FRESH INDEPENDENCE!

Moving out of your parent’s home for the first time is an exciting experience. College students have to learn to support themselves after eighteen or nineteen years of pick-me-up from mom and dad. Shopping, cooking, cleaning, getting your homework done, making it to soccer practice on time, among many other things are no longer mama or papa’s job. The responsibility rests on the shoulders of a naive bunch of overgrown kids. BUT! Let’s look on the bright side of college independence for a minute.

When I was about seven years old my best friend and I would spend the nights playing in the street and hiding from the call for bedtime. I recall a particular night when we were traipsing up and down the street causing all sorts of mischief (well as much as any seven-year-old little girls could) when my dear friend realized she was in need of a restroom. It was dark outside, and probably far beyond the time that our parents would normally summoned us to our respective homes. We both became concerned about the fun coming to an end, and decided that the best way to avoid be called to bed would be to find an alternative place for my friend to relieve herself. Neither of our houses was safe at that hour. We continued to attend to our business, until the kidneys of my close friend were on the verge of explosion. We had to think fast and, being the geniuses that we were, we decided the best place for her to go would be behind a tree somewhere. Unfortunately we didn’t make it to a tree in the back yard, like we planned…actually; we didn’t make it behind a tree at all. I guess she couldn’t take it anymore, and I wasn’t about to blow our cover by letting her into my house, so in the middle of my front lawn, my friend took a pee. Our night was saved and we continued to have a fulfilling thirty minutes of play time beyond that.

Living independently presents a solution to the problem that I faced many years ago. I no longer need to finish my broccoli unless I want to. I no longer have to make my bed every morning. I no longer have to fear having my friends sent home by my parents. My friends and I can continue to have midnight adventures without the stress of knowing that a bathroom may not be available for use. My toilet is open all night, but just as a reminder…you’re still responsible for the grocery shopping. BUY TOILET PAPER.

Written by Cecily Lewis, Community Ambassador

iTour = iTunes

Alex and Logan enjoying their iTunes gift cards

Here's something for you to *Listen* to. You know that new Lady Gaga, song you've been wanting to download? Well, now you can! All you have to do is take a tour. REALLY... a TOUR!
Come into our office, we will take you through our beautiful property and show you all of our awesome amenities! Then, we'll give you a $15 iTunes gift cards. That's all it takes... You can be as happy as two of our new amazing residents (above). Hurry in, because these cards are limited! See you soon!

P.S. Special not offered to current residents.. sorry!

As if you needed another reason to move out of your parents house...

You are not going to want to miss these deals. Not only are we still waiving the $350 deposit, but those who sign a new lease with us will get $200 visa gift cards!! However, we only have 15 more cards, so you are going to want to move quickly!

For those of you who already live at the best place on earth (well maybe just in Orem), you can benefit too. Your friends are finally paying off.. If you refer a friend and they sign a new lease, you will qualify for a $100 referral bonus!

So basically everyone has an option to make lots of money! Who couldn't use an extra bit of cash for books... ya right SHOES!!

Stuff you don't know what to do with?

Ever have so much stuff and you don’t know what to do with it?!
WOW I know sometimes I do!
An extra shirt from Ross, the year old pair of jeans that you HAD to have! There’s always stuff piling up here and there. I am going to share a few things that have helped me become organized!
First of all, before you buy something, think to yourself, “Do I really need this?! Am I going to use this in a week, a month?” Some things are definitely worth the money, other things, not so much!
Second, At least once a month, if not once a week, de-junk your bedroom/apartment. Shirts that you haven’t worn for 11 months, get rid of, its okay I promise! Give it to the DI, someone will enjoy it  Get rid of your freshman year math test that you got 100% on! (I say this because I found mine the other day! Haha)
And third, be creative with your room! It is your room, so make it fun and put things on the walls, in the closets, or on the desks. Make collages of old pictures that you don’t know where to put, use resources! It’s amazing how creative you can become!
The main point I want to put across is that your room should fit you! It should be a place a refuge, not discomfort! When you walk into a clean environment, you have a better day! “Little things make the biggest differences!”

Written By Kami Poll, Community Ambassador

5 ways NOT to get a date !

Top 5 Ways a Guy can be undatable (straight from a girl’s mouth!),
5. Not washing their hair. Have you ever seen those Axe hair product commercials? Well, they are pretty much spot on! In order to get some “hair action”, guys, you gotta keep your locks all nice a maintained.
4. Honking/Whistling at a girl. The key here is about R-E-S-P-E-C-T!! This pick-up tactic fails for many reasons. But most of all, it makes the girl feel weirded out. Has anyone successfully attracted a girl using this method? I don’t think so. If I’m wrong, please feel free to email me.
3. Playing video games while a girl watches. Yeah as much as I hate to admit this, your girl just doesn’t like playing Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 as much as you do. And she especially doesn’t want to sit their and watch you (no matter how long your current kill-streak is). Admittedly, I am a gamer, and even I can’t stand to watch people play video games, so this is a definite NO.
2. Online TMI. Yeah, as much as you hate to admit it, you are not important as you think you are. No girl wants to see a facebook/twitter update every 10 minutes from a guy! This is a especially true if you update before/during/after your date! Live it the moment fellas.
1. Not paying on the first date. No excuse here at all! If you like a girl enough to ask her out you gotta know that the first impression is the most important. No going Dutch, and no “forgetting your wallet at home”. You can pretty much kiss your chances good-bye right from there.


Written by John Netherton, Community Ambassador

Live Well, Eat Better!

Being away from college can be a great experience until you look in your cupboard and realize that you don't know what to cook. You have all sorts of ingredients but don't know what to do with them all. I have a really simple recipe to solve your problem and cure you of hunger pains for a good while. It's a simple but tasty recipe. I don't have an official name for it but if i did then it might be BBQ Sweet and Sour Chicken :-) Here's the ingredients you'll need:

Chicken (as much as you want to eat)
1 18oz bottle bbq sauce
1 can of pineapple chunks
1 can of olives
1 green bell pepper.
*Pre-Heat oven to 375F
Step 1: Take however much chicken you want to use and cut it into cubes and brown it in a pan with a layer of cooking oil
Step 2: After the chicken is browned you take an 18 ounce bottle of barbeque sauce and pour it in the pan. You can use the juice from the pineapple to rinse out the bbq sauce from the bottle.
Step 3: Then add the remaining ingredients into a large pot that you can stick into the oven.(If you don't have one you can stick in the oven you can cook it on the stove top).
Step 4: Cook for about 30-45 min After eating such a delicious meal you'll be ready to conquer your homework!

Written by Jenner Black, Community Ambassador

School Year Success!

Best way to have a successful school year!!

Who wants to go to college, get good grades, and have a great social experience!? If you’re like me, then these are some goals you have in mind for this academic school year! I am going to share with you, some things that have helped me in the past to reach these goals!!

First make sure you have a set schedule and know what you have going on at all times! Some people make “to-do lists”, some use their phone calendars, and others use a planner. Whatever way suits you best, go for it!

How to make the day most productive and enjoyable with a low stress level is after school, go straight to the library and get your homework done. If you set a couple hours aside just for this, you will find that you won’t get behind and you will see better grades! If you are working a job that won’t allow you to stay at the school for a couple extra hours, move those hours to after work. Once your school work is done, and other high priorities are taken care of, the night is basically yours!! Go out and meet new people!

Stay involved in all school activities and events held at Wolverine Crossing! The more people you meet, and more activities you attend, the more positive social life you will have!

Here are a couple more tips for better academic success!

• Meet with your professors! This is a way that helps them know who you are, and notice how much effort you are giving to succeed! This also helps for when you are questioning homework assignments, and struggling with a topic!
• Study Groups! Study groups are a good way to have others help you a subject! I know that when I try to teach myself I get frustrated and give up. The other students in the course might explain it differently to a point were I understand it better!
• Don’t procrastinate! Procrastinating is a good way to start falling behind! When you stay on top of things, it’s a lot less stressful, and it will help when tests and quizzes come up in class
• Get some rest! I know it’s a lot of fun to stay out late with friends, but you’re going to regret it the next morning when you’re sitting in class and can’t keep your eyes open, or focus on the lecture.

I hope that these tips will help you have a successful 2010-2011 school year!!

Written by Bridgett Wilkinson, Community Ambassador