Earlier today my roommate informed me that I often talk in my sleep. Loud enough, in fact, to wake her up. “Oh, no!,” I think, “What have I been telling her?”(My roommate awake in bed late at night, perhaps woken up by my mutterings?)
Although I am lucky in having a roommate that I tell all my thoughts and problems too, I still wonder what could slip out from my unconscious. After all, Jung states that the contents of our “personal unconscious are available through hypnosis, guided images, and especially [ahh!] dreams” (170). Thankfully she tells me that what I say is mainly non-sense or involves asking the whereabouts of an unknown someone.
Even if my sleep talking is not affected by my unconscious, I do know that my expectations of college were. I agree with Jung in that “education [. . .] has been influenced by a great deal of unconscious material: parent’s preferences, childhood experiences, even movies [. . .]” (170). Growing up in a family in which a college education is the norm has submerged me in a sea of stories about education and college for as long as I can remember. My parents usually spoke about the living-on-your-own aspects of college-life and the extracurricular sports or trips they participated in. And, when I think about it, almost all the college movies that come to mind such as Legally Blonde or Animal House involve socializing or partying. I thought that I had a pretty good idea of what college would be like after hearing stories from and visiting many of my older college-aged cousins.
Even if my sleep talking is not affected by my unconscious, I do know that my expectations of college were. I agree with Jung in that “education [. . .] has been influenced by a great deal of unconscious material: parent’s preferences, childhood experiences, even movies [. . .]” (170). Growing up in a family in which a college education is the norm has submerged me in a sea of stories about education and college for as long as I can remember. My parents usually spoke about the living-on-your-own aspects of college-life and the extracurricular sports or trips they participated in. And, when I think about it, almost all the college movies that come to mind such as Legally Blonde or Animal House involve socializing or partying. I thought that I had a pretty good idea of what college would be like after hearing stories from and visiting many of my older college-aged cousins.
Little did I know that it is impossible to know what to expect from college until you are in it. At home in Houston my curfew is midnight-ish and if my parents notice that I am not home by one in the morning they will call me making sure I am safe and demanding I get home earlier next time. On school nights in high school I considered going to bed at 11:30 pm late and getting to school at 7:10 am not outrageously early. I now see I grew up in a very protected environment – if I was not home at a certain hour I knew my parents would be calling. There was also that support system I knew I would have from my family if I was sick or upset. The new concept of time is definitely something I did not expect in college. For example, it seems that no one goes to before 1 am and that all my 8am classes are extremely difficult to wake up for. (Left: How I feel for 8 am classes)
Although unexpected, the different time patterns do fit my expectation that college would be very freeing. No 
longer do I have to sit in half an hour of traffic of traffic to get to class. Now I can even take naps in my own bed between classes! Still though, I had a misconceived notion that I would have much more free time to spend doing things other than homework. I expected college academics to be a continuation of high school academics. But, just as Jude found in learning a new language, the “charm [I] had supposed in store for [me is] really a labor like that of Israel in Egypt” (653). I did not expect classes to be as challenging as they are, and I did not expect to struggle as much as I do in balancing my time between work and play.
longer do I have to sit in half an hour of traffic of traffic to get to class. Now I can even take naps in my own bed between classes! Still though, I had a misconceived notion that I would have much more free time to spend doing things other than homework. I expected college academics to be a continuation of high school academics. But, just as Jude found in learning a new language, the “charm [I] had supposed in store for [me is] really a labor like that of Israel in Egypt” (653). I did not expect classes to be as challenging as they are, and I did not expect to struggle as much as I do in balancing my time between work and play. (right: Stuck in Traffic) 
(The Walk of Friends in Zliker Park- friends are a met expectation)
Nevertheless my overall expectations of college are met daily. I thought that I would find new friends thanks to dorm living, and the wonderful honors quad has indeed made a community of people that I love. The prime location of Austin has also allowed me to take several excusions (as Professor Bump likes to call them) to various cities and natural areas of Texas. The freedom from rules has brought about issues, like Logan, of safety and time management but I think I have managed well. And, I do have more time to spend with friends even if it seems that I must always do work when not being with friends.
(The Walk of Friends in Zliker Park- friends are a met expectation)Nevertheless my overall expectations of college are met daily. I thought that I would find new friends thanks to dorm living, and the wonderful honors quad has indeed made a community of people that I love. The prime location of Austin has also allowed me to take several excusions (as Professor Bump likes to call them) to various cities and natural areas of Texas. The freedom from rules has brought about issues, like Logan, of safety and time management but I think I have managed well. And, I do have more time to spend with friends even if it seems that I must always do work when not being with friends.
My expectations for my involvement at UT, I think, were idealized because I did not realize how much time commitment any activity or class involves. Instead I expect to find a few meaningful activities at UT rather than a large amount of extracurriculars like in high school. I want to continue to build the relationships I have started and to make Austin my new home. I think that I can gain boundless knowledge here because any situation is what you make of it. It is the “yearning of [my] heart to find something to anchor on, to cling to [. . .]” (653).
