Ready Set Go

Last week was spring break and boy was it nice! However I do not think that sixteen hours in the car and four sled hockey games in three days is exactly what my body needed to rejuvenate. I am extremely stiff and exhausted so motivating myself to  go to class has not been easy. Not only that but I have a feeling these next five weeks are going to be very hectic. I still have ten and a half hours of community service to do for my Spanish class, three research papers to write and final exams.  Not to mention the fact I have to decide if I want to transfer next spring or if I will wait till Fall 2010 and the decision has to be made soon. 

Despite the fact that the next five weeks will probably be stressful I am looking forward to them. They will certainly be full of adventure and I just keep telling myself that once five weeks is over I am off for almost three months. It has been a long semester but I am coming to the home stretch and I just keep reminding myself of two things. What does not kill me makes me stronger and everyday is an adventure, just hold on tight and enjoy the ride. 

Spring Break

Over past week I had my spring break. I wasn't up for two full days of travel, nor was I really up for spending money somewhere else, so I stayed on campus. Campus was mostly empty, as most students are from the east coast and had a way of going home for ten days. Although some people were skeptical that I could make it that long without losing my mind or starving, I actually had a really nice time. I only had a few things assigned over the break, and with those aside, I had a lot of time to myself. That was nice, as the weeks prior to break had been particularly heavy on the workload, and I was in need of some time to relax. The cafeteria was closed, so I had to spend some money at the grocery store, but I was able to survive on peanut butter sandwiches, oranges, and licorice. I caught up on some novels and comics that I hadn't had time to read during the semester, as well as get back to work on personal projects that I hadn't worked on in a long while. I also made another trip to the nearby mountain I had climbed a couple weeks earlier and had a much easier time going up, as the ice had mostly melted and the temperature was still nice. The only major issue was that the buses only ran once in the morning and once in the afternoon, which meant that if I was to miss the bus, I would have been stranded in town. I wasn't up for that, or for spending that much time in town between the two bus rides, so I kept myself entertained on campus, or in the case of the mountain, with things within walking distance of campus.
Over break I also made arrangements for the end of the year with a friend of mine from home who goes to school in Vermont. Originally my parents and I had planned it that I would send all my things home via mail and keep some stuff in storage while I flew home. But my friend, as it turns out, will have a car by May, and he gets out of school only a week after I do. We'll instead be driving home from school, which should be cheaper and easier, and probably a lot better than the tedious process of waiting in airports and bus stations. For a while I felt like when we were making our plans that we were thinking a little to far ahead, but then I realized that I'm only 5 weeks away from the end of the school year, and this actually wasn't so far away. That said, however, these next five weeks will probably the toughest of the semester, as I'll have go through the arduous process of writing long final papers, and giving presentations.

Spring Break Doesn't Mean A Work Break

Spring break officially starts Monday, but since I don't have class on Friday mine starts early. It could not have come at better time either. This week has been full of professors squeezing in exams before break which translates to all work and no fun. The good thing is that I only had one that was cumulative. 

Although, many of professors were going on vacation they still were able to assign work. I have two chapters to read for political science, an oral evaluation that I have to write for Spanish and an English paper due the day I return. That does not even include long term assignments that I have to work on.

Despite this workload I have dedicated this weekend to pleasure reading. My mom bought me the last two books of the Twilight series last week. However she would not give them to me until spring break because she knew that I would be so engrossed in the books that I would not do anything else. She was right. I am also going on vacation to Buffalo next weekend to play sled hockey. This should be exactly what I need to rejuvenate my spirit and be ready for the second half of the semester and all the adventures it will surely bring! That does not surprise me as everyday is an adventure.    

Self-evaluations, round 2

Over this past weekend, I had to write my self-evaluations, as it is "mid-terms" for everyone who goes to a normal college. They went a lot smoother this time compared to last, mostly because I'm much more comfortable in the classes I'm taking this semester than last. I participate in discussion more often, and the work is also slightly less challenging. I can't quite pinpoint what the differences are - if its me, the class, or the professor - but generally this semester I've participated much more in the classroom. It's always been discussion-based, but this time around I find that I have a lot more to say. I think it's most likely because the topics this semester (journalism, fiction, sex/love) are much more relatable ground for me than last semester's (postcolonialism, Latin American politics, war).
In my fiction writing class I was surprised to see that my story wasn't ripped apart, and actually quite well liked. I think that's just generally how I get with my creative writing, when I'm not entirely satisfied with it I don't expect anyone to like it. But it went quite well, and I got loads of good feedback and ideas to help improve it as well.
My friends and I have been talking about how this semester is moving so much faster than last. We figured it has something to do with the fact that we're much more adjusted to our situation now than we were last time, and because there are actually fewer days this semester anyway. There are less than two months left of the year, and while last semester that felt like forever, this semester that amount of time feels short. It's going by pretty fast.
Due to some strange occurrence in the weather, all the snow around here has melted and its 50 degrees out. Two of my friends and I hiked a nearby mountain, something we had been meaning to do since the fall. While the view was obviously less colorful than it would be in October, it was still really cool to see the entire valley that we live in, as well as our college and the other colleges nearby. It also felt good to get out and off campus after a winter of staying inside and going to movies.

Exactly What I Needed

This week has been exactly what I needed. We had a snow day on Monday. Although I hate snow it was very nice to have a day off. It allowed me to get some necessary work done. Then on Tuesday I did not have to go to my night class until an hour after it started as the class had to take an exam that I took on Friday. Then I took a mental health day or I guess mental health night as I skipped my stress management class and went to the Phantoms game instead. It was a tough decision, but well worth it. To top it all off my Spanish class was cancelled on Thursday. It does not get any better then that. Not only has this week been great but I only have one more week until spring break!!! 

Don't think that just because I had fewer classes, I had fewer adventures. Don't ask me to explain how either of these adventures happened because I don't think I could do them again if I tried. I was riding in the elevator trying to put on my jacket. I finally got the jacket on and was waiting for the elevator to open. The door opened and I began trying to walk out of the elevator. As I tried to walk the collar of my jacket began getting tighter around my neck. it was then I realized that the pocket of my jacket was stuck on my walker handle. After about five minutes I was able to free my jacket and continue on with my day. Another day this week I was walking up the ramp to go outside. There are two mats on the ramp. Unfortunately my feet got tangled in the first mat. I looked like I was about to do a belly flop on the floor. My arms and walker were moving forward and my feet were far behind. The thing about my walker is that it has automatic locks on the wheels so that you cannot go backward. In most cases this is a good thing, but when your feet are stuck behind you the wheels make it almost impossible to regain your balance. Thankfully two gentlemen were walking behind me and helped me. I may be able to avoid classes but I can never avoid adventures because everyday is an advemture