For kids in the Class of 2020, next year is like a mythical promised land — it has always been a set of numbers too neat and far-off to be true. Until now.
Looking back on a decade
The end of the year
Waist-deep in the relaxing, lethargic ooze that is called Winter Break, I’m blinking at the realization that the next chapter is right in front of our noses. Before it’s too late, I better recap my life since I last posted, and jot down some expectations for the next year.
My life has pleasantly lined up so that Wednesday marks more than a new year or decade, but also a new phase of my life. As someone in the Class of 2020, next year I will be graduating from college, taking my gap year, and applying/(getting in?) to medical schools. After that is the rest of my career until I retire.
But as much as pre-professionalism occupies my mind, I am keenly aware that I have grown in ways that a resume can’t encapsulate. I think I have had my most stable year thus far because I am finally embodying better confidence, perspective, and contentment in my everyday life. Even though I haven’t been attending therapy this year, I couldn’t have gotten to this point without supportive friends and family. It also helps that, with the privilege of my position in society, I’ve passed the challenging checkpoints of my career path on the first try (pre-med classes, MCAT).
Continue readingMonthly Me (Sept. ’19)
First botany class field trip 
Even after studying for the MCAT all summer, there was still an adjustment to school starting. From reuniting with the farmers market, overcoming my new STEM classes, and catching up with my roommates, I’d say this month was a success!
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Seattle
A few days after my MCAT exam, my family flew out to Seattle to visit my sister, who works there.
It was my first time in Seattle and Northwest America in general! It was a little chillier than I would have liked for late August, but I was impressed by the plentiful waters and the mountains, rugged and rug-like with their thick carpet of evergreens.
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Elementary: The Finale
Y’all…a show that I started watching when I was fourteen ended this week. I’m currently 21 and already missing these characters dearly.
I’m hardly coherent so here are my bulleted thoughts on what I thought was so great and fitting about this last episode (in semi-chronological order)
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Elementary: The Final Season – It’s Ending!
The Reichenbach storyline is a classic one in Sherlock Holmes, but I am still anxious as hell about how this season is wrapping up — I am not ready for this show to end!
Continue readingMonthly Me (July ’19)
Brunch on brunch 
Propagating my spider plants again 
July alternated between me getting scorched on my walk to work and days of relentless flood warnings blowing up my phone. There was even a flood warning during the Fourth of July party at my house — though luckily we grilled and chatted without a drop of rain. I think that party I hosted was the highlight of my summer. I’ve never grilled by myself before, never ordered a plethora of party supplies from Instacart…the chopped watermelon, Arnold Palmer, and patties were a huge hit!
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Self-care during a summer of studying
Ah, mental health during the summer — this summer marks the first time in a year that I’m not in the therapy, and I am also studying for my MCAT exam in August while having a part-time job. Certainly not the worst of circumstances, but wellness has been on my mind!
I can talk about my pre-med experience in another post, but since I’m preparing for the MCAT to make up for a lackluster GPA, it is hard to take study breaks without feeling guilty. However, I’m still making it a point to practice self-care through these ways:
- Growing plants, caring for bouquets
- Going to the farmers market and getting said bouquet
- Watching the new Elementary episodes every Friday
- Enjoying the NEW PANERA BREAD that opened on my campus. For those who don’t know, I’m a FIEND for Panera Bread.
Elementary: The Final Season – Episode 7 & 8
Finally, after two straight episodes with blah murder mysteries, Episode 7 — From Russia with Drugs — actually brings an interesting case. Aaaand then episode 8 has to be a big yawn again.
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