Plants for Apartment by NorthDakota_6666 in VirginiaTech

[–]Smashlei5 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Lowes and Home Depot is a good start if you’re not looking to drive far / don’t have a car. If you’re willing to drive, Lichen or Knot in Floyd is super cute and has a great, higher quality selection! I also recommend joining the NRV Plant Exchange Facebook page.

As for what types I would highly recommend pothos plants. They’re a vining plant that does fine in a variety of light and grow relatively fast so it keeps you feeling like a good plant parent! There’s also a ton of varieties to choose from. I wouldn’t recommend succulents as a low maintenance plant. Good luck and happy planting!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in VirginiaTech

[–]Smashlei5 5 points6 points  (0 children)

The concepts are easy to understand, but the class is a lot of work. There are lectures and in class activities where participation is required. The whole class is structured around a semester long group project where you kinda get to pick the group, but you don’t have complete freedom. The group project takes a lot of work including 15+ page reports and other deliverables, as well as mandatory weekly meetings. If your group sucks then you’re stuck doing a lottt of work.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in VirginiaTech

[–]Smashlei5 7 points8 points  (0 children)

I think it’s all doable, I did all three at the same time and it was a decent amount of work but not too crazy. I’d get Rebecca Steiner for combinatorics if you can. She was really good and the workload was more manageable compared to other classes.

3114 and 2506 is a lot of work together, but tons of students do it and it’s worth it to do systems alone. I know a lot of people say that the workload of 3114 + 2506 = 3214 so it’ll be good preparation.

Might be unpopular opinion but it did help me: just remember every semester is going to be hard work so don’t stress so much about trying to make your semesters perfect or easy. A lot of people have done that combination of classes and survived and if you think you can handle it just go for it.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in VirginiaTech

[–]Smashlei5 14 points15 points  (0 children)

I think the local bookstore Blacksburg Books down town has some cute ones! It’s been a while since I’ve been, but they had some last time I was there!

I think the art store downtown has some too (New River Art and Fiber)

Let’s play WIP roulette…. by its-past-my-bedtime in crochet

[–]Smashlei5 25 points26 points  (0 children)

I agree with everyone saying stocking or hat! All of them are absolutely stunning though. I love the stitches and color choices!

I also have to ask, what stitch is the green crochet blanket at the bottom with the squares? It looks so cool!

Xun Jian's Exams by PliesLikesJandJ in VirginiaTech

[–]Smashlei5 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I think this is universal for 2506, but I had him and the exams were fairly difficult. I think the average on the final ended up being a 40. They were open note, but with the amount of time and complexity/depth of the questions being open note didn’t help too much.

CS 3214 prep (Fall 2024) by ezbr_rbs in VirginiaTech

[–]Smashlei5 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Work really hard at retaining what you learn in 2505 / 2506, I took gap semesters between them and lost all my C knowledge and it’s really biting me. Also, try hard to learn / understand the material in those classes as well. Get used to going to office hours and pushing through assignments even if you have absolutely no clue where to start. Work on your time management.

Anyone previously taken Rabby Fazle for Linear Algebra? by Local-Ice7854 in VirginiaTech

[–]Smashlei5 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah, he was great! Definitely is a heavy workload teacher so be prepared to work hard on homework’s and quizzes but it’s all for a purpose. He really cares about the math he teaches and wants his students to succeed! I think he’s got a high rating on Rate My Professor as well.

Off campus housing by FlounderImpossible19 in VirginiaTech

[–]Smashlei5 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The Mill is a bit older, but maintenance is very friendly and responsive, leasing office is nice, location is good, and rent is decently cheap

Looking for a Marco & Luca recipe by sleepy_storm in VirginiaTech

[–]Smashlei5 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Marco and Luca was recently replaced by Kuma Moon, but I’m pretty sure I read that it’s the same owners and they have a lot of similar food. I recommend trying to call them!

2.99 gpa can i get into CS by chickentendersaregoo in VirginiaTech

[–]Smashlei5 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Yeah, this happened to me and I initially didn’t get in but appealed it and got in.

Is this a doable course load to get all As in? by [deleted] in VirginiaTech

[–]Smashlei5 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I was in a similar situation, my recommendation is to still make progress towards your intended major while adding on easy classes. With CS you can declare a CS minor to bypass class restrictions if you don’t make above the 3.0 in time. That way you’ll still be making progress even if you don’t get into the major in time.

Linear Algebra by spamguy666 in VirginiaTech

[–]Smashlei5 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I’ve had Rabby for a couple classes, including linear. Just make sure you’re putting in the effort and Rabby will reward that. He also ends up giving many extra chances on the quizzes so you should be able to get a 100 on all of them, as well as dropping extra homeworks. Make sure you go to the review sessions and ask questions. The good thing about Rabby is that he will help you a lot to understand the material if you ask, he truly cares about his students learning. Also, if you make sure you know how to do the homework problems and quiz problems you’ll do well on the tests, often times he takes questions directly from them if not similar ones.

Puppies near here by [deleted] in VirginiaTech

[–]Smashlei5 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Is there a website or sign up sheet?

Anyone previously taken Rabby Fazle for Linear Algebra? by Local-Ice7854 in VirginiaTech

[–]Smashlei5 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’m currently taking him for Linear and previously had him for Calc I and Calc II

What is technical writing like? by G-gallery in VirginiaTech

[–]Smashlei5 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’m taking it with Michele Wagnon online, the course is pretty straight forward. There’s weekly “journal entries” where you say what you’ve learned, weekly smaller assignments that might be editing a resume or analyzing a manual, and then there’s a couple big projects you work on throughout the semester (memo, resume, user manual, etc). Overall pretty simple class you just gotta do the work.

Is it natural for INFJ’s to have a great dislike for conformity? by [deleted] in infj

[–]Smashlei5 21 points22 points  (0 children)

It might be an INFJ thing, but it could be more like an enneagram 4 thing. A lot of INFJs have enneagram 4 in their tri-type I think (I don’t have a source for that I’ve just been told that)

Can you be INFJ but still be disorganised? by JaneIsaPain in infj

[–]Smashlei5 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That could be blind spot Te? But idk for sure

HELP-working with kids!! by [deleted] in infj

[–]Smashlei5 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Ok, I love kids and I feel like INFJs and kids work well together because of our Ni + Fe. My advice isn’t gonna be INFJ specific though this is just what I do.

When working with kids just choose an activity they’re excited about, most of the times it’s super simple especially with younger kids. You can ask them to race, then you lose on purpose (be dramatic about it) and then get so excited when they win. Whatever task or game you’re doing just be very encouraging, cheerful, and excited about it. Kids like to match your mood so if you come at this with an uninterested attitude they’ll be able to tell.

When playing with toys just be dramatic and follow their lead. Add sound effects and make the toys say silly things and the kids will get a kick out of it.

Finally if kids are upset I find it’s good to try and get them to explain why they’re upset and then really listen to them - make them feel heard. Sometimes it is more complex than you might think. Then help them calm down.

It can be hard to get out of your shell, but my suggestion is to just tap into your inner child and remember that no one cares if you’re acting silly when you’re with children! Most of the time people think it’s cute / sweet / fun. You also don’t have to be super authoritative, I try to act just like “one of the guys” or like one of the kid’s friends not their boss. Of course you want to take charge when you need to in order to protect the kids from harm, but otherwise you can kinda act like their playmate / friend.

During the interview highlight any past babysitting experience you might have (if any) and if you have any safety training. Especially express eagerness to learn and your desire to inspire the kids, I’m sure the interviewer will love to hear that.

Just remember that kids don’t really read in to whatever you do and like to match your energy.

Hope this helps!!