Gay Day!

Hi all!

When I was in Spanish III in high school, I had a lot of fun. I went by the name Carmen, although I'd have rather been called Esperañza, but that name was taken. My teacher was a bit cuckoo. Don't get me wrong - I loved her class, but she had a very prolific sense of humor and fun. She was from Venezuela originally, and so her accent made her all the more funny (in a good way). Every Friday, we'd have class for a bit, and then we'd do something fun, which is why she dubbed Friday "Gay Day." English isn't her first language, and thus the implications that we normally associate with the word "gay" should be suspended. Anyway, in remembrance of all the good "Gay Days" I had in high school Spanish, I have decided to name this day, the last day of studying for FLS 315: Culture and Civilization of the Iberian peninsula, accordingly. After all, both were Spanish classes and I enjoyed both of them immensely. My exam for FLS 315 is tomorrow, a las ocho en la mañana. I've studied a bit, but I'm not going to go loca on this exam. I've retained a great deal of the information that we've learned over the semester, and the review sheet she gave us has helped me to form some good answers to potential discussion questions. Overall, I feel really good about this exam. I hope that I feel really good about it after I take it tomorrow too.

After Spanish, I'll be studying Forensic Anthropology until thursday afternoon, and then I'll take that exam a la una de la tarde el jueves, and then I'll commence a rapid, frantic studying of the most dreaded class ever: Zoology, or as I shall now refer to it, La pesta negra. I can't convey how worried I am right now about those exams, but maybe the terms heart palpitations, hyperventilation, dreams of anti-anxiety medication, and insomnia can correctly convey my current condition. I have found that if I take a step back and breathe for a bit, and maybe focus on what I do know already, I can get through my exams. The exams aren't the bad part - the studying is the bad part. I can work myself into a nervous breakdown just by studying. That is why, when Friday comes, after 11 AM, I will be taking it easy for that whole day. I not going to do jack. I'm going to plop my wide butt down in my chair or on my bed and watch TV or movies or sleep or read for the rest of the day. Then I'm going to commence a nice, slow, leisurely perusall of all material related to my last final examination, that of organic chemistry on Monday in hopes that I will not be a ball of nerves come Monday morning's exam. In fact, I am only writing this post in order to dispel some of my nervous energy. It seems to be working, as long as I don't think more than a few hours into the future.

In other news, I'm moving out of my dorm room next Monday and Tuesday. Despite the crushing sadness I know such an action will no doubt bring, I am restless to get to those days, for that will mean that I am through with final examinations and can finally go home and cry in my little corner.

Oh, and I wanted to ask: no one is going to think ill or less of me if I don't have a 4.0 GPA for this semester, right? Because as of now, I don't think I can handle the stress of having a 4.0, especially the stress of trying to keep that 4.0. I know I must sound like a poor little smart girl, complaining about her test score because she only scored 101 out of 100, but I am serious. It is a tremendous strain to maintain that GPA, and I can't take it anymore. If I didn't already think that it was gone, I'd be tempted to blow it intentionally just to get rid of the stress so I could actually enjoy my classes instead of worrying about every score. So, will y'all still love me if I don't do so well this semester?

Yours truly,

Carmen

Study Study Study

Technically, it is day one of my study regime. I have five exams to take, one each day starting Tuesday and ending next Monday. My hardest exam will be this Friday, in my least favorite class...Zoology. I don't know what is up with the zoology department here at State, but they seem driven to make every one fail. It's as if their objective is to overwhelm you with information that you couldn't care two shillings about and then they expect you to spend all your time studying for their exam as if you don't have other exams of equal importance to worry about. Can you tell that I really don't like zoology? I might feel better about it if we had quizzes or assignments periodically to keep us up to date with all of the information, but no, all we have are three tests to use to refresh our memory. Anyway, I've done the math, and I need to make a 75 or better on my final to make an A in the class. Isn't that a bit ridiculous? So, I've decided that the big, boring bully is going to wait for my studying attention until Thursday, after my Forensic Anthropology exam.

Speaking of Forensic Anthropology, I'm starting to get worried about that class. I worked all last week on a project detailing the biological profile of a pile of bones. I think I worked hard on it, but when I went to turn it in, I couldn't find the box that I was supposed to turn it into. I searched, but I couldn't find it. So I went to another floor and put the assignment in my professor's mailbox and then sent her an email telling her of the location. My professor has been in Puerto Rico since Tuesday of last week, so I don't expect a reply back until tomorrow at the earliest...but I am kind of worried. I hope she is able to find it, because she does not accept late papers, and Friday was the cut off point. I may not get any slack on that area, and if that is the case, that's fifty points of my final grade (out of 400). So the highest I can get in the class would be a B. Her exams are easy, in my opinion. They are not cumulative, so what I learned for the first exam will not count towards my second exam. I spent one day studying for the exam last time, and I aced the exam with a 150 out of 150. I plan on spending one day to study for the second/final exam, and I hope I meet with similar scores.

Tomorrow, I have my final physics exam for Non-Calculus based Physics II. I'm taking a break from studying for it right now, and I'm feeling all right. Of course, I felt all right about the last exam in that class and I made an abysmal grade (75 if you must know). I felt that test was unfair and way too difficult, and it was so much different in difficulty level from his last tests. I understand if a professor wants you to know how to tackle difficult test questions, but at least make all the tests with similar difficulty levels, so that students will know how much they need to prepare. He didn't even teach us how to do some of the problems, and he wouldn't even say that. He acted as if we'd gone over them thousands of times. I felt betrayed - I was actually starting to like physics. So, anyway, for the final tomorrow, I have to go over 14 chapters of material (I've covered 4 so far), and then I'll go over my tests, and then I'll pray. I need to make at least an 80, so that I make an A-. He has told us that our grades will be bumped up one +/- grade if we have good, solid homework scores (which I do). He will also move the class up a little bit after the scores from the final are in. He explained that to us after we received our last test back, and just to let you know, I scored pretty damn well compared to the majority of the class. So, If I make an 80, or better, I may get out of physics with an A, possible an A+, but definitely and A-. After that, I'll be done with physics for the rest of my life - even though the section on lenses and how they apply to glasses really interested me. I determined that my far point for my left eye is 50cm away, while that for my right eye is 100cm/1m away. Basically, anything outside of those distances is blurry. I wouldn't have know how to calculate that without this physics class, so thank you, Dr. Hinkle.

After Physics, I have Spanish. It's basically a mix of history and culture, so all I have to do is go over my notes and do some self-quizzing. I should be fine there, for I need only a 80 to pass with an A.

And my last exam, which will be on Monday, is for Organic Chemistry, no doubt my favorite class this semester. My professor is one of the best professors that I have ever had in my life. I have to make a 91 in order to make an A+, but I do not think that will be any real difficulty. I have an entire weekend to study for the exam, and I plan on doing just that.

I actually feel somewhat better after writing this, so I'm going to go back into studying. Electricity and Magnetism, here I come!