Spend Your Free Time Wisely – On Fun!
End of Navigation
For many people, life at UCSB is filled with firsts. It may be your first time away from the family that has shaped who you are and what you believe. It may be the first time you decide what you will study, and you'll have to pick from a dizzying array of choices. It may be the first time you see students demonstrating for something they believe strongly in, or against. And for most of you, it will be the last time that you have time to play during the day! No doubt you have been repeatedly advised to make the most of your time at UCSB, broaden your horizons, meet new people. No doubt, your checkbook, the Financial Aid Office, the media and anyone who might be helping pay for your education, constantly remind you that money is scarce. The good news is that UCSB provides you with thousands of opportunities-many of them very inexpensive, some completely free-to become a seasoned individual with more to claim from your years here than a degree. And you can have enormous fun in the process. So you're committed to discovery-now where do you look? Here are some tips:
Tip #1
Meet People.
The biggest resource to enlarge your worldview on this campus is people. The administration, faculty and staff here are committed to nurturing a culturally diverse environment, and the variety of students to meet is mind-boggling.
If the opportunities seem overwhelming, the best solution is to get personal. Strike up a conversation; it won't feel as awkward as you think once you get started. The person next to you in class may be from a place you can't find on a map: Nepal, Indonesia, Sudan, Surinam or a former Soviet republic whose name you've never even heard. Or maybe they grew up right here in Santa Barbara. They might be gay, lesbian or straight. Perhaps they are Christian, Jewish, Buddhist or Muslim. They will probably have a different perspective on life and UCSB than you. And whether you agree or disagree, it's great to have the conversation.
Special note: If you're from Southern California, be on the lookout for folks from the Bay Area, and vice versa. They may dispel all your long held notions about the other end of the state: not everyone from LA naps in tanning salons and not all northerners eat only tofu.
Tip #2
Write it down.
There is so much happening on campus that you always need to be alert. In the past, Arts & Lectures and other organizations have brought authors of all kinds to campus to read from or lecture about their work: host and writer of A Prairie Home Companion Garrison Keillor; hilarious satirist David Sedaris; passionate advocate for the American wilderness Terry Tempest Williams; Latin American superstar novelist Mario Vargas Llosa; CNN correspondent Siobhan Darrow; best-selling author of A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius Dave Eggers; naturalist and adventurer Gretel Ehrlich were among them. These events are listed in the Daily Nexus and the MultiCultural Center, Women's Center and Arts & Lectures calendars posted and stacked around campus. Look for other alternative campus newspapers, department newsletters or on-line for information about events you won't find listed in the Nexus.
Tip #3
Check it out.
The kinds of visitors that come to campus are as varied as ice cream flavors and the people who eat them. Lecture hall by day, theater by night, Campbell Hall explodes with an array of distinguished artists in dance, theater and music performances. What's more, checking out Arts & Lectures events will not only take you to Campbell Hall and other sites around campus, but also throughout Santa Barbara County. A&L links the university and the community, presenting events at the Arlington Theatre, Our Lady of Sorrows Church, the SB Museum of Natural History and the Montecito Country Club, among other venues. The type of performances Arts & Lectures presents are equally wide-ranging: the hip-hop choreography and electric rhythms of Rennie Harris Puremovement; the breathtaking magical movement and dance artistry of France's treasured Compagnie Maguy Marin; the elegance, athleticism and lyricism of Miami City Ballet dancing George Ballanchine's masterwork Jewels, and that's merely three of the season's dance events. Arts & Lectures also presented theater, including the Acting Company in Shakespeare's beloved Taming of the Shrew, jazz, including the hot swing of the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis, and world music, including the lilting melodies of Cape Verdean diva Cesaria Evora. As for classical music, the legendary Guarneri String Quartet, together for over 35 years, performed in the same season as the Borromeo String Quartet, founded in 1989.
Visitors also come to campus in 35-millimeter. Numerous groups sponsor film screenings, so much so you could probably see a movie every evening. Arts & Lectures brings the best of world cinema to UCSB, from works by David Lynch to Zhang Yimou. There are also special cinematic events, like an evening with director William Friedkin of The Exorcist and silent films with live piano accompaniment.
Tip #4
Bring a friend.
Campus events aren't just good for making you think; they can be social occasions, too. Invite an acquaintance to a lecture or film and you'll have plenty to talk about over coffee afterwards. You'll find out about what the speaker thinks, what your friend thinks and, probably, what you think. The way I perceive myself and the world has changed a lot over the course of my time at UCSB, both as a student and as a staff member, because of some unexpected, but important, conversations I've had.
Tip #5
Do art.
Fill your life with art. All types of visual and performing arts are available on campus. The Women's Center, the College of Creative Studies and the University Art Museum all have new exhibits throughout the year. The Art Studio Department's Gallery 1434 exhibits the work of UCSB students. You can see the work of student, community and world-renowned artists for no charge at these places.
If you've never known much about classical music, or you've been a little intimidated by it, you'll have a chance to try some on campus. Arts & Lectures presents world-class chamber music groups playing music that is sometimes foreign sounding and challenging, sometimes just plain beautiful, and often both.
Tip # 6
Expect the unexpected.
With all this new information and your daring experiences with people, ideas and art, you may feel excited, encouraged, angry at what you see and hear, and sometimes, flat-out tired. But who knows what might happen amidst all this activity? Basking in other people's creativity can spur your own. A new idea for a paper or project might come to you while you're watching dancers cavort on stage. You might discover career options you never dreamed of in the middle of a film. While listening to an interesting speaker, you might change your mind about something important to you or even find yourself questioning your friends' points of view; all that can be uncomfortable. Growing is never easy, but it's always worthwhile. And of course you can't predict what will happen, but you can be sure it will be fascinating!
-Judith Smith-Meyer, Revised by the Staff of Arts & Lectures
|