UCO Tips For Basic Survival

Tuition is only going to get higher from here on out, so I'll share with you a few tips that helped me get my money's worth during my time here at UCO.

1) Planners: If you miss the first week of school festivities in the Fall or Spring when they give out freebies, don't worry. Go to the 4th floor on the Nigh, and on the far right of the staircase outside the offices of Student Affairs there will be a desk full of planners for you to take for free provided by the school. (It has important off dates!)

2) Free Stuff: Not all that school e-mail you get is crap. I like to look at the Broncho weekly events. ESPECIALLY student commuter week later in the Fall. Free snacks, shirts, mugs, and random SPB gear await you. I still have a succulent plant I made in a lightbulb with UCO SPB and it's ALIVE to this day. I've also got a few memory sticks and t-shirts scattered somewhere in my things. If you don't use your e-mail, just look-out for what's going on around the central clock-tower on campus.

3) Free Food: Wesley Foundation Ministries feeds students for free on Thursdays from 11 A.M. to 2 P.M. They'll even advertise it on the school sidewalks (if you even bother to look down), So go get a nice home-cooked meal from the generous people at the church.

4) Parking: If you get to school early around 8:30 A.M., Parking along Campbell St. (Not in the lots) is free if you don't want to buy a parking decal. It's not too bad of a walk compared to parking in the surrounding neighborhoods if you manage to make it to school on time.

5) Quiet areas: I rarely study at home. If you have the time to explore campus, do so. You'll be surprised to find some quiet closed off nooks with comfy seating, outlets and technology. Sometimes you'll even have a whole room to yourself! People will even leave stuff on tables they don't need anymore. I've picked up a few supplies on my way.


These are my top 5, but if anyone else has any tips or suggestions feel free to help someone out. College is a struggle for most of us.

I won't be keeping up with this blog! If you wish to keep up with me, you can find me on instagram @aawreally.

Hiking On A Rainy Sunday At The Beautiful Red Rock Canyon

I was anticipating the fall weather to move in and finally cool things down last weekend, so the dreary and drizzly weather made me VERY happy. Our friend, Chris Moranchel suggested we drive about an hour and a half to go hiking out in the small town of Hinton just to get out of the house and explore. The overcast also created the perfect lighting for him to shoot photos of our little family. It was Meeko's first time out on a nature trail with us and he had a blast. I didn't think to bring a sweater, but I stayed warm dashing through the trails with him. Luckily, Meeko didn't run very far before darting back to us when we called him. He didn't have any problems being off a leash, which is great for future adventures.


It was muddy, damp, and cold, but the scenery was beautiful and quiet. Chris did a fantastic job capturing our vibes and our little one who can't seem to keep still for even a second. My boyfriend appears to be far more photogenic than I am and i'm still trying to figure out how I feel about that. We had a lot of fun despite spending at least 30-minutes back at the car pulling out all the stickers stuck to our pants at the end of the trail.

You can check out more of his work on his blog by clicking here.

I'm excited for a plan that is in works for a Vegas road trip in December where we (except for Meeko! He stays with Grandma.) plan on stopping by the Grand Canyon. 

Hard Luck In A Casino Down In El Reno

Last Friday, I spent the night at Lucky Star Casino just to do something out of the usual to start my weekend. I took out only $20 from the ATM but relied on my new player $10 card for the majority of the night. The employees at the desk that signed me up were far from helpful on explaining the point system on the card, so in short, I had no idea what I was doing. I learned very quickly that gambling is not one of my vices.

I walked through the hazy cigarette smoke filled aisles looking for the right machine to waste away at. I finally sat down at a Galapagos Island themed game and it took me less than 10 minutes or so to lose $5. I looked around to see a few older people sitting by who look like they've been sitting in the same spot for centuries and decided to get up and try a few other games.

Anxiety started to set in as I watched my bets lose and my money diminishing. There had to be a system to this. Maybe I wasn't pushing the buttons in the right order? I don't know! I imagined my mother, who loves to gamble, sitting at one of the machines and wondered how she subjects herself to this. I contemplated how much I could get for my $20 (A rotisserie chicken...Maybe even 3 of those.) I drained my free player card on my third machine and I probably won't ever return with the way my luck panned out.

In the end, I didn't spend my $20 bill, but I did put it towards my lunch on the way to Red Rock Canyon the next day. I think I'll just stick to spending my money on food and drinks.

Post coming soon on my hiking trip in Hinton,Oklahoma!

Exploring One of Oklahoma's Attractions For The First Time

I made it a point to visit the Wichita Mountains and be able to say I ventured out to see what this state has to offer. My boyfriend and I, along with a few friends decided to head out to Lawton during Labor Day weekend on a whim. We wanted to to find the most interesting way to start our hike, so after speaking with a wizard (the information guide as my friends referred to), he sent us through Charon's Garden Wilderness Area to find what was (use your imagination) a waterfall.The 3 bags of french fries I ate on the drive to Lawton could have explained why I wheezed my way through the area, but as first time hikers we took on one of the moderate to difficult trails.

Dane, Zac, Jess and I at the base of what was a waterfall

On the way back, we half assedly (is this a word?) decided to stop by Medicine Park and the timing could not have been perfect. Turns out, the town was having a small Blue's festival that lasted into the evening and we took full advantage of the $1 beers.

We left very content with our decision to explore and combined ability to navigate without dying in the wild. Together, the goal is go back and take down the easier trails around Mt. Scott and possibly make plans on visiting the Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge.