Yellow Highlighters

Today has been an average day. You know the routine, wake up, go to orientation, come home, do pretty much nothing, take a walk, go to bed. My blogs going to get pretty boring if I keep repeating the same thing over and over. Luckily, for you special readers, even though there aren't too many of you...YET!...the other day I came across a website that listed 80 journal writing prompts. So on my "bleh" days, I think I'll do one of those. Hope they don't bore you to death, and maybe you'll be tempted to tell me your answers, too!

Today I'll go with Prompt #44: Describe your note-taking style and habits. I felt this one went really well with what I've been doing the past few days. Where to start, where to start?

Handwriting: In spirit of this blog post I took a quiz about my handwriting. Here's my results:
Your handwriting reveals you as a thoughtful, intellectual type who avoids fake people and places where there's lots of noise and crowds. You're probably the one people go to when they're feeling super sad and don't run off at the mouth unless someone hounds you for your opinion.

Being creative is probably easy for you, but expressing it in front of a large group is not. You might write in a blog or journal, enjoy things that are old-fashioned or obscure and (maybe) don't get most pop culture references (who cares about 'em anyway?).

I guess it's not too far off, considering it was from www.gurl.com and not anything all psychologically studied or anything.

When I take my notes, I have to have everything in perfect order. First, I only buy spiral notebooks with perforated edges in college lined. I start by putting the date on the left of the red line, on the first line. Then I date every page in the same place on every page. I start my notes there. In outline form. Never crossing that left red line, except for the date. If I misspell a word, or have a word that I started and can't finish on that same line, I freak out. It bothers me. I think I literally have a problem because I lose my concentration as to what's going on in lecture and just stare at how bad I just messed my notes up. I get all worked up, and even go back home and rewrite my notes just so they look nice again. It's really weird a waste of time, I know, especially at Cornell when time was so precious. I couldn't NOT fix it though. Why didn't I just buy white out? Well, good question. I don't know.

I take notes and highlight in my textbooks when I do my reading. But I refuse to buy a textbook that has writing or highlighting already in it. I color code what I highlight (this topic is pink, this topic is green...). I absolutely REFUSE to use yellow highlighters. 1. I hate yellow. 2. I like to study under soft lamps. Not that florescent crap that gives you a headache when you're already reading something that gives you a headache. When you use yellow highlighters, you can't see what you've highlighted under soft light. It's annoying! So I'd have to re-highlight anyways. When I buy highlighters and throw the yellow ones out as soon as I open the package. Whoever invented yellow highlighters anyways? Pointless.

I don't doodle on the same pages I take notes on. It looks sloppy. Ruins my nice flow. I use the last page of the notebook for that. Then tear it out before the next day's class so I have a fresh, clean page for doodles.

I use the same color of ink for that whole day's notes, and if my pen dies and I have to use a different color...then I'll be rewriting that day's notes again that night. So usually I just keep one color stocked in my backback. Usually blue, sometimes purple. Never red, rarely black.

I hate writing in pen because I feel like I have no control over my pen. Pencils are easier to write with but I hate how they smear all over my hand and fade the next day.
sub story: I hold my pencil really funny. I remember being criticized about how I hold my pencil by two people in particular growing up. Grandma. She'd always tell me how you are supposed to hold a pencil, between your thumb and index finger. And also, my third grade teacher who wanted all of us to hold our pencil the same way Grandma told me too. So somehow my mom and I found these pencils that had dents in them for your index finger to go. You know, to teach me to hold my pencil "the right way" so my teacher would leave me alone.

What those pencils looked like, only mine were purple.

Did it help? Nope. Everybody gave up on how I hold my pencil, and guess what all? My handwriting is just fine, thank you very much.

Anyways, the only solution I've found for the control of a pencil, and the non-fading, non-smearing of a pen...sharpie pens. MIRACLE!! LOVE LOVE LOVE.

But you know me, and my OCD like tendencies...I only buy the all blue packs.

Now that you all think I'm officially crazy, have a good night! :)