Holidays just around the corner...

Photo from my birthday

Yippeee!! Holiday time!! This week sure was a long week! This time we had 7 weeks of university before break and by the 7^th week study became exhausting!

On Monday my new genetics course began on human molecular genetics. Waahhhhh I miss BIOL341!!!! We had a lecture on immunology!!! I haven’t done anything on immunology since first year biology! It was a bit overwhelming really, and I greatly missed chromosomes and heritability!!! Good old 40 formulas that we had to memorize for our test! At the beginning of class time our lecturer came in and we got our test papers back.

I didn't realise how much I worried about my genetics test until Monday morning when I put my pants on. Ok I'll tell the story. On Saturday me and Mum and Dad went in to Wellington and I wore my new pants. They fit fine. Then on Monday morning put them on...and they could barely hold on my waist! I couldn't believe I lost weight that weekened from worrying about the test!! I didn't realise I worried so much about that genetics test! ...now I wear a belt with those pants...

Anyway, I got an A- for the test and a B for the overall genetics course! Ok so I officially broke my New Year resolution about getting straight As. Sigh. Oh well, nobody’s perfect. And a B is good too so I’m pretty happy! Yea!! …But I’m just so sad that the course is over! It tops the chart of being my favourite course taken at University! (up until now my favourite course was BIOL116-Human reproduction, sexuality and evolution).

The good news was that our BIOL341 genetics lecturer would also be teaching a part of this genetics course BIOL342!! Yea! It felt so strange on Monday getting a power point presentation by our new lecturer. I was so used to overheads by now (what our genetics lecturer used) that a power point presentation seemed incredibly foreign. Basically I spent the day complaining about how much I missed genetics. The good news was that the immunology lectures would not be examined. Thank goodness! It was all so foreign to me!

On Tuesday I had my media lecture, but my mind was in the wrong place because I kept thinking about my lab assignment that was due on Thursday. It was so confusing and it gave me so much worry! Grrr I really don’t like PCR! I never want to do it again! For our assignment we had to design a PCR experiment…evil is all I say!!!

On Wednesday we had another lecture on immunology (it was ok, I was kind of getting used to it…sort of anyway), and then I spent the remainder of the day pounding over my assignment. Sigh. Then on Thursday we had the lab which was very short thank goodness. I was so sick of PCR labs, they were not very fun at all, So much to do, so many calculations and in the end nothing worked! Our evil evil evil assignment was also due that day, and luckily I finished it. We also have to write a lab report for PCR but luckily that is due in after the holidays, so I haven’t started worrying about it yet.

So now that I’ve passed genetics and finished my PCR assignment you’d think I can relax. But nooo I still had a media studies essay due in the next day! Spent the entire evening and Friday morning writing it! But compared to the lab assignment the essay was actually enjoyable to write! We had to write a close reading essay based on one of the articles from the course reader. Our tutorials this year are actually getting quite productive, and I’m starting to enjoy them. I think it’s because of our tutor, he is very good at explaining ideas and concepts and this makes the tutorial interesting. He also told us what he expects from us in our essays so at least we have guidance. Unlike last years English course where we were never told anything useful in the tutorials! Media is not like that and I am glad!

On Friday we had our final lecture on immunology. After the holidays we would have our lecturer from 2^nd year genetics taking us so we’re used to his lecture style already. That’s good. We also got an essay to write over the holidays on genetic diseases, to compensate for not having the immunology unit examined. That’s ok, I don’t mind writing essays! At least it's not calculations. Should be interesting!... That would mean that in the holidays I would have a lab report and an essay to write, and I also have to catch up on my media lectures. And of course relax and do nothing! That day after my genetics lecture I handed in my essay and went home. Yippeee!!!! Holidays have officially begun!!! JJJ