Fall Term 2012, Week 2: Work Hard, Play Hard

Happy Labor Day to everyone out there!

I have delayed my normal posting until today because of the extra day in my weekend. Once again, it was a very busy week, and this weekend has been very relaxing and much needed. However, I felt much better about everything this week than I did last week. I am becoming even more used to the dynamics of off-campus living as well as even more accustomed to my schedule of classes and activities and working out how to fit homework in between all of them.

I am still really enjoying all of my classes. In Immunology, we have been studying innate immunity, something that we are all born with, and we are just now transitioning to acquired immunity, something our bodies develop as we encounter pathogens throughout our lives. In the class, we have group quizzes each day (well, those days that aren't devoted to review or exams), and so far, I really like my group. Unfortunately, we have to switch groups halfway through the term, but I'm sure I will find some other cool people to work with when the time comes. Also, I can't remember if I told you yet or not, but part of the class involves end-of-the-term group presentations on some immunological topic. My group will be covering immunodeficiencies, so I'm looking forward to that. It will be tad difficult because the groups comprise seven people, and it's no picnic trying to arrange a group meeting where all seven college students can make it. We're all so busily involved in other things. But necessity is the mother of invention, so I'm sure we will work out some way to get our work done despite our other obligations. We always do.

In Physics, we are just starting to cover velocity, acceleration, and force, all very basic concepts. I had forgotten since high-school physics that mechanics is actually the most difficult part of physics for me, probably because it is the area of physics that most fully contradicts popular beliefs about the way the world works. For instance, if you throw a ball upward, at the top of its path, its velocity will be 0 m/s, but it's still accelerating due to gravity. Most people would figure that something that is not moving is not accelerating, but that's just not the case. Things like that. I had my first lab of the term on Thursday, and that went pretty well. I worked with a girl who is in my Biochemistry group (see below), so I'm glad about that. It always helps to have a friendly, familiar face.

My partner and I got a little farther on our cadaver this week. We removed the anterior thoracic wall and dissected some of the internal thoracic (mammary) arteries on the posterior aspect of the ribcage. Then, we removed the lungs and identified various vessels embedded in them, namely, the pulmonary arteries and veins in addition to the primary bronchi. We also learned to distinguish the right lung from the left lung (the right lung is larger with three lobes, and the left lung is smaller with two lobes--due to the position of the heart more to the left in the chest). This week, we will be doing a more complete dissection of the heart and identifying its major external and internal structures. Obviously, my least favorite part of Cadaver Lab is the smell of the embalming fluids. I could even detect the distinctive odor on the camisole I was wearing under a fairly thick t-shirt when I went to take a shower afterwards. Ick. But it's just one of those things that only bothers me after I leave the lab. While I am in the lab, I don't mind it so much because I am concentrating on my work and trying not to make my cadaver look like shredded chicken.

Personal Finance is going okay, too. I submitted the early draft of my cash-flow assignment to the professor, and he said it needed some work. I was disappointed because I thought I had followed the guidelines well. I was afraid that I was not understanding the assignment and that I would do poorly in the class as a whole because money doesn't make much sense to me. However, I looked more carefully at my work and discovered a few discrete areas of error, which I was able to fix quite readily. The assignment isn't due until next Tuesday, the 11th, but I think I'll submit it again tomorrow to see how much work I still need to do before the deadline.

Finally, Biochemistry is looking to be much more manageable than I thought. Although it is strongly chemistry-oriented, its principles are fairly straightforward. I have noticed that it draws a lot on Organic Chemistry, so I guess I'm glad I paid attention in that class. Right now, we are learning about acid-base chemistry and proteins, especially enzymes. That is kind of the major focus of biochemistry because proteins control almost all biological processes in living systems. I'm hoping this class will help me understand Human Physiology more when I take that class next term. So far, I have aced both of my quizzes, although one of them was a Cell Biology review quiz. Still, I'll take it. I happily found a group to work with for an assignment called PEP--Parenting an Enzyme Project--where we will study an enzyme and then make a poster about it to share with the class during the last week of the term. I am not too worried about it because I am a poster-making pro from last year, when I had to make one twice (once for Botany and once for Molecular Genetics--my Senior Inquiry class). I'm sure you all remember those good old days. Anyway, our enzyme is glucansucrase, which bacteria use to turn the sugars that we humans ingest into long chains on the surface of our teeth (called a biofilm). That's not a really good description, but it's accurate enough to give you some idea of what we will be doing this term. Coincidentally, the other two people in my group are also pre-vet students, so I can assure you we will have one awesome poster!

This week was my second week of proctoring, and that went pretty well again. Like I said before, it's hard not being able to do homework, but I do stay pretty busy, especially toward the beginning of the period, so I don't mind too much. I'm actually looking for more work on campus because I'm going to be a little cash-strapped this year (well, when am I ever not cash-strapped?) than I expected. The school recently introduced restrictions on the number of hours students can work per week (no more than 10), so since I am already working four hours a week, I need a job that will get me just six more hours per week. Even that would make a big difference.

This week was also my first real Exec Board meeting for Circle K, so I had to give an update about how our fundraising situation looks. It was a little nerve-wracking, but I really enjoy being "behind the scenes" and having more say in the organization than I have in the past. On Wednesday, I participated in my first service event of the year, which was making crafts to sell at the QWAWC (Quad City Animal Welfare Center) Mutt Strut on September 15th. I am already signed up to be a vendor at our table! I made a couple of tie blankets and a couple of cat toys, so it was pretty fun.

Now on to the fun stuff! I found out on Monday that I have been nominated for the position of being Augustana's 2012 Lincoln Academy Student Laureate. The Lincoln Academy is a prestigious organization that recognizes significant contributions to the state of Illinois, either by native Illinoisans or simply by those who have lived in Illinois for an appreciable amount of time. I guess being at Augustana for the greater part of the past three years qualifies me as an Illinois "resident." Anyway, there are lots of other students nominated, too, so it's a competition. I have to submit another letter of recommendation (I feel so bad), plus a current CV and a statement of interest. One of my vet-school letter writers has graciously agreed to write me another letter, so I'm hoping I'll have a pretty solid application. Augustana is full of plenty of amazing people, though, so the competition is going to be fierce. I should find out sometime in October or early November, which is about the time I might start finding out about vet-school interviews, too. So much waiting!

I'm continuing to really enjoy Aerobics, even though my schedule gets really packed when I add it in. It's just really something that I don't think I can ever compromise on because physical fitness is really, really important to me. I get such great satisfaction out of every workout session, and I know that it helps me stay focused and charged and relieves a lot of the stress that builds up on me everyday.

On Wednesday, Hannah invited me to have dinner on her at the College Center, and I was so grateful for the fresh vegetables after not having them for awhile. We had a great conversation, and I felt so much better about things after getting some encouragement from her. I tell ya, that girl helps me think straight sometimes.

On Friday, in order to relax, I decided to go to Olin to watch The Avengers for free. I went by myself, but I was delighted to meet up with my friend Tyler and some of his buddies when I was there. He gave me a hug like he always does and said he wanted to sit by me. We proceeded to have a very nice conversation until the movie started. It is always better to have friends to watch movies with you! I really liked the movie, by the way. I thought it was a little light on plot, but it's one of those summer blockbusters, so I can't complain too much. It's really funny and has Jeremy Renner in it, so it's gotta be good.

On Saturday, I absolutely had to go grocery shopping because I ran out of fruits and vegetables. I had gone almost a week without fresh ones, and my stock of raisins was out. Two of my roommates were gone for the weekend, taking their cars with them. And Sarah and Hannah were also gone, and they would have been my ride, too. So, needless to say, I walked to Aldi instead of Hy-Vee because Aldi is closer. But I am so glad that I did! I bought all of my essentials for just under $30! Go, me! Aldi has cartons of blueberries right now for just $1.49, and I paid the same amount for a gallon of milk at Aldi as I would for just a half-gallon at Hy-Vee. Four roma tomatoes are just $0.99, too! I don't know how I'll ever be able to go back to Hy-Vee now...Later in the evening, for some entertainment, I went to see another comedian. Now, Augustana usually does a really good job with who they invite, so I'm usually pretty stoked. But this guy was not funny at all. His main shtick was to talk about all the drugs he did, how he's a recovering alcoholic, and how bad his love life is. Sex and drugs. That was his deal. He didn't even have any good routines. He just talked to the audience and tried to come up with funny things to say that weren't really that funny. I was very disappointed, but I guess that's what you get for Labor Day weekend entertainment. One cool thing about Saturday was that I was sitting at my desk doing some homework when a hummingbird flew past. I think it was a female ruby-throated hummingbird because she was a very muted olive green with a pale beige stomach (kind of funny that she's a ruby-throat with no red on her). I was happy enough just with that momentary glance, but an hour or so later, she was back and hovering right in front of my window! She "stayed" there for a good five or six seconds. So, I think I have a new friend! Mom and Dad encouraged me to buy a hummingbird feeder, and that's what I was going to do today, but the hardware store was closed. I will have to go back next weekend, maybe.

This is basically what my little hummer friend looks like. Photo courtesy of rubythroat.org

I didn't do much yesterday except clean the bathroom and my room plus work on some homework and go for a run at Pepsico, so it was your average Sunday.

Today I had to trek to Walgreens to buy a carbon monoxide detector for the house, and then I realized we needed more toilet paper, too. I found a cool purple water bottle while I was there, and it was only about $4, which is great because my blue one was getting really old. The blue paint was chipping off in patches, and it looked really ghetto. Of course, when I got back, I got text from my landlord saying we already have two CO detectors in the house. Now, where they are, I don't know, because I've looked everywhere for them, and I don't see them. But I guess I trust her. So I'll have to go get my money back whenever I make it back to the hardware store (since Walgreens and True Value are so close together here).

Anyway, that's enough about this week. I'm sure you're tired of me yammering on about every tiny detail of my existence here. I guess I just have a lot to say.

I don't need to tell you how busy this week looks. I'm sure you already assumed it was. It'll be nice to have the shorter week, though, even though I'm just coming off a three-day weekend. The first BBB meeting of the year is Tuesday, so that will be my busiest day because I'll have to go straight from Aerobics to the meeting and then basically straight to Circle K after that. I might faint after that, but we'll see. Not much else is going on during the week, but Saturday is something called the East End Fair, where Circle K will help run games, a petting zoo, and face-painting for kids. You can guess where I want to work. I'm not the biggest fan of kids. Then there's a Second City performance in Centennial at 8 PM. Second City is like the Chicago version of SNL, and indeed, many Second City alumni went on to SNL, including Tina Fey. Anyway, it's sketch comedy, and it's always really funny. Sunday is my first Mortar Board meeting of the year, so that should be interesting, too. Also, in about a month, musician Andy Grammer is coming to Augustana for a concert. I am so stoked because he is such a great artist! His music is fantastic! Give him a listen if you haven't already. He sings those songs "Keep Your Head Up" and "Fine by Me" that have been playing on the radio, at least in the Twin Cities. I'm so lucky!

Keep it real, peeps!