Friday, August 20, 2010

Last Day(s) of Summer

Today is the last day of my summer, if you're counting weekdays. Sunday is my last day, if weekends count. Monday, my FIRST day of school, is the kids' last day of summer. Any way you slice it, summer is rapidly coming to a close. I'm nervous. I'm excited. It seems the perfect time for my blog to descend back into the lists that seem to define it during the busy seasons in life.

Things I'm looking forward to this semester:

*Shadowing physicians. I'm extremely excited about this one. Our super fantastic pediatrician has agreed to let me shadow her one Friday a month. I'm hoping to line up a couple of more docs to add into rotation, too, as the year progresses and we adjust to all of this change.

*NOT taking evening classes! It is exhausting to head to classes as the day is winding down. I'm glad that is over for the meantime.

*Having a "normal" family life. Dinner at home, not in a car! Baseball practice! Listening to my kids read at bedtime! Kissing their little heads before they go to sleep! Wonderfully mundane tasks that I will greatly enjoy.

*Biological psychology. This class has a reputation for being extremely difficult, but I am really looking forward to the material. I love biology AND psychology, so learning about the biological roots for our psychological manifestations is right up my alley.

*Volunteering at the kids' school. I love helping in the library and the kids love that I am there...even if they aren't in the library when I am.

*Finally being a university student. It makes me feel sort of like a grown-up...you know, in case the marriage, house, kids, and pets didn't already accomplish that.

Things that I'm not looking forward to this semester:

*Waking up at 5:30am. I'm not exactly a morning person and even though I know I'll settle into a routine, I'm not looking forward to that process.

*Walking through downtown in the 110 degree heat with a 50 pound backpack. Maybe I'm exaggerating about the backpack weight, but NOT about the heat. Damn, it is still soooo hot here.

*Organic chemistry. I'm kind of dreading it. You hear such horror stories...and I pretty much HATED general chemistry, so chem and I are not on the best of terms. I've also heard there is a lot of memorization and fewer calculations, which is more my speed...but until it proves me wrong, it is staying on this list.

*Not taking care of KayTar when she is sick. KayTar is my baby...my sickly baby, at times...she is also my patient, for lack of a better term. Her care, both general and medical have been my express responsibility for some time now. Stepping back from that and letting someone else handle it while I am away makes me anxious. My mom will do exactly what needs to be done and she'll keep me posted while I'm away. But not being the one handling it, even for a few hours of the day, makes my insides feel a little quivery. I'm hoping that KayTar has a surprisingly healthy fall!

7 comments:

Ivy said...

Do not fear organic chemistry! And please, please do not let your gen chem experience bias you against real chemistry. Gen chem is boring and useless, a survey class in a field of study that just does not lend itself to survey. Organic chemistry is FUN, filled with problem solving and reasoning. (Do yourself a favor, though: make flashcards with the reactions on them and USE THEM. The faster you learn them, the easier organic chemistry will be.)

Kyla said...

Ivy: Thanks for the encouragement. I looooove flashcards, so I will definitely take that advice!

Corinn said...

Biological psychology? I didn't know there WAS such a thing... thanks for the tip. XD

Best of luck this semester~!

Gizabeth Shyder said...

I echo Ivy above - loved Organic. Gen chem and physics, not so much.

You must live nearby - sooo hot, I agree! Ready for September.

InTheFastLane said...

The part about not going to school at night sounds like the best part of the fall! Good luck with all of your school years.

painted maypole said...

big changes! as always, I'm sure you will make it work for you!

Sheila @ Dr Cason.org said...

You're going to do great. Don't wallow in the exhaustion- I found that if you just let it slide and do the best you can you'll sleep eventually and be so glad that you continued the journey.