Fleeting Moments.

After 5 hours of studying (and a moment in which I had considered applying to law school), I have completed my work for the day. And for my accomplishment, I'll watch part of the NBA finals game tonight. The morning started off with finishing up my laundry and cleaning up the apartment. Even though I have washed my sheets three times, they still managed to make all of my bartop towels pink. How much cheap dye did they use in those things? Then it was off to the mock practical to remind myself how little of the head and neck I know. I came home, decided to skip my daily nap, and headed straight to the library. And this is where I have been since.

I did talk to Dell technical support last night and got them to at least admit I needed a new motherboard. Now the plan will be to make them take it back, so I can get a ThinkPad instead. Thanks to SlickDeals, there is a pretty good deal on a T400 with discrete graphics for $700. That's how much I paid for this Dell, which has been nothing but trouble for me.

It did rain intermittently this morning, so I was glad I didn't have to step out for long periods of time. The hardest part is timing tropical rain. It could be clear and sunny out and all of a sudden, you'll find yourself in a downpour; these rains are not mild. Last time I was caught in one, I was soaking within 20 seconds. A minute later, the clouds part and the sun starts shining. You wonder if you made the whole thing up. On a side note, hurricane season has officially started.

This first semester is really a marathon. After the first block, I felt pretty accomplished. One quickly finds out about small victories to help cope with the volume of information. Each night, you chip away at some of the material and you feel good about it, but you get back to work at 8am the next day and it all starts over. So each day is a little academic battle. The key is knowing when you call it quits, so you can fight another day. I try not to get myself worked up if I don't get every detail right off the bat; I know some people that do. I figure, so long as I stick to my study plan (review the day of, the weekend after, and the weekend before finals), I'll see it three times and by then, it should stick (long enough to be put down on a piece of paper).

So I'm four weeks in and I wonder how one could keep this pace going for a whole semester. I guess it's about keeping it perspective and working with what you can. I just want to make sure I haven't burned myself out before the end, so I'll have enough in the tank to finish strong.