Things Are About to Get Interesting

My first two weeks of school were packed with meetings, but my classes weren't very demanding. Now it is turning around. I don't have many things on my schedule, but I am starting to have to do a lot more work for class. I now have a lab report due every week, and I have assignments for my online class every week. I even have to write a five page paper by next week.

On top of all that, I have started my graduate school applications. Luckily, my top three people I chose to write my recommendations all agreed to being recommenders. Now I need to write a personal statement and get my transcripts sent.

I have also been working on my Honor's project a little. I have drafted a letter asking for the use of my top pick venue and am just waiting for feedback from my project adviser before I send it out.

Team conditioning has started for track. I am a little out of shape due to my injury, and I am still limited in the things I can do, but it feels good to be able to push myself.

I'm hoping I have a little more motivation to get some work done tomorrow than I do right now. Honestly, I'm a little exhausted. Looks like it is going to be an early night for me!

Thank you for reading and thanks so much to all of you supporting me. I could not reach my goals without you behind me.



“My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken.” Psalm 62:1-2

One Week Down

I survived the first week of school. It was kind of annoying to have to go to so many meetings, but classes weren't too bad. I have determined that I will be able to combine the projects for two of my classes, so that is a huge weight lifted off my shoulders. Luckily I haven't had too much homework to worry about, so my weekend was pretty relaxing. I'm still trying to figure out what my research project is going to be though. I also need to start getting my Honors project moving. My online class is supposed to start tomorrow. I almost forgot I was taking an online class, but I don't think it should be too difficult. My workouts have been going pretty well. I'm still concerned with my back but I am taking it one day at a time. I am going home next weekend for the holiday, and may be going to the water park and zoo. It should be a good time. I don't think I have much else to add. Last week went by pretty fast, so I'm thinking this year will probably fly by. I'm ready to graduate, but am doing everything I can to enjoy my last year here. As always, thanks for reading. Hopefully I'll be able to keep up with my posts this year! God bless.

Back to School...Again

Well class starts tomorrow. Luckily I only have one class, but I'm still not feeling ready to begin another semester. My room in my apartment is pretty much finished. I had to find some pretty creative ways to fit all of my belongings in and organize it the way I want. Now that I'm settled and have enjoyed my weekend with some of my friends, it is time to get back to business. I have an insanely busy week ahead of me with class, work, and meetings. It is definitely going to be crazy. The GRE last week went well. I now have to ask for some recommendations and start applying to PhD programs. I also need to get started on my Honors Project soon. I don't see many outside projects getting started this week, but hopefully once I can get into some kind of groove with my schedule I'll be able to work on them. I don't really have much else to add, so as always, thanks for reading!

Summer Wrap-Up

Things have gotten a little busy as school is quickly approaching. I move in to my new apartment this Friday. I am slightly excited, but I don't think it has hit me yet. I am definitely not looking forward to having to go back to class, but I would like to get this year over with.

Work has been a great experience. I have absolutely loved working as a zip line tour guide, and am so glad I had this opportunity. I am pretty sad I only have one more day of work. I met so many different people and definitely had some challenges along the way. I got the opportunity to experience everything from little children being terrified and having to encourage them to providing a great tour experience to someone with a mental disability. This job really was a blessing. Plus, I was earning money while having fun!

Besides working and packing, I have been studying for the GRE, which I take Thursday. I will be taking a practice test today to see how close I am to my desired score. I'm trying not to worry too much about it. I may feel anxious about getting into graduate school sometimes, but then I just have to remember that God will lead me down the path that He has chosen for me and all I really need to concern myself with is honoring Him.

My brother did move in with us last week, and it has been a little different. We now have five vehicles outside the house and we have another person to share the bathroom with. It has been nice to be able to see him though.

I've got quite a few busy days ahead. I better go take that practice test. Thanks for reading!

I Survived

Training for work last week was rough. Getting up at 6:30 AM every day and working hard for 9 hours six days in a row was definitely a challenge. I finally got a day off yesterday and had CPR and First Aid training today. We learned so much, and I had no idea how much went into being a zip line tour guide. It makes sense though. We have to be ready for any and all situations that could come up during our tours. I get along with all of my co-workers and am pretty excited for tours to start this week. I get to take my sister and mom on tours so I'm looking forward to that as well.

Other than work, I have been trying to read and study some vocabulary for the GRE. Not much got done last week due to such an intense training schedule but at least I got some good workouts on the job. Also, I ran into some car trouble last week and had to have my sister and mom chauffeur me to work, but it should be fixed by tomorrow. Then the plan is to sell it and buy a new one (new to me, anyway) so I don't have to keep pouring money into it.

It has been a little strange with my dad being away. He just left three days ago for two weeks and I already miss him. However, I did get a chance to experiment in the kitchen since he is gone, and the dinner I made turned out really well. Mom wants me to give him the recipe. I'm sure he'll love that.

There is about a month left until school and I'd have to say I'm ready to go back. As much fun as my job is, I think I would rather be furthering my education and making something of my life. I'm really looking forward to moving to a new place and starting a new chapter in my life next year. I just have to get through this year first.

I almost forgot. My brother will be moving in with us in about three weeks. I am pretty pumped. It's too bad I will only be here for two weeks after he moves in, but he will be so much closer to visit now. August sure is going to be a busy month!

That is all I have for now. As always, thanks for reading!

Summer Update

Throughout the past month I have basically been finding all kinds of things to take up my time. I finished up physical therapy recently and was able to start working out again. I have been doing a lot of organizing and some crafty things. I have also been reading quite a bit and studying for the GRE. I will be taking the test August 16. I just registered for it today. Hopefully I will get a competitive score. All I have to do is work on memorizing all these vocabulary words. I feel pretty comfortable with the math section.

Other than finding projects to fill the time, I have traveled quite a bit to see family. I have gone to Indianapolis twice, Chicago, and LaPorte. It was very nice to be able to spend time with loved ones, but I am glad I do not have any more travel plans for the rest of the summer.

I ended up getting the zip line tour guide job and start training on Monday. I will not be able to work as long as I had hoped due to such a late start date but some money is better than no money. I just haven't had the best luck with summer jobs.

I have been hearing a lot of people from school say they are ready to go back, and in a sense I guess I am too. I don't miss it, but there are a lot of things that I plan on accomplishing this year and quite frankly I would like to get it over with. I am ready to graduate and move on to graduate school. It is kind of weird not having any idea where I will be a year from now, but I just have to be patient through this entire process.

That's all I can really update on. Summer just isn't nearly as busy as the school year. Thanks for reading!

Decisions, Decisions

Hello all. I've been settling in at home for the summer. I am alone at home all day throughout most of the week, so I have a lot of time to think. Not always a good thing. My newest thoughts are that I should apply to graduate school this fall. If you have been following my posts, you know I have gone back and forth with whether to try to get into an MD/PhD program, go into medical school, or apply to graduate school. As much as I thought MD/PhD was the way to go, I'm beginning to think that maybe it isn't the best thing for me. I have not had much research experience, so it would not be easy for me to get in. I was planning on taking a year or two to do research with the NIH, but there is really no way I can count on actually getting into a lab. Plus there is no way I want to live in Baltimore, so I would be moving twice within a couple years. It is starting to seem like graduate school may be a more stable option. I will still be able to do all the research I want to, and I kind of realized that patient interaction is something I really enjoy, but it isn't necessarily a huge part of my career goals. I am interested in learning about Alzheimer's disease in and out so I can help find a prevention. I don't think that seeing patients could really complement my research. I believe I can still get the motivation and enjoyment from working with patients through volunteer work, and devote more of my time to the research required to tackle the disease. Plus, once we do eliminate it, I don't think I will have any trouble finding a new disease to work toward eradicating with my fascination with the human brain and body. I do wish I would have figured all this out before I took the MCAT, and even before I picked my school for undergraduate study, but I've learned a lot from this whole process, and nothing is set quite yet. I will get my MCAT scores this week, and who knows if I will actually need them, but taking the exam was definitely an experience. I need to start looking into taking the GRE so I can apply to graduate school before the end of the year. Hopefully I'll have things mostly figured out before graduation. Only one more year. Kind of weird.

Other than all the thinking I've been doing, I have been doing a lot of reading (of all types-Mom bought me a Nook). I have also applied as a zip line tour guide for the summer and have an interview at the end of the upcoming week. I'm also planning on starting to volunteer at definitely one and possibly another senior center. I will be continuing with the one I have been volunteering with, and the one I am looking into specializes in memory care. I can't wait to get back to volunteering.

I have also been going to physical therapy for my back injury (finally) and am learning so much about my body (my physical therapist likes to point out my weaknesses). Not only am I recovering from my injury, but I am also becoming a stronger athlete. My physical therapist is really helping me strengthen every part of my body that I am confident will help me become a much better thrower. I am really excited about the progress I've made and can't wait to see how I improve!

I think that is all I have for now. I'm sure I'll be posting more updates throughout the summer. Have a great week! Thanks for reading.

The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord.
Proverbs 16:33