Semester One, Over!

Hey, all!

The last week of my first semester in Australia ended on Friday! This week is study week and final exams are the next two and a half weeks after that. I only have one final and it is toward the end of the final session- June 22 in the morning. My sister come in on my birthday, next Thursday (June 15) and is here until June 21 and I'm excited for the small adventures we're going to have. I kinda wished she had waited until after my exam, but it's okay. Things will work out in the end. My parents visit June 24-July 8 and we will be traveling a good portion of Australia and I'm really excited for that! Expect a lot of pictures and updates around that time!

So! This passed week! It was very busy with three assignments/assessments all within 48 hours of each other. A test in the morning on Thursday and a group presentation later that same day with a 2200 word essay due the next day by midnight. Luckily, the teacher was kind enough to extend the tutorial report to a week later. I don't feel I did too well on the test as I didn't really feel like I had a lot of time to study for it, with a lot of other assessments coming up, especially with the essay. The group presentation went fine, I think. The essay I wrote in less than six hours as I had just finished reading the necessary sources that afternoon. Through Wednesday night and Friday morning (so those 48 hours), I only had 8 hours of sleep total. I was super tired by the end of the essay. My piece of advice to you: do NOT wait until the last minute to do any assignment, but especially essays. Starting reading the sources as soon as you are able and allocate time to do that. That was where I failed this semester and I will work hard to remedy that next semester, if I'm able to pass 3/4 of my classes.

It didn't help that Thursday evening/night, I went out to dinner with a group of people to celebrate a friend's birthday, but I wanted to be there for her and celebrate. Ever since these essays have popped up, I haven't been as social as I would have liked. Things turned out okay, so it's fine. For dinner, we went to a food court that had a ton of different kinds of Asian food- Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese, etc. I ended up having ramen since I had never really had ramen before. It was so delicious and I wasn't able to finish it off, but I got close.

Friday, I was planning on going to a club's end of semester dinner, but I had to ditch that so I could finish the essay. It makes me sad, but it's what had to be done. I hope I will have more chances to hang out with them later!

I went to sleep Friday night/Saturday morning about 1/2 am and ended up sleeping until about 12:30pm Saturday afternoon. I could have easily slept more, but I feared I wouldn't be able to sleep until late. Not that it mattered, as I ended up staying up until 2am again. I woke up today (Sunday) around 11 am to try and get my sleep schedule back on track. We'll see how well that goes since it's 12:30am as I am writing this. Whoo!

This upcoming week will probably be busy, but in a good way. I have a couple of appointments, one to see if I can get my ADHD helped and one to continue helping my hips and low back. I am also making plans to go to a movie with a group of friends at some point this week. In between all of that, I need to complete the tutorial report, which should be easy, and study for the anatomy final exam.

I think that's it for now! Until next time!

^^: Loud birds chirping up a storm in the dusk time.

 ^^: I've been getting so cold recently and this was one of the times I just couldn't seem to get very warm easily. I had one scarf around my neck (turquoise) and another scarf wrapped around my head and ears as a hat, haha! I thought it looked funny, but it helped keep me warm.

 ^^: A set up that I saw while we were walking to the food court!

^^: Ramen! It was a miso-based soup with a bunch of other yummy things!

Semester One Last Week!

Hey, all!

This is the last week of the semester, not including the final exam period! I have so many things to do this week! I have an anatomy test on Thursday, I have a group presentation also on Thursday, I have a 2200 word essay on Australian politics due Friday, and a 500 word tutorial report also due on Friday. I finished an online quiz for a class today and it was pretty easy. I still need to study for the test, research the topic for the group presentation, and read and take notes on the sources for the essay. So much to do, but it's the last week! I'm excited! I have one final for anatomy and it is on June 22. I will need to study a lot for that exam!

Not a whole lot happened this passed week. I procrastinated, but mainly because I was extremely tired again and couldn't seem to build the energy up to do anything except go to class, but paying attention was really difficult, whether in lecture, tutorial, or even in the videos I watched while procrastinating. /: Oh well... I'll be doing a lot of work this week, haha!

Monday, I spoke with the apartment manager of the Village and spoke about the problems I've been having with my roommates and how I've never really felt welcomed by them. He said he was going to try and set up a room change for me and I won't have to pay any fees, which makes me happy.

Tuesday, I got some free pancakes from the Village and their pancake event. They were delicious and the first I've had in a while.

Saturday, I was going to have dinner with friends after their karaoke event, but they didn't update the Facebook event page to where and by the time they asked if I still wanted to go, it was close to an hour after the karaoke event had ended and I had just made my dinner when they asked. So I told them to enjoy and I will be there for the next dinner event.

Sunday, today, not much happened, but I went through Shinsa, or grading, in Taido, the martial arts I started in Australia. It was a little nerve-wracking, but it was fun and I was able to encourage so many others who were also trying to go up a belt. I, and so many others, were able to go up a belt and I am now a purple, 6 kyu, belt! I may be able to do the next Shinsa in ~6 months, if I am still in Australia and go up to purple, 5 kyu, but I will have to give the belt back before I leave for America as Arizona does not have a Taido group, unfortunately.  Afterwards, we went to McDonald's and it was such a new experience! They had soo many screens where you could order from and then you would go to the pick up corner (if take out) or they would deliver to you (supposedly; if you chose the dine in option). Everything was so high-tech! I got medium fries and an Oreo McFlurry. My body didn't like the McFlurry, but it's okay- I don't have it that often (that was my first one in ~5 years).

Well, that's all for now. Until next time!

 ^^: The pancakes I had!

 ^^: This was the McDonald's pickup area. The person on the right is someone from Taido!

^^: Me in the dress that I got last weekend when I found a mall and went searching for a warm jacket (which I did find).

Week 12, Start!

Hey, all!

This is the second to last week of school for the semester! This passed week was very busy and exciting!

Monday, I went to some friends' place to help make the food we were going to sell at an event for the club on Tuesday! We got there about 7:30pm and started preparing. We were making onigiri and mitarasu dango! It was a very long process, even with everyone that was there (about 8-10 of us), but it was very fun and I was able to talk and have fun with everyone. By the time I and another left (about 12:30am), there was still a bit to do, but I had to go home and get some rest as I had a 9am lecture. I think they finished relatively soon after we left.

Tuesday, I was at the event the entire time and it was pretty smooth. We had a lot of customers within the first hour or so, but after that, it was a trickle of people and we still had quite a bit of one type of onigiri and some dango. >,< Oh well! It felt like a pretty long day, but it was still a lot of fun!

Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, not much happened. We ended up having a substitute lecturer for our anatomy lecture and will have her for this week's last class. I'm not very happy about it as it's distracting and it's hard to follow along with this new teacher's teaching style. But I will get over it, since there is just one more class. Next week is the next major test for that class and I feel like I'm not ready! I'm going to do my best with studying for it and everything else coming up in the next two weeks!

Saturday, I went to the SeaLife Sydney Aquarium through the UNSW Village and that was extremely fun and I was able to see and experience many things! They had stairs that led you deeper into water and there were tunnels where you could see the fish, sharks, etc swim over and beside you! It was a great experience! After I was done (took about 2.5-3 hours), I went exploring a bit. I looked at a couple craft stores looking for a similar yellow-ish yarn to match the one I have, but I couldn't find anything that was similar enough. Oh well, time to keep looking! When I gave up on that, I started heading to a bus stop and accidentally came across a mall! I've been looking for a warmer jacket than I currently have and I decided to check it out. The first few stores were disappointing, just because their prices were so high, even with their sale of ~20% off going on. I went to the lower ground level and was pleasantly surprised at what I found. The first store didn't really have a style I liked, so I went to the next store, not expecting much, but not only did they have great styles of coats and great prices, they had amazingly cute dresses! I wish I had had more money so I could have bought a lot more of their dresses, cardigans, and accessories! The name of the shop was Dangerfield! I bought a coat, a dress, and a couple pieces of headwear accessories! I am looking forward to wearing everything! After buying this, I started my trek home and got back safely and extremely happy about how the day had gone!

Today, not much happened. I Skyped with my parents in the US and spoke with them and wished my dad a Happy Birthday since it was his birthday for them. It was just a nice, relaxing day. I went to Taido and we all were practicing for grading, which happens next Sunday! I'm excited and a little nervous, but I'm sure everything will go fine!

I think that's all for now! Until next time!

^^: Jellyfish!

^^: Fish,etc swimming around me in the tunnel!

^^: Penguins!

 ^^: Stray kitties we came across on our way to their place to make the food! They're so cute ♥ I didn't pet one because I'm pretty allergic >,<

 ^^: Left, they have lights for bicycles as well as cars! I thought this was pretty cool! Right, it's the Yellow Submarine! I don't actually know what this place sells, but I thought it was funny since it reminded me of the song!

 ^^: Left, a cute fish thing that I don't know the name of, but it was moving so it's face was looking at me and I wanted to take a picture since it was cute! Right, a Dugong! They've been mistaken as mermaids (I think?) and are known as the mermaids of the sea!

 ^^: Left and Right: They had a bunch of artwork in the first half of the aquarium and is was great! I loved it!

 ^^ Left and Right: Penguins!

 

 ^^ Left and Right: more of a scenic shot than of anything in particular, but I liked these and you can still see the fish!

Week 11, Go!

Hey, all!

I'm a bit late with posting this and I apologize. Things caught up with me and I kept forgetting to! On the plus side, I was able to finish my essay in time and even the "possible" presentation. I did not give the presentation last week, thankfully! I will either be giving it at the end up class on Thursday or I will be one of the first people going next week! I am so glad things worked out this way as it gives me more time to prepare on what to say!

I relaxed Friday night and all day Saturday. I went to be a part of the audience for the Whovians show and that was a lot of fun! It's a show that talks about the episode of Doctor Who that just came out, among other things that are Doctor Who related. After that was done, I went to the mall to find a jacket and I sadly could not find one, but I got some other stuff from Daiso Japan, which I am really happy about!

That's all I really have to share about the last week, so...

Until next time!

 

 ^^: Fall colors and flowers <3

 ^^: Some artwork I thought was cool and some greenery!

 <<: A interesting looking building!

\/\/: More greenery, with a hint fall colors!

 ^^: More of the flowers and of the interesting building.

 << & \/\/: Some greenery around my apartment buildings!

 ^^ A slug :O

 ^^: Stuff I bought! (left) a case for papers that my teachers give back to me; (right) a pair of chopsticks and their holder <3

^^: Decorative masking tape that I bought! It was the last of that design, at least that I could see! >:D

Week 10 Begins

Hey, all!

I learned in one of my arts classes last week (the one that had the essay due last Friday- 05 May), that everyone in that tutorial needs to be prepared to give a presentation on a historical site, as it will be completely random as to how we will be chosen and to be fair to everyone. I believe she will put all of our names in a hat (or something similar) and we will be chosen that way. So I have to worry about THAT possible presentation (done on a Thursday) as well as the essay due for another arts class this week (this Friday). So I'm a bit stressed and feel like I am being spread very thinly, but I know I will manage somehow, I am just worried about quality of both the presentation and the essay. I will get through it though!

Other than that, not much has happened. I feel pretty confident with the essay I just submitted this passed Friday and the team project that was submitted last night, but I will let you guys know (roughly) how those went after I get the grades back!

I went to a comedy theatrical-like show with a few people from a club (that I am beginning to call my friends here) after submitting the essay this passed Friday. I also went to dinner with them, before the show. I had a lot of fun and really needed that rest to recuperate from the essay. Maybe I'll do something similar this weekend after the essay (and maybe presentation).

I believe that is all I have to share about this passed week and how this week will go. Enjoy the pictures I took!

Until next time!

 ^^ Left: In the last post, I posted a picture of a "path" between a line of trees and a line of bushes and in between were pink petals. This flower's petals were the ones on the ground! Right: A Bird of Paradise flower! Doesn't it look interesting? (I know we get these in the United States and I have seen a few here. I just like how they look.)

  ^^ Left: My food that I had for dinner with friends! It was Vietnamese Pho (pronounced Fuh) and it had three different kinds of beef. It was good and made me full (I was really hungry at this point). Right: A friend got a Vietnamese coffee and I thought it looked interesting!

 <<: Sitting down to enjoy the show! It was very funny and filled with a lot of puns and jokes!

\/\/: I was walking home after the show and came across this.

^^: I've come across many more Ibis since I have been in Australia! There are three in the above picture, can you find them all?

Week 8 Over, Stress Begins!

Hey, all!

Not much besides class happened this week. I got more advice from the teachers on how to do the essays that are due very soon. I won't be going to a lot of events this week as I finish reading and writing for an essay due Friday as well as the team project website due two days after that on Sunday. I have another essay due the Friday after those two assignments! It's going to be a very busy time and it's my fault for not actually starting sooner, though I knew I should have. I just kept getting distracted by things and then I would run of time for the day.

So not a lot will really happen the next week or so, but I'll try to take more pictures so I can put them in the post, even if there aren't many words to go with them.

I was in a practice fire alarm in one of my classes and I recorded it. It is so different than American (or at least Arizonan) ones, it's weird. I feel like you are less likely to sleep through these ones and they help you remain calm, but also give a sense of urgency so you can get out quickly.

I think that's all I really have for this week. So, until next time!

^^ This is their fire alarm. This isn't all of what they say, but I didn't want to stay in the building while it continued, but it is most of it. Be warned, it might be loud!

 ^^ Left: I looked over at the bed beside the walk way after class and saw the petals and then came to this vantage point to take a picture! I really like this picture! Right: I am 90% certain this is one of those stick bugs. I didn't try to move it because I didn't really want to mess with it, but I thought it was cool.

 ^^ Left: I got this as a gift from a friend and I try to remember to change it every night before I go to bed ♥ Right: My temperature blanket at 10 weeks! I'm running really low on yellow/white yarn and may not be able to get any for a while due to the essays, so this might be the last image you see if the temperature blanket for a bit.

Break Over, Week 8 Starts!

Hey all!

Not much has happened the passed few days. I read a little bit and I researched a bit, but I treated this break more as an actual break instead of the reading time I wanted it to be. Oh well, I'll manage some how. I started doing Pilates (www.blogilates.com is the website I use) again with a Beginner's Calendar (which I still haven't got passed, but that's okay). I did the first day yesterday morning (Saturday) and got up this morning with the intent to do more today, but I found that my hip was injured somehow and I could only lift it so high before it started hurting and some motions in walking hurt as did standing straight. So that wasn't fun, but again, I'll manage somehow. I'm thinking of going to a chiropractor as I have been known to have my hips needing to be adjusted (as well as my mid and low back). I went to today's Taido session to watch the proceedings and also to get some (cheap) merchandise since the uniform is quite a bit of money and I am only here (hopefully) until November and Taido doesn't exist in my state.

Class starts again tomorrow, with a day off the next day (Tuesday). I find this a bit confusing, but I'm fine with it. I'm pretty excited as that means it's that much closer to the end of the semester, but it also makes me more anxious as I have a 2000 word essay due Week 9, another 2000 word essay due Week 10, a team assignment (website) due sometime in between, and then a 2200 word essay due Week 13, the last week. I know I will be fine, but it's all coming up so fast and I fear I won't have enough time to do reading for the essays as well as for my classes. I'm sure it'll be okay, but it just doesn't feel like it (right now)!

Anyway, that's all I really have for now. Until next time!

  ^^ Left: an indoor temperature thermometer that also measures humidity. It's always pretty humid in my room and 72/73F is the constant temperature in my room (even though it doesn't feel like it sometimes). Right: I was walking someplace and came across this in a construction-ish zone. This is right above a walkway between the two sides of construction. There's nothing in the middle to support it and every time I need to go across this path, I run because, for some reason, I don't really feel same walking under that.

^^ the merchandise I bought from Taido! A bag and a keychain! I'm pretty happy with these even though I won't/can't be getting the uniform.