Pre-grad school bucket lists...

[GardeningGrad]

Hip-hip-hurray for the making of your Stressful and Life-Changing decision... where to go to grad school! While I am out-of-my-mind-excited about the upcoming years studying my passions and being trained to better contribute to to world, I admit the move is bittersweet. My mid-August transition to the midwest - alone - from my comfortable life with friends and family nearby is a bit unnerving. While my life isn't changing immediately - I will continue at my 8-5 job until July - I've wondered how to make the most of now. Do some pre-grad school reading? buy a computer? get my finances in order? sleep... a lot? hike the Appalachian trail? visit friends?

How are you planning on making the most of this summer of expectation. How will you say goodbye to places, people, and seasons of life? or prepare for your new life as a student (again)? what's your Spring/Summer 2011 pre-grad school bucket list?

[Ludwig von Dracula]

Wow, good question.

Finish last few thesis revisions, submit it, forget about it for a while, maybe come back to it later and start condensing into article.

Get some reading in: a few fat fantasy novels that I've been waiting to get through, as well as some scholarly books and papers that have been on the back burner but with which I want to be a bit more familiar before the Ph.D. starts.

Work out visa issues and get finances etc. in order for the big international move. Also secure housing! (actually needs to be done ASAP)

Clean out our apartment here, decide what's going and what's staying, move our stuff out.

Take road trip to the West Coast, since we probably won't be this close to it again for a long time. Really glad we did the Yukon/Alaska road trip last summer.

Take vacation with my wife to the British Isles (first overseas trip together).

Maybe try to finish a short story I've been working on for years.

That should be enough to keep me busy for 4 months...

[tkovach05]

Mine is going to be more of a saying goodbye to Cleveland bucket list, since I'm moving to DC for grad school. I've lived here my entire life and love the city like crazy, but I definitely need a change of scenery. Plus, as I plan on selling my car, I won't be able to come back home very often (maybe 3 times a year). So, here is a start of the things I need and want to do this summer:

1.) Let my boss know I am going to grad school so I can get my final affairs in order at work

2.) Visit the Cleveland Zoo after their new African Elephants exhibit opens on May 5

3.) Visit the Cleveland Museum of Art at least one more time

4.) Go to Burning River Fest at Whiskey Island (late July)

5.) Visit Great Lakes Brewing Co. as many times as humanly possible

6.) Attend at least 1 Cleveland Indians game this summer (hopefully before they eventually regress towards the mean)

7.) Take a trip to Milwaukee to visit my sister, brother-in-law, and niece

8.) Sell my car

9.) Go to Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky

10.) Get my financials in order (pay off remaining credit card debt, get loans squared away for school next year)

I'll add to this as I come up with other stuff. It should be a busy summer; I start school at the end of August and am planning to finish working at the end of July.

[sls144]

What an excellent question!

I am moving from Pittsburgh to Knoxville and I am very excited about the move. This summer I will be returning to my old place of employment for two months until I make the final move to Tennessee during the middle of July. I already have a busy few months lined up, but here's a few more things I'd like to do:

1. Finish the rest of James Patterson novels I've bought recently (Alex Cross and Michael Bennett)

2. Trout fish some of my favorite streams in central and western PA (Slippery Rock Creek, East Fork AND First Fork of the Sinnemahoning River, Salmon Run, Trout Run)

3. Kayak the Slippery Rock gorge with my twin brother

4. Brush up on some A&P stuff from undergrad/post-bacc (school related I know, but a must!)

5. Kentucky Derby in-field with some friends from back home!

6. Hike part of the North Country Trail in Tionesta, PA

7. Clean up my apartment in Pittsburgh and move everything into storage (my parents garage) until July

8. Get my car fixed for the massive amount of miles I'm going to (continue to) put on it in the coming years.

9. Work my butt off to make enough money to pay for the first 6 months of my apartment (just a personal goal).

10. Have fun and spend as much time as possible as I can with my girlfriend before school starts back up and we are both busy once again.

[mnturk]

Going to Hawaii to visit my family & watch my brother graduate from high school before I can't go home for another long period of time.

Reading all the books I bought thinking I'd have time this year.

Training for a marathon...I really want to complete one sometime this year if possible.

Moving into a new apartment (!!!) and getting everything organized (selling, donating as much stuff as possible).

Go hiking as much as possible to train for hiking the Grand Canyon during Thanksgiving break (if we get one).

Losing the 15 lbs I gained during undergrad so I can gain it all back over the next 6 years.

[Gaijin Punch]

Good topic.

Moving from Vancouver to Toronto. I'll be working at my job until the end of July so I will be super busy until then, but in between the daily grind:

- Go camping on Canada Day long weekend

- Eat as much sushi and fresh seafood as possible

- Get my car ready for storage in my parents garage

- Go in early August to Toronto to find a place to live

- See as many Whitecaps FC games as possible

- Hang out with close friends and family as much as I can

- Develop a workout regime that I can continue when I move

- Visit Kits beach / Spanish Banks a few times during the summer

[emmm]

Currently loading up on math and programming classes (BUT AUDITING EVERYTHING!!! -- which I've never done before and which is amazingly fun -- still doing the HW and exams, but NO STRESS!!), will travel and read background material over the summer (classes originally taken a very looooooong time ago).

[farnsworth]

Finish the Dark Tower series (only two books left)

Universal Studios Orlando (just want to go to theme park and have some fun while I can)

Not a lot of stuff, but then I have to start getting ready to basically start over.

[thesnout]

I'm moving from Southern Ontario to Alberta. My first time living outside of Ontario so I'm excited and nervous.

My summer bucket list.

1. Work full time and make as much loot as I can.

2. Transfer all medical records. Dealing with a rare illness sucks but oh well. Gotta take everything with me.

3. Start visiting family and friends before I leave.

4. Visit all my favourite places. Niagara Falls, Toronto museums (i love museums!!), my favourite parks, Lakeshore beaches (gosh I'll miss biking along the Lake), St. Jacob's farmers market and mennonite country, Elmira, Fergus.

5. I just realized how much I'm going to miss. Okay now I'm getting teary eyed.

6. Drive the 25min to Stratford to find Justin Bieber and stalk him. hehe

7. Get a good workout plan until I can find a trainer/physio.

8. Enjoy the Spring and Summer. Prepare for the bitter cold of Calgary's winter.

That's all I can think of. So excited.

[Alyanumbers]

This won't be easy. I'll be leaving post-revolution Egypt for at least 5-6 years, and there's so much I still haven't done or seen here.

1. Take a trip around Sinai; I need to see Dahab one last time, at least.

2. Go to the White Desert (this is highly contingent on having the time and money, since I'm saving up for the Big Move).

3. Take a programming course.

4. Brush up on my languages, especially Latin and Armenian, as well as Arabic grammar.

ETA: Oh and, 5. Learn to drive and get a driver's license.

... I think that's it? Most of the summer will be spent packing anyway.

Edited April 29, 2011 by Alyanumbers

[ogopo]

I'm moving from Vancouver, BC to Madison, WI and I have a pile of things I need to do before I go.

1. Finish thesis

then I can...

2. Help SO move his things for his job in a small town.

3. Move back in with my parents.

4. Travel frequently between SO and parents.

5. Spend time with my niece and nephew so they don't forget who I am.

6. Go hiking a few times.

7. Learn Perl

8. Learn about the topic I will be studying.

9. Maybe do some field work?

10. Spend time with my friends so they don't forget who I am.

[amandacarol1215]

1) Graduate May 8th!

2) Clean out my apartment, donating and selling as much as I can

3) Move in with the family I nanny for over summer

4) Pay off credit card debt, and save money

5) Work at Camp Quality Ohio one more time

6) Figure out where I'm living come August

7) Fully enjoy my kindle

8) Move!

[Amalia222]

I'm going to Honduras to go scuba diving for 10 days. I used to work there as a scuba instructor and I want a last "hurrah" before grad school. Also, if my old cat is still there, I'm going to adopt him and take him back to grad school with me. Can't wait!

[neuropsych76]

I wish I had a more interesting pre-grad school bucket list...

i finished my thesis so really all i have planned is find an apartment and get a summer job. i'll most likely have a really lame summer before grad school. i would have loved to travel around the world but there's the money thing...

[hejduk]

i'll most likely have a really lame summer before grad school.

Right there with you. Gotta make some $$ for the move, apartment deposit, etc.

[beanbagchairs]

I'm getting married over the summer. Then, I'll start my PhD in the fall, which means I'll be in a LDR until SO is able to either find a job/school near me.

Talk about getting crazy...

Hopefully everything will work out.

[Arcadian]

1. Vacation with girlfriend

2. Spend time with friends

3. Read

4. Think about possible projects for grad school

5. Look at apartments

6. Sell a bunch of crap

Edited April 29, 2011 by Arcadian

[lose one thing]

My pre-Grad school bucket list includes

-working

-skydiving (might as well try this before I write my thesis!)

-camping

-drinking bellini's in the backyard

-soaking up the sun (the library does not provide adequate doses of Vitamin D during the school year).

-polishing a paper for publication

-finding a place to live

-paperwork. Moving across the country apparently takes a lot of preparation!

-finishing RA work

-not killing my co-workers

-spending as much time with friends and family as possible. I will miss all of the wonderful people in my life dearly!!

[adinutzyc]

I want to travel in Europe as much as I can (I am from Europe so I'm basically going home over the summer and then we'll see from there).

But until then, I have to finish 2 exams, homework, lab report, poster presentation, defend my thesis, graduate in a week and a half, have my mom over (for the first time in the States yey), pack 4 years of college until June 1st, go to ST Louis, find an apartment and move in before June 14th. Pay for said apartment.

Work on a game with a friend is also on my list, as well as learning more about my research field, and maybe work on a computer game with a friend over Skype

This is all causing me pain, especially anxiety attacks, but whatever. If there is something I have learned in 23 years of living is that everything works itself out. I mean the material things. Also, I have refused job offers over the summer, because I figure this'll be my last summer vacation, ever, and I haven't really had one in 4 years, so I might as well relax. I will be earning more than a decent amount of money once the school year starts...

Now, more pressing issue: HOW DO I FIND AN APARTMENT?????!!! (

[runningreader]

My plan for the rest of the summer is to...

1. ... spend as much time as possible with friends and family before I move.

2. ... read some works by my future profs, just to feel them out a bit more.

3. ... do as little as possible.

4. ... read FOR FUN!

[ZeeMore21]

Finding a job hasn't worked out for me this summer, but I guess it works out for the best...get to spend quality time with family, cook and bake like crazy, finish up on my knitting projects, and most importantly, read books that I want to read!

[lsanman]

Soooo excited for doing AS LITTLE AS POSSIBLE.

But beyond that...

1. Get a tan (so I can lose it come fall)

2. Run/yoga

3. Finish all the epic fantasy series i've been meaning to read or re-read

4. Volunteer

5. Explore the lovely state of Ohio

6. Enjoy friends and the boyfriend

So nice to relax!

[lsanman]

Oh, and get my wisdom teeth out. Grown-up WIN.

[lasgirl]

I'm working as a flight attendant and squeezing in as many trips as legally possible - thirteen countries so far, including seven I'd never been to before Making as much money as possible, which allowed me to pay off my credit card debt this week (been carrying it around for years!) and now to start saving for a terribly expensive move to NYC! I'm hoping to have enough saved by the end of the summer to cover first/last/deposit on an apartment/room, plus enough to cover moving costs and setting up in the city

[Langoustine]

Uuuugh! Everyone told me to have a grand 'ole time my last summer before grad school but I can't! I need to make money for the move and apartment expenses, blah, blah, blah...so it's work for me, which isn't too bad. I've squashed two jobs in this summer field season and they have both taken me to parts of the country I have never seen before so that's something!