“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you" Matthew 7:7
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Semester So Far..
So here we are on the second week of Spring 2012 semester (first full week). I'm finding that I'm going to have to really motivate myself to stay on top of Organic Chem as it is already trying swamp me. The professor lectures so fast and doesn't like to repeat what he has said. Today I only wrote 5 1/2 pages of notes starting with ethane ( which has 2 tetrahedral carbon atoms connected together by a sigma bond) going through forming ethyl groups to over to line angle drawing, then a brief stent in nomenclature of hydrocarbons (of which I only caught a small portion of what he said), back to removing Hydrogen atoms and replacing them with other atoms. He went over Systematic name rules in 2 seconds then on to methyl groups. I wrote half a page on what he kept saying about boiling points. He mentions boiling points a lot, so I'm hoping it's on the exam because I got that. A brief mention of Heat of Combustion and Potential Energies. Also, he mentioned that by now we should be able to recognize the longest carbon chain and all substituents. Huh? I don't recall hearing the word substituent before today. Yes in Gen Chem at some point we spent 5 minutes going over carbon chains for a lab session. Gen Chem was mostly gasses, energies, heat, and all that jazz. I can count carbon though so hopefully that goes well. We also spent a good amount of time attaching Bromine in a couple different spots on butane molecule to make 2-bromobutane and a couple other butyl molecules. A little bit about some isomers and cycloalkanes and cyclohexane and we were through for today. I went to Walmart this afternoon and bought a recorder. Definitely a need as many of my notes are incomplete because I just couldn't write fast enough.
A&P 2 is easy enough so far. We're just moving into the circulatory system and all things blood. This class isn't as fast paced and so I don't see any problems keeping up in here as long as I remember to take time to study.
Microbiology is pretty much like A&P as in it's not as fast-paced. We did have a pop quiz on Monday and so I was very glad I reviewed the chapter and power point Sunday night. All of his questions came straight from the powerpoint and so I'm probably over learning stuff. Oh well, I'm sure it will apply some where to another class on down the road. Usually does.
Micro. lab was simple this week, too. I'm hoping my lab partner remembers to go by and check our bacteria growth this week like she said she would. Next week is my turn. I really have a hard time relying on people so I'm itching to go and check it as well. Plus watching cultures grow is really cool.
My Community Nutrition class is going to be very informative I think. It's a hybrid course and mostly self-led. We don't meet every week (which is great because I dislike being on campus that late). Our first two assignments are to make and cost out a menu plan using the usda website and to read a consumer book on nutrition (preferably community nutrition). I've got a couple ideas I'm thinking of just have to narrow it down.
So just going to have to make sure I stay on top of things. So far I'm doing okay, but a ton of room for improvement.
A&P 2 is easy enough so far. We're just moving into the circulatory system and all things blood. This class isn't as fast paced and so I don't see any problems keeping up in here as long as I remember to take time to study.
Microbiology is pretty much like A&P as in it's not as fast-paced. We did have a pop quiz on Monday and so I was very glad I reviewed the chapter and power point Sunday night. All of his questions came straight from the powerpoint and so I'm probably over learning stuff. Oh well, I'm sure it will apply some where to another class on down the road. Usually does.
Micro. lab was simple this week, too. I'm hoping my lab partner remembers to go by and check our bacteria growth this week like she said she would. Next week is my turn. I really have a hard time relying on people so I'm itching to go and check it as well. Plus watching cultures grow is really cool.
My Community Nutrition class is going to be very informative I think. It's a hybrid course and mostly self-led. We don't meet every week (which is great because I dislike being on campus that late). Our first two assignments are to make and cost out a menu plan using the usda website and to read a consumer book on nutrition (preferably community nutrition). I've got a couple ideas I'm thinking of just have to narrow it down.
So just going to have to make sure I stay on top of things. So far I'm doing okay, but a ton of room for improvement.
Friday, January 20, 2012
Wow, I have health conscious children.
I really was surprised last night when my middle son said that he didn't eat his school lunch because it had chicken nuggets on it. Chicken nuggets are commonly made from a meat product that is a lovely pepto bismol pink color. He said he didn't want to eat the processed stuff so didn't eat at all. His teacher bought him an ice cream later. My first thought was how awesome it was to see that my child is wanting real food not the fake crap that is ate by a majority of American school children. My second thought was, great now the school social worker is going to be calling again asking if we need anything. They seem to think we are starving, don't properly clothe our children (because if your clothes don't have Hollister or Aeropostle on them then your not dressed around here) and are dirt poor. They've sent home, with the kids on the bus; extra cartons of milk, sacks of food, clothes a hooker wouldn't wear for my then 11 year old daughter, shoes (because oh my goodness my son's had a scuff on them). I've emailed, called and talked to the school to tell them that we don't need or want these things (I also worry about the detrimental affect it has on my children's esteem).
Anyway, back to the main topic. I probably didn't help anything because after he said that we sat and watched a youtube video on Jamie Oliver showing a group of people how the government allows ammonia treated dog food be processed and served to people. My daughter even mentioned that she asked the lunch lady if the chicken they were serving came from free-ranged chickens. My daughter said the lunch lady told her that she had no idea.
If my kiddies are just a small sampling of what this generation will potentially be then I think we'll do fine. As long as we don't screw it up.
Today's lunch menu is suppose to be : Cheeseburger or Chicken Fajita, French Fries, Pinto Beans, Fruit Juice, Sherbet, Low-fat white or chocolate milk. I asked my daughter if the school allows for substitution on lunch trays. Like if the student doesn't want the meat and asks for more veggies instead. She said no and they would charge extra for it anyway. Hmm.
Anyway, back to the main topic. I probably didn't help anything because after he said that we sat and watched a youtube video on Jamie Oliver showing a group of people how the government allows ammonia treated dog food be processed and served to people. My daughter even mentioned that she asked the lunch lady if the chicken they were serving came from free-ranged chickens. My daughter said the lunch lady told her that she had no idea.
If my kiddies are just a small sampling of what this generation will potentially be then I think we'll do fine. As long as we don't screw it up.
Today's lunch menu is suppose to be : Cheeseburger or Chicken Fajita, French Fries, Pinto Beans, Fruit Juice, Sherbet, Low-fat white or chocolate milk. I asked my daughter if the school allows for substitution on lunch trays. Like if the student doesn't want the meat and asks for more veggies instead. She said no and they would charge extra for it anyway. Hmm.
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
I'm pretty sure I've written on how my lovely daughter frustrates me to no end. She pushes buttons, she argues, she ignores, she pushes and argues some more. I love her and want to shake her silly at the same time.
For the last month she has known that she has a science project to do, the last two or more weeks she has known what she was going to do. The project was do yesterday, guess when she did it? Monday, yep, she waited till the day before it was due to even start on it. She's almost 14 and in the 8th grade, I was thinking I could explain the instructions and let her go at it so that I may do some chores and homework myself. Nope, she wanted to whine and fuss unless I sat by her practically holding her hand through the whole project. It wasn't an exceptionally difficult project she picked out. It was on the Stroop effect. All she had to do was time her brothers and I while we read, record the times and calculate averages. The biggest part of the project should of been doing the research on the Stroop effect and writing her abstract. Well she spent all day to do the testing, then 10 minutes maybe on the abstract. Then she had to decorate her board, which she spent a good amount of time on because that's the only part she wanted to do.
So I take her to school Tuesday, thinking that the project is done and no longer a worry. Nope, she comes home yesterday afternoon saying that her abstract has to be either 9 paragraphs or 9 pages she doesn't remember. I said that was a pretty big difference and usually an abstract is rather short. She doesn't ask to get on the computer so I finish what I'm doing and think nothing of it at the time. Hubby comes home and she has the gall to say that I won't LET her do her abstract. Huh? Come again? I had been finishing up a chapter in my A & P book and you didn't say "Hey mom I need to do this" you said "I didn't write enough." I had thought it was through because she didn't mention any extensions. So I get up( I was so proud of myself, I'm getting much better at controlling my temper with her) and let her at the computer. She sits for 30 minutes before letting me know, when I come in to check on her, that she can't get the openoffice writer to open. So I tell her to use Works and I'll figure the other out later. She later says she doesn't know how to write an abstract, I explain again (because I told her this the other day as well) that all she needs to write is a brief introduction and briefly explain what she did in her experiment. She then, finally, reads the instructions the teacher gave everyone and finds out she has to write a research paper as well. It is now 6pm and bedtime is at 8pm. I give her a look and say good luck with that and have to walk off before I raise my voice. There is no way to write a research paper, start to finish, in two hours. At least not one that would give you a decent grade.
I ask her later if she has learned anything from this experience. She says not really. I told her "I was hoping you would of said that you learned that when you have a big assignment to get started on it right way." She just shrugged her shoulders and went to bed. Gotta love these teenage years.
For the last month she has known that she has a science project to do, the last two or more weeks she has known what she was going to do. The project was do yesterday, guess when she did it? Monday, yep, she waited till the day before it was due to even start on it. She's almost 14 and in the 8th grade, I was thinking I could explain the instructions and let her go at it so that I may do some chores and homework myself. Nope, she wanted to whine and fuss unless I sat by her practically holding her hand through the whole project. It wasn't an exceptionally difficult project she picked out. It was on the Stroop effect. All she had to do was time her brothers and I while we read, record the times and calculate averages. The biggest part of the project should of been doing the research on the Stroop effect and writing her abstract. Well she spent all day to do the testing, then 10 minutes maybe on the abstract. Then she had to decorate her board, which she spent a good amount of time on because that's the only part she wanted to do.
So I take her to school Tuesday, thinking that the project is done and no longer a worry. Nope, she comes home yesterday afternoon saying that her abstract has to be either 9 paragraphs or 9 pages she doesn't remember. I said that was a pretty big difference and usually an abstract is rather short. She doesn't ask to get on the computer so I finish what I'm doing and think nothing of it at the time. Hubby comes home and she has the gall to say that I won't LET her do her abstract. Huh? Come again? I had been finishing up a chapter in my A & P book and you didn't say "Hey mom I need to do this" you said "I didn't write enough." I had thought it was through because she didn't mention any extensions. So I get up( I was so proud of myself, I'm getting much better at controlling my temper with her) and let her at the computer. She sits for 30 minutes before letting me know, when I come in to check on her, that she can't get the openoffice writer to open. So I tell her to use Works and I'll figure the other out later. She later says she doesn't know how to write an abstract, I explain again (because I told her this the other day as well) that all she needs to write is a brief introduction and briefly explain what she did in her experiment. She then, finally, reads the instructions the teacher gave everyone and finds out she has to write a research paper as well. It is now 6pm and bedtime is at 8pm. I give her a look and say good luck with that and have to walk off before I raise my voice. There is no way to write a research paper, start to finish, in two hours. At least not one that would give you a decent grade.
I ask her later if she has learned anything from this experience. She says not really. I told her "I was hoping you would of said that you learned that when you have a big assignment to get started on it right way." She just shrugged her shoulders and went to bed. Gotta love these teenage years.
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Sunday Posting
2 Timothy 3:16 |
Thursday, January 12, 2012
1st day of Spring Semester '12
Today was the first day of Spring semester. My earliest class this semester is at 9:40am, which is so nice. I get to get the kiddies ready and on the bus before I get myself together. It also gives me time to find parking, go over notes and everything without rushing. I dislike rushing in the mornings.
Today's classes were Organic Chemistry and Anatomy and Physiology 2. My Organic Chem class is called Foundations of Organic Chemistry. I tried to take O Chem 1 but heard they were discontinuing it in favor of this class. When it came time to register for Spring they had O Chem 1 listed, but no class listings. So I guess the rumor I heard was true. Well I just checked, it looks like they started phasing it out in 2009 so yep. Instead of O Chem 1 and 2 there is now Foundations of Organic Chemistry and Foundations of BioOrganic Chemistry. Same book and class just different names.
Anyway I think I'll enjoy the Organic Chemistry class. Today was an introduction then we got started with Lewis Dot structures and molecular formula's. We're suppose to be able to recognize trends in intramolecular forces and how to tell the properties of the substance(with info from the Lewis dot structure) by the 1st exam. Plus a ton of other stuff, it's a fast paced class. Easy peasy, right? I'm glad I've found A Doc 2 Be over at Non Trad Pre Med. It's great to be able to ask someone who's been in the trenches already. I don't know too many people personally who have had this level of science classes.
Well I'm off to try and not burn dinner while finding some molecular structure models and going over A&P2 and O Chem notes. Oh and I didn't mention what I thought of the A&P class. It's huge, the teachers kinda funny. I'm not sure what I feel about him selling his 464 page book of class notes. I remember better when I write stuff down during lecture. Listening and then reading doesn't do it for me. I need to read, then listen and write concurrently. So I'll take notes and then compare to what he has (for free) online.
Today's classes were Organic Chemistry and Anatomy and Physiology 2. My Organic Chem class is called Foundations of Organic Chemistry. I tried to take O Chem 1 but heard they were discontinuing it in favor of this class. When it came time to register for Spring they had O Chem 1 listed, but no class listings. So I guess the rumor I heard was true. Well I just checked, it looks like they started phasing it out in 2009 so yep. Instead of O Chem 1 and 2 there is now Foundations of Organic Chemistry and Foundations of BioOrganic Chemistry. Same book and class just different names.
Anyway I think I'll enjoy the Organic Chemistry class. Today was an introduction then we got started with Lewis Dot structures and molecular formula's. We're suppose to be able to recognize trends in intramolecular forces and how to tell the properties of the substance(with info from the Lewis dot structure) by the 1st exam. Plus a ton of other stuff, it's a fast paced class. Easy peasy, right? I'm glad I've found A Doc 2 Be over at Non Trad Pre Med. It's great to be able to ask someone who's been in the trenches already. I don't know too many people personally who have had this level of science classes.
Well I'm off to try and not burn dinner while finding some molecular structure models and going over A&P2 and O Chem notes. Oh and I didn't mention what I thought of the A&P class. It's huge, the teachers kinda funny. I'm not sure what I feel about him selling his 464 page book of class notes. I remember better when I write stuff down during lecture. Listening and then reading doesn't do it for me. I need to read, then listen and write concurrently. So I'll take notes and then compare to what he has (for free) online.
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Sunday, January 08, 2012
Sunday Posting
Friday, January 06, 2012
So Ready...
...for classes to start again. I need my routine back, I need a reason to leave this house again, I need to get back to studying.
I think the break between fall and spring semesters is way too long. For me anyway. I could easily of went back on January 2nd and been happy. I look forward to the end of a semester due to needing a stress break from system overload. However, I also look forward to the beginning of one. Especially after being out for almost a month (well like 3 1/2 weeks, close enough).
The next 3 semesters are very important, my gpa is borderline and I need more A's to bring it up to a more competitive score. So I've got to bring my game face and get organized over the weekend. Come next Thursday it's on.
I'm debating right now if I still want to pursue medical school. I'd love to be a doctor, to do what I've wrote in an earlier post. I just don't know if I'll be able. We are struggling financially right now and I'm looking at 2 more years of school (well one more year of undergrad plus 9 to 24 months of internship) before I can begin a career. I'm not sure Hubby could handle another 8 years of us having one income. So that's a dream that may end up permanently on the shelf. I'm not to upset by this thought though. I'm heading toward an academically challenging career as a Registered Dietitian. Getting accepted into an internship program is tough (I read a while back that only about half the applicants get accepted every year). I'm looking at the possibility of being away from my family during the week from months to up to two years (dependent on which internship I'm accepted into). There are 2 in Memphis and one that's a couple hours away, after that I'm looking at 4-7 hour drives. I'm hoping I don't have to go any further then that. I plan on going on to get my Master's and PhD as well. Though it may be a year or two after internship before I start on that. Well, some internships include a Master's program so that would be a two birds with one stone situation. Then I could work a couple years then find a PhD program.
This year is going to be tough, between trying to ace classes and then I also have to study for the GRE and get mentally ready for internship acceptance or rejection. Rejections are tough and I don't do so well with them, but I have to be ready for it.
Anyway, I titled this post So Ready... because I'm ready for semester to start. I get lazy if I'm home too long and need a routine that includes leaving the house on a daily basis. I've got some good plans and I don't think I've been so mentally ready for a semester to start before. Everyone tells me I'm smart...I tell them I'm not, I'm just persistent. I think this may be the semester to prove them right though.
I think the break between fall and spring semesters is way too long. For me anyway. I could easily of went back on January 2nd and been happy. I look forward to the end of a semester due to needing a stress break from system overload. However, I also look forward to the beginning of one. Especially after being out for almost a month (well like 3 1/2 weeks, close enough).
The next 3 semesters are very important, my gpa is borderline and I need more A's to bring it up to a more competitive score. So I've got to bring my game face and get organized over the weekend. Come next Thursday it's on.
I'm debating right now if I still want to pursue medical school. I'd love to be a doctor, to do what I've wrote in an earlier post. I just don't know if I'll be able. We are struggling financially right now and I'm looking at 2 more years of school (well one more year of undergrad plus 9 to 24 months of internship) before I can begin a career. I'm not sure Hubby could handle another 8 years of us having one income. So that's a dream that may end up permanently on the shelf. I'm not to upset by this thought though. I'm heading toward an academically challenging career as a Registered Dietitian. Getting accepted into an internship program is tough (I read a while back that only about half the applicants get accepted every year). I'm looking at the possibility of being away from my family during the week from months to up to two years (dependent on which internship I'm accepted into). There are 2 in Memphis and one that's a couple hours away, after that I'm looking at 4-7 hour drives. I'm hoping I don't have to go any further then that. I plan on going on to get my Master's and PhD as well. Though it may be a year or two after internship before I start on that. Well, some internships include a Master's program so that would be a two birds with one stone situation. Then I could work a couple years then find a PhD program.
This year is going to be tough, between trying to ace classes and then I also have to study for the GRE and get mentally ready for internship acceptance or rejection. Rejections are tough and I don't do so well with them, but I have to be ready for it.
Anyway, I titled this post So Ready... because I'm ready for semester to start. I get lazy if I'm home too long and need a routine that includes leaving the house on a daily basis. I've got some good plans and I don't think I've been so mentally ready for a semester to start before. Everyone tells me I'm smart...I tell them I'm not, I'm just persistent. I think this may be the semester to prove them right though.
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