Day 1880: It's over!

Quick note, exam week is over! Thank heavens. I needed this week to go well and I have been pleased with the results.

Now, onto fun picture posts! Danny was a wonderful beau who took me out to see Rodrigo y Gabriela last Friday (the 13th, bum buh buuummm). And I have to tell you, it was a marvelous Friday the 13th! It began with seeing each other after a week apart (oh boo hoo, right? haha) so that I could focus on studying. We ran some errands where Danny bought me this amazing pullover. All a complete surprise, shock and utter joy! I am completely in love with it. I wear it every second I can! Seriously!

Next, we ate at Henry's Pub (where we had this delicious burger), which in and of itself was a sheer miracle. Long story short, Danny and I tried going there TWICE one day and never actually got to eat there. So, the fact that we got in, they were open, there was no surly bartender serving us and the food was actually quite delicious -- all good things!

Next, we headed on over to the show. Rodrigo y Gabriela rocked. my. world! They were just fantastic! The entire show was so entertaining and full of energy! I was astounded that our fellow concert-goers were just sitting there idly. I was tapping my feet, clapping my heads, bopping my head, dancing in my seat -- they were just so magical! Pictures below.

Day 1879: Penguins

Don't ask how penguins came about, but do ask how you lived your life without knowing penguins held fins. SO CUTE.

Day 1878: Good news, for once!

WHEEEEEEEEEE!

So, my neuroscience exam on Monday went decently. I killed the exam portion but the lab portion came straight out of left field so I didn't do as well because of it. And you know what? I was 110% okay with that. The lecture portion of exams and exam-taking itself have been a true struggle for me these past 8 months and it is nice to know that, for once, I owned the exam portion. I had to close my eyes and breathe a couple of times, while reminding myself that a) I know this and b) I just have to trust myself and my gut, but it was all quite worth it in the end. The score didn't match my knowledge (yet again), but definitely not to the same degree of discrepancy.

Onto the "WHEEEEEEEEEE!" -- I got an 89 on my physiology test! For someone that has been struggling on her last two exams, an 89 is a freaking synonym-for-godsend! Danny has been telling me for months that he believes in me and knows I can do it and it took some good old fake-it-'til-you-make-it to get me to that point where I am actually starting to believe that I can do it. I know, I know. What have you been doing these past eight months, Jess, if not doing it? And to that I would have to say, barely surviving. I have to tell you what a great motivation this is. I mean, not at the moment for my cell tissue biology exam on Friday, but in general. I feel very confident that I am going to do well on my final exams for physiology and neuroscience. Not without hours upon hours of preparation and studying, but I plan to do what it takes to succeed and believe in myself to the absolute fullest.

Yay for good news! And yay to Jess for making it through her first day of bikram yoga teacher training!

More posts on the way!

Day 1872: Motivation

The current image on my desktop.

From here.

Day 1871: Things that keep me sane/help me procrastinate.

This game is absurdly fun.

I had this game downloaded on my phone ages ago but I had no one to play with.
Enter the best friend and this recent announcement that it is available on Android.
Hello, invites!

Another game I play with my best friend.
Danny says I'm obsessed with this game (I am).

Day 1871: Happy April 11th!

Yes, it is April 11th. What makes it so special? Uh, hello! 4-1-1. Today is the day I am going to cram information into my petite little brain. (Fuuunn fact, I made up this entire statement but it sounded pretty natural, non?)

Anyhoo, I had a very strange Tuesday (April 10th). I learned stuff in neuroscience, then had to perform my medical interview (have I told you all about this class? It is a class where we have a standardized patient (aka an actor who has a script to follow about their medical symptoms (i.e., back pain) but can act it out however they want (i.e., screaming in pain or just sort make achey-looking-faces)) and we have to interview them...kind of like real life), then was critiqued more than my fellow classmate who also interviewed the same standardized patient/actor (which set me off to a weird mood), then fell asleep in a study room that had the heat blasting, and then woke up in a very strange state. I woke up feeling very very anxious. And generally fuzzy. And completely not with it. I then had to study a tad, then go to Spanish (where I was late because I forgot seventy-five different things) where I was completamente unfocused-ado, then I ate my paltry meal for the day because I have not gone grocery shopping yet this month (paltry = 3 carrots, hummus, greek yogurt + strawberry preserves, SunChips I bought from the vending machine), and then I was still in a weird unfocused mood. After talking to Dannykins, where I was still in a terrible mood, I finally, slowly, near the end of our conversation, got my sh!t together.

So, I bailed on working out because I was feeling sleepy and wanted to get a good night's rest so that I could attack 4/11 with a ton of 4-1-1, and instead, I have found some weird second wind and am still awake. I refuse to thwart this streak of learning, so...I'm not sure what I am going to learn right now but I am going to learn something. I'm sure this will mess with me tomorrow but. BUT! The mind is mightier than the body so I am going to try this willing thing people talk about and I am going to will myself into staying awake/learning/exercising/learning more/not dying from information overload.

Sounds fun, eh?

P.S., this intensity for the Day of Information is because I have exams next week...in case you couldn't figure it out from the sheer everywhere-ness of this post.

OKAY.ILOVEYOUALL.GOODBYE.

P.P.S., expect some picture posts soon. Words are so boring.

Day 1861: Happy April Fool's!

Darling Jess, thanks for the push to update, haha.

My roommate's parents are currently in the living room hanging out with my roommate so I can't really study. Thus, a blog post.

WARNING. This will be a long post. Try to keep up ;)

Shadowing: My mentor is an ophthalmologist. The different between an ophthalmologist and an optometrist (who both look at eyes), is that my mentor can perform (laser) surgery. Being an ophthalmologist doesn't seem too strenuous, which could be good later in life. However, one of the most surprising things to me regarding the patient population is how common diabetes is in her patients. Diabetes, so what? Well, she stresses the need for her patients to take care of their blood sugar because diabetes can cause increased pressure on your eyes and you can imagine the bad effect that can have. Overall, it's been a really great experience thus far. My mentor is great and I am really enjoying the clinical exposure!

School: Le snooze. The schedule for the last two blocks is much easier than it has been. I am really not enjoying school lately because I understand the material and feel all smart and crap when I learn, but it is painfully obvious that I am a terrible test taker. I doubt my gut or I think too much about the question or, worst of all, I rationalize myself into the wrong answer. I know none of you ever respond, which is fine, but I am asking sincerely for any input you all have about test-taking. No joke, I got five questions wrong on my last physiology exam because I changed my answer from the right one to the wrong one. UGH!

In other news, I am taking a Spanish medical course. It's a completely voluntary thing. I have class twice a week, 90 minutes each, and I learn more medically-oriented things in Spanish. So, things like vocabulary and learning how to conduct a medical interview in Spanish. It's pretty sweet. And I'm enjoying it a lot. I forgot how much I miss Spanish.

Okay! The roommate (and her parents) have left! TIME TO FINALLY GET STUDYING!

Talk soon! PROMISE.