Tag Archives: academic

Personal

“Zero, you have been called… Show of hand please”

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Today, I wandered about Dallas to get my mind off of stress from family, the office, and my hobbling financial status. It was a fun day and ended well. I would come home to my office and see 2 envelopes from Texas A&M Commerce on Suzaku’s keyboard. I was expecting bad news… especially because one of the envelopes was thick enough to kill a man.

I had expected the thin one to be my “rejection” and a message of “See the next letter as to why… because we can’t fit it in this envelope.” Then the second one to be the “here’s why you fail at life” explanation on why I was rejected. I took my favorite lockblade knife and used it as a crude letter opener. I figure may as well open the thinner of the two first to take it in stride. The thinner letter was odd… It had stated that I was able to set-up my campus e-mail with the online account management. I was a bit weirded out thinking “Why would they tell me that..? What’s the bloody status on my acceptance?!” So wild frenzy told me to gut open the bombshell in an envelope… On opening it, I saw the strain I was looking for:

Congratulations! We’re pleased to inform you that your application to Texas A&M University – Commerce for the Fall 2008 semester has been reviewed and accepted. We take great pride in welcoming you as a new member of an outstanding student body whose accomplishments and contributions to society are many.

My family was asleep so I couldn’t rouse them from my sleep… but earlier in the day, I had bought a 200ml flask of Jagermeister to keep on hand for when there was a time I needed it. After seeing that letter… there was only one thing to do.


“It’s a celebration, bitches” – Rick James

A shot for my hard efforts finally going somewhere and then another shot to celebrate that my life is finally turning around for the better. The savory herbs with a hint of sweet caramel flavors in the liquor made it quite a good aperitif from the great dinner I had. Life is great again and I hope that it may only get better!

Personal

Staking in for the Blind and Showing of Hands – Texas A&M Commerce

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So today I took a journey to Commerce, Texas and take a gamble on my academic fate. A friend needed me to be navigator, but also found out that Texas A&M Commerce has a pre-pharmacy program. I figured “what’s the harm of sitting 1 hour in a car to navigate?” because ultimately, it could benefit me. If the event was a bust, then it wouldn’t be like going “all in” but rather folding my hand of cards. It wasn’t much something out of the ordinary, as I arise at 8am… but with torn glutes, quads, and hams… It makes for a difficult task to want to get out of a warm bed.

After brushing fangs and forgetting to mix my whey protein shake for breakfast, I’d make a beeline to my friend’s house to rendezvous with them for our trip. For once, traffic in Dallas was favorably nice! I had never been out to East Texas, so seeing the real country side was interesting. The amusing part for me was seeing a Carl Jr’s out on I30 East as that restaurant was a mythical restaurant that didn’t exist in the south, until today. The boring nothing was spontaneously broken up with scenic views of lakesides and the nice overcast sky with the clouds peeping out. The journey took an hour, but traffic was not as bad as my friend had predicted. Being avant garde made us extremely early, because our tour was scheduled at 2pm and it was 11am. I’d throw in my application and just inform them that I was going to have my school submit my transcripts via fax or mail. They have a policy of not eating the application fee unless acceptance is confirmed.

The next phase was to do “logistics” and locate shops for provisions. There was a Wal-Mart across I50 from the school. There are some fast food restaurants not too far away. The funny part is that there’s a liquor store about a short walk from the campus. An O’Reilly’s is about a short distance from the school, should I need car parts on short notice.

After eating a quick lunch and ratting around Wal-Mart for logistical reasons… We wandered back to the campus to prepare for the tour. It was brisk tour in the 40F cold with gusting winds, so it was not a pleasant for an experience. Our guide was great and quick… I was impressed by the facilities. The recreation center looked vast, but we didn’t explore there. The overview of the facilities revealed something very slick, a rock climbing cylinder! Something I’d kill to tackle after getting my arms back in shape… Most of the buildings are either being built or being upgraded, though some of the new buildings (1-2 years old) look great! The sciences building (where I will probably spend the bulk of my studies) looks like a pleasant environment to be in. After looking into things like transfer requirements and what essential courses I need to polish up on.

I like the campus, dearly. To be isolated in Commerce, away from the buzz of Dallas and the suburbs will keep me from wanting to spend a single dollar locally on weekdays to minimize my expenses. That and to be separated from “civilization” will allow me to concentrate on my studies. For once, I could care less about civilization and the metroplex. The big break from my family to be able to concentrate on my school work is the biggest incentive. The final hurdle is my coursework which I hope I just touch the 2.0 minimal GPA, after that, it’s more on me to pray I can get federal aid or loans for the $6,000 – $8,000 tuition.

For now… I hope that things work out for me, because I want to excel high. I would like to keep this as a surprise to my family if I get accepted… because I know right now, they see me as a “failure” or a pathetic buffoon. To be fair to myself, I have been slaving at my toiling to succeed. With fighting my personal demons, academic redemption, and debt, my mind has not been able to vector on progressing further with my education. I know Sol has witnessed me fall and pick myself up from shambles… With my supportive friends, they have helped mend and sew me together. I will fight on, because I know that I can succeed. I savor success and crave victory… I just wonder if family will cheer me on if I am accepted. If they do, then good. If not, then I shall hold myself high and stand proud.

Pictures are now online via my Flickr, enjoy! – ZeroXR

Pale Solar Flare
Pale Solar Flare

Expanse of Nothingness
Expanse of Nothingness

Gloomy Horizon
Gloomy Horizon

Commerce Sign
Commerce Sign

Personal

Finals, Excitement, and a Reprive

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So my last few finals are today and tomorrow. I am fighting to do battle with a paper on evaluating a symphony and sleep is killing me. Let this be a lesson to myself: I shall learn better than to procrastinate on something absolutely vital to my academic success. Don’t get me wrong, I love the topic I am writing about, but after a week of drama, rage, high speeds, and coffee… It has reduced me to a crawling pace. Once it’s all over, then my pain shall be uplifted from me from academics.

Work is getting better, I think. Progress at the office has been wonderful with regard to the new lady working with me. She fulfills the term “partner” very well as she works with me rather than being a hindrance to me. My recognition for my merits have been growing from both my superiors as well as my clients. This has bumped my morale up a notch, so I am feeling rather good about it.

I am already looking forward to the weekend as it will be good to kick back and relax. My cousin Sol is coming back in town and we’re looking to kick it “old skool“. I will also be able finally relax and rebuild on the tattered remains of my life and attempt to get it back on track. I am also trying to hastily speed up the rate of repayment to my parents so I can be square with them for their assistance. I just hope that an end to the nightmare is coming soon. I know I could use it.