FoxAndChicken

OMG WHAT DO I WEAR? Things I didn't think to panic about

Michigan is on spring break right now, but I think a lot of staff are still here. Because I'm staff for the history department. And I'm here. I feel weird wandering through the philosophy department, though, since I applied to philosophy here.

I've been funding my own education and I still get asked about what I'm taking and how I'm doing. (And usually it's super backhanded, like "You really should take easier classes to make up for the disappointment of getting that B+ in math last semester.") I really resent my mom for the comments, but I also do think I have a stronger sense of what my education is worth because I don't have any kind of backup.

If I ever have kids, I think me paying for tuition will be contingent upon good grades or something. (On the other hand, I don't want to discourage them from taking hard classes, which I think some scholarships have a tendency to do.)

Yes, it's excellent. New episode tonight, right? I am on spring break and have been prepping for a lecture I'm giving next Thursday. So excited! It's on Bayes Theorem and I titled it "Bayes-ically Common Sense". Oh my gosh. That's terrifying! My university has a thing where you can get your letter writers to upload their letters, and then it send them to grad schools. So I really lucked out that that aspect of the application process was painless. (One letter writer definitely hinted that her letter was contingent upon me using this service.) However, the day Stanford's application was due I got an email from the postal service that said my package (transcript!) couldn't be delivered that day and I called them like "Uh, yes it will." Tracking told me it was literally down the street from Stanford and like a twelve minute walk, and I was like, if I have to hire a Stanford student to go and get the package and take it to the philosophy department, I will. But I didn't have to because when I called they basically told me they were being pedantic about how it needed to be labelled and it would get there that day. Which is good because I would have raged at them otherwise.

Clap on

Also rejected from Tufts, but not really worried about this one. Probably doesn't bode well for my other Ph.D. Application chances though.

Congratulations! EEEK! YAY!

Are you applying math? (Inference from Username) I find making lists helps!

Ohmygosh. Tarzan and the Lion King? I wasn't allowed to watch Bug's Life growing up because it had gang violence. Also, I couldn't watch Rugrats because my mom didn't want me to be like Angelica. But I was totes allowed to watch other things. Though I couldn't watch PG-13 things until I was 13. My dad took me to see Mean Girls a little before that, though. (He also bought me FFVIII, and my mom was very upset and I didn't get why. I recently played it and was like OMG THEY'RE SO NAKED. I FEEL SO UNCOMFORTABLE KNOWING I PLAYED THIS AS AN EIGHT YEAR OLD. She didn't take it away because she didn't want to undermine either of their roles as a parent. But she gave him a talking to.)

Have you watched it before? My mom binge watched all 7 seasons when I was in third grade. (And by binge, I mean, for like over a year she woke up at 6AM when they would show reruns two at a time on FX, and I would catch scenes as I got ready for school.) So everything is kind of familiar but I haven't really watched it recently or in a continuous way before. Also, being generally older really changes my interpretation of all the things. Like what Angel said to her in episode 14 of season 2 just emotionally destroyed me.

I'm currently on Season 5 of Buffy. <3 <3 <3

Really? Because the episode before last where she drops the thing had me be like OMG. And I'm keeping that as vague as possible because spoilers, but I think you should know what I'm referring to.

I got a manicure the day before yesterday to match my hair, and then my mom had a photoshoot. (It's not as relaxing as it sounds. I probably shouldn't complain about not having to pay for my hair and nails being done and then having someone take pictures of me, but I could deal without the three hours of "Adjust that, suck in your stomach, tuck in your arms, they look like whales.") The pictures turned out cool though! http://imgur.com/t9HwYVy,Ony9rW8,JHYVLoF,9A8uC4J Video games! Though it's not completely the male equivalent, because I play video games all the time and I'm not male. OMG Are you caught up on HTGAWM? It's the best. Seriously.

Awh. I'm sorry. That really sucks. What are you watching on Netflix? Anything good? This morning I finished Death Parade! I haven't binged an anime in a long time, and that one was SO GOOD. Omg so many feels. If you need a good laugh and a good cry, that one is sure to provide both.

In general, relationships and applications are hard to manage because there's a real possibility that you'll be up and moving to another state or country. Also, idk about you, but applications turned me into a total basketcase for a couple weeks. I broke up with my ex-boyfriend because I realized I was not in an emotional state to handle someone else's stress of figuring out grad school while I was going through the process myself.

That seems like good news, I think! Eep! Good luck!

I gave up on free time and I'm writing an essay due two weeks from now. I found this wonderful quote from a lecture on electronagnetism that I attended last year: "Imagine you're a creature that lives in a four dimensional space, but only experiences one three dimensional slice at a time. You shouldn't have to imagine too hard."

Oooh. I'll get that this week. Now I want that.

Is anyone else on Spring break? I'm at home in my small town. I do not understand the concept of free time at all. I did get a manicure that matched my hair though.

@Pink Fuzzy Bunny So, I handled that conceptual leap a few times, since I'm really good at convincing people to let me do things I'm probably not qualified for. When I was 14 I transferred to private school, and I was handling a much harder school with way more qualified peers while financing it myself. (I was the only one paying my own tuition.) Was it rough? Yes. I had never failed anything at my public school. But I kept at it, and people in general are sympathetic to people who work hard! I still made it to UMich, despite graduating dead center of my class. Dude. You didn't get into one program, which could be a random fluke or something. You got into ALL of them. Whatever was in your application said to those committees that you could handle it. Would it be easy? Nah. But you are definitely going into an environment where you will have mentors. Don't be afraid to rely on your support network from time to time and you'll get through it.

Unless you're @Pink Fuzzy Bunny! And then you get in everywhere. Actually, I have a friend who was admitted to all of the best math programs. I didn't have time to get coffee today on the way to work and now I'm trying to bribe my friends to bring me coffee. No luck, though.

I like nice stationary. I'm a big fan. My daily exciting thing is that my friend keeps sending me coding projects. I am learning about arrays right now.

Awh thanks! Also, you got into EVERY program??? Omg. That's so many programs. I have had so much fun walking around campus today. I went to Starbucks and the barista taking my order was like "YOUR HAIR IS SO COOL." And then the other barista who delivered my drink was like "Uh... Here's your coff- . . . Oh. My. God. Yasss. That is the- woah. That is amazing. Yes." And I was like "Thank you!" Basically, I've been having a lot of fun today looking like a highlighter. Did you say you're coming to visit UMich? When is that?

TWINSIES!