I think I'll give an update on my experiences so far in college.
I have no regrets for going early, and it felt more and more like the right thing to do each day I was there. My grades were lower than I would've liked for this semester, but it's only the first one, I know the system now, and I'm sure I can do much better next semester. I was essentially a B student this semester, and I want to be an A student next semester.
As for workload, it's been pretty manageable so far. I have yet to stay up all night doing work, and I don't see myself needing to do it. At first, it was tough trying to manage my time to complete everything, but I've figured it out much better. I'm guessing next semester, I'll probably work 6-8 hours per day including time in class. I did much less than that at times this past semester.
As for solving the social issues I've had in high school, I'm still very much the individualistic self that I've always been, but I do have friends I can talk to and hang out with on a regular basis, which I did not have in high school. Biggest difference is that I don't have to be a "social butterfly" to fit in. Seems like there's very much a "live and let live" attitude here, so you can be your own person, still find at least some good friends, and not be looked down on by everyone else.
I found the location (Potsdam) outside of ski season to be relatively mediocre. There really isn't much to do on campus or in town on weekends. I played a few rounds of golf at the local course, but I really need to up my game to take it up fully. Thought about going hiking in the ADK's, but I always get these splitting headaches when I go on a significant hike, so I haven't done any in quite a while. It's pretty easy to get to Montreal and Ottawa. Went to Montreal twice, but haven't been to Ottawa.
This update is of course incomplete without mentioning skiing. In the last few weeks of the semester, I was skiing every Saturday and Sunday, mostly at Whiteface. I keep my weekends free of any schoolwork to make this possible. This actually works pretty well for me because I was never able to focus on anything too well if I tried to do it on the weekends, vs the work I get done on weekdays. I plan on keeping the same arrangement for next semester. The "ski culture" of Clarkson was greatly overstated. There are no Clarkson School students who have a WF pass. I see plenty of "ski club" and "Ski The Face" stickers on people's belongings, but I have yet to confirm the existence of any Clarkson students at Whiteface on the days I've been there, racers excepted. I've been going on my own for now, and can continue to do so and enjoy it, but I would like to at least have a short list of people that will go with me some of the time. This could be complicated by my hard set 6:15am departure time when skiing Whiteface, as many people party on Friday and Saturday nights and will not get up early to go skiing. The other complication with regard to finding friends to ski with is the "ski club" isn't really an active club, and they won't let you be involved in any of their events till you sign their stupid waiver, and they don't think I'm mature enough to sign it. I think I would be an asset to the club, since I have a car and will give anyone a ride to WF who wants to get there early, but they don't want my business, so I say "Hell with it". I'll just ski by myself till your leadership lets me join your group without needing my parents permission first.
I've lived in New York my entire life.
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