to ourselves to always keep our hands clean. We are all paying for our classes, and it would really be a problem to get sick if it’s due to someone else’s spreading of the sickness. On that note, we all are respectful enough on a daily basis, so why not be slightly more respectful by being considerate of everyone especially yourself. You could get yourself sick rubbing your eyes, even though we all know that from our past, and it would be horrible to figure that you happen to have gotten sick from shaking hands with someone after a hello or after you meet someone new and shake on it. Be considerate, make sure you always tell the friend you’re communicating with that you are sick or feel like you’re getting sick.

Personally I’m still slipping through from getting sick by sticking to my workout, which really helps nullify a stuffy nose. Also any time that I feel a cold really trying to affect me, I would stay in my room and take a night time medicine and sleep early on it. It is super effective to me, and it could be as effective for you. I suggest finding a cardio workout to do that keeps you breathing in and out your nose then mouth to feel better breathing normal afterwards without the runny nose. The medicine should be the last thing on your mind if you live in this campus full of so much space to run and so much time to spend in the gym!

Go out there and be clean and help yourself while respecting others. You will be loved by yours truly and make sure to feel good about keeping yourself clean. Make it a habit! It’s going to be a long winter with occasional temperature changes. Let’s enjoy the experience we have always wanted and expected out of moving out here to Oswego.