Day 119: The first Biology exam

I just took my Biology exam. It could have gone better. And I could have done better. She posted the answers to the exams right after class and I reiterate, I could have done better. I got an A, which was fine. But I was shooting for an A+. I think I walked in too overconfident and some of the questions were a little tricky. What it really boils down to is my annoyance at having made stupid mistakes. I really hate those. Ugh.

And of course I'm a little shaken by how low my A is so I can't focus on physics right now. Which is what I really need to be doing. And then my Organic exam is this Friday and I also need to get my game-face on for that.

You know what it is? I'm so used to acing Chem II exams and just kicking ass that not super-acing them throws me off. I need to just suck it up, shake it off and move on. Onto Physics!

Day 115: Studying for tests

I'm always wary of posting test dates because then my loquacious father always finds the need to bolster my study habits. Before you start, I'm studying. Already. So chill out.

Anyway, I've got two tests next week (Biology and Organic) and then Physics the week after. I'm going to ace all of them (and I say that sans cockiness but with craploads of studying to back up my knowledge train). Biology's just going to be a lot of memorization and it's a scantron test. Which I had to buy myself. I think going to a private school spoiled me to amenities such as provided scantrons and Blue Books. Organic doesn't seem too bad but I have to get my act together and a) actually buy myself a molecule set and b) practice Newman projections.

Eclipsed v. Staggered Conformations

B is interconnected to A so I think I need to just suck it up and buy it. I'm annoyed because mon nouveau ami Kevin won't just lend me his molecule set for a freaking week. Boys are so stupid.

Anyway, I hate physics. It is the bane of my existence and every day I walk into class, my soul dies a little. I am not exaggerating. This professor is the poster child for what not to do as a professor/old person. I am not kidding. He will fill an entire white-erase board with numbers and calculations and then look at it and forget a) everything he's done or b) what he was looking for. And I hate the book so I'm not learning well from that sucker either. I think I'm going to sell it and buy another more resourceful book. Maybe. I say a lot of things in theory while my implementation is only so-so.

I love SIP. I am SO glad I chose to do it. All the pros override the cons I was holding about this decision. SIP leader-wise, I've met a gaggle of wonderful people. SIP leading/session-wise, I'm lucky and have at least two people per session. I'm learning a lot of names and meeting a lot of people and it's going well. I hope to be a good leader and/or motivator to get them to do well and succeed. In general, I'm working on perfecting the SIP leading technique and I'm expecting more people per session in lieu of the upcoming test on 9/25.

I do apologize for not blogging enough but I'm working on it. I'll blog more next week post-(each?)tests to keep you all in the loop.

Day 103: The first weekend of the fall

It's labor day weekend and I'm hanging out with my boyfriends -- Biology, Physics and Organic Chemistry. I've gotta tell you, it's been a scintillating weekend. (Note the sarcasm)

However, more 411 on my classes.

Biology is going to be a little dry? Slow? The professor's the cutest woman you'll ever see but we're moving pretty slow but I think things will pick up eventually.

Physics sucks more than a vampire. The professor is old and scatterbrained and generally sucks. Nick hated him so much he's taking Physics at another university. (Yeah, he's that awful.) I'm dealing though. Class is only 50 minutes, 3 times a week so I just sit there and do Physics problems because that's going to be the only way to ingrain the concepts and formulas into my brain.

Organic is great. I was really worried about the professor but he's incredibly direct and organized and you all know how much I love me some organization. I'm currently doing book problems and am somewhat impressed with my drawing and naming abilities.

2,4-dimethylhexane anyone?

Mmm, my SIP course (Chemistry II) is going well. A friend from SIP (let's call him Kevin) is in that class and he's the best. He's actually way too smart to be there and we just pal around during class and it's good. A student asked me a question on Thursday and I felt all smart and appreciated and wanted. As Kevin joked, "it sounds like you almost knew what you were talking about." Which I did. I also did give her a little misdirection which I will correct when I see her Tuesday.

Day 099: A Quick Update

I've had just about all of my classes (including my SIP class!) and things are looking good. Good meaning I have a lot of work and I'm going to have to figure out how to study for numerous subjects rather than just one but I'm glad I'm getting closer to this whole doctor bit. Physics seems fine enough (we'll see how he is again today). I really like my Organic and Biology professors -- they've got their acts together so that's good. And good ol' Burnsy (my Chem II professor) is the same ol' same ol'. I'm glad he's my SIP Academic whatever-his-title-is ... we get along. And he pretty much knows he's writing my letter of recommendation to med school so that's sweet too.


In other news, I'm thinking about doing an internship? We'll see how much time I have and how well it pans out. It's not looking like too big a commitment but it is going to be cumbersome in regards to driving to and from but again, I don't really know. Never mind, apparently, it's highly sensitive and I may not be right for it. Oh well, let's see if there's something else I can try :)

There's a big storm in North Kakalaky right now so I haven't walked to school in a few days and instead have been late when people have given me rides. Ironic, I know.

Day 097: The first day of the fall semester

Today wasn't bad. I had Physics, Organic and (hopefully, if I can add it) Bio lab.

Nick is not a fan of our Physics teacher. He calls him "Grandpa". He's got a southern, old, white Grandpa feel to him and that would be okay if he didn't seem rather, well, decrepit. Not physically, but mentally.

Huh? What?

He doesn't seem all there and I don't want to make him sound loosey-goosey so much as just ... not having all his marbles. He doesn't come with prepared notes to class and just writes whatever on the board and, quite a defection from my Chem 2 professor.

Organic was good. I was incredibly wary about the professor because his Rate My Professor ratings were not so hot. However, an SIP co-worker/friend said he was pretty chill and class was ... direct. Which I appreciated. He has an aversion to cell phones ringing in class and cheating (good things). He was a drop-a-test policy (also good). Class is only fifty minutes, four times a week and Nick (who sat in with me even though he's in another section) was wary about 50-minute tests (he needs all the time he can get, plus some) ... I think it'll be good. I'm hopeful. Here's to hoping my hope doesn't die :P

Lastly, Bio lab was wasteful. They had an assessment test at the end of lab today and let me tell you, I was pretty pitiful. They asked questions about xylems and phloems and carnivores and haploids and meiosis and yeah, it was bad news. They said it wasn't graded and whatnot but I realized I'm going to be paying lots of attention during Bio :)

And that is all. I hope you all enjoyed this scintillating recollection of today's classes. ;)

Oh, I also manned the SIP booth for a little and that was enjoyable. I'm really liking the program and the people and am extremely glad I decided to do it.

Day 093: SIP it is...

So apparently I had to turn in an application and interview for the position. I did that today and she offered it to me. I think she must have been really desperate, haha, but that's besides the point.

Now I'm starting to get antsy about school. I don't have all of my books just yet and am having trouble registering onto whatever networks my professors want me to. Now that the SIP decision has been made, my schedule must change and right now everything's more closed than a chastity belt so...I'm going to need to sit at this computer until I get into these classes.

I'm excited about SIP and training is this weekend which isn't going to be that big of a deal.

I apologize if this entry is so disjointed, my head's in a million places right now but I thought I'd finally blog and let you all know I'm back in North Kakalaky and am somewhat excited for school to start but right now I'm peeved and annoyed and just trying to get my act together. Le sigh.

Day 080: Final grades and some good news?

The registrar is being weird and not showing me my GPA or any earned credit so I'm going to call them today to sort it all out.

I passed Chem 2 and Chem 2 lab so that's always a plus. I celebrated by shopping like crazy and I think I deserve it :)

Anyway, my professor from Chem 2 asked me to be his SIP leader in the fall. Here's the little schpiel on the school website:

The Supplemental Instruction Program (SIP) is a series of weekly discussion/ review sessions for students taking historically difficult courses. SIP is available for all students enrolled in specific course sections. SIP sessions consist of a discussion facilitated by an SIP leader who has successfully completed the course. The SIP leader knows the class content and sits through class with you every day. They hear what the class hears and read what the class reads in order to help students critically think about the class material. Statistics show that students who attend SIP attain from 1/3 to 1 whole letter grade better than those who do not. This could be you!

Firstly, let's recognize what an honor this is. I really thought he was going to ask David because he not-so-secretly loves and wants to be David but apparently I have a better personality? Whatever, yay for me and not David, haha. So the fact that he chose me is pretty cool beans.

In all seriousness though, I don't know if I should take it. The position requires about a 10 hour commitment per week, I have to change Organic Chemistry professors (to a more challenging one) and yeah. Those are the main cons I've come up with.

The pros are: I would develop a good rapport with the professor (so that he could write a kick-ass recommendation for me), it would look good on my med school application, I would be firming up my chem knowledge and, that's all I've got.

I like how he thinks...or decides rather.

So it looks like I've got three pros to two cons but those cons are a big deal. To be honest, I came to win. If my grades suffer at all, I'm out of the game. So even though I have "kick ass SIP leader" on my application, how much will that matter if I get a B in Organic? Since grades and MCAT scores are what get you remotely in the door, I need to get in the door. Seriously.

So, it is certainly good news, it's just trying to figure out what to do that's the tricky part. Any advice friends and family?