As I begin my senior year at Bethel I feel that I am obligated to pass down some of the delicious morsels of wisdom I have acquired during the last three years as I welcome all of you to FALL SEMESTER 2007! Okay, I might be a wee-bit overexcited, but it’s my senior year and in just a few weeks my hyperactivity will be squashed by the inevitable senioritis!So while I still have enough energy, let’s dig in to those morsels of wisdom!Morsel Number One: The sooner you buy your required texts for class, the better. As much as I like to procrastinate, I always try to by my books as early as possible. Why? Because no matter where you buy books from sometimes they just get shipped later than expected (or get lost by the US Postal Service), plus Bethel professors will start dishing out assignments on the first day of class (we’ve got to cram in as much knowledge as possible!).Morsel Number Two: Your Bethel email account is your friend. I know some students prefer not to use their Bethel email account, but you know what? Professors will often send vital information to these email accounts (like if class is cancelled!). Also, no matter how many times people complain about student-announce (a mass announce email that is sent to all of the students simultaneously) it is still a good place to discuss campus issues, convocation, books for sale, and asking who poured water on you in the middle of the night.Morsel Number Three: “It’s Your Library…Check It Out!” It surprises me every year (I have worked in the Bethel College Library for three years now) when students walk into the library and ask, “Do you have any books?” or “Where are all of the books?” As you walk into the library the only books you see are reference books (like dictionaries) and some periodicals (journals and magazines). It may stun some of you to find that the library also has a wide variety of fiction and nonfiction books UPSTAIRS. That’s right, there is an upstairs! If you look to your left or straight ahead as walk in there will be two doors that have EXIT signs above them, those, my friends, are the staircases. Go up the staircase to find fiction and nonfiction, and go downstairs to the basement to find more periodicals. And if you’re lazy, you can take the elevator (3rd floor fiction and nonfiction stacks, 2F main library floor, and 1st floor periodicals). The librarians (wonderful people!) also get new books on a regular basis, so you can find new books (like Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows). Morsel Number Four: The illusive books “on reserve” in the library are not that illusive. If your professor sends you to the library to read something “On Reserve” you should ask whoever is working at the front desk for that material. Be sure you know two important things: 1. Which class is this for? 2. What is the title of the material? Telling the librarian who the professor is that sent you will get you nothing! NOTHING!! Here is a real example of what tragedies can occur if you don’t know what you’re looking for.Student: “Hi, I need a book on reserve for Patty Shelly’s class.” Me: “Okay…” *awkward silence* Me: “Which class?” Student: “Uhhh… hmmm… I’m not sure. I don’t know.” Me: “What book do you need, then?” Student: “Uhhh… one about religion…?” (By now the student’s faded tone and bemusement make the short statement sound like a question, as if I’m supposed to have ESP or something.) Me (slapping myself on the forehead): “Come back when you know which book you need and what class it’s for.” Student: “But class is in fifteen minutes!” Me: “I’m sorry.” (Not really, you slacker!)Then, as you walk to Patty’s class, without having read the chapters you needed, you realize how much happier you would be if you would have taken this advice seriously.Morsel Number Five: Laugh a little. LoL, RoFL, BaG. It’s really easy for college students to become mildly depressed from the stress of college life, so take some time to laugh. We all know that “laughter is the best medicine.” Laughter can produce endorphins, protect your heart, lower blood sugar, burn calories, boost your immune system, and even strengthen your abdominal muscles. To ensure you get a healthy dose of laughter, try participating in student activities, like Spring Fling week, the Christmas Gala, the Bubbert Awards, or my personal favorite: any John McCabe-Juhnke class. Enough delicious morsels for now, you’ll ruin your appetite!Last Bit o’ Blog: – In my honest opinion, the rhino doesn’t stand a chance against the hippo.- The apple may not fall far from the tree, but once it’s on the ground it gets all dirty and starts to rot.- Finally, ferret or giant corn dog suit… which would you choose?-Shannon