Finals Frenzy? Have No Fear!

If you ask any college student across the country what their least favorite time of year is, chances are their answer will be simple: “finals week.” Finals week, the time of year when students hang up their party hats and trade in their bottle of booze for a bag full of textbooks. The only sure thing that gets them through is the comfort of knowing that summer lies right around the corner—but until then, how will they ever survive? If you’re asking yourself this question, I’m here to tell you, “Don’t fret!”

Having endured my fair share of finals weeks at Hofstra University over the past four years, I thought that now would be a good opportunity as a graduating senior to share a bit of knowledge and advice to those who are seeking tips on how to stay sane and, if your lucky, get some sleep during this final dreaded week, better known as “HELL.”

Here are the two major tips you should follow. Heed my warning; These are VITAL!

1.) Don't Procrastinate! 

We all know we’ve done it at one point or another: leaving that 20 page paper for the last night or cramming for that cumulative final with two hours to spare. For one reason or another these assignments were put on the back burner, not to be dealt with or even looked at until the last possible moment. Why do we allow ourselves to do this? For some people, they accept their procrastinated behaviors and fool themselves into believing that it is just inevitable for them to be faced with this. This isn’t true. If I’ve learned anything from college, it is simple: stay on top of your work. If a professor gives you a lot of time for a large project, set your own “deadlines” for yourself along the way. If you do this then I can guarantee that you’ll be getting a full night sleep every night come finals week.

2.) Eat Right!

I can’t even begin to explain how many people I have seen get extremely sick as a result of finals week. Stress, time constraints, lack of sleep, and many other factors play a huge role in why students’ bodies break down during this time of year. One other major factor for these impending sicknesses is the lack of proper nutrition and diet over the course of these few days. Even if you’re not hungry or think that you’re “too busy” to get something to eat, I implore you to grab a quick bite. In addition to fighting sickness, your mind also operates better when it gets the proper nutrients. Eating small healthy meals throughout the course of this week will help you to battle illness and think clearly! 

Surely there are many other great tips on how to successfully get through this week, but in my experience these are the two greatest and most important tips of advice that I can give in order to guarantee a calmer and healthier week for all.

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!

My Sunday Night (Video Example)

My Sunday Night from Joe Peyronnin on Vimeo.

Spring Break: Myrtle Beach Style!

My spring break in Myrtle Beach was the perfect balance of relaxation and adventure. I want to go back and stay forever!

Profile on Kristine Gonzalez

My mother, Kris Gonzalez, on how to stay youthful and do it all!

My Experience in Venice

Venice was an experience I will never forget. It was a complete cultural enriching and life altering time of my life, and I would most certainly do it again if I had the chance. Hofstra University's Study Aboard Program is a great opportunity for college students to experience life outside of the United States and I highly recommend it to anybody who is interested.

Successful and City Savvy at Age 25

If you had asked me 10 years ago where I wanted to end up after college graduation, my answer would have been New York City. Now that I am 22-years-old and graduation day is only a few months away, my answer to that question remains the same.

However, one thing that has changed over the past ten years is my grip on reality. I would have never thought that my four years of college would have passed me by so quickly and now here I am with only three months left of college and absolutely no idea where I am going to end up.

Although this feeling of uncertainty is both terrifying and stressful, I have high hopes for my future due to one very influential person: my sister, Cara.

Cara is a 25-year-old alumnus of Wagner College. She graduated in 2005 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance and was also a record-setting member of the Wagner Girl’s Lacrosse Team. After graduation, she was able to score a job with The Bank of New York after working there as an intern during her college career. Once she was financially stable, she was then able to afford an apartment in lower Manhattan with two former college teammates.

What I admire most about my sister is her ability to work hard at what she wants. I will never forget one very important message that my sister had always said to me, “Don’t think; Just do.” Although to some people this may seem like reckless advice, it has actually given me great insight into many aspects of my life thus far. This message has taught me to accept and honor my responsibilities, stop over-thinking and analyzing every situation, and go after what I want without any hesitation or outside influences.

Today, my sister is employed at Nomura Group and is living in the East Village. Each time I visit her in the city she will show me around and take me to all her favorite Manhattan hot spots. It is always a fantastic time. Not only do I admire her independent lifestyle and infinite knowledge of my favorite city in the world, but I also gain motivation and confidence that one day I will be able to have all these wonderful things that she does. My sister is a perfect example that with the right attitude and strong ambition to succeed, the sky is the limit.

   

 Pictures of my sister and me enjoying time together in Manhattan.

Danceworks at Hofstra

Hofstra University's Danceworks club is one of the largest clubs on Hofstra's campus. The great thing about this club is that anybody who shares a love for dance can join. These pictures were taken from a performance at Adams Playhouse.

Over-Exposed Celebs: What Gives?

The buzz from this past Sunday's Oscars is still circulating; but not necessarily for all the right reasons. Instead of newspapers, magazines, and television shows focusing on the talented individuals who took home Academy Awards, they are focusing all their attention to Angelina Jolie's exposed right leg and J.Lo's wardrobe malfunction. According to recent reports, both of these buzzed-about moments went viral on Twitter within seconds and also gained enough attention to form their own Twitter accounts: @Angiesrightleg and @JLosNipple. Really people?

It's not that I disagree with these topics being highly talked about because honestly, who doesn't enjoy an occasionally funny wardrobe malfunction or over-exposed body part? But what I am beginning to wonder is how far celebrities will go to grab the attention of the media. It is obvious that many celebrities see these award ceremonies as opportunities to turn heads and provide publicity for themselves, using Sacha Baron Cohen's Seacrest prank as a recent example. Understandably so, it is the nature of the business to want a little media coverage but have Hollywood women completely lost all classiness when trying to do so? 

The 2012 Oscars was surely not the first time that celebrity’s wardrobes grabbed all the media attention. Other instances such as Tara Reid's accidental flashing in 2009 and J.Lo's plunging GrammyVersace dress in 2000 made heads turn and people talk for years to come. It is understandable that sometimes accidents do happen, but after a while the public stops believing it was accidental and it is made out to be more of a PR stunt. If these accidents keep on happening, wouldn't you think that Hollywood's leading ladies might want to think about covering up a bit more to avoid these mishaps? They don't. That is why I think many of them are planned.

I can't completely blame the celebrities though because the media goes crazy over these types of incidents. Celebrities are almost guaranteed media coverage if they flash a body part or two. That may be part of the problem. Why does the media go so crazy over something as insignificant as Angelina Jolie's skinny bare leg and turn it into a topic that will is talked about on a universal level?

Personally I feel bad for the Oscar winners of the night who worked so hard and deserved to be in the spotlight for the night, only to be overshadowed by the hyped-up wardrobe buzz. I think the media should go back to basics when dealing with celebrity coverage and more accurately decide what is “defined as “news” and what is not.

Oscar Night: “The Dictator” Pisses Off Seacrest

Last night at the Oscars, Sacha Baron Cohen dumped an urn full of ashes on E! Television host Ryan Seacrest during the red carpet event. Baron Cohen was dressed as Admiral Aladeen to promote his upcoming movie “The Dictator.” During an interview with Seacrest, he joked around and responded to questions while staying completely in character. He explained that he was carrying an urn full of the ashes of his “dear friend and tennis partner” Kim Jong-il, who had dreams of coming to the Oscars. The plan, he stated, was to scatter his ashes across the red carpet and “over Halle Berry’s chest.” Immediately after this response, Baron Cohen dumped the large jar of ashes down the side of Seacrest’s tailor-made Burberry suit.

My first response to this was, “HAHAHA!” First of all, I’m not exactly the biggest fan of Ryan Seacrest and second of all, I found it hilarious that he was so clearly ticked-off. He definitely did not do a very good job covering up the fact that he was annoyed. The best part was that not only did the ashes fall on him once, but they also got him one more time as Baron Cohen was escorted away by security and the urn tipped back out of his hand. To viewers at home, it was extremely obvious that Seacrest’s blood was boiling.

I understand that the suit was obviously expensive but what happened to good old-fashioned humor? To be honest, we all know that Ryan Seacrest isn’t paying for that suit anyways. Designers are BEGGING these stars to show off their designs on these highly-viewed shows. All it really takes for Seacrest to get “Oscar ready” again is a few quick phone calls, a quick errand for the assistant, and a different suit would be ready in no time. Not to mention, the ashes in the urn were reportedly Bisquick. It could be brushed-off easily. I’m sure that by the end of the night, nobody would even be able to notice it.

What I would love to know is how Seacrest acted when the cameras were turned off. Judging from his on-camera reaction to this stunt, I guarantee that he was extremely worked-up. Personally, I see absolutely nothing wrong with a little bit of humor, especially when it is done in good taste and good fun. I hope that this morning, Ryan Seacrest is able to laugh it off and be proud that he was part of a memorable Oscar moment that will be remembered for a long time to come. 

Bobby Brown Leaves Whitney Houston's Funeral

Recently I have been hearing news that former husband of Whitney Houston, Bobby Brown, left her funeral before the services even began. According to news sources, Bobby Brown was asked on three different occasions to move his seat for other close family and friends of Houston. In a rage, Brown stormed out fifteen minutes prior to the start and vented to the media that he felt extremely disrespected. I was very shocked to hear this news. In my opinion it doesn't matter what occurs or how upset someone may become, loved ones of the deceased should always be present at funeral services. It is out of common respect and decency to go and remember those who have passed on. Especially Brown, who was one of the most influential and important people in Houston's life.

I couldn't help but think, what would Whitney think about all of this? It saddens me to think about how disappointed and sad Houston would be if she knew that her former love and father of child would be so immature as to get up and leave during such an important time.

I watched the funeral, which took place on Saturday, February 18, 2012 and thought that it was done beautifully. Before I heard news that Brown had stormed out before the services, I kept wondering where he was and why he did not speak about Houston and her life. I'm sure that it would have made Houston so happy to hear some kind words said about her by her ex-husband, but unfortunately that did not happen.

What I want to know now is, how is Bobby Brown feeling today about what he did? Does he feel bad? Does he realize how blatantly rude and disrespectful he was by acting the way that he did? I hope that he comes out with some sort of a public statement apologizing for acting in such a childish way. Im sure that his daughter, Bobbi Kristina, is so distraught right. She had been hospitalized after hearing about the death of her mother, and now I wonder how she is coping with the fact that her father stormed out of her mother's funeral. I know that if that was me, I would be so upset that I wouldn't know what to do with myself. If I were Bobbi, I would not be talking to my father for a very, very long time. 

Let's hope that Brown is praying for forgiveness somewhere and that he is taking the time to remember and celebrate the life of Whitney Houston in his own private way. 

Post Grammy Win, Chris Brown Fans Tweet They "Would Love to be Beaten" by Him

For the first post on my new blog, I thought I would write about something that has come attention recently that has me very disturbed. It has come to the media's attention recently that after Chris Brown's win at the Grammy Awards this past Sunday night, seemingly forgiving fans of his tweeted their desire to be "beaten" by him. Most of these tweets were coming from Brown's young female followers, who seemed to make a joke about his violent altercation with Rihanna in 2009 and many of them stated that he was "too hott" for them to care what he had done.

I found this news to be shocking and disgusting, especially since its from a generation of young girls. Having lost a friend to domestic violence in late 2010, it is not a subject I take lightly. It is sad and discouraging to see that although many activist groups are working to spread the word and rally against domestic violence, young women are still trying to glorify it.

Stop the violence, PLEASE.