Hey guys! I got a little ahead of myself in the last blog and jumped straight into an excited account of my English class without even introducing myself. Anyone who read that probably thinks I’m a nerd now (hint: It’s okay, because you’re right.) My name is Parisa and I am a freshman here at this wonderful university. I like crafts, dancing, traveling, running, quality time with loved ones, baking cakes, making to-do lists, and reading, I’m currently a declared English major, but I’m about to change my major to International Studies with a focus in the Middle East, and I’ve even thought about minoring in Arabic. Or I might change it to Human Relations. (Edit: Actually, as of today, I think I’m going with Sociology.) Honestly, I have no idea what I want to be “when I grow up,” and your advisers at OU will assure you that indecisiveness is perfectly okay. Luckily, at OU there are over 150 majors to choose from, so I have quite the selection to go through until I find the ‘right one’!

I’m from Midwest City, Oklahoma, which is a 30-minute drive from Norman. Despite the option to commute, I still opted to live in the dorms. It’s really nice to be close enough to be able to take my laundry home on the weekends and see my parents. You’ll be amazed how bad you’ll miss them after about two weeks in Norman. Not that Norman is a bad place to be, but any place where your parents aren’t present to manage your time for you is a hard place to be as a freshman.

View from my dorm of a beautiful Norman sunset

Homesickness isn’t the only adjustment I’ve had to make. My lack of time management has been the cause of two all-nighters (so far) spent writing last-minute papers. Because college classes are spread out over the week, you have a LOT of free time during the day. The difficult transition for me has been acknowledging that my free time is actually for studying, not for doing random things with friends. Spending too much time on Facebook and Twitter is also tempting, but I’ve been learning to shake that bad habit as well! Thankfully, I’m slowly but surely getting adjusted to this huge life change.

My favorite aspect of college so far is the opportunity to meet so many different people. I live on the National Merit floor on the dorms, and because OU’s National Merit scholarship attracts students from all over the nation, I live down the hall from girls who are from California, Pennsylvania, Montana….basically from everywhere. It’s really entertaining to hear about the things that they find weird about Oklahoma: our weather, our accents (what accents?!), all the churches, and cowboy boots. I catch myself talking about places like Braum’s, Bricktown, or Classic 50s, and receiving blank stares in return. I almost went out of state for college before I realized how amazing OU was, so it’s really interesting for me to watch these girls start their new lives in a place so subtly different from where they came from.

I’ve also met a lot of people through President’s Leadership Class, better known as simply PLC. When you start filling out your application for OU, make sure you work really hard on the scholarship questions, because they may earn for you a spot in PLC, and you definitely want one! Around 100 freshmen are chosen for this prestigious group. Once in, we meet weekly to listen to speakers, learn how to get involved in campus, and one of my favorite parts, eat dinner together in the Caf. Every so often PLCers are presented with really special opportunities. For example, this past weekend was PLC’s 50^th Reunion. It was very humbling to see 50 years worth of PLC alum come back to Norman to celebrate this organization because it was a huge testament to the impact PLC leaves in our lives. Tomorrow night, PLC is going to eat at President Boren and First Lady Boren’s house! I’m really excited to put on my crimson and cream and mingle with OU’s beloved President. PLC has blessed me with a lot of great opportunities, but the best gift from PLC has been friendship. You would never guess that I’d met some of my closest friends only 5 weeks ago at the PLC retreat. Really guys, give your best effort to your scholarship questions and you might find yourself in PLC, too!

Talking to President Boren is simultaneously like chatting with your grandpa and talking to a celebrity. Nicest man ever!

Dressed up with some PLC girls in preparation to welcome back PLC alumni for the 50th year reunion

Really quick, although I’ve gotten involved with a lot of different groups at OU (I’ll tell you more about those some other time), I wanted to point out just how diverse OU is. I am half-Iranian and never thought I’d meet so many Iranian students here! However, OU actually has an Iranian Student Association, and they host movie nights, a Persian New Year party, and several speakers throughout the year. My culture is a very important part of who I am, so I’ve loved having a way to stay involved with my Iranian side, even away from home.

I’m about to head off to my Business Calculus class, with which I have a love/hate relationship (I love math when I understand the concepts; I hate math when I don’t.) Wish me luck! Hopefully now that you know a little more about me you won’t be afraid to comment and ask me whatever you’d like!

Have a beautiful day and BOOMER SOONER!