This past year I was a freshman at North Carolina State University--go Pack! That means I went through a lot of changes. I moved from small town Harrells, North Carolina to our capital city, big booming Raleigh. I went from having my own room and living with two younger sisters to sharing a tiny space with a roommate and a bathroom with nine other girls that I'd never met before. I had to learn how to do things for myself and not rely on my parents so heavily. Setting up meetings with advisors, going to the doctor, and finding my way around was a lot easier when Mom was handling everything. There was no one there to say, "Claire you need to go sit down and study for that test." Or "Claire it really isn't good for you to eat mashed potatoes and fries. Try something green." Eventually I adjusted, but there were plenty of slip ups and adventures along the way.

NC State is covered head to toe in bricks. It's kind of our thing. It is said that there are about 226,200 bricks in the BrickYard alone. That's not even a fraction of the campus. I'm always blown away by the grace of the skateboarders as they glide over the uneven ground and the effortlessness that most students show just walking across campus. I am not so fortunate. Being the clumsy kid I am it was common for me to trip at least twice a day, no exaggeration. However, I only completely fell once and I quickly saved the situation by doing a few push-ups before returning to my feet. When I decided to write about my college adventures I thought it only fitting to title them with the stepping stone of my days at NC State. So without further ado, Tripping On Bricks: The College Chronicles.

First Week Blunders

It was the second day of class, a Thursday. I had survived the first day of college without a hitch. I'd made it to every class on time, met my professors and had already gotten a jump on my reading for Friday (that was short lived). I figured day two would be a breeze. I only had two classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays and I'd already suffered through what I would later find to be the absolute worst--Biology Lab. I swung by my dorm room to meet up with a girl from my suite who happened to be in my next class, English. I hadn't talked to her much beforehand so conversation was a little awkward as we made the fifteen minute hike across campus to our class.

I knew where to go because the night before classes started a friend I had met at Orientation and I walked our schedules specifically so we wouldn't get lost on our first day. Before doing so we'd participated in a yearly event called Respect The Pack. I'd be lying if I said we hadn't done it for the free T-Shirt. By the time that had wrapped up it was getting dark but finding our classes was too important to just skip. When we got to the building of my English class I was worried the doors would be locked. All of them were except for the handicap door that hadn't been closed all the way. That was probably a good sign that we really weren't supposed to be in there, but we slipped in anyways. Just inside was the room I needed, room 365. Thinking nothing more of it we slipped back out and finished our walk.

Flash forward to the day of that class. My suitemate and I stood outside of the now closed door and waited as other kids looking for the same class meandered up. It was getting really close to class time and the door was still closed. I figured maybe the professor was sitting inside waiting for us all to come in so I opened it just a crack. The room was filled with people all facing the front listening to the professor. I froze when I realized the professor was looking right at me. "Well are you going to come in?" he said, all eyes on me. I didn't think I was late but I panicked and rushed into the room, weaving between desks trying to make my way to the ONE empty seat in the back. I quickly sat down and tried to look apologetic. That's when I realized that no one had come in with me.

The professor went back to talking about what the course would entail. "We'll be discussing race identity and racially motivated issues this semester." Race? I didn't remember seeing that in the syllabus! I looked around the room and realized the people in this class were obviously a lot older than me. I was sitting in the wrong class. Suddenly my phone let out a loud whistle altering me that I had a text. The professor shot a look at me and I quickly silenced it, just another reason for everyone to turn and look at me. I snuck a peak at the message to see it was from my suitemate, still outside, "YOURE IN THE WRONG CLASS! GET OUT OF THERE!" followed by a string of laughing emojis, of course. I couldn't just get up and leave. I'd already disrupted the class too many times to get up and shuffle out the door. My English class was suppose to be in this room and it was scheduled to start in fifteen minutes. "I'll just fake it until it's over." I thought to myself. "It can't get any worse than this." Oh but it did.

The professor, a tall skinny man who looked to be from another country, clapped his hands. "Ok! So I want to go around the room and learn a little about each one of you. When we get to you say your name, age, where you're from, and your thoughts on race." I closed my eyes as my brain started to panic. Of course I was on the first row. My only saving grace was that I was in the back. I was still determined to just stick it out though so I started to get my thoughts together. "My name is Claire Riley, I'm 19 years old from Harrells, North Carolina and..." What the heck did he mean your thoughts on race? The first girl in line started talking but the only thing I heard her say was that she was 22. I probably looked like a baby. We were two people in front of me when a girl walked into the class. The professor crossed his arms and waited as she hurried to the back of the room. She looked around the room and pulled out her phone, looking at her schedule I guess. Then she turned around and headed for the door. I thought to myself, "it's now or never." I'd been sitting there for a good 10 minutes and my actual class was due to start any second. I hopped up and made a mad dash for the door.

My suitemate was standing in the hallway just like before. "This is 365-G, we're supposed to be in 365 on the second floor!" We hit the stairs and found what I hoped was the right room this time. We slipped into the only empty chairs. The professor looked from the role to us and asked, "Payton and Claire?" We both nodded, "Were you down on the ground floor?" I tried not to laugh, "Yes ma'am." She shook her head. "I knew that would be confusing."

Needless to say I have triple checked what room I'm supposed to be in before I go to class. I've told that story over and over again and it always seems to get a good laugh. That suitemate has become one of my very best friends and I think that was a pretty good start to a great friendship.