Week 10 Famous Last Words

It's been a nice week overall. Halloween was last night, but I had to work all day. That's fine since I went to a Halloween party the Thursday night before Halloween. It was quite a party! I met some new people who were really genuine and kind. Some of the costumes I saw were Batman, Snow White, a droog (Clockwork Orange), Minnie Mouse, a Dragon, a gift from God (that was pretty clever), villains from the purge (they made a scary entrance), a chick magnet, and more. My friend and I dressed up as Mario and Luigi which was really fun! Let me say finding clothes to match Mario is a piece of cake, but finding clothes for Luigi was tough! Green hats were impossible to find for cheap. I ended up dying a white hat to look green, and it came out decent.

Reba as Mario and me as Luigi for Halloween. Personal Photo.

I have two exams next week back to back. I have my pathogenic exam tomorrow morning then I have my colloquium exam. I'm more nervous about my colloquium exam because I didn't take great notes on two chapters. I have attended class which gives me a great foundation for notes though. So far I'm happy with my grades, but I'm still trying my best to maintain them.

On a different note, I had lunch with my older brother and his girlfriend. For those of you who don't know my older brother (and I'm sure no one does), he's a lone wolf. He keeps to himself, and he works all the time. He also maintains his personal life very private. I'm guessing he has been seeing this girl for a couple of years now, but I had no idea who she was. Honestly, I never asked. Then out of nowhere she's inside my house! My brother introduced me to her, but I already forgot her name. She's nice and witty. It's just so weird to see my brother to be so... human. He was actually nice to her! I do have a great relationship with my brother. We just avoid talking about relationships. It's just weird that he's opening up to me about it. In short, it makes me nervous of where this is all going.

Overall, I had an interesting week. I can't believe it's already November. This semester is almost over!

Week 9 Famous Last Words

I'm writing this post later that usual, but that just gives me more time to reflect on my week. Last week was pretty chill! It was the week after midterms, so most of my classes didn't have any heavy assignments. My midterms went very well! I made an A+ on both molecular lab and colloquium midterms which made my week! Therefore, I decided that I can give myself a break and relax. And relax I did! I watched a new show with one of my good friends, and I also spent a lot of time carving pumpkins. The pumpkin carvings came out awesome! We watched a scary movie (The Vatican) while carving pumpkins which probably wasn't the best idea to be scared and handle knives. It's okay though because we survived!

Pumpkin carvings of a skeleton, Tinkerbell, a heart, and Haunter (Pokemon). Personal Photo.

On another note, my younger brother's birthday is this coming Wednesday (Oct. 28th), and his birthday gift finally arrived at my house. I ordered him a new Asus Zenfone 2 with a black case. Erik desperately needs a functioning phone so I'm hoping he'll like his new gift.

Moveover, work went well this past weekend, except I'm still upset that no one notified me that I had off on Friday. Friday afternoon I showed up to work as usual just to see that I wasn't even scheduled for that day! Did anyone tell me? NOPE! I worked for 5 hours until I went to check tomorrow's shift and saw that I was supposed to be off. I had so much homework to do that I could've finished with my lab group. Instead, I went to work. I should have been aware of my schedule, but my boss never sent the message out and there is no way for us to check online. Lesson learned.

Overall, I had a nice week with family and friends. Weeks like these remind me of why all my sacrifices will be worth it in the end.

Week 8 Famous Last Words

Praise the lord I survived my midterm week! I'm not sure how, but I did. I don't even want to think about my grades. Monday was really stressful because I spent the entire day studying for my midterms on Tuesday. After my exams, it's been smooth sailing academically. I don't know where I'm at with my social life. Although I must say that I did spend time with my brothers! That was really cool! I went home early since all my friends were busy with classes and their midterms. The best part was that I hung out with BOTH of my brothers, not just Erik (my younger brother)! It was really nice for all of us to be together again. We had a good talk about several subjects such as transgender, satire, and new movies.Also, I witnessed the process of feeding my snake! I must say that it was brutal. She has to be fed fresh food, and she's still learning how to constrict her prey. It took her a couple of tries, but she finally ate. I'd like to post a photo, but they're really graphic. I don't think too many people would appreciate it.

On a different note, I started reading about Krishna for this week's reading. I have always heard about Krishna, and I know several people named Krishna. So I finally decided to look more into this Krishna character. From what I have read so far, Krishna is like a Hindu Hercules. He's a beast! As a baby, he destroyed two demons just by playing with them. At the age of eight, he also defeated a giant hundred-headed serpent. What's crazy about him is that he plays with his enemies. There isn't an epic battle between Krishna and his enemies. He literally plays with them as if he wasn't in any real danger. Then he kills them without breaking a sweat. In short, Krishna is awesome!

My take on Krishna. A photo of Disney's Hercules. Source.

Week 7 Famous Last Words

My mind is about to EXPLODE! I'm quickly trying to finish all of my online homework tonight so that I can devote the entire day tomorrow to study for my midterm exams. But I did bring this upon myself. I took off work this Saturday to go to the OU-TX game, and I'll admit that it was so worth it! I had a lot of fun! The game was really intense (I was on the edge of my seat the entire time), but it sucked that we lost. It's okay, Texas. We're coming for you next year. The Texas state fair was out of this world. That place was huge! As much as I love Oklahoma, the Texan fair was better than the Oklahoma state fair. I'm really glad I finally experienced OU-TX before I graduated. That's one event crossed off my college list! Of course, with every action comes with a consequence. I didn't study the entire weekend since I worked late Friday and today (Sunday), and since I spent the day in Dallas on Saturday. However, I would do it all over again. On a happier note, I did well on my molecular lab notebook check! These notebook checks are worth 1/3 of our grade so it's crucial that I do well on each notebook check. I was really happy with my grade. It showed me that all the work I put into this class is really paying off. I just hope that I ace the midterm coming up this week! Praying for the best.

Boomer Sooner at OU-TX! Source.

Week 6 Famous Last Words

The worst part is waiting... Every day checking my email and waiting. The first round of med school interviews began the last week of September (for most schools), and I'm just waiting around for a miracle that grants me an interview. I try not to think about it too much, but it's hard not to when everything you have ever worked for leads up to this point. So here I am, just waiting. In the meanwhile, I finally learned the ropes of molecular lab. This class can drive me absolutely crazy sometimes, but I think I have it down. I did well on my past two quizzes, and I did decent on my first writing assignment. Because I'm investing so much time for that class, I have neglected my other classes. This class gives me a break from all the science which is a relief. I have an exam on Monday in another science course, and I haven't started studying yet. That's my fault though. I'm trying to maintain a social life, but that's becoming complicated. Everything requires time. I must sleep. I need to study, but I also need a break. Something that has been bothering is my mom's suggestions to quit my job. She mentioned quitting again this morning because she's afraid that my job requiring too much of a commitment. This is irritating because I found a job because she told me to, and I knew once school started she would want me to quit. I know she just wants what is best for me.

On a happier note, I ran into Kevin Durant last night! My friends and I accidentally took his VIP room at a restaurant. He just walked into the room and all of were so surprised! We were celebrating my friend's birthday so it was a cool gift that he was able to see one of his favorite basketball stars.

Thunder Up! Source.

 

Famous Last Words Week 4

What a weekend! Well not really.. I just worked the entire weekend, but let's focus on the positives! I'm definitely getting faster at work. There are several areas that need improvement, but I'm learning how to work under pressure one day at a time. I'm happy to say that I passed my pharmacy final! In other words, my pharmacy manager evaluated me and decided to keep me as a pharm tech. I spent some time with my older brother which is always a blessing. My brother and I have opposite schedules, so I barely have the time to see him anymore, except this weekend I was lucky to spend a couple of hours with him. He brought home a new pet snake! His work was giving away baby corn snakes, and he kept one! The snake is so tiny!

My brother holding the snake (size comparison). Personal photo.

In her cage. Personal Photo.

She'll grow to be a monster though. We discussed what to name the snake. I liked Medusa, but for some crazy reason my brother named her Shivakamini Somakenerkram... I have no idea how to even pronounce that... School has been tough. My lab professor gave a notebook last week, and my lab group did not do well at all. He was a really rough grader. There was some controversy about his teaching style and lack of office hours. I work really hard in that class, and it sucks when my grade doesn't show that. I guess I have to make more improvements in the lab to earn the grade I desire. So far this class has been going smoothly. I try to finish the readings and homework early. My favorite assignments for this class are the growth mindset posts. I like to explore more about growth mindset. Believe it or not, it has affected my life more than I can imagine.

Famous Last Words Week 3

So many things are running through my mind right now. I'm so sleepy. I need to study. My exam is on Monday. I have work in the morning. I have to finish my molecular lab report. I need to read for colloquium. I forget to deposit my check. I need to finish that scholarship. Med school interviews are approaching. Did I remember to put air in my tires? The list just goes on and on. One of the things I am currently struggling with is handling the pressure at work. I just finished training as a pharm tech and the job comes with a steep learning curve. Learning how to work a completely new system is one thing, but learning how to adapt to patients' cranky moods and accusations are another. Yesterday was one of the roughest days at work. My coworkers and I were trying our best to please every patient, but there was only so much that we could do. We had patients yell profanities at us at the top of their lungs. It was quite the scene. I left work feeling defeated. I dreaded coming into work this morning, and my senior tech noticed my melancholic mood. He heard about last night's catastrophe... Well everyone did. I never thought that I would get out of my blue funk, but he really did make me feel better. He told me that the greatest challenge in life is to maintain happiness when the world around me exposes its ugly side. I still remember what he said to me to brighten my day, "Have you ever heard sharpen by fire? That's what you did last night. You were thrown in the fire and came out stronger and smarter." It made me realize that challenges are what mold me into the person that I am today. I will never learn unless I challenge myself. This experience reminds me of the growth mindset concept. I didn't fail that night. I just wasn't quite there yet.

Quote by Ferdinand Foch

Famous Last Words Week 2

This week has been a bit hectic. I am still trying to find a balance between school and work. I was a bit behind in this class, so I spent the majority of my time trying to catch up on my assignments. The storybook project really took a lot of my time. That is one thing that I will never do at the last minute. Lesson learned. I tried a new writing technique in my storybook. The introduction to it was mostly dialogue. I have always written stories in a first-person perspective or as a third-person narrative. I was never much of a writer that included dialogue. Therefore, I tried changing it up a bit and did only dialogue for my introduction. At first it was odd because there was no description of the characters or the setting. Then I realized that dialogue helps with character development based on word choice. It was an interesting writing strategy that I might use again.
On another note, my science classes are catching up to me. Molecular lab drains me every Tuesday and Thursday. I don't really have a passion for counting cells, yet my professor expects me to write a whole lab report about it. Pathogenic micro is one of my favorite classes this semester. It's exciting to learn about how parasites and different microorganisms can cause fatal diseases. My professor returned from China finally so now he's teaching the course instead of his TA. No offense to the TA, but I prefer Dr. Lawson to teach. The first exam is coming up! I better start studying soon...
My goals for this week are to get ahead in this class with extra credit and starting my readings early. I would also like to start studying for my pathogenic exam by Tuesday the latest. I need to finish my molecular lab and also finish the reading assignment by Monday. Hopefully, I will be able to finish reading and taking notes of the protest book assigned in my colloquium class. It seems like a lot, but I'm sure I can do it...hopefully.

How college feels right now... Source

Famous Last Words Week 1

I have really enjoyed my assignments in this class so far. Honestly, I have never been in a class that was structured like this one. Although there are guidelines, I am able to be myself and write how I want to write. I miss writing, and this class really brought it back to me. Any writing that I have to do in my other classes have to be scientific and..well.. dull. Don't get me wrong. Science is a remarkable discipline, but sometimes writing 30 pages about an enzyme can be such a drag. One thing that I didn't expect was the time it takes for me to publish a post. I take my dear sweet time trying to make my post interesting and making sure I carefully proofread, but before I know it, a couple of hours have already past! I really have to focus on my time management with this class. Since I enjoy these homework assignments more than writing my lab reports, I try to finish the homework for this class first. That tends to hinder me because I spend way too much time on this class and not enough time on my science courses. Another aspect that I like about this class is that I can read other people's writing. Therefore, I am able to connect to other people and share ideas with them. It's interesting to meet people with all sorts of majors and backgrounds. My honors professor once told me to take advantage of college because it is the one place where I can immerse myself with a diverse group of people. I always keep that in mind when I read other blogs.

In short, I think this class is too much fun! I can't wait to see what other projects or stories that we will be assigned. Hopefully by that time, I would already have the hang of limiting my time spent on these blogs!

Yoda is so wise. Source: Chuckles Network