Category: Gossip Squirrel

Gossip Squirrel 11/7/2022

Dear Gossip Squirrel,
What is the] Best advice on beating burnout? Between classes, clubs, FSL stuff, working 3 jobs, and trying to have a social life, it’s really hard. I can’t quit anything I’m doing so I’m not sure how to find a second in the day to take a break.
-SOS

Dear SOS,
One of the hardest things you can do as a busy person is fill up your schedule to the brim. Most of the time you don’t mean to but your commitment to your many roles can definitely make you very busy. It is important that you are finding sometime in your busy schedule for yourself. This can be the time saved to socialize and the relax. If burnout is a big worry focus on getting through everything little by little. If you think about your commitments ahead of time as you are planning a weekly schedule, managing these commitments and finding free time could get easier. Make sure to take some time to stop and rest since being busy constantly can tire you out and lead you to a deeper burn out. If you can’t find any free time consider scheduling it in when planning.
-Gossip Squirrel

Dear Gossip Squirrel,
Signing up for classes had to be one of the most stressful parts of my past week. When I ended up going to sign up for my classes, two were already full and had a waitlist. I also emailed professors and they told me there is nothing I can do but wait to see if someone drops either the class or the waitlist.
-Scheduling Nightmare

Dear Scheduling Nightmare,
I think every Alma College student can agree with you when it comes to the struggles of registering. What is crucial about deciding your schedule is that you have backups. As people with more credits register, many classes will fill up. Making sure that you have backup courses in case they get filled up, can help you in taking required courses and filling up your schedule. It can be easier to schedule classes in your major since they are requirements and teachers might feel slightly obligated to let you in but when it comes to other classes the waitlist can be the pretty hard to come off of. Going in and talking with the professor in
person can be a great way to see if the professor is willing to expand their class a little bit but having backups will help tremendously in the process of making your schedule.
-Gossip Squirrel

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Gossip Squirrel 10/24/2022

Dear Gossip Squirrel,
I feel like my roommate doesn’t like me. They are never in our room and have barely
spoken to me since move in. We both like sports and I’m sure would have more in
common but they don’t seem to [want to] give it a chance. Things always feel tense
and it gets pretty awkward. Any tips or advice?
-Confused Roommate

Dear Confused Roommate,
If you haven’t brought this up with them then maybe you should consider bringing it up casually. There might be a possibility that they aren’t completely aware of the room dynamic. I think if you are trying to reach out and are not getting any sort of response back, you should definitely consider either moving forward without a strong friendship or if things get more tense it could be beneficial to talk to someone like an RA about it.
-Gossip Squirrel

Dear Gossip Squirrel,
So I have a long distance relationship and college is really straining things. Our
schedules don’t line up so face time doesn’t work very well. I don’t want it to end but
idk what to do….
-Worried Partner

Dear Worried Partner,
Long distance relationships can have their hardships and a busy schedule adds another challenge. It is important to focus on the way that you both find time to talk. Are both of your schedules completely full or are you giving up some moments where you could talk a little bit. If it hasn’t already happened, this should be a conversation between the both of you. Regardless of it going good or bad both of you should value sitting down and having this conversation.
-Gossip Squirrel

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Gossip Squirrel 10/3/2022

Dear Gossip Squirrel,
I have had the busiest semester and feel like I have signed up for a lot that I’m not fully prepared for. Classes have been crazy, but I feel like I always have meetings until 8:00pm.

-I just want a break

Dear I just want a break,
So sorry that you have been having some hectic moments this semester. The best thing you can do is look ahead and rest. If you have a good idea of what your workload looks like, making sure you get your work done early is crucial! Always make sure that you are also giving yourself time to relax. Frustration will only make everything more complicated so make sure to take a break to reset.

– Gossip Squirrel

Dear Gossip Squirrel,
I feel like I have had a pretty bad relationship with one of my teachers. Though I don’t focus the best in class, I definitely try to keep a good exchange between us plus I try to ask questions and have always been good about turning my work in.

-Teacher hates me

Dear teacher hates me,
It can be frustrating putting in effort for a class in which you don’t feel like your work is being appreciated. The best thing you can do as a student is continuing to do exactly what you are doing. Continue to be diligent about your work and continue asking your teacher questions. Though your teacher might not see the amount of effort you are putting in your work, your overall understanding of the class and your motivation to get your work done will help you be successful in your class.

-Gossip Squirrel

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Gossip Squirrel 9/19/22

Dear Gossip Squirrel,
The person I am currently dating has what I would say is complete opposite political views than me. I have been fine by it so far but now that we have started to talk about it I don’t know how to feel.

-political disagreement

Dear political disagreement
Topics in politics has to be one of the hardest conversations that you can take part in. If there are concerns in the types of politics your significant other follows, a conversation can be hard but is crucial. If talking about politics, remember to have a conversation that is constructive not destructive. It can be hard to speak about things you don’t agree on but use this conversation to understand your partner more and possibly start a dialogue that can help them understand your perspective.

Dear Gossip Squirrel,
The past couple of weeks I have felt a little more lonely than usual. If I’m talking to someone usually they don’t stick around. Am I looking at the wrong signs or am I delusional?

-I need a person

Dear I need a person,
Seeing so many relationships around campus and being around so many people can easily make you feel slightly lonely. Remember to never get down on yourself for it. When the time is right it will happen! Continue meeting people and make sure to stay present and have fun.

-Gossip Squirrel

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Gossip Squirrel 9/9/2022

9/9/2022

Dear GossipSquirrel,
Since moving in, I seem to have come across a big roommate problem. My roommate has
had her boyfriend spend the night most of the time we’ve moved in. I don’t mind a couple of
days but him staying the majority of the week makes me feel like I am living with him. How do I
tell her?


-Not what I signed up for


Dear Not what I signed for,
Boundaries between roommates are the most important agreement to having a successful
dorm. This also comes with downsides, as it can be difficult to establish these boundaries. If this
wasn’t something that you talked about while making your roommate agreement, then it might
be important to sit down and have a conversation about it, whether that is between the two of you
or with a person that can facilitate your conversation, like an RA.


-GossipSquirrel


Dear GossipSquirrel,
I’ve been wanting to get a job at Alma but seriously have no idea where to start. How
would someone get a job at Alma College?
-New to this
Dear New to this,
A thriving aspect of our college is the ability to work in many offices and departments.
The first place to start your search is through Handshake. Positions in multiple departments will
be posted there. Whether it’s applying to be an RA, tutor, TA, or even a staff member of The
Almanian, you can find the applications on Handshake. If you need any assistance in making a
resume or cover letter, head to Handshake and schedule an appointment with the Career and
Personal Development team.


-GossipSquirrel

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Gossip Squirrel 3/15/21

Dear GossipSquirrel,
I feel like I did so awful on my midterms and just feel like me being in college during a huge
pandemic was such a mistake. I started school not being in a pandemic, so I don’t really want to
halt my college experience. How do I stay motivated to be in college?

-Covid College Student

Dear Covid College Student,
Being in college right now can be a stressful thing. Having to deal with the new campus
regulation while also dealing with different class formats and also not being allowed to be social
is definitely really unfortunate. Social interaction is one of the biggest ways we as college
students can have fun and grow but we can’t right now because of Covid-19. By following the
rules and being hopeful we can slowly move towards being a safer campus and not jeopardizing
the health of other students. I know it sucks but hopefully soon we will be able to go back to a
semi-normal way of doing college.

-GossipSquirrel

Dear GossipSquirrel,
During these first two semesters at Alma, I have felt the most unorganized I have ever felt in my
life. How do I change that when I feel like I’m already so badly organized?

-A Big Mess

Dear A Big Mess,
It is so hard to stay organized right now. Dealing with online classes, so many assignments, and
canvas can be really stressful. I have a couple suggestions for you. First, you want to make sure
you are planning ahead. Maybe you have to take a day out of the week (maybe the weekend)
where you plan out your week. It might be a good idea to plan to focus on your due dates so
you can see what needs to get done first. Another thing you could do is find a way to visually be
able to see what you have to do. Maybe this looks like having a to-do list on your desk or even
on your phone. Getting a visual reminder throughout your day on your desk could be a
motivator to get at least a little bit more work done.

-GossipSquirrel

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Gossip Squirrel 3/2/21

Dear GossipSquirrel,
I have a lot of questions and concerns for allot of the policies and rules at Alma but don’t really know how to address them.
-trying to ask the school

Dear trying to ask the school,
I would make sure you are searching out all possibilities to be able to talk with the school. Make sure you know when town hall meetings happen with President Abernathy and also be aware of when he hosts his office hours. You can find this in the emails the administration sends out. I’d also have conversations with students and faculty so you are all aware of concerns and can share concerns if you are able to relate.

Dear GossipSquirrel,
I feel like there’s nothing going on during the pandemic on campus. I want to have fun but I’m trying to be safe and follow guidelines. What should I do?
-boredaf

Dear boredaf,
It can get hard not being able to do everything that was allowed pre-covid but the school and students are doing their best to give the students a great time at Alma with events throughout the semester. Follow ACUB on social media so you are aware of all the super fun events they are hosting. Also be on the lookout for events that clubs are having and fun fundraising events that Greek life is having!
-GossipSquirrel

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Gossip Squirrel 2/15/21

Dear GossipSquirrel,
It’s my first year and I came to college to have an experience but Covid has made it really difficult. I find that I’m having troubles with my mental health because I am all alone in my room because of these guidelines that the school has. How do I fix this?
-alone during Covid


Dear alone during Covid,
With all of the guidelines that we have to follow, it can be really hard to get the social aspect of college. The best thing you can do is make sure that if you need help with a mental health issue, reach out to the Wellness Center and see if there’s any way that they can help. There are so many different ideas on the Internet about what you can do in your own room by yourself. If you want that social aspect of college you can also check out the events that organizations put on on campus.
-GossipSquirrel


Dear GossipSquirrel,
I’m thinking of rushing a frat but don’t really have friends that I know in frats so I’m going in knowing no one. Could I still join one?
-rushingsoon


Dear rushingsoon,
You should definitely consider rushing! Rush week is the week for you to get to know the fraternities and get to know what they are about. I would say go to as many of the events that week that you can and get to know the people that make up the fraternities on campus.
-GossipSquirrel

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