Alex Plum Teaches You How to Survive College Part 1

For those of you who know, there comes a time in life (providing if you are academically and financially equipped) when you are booted of to college or what we call in these parts, university. So pack your bags up and say a prayer with your family and friends cause you are gonna be gone for the next few years. However. please do not fret readers, as I am going to reveal the holy grail of the what and hows of surviving the period of life we call tertiary education. ( If you are a lucky bastard who gets to live at home and go to college, stop reading now)

1. Food is f**king expensive

Ahh food, one of 5 constituent necessities in life. 3 times a day if you have a normal appetite and a routine you will most likely follow for the rest of your miserly life. While you might have been fattened up by the ever-so-succulent home cooked meals you enjoyed in your house, I'm afraid college grub will grant any freshman a rude awakening. Chances are food in college is gonna suck real bad and it's gonna be hella expensive too. Let me explain, at home your mom cooks with love; no ingredient shortcuts and (relatively) no expense spared to provide you with a healthy and nutritious palate. In college, these people serving you food have profit margins to make and they sure aren't gonna be cooking with love for you. This is where I strongly advise to learn one of life's most pertinent skills, cooking (It will help you in college and it will help you when you have arguments with your wife). Raw food products will definitely be a whole lot more cheaper than the ready made meals in the canteens. (People who can cook also have a selective advantage when courting the opposite sex)

Here's a good place to start learning cheap ways to cook- Broke Eats
 2. Do your laundry

Clothes make the man/woman, or so they say. Just a week in college I guarantee that a mountain of used clothes will start to form in your laundry basket. The stench of dry sweat becomes unbearable; you look into your wardrobe and you are out of clean underwear. It isn't a pretty picture but it is truth. Henceforth, you would be best off organizing yourself by setting a day or two in a week when you will spend 15 minutes to do your laundry. This allows you to be efficient with your routine as well as guaranteeing clean clothes. It doesn't take too much to do laundry just some detergent, fabric softener (optional) and a washing machine.

 A good video to familiarize yourself to the rigors of laundry

3. What to bring

From experience, the most important things to brings are the most obvious culprits such as clothes (not too many though), sanitary goods, stationery, writing materials, some books, laptop, etc. While most colleges give a list of suggested items, it is advisable to ask seniors who are already in college on what to bring as they can provide you with information that took them time to learn. I for one would definitely look into bringing pots, cutlery, a rice cooker and an induction cooker. A refrigerator for fruits and eggs would also rank highly on my list. As a rule of thumb you do not really want to be bringing too much stuff ( as the rooms you will be living in will not be as large or grandiose as the ones you have at home ) so as not to clutter up your living space.

She knows what I'm talking about

4. Do your assignments the day you get 'em

Procrastination, the biggest sin of modern man. "Got something to do? It can wait until I finish this game/ movie/ comic." Get your butt in motion. You are in college now, you are supposed to know what is best for you and how to act like an adult. The best trick I learnt was to finish your assignments as fast as you get them, that way I don't have to worry about them and I do not give myself the chance to procrastinate. Do not let your deadbeat classmates convince you otherwise; do not let them coerce you into wasting your time when you could be finishing up your work. Post-assignmentsn though, you can waste how much time you want without feeling the guilt.

5. Romance can take a back seat

Every cliched Hollywood product has fucked up our generation, creating misconception after misconception and disillusioning the youth into thinking what they see in the movies and television dramas are the ideal ways to live our lives. Take that manure out of your head and listen up. College is not a time for you to party like a wild animal and wake up hung over next to a person you can't remember. College is a time where you spend looking for yourself and your true calling, you really do not need a relationship weighing you down. As a student, you can barely support yourself let alone another person. It may seem hard with all the peer pressure around you, but it is definitely something that is worth it in the end ( no heart-aches and break-ups to deal with around exam times).


This is Alex Plum with another article with the hope that this may serve you well in your own college life. I apologize for the lack of updates on my other articles, but life has gotten me pressed down like thumbtack on a soft board. Stay tuned for the 2nd part to my article and I hope you enjoy the weekend.