The Fear of Missing Out

Here at Furman, we love to use abbreviations and acronyms. People are constantly referring to buildings, events, and groups as a strange series of letters and made up words. For example, the PAC is the Physical Activities Center, the DH is the Dining Hall, FUPO is the Furman University Police, Palapoints are the campus cash on the student ID cards, Palabroke is what happens when you run out of cash on your student ID card, and Soho is South Housing, the area on campus where a lot of the freshmen live. However, my favorite acronym is FOMO, also known as the fear of missing out.

Like most other Furman students, I have a bad case of FOMO. With all of the opportunities, clubs, classes, and organizations Furman University has to offer, it's often difficult to choose which activities you are going to partake in. As much as we would like to, nobody can do everything at Furman; that would be impossible. You can try, but you won't succeed. FOMO is the reason why I go to sleep late every night, and the reason why I can't seem to sleep in past 8:00 in the morning. 

I had a great week full of great classes, club meetings, study sessions, birthday celebrations, and a football game. Although I was afraid of missing out, I think I made the most of my opportunities and options this week. Now that we are three weeks into classes, the tests and essay assignments have begun. This week I had my first chemistry test, and I am currently working on my first two essays. Despite the pickup in academic work, there has also been ample social events and activities. Here are a few highlights of my week.

Friday was my friend's birthday. To celebrate, we surprised her by blindfolding her and driving her to Asheville, NC, one of her favorite places. Furman University has a very convenient location. First of all, there is so much to do in Greenville that you really don't ever have to leave. However, if you do decide to leave you can get to Asheville, Charlotte, Charleston, Columbia, Atlanta, and a lot of other cool places pretty easily. In Asheville we went to a Mediterranean restaurant where we sat on cushions on the floor and ate as belly dancers danced around the tables. It was an exciting evening. 

Saturday was our first home football game. Not only did Furman release their new logo, we also won our football game! Coming from a small high school with no football team, it was pretty exciting to cheer for a football team that I could call my own. The campus was buzzing with people of all ages coming to support to Paladins. We had the perfect football weather too. After the game, I tried the new restaurant on Furman's campus called the Paddock, which was delicious.

During the week I have been enjoying runs around the lake. It's a nice break from the chaos of classes, meetings, and homework. The views of Furman's campus never get old. I constantly find myself taking my phone out to take a picture of something on campus, which is probably a very clear indication that I am a freshman. 

With each week that goes by, I continue to establish my place here at Furman. There are so many options here, and while you can't do it all, Furman is good at helping students figure out exactly what they want to be involved in. It's a fact that Furman students will always be afraid of missing out simply because there is always so much going on on campus. As a freshman, it's fun to try out a lot of different things to figure out exactly how you want to spend your time. 

Feel free to e-mail me any questions or comments that you would like to share!

kjersti.kleine@furman.edu