E-mail Harassment

I took my last final exam on Thursday, and waiting for final grades stresses me out more than the semester as a whole. And this time I was even more nervous due to the fact that I literally had to teach myself everything. My professor was a really nice guy, but his ability to teach was just nonexistent and he would constantly stumble over what he was trying to say. He could never give us specifics of what exactly we needed to know for exams. He always told us that if we're covering it, then we need to know it. That would require us to know every detail about every single chapter, and let's face it, there are always things in textbooks that are just irrelevant and a waste of time.
Yesterday, while I was at work, I could feel the 50 pound weight sitting on my shoulders once again knowing that I would have to wait an entire week before finding out my final grade for the semester. So, I did what any impatient person would do.. I e-mailed my teacher.. 3 times in 1 hour. I was already home from work when I finally got an answer at 4:30pm.

"Stacie,

After the final, your overall grade is at 86, which means you're safely at a B. I wouldn't be surprised if the remaining items put you up to a B+ though. No promises."

Being a member of the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, I always aim for an A, but this semester has literally sucked the life out of me. Things going on in my personal life, the week before finals, officially kicked the stress level up about 10 notches. I went from 95 pounds down to 87 pounds. With that said, I will surely settle for a B or a B+ in microbiology.

He doesn't hand out A's.

So, at the begining of this semester, on the first day of class, my oral communications teacher told us that he doesn't just hand out A's unless they are truly earned. That opening statement made me want to drop the class, but I kept telling myself that I can't just run away from difficult classes. A few weeks ago we had to do a formal informative presentation. Mine was about acute myocardial infarctions.. fancy name for heart attacks. I got my grade back last week which came with a bunch of feed back from the teacher. This girl right here got an A- and was told that the research I brought into my presentation was upper under-graduate level. Not bad for someone who's only going for an associates degree right now, huh?

Motivation Mojo

I can't keep up with this blog this semester. These two classes are draining me! I'm struggling to find even a little bit of motivation and get my mojo back. Even the PTK ceremony was some what of a bust. Tony and my dad were able to attend, but my mom had to work and couldn't get the night off. I was disappointed because she was inducted into PTK when she was in college and I really wanted her to be there. During the ceremony, as each person's name was called a yellow PTK stole was placed around our neck, this had me super excited.. until after the ceremony. The students and their familes were invited to a light dinner in the cafeteria.. where they took the stoles back and told us that if we maintain our GPA we can purchase our own stole at graduation. We didn't even get a pin. Nothing. I started to question what the heck I paid $60 for!?
Well, I guess instead of sitting here whining about the loss of my motivation mojo, I should go find it by working on my recombinant DNA technology research paper for micro. While I do that, please enjoy my $60 worth of PTK pictures. Sigh.

PTK

I received a letter in the mail from school the other day. I have been selected to become a member of the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society. Who would've ever thought that I'd achieve something like this!? At first I was going to decline the offer because I wasn't exactly sure what it was all about. After I talked to my mom and realized what an actual honor it is, I have decided to go for it. I'm finally starting to feel like I'm busting my butt for something... rather than nothing. I was begining to feel like there was no light at the end of the tunnel, but now I'm getting somewhere. And what a wonderful feeling it is to be doing something with my life that finally makes my parents proud.

Can't catch a break

I must be a crappy teacher magnet. Another semester of self-teaching. My micro professor is all over the place! I have been leaving the lectures early because I can't follow this guy. More than half of my class is getting tutored. I've thought about it, but I really want to do this on my own. I want to prove to myself that I can do this, that I'm smart enough to handle it. However, I'm extremely nervous that this semester is going to ruin my 3.8 GPA. It's been extremely difficult to focus and not just because of my teacher. The semester started off really crappy outside of school as well. September was not the greatest month for me. Two friends that I grew up with passed away within three days. One was a motorcycle accident and the other was a car accident. On top of all that, our neighbor has moved. This was upsetting to Tony and I because we have formed a bond with him over the last year, even more so over the summer. Tony and I even think of him as an uncle. He's like that really cool uncle who lets you get away with everything. It's been quiet around here without him. Drinking beers hasn't been the same since he left. I just can't seem to catch a break. Sigh.

Hard work really does pay off

Ever since final exams ended exactly one week ago, I had been checking my email like crazy waiting for my final A&PII grade. I was scared and anxious to know all at the same time. Finally, on Wednesday, the email had arrived. I was at work and extremely nervous to open it in fear that I would be in a bad mood the rest of the day if I got a bad grade. We all know how important my grades are to me. I decided to open it anyways. I needed to know so that I could get rid of the 50 pound weight that was still resting heavily on my shoulders. I closed my eyes as I clicked on the email. I felt like my heart was going to beat right out of my chest. I opened my eyes and began to read:

"Hi Stacie

Your grade for the Final Exam was 85.1%, which counts twice.

Your grade for the second Practical was 91.8%.

The grade that was dropped was the 82.5 on the first practical.

Your final grade for the course is an A. Excellent job. I greatly enjoyed you and your class.

Good luck in the future,

Prof. Caulkins"

I was so happy and so relieved that I started to cry. All the studying, last minute cramming, and never ending stress this summer had finally paid off.

Next up.. Microbiology. Bring it on!

Never again

Never again will I take a class, such as A&PII, over the summer! The semester ended yesterday, so I'm not sure of my official grade in the class. However, I do know that I am not thrilled with the grade I got on the final exam, but I will take it.. considering I don't really have a choice in the matter. I just expect more than an 85 from myself. I am officially exhausted from this semester's finals week. Last semester my hair was falling out, this time I couldn't stop losing weight. I lost 4.5 pounds in a matter of 72 hours, without trying. By the time I walked out of the lab practical last night, I felt as though I was going to collapse. I let out a nice big sigh of relief knowing that I didn't have to take another test.. for at least two weeks until fall semester starts. Now to wait for final grades to come rolling in.