Since the start of the semester I have learned how to adapt. Adapting to online classes, adapting to working in the same space as two other family members, and adapting to completing the same workload in a different space and mindset. I remember the Wednesday when we got the email saying all university classes were going to be moved online. My 3:35 class had been cancelled so I met a couple friends at the Hen Zone to play pool before we met up with another friend for dinner. Emails from each of my professors came pouring in about transitioning online. My physics class wasn’t on canvas before this mess and my math professor had said barely even an hour beforehand in class that the math department was nowhere near ready to transition to online.
After exactly 2 months since we heard the news of moving online, I have adapted to working in my dining room with my dad and brother working beside me. Online lectures haven’t been too bad but labs are boring and still require lengthy reports. The worst thing to adapt to has been exams. From quizzes to exams, it has been the hardest to get through and I’m still not fully adjusted to them. I can never position my laptop right so I can see my screen and the camera is still pointed at my paper. I just can’t seem to focus as my family can sometimes be loud even though I tell them when I’m taking an exam. I worry about the two finals I have to take as I know it is not going to be a good test-taking experience. On the flip side, adapting to all the other aspects of online learning from the comfort of my home hasn’t been too hard. I have more time to spend with my family and I can get my work done during the times I would normally be making the trek to class, leaving more time for me to relax or do other things. In somewhat of an odd way, this mess of a situation has taught me how to not take the things I have for granted and how to adapt to things that are thrown my way. It’s crazy to think my freshman year of college is coming to a close and looking back I had a hell of a first semester and an even crazier second one.
-Madison Gac
English 110 Spring 2020 10:10-11:00 
Hey Madison! I couldn’t agree more with everything you pointed out in your writing. Adapting to different and unknown situations is definitely one of the most difficult thing to do and understand your struggle to adpating to online school because I had the same exact nervousness about it. Otherwise I really enjoyed reading this because of how relatable it was, great writing!
Emilie Lauria
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Madison, I relate so much to this post. Labs are the ABSOLUTE worst right now. I mean they were bad before, but now it’s like listening to “It’s a Small World After All” on repeat for two-and-a-half hours. I don’t really know where that comparison came from, but I think they’re the same levels of torture. Also, family is so hard to work with, my little brother is the most distracting person I’ve ever met and the rest of my family has no sense of volume control, so I feel you there. I loved how you wrote about those little things that don’t seem like much but can ruin your day, like “I can never position my laptop right so I can see my screen and the camera is still pointed at my paper.” It’s a seemingly small problem, but I can feel your annoyance so vividly and completely relate to that headspace. I really enjoyed this post, and hope everything goes well for you in the future!
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