First off thank you to all that looked at my last article about the upcoming Solar Eclipse happening on August 21! I was so excited to find out that the article made the home page of The Odyssey! (Thank you to the Odyssey staff).

As I was preparing to move into my residence hall for the fall on August 15, I came home to prepare the items I didn't have in my summer residence hall the weekend before. If you are like me, (a typical college student), your room may be a little messy. You might have heard your mom say too many times "can you please clean up your room?" or "when am I going to see the floor again in your room?"

As I was cleaning up, I came up with some thoughts that some college students might relate with while cleaning their room at home.

1. Do I keep this or throw this away?

If you are like me, you might have trouble like me parting with some of your items. This summer, while cleaning, I have been doing better at deciding which stuff I really need to keep and which stuff is not necessary to keep. This past trash day, I threw away a trash can full of trash from my room.

2. Do I need to bring this to school?

I always have a tough decision on deciding which things I really need to bring to school and which I don't need. Do I really need that picture that's been collecting dust all this time?" or "Do I need that book that I never read?" When deciding what bring and what not, my best suggestion is if you haven't used it in the past year, don't bring it along. (A helpful suggestion, if you know you won't use it, maybe donate the item to your local donation center like Good Will or something).

3. Will anyone notice that my closet is stuffed full?

Sometimes when cleaning up my room, I will occasionally put a pile in my closet so it's out of the way in my room. I don't normally put that much in my closet. If you keep your closet door closed, no one will ever notice that it might be a bit messy.

4. Which outfits do I need to bring and leave?

We all have asked that question "Which outfits do I leave here and which do I bring with me?" What I do when I'm packing my outfits, I pick out my favorite outfits that I know I'll wear. Then I leave some clothes that I wear but not very often behind so I don't have to bring as much home when I visit.

5. Will I miss my parents?

The answer is yes. I will miss my parents. However for me, having a car and only being 50 minutes to an hour away, I visit occasionally. Make sure to pack your favorite photos of family and friends and call home a few times a week.

Well I think it's time for me to get back to work on finishing packing and not be having these thoughts go through my mind. Stay tuned in the up coming weeks for my move-in vlog. I can't wait to show you my journey of my junior year move-in.