awkward tendencies of the ill hermit

Hello hello hello!

First of all, since it's the only thing I've been talking about in the last few posts; my health! heh. I feel much much MUCH better than before, now I am mobile, don't have a pounding headache, and do not have a debilitatingly strong cough! Hurrah! I do have a cough and a a sore throat and a bit of a headache, but I'm sure that will go away soon enough, as it's the last remnants of my illness. Thank goodness, too. Heh.

Anywho, moving on; first of all, I wanted to show you... my tea drawer!



... I've basically been living out of this drawer for the past week. If this seems like a lot of tea, you should've seen it a week ago, when there were maybe 20-30 more bags in there. :D

In any event, yesterday was my apartmentmate Shannon's birthday, and tonight she's having her birthday party... So there are around 15 girls I don't know sitting in the living room talking. It is awkward. I sit here and blog like a hermit to avoid the awkwardness of needing to converse. Heh heh heh. I'm very cool. o_o'

Let me clarify something; while eventually I'd like to obtain a Doctorate in Dental Surgery (DDS) degree, during my undergraduate years I am working towards, and plan on graduating with, a Bachelor of Science in DENTAL HYGIENE.
For basic information about the job and career path of dental hygienists, you can refer to the following site;
[ http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos097.htm ].
Also, if you're curious, information about the job's employment and wages in May 2009 are available at the following address;
[ http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes292021.htm#top ]
Definitely look at those if you want to know more about what I plan on doing for a few years after I obtain my undergraduate degree! You can also find a lotttt more information about the job online, if you just google search "Dental Hygienist job".

Yep! So that's what I want to do, just letting you know.

Oh right! Yesterday, I had dinner with a friend I haven't seen since last semester! He is officially my... FIRST. Actual Korean friend at USC. Cameron's roommate is Korean too, but we aren't friends per se. He's too Korean for me to be friends with, whereas this other guy, his name is Josh, speaks even less Korean than I do, and sounds like a total white person when he speaks English. Like yours truly! ^_^

Anywho, last night Josh taught me how to play Go Stop, the card game!



It's a very interesting card game, with way more rules than is necessary, and definitely takes a lot of thinking! If you don't pay attention, you WILL lose. I had a lot of fun, haha, though I don't know if I could take the stress of playing that all the time. I also think it would be super difficult to shuffle those, Josh and I just shuffled them by spreading them out on the floor and then collecting them in a pile again. Haha... Yes.

Alright, I think that's all for now, until next time!
michelle. xx



-----UPDATE, A FEW HOURS LATER-----

Alright it is now 23:00, and Shannon's birthday party is over. I ended up talking to the girls there, a bit; what happened was, I went out to make tea and this one Chinese girl called Crystal started talking to me, and then I spoke to a couple of her friends too, and then I was drafted to take part in an enormous, 16-person card game. So I ended up talking to all of them for a couple of hours, and it wasn't too bad! Haha. So much for awkwardly hiding out in my room.

Well, I'm going to study a bit and then go to sleep now, so bye bye! Just thought I'd let you know that the night ended much less awkwardly than how it started. ^_^

feeling better? perhaps.

As I drink my piping hot tea out of my Las Vegas mug that is the size of my face, I write this blogpost to you, reader.

Today I woke up after my thirteen hours of broken sleep feeling... Slightly better than yesterday! At least, when I woke up I wasn't exhausted to start with, haha, though I'm pretty tired now.

The coughing has gone down a lot today, I don't know how or why, but I only had one coughing fit throughout the day so far, which is much improved from yesterday, when I was coughing basically nonstop. I just had my lunch, which consisted of a biiiig pot of soup, a couple slices of toast, and this tea right here that I am currently consuming. All followed by a multivitamin.

I must say, I feel like if I have a nap right now and wake up in a couple of hours, I'll feel great!

... Well, relatively great. That is, my headache will probably subside a bit and I won't be tired, so the only thing wrong with me will be a bit of a cough!

I don't feel like going to the Health Center anymore, I feel like today is most definitely looking better than yesterday. YAY! ^_^

Anywho, in two and a half hours I have a training/orientation session for a volunteer service program I'm part of this semester run by the Joint Educational Project at USC... Essentially, this is very similar to PHE, where we go to local schools to teach, but with JEP I'm going to be teaching younger kids at the elementary school level. Yay!

Alrighty, off I go to nap, I hope all's well with you!

^_^

michelle.xx

sleepwalking through my day...

Hello! I just thought I'd update you on my health.
Overall I'm perfectly functional, which is great, but I'm also super tired; I woke up this morning completely exhausted after seven hours of sleep, strange. And it's only gotten worse over the day, now I think I'm sore all over and about ready for a nap, actually. I'll do that right after writing this.

Otherwise, I have this ridiculous chest cough that won't go away, it's been four days now and this morning in the shower, I coughed and there was blood in my mucus. Obviously I've been coughing way too much and the walls of my throat are rubbed raw. Yech. I also have a constant headache that's becoming something of a bother, as it makes it very difficult to concentrate when I'm in class or reading text... And my eyes are so ridiculously dry! Though that may be because I'm tired as well. Also, my nose gets super stuffed at times, but not all the time. When I'm walking around outside it's fine, but when I sit for a while, such as in lecture or at my apartment or somewhere to eat food, it gets 100% blocked.

I can't think of any other symptoms that are bothering me at the moment... I'm just going to wait this one out and hopefully I'll be better in no time, so that I can be 100% back in the game! Thankfully, I am somehow managing to stay on top of my schoolwork, despite the difficulties I am experiencing. Haha.

One thing I feel bad about is the fact that I've had to cancel a lot of plans with friends over the weekend and such, as I was worried I would get them sick. Personally, I really dislike people who make plans and then cancel them at the last moment, so I will meet up with those friends again once I'm feeling better and make sure they're not too upset with me. ^_^

With regards to school, nothing too challenging is going on yet, Biology and Chemistry are definitely manageable as long as I keep up with the reading and practice problems (which I am doing), and Psychology and Sociology don't seem too difficult at all, as of so far! I'm excited to get great grades this semester. :D

Today I had Chemistry and Biology in the morning, and Sociology in the afternoon. The two morning classes I have with Cameron, and thank goodness, because he motivated my exhausted self to keep walking at a good pace; on the way to class, I felt so tired, and wanted to crawl. Slowly. Which obviously would have made me extremely tardy, therefore, it was good that he was there to keep me pushing to walk at a good rate. Haha! Unfortunately, I fell asleep halfway through Chemistry lecture, but that's alright, as the stuff we learnt today was material I'd covered in seventh, eighth, tenth, eleventh, and twelfth grade, AS WELL AS last year. I know it backwards and forwards and upside down, so I'm not behind at all for that. And in Biology, I forced myself to stay awake and take many notes.

After those two classes were over, I made myself chicken noodle soup for lunch and ate it with eggs, bread, yogurt, and tea, and then went to my Sociology class. I must say, as a subject of study, sociology is almost shockingly monotonous. Very basic concepts that have been decorated in many different ways to make up various "theories" and "concepts". Sigh. It was almost implausibly difficult to stay awake during the lecture today and at one point I was noticeably waving back and forth in my seat like a flag in the wind. However, I managed to stay conscious for the whole lecture, and actually get pretty good notes on everything the professor said.

Walking back from sociology lecture to my apartment was actually pretty funny, I was walking with my eyes closed half the time, at a pace that I bet any respectable turtle could have beat. Basically, I was sleepwalking, but it felt so good to have my eyes shut! So who cares what other people think of me! Leave me alone, I am sick. I was getting weird looks anyway, as I was wearing a scarf in the eighty degree weather, but hey, when have I ever cared what other people thought of me? ^_^

... Well, I do believe I have reached the limit of my currently impractically finite energy reserves. Hence, for now I shall go nap, and blog again with another health update later! Haha.

Until next time, my friends.
michelle. xx

siiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiick.

I AM SICK.
I have a headache, my nose is stuffed, I can't stop coughing from my chest, and my body is just so sore and fatigued. I am also a bit phlegmy, which is rather annoying.

UGH.

It's only ten to ten and I'm already exhausted! BUT I HAVE TO READ!

Well, I guess I'll read for ten more minutes and then go to sleep for twelve hours... Which sounds absolutely fantastic.

OH WELL! Life is still good, and I can still smile. :)

Good night world!
michelle. xx


(HEHEHE)

la belle suisse, pour trois mois? OUI, svp!

Hey there, nothing much to report today besides the fact that I've eaten a TON today and I'm about to go sleep for a very very very long time, so hopefully I'll wake up feeling slightly better!

Also...

WHAT WHAT WHAT WHAT!
(click the image to zoom in)

This image was attached to an email my academic advisor just sent to his students...

It would be amazing if I could get a scholarship to go do research in Switzerland for three months, but man, that would be super difficult to get chosen for, as they only choose 15 out of how many applicants across the United States... Plus, I'd have to put together a resume/curriculum vitae, contact a professor in Switzerland to request to be on his research team, which would be another application altogether, and somehow find a professor at USC in the Neuroscience department to write me a letter of recommendation. I haven't taken any Neuroscience classes yet, so I have no idea how I'd pull that one off.

... I don't know, I shall have to think about this one very thoroughly. Thankfully, the deadline is in a month and a bit, so I have some time.

Eh?

Confused, nervous, and sleepy,
michelle. xx

pointless post... sorry. ^^;

Hello hello! It appears the last time I blogged was ... one week ago! Therefore, this seems like an appropriate time to blog again. ^^

This week has been largely uneventful, really all I've been doing is sitting through the introductory lessons of each class, which are things I have heard at least 50 times before during my lifetime, ie the scientific method, the structure of the cell, etc. Mundane, but I continue to take extensive notes. No idea why, perhaps it is an inexplicable compulsion I have when in class.

So far, I'm feeling quite confident about all of my classes; as long as I stay on top of my work and stick to my study schedule, I don't foresee any problems this semester in terms of academics! Hopefully this spring I will be able to boost my GPA a ton. :D

I think it also helps that now, as I have a concrete career objective in life, I'm feeling so much more motivated to do well! Not that I didn't try before, but now I can finally see my eventual destination, in terms of where I will be in life. It's definitely a good feeling.

Speaking of my study schedule though, I must say, I'm quite proud of the way I organized it; I've been sticking to it so far, and every day seems to have just the right amount of work attributed to it. Thus like I said, if I can follow this schedule consistently, I will be alright this semester.

...You know, I really don't think I have anything to say right now! My average weekly life is really dull at school, haha!

Well here are a few photos of myself and USC that I took last week that I forgot to put up here, for some reason...







So as you can see, USC is just... the same as ever. Haha. The weather is fabulous of course, every day I've worn shorts and a t shirt and loved it. :D

Also, this semester I'm going to be busy with the tasks that come with the spring, which include for instance, applying to summer school, finding summer storage for my stuff, re-applying for federal financial aid, re-applying for USC housing next year, etc. I must remember to do these things.

On top of that, I'm involved in five different extracurricular organizations this semester, all of which I hope to actively participate in! So, I look forward to a fun and very eventful semester. ^_^

Uhm... I'm sorry, I have nothing else to say about my recent life! Ah. Hopefully I will have things to say soon, and at that point I will blog again about them. Heck, even if I don't have anything to say, I'll blog to let you know I'm alive! Hehe.

Well, until next time!
michelle. xx

it means no worries! ^_^

Hi there!

Well, I realized that all of the information about DDS is on the site whose address I gave you in my last post, so I really don't know what more I'd say about it.

Here's the blurb written at the top of the application form;
"Delta Delta Sigma is an organization that serves the needs of the pre-dental student by offering support and guidance in the exploration of the dental profession. Members are offered the opportunity to attend lectures by guest speakers regarding the dental application process, participate in volunteer activities directly affiliated with the USC School of Dentistry, enjoy social activities organized by Delta Delta Sigma, and bond with fellow pre-dental students at USC."

... I guess that just about sums it up, right?

You know, for some reason I've been really happy lately. For the past two weeks or so, I have been in a great mood. And I must say, no matter how tired I get, or how daunting the workload seems, nothing can get me down! I feel like since I definitively chose the career path I will work towards for the rest of my life, I now have a lot more confidence and motivation in every action that I take in my daily life. Of course, these two things might not be connected, but I strongly feel like they are. ^_^

And so, to spread the good feelings and warmth, here is a song for you, my reader, that will undoubtedly make you at least smile!



I love that song!!! And I have, since the first time I watched the Lion King by Disney with my little youthful eyes. ^_^

So that is all for now, my friends. Please, be happy and enjoy life!

Love!
michelle. xx

DDS

Hello! This is what I look like right now. I am upon my bed in my NEW T SHIRT with koala on my lap.

Anywho, I am just writing this to say... I AM NOW AN OFFICIAL MEMBER OF DDS! DDS stands for "Delta Delta Sigma", which is the Pre-Dental Honor's Society of USC.

I've spent the whole day today running around though, with five classes and four meetings today, only sitting down to absorb information, from 9:00 to 21:30. That was extremely exhausting, and now I am all ready to sleep, so I think I'm just going to have to sleep for now and tell you all about DDS another time.

But for now, here's the website URL, if you care to check it out;
http://www.deltadeltasigma.net
Just copy-paste that into your address bar and you'll be taken straight to the home page!

Here are some images of the TWO FREE T SHIRTS I got in the meeting today, which was the first meeting of the semester. I also got free dinner! Hehehe.


The white one... If you can't see, the design on it is a tooth with the roots and blood vessels underneath, and the greek letters delta delta sigma written across the main body of the tooth. Underneath, as a sort of caption, it says "Pre-Dental Honor Society". I really like this design, whoever did it is a true artist. [:




Of the two shirts, I must say, I like this one more. Maybe because it's cardinal and gold, instead of white? And the design is more elaborate? Therefore, these two features of it would make it look more elite/expensive than the first shirt...

Who knows! Anyway, I love these shirts, both of them, and love the fact that I AM NOW PART OF DDS!

But alas, I am about to keel over from sheer exhaustion, so off I go now to sleep.
Thank you for reading my blog. ^_^

Good night, world!
michelle. xx

my study wall! and flying.

Helloooo! This sweater makes me look fat. Hehehehehe.

... ANYWAY.

Today I wanted to take a minute and show you my... STUDY WALL.



This is the little piece of wall I walk past when I exit my bedroom, so I am constantly making eye contact with it. Just below eye level, where my eyes rest when I'm not looking at anything in particular, is my weekly class schedule. This is positioned here so that I can glance at it as I leave for class, just in case I need to remind myself of where I'm going or the location of my class.

Above this, the four index card halves you see show the work that need to be done for each of my four classes every week. They are organized by class, and priority; the first bullet point on each card is generally the most urgent for that class, and the last point is the least. However, all tasks written there are mandatory for the course.

Below my class schedule, you will see my STUDY SCHEDULE. This paper shows exactly which of the assignments on the four index cards I will do on which days of the week. Notice I left Saturday empty. This is for sleeping purposes.

mmmmmh, sleep is delicious!

Lastly, I thought I'd share some photos with you, of the day I left New York to fly to LA. Namely, the situation outdoors as I flew to LA.


This was the view outside of the window when I was at the gate waiting for the plane to arrive at the airport so that we could leave. hrmmm.

But then once my plane finally got there and we managed to get above the clouds...



:)

And then the flight went on, and everything was so beautiful...
















... Helloooo Los Angeles.
^_^

Until next time,
michelle. xx

spring semester 2011, hey!

Hello there!

Today was my first day of classes back here at the University of Southern California, in Los Angeles, California. The sun is shining, the people are not fat, and the air is smog-filled, as always! Good ol' USC, gotta love it. ^_^

Notice I say 'USC', as there are actually many 'heavy' people in the entire city of Los Angeles, but really not that many at USC specifically.

Anywho! Like I said, I finished my first day of classes, and it went pretty well! Here's my weekly schedule, shown in the image below...



By the by, I don't know why but the days of the week didn't get added to the scanned image... I'm pretty sure you can fill in the blanks though, haha, as the first day of classes is Monday, the second is Tuesday, and so on. ^_^ Also, you can click on the image to make it larger if you want. (:

So as you can see, my schedule this semester definitely isn't bad at all! I'm going to be doing a fair bit of volunteer work as well, with Peer Health Exchange and Red Cross, which I've been doing since last semester, and this semester I've added work with something called the Joint Educational Project (JEP, for short) where for two hours a week I'll go to a local school, probably an elementary school, and be either a Teaching Assistant or Mentor for a class. The Mentor would be paired with one or two students and work with them for eight weeks and give them specialized attention for their needs, whereas the Teaching Assistant would help the teacher with classwide activities and general teaching duties. I chose the Teaching Assistant position, because I'm so scared of getting stuck with a terrible child! Haha. I've seen what the kids in the local schools around here are like, and I DEFINITELY would not want to have extended one on one time with the huge majority of them for eight weeks straight! So yes, I applied to be a Teaching Assistant. Training is on 25 January, and then I'm good to go! I'll let you know how that is. :)

With regards to my classes, I'm feeling very confident about Biology and Chemistry this semester. Maybe it's because I've already taken the classes before. I don't know. But, in any event, I feel like I'll definitely do well this time around, and maximize the potential of the freshman forgiveness function! :D

I don't think sociology will be a problem, the lecture today was very... basic... we only talked about ideas, really. Though I suppose there could be facts to memorize incorporated into the course, I really don't think this class will be difficult at all. Even better, the other people in the class really didn't seem all too... awake... So if it's curved, I think I have a great chance of getting a solid A! It's also a prerequisite for the dental hygiene program at USC, so this is a rather win-win situation for me. ^^

The last class which I haven't spoken about yet is PSYC100, which is Introduction to Psychology. I'm really looking forward to that class, as I legitimately love studying psychology. The first lecture of Psych is tomorrow morning, so I'll let you know how that goes. I really hope the course doesn't involve too much essay writing, haha! Eep!

^_^

Well... In terms of friends and seeing said friends, I've seen a lot of people so far, which I'm definitely happy about! In the past, I've found it difficult to see my friends as often as I would like, and is necessary to maintain a proper friendship... Henceforth, I've made it a priority to manage my time better, so that I devote the right amounts of time to work, rest, and play, and do all three activities efficiently! I will do it! Last semester was so much better than the semester before that in terms of time management, and that semester was so much better than the first... So hopefully the trend of managing my time better and better only continues!

OH and, I bought a drying rack! Hehe. So now I won't have to spend one dollar to dry my clothes every time I wash them!



I can't wait to assemble it, which I will do at some point this week when I have a free moment, haha! Apparently it's no-tools-required, so it should go just great.

^_^

... I do believe I have nothing else to say for the moment. I love being back at USC, but at the same time I miss home a lot too. I look forward to this semester and all it has to offer to me!

Life is wonderful and a blessing, and I am thankful to everyone and everything that has contributed to my fantastic life, and made me smile, even if only once. Thank you all for being amazing.

Love from the bottom of my heart,
michelle. xx