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Show UVU REVIEW LIFE C1 ILLUSTRATION BY TREVOR ROBERTSON//UVU REVIEW Low tech granny in a high tech world The struggles a nontraditional student has with technology By Marinann Castillo Staff Writer Returning to college full-time a year ago to finish my Bachelor's Degree after 34 years has been a technological adventure. I admit it; I am pretty much an idiot when it comes to electronics. I don't have a smart phone. Mine is a dumb phone that I don't even know how to take pictures on. I just barely learned how to text a couple of months ago. That was only because I learned that other students don't even answer their cell phone if they don't know who is calling. And the only way they would know I was calling was if they had me in their "contacts." Like that's gonna happen. My kids complain because I don't answer my cell phone a lot of the time. I don't carry it in my pocket because I already have more padding than needed in that area and I don't want any more. And how am I supposed to remember to turn the ringer back on after class? Or, for that matter, to turn it off once I am in class. I think I need to invent a way to hang it around my neck somehow. Can you say "blingy lanyards" anyone? I tried to take a computer class to learn to make friends with the thing, but the new lab program still had a lot of bugs in it. I was told not to quit because I could put on my resume that I was a beta tester for it, but I don't want to be a tester. I just want to make friends with computers. Yeah, I dropped that class in a hurry. My laptop is only a couple of years old but apparently it is already a dinosaur. I know how to type and can do a few things that I have learned from past jobs. But learning new things on the computer just doesn't stick unless I do it over and over and over again. So annoying. In one of my classes we had to do a huge group project and as usual I was the oldest member of the group. The other students thought it would be easiest to do it all in Google Docs. Google what? I am barely used to using Google as a verb, and now it has docs? They told me it would be so easy to learn and that I would not have any problems with it. Right ... just baby me along and I'll be fine. Oh, and please give me all of the writing assignments because I am great at that. My theory is that kids today are "native speakers" of all things electronic. I, on the other hand, am a traveler in a foreign land. Hopefully the longer I visit, the more fluent I will become. It may take a while though. By then Google will have had other babies that I am supposed to know how to use. But I will keep plugging along a little at a time, and maybe I'll even remember how to do a few things along the way. More than sympathy Talking through grief can help coping with loss By Samantha Ghan Staff Writer flutedm@ya hoo.com Tokens of love lost at Pleasant Grove Cemetary. GABI CAMBELOUVU REVIEW I was at the Frontrunner station when my mom called. "Hey Sam, this is Mom. I was just calling to let you know that your Uncle Ted died this morning." I sat there waiting for the train and cried. After all the tears were dried up, I wondered what would happen next. This was the first time that someone close to me had died, so at first, I didn't know how to keep going in my life. The only way I knew I could cope was by talking through my grief. After that day, I decided to tell anyone who would listen to me; my roommates, my two best friends, and even the guy I was crushing on. Most of their responses were, "Oh, I am sorry." Some would just look at me with a sad look on their face. No one knew how I was feeling. Those who had never experienced the death of a loved one didn't understand me. Finally, one of my best friends who had also lost someone close to her was able to comfort me. She knew I need to cry and talk about it, but she also made sure I stayed positive with my word choices. Talking to her and hearing the words come out of my own mouth helped me come to terms with what was going on in my head. Without saying it out loud I would get depressed and hide out in my room. I didn't want that to happen to me, so I knew I needed to talk to people about this. I had a friend in high school whose sister past away. She didn't talk to anyone about what she was feeling. That made high school harder. She just bottled it all up until she exploded. Talking to someone is the best way to know what to do next. Everyone needs to cry on someone's shoulder. A support team will be your fall back. You have to let them know, which includes informing them what is going on and why things are so hard. When you can't stand it any longer, that friend is going to come and offer their hand and help you push through all the hurt. Remember the good times. When I was younger, my family went to see where my mom was raised, a small town in Idaho where my uncle was living. After a day of exploring the town, we went to Uncle Ted's house for dinner. My sisters and I helped set the table. Ted's wife, Barbra, scolded my siblings and I repeatedly about having our elbows on the table. With this focusing on the positive helps the healing process. Right now may be difficult, but the future only holds joy. Joy in knowing that you will be a stronger person from suffering. You know that you are a better person for knowing that loved one. Death may have taken away the one you love, but it can never take away their influence on your life. I am a better person for knowing my uncle. I understand the importance of having manners and keeping my elbows off the table. Because I was able to learn from my Uncle Ted about how to be a hard worker I do the best job that I possibility can. Working hard at everything that you do is what brings integrity into your life. Uncle Ted was a miner, he didn't have a college education but through his hard work he made his way to the top and traveled the world for his company. Second, he also taught me about having a good laugh. My uncle loved to laugh and tease everyone. He would get a glint in his eyes, and you would know that something was going to happen. He would tease everyone individually. When my mom joined the LDS church my uncle would tease her about not drinking but this was actually a form of endearment towards my mom and accepting her for her choices. He respected her for following what she believed to be true. Lastly, I learned honor, respect, and dedication. Uncle Ted was in the Navy and understood what these words meant. These are the things that Uncle Ted taught in his life. Through his example I learned that knowing these things SYMPATHY A2 LICHELLE JENKINS//UVU REVIEW Coping with grief is different for everyone. |