1/18/09

It's a bit odd writing "09." Every year I find that getting used to writing the newest number for the year is a pain. You go through most of January still writing the numbers of the prior year. Then again, 2008 was a fantastic year for me, so maybe the continuous writing of "08" isn't a bad thing.

So, here's my first actual blog in this daily musing. I made the mistake of setting up all these other musings just before finals began. Hahaha. Go me. Seriously.

Today I finally left home for Austin again. This was possibly one of the hardest goodbyes. I've been home for a little over one month. I was enjoying the peace, the quiet, the relaxation, my cat, etc. And now I'm back in Dobie. Only my pictures on the walls to keep me truly company. Classes to go to, exams to study for, and lots of meetings to attend. Perhaps it will lessen one day. And perhaps not.

School begins again on Tuesday. I'll be sitting in on biochem II with a friend who is actually taking the class. I'm quite interested to see how Dr. Ellington lectures. I've heard good things despite the well-known fact that he is very intimidating (though seeing him around lab, he appears to have a nicer side, if you will).

Aside from that, I guess I'll run through my courses for the semester. I'm taking o chem II with Dr. Iverson. After the end of o chem I with Dr. Bocknack, I'm glad to have the change. Bocknack just stormed through everything in the end (and I probably didn't study hard enough and soon enough). I'm hoping a different teaching method from a different person might be what I need.

I'm also taking Cell Biology. The book is really thick, but that's how it goes. On one hand, I'm glad to finally be diving into material that is very vital to my major and career goals as a research scientist. On the other, parts of me still want the chemistry that I grew to love immensely as a freshman. We'll see. I must stay open minded.

I'm finishing up my physics requirements this semester as well by taking the second semester of general physics and its accompanying lab. My goal is to study harder, pay better attention in class, and just generally work harder from the start. When I finally knew what I was doing for the final last semester, it was really easy. I finished in 30 minutes. No joke. Yeah, I missed two (of 17, I believe), but it didn't matter. A 100% on that final wouldn't have gotten me an A. That's why I've got to make a comeback this semester.

To round out my courses is the o chem lab. I've heard it's long, but I will get through it. I will do well. No matter what. I need to get some 4.0 semesters in. Sure, grad schools may be a little forgiving on a less than stellar GPA, but there comes a limit when too low is simply too low. I don't want that to happen.

What else? I'm still working as a student assistant through the Emerging Scholars Program. It's my goal to be more positive and on top of things with that job. Certain aspects of it may not appeal to my interests, but there's no point in fighting things. If I want another job in the future or reappointment to my current one, I need to just wear a smile and get over my subtle dislikes of various parts of it.

What else is there to discuss? It's getting late and I'm really tired. The drive and moving back-in spree wore me out. I have a training session for about five hours tomorrow and then I need to pick up my textbooks and go do some shopping for food. Ah, I also need to go to Best Buy and get some new printer cartridges as mine are almost empty. Oh boy. Maybe I'll buy a new CD if I find one I like that is at a decent price. I noticed nothing exciting is coming out this week. Then again, is anything ever? I'm so absorbed into music from the 80s these days. Or the punk rock stuff. My music interests radically change each hour, it's funny.

Well, that said, I may be back to write about the training tomorrow. I just hope it's kind of interactive and not all about math like the second day of training was last semester (mind you, I work as a chemistry student assistant, not calculus). Farewell all!