C'est La Vie!

Bonjour mes amis!

No, I am not in France or in any French-speaking region, and therefore do not have a brilliant excuse as to why I have not updated in more than two weeks.  Alas, the only answer I can give is that I am a lowly first-year college student, who just had three combined weeks of two midterms a week and is finally on Fall Break (or the measly two day reprieve they deem to be 'Fall Break').  And so, a recap.

First midterm? Human Communication.  Not as dull as I previously thought during the first few weeks of the class, and now, I am really enjoying the lectures. It's funny, because I also have learned that I am a creature of habit (aren't we all?). Every Tuesday and Thursday, I leave my dorm anywhere from 15-20 minutes before the class, as it takes me at least ten minutes to bike there and maneuver my way around the Evil Pedestrian Crowds of DOOM (please refer to my Perils of Biking post). Then, once my bike is locked up and secure, I head into the building, which is composed of a small lobby, two restrooms, and a single lecture hall that can hold up to 400+ students.  I sit directly in the center of the front row (otherwise I'll get distracted by my Psychological Noise - hehe, I referenced a COMM term!) next to a girl I now consider to be a Sister at Arms. (I know this is really bad, but I don't remember her name, only that she's an architecture major and we talk about Gothic and Colonial architecture all the time).  But, I digress.

My COMM professor is an elderly gentleman who shares a striking resemblance to St. Nick aka Santa Claus.  And, he always wears Hawaiian/Floral vacation shirts, so, I have come to the conclusion, that I now know where Santa stays until Christmas - in sunny Arizona!

I received a 76 out of 80, which means an A on my first midterm! YEAH!

That same week, I took my first French Midterm.  Not yeah.  Very bad NAY! NAY, NAY, NAY!!!!!

Needless to say, I may have had a small mental breakdown after that extremely long and difficult exam, in which I called my parents, cried, freaked out, and caused them to worry... A LOT.  However, I am a firm believer that if an Honors Student does not have at least 1 freak out, per semester, they are dangerously close to losing it completely.  I see it as a healthy form of stress relieving.  Which is what I kept repeating to my parents after they continued to call/text/email me, every hour, on the hour, for the next two days.  Finally, I had to make them stop.

Mom: "Hey honey, how are you doing? Any better? You know I love you."

Me: "I'm doing fine, really, and yes I know you-"

Dad: "Do you want me to stop by before I leave? Check up on you?"

Me: "No Dad, I am seriously oka-"

Mom: "I think that would be a good idea, hon. Take her out to lunch or something?"

Me: "Guys, seriously I'm-"

Dad: "How does 2 sound?"

Me: "Guys! Just because I freaked out once, after having a seriously stressful week, and after trying to comprehend advanced grammar in a foreign language, does not mean that I am going to break down, drop out of school, and flip burgers for the rest of my life!"

SILENCE

Dad: "Sushi?"

*Sigh* Me: "Yeah, Dad, sushi would be good."

Anyway....

Next was my Global Politics midterm, and this is where it gets really frustrating.  I know the material.  I know, I know the material.  And yet, when I get the exam in front of me, the first half, I kick ass, and the second half, the questions are worded in such a way that they double-speak around my brain, negate half of what they are saying, and are only True/False.  Grrr...

I later found out that the guy who is physically teaching the class (aka, the Monotone Grad Student) wrote the second half of the exam on his own and that the actual professor, who assigned the readings and the lectures, wrote the first half.  Double grrrr....

I got an 80 on it, which isn't horrible, but it's frustrating when I know the material, etc. and that the only other grade in the book is a 10pt assignment.  So, my perfectly respectable 100% dropped to an 82%, and that, my friends, does not sit well with me.

I then wrote a paper for my Honors Class, which counts as my midterm, on the Gender roles of the Odyssey by Homer, arguing whether the men or the women were more heroic, and, if they BOTH were heroic, how did they differ.  Pending results...

My French professor came back and asked us what happened on the exam; apparently, every 201 class sucked hard on that exam, and all the 201 professors are scratching their heads muttering, "Pourquoi?"  In the words of my professor:

Prof: "Grading your exams made me want to drink heavily and for days."

So, we told him what was on our mind, and he said that we would receive the exams back, and that if we corrected our mistakes we could make up some of the points. Hooray! I got my exam back, and was pleasantly surprised: an 80, with the potential to achieve an 88 or an 89%! (Please note the difference between my Global Politics 80% and my French 201 80%, because I know I deserved higher than an 80% in the first, and expected a 50% in the second).

This past week, I took my first History Midterm, and it was exciting! One, I am a History Major, so if I don't enjoy my History class, we are going to have some issues.  But, I was done with the multiple choice in fifteen minutes (not rushing through it, just understanding and knowing with certainty the material) and done with the IDs (describing the Who, What, When, Where, Historical Significance of a specific person, group, peoples, wars, treaties, etc.) in the next fifteen. Pending results, but I'm super confident!

And last, but most certainly not least, was my French Oral Midterm, in which myself and a partner had to read an intense, two page dialogue, during which our instructor would listen meticulously to our pronunciation and flow, and then have a conversation with our partner, on a subject chosen/asked by our instructor.  The result?

I was complimented on my accent and pronunciation, merci beaucoup, and both my partner and I received a 98% overall on our midterm!  Commencing happy dance...now!

ANDDDD, I just received my first grade on my first History Paper that was sent in a few weeks ago.  95% (there's been a lot of Happy Dances), and the only main comment was not to pack in so much detail that I nearly double the required word count.  Hey, if my only problem is that I write too much, I will gladly take it!

And so, after three intense weeks of studying, and flash cards, and notes, and a brand new HP printer! (that's a story for next time), I arrived home Friday afternoon, got my nails done (they are super cute and Fall-timey), lazed around the house with my animals (3 cats, 2 dogs, 5 chickens, 1 lizard, and a partridge in a pear tree....not really, but if you minus the partridge, that is truly the list of my menagerie at home), went on a full day shopping spree with my best friend (pictures shall follow), and have a hair appointment later on today.  And I don't head back to campus until Wednesday morning!

Alas, C'est la vie! Et, la vie est belle!

Salut!