Archive for the ‘Creativity’ Category

Dreamland Ch. 2: Surefire tricks to get your relatives to stop asking you about school

Wednesday, June 18th, 2025

Money. It makes the world go round, or something like that. I may have decided my passion from a young age, but I hadn’t decided on a job, not in any practical way. The hard lesson everyone learns between ages 17 and 21 is that choosing your dream is different from choosing your major, which is yet again different from choosing your career. I learned this lesson the moment I fostered my love for creative writing, and I keep learning it every day.

It’s not so bad, really. I’m studying English, which is very transferrable to a number of different fields, no matter what people will tell you. You only have to engage in a quick cursory scroll through any social media platform to understand that people lack writing skills, communication skills, and critical thinking skills. People lack empathy and can’t formulate nuanced opinions. I’m not suggesting that everyone become an English major, but I do encourage a reworked perception of what the field can offer. 

So I don’t regret what I’ve chosen; I only regret not pushing myself out of my comfort zone far sooner, all the way back in high school, in order to learn the skills I’d need to shape my career in English. In freshman year of college, I unfortunately hesitated to join extracurriculars and attend general meetings that would allow me to meet new people and find things I might be interested in. I’ve since overcome that hesitation, thankfully, and now I know that I enjoy journalistic writing, marketing, communications, and more generally, learning new things.

That doesn’t mean the insecurity doesn’t creep in every once in a while. Every month, I spend at least one evening freaking out about what I will do after I graduate, and I panic-apply to a million jobs that I ultimately don’t hear back from. My parents are incredibly supportive and love to hear about school, but I’ve noticed that my family friends, the aunties and uncles, aren’t quite sure what to ask or if there is anything to even discuss. I get it, truly, but I can’t help but compare myself to my sister and others in our family who’ve chosen something more recognizable.

If you’re in the humanities, you probably understand this feeling—the tugging sensation that suspends you between your wildest dreams and the real world below. The Icarian knowledge that either side will damn you. Most of the time, it doesn’t feel quite this theatrical, but I don’t think anyone is immune to the chilling realization, even if inaccurate, that the things you do as a teenager determine the rest of your life. Such is the condition of being a teenager in the first place. Why can’t we all just do what we love, right?

NYU’s Silver Center for Arts and Sciences, home to English majors and others. Image Credit: https://meet.nyu.edu/locations/silver-center/

The divide between your passion and your career prospects might feel chasmic now, but there are ways you can reconcile even the most distant of pipe dreams and the most mundane 9-to-5 jobs. 

I used to work for NYU’s outreach and fundraising organization, which was often the bane of my existence, but I took every shift as an opportunity to learn about other people and their backgrounds. I learned about their fields of interest and the ways they used their schooling to propel them into careers that suited their niche interests. I once spoke to someone that illustrated tarot cards. I still quit that job after a semester, but I have plenty of stories to tell. which makes the semester of asking strangers for money sort of worth it. I don’t intend on continuing that sort of work full-time, but I know that if I keep collecting stories and experiences like that one, I’ll find joy in any job.

My ultimate goal is to have a job that sustains me financially and doesn’t make me dread it every night and morning, but I think eventually I’ll come to accept that your job won’t and probably shouldn’t be your life. If I completely turn creativity and writing into my source of income, will I still covet them as I do now? 

If you siphon all your passion into the thing that you have to do or you lose your stability, is it still passion? 

My hope is that I can look down that cavernous gap and feel security in traveling between both sides of it. My hope is to make just enough money that I feel content waking up each morning—though I certainly wouldn’t be mad if I made a little more. Money might sustain you, but your passions will keep you alive.


Students receive a 10% discount at Dim Sum Palace at three locations in NYC. Redeem now for authentic Chinese dim sum.

By Oshmi Ghosh

Oshmi Ghosh is a rising junior at NYU’s College of Arts and Sciences, pursuing a bachelor’s degree in English with minors in Creative Writing, History, and Entertainment Business. You can usually find her appreciating the simple things in life: tea with milk and sugar, a good book, and/or intensely competitive board games.


For over 25 years, the Campus Clipper has helped college students in New York City—and later in Boston and Philadelphia—save money and succeed in city life. We offer a digital coupon booklet with discounts on food, clothing, and services, plus an Official Student Guidebook with real advice on how to navigate college life in a big city. Our internship program lets students build skills, earn money, and publish their own e-books. Follow us on Instagram and TikTok @CampusClipper, and sign up for our newsletter to get deals straight to your inbox. To access the digital coupons, scan the QR code on our printed card—available in dorms, student centers, and around campus.

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Chapter 2: The silent sacrifice

Tuesday, June 17th, 2025
My Commitment Post

I have always considered myself to be selfish. My parents say it all the time—and honestly, they are not wrong. As a kid, I was laser-focused on what I wanted. At the mall, I’d hunt down my stuff first, and the second I had it? I was ready to go. Didn’t care who else needed to shop; I had my things, I was done. 

When I grew up, the idea of being selfish started to haunt me. Sometimes, it hurt to think that maybe I was the person who always put herself first. Deep down, I wanted to be different. I wanted to be the kind of daughter who gave her whole heart to her parents. But no matter how much I cared, my actions never seemed to say it loudly enough. I was caught between wanting to give everything and not knowing how to express it, so I often said things I didn’t mean—things that probably sounded like the opposite of love.

Maybe that’s why when college decisions came around the corner, my heart leaned toward what my parents wanted. It wasn’t pressure, exactly— they never forced anything. But I could feel it. They saw their childhood in me. The chances they never got, the roads they couldn’t take. 

At first, I didn’t fully understand. I thought they were just being vague when they said, “It’s up to you.” But it didn’t take a genius to hear what they weren’t saying. I could read it in their eyes, in the way they paused, in the way they tried not to persuade me but persuaded me anyway. Their silence was filled with hope, and I felt it sitting beside me every time I opened a college portal.

I prayed for my college decisions to keep me in New York City. I grew up here—it’s home. And as the oldest daughter of immigrant parents, the thought of leaving felt like too much. I couldn’t imagine settling somewhere far and starting over without them nearby. But that didn’t stop me from wanting it all—to get into every school I applied to, to have the kind of choices I never thought possible. 

What I didn’t realize was that this second wish would send my life into chaos. I got into Columbia for writing and NYU for engineering. Two schools. Two dreams. Both in my city. Both too real to ignore.

On one hand, there was Columbia, an Ivy League—prestigious, poetic, the kind of place that would take my writing seriously. It felt like choosing the part of me that always struggled to express herself.  On the other hand, there was NYU, one of the best for engineering. Practical. Respected, which felt like choosing the part of me that thrived on building, solving, and understanding how the world worked. Which one do I choose? Which one is better for me? For my family? 

Whichever one I chose, I knew I would have to let go of a part of myself. My identity. Not because I didn’t want both, but because sometimes two dreams just don’t fit in the same life. 

In the end, I chose engineering — not just for me, but for the version of me my parents always believed in. I chose it because it was my first dream, even before writing. I chose it because I already was a writer, with or without a degree. And I chose it because it felt like building something, not just a future, but a bridge between who I was, who I wanted to be, and who I wanted to make proud.

Maybe I am selfish in other ways, but no rule says selfish people are heartless. Choosing engineering wasn’t just about me—it was the only way I knew how to love them back.

For my mom, it was a way to say her sacrifices were seen. That every meal made after a long day, every quiet worry she carried, every time she put her own life on pause—it all mattered. If I couldn’t always find the words, then let this choice be my way of saying thank you.

And for my dad, it was something deeper. He once dreamed of this path for himself, but life pulled him in another direction. I chose engineering partly because he still carries that dream. And because I wanted to carry it with him, to make him feel like he didn’t give it up for nothing.

So if I couldn’t always say it out loud, let this be the way I show it. Not just a degree. Not just a future. But a quiet promise that I acknowledge them.


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By Marzia Seemat

Marzia Seemat is a sophomore at NYU studying civil engineering and creative writing. She loves being close to nature, especially at the beach. Her favorite things include good food, morning tea, hour-long movies, and spending time with the people she loves.


For over 25 years, the Campus Clipper has helped college students in New York City—and later in Boston and Philadelphia—save money and succeed in city life. We offer a digital coupon booklet with discounts on food, clothing, and services, plus an Official Student Guidebook with real advice on how to navigate college life in a big city. Our internship program lets students build skills, earn money, and publish their own e-books. Follow us on Instagram and TikTok @CampusClipper, and sign up for our newsletter to get deals straight to your inbox. To access the digital coupons, scan the QR code on our printed card—available in dorms, student centers, and around campus.

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Dreamland Ch. 1: A thousand empty notebooks

Wednesday, June 11th, 2025

Every year, without fail, someone will gift me a notebook. It’s not exactly a secret that I love to write, though I tend not to advertise it all the time, and I can’t blame that first instinct to give the writer a place to journal her thoughts and ideas before they vanish. Unfortunately, I was born in 2005, which means I started using laptops in fourth grade and haven’t stopped since. Kids these days, right?

But my first ever story was written in a red notebook.

I was five years old, and I didn’t know how to spell all that well, but I’d learned the word spectrum fairly recently and wanted to do something with it. So I pieced together something about rainbows and other worlds. An adopted little girl who plants flowers in an apocalyptic wasteland. I illustrated the cover and everything. With little fanfare, I realized I wanted to be an author.

Since then, that was my Thing. Once I got a handle of Google Docs, it was over for everyone. I wrote silly stories throughout my childhood, once with a friend in sixth grade just because we finished our English quiz early. I centered my personality around the fact that I enjoyed reading and writing, because these were the formative years nobody knew who they were so they picked an archetype for themselves. I could’ve done a lot worse than The Writer, I think, but that stack of notebooks is still growing.

It was a natural next step for me to conceive a full-length novel when I was eleven. That is, I thought vaguely of this story in idle moments and the liminal space between sleep and consciousness, but I didn’t suck it up and start drafting until I was twelve. It was pretty terrible, because I was twelve and all, but I owe everything to that decision. It’s that same story that I rewrote in high school and self-published when I was sixteen, and whose sequels I’m working on right now.

My first book. Do you get the blog title now? Image Credit: https://www.amazon.com/Dark-Reflections-Land-Dreams-Book-ebook/dp/B09KKXPK39

The thing is, it’s exceptionally rare to decide your lifelong passion before you’ve graduated high school, let alone before you’ve learned your times tables. But it’s not as though I’ve approached the rest of my life with absolute certainty or that I now have telescopic vision of the next twenty years. I may have chosen what I like, but I didn’t know who I was, not really. Often, I don’t have the faintest clue of the next five years, or even the next two. I still oscillate wildly between that wonderful surety and a debilitating fear of the future. Especially since that aforementioned lifelong passion happens to be creative writing and not, you know, hedge fund management. You’ll learn soon enough about my less-than-fully formed productivity habits and my monthly crashouts about jobs and internships.

Indeed, I happened to form the nucleus of my interests and aspirations from a very, very young age, but that passion has evolved with me in the same way someone might start out wanting to pursue acting and then realize they’re better suited for behind-the-scenes work. I still feel a certain catharsis from writing fantasy fiction like in the pages of that red notebook, but I see myself switching genres someday, and I also see myself doing a lot more than creative writing as an adult. Over the years, I’ve looked into work in fields like publishing, PR, academia, journalism, social media marketing, and so on, and I don’t want to box myself in even if I will always be writing no matter what. 

For instance, I write articles on movies and music for NYU’s newspaper. I’ve picked up minor marketing internships and taken business classes to learn about the professional world. Some things I like more than others, and I’m sure one thing or another will fall to the wayside once I graduate. For every notebook I fill, another remains unfinished. The easy part is figuring out how I can use my ability to write wherever I work, but the scary part is that it’ll never look the same way as it did as a child, when I could just tell myself I would be an author and leave it at that.

That’s the thing they don’t tell you about choosing what you want to do at five years old. You’ll have to keep choosing—and wisely this time.

TL;DR: If you picked a lifelong passion as a child like I did, you still have endless opportunities to figure out who you are. If you didn’t, don’t worry. You’re probably better off anyway.


Students get 10% off on ice cream, froyo, soft serve, and more at NYC’s 16 Handles.

By Oshmi Ghosh

Oshmi Ghosh is a rising junior at NYU’s College of Arts and Sciences, pursuing a bachelor’s degree in English with minors in Creative Writing, History, and Entertainment Business. You can usually find her appreciating the simple things in life: tea with milk and sugar, a good book, and/or intensely competitive board games.


For over 20 years, the Campus Clipper has been offering awesome student discounts in NYC,  from the East Side to Greenwich Village. Along with inspiration, the company offers students a special coupon booklet and the Official Student Guide, which encourages them to discover new places in the city and save money on food, clothing, and services.  

At the Campus Clipper, not only do we help our interns learn new skills, make money, and create wonderful e-books, we give them a platform to teach others. Check our website for more student savings and watch our YouTube video showing off some of New York City’s finest students during the Welcome Week of 2015.

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Chapter 1: Two Dreams, One Me

Tuesday, June 10th, 2025
A picture of myself at my favorite restaurant

Hey, welcome to my first-ever blog! I am Marzia—part engineer and part writer, but a full-time yapper. Stick around—it might get messy, but it’ll be fun!! 

My childhood was filled with countless ferry rides from my city to my grandma’s house. As the ferry cut through the gloomy water, I would always stare at the buildings along the shore. They didn’t seem just like structures—they seemed like interesting designs. I would spend the entire time staring at them, the windows, the colors, the shapes, the balconies, and the way they stood next to the water. Sometimes, I would even take wild guesses about the materials used or the money spent on building them, and at other times, I would be too busy wondering how the design could have been better.

It wasn’t long before I started experimenting on my own. On my eighth birthday, my parents gifted me a Lego set. It was more than a toy to me; it was a door to my imagination. I was building hundreds of buildings in a day, experimenting with each one. Each structure was a new challenge—could it be taller, stronger in the base, and more color-oriented? Every time I finished one, I would run around the house to show off my masterpiece. When I was done being showered with compliments, I would take it apart and start over, hoping to come up with a design even more intriguing. 

The more I built, the more I began to believe that I could be an engineer. And the more I believed, the stronger my desire to be one became. So I did everything I could to be an even better engineer. The math geek that I was, I tried to skip every basic arithmetic lesson and dive into the math involved in making real buildings.

As a full-on math nerd, I used to hate writing. But when COVID-19 hit and I was stuck at home with the same three people every day, I started to go a little crazy. That’s when I was struck with a shocking desire to journal. I wanted to write down everything I was doing in the day as if I was going to suffer from memory loss the next day. I still don’t know why.

The more I wrote about my days, I more I discovered that damn I can write?!?! I would try to be poetic and use insanely long formal words to describe simple things. Instead of writing “I took a sip from my cup of coffee,” I would try to write some ridiculous, thing as “I delicately sipped from my cup of coffee, allowing the warmth and bitter aroma to settle before continuing with my thoughts.” Before I knew it, I was writing stories, editing them, and proofreading them. 

As the days of the lockdown extended, my writing habit turned into a ritual I couldn’t live without. The engineer in me couldn’t believe it: I was falling in love with writing. When my works finally got published in physical books, I knew I couldn’t turn my back on writing anymore. 

Just like that, my dream of being an engineer expanded—I wanted to be a writer too.

Funny how the worst times can bring out parts of you that might’ve stayed hidden. Without COVID, I don’t know if I would’ve ever met the writer in me. I was so set on being an engineer, I never even thought about writing. But when everything shut down and the world got quiet, I had nothing but time and thoughts. Writing became my way of making sense of it all. What started as something to pass the time turned into something I loved. Now, I am someone with two dreams, two passions, and two identities.


Get 15% OFF your next slice (or whole pie — we don’t judge). Swing by Pronto Pizza and treat yourself— because good pizza with a discount is a win-win.


By Marzia Seemat

Marzia Seemat is a sophomore at NYU studying civil engineering and creative writing. She loves being close to nature, especially at the beach. Her favorite things include good food, morning tea, hour-long movies, and spending time with the people she loves.


For over 20 years, the Campus Clipper has been offering awesome student discounts in NYC, from the East Side to Greenwich Village. Along with inspiration, the company offers students a special coupon booklet and the Official Student Guide, which encourages them to discover new places in the city and save money on food, clothing, and services. At the Campus Clipper, not only do we help our interns learn new skills, make money, and create wonderful e-books, we give them a platform to teach others. Check our website for more student savings and watch our YouTube video showing off some of New York City’s finest students during the Welcome Week of 2015.

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Intentionality as a Young Adult: Creative Ways to Make Food

Friday, October 11th, 2024

Moving onto campus this semester was extra stressful for me. My college has a Los Angeles campus, and I committed to coming out here for the fall. I had never been to the West Coast before, so I knew I was in for a culture shock. On top of that, I was living with a group of people I barely knew and was scared about being able to connect with them. However, the number one thing that eased all of my anxieties was bringing a classic familial tradition to the suite — a Labor Day barbeque! Each of us in the suite brought a dish, cooking together through the afternoon. In a semester where my meal plan mainly consists of gift cards to grocery stores, this was a great way to ease some of my fears about cooking for myself consistently. 


A picture one of my suitemates took of us all enjoying the cookout! 

Ultimately, making food is so personal from person to person. It can be very daunting to figure out just what type of cooking you enjoy — or if you even like cooking! For some people, that’s just really not their thing. That’s not necessarily an issue, but you should still be able to find ways to create a good relationship with food. With the rise of social media and a bigger focus than ever on bodies and self-image, it can be easy for food to become the enemy. So finding unique ways to engage with recipes and restaurants is important, especially for college students! You want to figure out sustainable solutions now because feeding yourself is a problem that is never going to go away. 

First, identify what specific types of food you are looking for. Are there cultural dishes you enjoy? Do you need to be eating healthy? What food feels good for your body? These are the first questions you have to ask yourself. Don’t be afraid to think critically about the food you’re eating. As I mentioned in my previous chapters, identify what you find valuable in your life. 

Once you know what you like, figure out what type of food is the most realistic to make with your schedule. If you have back-to-back classes most days, maybe prioritize meal-prepping things that can be easily grabbed during your breaks. If you work from home for long hours, find some fun recipes you can make during your lunch break to shake up the monotony. 

One of my favorite things to do to make food exciting has been to find food influencers that I enjoy. Particularly on TikTok and YouTube, where you can watch people cook — even cook along with them — has sparked ideas of my own. I’ve listed some of my favorites below. 

  • @porkypigeats on TikTok: This is a really cute account that remakes many recipes from Stardew Valley, one of my favorite video games. Not only are these recipes pretty easy overall, but if you ever find yourself getting hungry while playing the game, this is the perfect way to have a 4D experience!
  • @halfbakedharvest on TikTok: This is some of the most aesthetically pleasing food that has ever crossed my For You Page, so these are at least beautiful videos to watch. However, this creator also makes a ton of bowls, which tend to be one of my personal favorite types of meals. 
  • @kaelyngutierrez on TikTok: This is a more lighthearted account, but I love cooking along with Kaelyn! While she doesn’t usually give distinct recipes, her passion for cooking and expertise around all kinds of food makes me feel more comfortable too. Particularly her ease handling meat has made me a lot more confident in my own meat-handling abilities. 

Cookbooks can also be a really fun way to find recipes, especially because of the sheer amount out there. I know a lot of younger people can think of cookbooks as boring, associating them with the dusty ones hidden in the back of your parent’s’ kitchen. But there’s so many cookbooks out there, particularly ones related to different media. Pick your favorite mainstream movie or TV show, and chances are, there’s a cookbook to go along with it. Do you enjoy watching Emily’s adventures through Paris? Check out Emily in Paris: The Official Cookbook by Kim Laidlaw. More of a fantasy person? There’s a handful of Game of Thrones and Harry Potter cookbooks out there. Just associating your food with your favorite piece of media can make it so much more enjoyable. 

All this to say, there are plenty of ways to make food exciting for yourself. Even if you’re not that good of a chef, eating doesn’t have to be a chore. Figuring out how to make food creative can add so much value to your life in so many unexpected ways. 



On a lazier day, you can get some great food from The Maharaja for 20% off! Just use this coupon and bring your student ID for any takeout order. 

By Izzy Astuto

Izzy Astuto (he/they) is a writer currently majoring in Creative Writing at Emerson College, with a specific interest in screenwriting. His work has previously been published by Hearth and Coffin, Sage Cigarettes, and The Gorko Gazette, amongst others. He is currently a reader for journals such as PRISM international and Alien Magazine. You can find more of their work on their website, at https://izzyastuto.weebly.com/. Their Instagram is izzyastuto2.0 and Twitter is adivine_tragedy. 


For over 20 years, the Campus Clipper has been offering awesome student discounts in NYC,  from the East Side to Greenwich Village. Along with inspiration, the company offers students a special coupon booklet and the Official Student Guide, which encourages them to discover new places in the city and save money on food, clothing, and services.  

At the Campus Clipper, not only do we help our interns learn new skills, make money, and create wonderful e-books, we give them a platform to teach others. Check our website for more student savings and watch our YouTube video showing off some of New York City’s finest students during the Welcome Week of 2015.

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Dear No One: Letters That Stay Unsent

Monday, October 7th, 2024

I’ve written a fair share of letters in my day. It’s the romantic in me who feels written words, those that are so exquisitely accurate in their portrayal of love and loss, are the pinnacle of my existence. If I love someone, I have to write to them; it’s instinctive. This doesn’t mean, however, that I send all or even the majority of the letters I write. That is the coward in me, too afraid people will hold me to the words I write at a specific moment in time, too embarrassed to have a crowd of recipients holding physical evidence of my admiration for them.

As a general rule, the best course of action for most situations is to be honest and share your feelings with others. If you love them, admire them, miss them, are happy for them, or want to let them know you’re thinking of them, then, by all means, send them a letter! As long as you are not hurting anyone by sending this letter, there is no reason to be ashamed of your feelings. More importantly, you could make someone’s day. For me, nothing is more touching than receiving a handwritten letter from someone I care about. When I die, bury me in a coffin full of all the letters written to me.

Sometimes I do work at Emerson, sometimes I take a whole meeting room to myself and take selfies in the sunlight. First come, first serve.

A different truth is, of course, that life goes on. People hurt one another, lose touch, or slowly fade into the background of one’s existence. Things are constantly fluctuating, changing in ways we can’t prepare for. We are so busy! Work, school, internships; new friends, new subway lines, new bars; a big love, a big house, a big quarter-life crisis. Our minds are often scrambled, just trying to get through the motions of everyday life and enjoy it as it comes. Then, it creeps up on you, that random Friday afternoon. You hear a song you haven’t heard in a while, and it brings you back to a few years ago. Time freezes as you relive a life that you are so far removed from you wonder if it was ever even yours. Now, you’ve found yourself missing people you shouldn’t, realizing the window of opportunity to reach out has long passed, rightfully so. You’re flooded with nostalgia, rose-colored and inflated. Pouring your heart and soul out to them now would be more than wrong. 

Alexa, play ‘Bad Idea, Right?’ by Olivia Rodrigo. Let this be a call to all the dewy-eyed girlies: Do NOT listen to that voice in your head telling you to make a harmless phone call to people who’ve hurt you. You have an alternative, and while it may not be as riveting of a story to tell at the cute cocktail spill-all, it is the healthier thing to do. The past is in the past, and you will never get it back, nor should you want to! More importantly, you are not the person you once were, and that is a good thing. Understand, too, that sometimes it is simply fun to reminisce, to repaint the past with the fresh perspective of a refined frontal lobe, but that doesn’t mean you should run with your naivety, expecting a new rendition of your past to become your reality.

A photo I took of two kids hanging out in Seaport, 2022.

Such circumstances as these are the perfect times to write a letter that is purposefully intended to not be sent anywhere. You can say everything you want to say, feel everything you want to feel, and simply tear it up (or burn it, which is thrilling!) when you’re done reading it over. There’s no regret, no embarrassment, no hurting others by bringing unsolicited memories back into fruition, and no risking your current peace. This is your chance to leave the “But What If?” to die. 

That being said, my favorite place to write letters I’ll never send is in my journal. Sometimes I will rip the pages out, crumble them, and toss them in the recycling bin. Other times I will leave them in my journal to look back on. I have also burned a few. Occasionally, I type them up and pretend I’m Meg Ryan in You’ve Got Mail, but I usually just put a lock on the document until I feel I’ve outgrown whatever  I wrote down, and then I trash it. I’ve even dropped a few letters in the mailbox with no return or send address. One, I’m not proud of is when I sent a letter down a river, which was environmentally careless, but I was desperate for some kind of cinematic, main character energy to justify my emotions (Ah, to be 18 again). Ultimately, it doesn’t matter where you write your letter or in what way you discard it afterward. As long as you get the cathartic release you need, you’ve done yourself some good, and you should be proud.

Get arts and crafty this fall and save 10% at Blick with a student account!

Brenna Sheets is a graduate student in Emerson College’s Writing and Publishing M.A. program. She is also a teacher, currently specializing in middle school history. Her hobbies include going on long walks, reading and writing, and watching bad television.

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Delulu is the Solulu: Journaling for Creative Expression

Monday, September 23rd, 2024

Contrary to popular ‘film bro’ belief, you actually do not need to take psychedelics to unlock your inner creativity. Among the many ways one can use journaling for personal wellness, arguably one of the most popular is to explore creative expression. Often, the idea of journaling is met with the stereotypical image of a teenage girl in her bedroom, feet swinging in the air, a smile on her face, and a familiar “Dear Diary…” monologue that almost always includes a crush on a boy (because what else could women possibly have to think about, right?) However, journaling doesn’t have to be all touchy-feely-existential-dread all the time; it can be a strategic machine that helps writers, lyricists, filmmakers, artists, and other creators overcome their mental blocks and find inspiration. 

A photo I took around this time last year of gloomy autumn weather.

One of my favorite ways to stay in tune with my creative writing is doing something I call “The Five Senses.” When I journal in the evening, I usually recount the most prominent events and feelings I encountered that day. “I am absolutely exhausted” shows up a lot. “Today at work…” is another popular one, unfortunately. But sometimes this can take away from the actual sensations I experience on a second-to-second basis—all the little things that make life so beautifully sappy. I write down the five senses and try to describe the most influential senses I experienced or the ones that brought me the most joy. Here’s an example from my journal from this past Thursday:

Sight: Dark, gloomy overcast. Wet asphalt. Tiny raindrops on the passenger seat window. 

Smell: Orange citrus from my vitamins. Potent, nauseating, artificial.

Taste: Curry tofu, sweet and spicy, rich, crispy. soft, chewy potatoes. Savory, satisfying. 

Touch: My boyfriend’s 5 o’clock shadow. Prickly, comforting, endorphin-releasing, lovely.

Sound: Autumn Lo-Fi Jazz I play at work to concentrate. Soothing, familiar, easy. 

This technique helps me describe sensations in more detail, easing my transition from journal writing to creative writing. It also helps me stay present and appreciate all of the wonderful things happening around me, which is definitely needed in a world like today’s. 

love love love curry tofu in the fall.

Some other prompts can help you think more outside the box. If you need a creative spark that’s going to really turn some heads, consider getting a journal prompt book, which is available online and in stores for cheap. You can also find prompts on the internet and use those once a week or month for your journaling practice. Some examples include:

  • Make a list of questions you would ask a future version of yourself. Which version would you want to speak with the most?
  • Choose a random object in your room. What characteristics do you have in common with it, metaphorically and physically?
  • Invent an impossible tool that would make your life more efficient or interesting.
  • Imagine you get the chance to be any animal for a day. Which animal would you pick, and what would you do?
  • If you could visit the past, where would you go, and what would you do there?

Another popular way to unlock your creative expression is to free write. This is a technique where you time yourself and write down whatever comes to mind without pausing to think or erase anything. I often free write with a time limit of five minutes, although it’s not uncommon to lengthen your session. Sometimes when I read over my free-write, it is purely gibberish and more of a stream-of-consciousness than anything. Other times, I realize there is a pattern of thought going on in my brain, and that pattern might be a good topic to explore in my writing. 

Let’s not forget that journaling is a form of creativity in itself. Annie Ernaux, a French writer who won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2022, published her diary entries as a collection titled “Getting Lost.” The book was listed as one of the best books of 2022 by the BBC and a must-read by Time. It is a favorite of mine for its honest portrayal of emotional vulnerability.

Overall, there are a ton of ways to participate in journaling as a means of creative expression. You may need to try a few to see which ones work the best for you, but once you find your niche, you’re sure to flourish.  

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Brenna Sheets is a graduate student in Emerson College’s Writing and Publishing M.A. program. She is currently a teacher, specializing in middle school history. Her hobbies include going on long walks, watching bad television, reading, and writing.

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How To Exercise When You Don’t Want to

Thursday, July 25th, 2024

One of the most challenging things I’ve faced as a working-class college student is sedentarism. Although my body is in constant motion between my five courses and thirty-two-hour work week, none is deliberate enough to constitute exercise—although the exhaustion my body feels every day would make one think otherwise. Additionally, with each passing semester, I have less free time to work out. As I ventured into my fitness journey last year during summer break, I learned that my mental health also affected my body on a physical level. On one hand, lacking the will to move my body was a sign of mental exhaustion, while on the other, not moving my body because of said mental state made me stiff and weak, affecting my physical health. It is a hard-to-break cycle I’ve been dealing with my whole life, but its effects have intensified since the start of my college journey. 

It doesn’t help that I really dislike exercising. Many say that it’s an enjoyable activity, and perhaps it is for them. For me, it is dreadful and annoying from beginning to end. Last year I worked out rigorously for four months and it never got better. Sure, I loved how my body felt after the fact but while I was doing it? I don’t think so. Again, this is just my experience because I know many people who love exercising. I really wish I was like them, but I am not, so we must work with what we have. Thus, for us lazy folks (and maybe a bit neuro-spicy folks), I have put together a guide to exercise when we don’t want to because, well—I’m sorry to break it to you—we need to move our bodies to maintain physical and mental health. So, here it goes:

Image Credit: https://www.thenortherner.com/news/2020/02/25/balancing-a-healthy-diet-as-a-college-student/
  1. When you wake up, before leaving your bed, stretch your muscles. There are plenty of stretches one can do in bed and it is important to develop flexibility to avoid muscle injury. The activity can last as much time as you have available, but it should be for a minimum of ten minutes. 
  2. When you are reading class materials, don’t sit down. Adults should take at least 10,000 steps each day. So, use your reading time to walk around your home, neighborhood, or campus to get them in without even thinking about it–audiobooks are also great for this. The activity is not exhaustive, and it is beneficial to boost your stamina. Even I, who hates exercise, enjoyed this one. 
  3. Similarly, when you are typing tirelessly on your computer, spend some time standing up. Find a place to put your laptop or monitor higher up so you can work while on your feet. This one is trickier because you may not have the space to do this, so if you don’t, try to do seated stretches to release shoulders and lower back tension. 
  4. Find an activity that requires you to move your body and that you enjoy. Here is where you must have slightly more discipline to try different things. Yoga, dancing, martial arts, hiking, biking, and many others are activities that do not necessarily feel like exercise, but they are. If you hate every single one of them, that’s okay. You can try the previous steps. 
  5. Lastly, surround yourself with people who love exercising. I hate to admit that it can work. They can be good motivators, and since they have your well-being at heart, they usually hold you accountable when you don’t move your body enough. And if you are a bit competitive, they might inspire you to train more! It is always nurturing to surround yourself with different perspectives.
As you can see, some days it is harder than others to just walk enough.

And there you have it: five simple steps to improve your energy and flexibility. Although moving your body is essential, the most important thing to practice during your college journey is compassion. We are often so hard on ourselves because college takes our time to do things we enjoy, but we need to accept that our careers are demanding and try our best anyway. There are weeks where I don’t follow any of the steps and my body surely pays the price, but I don’t beat myself too hard on it because I must also protect my mind. I hope you do as well.


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By Roxanna Cardenas

Roxanna is a Venezuelan writer living in New York City. Her works include essays, poetry, screenplays, and short stories. She explores fiction and non-fiction genres, with a special interest in horror and sci-fi. She has an A.A. in Writing and Literature and is working on her B.A. in English with a Creative Writing concentration.


For over 20 years, the Campus Clipper has been offering awesome student discounts in NYC,  from the East Side to Greenwich Village. Along with inspiration, the company offers students a special coupon booklet and the Official Student Guide, which encourages them to discover new places in the city and save money on food, clothing, and services.  

At the Campus Clipper, not only do we help our interns learn new skills, make money, and create wonderful e-books, we give them a platform to teach others. Check our website for more student savings and watch our YouTube video showing off some of New York City’s finest students during the Welcome Week of 2015.

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Chapter 10: Not Goodbye Just See You Later

Monday, November 20th, 2023

I suck at goodbyes. I always cry or make inappropriate jokes to get everyone to laugh instead of being sad. With that being said, I’m absolutely terrified to say goodbye to some of my best friends at the end of my senior year займ 10000 рублей.

Luckily, I am a part of my university’s five year Master’s program and a few of my other friends are as well. But there are still a few that I’ll have to say goodbye to that I’m worried will likely end in all of us sobbing hysterically.

Not that there’s anything wrong with crying. Crying is an extremely healthy way to let out emotions and anyone who says otherwise is jealous of the way we are capable of portraying our emotions. The only reason I’m scared to cry when saying goodbye is because I’m a very ugly crier, but that’s just me.

I learned throughout my years at college that crying is seen all around campus. Which may sound depressing as hell, but it’s really not. Sometimes I’ll just be walking to the dining hall during finals season and I’ll hear someone sniffling and no one bats an eye because it’s so widely accepted. This was much different than my experience in highschool, but it was a new kind of difference that I was excited to welcome into my life.

Anyways, back to saying goodbye.

This isn’t my first time having to say goodbye to my friends. When I left high school, all of my friends and I went different ways. It was scary, but we knew it was for the best. Specifically when saying goodbye to my best friend of 16 years (at the time it was only twelve years), I knew there would be some tears. Her school was online for the first semester due to COVID and my school was open so I was moving to my new home for the next four years. We spent almost every day together during the summer, even with the pandemic going on. We found ways to hang out outside and wore masks so that we were still safe while taking in all the time we had left together. But when the day came where I had to leave, we still cried.


My best friend and I our senior year of high school, before COVID

I realize now that it was a bit foolish of us to cry. We still see each other and keep in contact all the time. It wasn’t really a goodbye, but more of a “see you later!”. The only difference in our friendship was that we weren’t seeing each other everyday, but even still we can text each other whenever.

And with that, I’m reminding myself all throughout my senior year that things won’t be completely different to how it was last time. Even though we won’t be living on the same campus, only a few minutes walk between each other, I know I will still see my friends and my roommate again. We’ve already discussed how we’ll meet up whenever we can and will aim to continue our tradition of a “Friendsgiving”.

Like I said before with my high school best friend, we also can text each other whenever. Thankfully we live in a technology based society now and it is much easier to keep in touch with friends than it used to be. We can send each other TikToks or funny videos on Instagram just to let each other know that we are still thinking of one another. We can also keep up with fun things happening around us and make plans to meet up at such events. For example, my friends and I are both fans of the same book series and one of us discovered there’s a themed ball/gala to celebrate that book series happening after graduation. We all are excited to see if we can go to celebrate the start of continuing our friendship after school.

When my friends and I finish walking across the stage with our diplomas we won’t say goodbye. We’ll just be saying see you later.


Some great memories of me and my friends!

Summary:

  • Saying goodbye has always been difficult for me
  • Crying is normal and healthy!
  • I had to say goodbye to my best friend after high school, but we still kept in touch so it wasn’t really a goodbye
  • How to stay in touch with friends after college

Go out to eat with friends and enjoy some free drinks with this coupon and student ID!

By Mia Ilie

Mia Ilie is a student at Pace University, graduating in May 2024 with a degree in Writing and Rhetoric and a focus on publishing. She grew up in Rockland, New York and is currently living in Westchester, New York where she attends school and works at a local bookstore. You can always find her with her nose in a book or screaming to Taylor Swift with her friends.


For over 20 years, the Campus Clipper has been offering awesome student discounts in NYC,  from the East Side to Greenwich Village. Along with inspiration, the company offers students a special coupon booklet and the Official Student Guide, which encourages them to discover new places in the city and save money on food, clothing, and services.  

At the Campus Clipper, not only do we help our interns learn new skills, make money, and create wonderful e-books, we give them a platform to teach others. Check our website for more student savings and watch our YouTube video showing off some of New York City’s finest students during the Welcome Week of 2015.

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Chapter 7: Balancing It Out: How to Have Fun and Still be Organized

Monday, October 30th, 2023

If I’m being completely honest, I’m the absolute worst at staying organized. Time

management skills? Those don’t exist in my world. I just do things when I remember and hope for the best. At least that’s what I used to do.

My freshman year of college, I was interested in majoring in psychology and took a few psych courses. I noticed through those courses that I fit into some of the definitions of ADHD and further researched it. By my sophomore year, I got the diagnosis and things started to make more sense. Turns out your brain is supposed to think in full proper sentences and people are actually able to sit down for hours and focus while studying? Crazy concept.

Anyways, for the first two years of college I was doing mostly alright with a high GPA, but was always stressed and often procrastinated  things to the last minute. Figuring out how to have fun with my friends and also find time to do homework was nearly impossible. Once  I also got a job, my brain was about to burst.

Every year before the first day of classes, I would buy a planner and swear to myself that I would use it and stay organized. Now, if you also have ADHD, you know what it’s like to have everyone suggest buying a planner only to spend money and never use it after the first week. Every year I would spend a day writing out my week and marking when important dates are in the semester, only to forget about it and never open it again. I’m sure for some people, planners are a great way to stay organized and on top of things, and I definitely recommend it for people to try. It just wasn’t the right fit for me.

I then tried different tips people have given me like adding things to my calendar on my phone and getting notifications. However, I couldn’t even figure out how to set up the notifications on the calendar/reminders and every time I tried I would just end up forgetting all about whatever was planned. If you are a tech savvy person, this is probably the best thing for you, but I’m like an old woman and suck at technology. I do like Google calendar though, my boss uses it for work and that at least keeps some part of my life organized.


Meg and I hanging out before the semester starts

It wasn’t until my junior year when I met my friend Meg till I found out what worked for me. My friend Meg is incredibly organized and even schedules their own naps. I had no idea how they did it until one day they showed me a simple checklist they made on their notes app of things they need to get done before the end of the semester. At first it seemed overwhelming, but then I remembered the trick my old therapist told me to do things day by day.

So with both of those things in mind, I opened my notes app and wrote down the things I needed to get done each day for the last two weeks of the semester and it actually worked! I broke down assignments so I wasn’t overwhelmed telling myself to get the entire thing done in one sitting. For example, I would write “Monday: Create essay outline. Tuesday: Write first two paragraphs. Etc.” This way, they were smaller tasks that led to completion. It also helped that every time I checked something off it was super satisfying, especially to see my list get smaller.

When I started my senior year, I wanted to move from my phone to paper because holding a physical to-do list helps me take things more seriously. So instead of buying a planner, I bought an empty lined journal and every Sunday I write down my tasks for each day of the week. Now I’m extremely organized and capable of finding the time to hang out with friends rather than avoiding work or avoiding my friends till everything is done.


My to-do list from the last two weeks. I do a new color each week to keep things exciting!

It’s also important to remind yourself that some days are better than others. You may have a lot written down to do for the day, but it’s not possible to get everything done every single day. And it is also important to treat yourself and still hang out with your friends, especially if you are feeling stressed and overwhelmed. It is always best to take care of yourself first.

Summary:

  • I struggled on how to stay organized with school work and having fun
  • I was diagnosed with ADHD but none of the tips people were giving me helped
  • I met my friend Meg and liked the idea of a to-do list
  • I became much more organized and balanced everything out
  • Remember to take care of yourself!

Have a self care day and get 20% off a sweet treat with this coupon and student ID!

By Mia Ilie

Mia Ilie is a student at Pace University, graduating in May 2024 with a degree in Writing and Rhetoric and a focus on publishing. She grew up in Rockland, New York and is currently living in Westchester, New York where she attends school and works at a local bookstore. You can always find her with her nose in a book or screaming to Taylor Swift with her friends.


For over 20 years, the Campus Clipper has been offering awesome student discounts in NYC,  from the East Side to Greenwich Village. Along with inspiration, the company offers students a special coupon booklet and the Official Student Guide, which encourages them to discover new places in the city and save money on food, clothing, and services.  

At the Campus Clipper, not only do we help our interns learn new skills, make money, and create wonderful e-books, we give them a platform to teach others. Check our website for more student savings and watch our YouTube video showing off some of New York City’s finest students during the Welcome Week of 2015.

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