Vivid Dreams Part 2

So as I pointed out in a previous post, I have some pretty fantastic dreams. They tend to reflect whatever stress is causing me ulcers at the present time in my life. For example, I've had many dreams in undergrad where physiology professors were trying to kill me. I've had dreams of rejection from Grad schools. I've had dreams about breaking my leg and not being able to ski the rest of the season. I've had dreams about friends, family, guys, pets, school, love, heartbreak, skiing, swimming, drowning, flying, running, walking, throwing snowballs at previously mentioned physiology professors, work, pouring beer for drunk guys, getting yelled at by angry cell-phone-using customers, rejection, acceptance, success, failure ... some good, some bad.

As I've been studying for finals, I've noticed a dramatic increase in the intensity of my dreams. This doesn't come as a surprise. But where the hell do I get these things from??? Not only are they intense, they cause me to seriously consider psychiatric help. For instance, I've been a bit hung up on my Blood Coagulation lecture. It's not so much as difficult, as it is filled with a lot of detail. Lots of memorization, lots of minor discrepancies between one pathway and another. So, naturally, I dream about taking my Biochem final and bleeding to death internally while I do so. My professor tells me that if I can name the deficient enzymes causing me to bleed to death in front of her, she'll consider giving me an A, and calling 911.

What does all this mean? I'm not too sure. But, clearly, I'm going to scrutinize over the decient enzymes causing various forms of Hemophilia, and I'm going to make damn sure not to bump into anything between now and the time of the exam.

I can't wait for finals to be over, mainly because I have the potential to die many more gruesome deaths. I still have hemoglobin, antioxidant, and blood protein lectures to get through. And don't get me started on Immunology. (I've already been infected with several antibiotic-resistant bacteria and have succumbed to many new viral strains) Happy Halloween indeed.


And you're a loser if, when you read this, you thought of at least 3 deficient enzymes causing Hemophilia. But you're a loser that should come study with me.

Because Studying for Immunology Sucks

This one's for you Andrew... not really, but you were on to something with the whole procrastination bit.


I'm diving into week 11 (I think??) of this so-called school thing I've been trying out again. It's been quite a ride thus far, and I've only just started down the first steep hill. There are many more loops and even scarier ups and downs ahead of me. (analogy eh eh) Which brings me back to the daunting question I keep pushing into the back of my mind: Is this really what I want to do for the next 6 years?

Finals are quickly approaching and I'm going out of my mind once again. Sure, I've been doing pretty well so far. I'll even go as far as throw out the fact that I've received a couple A's (I know, right). But those A's were hard-earned, as were the B's. Countless sleepless nights and a gajillion ounces of Wawa hazelnut coffee later, and I'm barely pulling the low A or B. Which means I'm not about to lighten up my study load when it comes to the finals. Leading to the whole "going crazy" point I started with. Going nuts comes with the territory. For those that knew me in undergrad, you realize this about me and chalk it up as normalcy. (Maybe not when it came to the last physio final - that was a bit extreme - I believe I did not sleep for literally 3 days)

Apparently others are noticing my eccentric studying habits and I've been told to ease off a bit. Sorry, not going to happen. Yes, I also see the bags under my eyes, yes I know I've been getting upset over nothing, yes I know I don't sleep. But this comes with the medical field. I knew this going into it, fully prepared of what was going to be demanded of me. I do have outlets. I allow myself to go drinking one night a week or so (with my mom - my favorite drinking buddy - hi mom!), I run every day, I usually do some form of yoga or stretching exercise everyday, I make the occasional trip to Happy Valley, and I make fun of the tools in my biomed class (quite possibly the biggest stress relief of all - but that's another blog entry for another time).

For now, I guess I'll extend the pre-apology for anything that I may say or do as a result of my insanity.

Good news: Justin gets into town in just over 3 weeks. He's here for an entire week over Thanksgiving and I can't wait to spend so much time with him. It'll have been 4 months by then and his timing couldn't be better with finals just finishing up. From there, it's Malaysia with him over Christmas, and before we know it, it'll be March, and we'll be living together. (Aren't you excited love?? ha ha ha)


And for those that are interested, the weekend of Nov 11 (Temple game) is the weekend after my finals. I shall be gracing Happy Valley with my presence. Everyone else should also. Til then, I'll leave you with this photo, as it is one of my favorites.

Katie, Laura, and Zack. Fall 2005. Homecoming Weekend.

Sweet Sweet Wonderful Undergrad

Maybe it's because I haven't been social with anyone or anything for about 8 weeks, but this past weekend was one of the best Penn State weekends, EVER. I know, bold statement, but it truly was.

I finally arrived in Happy Valley after a 5 hour drive (should have been 3.5) on Friday evening. I walked right to the cafe where I proceeded to down a much-needed ice tea pitcher. Ah undergrad. From there, tons of alumni and the "formerly under 21 but now old enough to drink" crowd started to creep in. Closed the cafe, got canyon, went to bed at 4am.

Saturday, I happened to, literally, stumble upon a student ticket laying on the ground. (Thanks Larry!) Went to the game, got a white towel, it rained/iced, pregamed with shots of tequila (ah undergrad), went to the cafe, closed the cafe, got canyon, went to bed at 4am. I'm detecting a pattern. I'm sure there's lots of detail in all these events that I just don't remember.

It was a great time and I can't wait until I feel like not studying again and calling on a spontaneous trip to Beaver Stadium. (I should note that I am now royally screwed for my exam next Monday and really have no money now) Below are a few pictures from the weekend, but more can be found in my nifty little yahoo photo site under the Penn State album.

I think this is my favorite Company 20 picture of all time. I know, once again, bold statement.