DrPepper-olic

round tummy

ugly duckling

prince charming

fireproof safe

fail completely

people person

I drank 4 or 5 cans of Diet Dr. Pepper the day that I joined. I kinda hoped the screen name would shame me into drinking more water. The avatar is one of the few photos on my work computer that isn't a wedding photo. I have a few other baby animal photos, all considered livestock. I'm working with commodity prices at the moment so it reminds me of what I'm studying. Also, I think teacup pigs are so cute!

quick witted

I am totally in that boat. I haven't really been smiling at all lately. (Actually, I've been living like a severely depressed person for about a week.) I bet people at work think either someone has died or that I really hate my job. Really I'm just questioning if I could ever be truly happy outside of academia, never really exploring the governing dynamics of human behavior. I'm still getting a "no" from my gut... I also think I might not hold it together well. I've considered sending emails, but I would irrationally believe it was my fault if they told me I was rejected. I will just have to take the news as it comes. Sigh.

Iberian peninsula

I initiated operation "teach myself real analysis" for similar reasons. I took linear algebra under circumstances similar to yours. I had only taken calculus 1 and 2, about 5 years earlier, but needed to know linear algebra to understand graduate-level economics. I was able to enroll in a course at my university, but I received almost no benefit from it. (1) The professor's accent was so thick no one could understand her. (I think she was aware of this because she did teach using power point. To date that is the only math course I have taken that used power point for the lecture notes.) Everyone in the class used the slide printouts and old tests to learn the material. (2) I ordered my textbook online and it turned out to be in Chinese. I supplemented the lecture notes (which were mainly proofs) with Wikipedia. In the end, I got a B in the course. (Booo! Why didn't I do my homework?!) Considering that I was still a little punk back then, and that I was always lost during the lectures, I'm still sort of amazed that I remember what I learned. I'm also still a little resentful that I didn't have the option of taking the course online. I think learning linear algebra using the MIT open course will be fine. The majority of linear algebra is either straightforward or something to be memorized. The trickiest parts of linear algebra come from the proofs, but you probably won't need to memorize any proofs to use Matlab or other software. You are welcome to PM me if you come across any sample problems you can't work. I'm in a linear algebra-based course right now so the practice is welcome. (After all, I do want to teach this stuff one day. )

give lip

little bites

marginal change

road runner (i'm glad i'm not the only one losing my patience with other drivers lately...)

every minute

Ditto. I'm pretty sure that when (if) I quit, the grant paying for my job could fund 2 or 3 grad students. It kills me to know that I'm taking their opportunity, especially if they're going through the same agony I am. Still I would not mention that I was leaving until I had an official letter of offer of admission, which represents a binding contract, from my future school's graduate school.

gross out

I agree. I received a nice email informing me that I was waitlisted because of funding, and I responded with a "thank you for notifying me so quickly" and "I look forward to corresponding with you in the future." Since funding was mentioned in the original email, I didn't feel it was necessary to express concern over it. I probably would have if it were merely an unfunded offer. Either way, responding politely and enthusiastically to the email can't hurt you.

nod off

grandfather clause

I started with an interdisciplinary degree in international studies, with minors in econ and Spanish. By my senior year, I realized that I didn't know enough of anything to get a job. It's probably because I didn't major in math to begin with. (The opposite of you guys?) Instead of being advised about my future, it felt like I had gone to a Montessori school for college. I ended up with enough hours to get three BAs (after a couple more years), with a minor in math.