For most of us, summer provides a break from the stress and non-stop action of the school year. It gives us time to breathe, and catch up on hours of lost sleep and many TV shows.  While it may be tempting to veg-out on the couch and sleep the summer away, I encourage you to get active in the next few months and take advantage of the extra time.

Here are some ideas to try out during your free time:

• Start cooking: Experiment at home or take cooking classes. For those of you who prefer sweets, try a baking class or find fun recipes on Pinterest to test on friends and family.

• Start exercising: Yoga, running, Zumba, weight-lifting, walking, swimming – just do it.
• Water sports: Cities with bodies of water nearby often have places to rent equipment. Try kayaking, sailing, paddle-boarding, rafting, canoeing, etc.

Stay active indoors: The summer can be brutally hot. Try bowling, crafting, roller skating, ice-skating, and road-trips (cars count as indoors!).

Other things to consider doing this summer are less fun, but still important. You can use this time to get organized and tie up any lose ends around the house. Starting the fall semester organized will make it easier to maintain the healthy habits you formed over the summer. It takes 21 days to form a habit. The activities you do this summer could continue on throughout the rest of your life.

Get some friends or family members together and think of things you can do this summer together during your spare time. You never know what you’ll end up loving and what will stay with you forever.

– Emilly

We’ll start simply. Ever wanted to learn another language? Yeah, me too, that’s one of the main reasons I studied abroad. Studying abroad utilizes one of the few ways to maximize your language learning through full immersion.

Full immersion is, in some people’s opinion, required to fully become fluent. One language learning site said, “In reality it is very unlikely for people to really become fluent in a language without extensive periods of some form of total language immersion.” Full immersion is great because it basically causes you to spend 100 percent of your time practicing your language skills. You basically get to go about your day, but instead of using English, you get to use your new language, and for people who tend to procrastinate and be lazy like me, this is a great way to force yourself to practice.

Unless you are one of those people who never travels 10 miles from their place of birth, you probably like to travel. Travel is something most people tend to enjoy. It gives us a completely new environment with new experiences, new entertainment, and new people. This new place may be filled with wonders completely unheard of before in your own culture, but that are commonplace in this new world.

Study abroad gives you all sorts of new experiences while you still continue your education. You get to learn not only class work, but you get to be placed in a completely new culture and understand it from the inside out. Culture and language doesn’t excite you? Let’s try another avenue.

Money. The thing we hate, but need the most. Study abroad costs money. This is one of the biggest reasons I’ve heard for why people choose not to study abroad. People not only think studying abroad is more expensive than it is, but they completely ignore the future pecuniary possibilities that can be gained.

Studying abroad is going to make employers look at you in a different light. Only about 4 percent of college kids ever choose to study abroad. If you are one of the few who has chosen to take this opportunity to widen your global horizons, employers will see you as a more valuable employee in this quickly shrinking world.  If you have not only the ability to speak the language of a foreign country, but have the ability to understand them as individuals and business potential, you will be a far more valuable employee.

This all sounds fantastic, bud, but I still don’t have that kind of money. At this point in the presentation, this is usually what I get. Did you know many universities allow you to continue paying for your home tuition with no changes while abroad? That basically means if you can scrounge up a plane ticket, the costs aren’t going to change that much. I mean, you got to eat and live somewhere no matter which country you’re in, no?

I hope this presentation has piqued your interest in studying abroad, but if it hasn’t the only thing I can say is to trust me. I knew I’d enjoy studying abroad before I went, but I never knew how much that experience would drastically change my entire life path. I wouldn’t be the major I am today had I studied abroad earlier, and I wouldn’t be looking into jobs as a translator if I hadn’t gone either. Take that leap. Learn something new, better yourself, and embrace difference abroad.

– Brian

The first thing you should do after graduation is to make sure you keep learning. I know. More learning? I bet you thought you were finally out of the woods. Never! Learning never ceases for those who wish to remain up to date in the workforce. Volunteering in your field is a great way to keep up to snuff with your skills as well as build up materials for your portfolio. Also be sure you know how to work all of the latest technology. Don’t have a Twitter? You might want to start one so if your future job requires you to deal with social media, you will be prepared for and successful with your new duties.

Make sure you have everything you need to be successful in the workforce before you join it. Business cards, a Web site, and an online profile in a program such as LinkedIn are almost required for people joining the workforce.  You never know when you might meet someone who might be able to give you a contact that you will need. If you have a business card to give them, it looks much more professional as well as being an easy way to keep your contact information. If your business card has a Web site or online portfolio, they will be able to better evaluate you as an employee. A common mistake is people think they need to be able to put a business for which they work before they make business cards, but personal business cards often just have contact information and the types of jobs you are capable of doing.

One of the most important things is to keep calm and carry on. You’ve made it this far; what is to keep you from being able to complete this next task? College is one of the most demanding times in your life. You have classes, homework, organizations, part-time jobs, internships, projects, and all of the other things that come with school. Now all of those duties will be over with, so you can focus all of your energy on just one thing, finding a job.

You’ve hurdled so many challenges, and you’ve done so many difficult things. You can do this, too. Just keep your head up, and just do what you have to do. It may be a difficult time, but don’t you remember the terror you had when applying for college? You got through that, and you will get through this. I’m not saying it won’t be hard, but you can do this. College has prepared you more than you think. You are resilient. You are resourceful. You are intelligent. You can do it.

— Brian

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The Hunger Games

Americans always have loved remakes. We have been remaking movies since The Great Train Robbery remake, which came out in 1904, one year after its inspiration. As with many remakes, however, the remake was a complete flop. Some people argue remakes are just a lack of new ideas; others believe they are just a fun new spin on an old story.

Lately, remakes have made a huge comeback with everything being remade. Now we have movies for all of our comic book heroes, our favorite novels, and even true stories. Cinematographers have been working nonstop to try to give a new spin on everything we know and love.

The latest of these remakes is The Hunger Games. The Hunger Games is, wait for it, a remake of a book, which has a story that is nearly identical in parts to a Japanese movie called Battle Royale which is a remake of a book under the same title.

Most of us tend to agree there is no such thing as an original idea. Inspiration is also another huge thing often mistaken for plagiarism in entertainment. Sometimes we see something that really speaks to our hearts, and we, sometimes even subconsciously, put a similar idea into our own works. In music, this is far more acceptable than in movies. Singers often will be completely upfront with who their inspirations are and what they inspired. In movies, however, originality of plot is one of the main selling points.

Where is the line between being inspired by something and copying it? A blogger named Connor Turnbull tried to tackle this question by saying “One is all about gaining motivation whereas the other is mindlessly duplicating.” Turnbull seems to suggest in his article that copying and being inspired is a gray line that only you can decide for yourself.

Honesty is key when dealing with this issue. Think to yourself how much credit you owe to your inspiration. Does your work just have a similar vibe, or can you draw clear and common parallels between the two? If it is the second, then perhaps take a second look at your work and try to personalize it more, separate it from its original to ensure you won’t be accused of stealing someone else’s work.

Art is a train of people being inspired by one another. When we create something, we put into it what has most deeply affected us. The person who made what most deeply affected us put into their work what most deeply affected them. This goes on back in history, making our art of today like a collage of the art from all time.

One important thing to remember about remakes is remaking a work doesn’t destroy the original. Remaking something only shows us a glimpse of how someone else saw some of our favorite works. Think of remakes as simply an exercise in empathy. Go ahead, put yourself in someone else’s shoes.

Preview Online

The original impetus in creating the first edition of Taking Charge: Your Education, Your Career, Your Life in 2008 was to produce a college success guide that directly linked college success skills to both professional and personal development. That’s especially important with the increasing trend of community and technical college students entering the workforce upon graduation as opposed to immediately moving on to a four-year college. To that end, the writing and research skills of the co-authors, Karen Mitchell Smith and Katharine O’Moore-Klopf, proved to be invaluable through the first two editions of this book.

Since that first edition, however, feedback solicited from instructors around the country combined with advances in digital publishing has resulted in a dramatically revamped third edition to be published in September 2012.

Key features new to this edition include:

• a four-color, magazine layout incorporating a variety of photos, infographics, and sidebars designed to make concepts more engaging and accessible;
• newly developed (and free) digital ancillary content, easily accessible from the printed book via QR codes and the ebook via enabled hyperlinks, including videos, downloadable documents, recommended websites and mobile apps, interactive polls, and more;
• “student disorientation” scenarios with a cast of recurring characters at the beginning of each chapter to set the stage for that chapter’s subject; and
• end-of-chapter crossword puzzles utilizing key terms and phrases.

Want to see exactly what we’re talking about? Check out a sample online here. (There is one thing to note: given that this is sample, after all, and while the text on the pages themselves is firmly set, we still are developing content for the associated mobile pages linked to throughout. Please have patience with us as we create and upload that information over the next few months!)

That said, all of us at TSTC Publishing feel “hybrid textbooks” incorporating both the printed page and digital ancillaries are the next logical step in the development of higher education instructional materials. If you have a questions or comments, we would greatly appreciate your feedback (email us at tstc.publishing@gmail.com) and look forward to hearing from you.

And, of course, feel free to visit the Taking Charge at its website, on Facebook, and/or Twitter for the latest news and developments!

—Mark

In an attempt to eat healthy you grab for the organic version of a favorite food, but be careful.

A recent study by Dartmouth University showed high levels of arsenic in organic foods and baby formula that list organic brown rice syrup as a primary ingredient. Arsenic is linked to cancer, chronic diseases and developmental effects in children.

The study tested 29 cereal bars, two infant formulas and three different energy shot drinks. A research associate professor told TODAY the energy shots and cereal bars don’t pose an immediate danger, and risk factors are more closely related to lifetime exposure. The high arsenic levels in baby formulas were more concerning to the professor.

Other foods like brown rice are also high in arsenic, as it resembles silica found in soil, which it absorbs to help it stand. Last year, Dartmouth researchers even found high levels of arsenic in some apple and grape juice.

Organic foods are definitely preferably to processed foods when eating right, but it is crucial to read nutrition labels. Don’t choose food simply because you’ve heard it’s healthy. Proportion is key. Even soy products have been linked to cancer in women if over-consumed, according to the American Institute for Cancer Research.

Know your food and what you’re eating. While it is impossible to know the long-term effects of most of what we eat, try to stay current with health news and read nutrition labels.

Nutrition labels can be hard to understand, but pay attention to serving size, total fat, sodium, total carbohydrates, protein, vitamins and minerals. Often, companies try to make products look healthier by reducing the serving size, so pay particular attention to how much of the food you should eat.

In general, look for foods that are low in sugar, sodium, cholesterol, and fats and high in fiber, vitamins and minerals.

The ingredients list also is important. Avoid foods with sugars, fats and oils, and salt in the beginning of the list. Look for foods with natural-sounding ingredients and few chemical names; the shorter the list of ingredients, the better.

Part of taking control of your life means taking control of your nutrition. Make sure you have the information you need to live a healthy life.

– Emilly

If you’re assuming this week’s recipe is going to be for some form of pot roast, think again. Sure, pot roast is great, but slow cookers are able to do so much more. I recently discovered that with just 25 minutes of prep-time and four to six hours of cooking, I can have lasagna for dinner.  Additionally, I discovered they can be used to make desserts like hot fudge brownies for sundaes and cheesecake.

So, before you rule out slow cookers keep in mind the benefits. Slow cookers allow you to ditch the Lean Cuisines after work or school and have a nice meal without much effort. They also give you a variety of meal options and even dessert possibilities. They are perfect for people who love home cooked food, but need to get other things done at night or are too tired to cook.

As an experiment, try out this recipe for Barbecue Beef Brisket Sandwiches from Delish.com provided by Country Living.  This meals serves eight, so plan to have leftovers.

Ingredients

• 1  (pound ) brisket, trimmed
• 1 1/2 teaspoon(s) coarse sea salt
• 3/4 teaspoon(s) pepper
• 1 tablespoon(s) vegetable oil
• 1 large onion, coarsely chopped
• 1 1/2 tablespoon(s) garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup(s) dark beer, (such as porter or stout)
• 1 tablespoon(s) Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tablespoon(s) lemon juice
• 3 tablespoon(s) honey
• 1/2 cup(s) ketchup
• 1 teaspoon(s) paprika
• 8  kaiser (or other sandwich) rolls

Directions

1. Cook the brisket: Season the brisket with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the brisket, brown on all sides, and transfer to a slow cooker.
2.  Add the remaining ingredients to the slow cooker and stir well. Slow-cook, covered, until the meat is very tender — 8 hours. Remove the meat, place it on a cutting board, and let it rest for 15 minutes. Reserve the sauce.
3. Carve brisket into thin slices and divide it among kaiser rolls topped with reserved sauce. Serve warm.

Remember, nutrition is important to staying healthy and energized when leading a busy life. While this recipe is delicious, consider adding vegetables on the side. Be sure to check back for more recipe ideas.

– Emilly

Often as students, we are required to maintain lifestyles that limit the amount of sleep we can get. Class, work and social agendas fill our schedule, and by the time all school work is completed there are only a few short hours left to rest. We live in a “Go! Go! Go!” society, but we need to stop, take a minute and re-evaluate our needs.

According to WebMD, teens require about nine hours of sleep, while most adults need seven to eight hours every night. Those amounts change, however, based on the amount of sleep acquired on previous nights. Believe it or not, sleep debt is really – and it is causing problems every day.

When your body is deprived of sleep, it requires those hours be made up. Continuous sleep deprivation can lead to memory problems, a weakened immune system, decreased academic performance, car accidents caused by fatigue, obesity, diabetes and even depression. College students are twice as likely to get depression as the general population; a fact many researchers believe is due to sleep deprivation. According to Taking Charge: Your Education, Your Career, Your Life the University of Michigan Health Service says all of this can result from consistently getting less than 6.5 hours of sleep a night.

Some sleeping tips listed in Taking Charge include maintaining a regular sleep schedule, sleeping with the thermostat low, avoiding caffeine and alcohol in the evening, skipping naps and stopping the consumption of food and liquids within two hours of bedtime.

Sleep is crucial to our health and happiness. Don’t let yourself get behind on sleep. Schedule your day to be the most productive it can be, leaving ample time for sleep. It is difficult mid-semester to reset a sleep schedule, so start now.

There is no better time than the present to form healthy habits.

-Emilly

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As a college student, I rarely have time to sleep, let alone cook. Lean Cuisines and Easy Mac filled my diet for my first two years of college, until I found a new, healthier option. I started planning my meals on the weekend, cooking ahead and freezing food for the weekdays. I suggest cooking two or three meals over the weekend and dividing them into five containers. From here you can pull a meal out of the freezer and microwave it whenever you’re ready to eat.

However, if this option doesn’t work with your schedule, don’t worry. There are plenty of quick healthy meals you can make, even if you’re constantly running out the door.

Try this quick breakfast recipe the next time you’re in a hurry. For this recipe you’ll need a Ziploc Brand Zip ‘n Steam bag. They are inexpensive and allow you to cook almost anything in minutes in the microwave.

Easy Microwave Omelet

Ingredients:

• 3 eggs
• 2 T. shredded Swiss cheese
• 1 T. butter, cut into 4 small pieces
• 3 mushrooms, chopped (optional)
• 2 cherry tomatoes, quartered (optional)
• 1/8 t. salt

Directions:

1. Crack eggs directly into steam bag
2. Add mushrooms, cheese, tomatoes, butter and salt to the bag
3. Seal bag. Break the yolks by squeezing the bag. Gently shake the bag until ingredients are combined
4. Place bag in microwave. Cook for 2 ½ minutes or until the eggs are fully cooked and no liquid egg remains. Continue microwaving at 30 second intervals if necessary.
5. Let stand for 1 minute.
6. Open bag carefully, slide omelet out and fold, garnishing if desired.

Be sure to check back for more quick recipes and healthy eating tips.

– Emilly

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 Professors and instructors often use this week to read syllabi and outline course requirements. Students, in turn, put off buying books and reading assignment schedules. While chances are nothing will be due until the next week, or maybe later than that, I want to encourage students to get organized now to avoid stress in the future.

Every semester, there is at least one student per class that misses due dates simply because he or she forgot to read the syllabus or did not write the assignment down. In college, staying organized is essential to making good grades and avoiding stress.

Taking Charge: Your Education, Your Career, Your Life suggests making a master schedule that lists all personal, academic and career obligations for the week, month and semester to stay organized. Diligently maintaining a schedule makes organization simple.

To start the semester off right, students should invest in a planner if they do not already have one. Write down class times, work schedules, appointments and all other time consuming activities. As professors start handing out syllabi, fill in important due dates or assignments – this will help you know ahead of time if any busy weeks are coming up so you can plan to get work done in advance.

Students interested in staying healthy may also find this method helpful in planning workout times. School, work and social activities can take up a lot of time and build stress. Exercise for just 30 minutes a day helps relieve stress and promote fitness, but the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommends an hour of exercise for most days of the week. By filling a planner with all required activities, students can spot free time and plan workouts or time to enjoy their favorite physical activities.

Writing out schedules may even be therapeutic to students with particularly heavy workloads. A schedule broken down by the hour can show these students exactly when and how things will get done and help them avoid feeling as though everything is chaotic.

As a student who works two jobs and takes a full course load, I can attest to this method and say it really works. I exercise daily, rarely overlook an assignment and have more time to spend with my friends because I plan out my days, leaving plenty of time for fun.

Take advantage of the beginning of the semester when things are slow. Plan how you will spend your time and try to stick to it. It could lead to a less stressful year.

– Emilly

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