The End of Semester is Near...

INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

Gumboot Ladder Board Events Passed —Kiwiana, International

Trip to Rotorua and Taupo, Hall Events Upcoming Events—The Ball Student Counselling— Scary Exam Time Campus Living—Important Notices Chaplaincy CTL— StudyUp Exam Prep

External Relations—Massey Campaign and Election Survey

ISSUE THREE l MAY 14TH 2014

Above: Kiwiana Event Cow Pat Eating Comp

Below: International Student Trip –Huka Falls

Level 2, The Student Centre

MASSEY MANAWATU

Greetings everyone, Not long to go until exams. It is surprising how quickly this semester has gone. There will naturally be a lot of stress as we approach exams. Ensuring that you eat well, exercise and get plenty of rest will help. The Stress Less Workshops could be helpful. For more information please refer to the link below: http://www.massey.ac.nz/massey/student-life/services-and-resources/health-counselling-services/resources/workshops/stress-less/stress-less_home.cfm The Rec Centre is an excellent place to “sweat out” stress. They have excellent facilities and also host a range of different exercise classes that could be helpful. Check out their link below: http://www.massey.ac.nz/massey/student-life/recreation-and-sports/manawatu/palmerston_home.cfm During the study break and exams we have an alcohol ban in all halls. This is to ensure that the halls remain quiet and conducive for focussed study. The no noise time is also brought forward to 9pm. As it is election year, it is important that you have an opportunity to cast your vote. If you have not enrolled, application forms will be made available in your Common Rooms and at the Accommodation Services Office reception. The Accommodation Services Team would like to wish you all the best for your last assignments, tests and exams. Safe travels back home for the holiday break and we look forward to seeing you again next Semester.

KIWIANA

Fish n Chips. Maori fried bread. LnP. Fairy bread. Feijoas. Minties. Lamingtons. Spiders. Marmite. Jaffas. Kiwifruit. New Zealand Cheeses. Jetplanes. Pavlova. Kiwi Savouries. Pineapple Lumps. What a Kiwi Feast! On Wednesday 7th May, the annual Kiwiana Event was held in the ICC building. Watching people taste some kiwi foods for the first time was hilarious! Many residents were shocked when they tasted a feijoa or kiwifruit but thankfully they managed to wash it down with some LnP or fizzy. Popular picks were definitely the fried bread, fish n chips and different lollies that were waffled down throughout the lunch break. A big thank you to Loaded from Salt Church who provided a fantastic BBQ and to our RA’s who helped set up, serve and pack down. A special thanks to Manawatahi (the Maori Students Association) for their beautiful waiata and haka. The residents absolutely loved their singing and learning how to do the New Zealand haka. Congratulations to Yongkang Yu of Kairanga Court on winning the massive Pavlova for guessing the closest number of eggs that made it and to Cheng Li of Kairanga Court and Rowan Fortune of Atawhai for coming closest to guessing the amount of jaffas and pineapple lumps in a jar. Congratulations also to Mark Lewis of Kiwitea Hall for winning the eating chocolate cow pat competition and to Sebastiano Wright of Kairanga Court and Kelsey Lohse from Miro Hall who won the gumboot throwing competition. Thank you to all the residents for coming along and participating in the Kiwiana event, it made for an incredibly exciting and successful day and we hope you enjoyed the Kiwi experience.

TAUPO AND ROTORUA TRIP

A group of 34 International Students from China, America, Hawaii, India, and Pakistan including children embarked on a first ever visit to Rotorua organised by Accommodation Services and International Student Support Office. We arrived at Kiwipaka Accommodation, unloaded our luggage and quickly organised ourselves into our rooms. Lunch was much needed and then we were ready to go our first fun activity. Agroventures had all the rides with the jetboat, bungy jumping/freefall extreme and Shweeb, the only 1 in the world. A few hours were spent there having a lot of fun. We then went to check out the Gondola and took a ride to the top to look at the amazing view. Some took rides on the luge while others simply walked around taking in the scenery and did some window shopping. The next day we checked out of our accommodation and drove to beautiful Huka falls and spent just over an hour there. We then made our way to Taupo for a stopover and everyone had the chance to walk around to do some souvenir shopping. We then finished the trip with a stop for a Kiwi feed of fish and chips for lunch. Thanks to the bus driver for getting us home safely as we were driving through some pretty horrible weather.

We also had a bus load of about 35 students go to Taupo for the day. Including travelling time, it was a full 12-hour day so we had some pretty tired travellers by day’s end but everyone had a great time. We started the day in Taupo with a scenic boat trip around the lake and took in the fantastic Maori carving in Mine Bay. Everyone had a great time on the boat, enjoying the packed lunches, the scenery and even the decent weather.

After the boat trip, we did the ‘Craters of the Moon’ Geothermal walk where we saw a lot of steam and some boiling mud. We then went on to the majestic Huka Falls. The students were all very impressed with the raw power of Huka Falls where students used up many gigabytes with the hundreds of photos taken. It was a long day but everyone seemed to have a great time and we were very fortunate that the weather behaved itself for us. We look forward to the next international student trip in June.

The Accommodation Services team set up a BBQ outside Kanuka Commons on Wednesday April 9th with the hope of playing some beach volleyball. This was a good opportunity to unwind and have some fun and eat some free sausages before everyone went away for the Easter break. The weather wasn’t the greatest but we still played, and the sausages definitely still got eaten! Many thanks to the Tawa and Matai residents for volunteering their time by preparing/cooking and cleaning the BBQ. We might have few other lunch activities lined up for later in the year.

COMMUNITY BUILDING EVENT

CENTRE FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Do you have a spare 30 minutes to upskill yourself for exams?

Then join us on StudyUp to attend the following 30 minute workshops. For more information visit: http://owll.massey.ac.nz/about-OWLL/studyup.php.

Get your headphones ready and enhance your own skills to ensure you make the most productive use of your time during the exam period.

Preparation makes perfect

Develop some extra memory skills and learn some structured revisions tricks.

Tues 20th May 7.30am, 12 noon

Thurs 22nd May 12 noon

Surviving the exam

Study tips and strategies for getting through the exam and answering different types of questions.

Tues 27th May 7.30am, 12 noon

Thurs 29th May 12 noon

The Moginie Mustangs went out to Foxton beach on a sunny day a week ago and had a pizza picnic. They played some touch, dunked some people in the surf and even managed to burry their RA Rashmi in the sand with some added womanly features. After having lunch, they gapped it to Himatangi to play paintball. The girl’s screams could be heard miles away. Perry was nominated as Osama Bin laden because of his similar looks and Go Pro. He put up a brave front against the rest but fell to the ground in due time. After carving up the paintball field , the hall headed to Himatangi beach for an icecream. Even after such an eventful day, the car ride back was loud with the girls singing ABBA songs! A lovely day out!

MOGINIE HALL EVENT

Lost & Found Property

 

Facilities Management Help Desk Colombo Road 

Open 7.30am to 5pm, Monday to Friday 

CHAPLAINCY

Maybe that could be a personal project for the term. Get hold of a modern English New Testament (available free from the Centre) and read one of the four Jesus biographies in it. See what they actually say rather than rely on any shaky “default assumption”. You may well be surprised at what you find. Meanwhile, remember at the Centre……..

WEDNESDAY NITE PANCAKES 7pm

WEDNESDAY LUNCHTIME CATHOLIC MASS 12 noon

THURSDAY AND FRIDAY ‘THE BIBLE COMES ALIVE’ GROUPS 1pm

Have a great term! Colin Day (on behalf of the chaplains)

In a recent visit to New Zealand, Jonathan Chaplin, director of Christian Ethics at the UK’s Cambridge University spoke of the “default assumption” that effectively eliminates a considered Christian perspective from much public debate. He spoke of “invisible barriers” that lead to the dismissal of religious insights that have a genuine contribution to make towards the common good. The same could be said on a personal level. Jesus is regularly and arbitrarily dismissed by the “default assumption” of his being disproved – by science and history; discredited – by wacky Christians, extremist groups and abusive clergy; and generally irrelevant to contemporary life. Of course, only part of this (the discrediting bit) is accurate. The rest is unsustainable rubbish. Given the significance of his claims with regard to who he was and what he was doing and saying, on any purely logical basis we owe it to ourselves to check him out. If he is accurate then the life we all seek lies in his direction.

Storage Storage facilities are available at a small cost of $30.00 per locker. This is fully refundable provided the locker is left in good order. You will need to provide your own lock. Spaces are limited, please enquire at the Residential Services Office. If you have any questions about the upcoming break, please come into the RSO and talk to our staff. Accommodation Fees If you would like to take advantage of our prompt payment discount, payment in full for your semester two fees must be received by 1st of July. A reminder email will be sent to you in the last week of May.

Semester One Only Contracts If your Residential Agreement is for semester one only, and you wish to extend your contract and stay until the end of the year, please come to the Residential Services Office by 1st June 2014 to sign up for next semester. If you are leaving at the end of the semester, please ensure your fees are fully paid and that you have completed the Bond Refund Form (a copy of this form will be sent to you soon) and return it to the RSO. If you are unsure of the length of your contract please contact our office. Semester Break Soon you will receive an email regarding the 3 week break in June/July and information in regard to the meal rebate available for this time. Please note your contract does cover this 3 week period and you will be charged your normal accommodation fees for the full 3 weeks. Further information is available on page 26 of the Accommodation Handbook 2014 under the Check Out section. All Matai residents have to vacate and completely clear out their rooms and hall fridges for the 3 week break, so that extramural students can use these rooms. Please help us by ensuring that your key is returned to our office no later than 10.00am on the 22nd June. If your keys are not returned by this time we will unfortunately need to order a lock and barrel change for your room and you will be charged the $110.00 replacement fee. Our office will not be open at this time so you will need to return your key in the key return slot located on the left hand side of our front door as you look into the office.

Unichem Chemist Shop Whytes Pharmacy (2007 Limited)

27 Linton Street, Palmerston North 4410 P.O. Box 992, Palmerston North 4440

Phone: 06 354-8899

Student Services Open seven days a week and situated in the Pak n Save carpark.

8am-7pm weekdays & 9am-6pm weekends and most public holidays.

Free delivery to student Health on weekdays provided prescriptions are received by 2.30pm.

Fax service available from Student Health for collection after 4pm.

$2 MUSA subsidy on all prescription items for internal full time students ( Student ID required).

Vero and Unicare oncharge available on request. Emergency contraceptive pill available. (Pharmacist consultation

necessary, fully funded service for under 26 years). Uncomplicated urinary tract infection (Pharmacist consultation

necessary). Many services available, good advice and an extensive range of

vitamins, cosmetics and pharmacy products instore.

It’s your right to choose the future of New Zealand – don’t waste it!

Most of us are already enrolled and voting – have you joined us? If you haven’t, you’re giving up your voice on the big issues affecting us all. Only those who are correctly enrolled get to vote and have their say in New Zealand’s decision making. It’s a small action, but one that can have a huge effect on you, your family and New Zealand. Be a part of the decisions that affect you. It’s your right to vote. If you’re a New Zealand citizen or permanent resident, and have turned 18, you need to be on the electoral roll.

Young people and the election – have your say

How engaged are you with the 2014 general election? Are the issues that matter to you on the political agenda? Massey is currently undertaking a student survey to gauge the level of awareness and interest in the upcoming elections. We want to know if you intend to vote, and what issues would motivate you to vote. It's a chance to speak your mind and draw attention to the issues that matter to young people. While the results will be released publicly, the survey is completely anonymous and only takes five minutes to complete. Help us gauge the mood of New Zealand's youth – take the election survey here: http://masseybusiness.eu.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_eeA1SrEXIolvxbL

I am a DISCOVERER! I am a CHALLENGER! I am a FREETHINKER! I am a PROBLEM SOLVER! The Engine campaign has moved to the next level by focusing on the inherent qualities of our students, who they are and what they hope to become by studying at Massey. The campaign will continue to evolve with more words being released to drive semester two enrolments. Opportunity-maker is the next word to be released, with more to follow. Other aspects of the campaign will focus on Summer School, Māori and Pasifika, August Intake and Open Days. The new ‘I AM’ campaign can be seen on massey.ac.nz, engine.ac.nz, billboards around Palmerston North (Auckland, Wellington, New Plymouth, Hawke’s Bay), print advertisements, posters, and online videos.

EXTERNAL RELATIONS

STUDENT COUNSELLING

You probably know the feeling – you have so much to do that you spend all your time rushing – there is no longer any time to have fun, visit friends, take a break, even go to the gym, take a walk or go to church. You resent those people who seem to go out drinking every night and still seem to crack the semester tests. You spend every waking moment at your desk – not daring to do anything else. You find it hard to concentrate; you are grumpy and sleep poorly. Your body feels gross and unfit and your mind seems to have stopped working. You are faintly aware that your chest is tight, your shoulders sore, you have a dull headache and sometimes find it hard to catch your breath. Stress! We need it to do our best but it can also paralyse us and lead us to do less unhelpful and even downright harmful things such as drinking too much, wasting time, gambling, or spending money we cannot afford. Stress is triggered by a huge range of life events – not just exams – and it can be the break up (or threatened break up) of a relationship, an impending sports fixture, or by a blind date. There is actually quite a lot we can do about it – and simply pretending it is not there, is not one of the better strategies! But I don’t have time to relax! Relaxing is not necessarily about taking lots of time away from your studies – of course you need to spend enough time at your desk – but it needs to be effective time and too much stress makes that ineffective! Here are a few quick strategies:

Plan your immediate environment so it is not too

messy and cluttered and swamps your concentration or distracts you (turn off email and cellphones, avoid a noisy or cold place, ensure enough ventilation so as to stay awake).

Organise your time so you know how much you

need to do and so that you can know where you are in the process. Use a timetable.

Remember the 80 / 20 principle – it takes 20% of the

time to learn 80% of the work but to learn that last 20% is what takes time – ask yourself if you have to know it all and perfectly – or is 80% “good enough”? It is generally more than enough!

Stop. Take a deep breath – right deep into your

body. Feel your stomach expand against your waistband as you do so. Now breathe out slowly against your lips as though you were cooling a cup of hot soup. Continue to breathe slowly and regularly for three of four breaths.

Sleep is a time when your mind organises and makes sense of what you have learned. It is part of your studying and not something to do when you are not studying. You need to have sufficient restful sleep and it is definitely not wasted time.

Exercise does not have to be an hour in the gym. A

brisk walk around the ring road, either alone or with friends, can rejuvenate you, flood your brain with oxygen and give you a chance to reflect on what you have learned up to that point.

Eat a balanced diet – try to avoid the junk

comfort foods which will leave you feeling uncomfortable. Keep a jar of something tasty such as carrot sticks or apple slices already cut and ready to nibble when you find you need “something”.

Stretch your whole body – screw yourself into a tight ball

clutching your knees and tucking your head into your chest, then uncoil slowly and reach as high as you can as you breath out.

Scary Exam Time

If you find that you are overwhelmed, talk to someone who can help – there are strategies which can help (but you do have to actually use those strategies!). It is less helpful (and a waste of precious time) to bemoan the struggles but a far better investment to face them head on and do something to change them! Both the Centre for Teaching and Learning and the Student Counselling Service run seminars to assist at this time so keep an eye out for what is advertised and make use of them! Have a look at http://crow.massey.ac.nz for some great quick tips and some useful resources.

HALLS BALL SEMESTER TWO

Don’t forget to bring back your gorgeous dresses/suits for the Massey Halls Ball. This is happening in Semester 2.

Friday August 8th at Travelodge, Cuba Street, 8pm-Midnight.

Tickets will go on sale day one of Semester Two (14th July). Only 475 tickets will be sold, so it’s first in first served! More info out next Semester. Partners from outside are allowed.

A Ball Poster Design Competition is also running until Thursday 29th May. Gumboot Points and a free ball ticket up for grabs for the lucky winner. Email K.O’Donnell@massey.ac.nz for details to include on the poster. The theme is Oriental. You come up with the name! Check out posters in your hall for details or see your RA.