A Pleasant Day

Today went quite well, and I was pleasantly surprised by that.

My meeting with the professor went better than expected. He understood my point of view and said that I should be able to take an alternative class in order to fulfill that requirement for my major. I e-mailed the Economics professor who will help me find an alternative and hope to hear back from him tomorrow. After I hear back from him, I have to let the professors coordinating the trip know that I will no longer be traveling. I hope they aren't upset with me for waiting to tell them, but I had to talk with many people in order to make this decision and find an alternative.

My group's presentation on serial killer groupies went quite well. I wasn't as nervous as I usually am giving this presentation and I think it may be because I was in a group. The professor really liked our topic and said it was "ground-breaking." She wants to do a more in-depth research project on the subject and asked us if we wanted to work on it next spring. If I think I can handle doing that in addition to a senior seminar, I may just do it. Since my G.P.A. isn't the best, this could look really good to grad schools.

Tonight I apologized to a former friend for the argument we had two years ago. I told her that at that time I had depression and that was causing my behavior to be what it was. Amanda was quite understanding and we talked for a while. I think we both feel better now..

An Overall Okay Day

Today has been an overall okay day.

My first class, Eastern World Religions, was really boring. We are learning about the life and teachings of Jesus Christ, which I have heard about a hundred times before. I was attempting to study for the Macroeconomics quiz I was to take in my next class in order to pass the time. I felt guilty for doing so, because I know the professor (the Chaplain) knew what I was doing. I made it through the class and proceeded to Macroeconomics.

When I got there, a different professor was in the room. She informed us that our professor would not be in class today, and therefore class was canceled. To my surprise, she then told us that there would be no class on Thursday. Apparently the professor's father passed away, leading to his week-long absence. This made me quite happy, as I would only have to endure one class today and Thursday.

Early this afternoon I had my weekly appointment at the counseling center with Dr. S. Today went quite well. It lasted longer than usual, which I think means she enjoyed the conversation we were having, and appreciated my honesty. I think my depression has lifted significantly. I feel like an entirely different person almost, even though I'm still quiet and reserved in public and in class. I don't know who I am anymore; I don't know if this is a good thing or a bad thing.

At work I spent two and a half hours surfing the net instead of doing what I was supposed to be doing. The task I was to be working on is mind-numbing, and boring. I hope that my boss doesn't find out that I lied. Then she would never trust me again.

Tonight I'm supposed to go on a walk with some of my friends to enjoy the nice spring weather. I think I might ride my bike while they walk. I need to get some use out of it; after all I did buy a bicycle rack and drove it two and a half hours, and thus far it has been collecting dust.

It looks like I won't have a heavy homework load until Thursday night when I have to write a paper due on Friday. Hopefully I can do some fun things in the free evenings I have.

Honors Banquet

This evening I attended a banquet held for all of the students who are in the Honors Program at the college.

I wasn't really sure that I wanted to attend. One reason is that I hate getting dressed up. Another reason is that I only knew a few of the people that were going and felt that having to socialize with these strangers who wanted nothing to do with me would be a bit awkward. Nevertheless, I decided to attend.

I arrived at the reception at 6:15 p.m. There was a table with punch and fruit and cheese, looking quite nice. I didn't get any because I didn't want to ruin my appetite and there were a few groups of people right next to the table. I began to talk with people I know, and we all got bored quickly. At 6:40 p.m. we had run out of topics of conversation and resorted to standing around looking at each other uncomfortably. Then the Dean of the College came to us and began speaking with us. He left after a few minutes to socialize with other groups.

Within a few minutes we were told to go to the dining room and sit down for dinner. The people I had been talking to and I sat down at the same table, and were later, to our surprise, joined by the Dean. I'm not sure if he actually chose to sit with us. I think maybe each of the other tables already had a faculty member sitting there, so he felt obligated to sit with us.

Dinner was nice. The steak and potatoes were to my liking (which is very unusual). I ate a little of my asparagus, just so I had at least tasted everything on my plate. Dessert was okay, nothing to rave about.

Every year at the banquet two professors, Dr. B (Political Science) and Dr. R (Mathematics), provide the entertainment. To be honest, I wasn't quite sure what to expect, after all, these were faculty members and the Dean was in attendance. They had decided that we should play "Jeopardy!" and that our tables would be our teams. Our table didn't win, but we scored some points.

I felt really stupid and embarrassed at one point during the game. Normally, being the shy and introverted person I am, wouldn't have dared to raise my hand in an attempt to answer a question. But for some reason, I felt sure of an answer and raised my hand. Big mistake. I wasn't completely wrong, though, which is good, but I felt moronic nonetheless.

After playing the game, and getting our butts kicked, the senior awards were given out. After that, everyone left, and went back to preparing for Monday's classes.

Overall, the banquet was nice and entertaining, although I'm not sure if I would attended next year's.

Only time will tell.

Trip to Washington, D.C.

This past Monday (April 18) I went on a field trip organized by the Political Science Students Association to Washington, D.C. We visited the Supreme Court and the Pentagon, which were both very interesting places.

I fell asleep on the bus on the way to D.C. because I woke up at 5:30 a.m. We got there around 9:30 a.m., which is pretty good considering we were travelling in rush-hour traffic.

Our first stop was the United States Supreme Court. There were two separate lines: one to go and sit for 3 minutes and another line to sit for the whole hearing which was an hour. Marisa, my friend from Ecuador, and I decided to go in the three minute line.

One of the security guards looked exactly like Mike Tyson, only without the tattoo. After passing through all the security checkpoints, we finally made it inside.

It was very polished and ornate. The ceiling was wonderfully detailed in what seemed like plaster reliefs shaped like flowers. It was more intimate than I thought it would be. There were no balconies for viewing the proceedings; everyone was on the same floor. The justices were up on a slight platform, and I'm grateful for that, because those viewing the proceedings for three minutes were seated in the back. Those viewing the entire hour-long proceeding were seated in church-like pews. The lawyer arguing before the Court looked very unprepared and idiotic. He argued that the Court said one thing and Justice Scalia told him something like, "Actually, I believe we said the opposite." It was really interesting, but I really wouldn't have wanted to remain there for the entire hour.

After leaving the Supreme Court, eleven of us, including a professor, went to Tortilla Coast and had a delicious meal, as well as interesting and thought-provoking conversation. After that, we went to the Capitol to meet the rest of the students. While waiting, we took in the spectacular views of the mall and the rotunda of the Capitol.

Our next stop was the Pentagon. After passing through the numerous security checkpoints we were led to a room where we met our tour guides, all four of them. The Pentagon wasn't like I thought it would be. They have what looks like a mall inside and I would have thought I was in a mall if I had not have known for sure I was in the Pentagon. We got to visit the inside courtyard and were told interesting facts. We also visited the exact place where the Pentagon was hit by the hijacked plane on September 11, 2001. Our guides explained to us exactly how it was hit, and corrected the false information we had heard before.

All in all, it was an enjoyable day.

I would have posted pictures, but we were told not to bring any cameras.