Too much relaxing (aka "slacking) this semester...


Time to get pissed!


This will be a very busy month, so now's the time to start workin' like a fiend.


It seems to me that there is some sort of balance between relaxing in order to accumulate the energy to work/unwind from said work, and getting into a groove of working (or not working).

I love Fall weather.

It truly is the best and most beautiful - even before the leaves turn.


I watched the first episode of Initial D today. I just may get into cars. It would certainly fortify a weakness in my armor of manliness.
Then I'll just have to stop making statements like the one above, haha.

*URK!*

So, my parents are helping me pay for this last semester, for which I have no scholarship.

Basically, it costs about $15k. I will pay $4k, and then either split the rest with my folks, OR if I finish my undergraduate education with ABOVE a 3.50 cumulative GPA, then they will pay the entire remainder.

So, right now I have a 3.46 cGPA, with 128 credits and 443 "points." This semester I am taking 14 credits. If I score 4.o in all of them, then I will finish with a cGPA of 3.51. If I score 3.0 in just one 3.0 credit class, then my cGPA will finish at 3.49(29577).

Tight.

I am VERY concerned about the graduate-level class I am taking, EBME 401: Bioelectric Phenomena. I feel like the class material isn't too bad. In fact, it is similar to EBME 327, which many of the others haven't taken, so I have a slight advantage in that.
Unfortunately, our homework assignments are almost solely based on skills that the professor doesn't teach us. Our first homework was a differential equations problem. Then, we had a Matlab coding problem. Now, we have to write a program in a weird neural program (which I actually used in EBME 327, but I totally hacked it and didn't understand it much at all). These homework assignments are KILLING me. They make up 25% of our final grade...
yikes.

Even if I suck at the homeworks, though, if I ace the tests and the project there is hope.

We shall see after the first test!!

If only there was some way for me to do better on those homeworks...

First long night of the schoolyear. Up until 5:30am doing homework.

It turned out pretty bad.
:(

So tired.

At least the freshmen chemistry test was a joke for me.

Bah, more homework to do tonight...

Weeeelll I've been a huge douche-bag the last couple days, doing pretty much zero work when I had a ton to do.

Yesterday I watched Seasons 1 & 2 of The Office. Very funny, but... not what I should've been doing.


Some good news, though - I won my fencing tournament on Saturday! It was an individual tournament, and I had some very close calls. I took first and the current Case Fencing president took second.

Still got it!

I think it helped that I went into it with a nothing-to-lose attitude. Also, I socialized with people to calm my nerves (and because it's nice to be friendly). Oh, and kicking everybody's ass was a key part of my victory. My only regret is not using my "intimidation move" on the little kid I fenced (that's the move where I body check my opponent). bwahaha.


First test of the semester today, in freshmen chemistry. I wonder how much I remember from the two or three times I've studied chemistry already.

I forget things pretty fast. Not much slower than the rate I learn things at school, I suspect. Does my rate of forgetting things increase as I learn more things to forget? If I attend school indefinitely, will my rate of forgetting eventually reach my rate of learning?

I dunno.

I had my first medical school interview on Wednesday!

For my first interview, it went very well. I think I presented myself decently, and answered all questions satisfactorily.

I can definitely do better. For one, I can be much more well-spoken. I had a lot of non-verbal pauses and even stutters. Also, I need to be more well-prepared for ethical questions; they asked me about six at OSU. Oh, and I should definitely have a good answer for the common question that I didn't have on my list, "What is your greatest success and what is your greatest failure?"

They congratulated me on my MCAT score during the interview!! ^_^

Next up is Loyola Chicago on October 2nd!

Shantan is letting me stay at his place. I also plan on seeing Fr. Kurtz while I am there!


In other news, my class was approved as a tech elective, and I successfully registered for senior project. Yay.


Fencing tournament tomorrow. Yay.


Big pledge class with nifty guys. Yay.


Lots of partying. *sigh*


EBME 401 is soo hard. I thought I was a better student than most of the students here. Why is this so hard for me? I really want to get the grades this semester. I will be trying very hard for it. Even so... ugh.


Diablo with Kristy is working!


Until next time.

Peace.

First fencing practice of the school year was today.

I am so freakin' pumped!!

Tournament this weekend, also!


Could it be that fencing will finally resume my #1 hobby status, in place of SSBM?

I've kinda wanted it to for a while. It is a lot more physically healthy.

Smash is just so amazing, though.

We'll see...

OSU interview is coming up!!

Chuck Schmitt has graciously lent me the use of his car.

I am excited and a bit nervous about my first medical school interview.

I am also excited to hang out with Kai. We are each looking forward to smashing against one another.

No doubt he is much more mature and "cool" now that he is a medical school student.
Heh.


My senior project was approved! I'm not really sure what I'm doing, but it's either sensing pressure or stimulating human urethra & sphinter with a catheter. My focus will probably be in the computer/transducer interface. I'll be working with doctors and maybe human subjects & patients, which is sweet.

Yes, that's right. For my senior project I am catheterizing people in their sensitive areas.
Any volunteers? I'm sure I can always use more data.


My current petition for taking EBME 316: Biomaterials in Drug Delivery as a technical elective is still under consideration. Why is D. Wilson taking so long??

I had a discussion with Steve Lamoreaux and some other folks (including a potential recruit) at dinner today. He was trying to explain why Walmart is bad/evil.

I wasn't convinced, but I am not sure that he is wrong, either.

His main points seemed to be:
1) Walmart treats their employees in an evil manner by not giving them fair pay.
2) Walmart breaks the law, but is not punished because they are too powerful, so politicians and judges do not hold them accountable.

I had a couple reactions to this discussion.

1) The evidence for those points did not convince me, because it was mostly circumstantial. He claimed that Walmart coerces the people and companies around it, which is possible, but not necessarily probable.
2) I am considering the idea that companies are morally neutral, and that the individuals who make corporate decisions are individually morally accountable.
3) I am also considering the idea that responsibility for evil but purely business-oriented corporate decisions is shared by the politicians and people who determine and enforce economic law. In a capitalist society, we expect companies to make profit-driven choices, and thus increase the wealth of all people. In fact, it is encouraged, within the boundaries of some human rights-oriented laws. If Steve's second point was true, this would still make Walmart bad, but there would also be guilt for those responsible for enforcing those laws.

Arrg.

I am frustrated.

My class was suddenly cancelled, and my first try at replacing it didn't work!

This could be bad...