I’m a loser. My life feels like one crushing defeat after another. I’m a clueless history major at a school full of ambitious business majors.

I can name the batting average of every player on the Braves, but I couldn’t record a hit in tee ball. I’m fated to finish fourth in a competition that pays off to the top three, and the plus/minus system was created solely to punish my average grade of 80.

I’m last to be selected for a scrimmage basketball game and first to be out in dodgeball. Too short for football and too tall to be a jockey – the story of my life.

When I first came to the University, I prepared myself for Friday nights alone in my room, playing solitaire and watching “SportsCenter” on loop while everyone else went out on the town.

However, I quickly came to an epiphany: college is not high school – social cliques do not rule the roost here, even at a school with a reputation for partying.

Living in a freshmen dorm, it seemed evident that there are some things everyone has in common, be it a joke on “The Simpsons” or a shared hatred for fire drills at four in the morning. I realized there is more to know about my fellow classmates than where they went to high school or what their favorite bar is.

No matter how shallow or dull a person seems, everyone has a passion. Some people are passionate about sports, others about charities and some … some like to talk about drinking. A lot.

I was afraid of my lack of interesting things to talk about. I mean, who really wants to know how many home runs my fantasy first baseman has? (Answer: not enough.)

However, I’ve actually found it to be a strength: the vast majority of people are more than happy to simply talk about themselves.

The barrier between anonymity and friendship is easily broken down by a willingness to listen.

I know this may sound foreign to many people, but I also really enjoy my classes. Aren’t classes that block of dead time where people go to do the Sudoku?

For my first year and a half, I couldn’t agreed more I was an advertising major because I convinced myself I had to get a major that would fit in the “real world.”

After a couple of semesters of learning all I cared to know about standard deviations and viral marketing, I knew I had to get out and take classes in what I really had a passion for – history, philosophy and English. This is not meant to be a denouncement against “practical” majors because I do realize there are many inherent risks for a Liberal Arts major in the working world, and for some people, it is important to have crazy things like “food to eat” or a “place to live.”

However, I knew I would regret going through college without taking classes that I enjoyed, and I haven’t once regretted switching majors.

It has been two years since I started college, and I’m living with two good friends I did not know before I came. I’m taking classes I enjoy and I’m spending my free time doing what I want, not worrying about what other people think of me.

So what if I’m still shy around the fairer gender, if I like spending some Friday nights getting ahead on my papers, or if I’ll never be able to afford a Lexus? I’m a loser, and I couldn’t be happier.

- Drew Lichtenstein is a junior from Marietta majoring in history.