Mount Hood

How to save money when flying on vacation

Rebecca Meyers | Lifestyle Editor

Spring Break is quickly arriving, making it hard to focus on the finals to come. Some have already started their planning, but for some, finances can be an enormous hinderance. This is especially true of air travel. Flying is the fastest and often easiest way to travel long distance, especially for students wishing to return to family for the break. However, it’s also the most expensive way to travel. Fortunately, there are a few ways to budget and be prepared enough to create an affordable vacation.

 

Be aware of timing: Most plane tickets become more expensive as the flight time approaches, meaning booking them as far in advance as possible is usually the cheapest way to go. According to Forbes, the exact number of days to buy in advance for the most affordable tickets varies by the season, but it’s usually around seven weeks.

Consider other fees: While a ticket might seem the cheapest in a side-by-side comparison, these often don’t factor in additional expenses. It can be worth it to include checking all fees as part of the research into which airline to choose. For example, if you need to bring extra luggage, something to consider might be which airlines charge the most for additional baggage.

Don’t forget the rest of the trip: Gas, rental cars, taxis and hotels might not be the biggest expense, but they can add up quickly. Finding the airport closest to the hotel, or vice versa, arranging for transportation to the airport ahead of time and researching the different modes of transportation of the place you’re going to are all ways to cut down on the costs of the rest of the trip. Also, bringing everything possible rather than buying the needed toiletries or other things can help cut expenses in places that have sales tax.

Consider connecting flights: It’s not always ideal, but it’s often cheaper to endure a layover. Depending on the place, a longer layover can be an opportunity to explore a new city; this typical inconvenience could easily be made into an exciting part of your vacation.

 

Vacations can be a struggle when they feel out of reach due to the overall costs. However, the right amount of planning can make a worthwhile holiday possible.

 

Contact the author at howllifestyle@wou.edu

Photo courtesy Ashlynn Norton

How to be efficient at group projects

Rebecca Meyers | Lifestyle Editor

Every term, students across campus have to tackle what’s considered one of the biggest challenges of college: group projects. Often worth a significant number of points, group projects can be incredibly frustrating for a number of reasons. However, as they are often inevitable, the skills to finishing them in an effective manner are important to learn.

One of the biggest challenges can be communication, or lack thereof. Not knowing when someone intends to finish their part, if they need any help or not or if they are even still in the class — yes, it has happened before — can make the project much more stressful than it needs to be. Unfortunately, we can’t control anyone’s communication except our own. Making a conscious effort to clear up any misunderstanding at the very least ensures that there will be a reduced chance of a mixup.

Sometimes, that mixup will occur anyway, which brings us to our next point. Another big source of stress is when other group members don’t seem to pull their weight. No one wants their grade to suffer, but no one wants to be unsure of how much work they really have to put into it. I have witnessed many people stress over whether or not to work on an unfinished portion of a project that wasn’t assigned to them. Fortunately, many professors are fully aware that this sometimes happens. Making a plan to talk to the professor instead of continuously trying to contact an unresponsive group member makes it easier to focus on your assigned part of the project and leave behind a lot of stress.

Less common, but still prevalent, is the occasional tendency of leadership styles or ideas to clash in divisive ways. These are those “pick your battles” instances that are often raised: is it worth fighting someone else’s idea if you think it won’t get as good of a grade? This dilemma surfaces every so often, and there’s no easy answer to it. The organization of the group is something to consider, however. If there’s enough solid leadership within the group that whatever topic that’s chosen can be made to work, it might be worth it just to roll with the group.

Many people dread having to face group work every term. Sometimes we get lucky and the members work well together, but other times we have to make the best of the situation.

 

Contact the author at howllifestyle@wou.edu

Questions you should ask your adviser

Rebecca Meyers | Lifestyle Editor

Advisers are one of the many resources students have access to at Western. Their goal is to help students on their path to graduation, as well as help them approach life after graduation. However, sometimes knowing the right questions to ask can be tricky, especially for newer students.

In my personal experience, meetings go best when there’s specific topics to discuss, rather than just hoping the adviser will have the exact answers needed without any context. Here are some questions to consider that can help an adviser meeting run more smoothly and be more successful overall.

 

“How do I use DegreeWorks?”

It may not seem like the first question to ask as DegreeWorks is fully accessible on a student Portal account. However, as many quickly discover, there are layers to DegreeWorks that can quickly become a long and confusing list. It’s important to understand it, as it’s the best way to check on the status of graduation requirements.

 

“Is there anything I should get out of the way?” or, “How do I prioritize?”

Sometimes, when students are particularly unlucky, two classes required for graduation are offered at the same time on the same days, making it impossible to take both. This can make students on edge about getting all their requirements done. Advisers can help show students how to determine which classes will most likely be offered again soon, which won’t be and which classes can possibly be replaced with others if necessary compared to the ones that are absolutely required.

 

“What other requirements do I need to know about?”

Some majors have requirements beyond just the core classes. Education majors, for example, need to arrange for certain tests to be taken, and others require experience outside one of Western’s classrooms. Asking questions like this early on will help avoid reaching the last term before graduation only to find out there’s a requirement missing.

 

“What opportunities should I look out for?”

There are a variety of different opportunities that can be easily found on campus, such as career fairs or coffee talks with recruiters, but sometimes it’s hard to find ones specific to our majors. Advisers often know of either starting points or specific opportunities, such as internships or other certifications at Western, and asking them for help can be faster than searching alone.

 

Contact the author at howllifestyle@wou.edu

Stay ahead with apps that help with studying

Rebecca Meyers | Lifestyle editor

Advances in technology have made it so that students have to have at least some degree of technological competence. Grades, research and, often, even studying is done largely online. Though this opens up many opportunities as the web is world wide, it can also mean the sheer amount of information and sources can be overwhelming, and keeping track of everything can be time consuming.

Fortunately, the need for some organization when it comes to studying has been recognized by those that engineer apps. Whether the need is a digital schedule to keep everything straight, an organized way to study material, or help with research, there’s an app for that.

 

Timetable (Android) or Class Timetable (iOS): These two are online time management systems that can be synced to various devices, making it easier to keep deadlines organized.

myHomework planner (Android and iOS): As is suggested in the name, this app is like an online planner that helps keep schoolwork straight.

StudyBlue (Android and iOS): This app lets students make their own flashcards and quiz themselves before tests.

GoConqr (Android and iOS): Another useful study tool, this app has various layouts for studying, such as flashcards and concept maps.

Easybib (Android and iOS): This app creates citations for research. It can do various formats, such as MLA, APA and Chicago. However, it’s not always completely accurate, so additional help from the Writing Center can also be beneficial.

Office Lens (Android and iOS): This app takes pictures of schedules and notes and turns them into online formats such as documents that can be downloaded and shared.

LinkedIn Learning (Android and iOS): This extension of LinkedIn has instructional video courses for studying subjects such as software and business.

 

Contact the author at howllifestyle@wou.edu

Photo courtesy of Ashlynn Norton

The pros and cons of taking classes online

Rebecca Meyers | Lifestyle Editor

Many students, at some point in their college career, are faced with the question of whether to take a class online. Some prefer them while others try to avoid them at all cost. Western offers a number of online classes every term, and there are both pros and cons to taking them. While there is a variance in price differences for online classes, this article will focus mostly on the experience of taking an online course.

 

Pros:

One of the biggest advantages to taking an online class is the flexible schedule. Taking a class online instead of in class allows for students to work around work or social lives. For those that value being able to work on their own time, online classes can be a good fit.

Another upside is that the only item needed is often a computer. Rather than the usual supplies, such as notebooks and textbooks, most online classes usually require only internet access. Some may require purchasing access to a computer program or a textbook, but for the most part online classes provide a lighter load.

 

Cons:

One of the main downsides to online classes is that there’s usually no face-time with the instructor or classmates. This can make discussions seem a little more tedious, as online forums don’t have quite the same power to generate ideas due to the fact that, more often than not, if a discussion is required, it’s usually only required to respond to a few people in the class rather than reading everyone’s ideas.

The other main disadvantage is that due to the lack of work time usually spent in class, there’s often more homework attached to online classes. The heavier workload can put more stress on students who chose to take them in order to have more work hours or other classes available to them, which ends up taking up a lot of time and energy between the two. This also means that students have to be responsible for creating a schedule and sticking to it, which can be difficult for some students.

There are a number of factors to consider when weighing online classes with in class courses. Online classes aren’t for everyone, and it’s up to each individual to decide whether they’re worth it.

 

Contact the author at howllifestyle@mail.wou.edu

Photo courtesy of Ashlynn Norton

A brief review of Main Street’s new food truck additions

Rebecca Meyers | Lifestyle editor

Sometimes it seems like there’s a revolving door of food trucks on Main Street. Where the short-lived Bobablastic truck once stood now features two different vendors. The newcomers are different in their food origins and styles, but what they have in common is that they’re both there to serve lunch or dinner in pretty decent portions for around $10 each.

For starters, we now have the purple Oishi Hibachi vehicle. This truck features a variety of Japanese cuisine, such as a few Teriyaki plates, shrimp, and for the braver people, ghost pepper chicken. There are small sides available, but most of the plates come with fried rice and veggies along with a choice of meat and a few sauces.  

As a broke college student, I was hesitant to drop $10 on a lunch. However, a plate full of fresh food — I could hear it start to sizzle a few minutes after ordering, which I considered a good sign — seemed pretty fair for the price. I did think there could have been a little more chicken as the rice seemed to encompass most of the meal, but the food itself tasted fresh and was exactly what I was expecting for an order of teriyaki chicken.

Next to Oishi Hibachi is the red Lonney’s Lunch Wagon, which specializes in Hawaiian food. Like Oishi, the main dishes are chicken or pork served with rice, and a full serving is $9. The menu changes daily and is listed on a chalkboard on the front of the truck. Additionally, many of their items are often pictured on their Instagram account @lonneyslunchwagon. Aside from their main dishes, also have a few options for sides of fries — but these are no ordinary fries. Rather, there are options such as roasted pork fries and fries with their signature hurricane sauce.

After hearing it hyped up by the cashier, I decided to try their Hurricane Katsu, a Japanese style fried chicken, with the above mentioned hurricane sauce. I have to say I am still haven’t quite decided how I feel about it; it’s certainly flavorful and not at all what I expected. The fried chicken was good by itself, and the sweetness of the hurricane sauce was an interesting addition. I get the sense it’s the type of flavor that tends to be quite divisive; people will either love it or hate it, with very little in between.

Though the two new trucks on the block have their own unique features, either one would be a good option for those looking for comfort food such as chicken or pork cooked in familiar and traditional ways, as well as for those feeling a little more adventurous.

Oishi Express is open 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday through Thursday and Lonney’s is open 12:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. (or until they sell out) Tuesday through Saturday.

 

Contact the author at howllifestyle@wou.edu

Photo courtesy of Ashlynn Norton

Short workouts for tight schedules

Rebecca Meyers | Lifestyle Editor

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that all adults get both aerobic and muscular exercise regularly — specifically around 150 minutes per week, if said exercise is moderate in intensity. The recommended time may be more or less depending on how vigorous the exercise is, and if the goal is just general health or increased fitness. Additionally, exercise is just as beneficial when spread throughout the week in shorter spurts, as long as it’s at least 10 minutes long.

Fortunately, this means even people with busy schedules can find at least some time to incorporate some kind of physical activity into their routines. Sometimes it can be discouraging to not have the time to do the kind of intense, long workouts some people do, or to be constantly exhausted and not necessarily having the energy to do so. Adding just a twenty or thirty minute workout, and not even one that is super intense, can have multiple health benefits including reduced stress. On top of that, some don’t even require leaving the house.

 

Bike ride or short run: For those whose schedules involve hours of sitting in class or staying inside at work, adding one of these aerobic workouts a few days a week can help create a change of scenery. Also, according to the CDC, this activity can be a more intense workout, for example running instead of walking, meaning it doesn’t necessarily have to be done everyday to reap the health benefits. Seventy five minutes of intensive workouts can be as beneficial as the 150 minutes of moderate exercise.

 

Weightlifting: The Health and Wellness Center has weightlifting equipment available, but for beginners or those who prefer home workouts, there’s also the option of buying weights from sporting stores to use for simple lifts such as bicep curls, that will also help for the muscle building aspect of exercise.

 

Yoga or pilates: One of the easiest workouts to do at home as it requires little to no equipment, yoga and pilates tends to focus on muscle strength and flexibility. Like aerobic exercises, however, the intensity varies, in this case depending on the poses.

 

Individualized at home workout routine: These are the kind that are fairly easy to find, or at least to find inspiration for. Searching for ‘workout routine’ on Pinterest alone has thousands of results. These usually focus on specific areas of interest to each individual person. For example, core workouts might include crunches or planks, leg workouts will have lunges, squats or wall sits, and arm and upper body workouts will have pushups or arm circles — all examples that don’t require spending money or time to take the trip to the gym and back.

 

For those that do prefer a gym, the Health and Wellness Center’s facilities are free to students. Hours can be found at wou.edu/campusrec.

 

Contact the author at howllifestyle@wou.edu

Photo courtesy of Ashlynn Norton

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