Tuesday, April 26
probably not the smartest way to make an extra buck...
okay so with the upcoming trip to france i am looking for extra ways to make some cash so that i can enjoy myself while in europe, but b/c exam week is upon me, and pharmacy school is still contingent on my spring grades i dont want to over work and under study for a little money, but i did decide that i would work these two dead days, one regular morning shift (t/m) wednesday and one 12 hour (today) tuesday...well, i have worked many 12 hour shifts and they really havent been bad, this one was very different, i usually go in about 630 am and stay until 7pm, not bad at all, i can get through it easily, but this time instead of saying 3.5 hours over, i decided to pick up some overtime by going in 3.5 hours early, yes that is 3 AM this morning and working for 12 hours, it was rough...i would rather work night shift (11pm-7am) than ever do this again, my body is so confused, i dont know where yesterday ended and today began, and now i am about to go to bed so that i can do it again (at 630 am, not 3)...goodnight
Friday, April 22
SlimFast, a pink passport holder, pretty music, and a final gasp for air...
well, first let me say i am sorry for my absence of blogs this past week, its been busy to say the least, so let me take this time to update you...
LAST WEEK:
Organic test, ill have to admit it was not my finest moment, i did study, alot, but it did little good, the test was just so much material, but ill still have a B in the class, which is okay considering...
LAST WEEKEND:
Spring choir concert, my last concert at UAB at the Alys, and i think i did pretty good (emotionally speaking) no complete waterfall of tears, just a few here and there (this helped by avoiding Dr. Copeland)...i sure dont know how im going to keep from bawling our last night in France, its going to be hard to say good bye to this part of my life...anyway, enough dwelling...so my mommy and my nana came to visit and see my concert, it was great, we spent time with charles's parent's and sister, it was great, i love when our families interact and have fun...anyway back to the concert...it was amazing (well if you dont count our slight speed problem), we sounded great, and there was this mind blowing overtone at the end of Alleluia, i have it on tape and it is just glorious...
LAST WEEK:
Organic test, ill have to admit it was not my finest moment, i did study, alot, but it did little good, the test was just so much material, but ill still have a B in the class, which is okay considering...
LAST WEEKEND:
Spring choir concert, my last concert at UAB at the Alys, and i think i did pretty good (emotionally speaking) no complete waterfall of tears, just a few here and there (this helped by avoiding Dr. Copeland)...i sure dont know how im going to keep from bawling our last night in France, its going to be hard to say good bye to this part of my life...anyway, enough dwelling...so my mommy and my nana came to visit and see my concert, it was great, we spent time with charles's parent's and sister, it was great, i love when our families interact and have fun...anyway back to the concert...it was amazing (well if you dont count our slight speed problem), we sounded great, and there was this mind blowing overtone at the end of Alleluia, i have it on tape and it is just glorious...
THIS WEEK:
busy, busy, busy...i played for charles's mock jury, it was rough, i was supposed to play for josh's too, but i just couldnt do it, i backed out, and maggie did it, but this was probably a good thing, i just hate going back on my word, it makes me feel like i cant be trusted, and i can, when i say ill do something, i DO it (with the exception of this incident)... i sang with caroline in convocation, we did our duet, and it went okay, we had done better, but it want too bad for my last time singing in Hulsey, another ending moment, anyway...then i had an organic lab final, which wasnt too bad, i studied the right things and i think i did alright, but i wont find our until grades are released, and today, physics test, i did alright, well to tell you the truth, i felt really good about it until i started talking about answers with the 'smart' people in my class, turns out i had a problem right, but it didnt make sense to me, so i changed it, and you guessed it, i had it right the first time, this sould tell me something
Hmmm, WHAT ELSE...
Maggie and i started the Slim fast diet, so that we could drop a few extra pound before we leave to France, i mainly just want to fit into a certain pair of pants, and we know that it is just a quick fix, it hasnt been too bad so far, i get to eat dinner in about 30 minutes and am toatlly excited (thats sad i know)...charles got me this really cute pink passport holder, and i am soo excited about it (this again is sad, i know)...
ONLY ONE DAY OF CLASSES LEFT:
today was my last day in many of my classes, monday ill only go to physics and orgainc, and ill be done...but today in contemporary music techniques (which is not that easy of a class) we looked at some alentoric music, similar to what it sounds like (alien) it is music based on chance and choice, here is an example of some...
i personally think it would make prettier art work than music, but im a traditional kind-a-girl...after today, all i have is to turn in my final project in theory, and then finals, YEAH!!!!
THIS WEEKEND:
like i said earlier, final project in music theory, but first tonight, the opera, going to see Elixir of Love...Saturday, a mornign of rest followed by a reprise of figaro scenes in at Wallace St CC, Sunday a choir concert, 430 i believe at South Highland Pres. Church...
NEXT WEEK:
working some, practicing/rehearsing some (for france), and a whole lot of studing...ill keep you posted...
THIS WEEKEND:
like i said earlier, final project in music theory, but first tonight, the opera, going to see Elixir of Love...Saturday, a mornign of rest followed by a reprise of figaro scenes in at Wallace St CC, Sunday a choir concert, 430 i believe at South Highland Pres. Church...
NEXT WEEK:
working some, practicing/rehearsing some (for france), and a whole lot of studing...ill keep you posted...
14 DAYs....FRANCE
(i dont really know if this is france, but its not here, and thats the point)
but for now, im going to cook dinner, this post is long enough....thank you if you read the entire thing...peace
Thursday, April 14
stupid, stupid, bank....
so i evidently overdrafted my bank, but here is the catch....i dont know how...my register matches the online banking perfectly, everything is correct, all my withdrawls, deposits, everything...so how in the crap did i overdraft??? okay that is the first crappy thing, second...i thought that i had signed up for overdraft protection, but evidently i did not sign up for that (even though that is what is was told i signed up for, i "signed up" for overdraft limit, which just means that the bank will cover a $500 overdraft but i have to pay it back and i get charged for it), here is the catch...b/c i evidently overdrafted 3 times (about $5 each time) i got charged 3 times for my overdraft...total about $90 for 3 little transactions, that should have gone through according to my correct register...and the bank, what will they do, of course....nothing....gotta love america
Tuesday, April 12
Monday, April 11
and with challenge comes...failure
so i just took my organic test, and it is very disheartening, i mean i studied for about 16-18 hour this weekend and still managed to royally bomb the fire out of my test...you may think, now delia your overreacting...but no! i know for a fact that i missed a 15 point question, and in addition to that i had no idea on about 4 mulitiple choice questions, completely blind guessing (which i am not good at)...but i guess there is nothing that i can do about it, well except start studying for my physics test (thats next friday)...maybe moving home for a year won't be too horrible...
Saturday, April 9
the biggest challenge yet
so i heard from ole miss...not a yes or no, but a "well, we havent decided yet"...evidently there are so many appllicants (myself included) with similar admission scores that they could not decide...their solution: to stress me out for another month, aka, wait until spring grades are posted and then decided on the basis of them...so i hope you enjoy this blog b/c i probably wont be making very many until after exams, see it will take an act of God for me to get all A's this semester, but it is what i need...i have to make high A's on everything else in all of my classes (highs A's i mean 99-100)...so i will be studying...and right now the stupid kid that lives above me is running around his house making more noise than my cats (this is his weekly saturday and sunday ritual), so i am going to go across the street to study organic...test is monday, lets see if i can do it!!!!
Tuesday, April 5
patience
ya know, i'd like to think that i have a moderate amount of patience, enough to get me through the usual events, but i do believe that this pharmacy thing is taking just a little too long...i submitted my application last semester (before christmas) and was told that decisions would be made by april first, and clearly they weren't...i mean i just want to know, is that too much to ask? the waiting is just getting to be too much...but alas i know that there is nothing that i can do about this so i will just pray for more patience and continue waiting...as soon as i hear anything, i will post...(keep your fingers crossed)
the last minute rush
so i know that everyone, like myself, is just ready for this semster to be over...and most people are probably like myself rushing around trying to get caught up before exams...so i am spending a lot of extra time this week, next week, well basically until the end of my exams, studying...id like to think that i am a good student when it come to studying but i know that i fall into the traps and habits that we all do so here is a list i found rather helpful, it allows me to catch the traps before i fall, b/c falling is really embarassing ...
Ten Traps of Studying
1."I Don't Know Where To Begin"
Take Control. Make a list of all the things you have to do. Break your workload down into manageable chunks. Prioritize! Schedule your time realistically. Don't skip classes near an exam -- you may miss a review session. Use that hour in between classes to review notes. Interrupt study time with planned study breaks. Begin studying early, with an hour or two per day, and slowly build as the exam approaches.
2. "I've Got So Much To Study . . . And So Little Time"
Preview. Survey your syllabus, reading material, and notes. Identify the most important topics emphasized, and areas still not understood. Previewing saves time, especially with non-fiction reading, by helping you organize and focus in on the main topics. Adapt this method to your own style and study material, but remember, previewing is not an effective substitute for reading.
3. "This Stuff Is So Dry, I Can't Even Stay Awake Reading It"
Attack! Get actively involved with the text as you read. Ask yourself, "What is important to remember about this section?" Take notes or underline key concepts. Discuss the material with others in your class. Study together. Stay on the offensive, e specially with material that you don't find interesting, rather than reading passively and missing important points.
4. "I Read It. I Understand It. But I Just Can't Get It To Sink In"
Elaborate. We remember best the things that are most meaningful to us. As you are reading, try to elaborate upon new information with your own examples. Try to integrate what you're studying with what you already know. You will be able to remember new material better if you can link it to something that's already meaningful to you.
Some techniques include:
Chunking: An effective way to simplify and make information more meaningful. For example, suppose you wanted to remember the colors in the visible spectrum (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, Violet); you would have to memorize seven "chunks" of information in order. But if you take the first letter of each color, you can spell the name "Roy G. Biv", and reduce the information the three "chunks".
Mnemonics: Any memory-assisting technique that helps us to associate new information with something familiar. For example, to remember a formula or equation, we may use letters of the alphabet to represent certain numbers. Then we can change an abstract formula into a more meaningful word or phrase, so we'll be able to remember it better. Sound-alike associations can be very effective, too, especially while trying to learn a new language. The key is to create your own links, then you won't forget them.
5. "I Guess I Understand It"
Test yourself. Make up questions about key sections in notes or reading. Keep in mind what the professor has stressed in the course. Examine the relationships between concepts and sections. Often, simply by changing section headings you can generate many effective questions. For example, a section entitled "Bystander Apathy" might be changed into questions such as: "What is bystander apathy?", "What are the causes of bystander apathy?", and "What are some examples of bystander apathy?"
6. "There's Too Much To Remember"
Organize. Information is recalled better if it is represented in an organized framework that will make retrieval more systematic. There are many techniques that can help you organize new information, including:
Write chapter outlines or summaries; emphasize relationships between sections.
Group information into categories or hierarchies, where possible.
Information Mapping. Draw up a matrix to organize and interrelate material. For example, if you were trying to understand the causes of World War I, you could make a chart listing all the major countries involved across the top, and then list the important issues and events down the side. Next, in the boxes in between, you could describe the impact each issue had on each country to help you understand these complex historical developments.
7. "I Knew It A Minute Ago"
Review. After reading a section, try to recall the information contained in it. Try answering the questions you made up for that section. If you cannot recall enough, re-read portions you had trouble remembering. The more time you spend studying, the more you tend to recall. Even after the point where information can be perfectly recalled, further study makes the material less likely to be forgotten entirely. In other words, you can't overstudy. However, how you organize and integrate new information is still more important than how much time you spend studying.
8. "But I Like To Study In Bed"
Context. Recall is better when study context (physical location, as well as mental, emotional, and physical state) are similar to the test context. The greater the similarity between the study setting and the test setting, the greater the likelihood that material studied will be recalled during the test.
9. "Cramming Before A Test Helps Keep It Fresh In My Mind"
Spacing: Start studying now. Keep studying as you go along. Begin with an hour or two a day about one week before the exam, and then increase study time as the exam approaches. Recall increases as study time gets spread out over time.
10. "I'm Gonna Stay Up All Night 'til I Get This"
Avoid Mental Exhaustion. Take short breaks often when studying. Before a test, have a rested mind. When you take a study break, and just before you go to sleep at night, don't think about academics. Relax and unwind, mentally and physically. Otherwise, your break won't refresh you and you'll find yourself lying awake at night. It's more important than ever to take care of yourself before an exam! Eat well, sleep, and get enough exercise.
if these sound like you at all, check out the rest of this website it has other helpful hints and strategies:
Good Study Habits
Preparing for Exams
Ten Traps of Studying
Ten Traps of Studying
1."I Don't Know Where To Begin"
Take Control. Make a list of all the things you have to do. Break your workload down into manageable chunks. Prioritize! Schedule your time realistically. Don't skip classes near an exam -- you may miss a review session. Use that hour in between classes to review notes. Interrupt study time with planned study breaks. Begin studying early, with an hour or two per day, and slowly build as the exam approaches.
2. "I've Got So Much To Study . . . And So Little Time"
Preview. Survey your syllabus, reading material, and notes. Identify the most important topics emphasized, and areas still not understood. Previewing saves time, especially with non-fiction reading, by helping you organize and focus in on the main topics. Adapt this method to your own style and study material, but remember, previewing is not an effective substitute for reading.
3. "This Stuff Is So Dry, I Can't Even Stay Awake Reading It"
Attack! Get actively involved with the text as you read. Ask yourself, "What is important to remember about this section?" Take notes or underline key concepts. Discuss the material with others in your class. Study together. Stay on the offensive, e specially with material that you don't find interesting, rather than reading passively and missing important points.
4. "I Read It. I Understand It. But I Just Can't Get It To Sink In"
Elaborate. We remember best the things that are most meaningful to us. As you are reading, try to elaborate upon new information with your own examples. Try to integrate what you're studying with what you already know. You will be able to remember new material better if you can link it to something that's already meaningful to you.
Some techniques include:
Chunking: An effective way to simplify and make information more meaningful. For example, suppose you wanted to remember the colors in the visible spectrum (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, Violet); you would have to memorize seven "chunks" of information in order. But if you take the first letter of each color, you can spell the name "Roy G. Biv", and reduce the information the three "chunks".
Mnemonics: Any memory-assisting technique that helps us to associate new information with something familiar. For example, to remember a formula or equation, we may use letters of the alphabet to represent certain numbers. Then we can change an abstract formula into a more meaningful word or phrase, so we'll be able to remember it better. Sound-alike associations can be very effective, too, especially while trying to learn a new language. The key is to create your own links, then you won't forget them.
5. "I Guess I Understand It"
Test yourself. Make up questions about key sections in notes or reading. Keep in mind what the professor has stressed in the course. Examine the relationships between concepts and sections. Often, simply by changing section headings you can generate many effective questions. For example, a section entitled "Bystander Apathy" might be changed into questions such as: "What is bystander apathy?", "What are the causes of bystander apathy?", and "What are some examples of bystander apathy?"
6. "There's Too Much To Remember"
Organize. Information is recalled better if it is represented in an organized framework that will make retrieval more systematic. There are many techniques that can help you organize new information, including:
Write chapter outlines or summaries; emphasize relationships between sections.
Group information into categories or hierarchies, where possible.
Information Mapping. Draw up a matrix to organize and interrelate material. For example, if you were trying to understand the causes of World War I, you could make a chart listing all the major countries involved across the top, and then list the important issues and events down the side. Next, in the boxes in between, you could describe the impact each issue had on each country to help you understand these complex historical developments.
7. "I Knew It A Minute Ago"
Review. After reading a section, try to recall the information contained in it. Try answering the questions you made up for that section. If you cannot recall enough, re-read portions you had trouble remembering. The more time you spend studying, the more you tend to recall. Even after the point where information can be perfectly recalled, further study makes the material less likely to be forgotten entirely. In other words, you can't overstudy. However, how you organize and integrate new information is still more important than how much time you spend studying.
8. "But I Like To Study In Bed"
Context. Recall is better when study context (physical location, as well as mental, emotional, and physical state) are similar to the test context. The greater the similarity between the study setting and the test setting, the greater the likelihood that material studied will be recalled during the test.
9. "Cramming Before A Test Helps Keep It Fresh In My Mind"
Spacing: Start studying now. Keep studying as you go along. Begin with an hour or two a day about one week before the exam, and then increase study time as the exam approaches. Recall increases as study time gets spread out over time.
10. "I'm Gonna Stay Up All Night 'til I Get This"
Avoid Mental Exhaustion. Take short breaks often when studying. Before a test, have a rested mind. When you take a study break, and just before you go to sleep at night, don't think about academics. Relax and unwind, mentally and physically. Otherwise, your break won't refresh you and you'll find yourself lying awake at night. It's more important than ever to take care of yourself before an exam! Eat well, sleep, and get enough exercise.
if these sound like you at all, check out the rest of this website it has other helpful hints and strategies:
Good Study Habits
Preparing for Exams
Ten Traps of Studying
Friday, April 1
i have really needed this week of nothing...i've been at home since monday, and getting back to birmingham today was, well, less than desirable...all week long i have sleep when i wanted, ate when i wanted, and spent wonderful time with my family and friends, and now as i sit alone in my apartment (the first time ive been alone in about a week) im rather sad, i dont want to see my glorious week go away, it awaits to be ended with at night of work at the hospital (in about 30 min)...why is it when i am enjoying myself time flies, but next week in class it will drag?...anyway, enough procrastinating, time to get dressed for work and enter back into the daily grind that we all love...spring break has been wonderful
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