Pepsi, Coke, or RC?

Pepsi, Coke, or RC?





Mountain Dew.  
Oh, my bad. That wasn't an option, was it?  

I'll try again.

Sweet Tea. Darn it!

Considering how close we are to Atlanta and that Chattanooga is the home of the first Coca-Cola bottling company, I think my answer is supposed to be Coca Cola.

And even considering that Columbus, GA (home of RC Cola) is just a bit further down the road from Atlanta, I think RC is supposed to be my second answer.

However, I was raised in a Pepsi-drinking household, and we shouldn't turn our backs on who we are, right?!

A person's preference between colas is definitely shaped by what he/she is exposed to. Pepsi was always available at my house, Coke--not so much. In fact, I don't recall drinking much Coca-Cola until my late teen years although I do have clear memories of how the world lost its mind when New Coke came out. Oh my, were people upset!  So upset, that we were soon thereafter gifted with Coca-Cola Classic.

Coca-Cola vs. New Coke: who was the winner? Pepsi.

For some people, a soda preference is deeply connected to who they are, their memories, their life. For others, its just colored, sugar water that's bad for you.
And there are plenty of people everywhere in between.

Even if you have a preference, try something new every once in awhile. You never know when a new flavor may become your new favorite!

Prof. Chatterbox

Am I dead?

Am I dead?



Your professor has been wondering whether or not you are dead.



Some of you are sitting in class with glassy eyes, trying to stop yourselves from falling asleep. And you are probably blaming your professors for that. But we have heard through the grapevine that many of you are not sleeping a good eight hours a night. In fact, some of you have fessed up and admitted that you are not sleeping enough because you no longer have a mommy around to tell you to go to bed at a decent hour.

http://thenews.org/2012/09/20/sleep-deprivation-common-among-students/

http://thenews.org/2012/09/20/sleep-deprivation-common-among-students/

Sleep deprivation is a serious condition that can lead to slowed motor reactions, delayed cognitive functions, depression, and even serious illness.
http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/features/important-sleep-habits

The likelihood that college students suffer from sleep deprivation is well documented:
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/160265.php
And so are the effects of sleep deprivation on students:
http://www.schools.com/visuals/student-sleep.html

If you want to rejoin the living start sleeping eight hours a night. Make a concerted effort to schedule the appropriate amount of sleep for optimal physical and brain functions. This may mean giving up some late night chats or a few hours of Xbox, but that is life...or that is how you will come back to life.

Sweet dreams,

Professor Repentista

Can the Chatt bus take you to Knoxville?

Can the Chatt bus take you to Knoxville?







You've only been here 7 weeks, and you're already trying to run away?

Jokes aside, there are at least two bus options that you can take from Chattanooga to Knoxville and back: Greyhound and Megabus.

Both services have at least a few routes everyday, and at last check, you can get a ticket for as cheap as $14.00 one way on either service.  However, the services vary greatly beyond this.

Greyhound has been around for nearly a century and has a fixed bus station here in Chattanooga on Airport Rd. within spitting distance of the airport.  A ticket from here to Knoxville can cost anywhere from $14.00 to $39.00 one-way ($14 for web purchase, $33 for the standard fare, and $39 for the refundable-ticket) plus purchase fees and/or taxes.  You can take one checked bag and one carry-on without any fees.  You can carry additional bags for certain fees. And in recent years, Greyhound has made efforts to upgrade their buses, so they allegedly offer more leg room, sockets for various devices, and free Wi-Fi.   The website linked above provides details.

Megabus has been around since 2006 and is a curbside pick-up bus service, which means they do not operate out of a station.  However, they do drop off and pick up at the same location each time.  In Chattanooga, the bus stop is in the Eastgate Shopping Center on Brainerd Rd.  A ticket from here to Knoxville will cost $14.00 one-way plus a 50 cent (yes, $0.50) processing fee. (Depending on where you are travelling to and from on Megabus, tickets can be as low as $1 one-way.  Yes, one dollar.)  You can carry one checked bag and one carry on--that's it.  Their buses also come equipped with Wi-Fi.  The website linked above can provide more details.

So if you need to get out of town on a bus, here's how you do it.

Prof. Chatterbox

Why force someone to ask a question?

You asked, "Why force someone to ask a question?"

 




We asked, "Why not force someone to ask a question?"


While no-one actually "forced" anyone to ask a question during orientation, you were asked to write down questions that were occurring to you because your orientation professors wanted to start a blog. Really. The other professors won't fess up, but I will. We didn't really care if your lack of desired knowledge made you feel uncomfortable or even fearful of the experience on which you were about to embark. We just wanted to write silly blog posts on a regular basis because, let's face it, your professors just do not have enough to do...you know, besides the whole molding your brains to think like ours thing (which is obviously a better reason to force you to ask questions because it allows us to pinpoint weaknesses we can prey upon). And I know some of you just asked yourself, "Why did she use that picture again?" The answer is "Because I love it!"

We all have questions. If you concentrate long enough on the thoughts that pop into your mind for one day you will find that you have lots of questions. Many, many questions that you never verbalize, never ponder for more than a second, never take the time to find an answer for. For instance, the other night a streak of fire sped across the Chattanooga night sky. How many of you saw it and asked yourself "What the hell is that?" Well, for those of you who did ask, here is your answer:
http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2013/sep/30/nasa-comments-fireball/

The truth is we wanted you to share your questions with us because we want you to get into the habit of asking questions. Asking questions leads to getting answers. And getting answers leads to getting smarter. And if there is one thing we actually want more than turning you into our own personal minions it is for you to get smarter and stronger and more capable and more creative and more successful...

Also, we all know that feeling as if we do not know what is going on can lead to a general state of uncomfortableness or even fearfulness. We want you to feel as safe and as comfortable as possible while at UTC, mainly because Abraham Maslow's theory informs us that if you do not feel safe and comfortable you will not actually learn everything you can. Now, some of you asked, "Who is Maslow, and what is his theory?" Here is your answer: Maslow Bio, Maslow's Theory.

So, be sure to ask questions and get answers, because that is how you find out what you need to know and want to know and absolutely must know, like who has the cookies:

 

Off to find the cookies,

Professor Repentista



Are Football Games Any Good?

You've heard the buzz, the griping, the complaining. You haven't been to a game yet, and you're wondering if it's worth it. You ask yourself, SELF....

Are Football Games Any Good?

Along with this question, you may be asking "Is the football team any good?" and I can understand why you may see those two questions as connected. Chattanooga is smack-dab in the middle of SEC country. If we don't see some Ws, we assume a team is not doing what it's supposed to do. We fire a coach, we cheat a little on recruitment, we look the other way when our players do some shady business on the side. We do what it takes to get that W. Here's the thing, though: UTC Athletics have been working like dogs to develop every aspect of its program. You may not know that a few years ago, UTC got hit with some penalties because of poor academic standing. Since then, we've made tremendous progress and keep turning out scholar-athletes like Davis Tull, who has received several academic honors along with recognition for his play on the football field. He's not alone, of course. There are whole teams with kick-butt gpas and winning records, but football reigns supreme in the South, so that's what we're talking about right now.

It's the beginning of October, and UTC's record is 2-2. You may have already concluded the games aren't worth going to if they aren't going to win them all. Well, first, that's just dumb. Second, you going to the game (and STAYING until the end) helps them have a better chance at winning. It's a known fact that fans give teams energy, get their adrenaline pumping, and can contribute to key plays at key moments. So, GOOOOOOOO (mocs).

This Saturday, October 5th, at 6 pm, we host Western Carolina. Put on your warpaint, people. It's time to make some noise. You can make it happen. Though it may not be the SEC, this is your team. You can be the ones who watch them turn it around.

Is it possible to be too involved?

Is it possible to be too involved?







No, never.  In fact, you should join so many organizations that you don't have time to attend class, sleep, eat, or study.



No, wait!  You're here to get an education first and be involved second, so scratch that.

Yes, you can be too involved.  As a college student, your first priority should be to do well in your classes so that you can finish your degree, which means attending classes regularly, studying for your classes, and submitting all work.  Beyond the time spent attending classes and working on things for class, you should of course get involved in things around campus.  However, you should also be cautious not to join so many organizations, attend so many events, say "yes" to every thing someone asks you to do to the point that your grades and/or health suffer and you possibly get stressed out from being too involved.

Just like anything else in life, college should have a good balance to it.  If you find that you aren't sleeping as much or eating as healthy or you feel stressed out due to too many events or organizations or too much involvement, you might want to assess what can be cut in order to maintain a better balance.

Of course, if you aren't involved in anything, you should be. "All work and no play made Jack (and Jill) a dull boy (and girl)."

Not sure what to do, check out the Get Involved section of the Student Resources page on the UTC website.

Go out there and find your good balance!

Professor Chatterbox

Why Do Frat Guys Wear Short Shorts?

You're walking across Heritage Plaza, and from a distance, you spy him. You can tell from 50 feet that he's a frat guy. How? His shorts. As he passes, you can't help but wonder:

Why Do Frat Guys Wear Short Shorts?

As usual, there is a short answer (pun intended) and a long answer. The short answer is that just like Norts or leggings, Chubbies are what a large number of y'all have decided is cool right now. (see also Croakies, Camo, or Chacos). Remember our conversation about the sheep? Yeah, that.

But take a closer look at that Chubbies website. If you scroll through the photos, you'll notice a decided lack. That's right. It's almost all white guys. Now, surely you don't mean to imply that only white guys join a fraternity. Because I'm pretty sure the men of Phi Beta Sigma would disagree. Here they are at last year's step show. Do you see any Chubbies? No, you don't. They are OF COURSE not the only people of color who choose to participate in Greek Life at UTC, so let's not put all our eggs in one basket, er, pair of shorts, shall we?