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Tuesday, September 4th, 2007
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4:16 pm - The good times are killing me
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Well, the first set of classes are done, and the results are in: an A in Parasitology, and a B in Genetics. I'm upset I didn't spend more time studying for genetics, but considering how hard the final was, I'm not too surprised at the results. Anyway, now it's time to focus on Neuroscience and Physiololgy. Neuro seems to be the harder of the two so far, particularly because our professor forgot to take a course on how to teach. His notes are just random structures in the brain with no explanations - literally just pages of lists at times, and he acts as if we already know all this stuff and he's just giving us a refresher course. His deadpan German accent doesn't help either, although it was used to great comedic effect the other day. Basically he was showing us an MRI, and pointed out several key features. "Note the unusually thick skull - this person is extremely hard-headed and could probably ride a motor bike without a need for a helmet. Note that the subject is a female, as indicated by the necklace (it was slightly visible). Also note the teeth - her husband spent a lot of money on her replacements." And while we're slightly puzzled yet amused at the fact that he's pointing out these things, he delivers the zinger in the same deadpan voice: "that's my wife." We all crack up, and he seems to take no notice and continues on with the lecture. XD
Physio is much better, since our professor is amazing. Finally a guy who can really teach, and builds up our knowledge from the base up, rather than having us jump into the middle and figure out the basics that lead up to it on our own. He's got a great sense of humor too, and in his case the accent - a very strong australian one - is a bonus. But of course nothing is perfect, and that was revealed today, when I looked at the sample questions he put online. The man is insane, and is asking us about things we've never heard of (and he definitely did not lecture on), or asking us to solve chem equations. I'm sorry, but it's been a while, and chem was never my favorite subject. My roommate freaked out as well when she saw the questions, and we plan to demand an explanation tomorrow.
Aside from school, there isn't much else, since school kind of dominates life here. I did experience my first tropical storm, though (my roommate, having lived in Florida, swears it was a category 1 hurricane). In any case, it was frightening. I was stupid and hadn't checked my school email for a few days, which, had I done so, would have informed me of the impending storm heading for us. Instead, the storm let me know it was here by waking me up in the middle of the night. I've heard wind howl, but this was beyond that. More like primal rage. It took me a good 10 minutes (mind you that I'm not very alert then) to even figure out it was the wind making that insane noise. I couldn't see much outside my window, but I could tell it was raining too. The strange part was that it sounded like the storm was both outside my window and my bedroom door. Of course storms can't come inside buildings, I reasoned, so I just tried to go back to sleep. That was a little hard to do with so much noise, but I managed somehow. The next morning was interesting. I woke up to open my blinds and see a lake where the soccer field in front of my dorm was. I just kept staring at it, before hearing some noise outside and going to talk to my roommates. Apparently they'd been up most of the night chatting with other students, since everyone was freaked out by what was going on, and not many of us have been through big storms like this. Then there was a knock at the door, and I answered it. The first thing I noticed was that the hallway was completely flooded. Housekeeping was taking care of it, and they wanted to know if our rooms had been flooded as well. Thankfully we were nice and dry. The only casuality was my roommate's window screen, which was now adorning a small tree on the bank of the newly-formed lake. Lovely. It hasn't rained much since then, and the past two days have been very warm, thankfully. It's ironic that I'm here in Grenada and I'm wearing warm hoodies and socks and still freezing. The reason is that we all don't agree on what a normal temperature is. My roommate Ekta is a freak who needs the temperature set at 67 F. My other roommate and I wanted it at 74 F (and trust me, 74 F in this room is NOT what a normal 74 F is like - it still feels more like 64 F). We finally compromised at 72 F, but it was still killing me, so I talked to her and raised it to 73 F. I didn't want her to sweat (I don't know how she does, but she says so), but she does have a large fan, and I told her to use it. She told me to open my window, but I refuse to when I can see bugs crawling on the inside of the screen, waiting to jump right in. It doesn't hurt that Parasitology has scarred me for life against any insect or worm (not that I had much affinity for them to begin with). Anyway, it's at 73 F right now, and I'll manage with my hoodie. During the day it's not so bad since I open the blinds fully to soak up as much sunlight as I can. But throughout our temperature talks, I kept getting hit with the feeling that she reminded me of someone. The answer soon hit me. She was like Joanne. The same stressed out personality, extremely apologetic, and, well, just a little off. She's not as extreme as Joanne yet, but it feels like she'll get there in a few years at her current pace. Scary.
What else? Oh, I'm learning how to cook. Haven't burned down the kitchen yet, but I have burned a few potatoes. I know a lot of people enjoy cooking, but I'm not one of them. Not yet, at any rate. If it's anything more complicated than making plain rice, I'm terrified at the thought. I'm trying to make an effort, though, since I do want to eat healthy, and this is also more economical (ordering oily takeout and buying massive amounts of pasta wasn't the greatest way to get through last term). So far so good, but the term is still young, and I'm very lazy. ;)
Ah, and in case you're interested, my mailing address hasn't changed since last term. I'm not sure at the moment what it is, but I'm sure I have it written down somewhere. ^^;;
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| Saturday, August 18th, 2007
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9:12 am - 2nd term - GO!
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103 weeks later...I suppose it's time for an update. ;D
Well, I'm finally here in Grenada, and 2nd term is already in full force, and I'm hoping the weekend will be enough time to catch up. But, to start from the beginning:
Packing was about as fun as packing generally is when you're not going on a fun holiday. I was homesick during the past week, despite being home, but then my brain isn't exactly the most logical thing. Anyway, I packed and things went along fairly smoothly until we were about to take the exit for the airport on the day of my flight, and I realized I left my cell phone charger at home. We still had two hours before my flight, so my mom dropped off my dad and me at the airport to check in, while she and my brother turned back around to go home and pick it up. We checked in and sat waiting, thinking it should only take an hour at the most, considering there was no traffic on the 105. Of course, with my luck, the 105 came to a dead halt right before the Sepulveda exit, and they were stuck there for over an hour in traffic that did not move, period. It was stressful because my dad and I kept looking at the clock and getting nervous about the flight, esp. since we still had to go through security. Finally, just as they had finally crawled to first in line at the freeway exit, I had to call and tell them to mail it to me, since I would miss the flight otherwise. It sucked, since I wanted to say a proper goodbye to them, and I felt horrible for making them go through all that traffic. In retrospect, I should have just told them to mail it to me in the first place, but well, I've learned my lesson now. Actually, this flight was all about lessons. Onto the next one...
So, we take the flight and make it to our first stop in Miami, where we ate breakfast and I was very bleary-eyed from not being able to sleep on the plane all night. I can't sleep on planes in general, but being in the middle seat with a stupid TV flickering in my face on a red-eye flight didn't help. Anyway, the next leg was to go to Barbados, which I wasn't looking forward to because it's just not a nice airport, and it always depresses me. We got there, were immediately drenched from the humidity, and went the through the whole mess of going through customs, baggage claim, and then getting out of baggage claim (meaning fighting our way through massive crowds), then going to the Liat (a local airline) counter to re-check in our bags and then waiting at the terminal for our flight 3 hours later. Of course, the flight was delayed, so instead of leaving at the original 5:30 PM, we left at roughly 9:30 PM. In the meantime, I tried my best to fight off the depression I was feeling, and it helped to talk to a fellow student I met at the terminal. It was annoying to have them keep lining us up to board, only to tell us to either shift our line, or go sit down again (we all refused the latter, sensing that there was no point in losing our place in line over and over again). In general, I hated the staff there, and the overall stupidity/inefficiency of everyone. I really missed home. So, we finally board the tiny plane with little propellers, and manage to stuff our carry-ons in their tiny bins, when it turns out they overbooked the flight, can't find the pilot, and there's an irate couple on the plane who kept getting shifted to later flight times, and were being shifted from this one as well due to the overbooking. The guy just slammed stuff, and the woman told the crew flat out that if they wanted her off the plane, they would have to drag her off. Well, eventually they left reasonably peacefully, and the pilot appeared to tell us, as we already knew, that we'd first be stopping in Tobago, drop off & pick up a few passengers (it's like a bus, really), and then go to Grenada. So, everything went smoothly for a while, until we started flying toward Grenada. About halfway there (and really, it's only a 30 minute journey), they tell us they're re-routing us to Trinidad for the night, and we'll get a flight to Grenada tomorrow. Of course, it's about them to give us a reason why, so off to Trinidad we go, where we land at around 11 at night, to go through the whole mess of immigration, baggage claim, and customs again. If only it were that simple, though. We land in Trinidad to find out half our baggage never made it on the plane from Barbados, so nearly everyone floods the lost luggage counter, and it's painfully slow to get through everyone. I found two of my bags, but of course the one that didn't make it was the one that had EVERYTHING most important. Namely, all of my clothes, sans the ones on my back and one set of underwear and pajamas in my carry-on, my laptop battery, my local cell phone charger, my school papers, my shoes (again, minus the ones I was wearing), etc. To my credit, despite wanting to break down and cry, I didn't. I did meet some nice people, though, since everyone bonds in times like this, and that helped. Anyway, got out of the airport sometime after 1 am, and then this prickly Liat woman told us the reason for the flight change. Apparently if the crew flew the extra 5 minutes to Grenada, they'd be over the max. hours they're allowed to work in a day, and so in their nutty minds it seemed like a better idea to turn around and fly to another island. None of us bought it, but I could care less at that point. I was worried sick about my bags, and could only hope it would make it to Grenada on another flight. Lessons learned: never fly Liat, never pack all of your important things in just one bag, but spread them out to minimize the loss (or better yet, strap it all to yourself - it might be a bit uncomfortable, but the peace of mind gained is worth it), and only keep hot-pink or other garishly colored luggage. Well, the night was still young, and there was more fun in store. The van finally came to take us to our hotel, the Bel-Air, and we hopped it would be decent so we could actually shower and maybe get a little rest before catching the "special charter flight to Grenada just for us" which the lady assured us would fly out at 8 am. We weren't taking any chances, so rather than be at the airport at 6:30 am as she told us to, we planned to be there at 5. So, we drive up some dirt road to find a small building more akin to a reconverted garage. Welcome to the Bel-Air. Our room was suitably horrible, complete with mosquitoes flying out the minute the bell-man opened the door, to lumpy floors hastily covered by carpet, a bathroom not worth looking at, much less using, and linens whose state of cleanliness I had good reason to mistrust. On the bright side, the AC worked very well, and we basically half sat and slept in bed with the AC on full blast and the lights on to keep the mosquitoes away. I don't enjoy being in their company in any case, but when I see a sign at the airport saying malaria is back on that island, I REALLY don't want to be anywhere near them. I covered up my head & face with my hoodie and basically huddled up for a few hours before getting up to catch the van back to the airport. I looked like a wreak, but I didn't even care to try and comb my hair out at that point. So, we get to the airport, check in our bags, see that the flight is supposed to leave at 8:10 am, and wait at the terminal. And wait. And wait. It's 8:10 and there's no plane out there. There are no Liat representatives there either, and we can't leave to go talk to them since we've already gone through security. At last, after we all complain (some more colorfully than others), a miracle happens and our tiny little plane comes. As we're walking out on the runway toward it while being rained on, that little piece of junk never looked better. We board, and all I do is pray the entire time that we'll just make it to Grenada. Lo and behold, for the first time in a while my prayers are answered and we make it there without incident. Of course when we land we see that our bags still aren't there, and fill out baggage claims again. Liat flights are all booked right now, so they had the bright idea of leaving behind half the luggage on each flight, and sending it out in spurts on other subsequent flights. We're assured we'll get them within a week. Haha. No clothes nor means of communication (well, I had my local cell, but that would die soon as well, without it's charger) until HOPEFULLY a week later. I'm tired and despite not having eaten anything since Miami, not hungry at all.
Dispirited and broken, I go to my dorm to get my key, and find out that our front door is wet and has mold growing around it. Therefore, it can't shut or open properly. I move in, and start to unpack the other two bags, and put the food mom made for me in the freezer, hoping it hadn't gone bad. Then I rush to go register, only to find out that I missed the morning time, so I have to come back at 3. In the meantime, we call a taxi and go get my stuff out of storage, to find out that it's got mold. Alexandra is no more, among other things. Thankfully I had bought a replacement already, and now I use Lizzy. May Alexandra's soul rest in peace. *moment of silence* Then we go to the airport to check if my bag is back, which it's not (surprise, surprise), and I call home to tell mom about my adventures, and she starts hounding both the Barbados and Grenada airports to get my bag to me this minute. Then we go to the grocery store to get food (which was good timing, since they ran out of food by the next day), and come back to my room. Dad started unpacking for me and washing my things to get the mold out, while I went to go register, which I did. Then I went to go pick up my books, and that was lots of fun. So, I didn't print out my confirmation form for my book order because I ordered it while in school last term, when I didn't have a printer in my room, obviously. But I had written down my invoice number, and I had printed the screen and saved it to my laptop, as the best I could do. I was supposed to be emailed a confirmation as well, apparently, but I never knew, nor got one. Anyway, I go there, and the guy says that he can look up my order if I just give him my ID, which I do. There's no order under my name. I go back to my room to get my invoice number, as well as my flash drive, which contains the image of the confirmation form I'd print-screened. I make the mistake of giving him my flash drive first, and when he puts it into his computer the thing freezes up. The guy blows up at me, and thinks I gave him a virus. I tell him there was nothing else on there except a jpeg file, and it's not my fault. That only makes him more mad, and I'm trying not to cry (I hate my thin skin) in front of the long line of students behind me. He takes it out and restarts (as I suggested much earlier) eventually, and the computer works fine, so obviously it was my fault. Anyway, he tries my invoice number, and still no order, so I'm sent home. I decide to email billing and see if I was indeed billed for these books or not, because if I was, I sure as hell want them. While walking back, I'm at my lowest low, and I just can't take it anymore. At that moment, I guy I knew from last term spotted me and called out to me to say hi. I look up and start to cry because I've lost it, and he immediately says he's sorry and realizes I just need to be alone, and goes away. I finish walking back willing myself to get back in control, because I don't want more people to see me crying, and barely manage to by the time I make it to my room. I hear voices, and it's my old roommate talking to my dad, and I try to have a normal conversation with her without breaking down again. I didn't cry, but unless she's very dense, she probably could tell I was on the verge of crying. Dad is unreasonably happy, which puzzles me, since when I last saw him he was stressed and upset, trying to see if he could extend his flight (he was scheduled to leave the next morning). Dad tells me mom's nagging paid off or my luck was finally turning around, because my bag was at the airport waiting for me. I'm in shock, and kind of unable to feel the joy I should have felt, but it was just too unreal. Anyway, we call the same taxi guy, rush to the airport, and wait for some idiot at the Liat counter to speak to us. Of course none of them do, and I pretty much became a racist against all caribbeans at that point for being lazy assholes who refuse to help out anyone. I know I wasn't being fair in generalizing like that, but honestly, I think overall the majority of them are like that. So, one guy tells us to go talk to a woman currently socializing with some other people. I go to her, and she looks upset to be told to actually work, and she yells back at the first guy. Finally she goes and pages some other guy, who finally comes out to take me to the arrival area (I'd have been there and back myself much sooner, but security is a pain; Grenada is such an ideal target for terrorism, afterall). But at least I get there, see my bag, lunge at it, check to see if everything is still there, and get the hell out of there once the customs guy is done interrogating me with stupid questions about why I'm in Grenada.
I get out feeling so happy, and dad is happy, and everything seems to be going my way at last. We go back to my dorm first, and then I say bye to dad, who's leaving to spend the night at a hotel. I come back after that, and don't know where to start. I desperately need a shower, and I have a massive amount of packing and arranging to do in my little jail cell of a room. I clean up a bit, and then go to take a shower, which felt great. Then I just kept unpacking & sorting, while taking many breaks in between when I'd feel sick of it. Somewhere during that I got my appetite back and was starving, so I ate the food mom gave me. Surprisingly, it was all fine. =D Then my other roommate came, and her flight was basically the same story in that she flew Liat, so her flight was delayed and she lost one bag. Unfortunately, she still hasn't gotten hers yet. =( We commiserated, and then I cleaned up enough so I could actually sleep on my bed. I woke up the next day and spent about half of it finishing up the unpacking. I guess I was just really slow or something. I checked my email and billing told me to go talk to some guy at the bookstore, and it was all sorted out. The guy turned out to to be the same one who yelled at me, and I don't think he was very happy to see me. I tried my best to let him know the feeling was mutual. I told him I got an email from billing telling me to tell him to check his email (a very terse message to him from billing saying "We billed her $405.00. She has to receive her books."), and he told me to wait. He finally called me over and asked me to check off which books I ordered. I couldn't remember, but I knew my total cost, so I just found the ones that added up to that, which wasn't very hard. Then he finally gave me my books.
School started as well, and my schedule is 8 am to 12 pm everyday. I'm so excited to finally have half the day free. It's such a luxury to have so much much time to study and actually do other things like eat well or maybe relax. First term really was horrible. Anyway, the schedule is a bit odd, but overall in our favor. For the first two weeks we have only Genetics and Parasitolgy, and then the finals for those two in the third week. After that we start the main classes - Physiology, Neuroscience, and Immunology - and those go on for the rest of the term. Oh, and Clinical Skills will be interspersed throughout, like the pest of a class it is. Genetics is alright, but at 8 in the morning I have a hard time concentrating, and, while very nice, the professor is not exactly the most lively of people. He has an interesting accent since he's from Newfoundland, though. The last two hours is Parasitology, and that's more interesting since the professor is very well known in the field and has a lot to say. Then again, seeing what nasty stuff these little things do to people isn't so fun.
I had a sore throat for the past two days, and mom was worried sick I'd caught something. I was too, since I was sitting next to a girl with the flu the day before. Luckily I feel fine now, and I think it was just from the constant temperature changes I go through, from freezing in my room to hot outside. Of course, being paranoid-me, on the second day of feeling kind of ill, I convinced myself I had malaria, since that's what our lecture was about, and (in my mind) everything fit. I spent the night with mosquitoes who possibly had malaria in Trinidad. For the first 11 days the patient just shows normal flu symptoms (I have a sore throat and a runny nose! :O), and then you get alternating fevers (my hand flew to my forehead like a nervous reaction every 5 minutes). I probably would have willed myself sick, but the rational part of my brain (yes it exists, although sadly in a very marginalized state) kept telling myself to shut up and stop worrying. Thankfully I'm fine now, although my nose insists on running still. Oh, and we avoided hurricane Dean entirely, so that was also nice. Having very little experience with rain, much less a hurricane, was freaking me out.
And now here I am, trying to catch up on studying this weekend, and also cooking some extra food that I can eat during the week, when even making a sandwich is a heavy burden. I always appreciate home and the US in general so much since coming here. Just one more year and I'll be back! *knocks on wood*
I'll upload some pics as soon as I figure out how to do so on here. >_>
current mood:  busy
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| Saturday, August 20th, 2005
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6:38 pm - Apocalypse Now
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The End has finally come.
Just got back about half an hour ago from approximately 9 hours of hell in its purest form. I'm feeling slightly feverish and I have dark circles under my eyes, but otherwise I guess I'm alright.
Highlights of my day:
1. I now know exactly how cholera cause diarrhea *shudders*
2. Russians were funny people.
3. Sperm whales can finally relax - we've figured out how to make ambergris synthetically.
Anecdote of the day:
I was walking out of the room to take my break and realized I didn't know where the bathroom was, so I went up to a girl by the door to ask her. Before I could say anything though, she suddenly said "Did you know I have the same last name as you?" I was so out of it though that I was kinda like, "um....last name....nope, definitely not in the review notes...." When I finally put two and two together I said "Oh. Um....so you have the same last name? Wow... that's um... I mean, how wierd.......hey, do you know where the bathroom is?"
Ok, update time over. I'll discuss past events such as graduation and anything else that I can't recall at the moment from the past 2 months later.
current mood:  exhausted
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| Thursday, May 19th, 2005
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9:22 pm - Birthday Post
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Nooooooo! Today I am.......23 years old!!!
So.....very.....old.....;-P
Well, I guess I should look at the bright side and be thankful for my long life ^^ Hehe, anyway, today was a good day. The weather gods created a pretty day, my professor gave me an "A" on my midterm (and I'm not being dramatic - I was convinced I had failed it), my flies decided to hold off on giving birth to maggots, and in general, life was good.
*crosses fingers and prays for good luck streak to last for next 364 days*
^_^
current mood:  happy
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(2 comments | comment on this)
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| Friday, May 13th, 2005
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6:43 pm - The experts have spoken...
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Your dating personality profile:
Liberal - Politics matters to you, and you aren't afraid to share your left-leaning views. You would never be caught voting for a conservative candidate.
Big-Hearted - You are a kind and caring person. Your warmth is inviting, and your heart is a wellspring of love.
Intellectual - You consider your mind amongst your assets. Learning is not a chore but a constant search after wisdom and knowledge. You value education and rationality. | Your date match profile:
Big-Hearted - You want someone compassionate, someone gentle and kind. A loving, nurturing person will fill that hole in your life.
Adventurous - You are looking for someone who is willing to try new things and experience life to its fullest. You need a companion who encourages you to take risks and do exciting things.
Shy - You are put off by people who are open books. You are drawn to someone who is a bit more mysterious. You want to draw him out of his shell and get to know what he is all about. | Your Top Ten Traits
1. Liberal
2. Big-Hearted
3. Intellectual
4. Adventurous
5. Practical
6. Wealthy/Ambitious
7. Shy
8. Athletic
9. Romantic
10. Sensual
| Your Top Ten Match Traits
1. Big-Hearted
2. Adventurous
3. Shy
4. Practical
5. Conservative
6. Intellectual
7. Athletic
8. Traditional
9. Romantic
10. Funny
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Take the Online Dating Profile Quiz at Dating Diversions
current mood:  mellow
current music: Sarah McLachlan
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| Friday, May 6th, 2005
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10:02 am - Books
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I got this reading list from ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) toriem. Argh, there's still so much I have to read! Oh, and like toriem, I also cheated a little and italicized the books I'm in the middle of.
Instructions:
1. Bold those that you've read.
2. Add 3 more books to the list.
001. The Lord of the Rings, JRR Tolkien
002. Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen
003. His Dark Materials, Philip Pullman
004. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams
005. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, JK Rowling
006. To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
007. Winnie the Pooh, AA Milne
008. 1984, George Orwell
009. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, CS Lewis
010. Jane Eyre, Charlotte Bronte
( Read more... )
Total number of books read: 90 (including my additions ^^)
current mood:  awake
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| Monday, May 2nd, 2005
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6:03 pm - Random things or my weekend
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Sean and I watched 'Kung Fu Hustle' with Sharon on Saturday. I'm not sure if I like it better than 'Shaolin Soccer,' but it was very very entertaining. All I can say is that Stephen Chow is a comic genius :)
I'm reading more of 'No Name' right now and I really wish I wasn't since it's getting harder and harder to read it sporadically. It's strange, but it reminds me of 'Vanity Fair' right now - although with Wilkie Collins it's not wise to think you know where the story is going. Just another reason why he's so cool ^^
Oh! we went to my aunt's house on Sunday and I was looking through her library to find something, and guess what I found lying around?
1. Easton Press edition of Jane Eyre.
2. Special leather-bound edition of The Hobbit (the really pretty green one that I always drool over).
3. Modern Library hardcover copy of Mansfield Park.
The last one was the nail in the coffin for me. I mean, I think I can safely say that I'm obsessed with all things Jane Austen, and here my aunt, who has only heard of her, has a pretty hardcover edition while I don't?! So, after my shock wore off a little, I faced a dilemma. I could either grab the books and run for the car, laughing maniacally, or I could shamelessly beg my aunt to let me "borrow" them. I finally decided the latter option would be best. Anyway, the story ended happily, since my aunt smiled and said I could have them. Looking back though, she probably though my sanity was at stake, because I basically ran toward her frantically waving the books around and screaming incoherent things like "Easton Press!" "Green Leather!" and "Mine!" Well, the moral of the story is that I now have three new lovely books to display on my woefully-inadequate bookshelf. *Goes to pet them* Really, R.O.D. is my reality.
current mood: amused
current music: Tori Amos - Caught a Lite Sneeze
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| Wednesday, April 27th, 2005
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12:41 pm
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My stupid flies decided that they'd rather stay in larval form than grow up (and instantly after writing that my mind is flooded with all things related to Peter Pan ^^), so I'm taking an lj break. If bingblot somehow survived my last post, this one should do the trick :-P
News update #1) My mom came back from India two days ago. My reaction: yay for real food again! No, actually I'm not that bad of a daughter - I help as much as I can - but then again, after tasting my cooking, I'm not surprised if my mom would rather cook herself ;) She said she really liked my uncle's new house since it's completely modernized, so yay for not having to live on a farm anymore. Then again, when I do think of the farm I think of my grandparents, and it's still so hard for me to realize that they're not there anymore. I mean, I know that they've passed on, but I don't think that fact will hit home until I actually go to India and see the change myself. But yeah, now we're just waiting for my dad to come home next week.
News update #2) I went to a Tori Amos concert Monday night with toriem. It was great to hear her without the band this time, although I'm still not sure what format I like best. Once again, I was blown away by her ability to play on two instruments and sing at the same time without making a single mistake. *sigh* I can barely play on one piano....not fair. The set list wasn't bad, although I would have loved to hear the set list for the San Francisco concert. On the plus side, she performed "Ruby Through the Looking Glass" and "Sweet the Sting," so that made me happy. Oh, and I really liked her solo version of "The Beekeeper" - the organ (I think) was really pretty. Oh, and before the concert she did a meet & greet behind Royce and I got to stand really close by, so that was fun :)
current mood: mellow
current music: keyboards clicking
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| Tuesday, April 26th, 2005
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6:47 pm - Quiz Time
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| Friday, March 18th, 2005
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9:56 am - Hayao Miyazaki
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| Thursday, March 17th, 2005
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2:05 pm - The end of an era....
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Well, actually it's more like the end of the quarter, but hey, these past 10 weeks have felt longer than 10 years.
I just turned in my LAST (oh how good that feels) paper for my lab an hour ago after staying up all night. Final page count: 41 pages. That brings the grand total of pages written for this lab to: 140 pages, give or take a page. I'd hang them up on the fridge, but I don't have a magnet strong enough ^^ But yeah, the funny thing is, although I wrote 140 pages and spent a little over 100 hours in the lab, I still feel sad that it's over. Before taking this lab I asked someone what it was like, and he told me "It's a class you'll do more work in than you've ever done before, but you'll love doing every minute of it." While I'm not sure I loved EVERY minute, I think I understand what he meant now. Our professor is so wonderful that she single-handedly balances out all of the gripes I've ever had against UCLA (and there are many). We had a party this Tuesday and she actually encouraged us to bring alcohol (0.0) But yeah, she got teary eyed during the party, and said she would miss us all, and we had to keep in touch with her. Oh, and she promised to write letters of recommendation for all of us, which is so not normal. On top of that, she had an awards ceremony and made sure everyone got an award for something - although some of the categories were pretty unusual ;) Incidentally, of all the people in the lab, my partner and I were the least likely to win the main "Star" award, since it's given to the group with the best lab results, but by some strange twist of fate, we won, and so our prof. gave us these really nice silver pens and certificates. But yeah, since the lab had relatively few people in it, and we spent so much time together, all of us really bonded, and we were all saying how we'd cheer the loudest for each other during graduation, and then we all had champagne and toasted ourselves - hehe, some toasted a bit too much ^^
Ok, I think I've been at the computer too long since I can't stop seeing double, so I'll just stop here :)
current mood:  nostalgic
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| Sunday, March 13th, 2005
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9:30 am - The joy of a good read
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I just finished reading 'Howl's Moving Castle' and all I can think of is "Why didn't I read this sooner?!" and "Thank God for Miyazaki!" It's been so long since I've read a real book, and then for it to turn out so wonderful makes me feel especially happy ^_^ I want to post a review of it, but then I don't think I can be objective about it. Actually, I'm positive that I'll just end up gushing & blabbering....But really, the book is really THAT good, IMHO. The characters, in a very strange, disconnected way remind me of Jane Austen's and Wilkie Collins' creations. Both writers let you experience the characters in the same way....I'm at a loss for the right words, but what I'm trying to say is that, despite their flaws (and in the case of HMC, the fact that they're magical), you feel as if you know them intrinsically. Hmmm...what a strange grouping of writers - Jane Austen, Wilkie Collins, and Diana Wynne Jones ^_^
Anyways, now I just can't wait to watch the film....*sigh* July is too far away. Thank goodness I can at least listen to the soundtrack, which incidentally is very, very good (especially 'Sky Stroll' and 'Wandering Sophie'). Thank you Sharon! :)
In other news, I have to give an oral presentation on Tuesday and I'm terrified at the thought. It's sad, but it takes me having to give a lecture to appreciate teachers. My talk is only for 10 minutes, and only once, but if someone told my my job description was to give a lecture for at least 1 hour regularly, I'd cry. My silver lining is that shortly after my presentation we're having a party, so I'm hoping the food next me will keep people distracted. Well, what happens, happens.
current mood: thoughtful
current music: Howl's Moving Castle - The Boy Who Accepted the Star
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| Tuesday, January 25th, 2005
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12:10 pm - Must not sleep.....
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Must try to stay awake....*head clunks onto desk*
I've been up all night writing a paper, but must stay awake for my lab, so I thought reading LJ would help. Really, bingblot and toriem update too often! You're making me look bad! Anyhow, I finally finished reading your entries, but my brain is too fried to come up with coherent written responses, so I'll have to call you both sometime soon. Oh, thanks for the quiz, Sarah!
 | You scored as Remus Lupin. You are a wise and caring wizard and a good, loyal friend to boot. However sometimes in an effort to be liked by others you can let things slide by, which ordinarily you would protest about.
Remus Lupin | | 80% | Hermione Granger | | 70% | Ron Weasley | | 70% | Albus Dumbledore | | 65% | Harry Potter | | 60% | Severus Snape | | 55% | Draco Malfoy | | 55% | Sirius Black | | 50% | Ginny Weasley | | 40% | Lord Voldemort | | 5% | </td>
Your Harry Potter Alter Ego Is...?
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current mood:  sleepy
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| Friday, October 8th, 2004
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9:10 pm - Round 2
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I just finished watching some of the post-debate commentaries, which frankly bored me to death. All those in Kerry's camp felt that Kerry won, and, surprisingly enough, those in Bush's camp felt that Bush won. Is there no better way to analyze the debate than to interview Karen Hughes? Anyhow, my own reaction was that Bush was much more energetic, or rather he screamed more than usual. Actually, he was downright rude to Gibson when he flatly ignored the fact that he was talking, and launched an angry counterattack to Kerry's response. I loved his reference to the "Internets" and the fact that he would not appoint a supreme court justice who was in favor of slavery. Brilliant. The last question was interesting. Bush was asked to name 3 mistakes he had made, and he responds by first talking about "appointments to boards you've never heard of" and then interpreting her question to really refer to Iraq, in which case he can't come up with a single error. Well, I'm glad to see that 71% say that Kerry won the debate on msnbc.
I was reading some blogs on cnn.com and found this really funny boxing-match style account of the debate:
Bush receives from Ron Horshman: why did he block importation of cheaper drugs from Canada. Invokes the name of a drug discount card user from "Missoura." Favored pronunciation of natives. Point to Bush.
Bush again leaps off stool. Gestures at Kerry. Kerry isn't looking at him; Bush swing hits air. Kerry off the stool, "We did something you don't know how to do: balance the budget." Stinging blow. Point to Kerry.
Bush receives from Robert Farley about prospects of a draft. Says he's heard rumors on the "internets." Bloggers can be heard howling over the multiple. Minus one point to Bush. Stumbles in claiming he's replacing troops with weapons and equipment and unmanned vehicles. They'll save "manpower and equipment."
current mood: awake
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| Monday, August 23rd, 2004
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10:30 am - Josh Groban Concert
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It's official - I now have a bigger crush on Josh than I ever thought possible. He's cute (in a hobbit way), has a great sense of humor, and he was patient with me even though I was babbling in front of him (*hangs head in shame*). Oh, and he also happens to have the most perfect voice known to man. *swoons* I don't think I'm making much sense, but I'll try.
The concert was wonderful from start to finish, and I couldn't believe it when Josh said "thank you, Anaheim" - it ended waaaaaay too soon :( Its funny but I think hearing Josh perform live made me appreciate his songs even more, and somehow they sounded better than on the cd. Anyhow, the opening performer, William Joseph, was amazing too. He played really nice piano pieces that ranged from phantom of the opera style to rock to soft sentimental, but I liked them all (except "Grace," which was kinda dull). And he told some very funny stories too, which is always a big plus with me ;) But then, after the intermission Josh came at last. *swoons again* I don't remember the exact order of the songs, but I know that he began with "Oceano," which made me really happy, since it's one of my favorites. But oh! the backgrounds were all so pretty, esp. for "My December" (MUST GET THAT SONG!!!).
Hmm...Josh was really...well I can't think of the right word for it...but "uninhibited." He was always rambling, making strange noises, joking, telling us that he loved us, dancing, playing the drums, etc. I got the impression that he had a little something right before the show :) Oh, and he plays the piano & drums really well, so that's one more reason why he's perfect. *swoons yet again*
current mood: happy
current music: Josh Groban ^_^
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| Sunday, May 30th, 2004
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3:02 pm - Just for fun
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Hmm...my paragraph is strange. Although I do kinda like the middle - yay for LOTR! ^_^
Directions:
1. Take five books off your bookshelf.
2. Book #1 -- first sentence
3. Book #2 -- last sentence on page fifty
4. Book #3 -- second sentence on page one hundred
5. Book #4 -- next to the last sentence on page one hundred fifty
6. Book #5 -- final sentence of the book
7. Make the five sentences into a paragraph
It was admitted by all her friends, and also by her enemies - who were in truth the more numerous and active body of the two - that Lizzie Greystock had done very well with herself. He believed that the One had perished; that the elves had destroyed it, as should have been done. What was in their minds as they created these images? What new devilry? I leave it to be settled by whomsoever it may concern, whether the tendency of this work be altogether to recommend parental tyranny, or reward filial disobedience.
Books used in order:
1. The Eustace Diamonds by Anthony Trollope
2. The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R.Tolkien
3. The Power of Myth by Joseph Campbell
4. Kim by Rudyard Kipling
5. Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
current mood:  cheerful
current music: Final Fantasy
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| Friday, April 23rd, 2004
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9:40 am - School, School, and........More School!
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I should be volunteering right now, but I'm ditching so I can go to a review session at 10, and work on my mountain of reports before then. I worked on them for about an hour, then decided that lab reports are overrated and took a break.
Where to begin? Well, I knew this quarter would be tough, but I really wasn't prepared for the nightmare waiting for me. I literally have NO free time, and every hour of the week, from 5 am to 11 pm is booked solid. For the heck of it, I made up a nifty little song about the quarter:
11 physics assignments, 10 "midterms" (why do they even bother calling them midterms when you have one every week?), 9 lab reports, 8 protocols, 7 quizzes and paper presentations, 6 am vanpool(can't think of anything else with six), 5 hours a week of voluteering, 4 hour labs, 3 final exams, 2 hours with Jack-the-tutor, 1 lab practical exam, and a partridge in a pear tree.
Its a very catchy song.
Organogenesis is interesting, but I think I've already had my fill of Drosophila (damn that stupid fruit fly). Comparative lit. is strange, because I've never been in an english class for 4 years, so went through a sort of culture shock during the first two weeks, wondering why there wasn't any lab manual for the class. Physics is physics, but at least I've had this professor before, and optics is much easier than electromagnetism.
But Of all my classes, I dread lab the most. I thought labs were bad enough at the lower division, but at least there the TAs made an attempt to help you, and gave you a pretty good outline of what to do for each step. In upper division labs the TAs just sit and watch you struggle, and all you have to work with is a thin manual that says "step 1 - do an enzyme assay. step 2 - do a protein assay." How do you do an enzyme assay?!? Why is my solution hot pink?!? I come out of lab each week feeling drained and 2 inches tall. The worst lab was the first one, hands down, even though it was the easiest. I followed the procedure, did everything right, and when I went to take my readings, I get a systematic error. I had just gotten my readings, and was puzzling over them, when suddenly the PROFESSOR (where did he come from? why is he HERE?!?) pops up behind me and takes a look at my data. My face immediately went on fire, and stayed that way for the next three hours. He was really nice, and tried to help me find out where I might have made a mistake, but it didn't help when he asked me to repeat the procedure in front of him. My hands started to shake, and I couldn't even pour the solution from one tube to the other. Then, he decided that one of the TAs should help me, so he yelled across the room (with the whole lab watching) " Dora, Sarah needs help. She's getting a systematic error in her readings that I can't figure out. Can you work through the procedure with her to make sure she doesn't make any more errors?" and then "Don't worry Sarah, Dora will help you, and then you'll be a pro at assays." I didn't think it was possible, but my face managed to get redder. It turned out that the error I made wasn't in my procedure, but before taking my readings I blanked with air instead of water. Stupid, stupid, stupid. I now consider it a good day when I only have to repeat entire procedures once. On top of that, most of the people in the lab are waaay more experienced with techniques than I am. Hopefully things will get better once we work in groups...nice BIG groups full of SMART people....
I really do think I'm losing my mental alertness though. Last week I walked straight into the men's restroom, turned red, yelled sorry, and ran out. Yesterday, I spent about half a minute trying to open the door by pulling, until my lab partner told me to push. Today, I was working on my report, and wrote down that my error was 500% instead of 0.5%. Pretty soon I'll be like Paul and start humming the scooby doo intro song during class.
In other news, my mom and I have come to the conclusion that the only way I can get into med. school is with a perfect mcat score.
Sigh.
current mood: tired
current music: none
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| Sunday, February 15th, 2004
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10:29 am - Long Live Jane Austen! ^_^
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Happy Belated Valentine's Day!
Hmm...Valentine's Day wasn't too bad this year. We went to visit my aunt, and watched a dvd of my cousin's wedding, so that was fun - "How did you all behave? Who cried most?" *grins* You know I couldn't resist adding that, esp. as the Queen of Knightley Land ^_^
The rest of the time I spent reading some of LOTR and Cecilia, and making a preliminary list of all the Jane Austen books/movies/music that I have, which was really amusing. I never realized I had so much, and at the same time was missing so much :) The funny part is that now I feel inadequate, since I realize that I don't own so many things I feel like no respectable Janeite can be without. So I made a separate "Jane Austen Dream List" with everything I could find at amazon related to her (minus a few things, like really terrible sequels & movie adaptations - if I owned THOSE I couldn't call myself a respectable Janeite :)
Now all that's left is to get my hands on a really really big pile of money....~_^
current mood: happy
current music: Secret Garden - Steps
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| Sunday, November 30th, 2003
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2:19 pm - Reading ROTK again
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Yes, I should be studying more, but in my defense, I can only concentrate on these subjects for so long, before the words start swirling around to create a crazy, (& more importantly) unreadable mess.
So, I was reading ROTK to freshen up on things before the movie comes out, and I don't know why, but reading it this time was even more emotional than my first time. I think the first time I read LOTR I was just blown away by everything, and the impact of all the characters, and what their actions signified, didn't hit me as strongly as it did this time. Particularly Aragorn. I've always loved Aragorn, but I really started thinking about how many hardships and tests he went through (& passed with flying colors ^^) to become king, and how it must have felt for him to be raised as an orphan with a race very different from his own, to be held in derision and fear by those he risked his life to protect, to have self-doubt gnaw at him always, to be denied the hand of the woman he loves because he is not considered worthy enough (although I can come up with a very good solution to THAT problem ~_^), and so many other things.
And then I was thinking about all the newsweek articles on ROTK, and thought about how they said that the, wait, I don't want to spoil anything, but the houses of healing scenes were going to be severely cut short, which is where one of Tolkien's most eloquent scenes took place. Oh, I was reading that part where Eowyn meets, well, if you've read the books you know who, on the ramparts, and I just loved that description of them:
"And so they stood on the walls of the City of Gondor, and a great wind rose and blew, and their hair, raven and golden, streamed out mingling in the air. And the Shadow departed, and the Sun was unveiled, and light leaped forth; and the waters of Anduin shone like silver, and in all the houses of the City men sang for the joy that welled up in their hearts from what source they could not tell."
What I wouldn't give to be able to write like Tolkien...or be able to write period for that matter ^_^
Anyhow, just some random observations on how much I love Tolkien's works.
In other news, I had a decent Thanksgiving, but alas, I was not destined to eat turkey that night. Well, I guess that's just the way it is when more than half of your family is vegetarian. The next day we went to a wedding, which was very simple, but nice, and the bride and groom were really sweet. It was so cute to see them eating together after the wedding, and shyly feeding each other cake. mushy mushy, fluffy fluffy. The only thing I didn't get to do was go to borders, which is where I really really really felt like going to, since its been so long since I last went. I seriously need to go soon, before my withdrawal symptoms get out of hand. ^_^
current mood: nostalgic
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| Thursday, November 27th, 2003
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4:57 pm - My New Home
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The Queendom of Knightley Land
Motto: "Our Taxes Are Lower Than Sweden's"
UN Category: Democratic Socialists
Civil Rights: Excellent
Economy: Struggling
Political Freedoms: Excellent
Location: the South Pacific
The Queendom of Knightley Land is a tiny, safe nation, renowned for its strong anti-business politics. Its compassionate, intelligent population of 5 million are fiercely patriotic and enjoy great social equality; they tend to view other, more capitalist countries as somewhat immoral and corrupt.
It is difficult to tell where the omnipresent, socially-minded government stops and the rest of society begins, but it concentrates mainly on Social Welfare, although Healthcare and Education are on the agenda. The average income tax rate is 48%, but much higher for the wealthy. Private enterprise is illegal, but for those in the know there is a slick and highly efficient black market in Automobile Manufacturing.
Crime is totally unknown. Knightley Land's national animal is the oliphaunt, which frolics freely in the nation's many lush forests, and its currency is the austen.
Heehee!
On a related note, here's a humorous state motto for California:
"By 30, Our Women Have More Plastic Than Your Honda"
You can see more hillarious fake mottos here:
Learn Your State Motto
current mood: happy
current music: frou frou
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