A Smorgasboard...

We'll start with a picture of my apartment's Christmas Tree, shall we? I'm a fan of both traditional and non-traditional trees. Though, with the non-traditional (colored, white, silver, and the like), I prefer it to be coordinated. Hence our tree.

After my last post, I did a little more shopping (and by that, I mean finding things my mom can give me for Christmas), and got two pair of Worthington dress pants for the price of a single pair. I love these pants because they are meant to be worn below the waist, which is where I wear my pants anyway. They fit me well, even without being "long" or "tall". Yay dress pants!

I saw the pea coat of my dreams at Macy's as well: just the right length (long enough to cover the waistband of my pants without going to my knees), a hood, double breasted, black, and pockets. I was thisclose to buying it, especially since my mom had a 20% off coupon (or $20, I can't remember). Until I realized it was marked "EDV"...meaning "Everyday Value". Meaning, NO COUPONS FOR ME! Ugh. I don't quite understand why Macy's needs to have EDVs, and thus I am perturbed. I decided that I don't want the coat unless I know what I'm saving (which they don't tell you, only that you're paying $99.95). I searched around the webs at different department stores, and the closest I came was buying the coat through Overstock.com for a bit more (no shipping or tax though, so it'd come out even). The debate is still weighing heavily in my brain as to whether I should get it or not. *sigh* Tough life, huh?

This week is the last week of classes. Yesterday I had a presentation and a paper due, so I'm glad to have that out of the way. I have homework due tomorrow, and then my first final on Friday. And in the meantime I need to start studying for biochemistry. Luckily 2 of my 4 finals are not comprehensive/cumulative, and they're early in the game. It gives me more time to study for my "bigger" finals. I'm glad to almost be done with this quarter, it's been quite dreary.

And it's almost time for the big Florida trip. I'm trying to figure out what to pack, both to pack lightly and smartly. I'm not sure of the weather in Florida, so I need to check that out. Packing lightly means taking a few interchangable pieces that are easily washed (there are washers in the condos we're staying in). And I'll have to figure out a few pairs of appropriate shoes. Stressful! :-)

That's all I have to chat about...I'll leave you with a picture of myself and my boyfriend at Macy's...

Good Bad

I'll start with the negative things that are going on right now...then I'll move onto happier subjects!

I got stung by a bee yesterday, for the first time ever. I did NOT know how much it hurts! And I managed to make the mistake of pulling the stinger out instead of using a credit card to scrape at it. I thought that you only did that when the stinger wouldn't come out, not all the time. So I'm in more pain that I should be. I also was late in applying treatment, so it hurts more. Better luck next time, I guess.

Things are still tense around here, at least to me. After writing about what happened on here and talking to some people, I'm more reassured that I'm not a horrible person. I feel like I'm walking on eggshells around here though.

I don't have a job, yet. News on that in the happy part of this post...

I'll have to either be here an extra quarter, or take a class after I graduate. I'm also seriously contemplating waiting to apply to Optometry school (and thus delaying my entrance a year), due to the fact that I don't think I'll be able to get the scores I need without taking Organic Chem. I'm still going to take the test here in the near future, just to see what else I'll need to work on, but I'd rather wait a year than get rejected. It's a bump in the road, but I'll have the rest of my life to work, so I think it'll be work out fine.

Happier things? Yes, let's.

Thursday I had yet another job interview (that's 4 now), this time at a different Max & Erma's than my previous one. Apparently as a company, they have a 2 round interview policy--one interview with a store manager and if they pass you on, one with the general manager. I passed (and with flying colors, I think) the first interview and I have the second interview on Tuesday. The manager I interviewed with was a really nice guy and told me all the things about the company that I didn't hear in my other interview. He said that the only mark against me is that I don't have experience serving alcohol, but that's easily overcome since they include a class on serving alcohol (and alcohol knowledge in general) in their training process. He seemed pretty impressed with me, as given by the fact that I got the second interview, and he said that he doesn't talk up the company to people he's not interested in hiring. So I'm confident for Tuesday!

I ate crab legs last night. After a crapola week, I deserved it.

The camera I've been pining for since forever ago finally dropped in price to what I feel comfortable paying. The first camera I bought ended up being a crapbag, so I've been wanting a new one for...oh, 3 years now. My boyfriend has the same camera I bought except it's a few versions back. I used his camera a lot so I knew that I liked the functionality of it. We went to Target last night (he works there, so a 10% discount was in order) just to see if they had it. His store hadn't had the camera in stock for awhile, and he figured it would be the same at all the stores. Surprise! My lucky day, they had it in stock! So now I'm the proud owner of the Canon SD1000 7.1MP camera.

My mom has a real job again! She was called back to the district that she was RIF'ed (that stands for "reduction in forces") from in June, so she's back at the same pay rate and benefits as when she left the district. This is a huge relief in light of recent events.

I'm having tea with a good friend today and the weather is lovely. I'm going to make this a good day.

Here's hoping that things start looking up in the next week, I'm sick of feeling so down!

Academic Update.

My grades for 2 of my 3 midterms are in, and surprisingly (or not) they're both As. A 96% in anatomy and an 80% (which became an A) in my MSE class. The second is what I'm most happy about, as it means I don't have to take the second midterm.

In looking at my calendar of academia, I'm going to be so swamped soon. I'm beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel for my senior project (May 9th is the final presentation and the final paper is due May 21st). I'm almost excited for summer classes because it means I won't have a project looming over my head as I have this whole school year. It sucks because I'm starting to make some headway, and see where I need(ed) to go, which is a slightly (who am I kidding, entirely!) different direction than the project aimed for.

I'm happy though, because I've been told by three different people (my department adviser, the guy who helps me with the cell culture, and the guy who runs the metallography lab) that I'm doing more work than other people. And of course there's the mantra that must keep all grad students going: "It's research, that's what happens." In the end, I think I have a wealth of "what not to do" and "what to think about doing"...at least enough to make it look like I've done more than just fail at doing what I set out to do. Urgh.

I can tell I'm getting stressed again (or shall I say, more than usual?) because my upper lip is twitching nearly nonstop.