My low of this week is that I’m going under. Throughout the second semester, I’ve been having a decently easy time. I’ve had a manageable amount of work due every week, and on weeks with a lot of deadlines, I’ve been able to get ahead so that I don’t have a ton to do all at once. 

Not now. Apparently, all of my professors have decided to work together to make me as stressed as humanly possible. This blog will be my ranting space, because I really just need to complain. I can’t call my parents, because they get annoyed that they’re paying for an education that makes me chronically stressed. I can’t talk to my friends, because they have their own problems to deal with. Therefore, I’ll talk to the blog.

Number 1 and 2 stressors are my exams next week. Two of my classes are VERY exam centered – in one of them (Econ 304H), every exam is worth 25% of our final grade, and the final is 50%. The exams are HARD, and the time pressure makes them even more stressful. 

I have an exam in Econ 304H next Tuesday, which already makes next week what I call a “hell-week.” The majority of this week and any time I can manage this weekend will have to be dedicated to studying for 304H. The preparation time needed for every exam is immense (for mediocre grades, I might add).

I won’t be able to study a lot over the weekend because I have to travel to New Jersey for a horse show, which is twelve total hours of driving. I can’t do work in the car because I get carsick, and I can’t do work while I’m at the show because I have to help run it. That means I lose the entire weekend of studying, and it puts my study schedule far behind what I would like it to be. 

As if a 304 exam and a lack of weekend study time wasn’t enough to make next week a hell week, I have another exam on Thursday. The difficulty of this exam is on me, not so much on the material. The class isn’t nearly as difficult as 304H, but I really struggle to pay attention. My professor has a soothing, monotone voice that just puts me to sleep. Yes, it’s my fault that I don’t really know what’s going on, but it’s still stressing me out. I don’t have time to study adequately, because I’m too busy preparing for 304H. 

Finally, CAS is adding to my stress levels (sorry professor Bedell). Typically, I enjoy going to CAS and doing the work. That being said, at the beginning of every major research project, I find myself panicking. Enter the issue brief. I’m mega stressing because I’m afraid there won’t be enough to write about on my topic. I’m afraid I won’t be able to back up my solution or frame my problem adequately, but that I won’t figure out I picked a bad topic until I actually sit down to write. If I pick a bad topic and realize too late, I will have wasted a ton of time researching and it will be impossible to change everything. I had a traumatic research paper experience in high school, where I ended up changing the majority of my paper right before it was due because there wasn’t enough evidence for my topic. I did not do well on the paper, lost three days of sleep, and that whole experience scarred me badly enough that I panic every time a research paper is mentioned. I’m deathly afraid of picking a bad topic. 

This blog is my way of killing two birds with one stone: my need to complain, and my need to get my blog done. Sorry my problems are boring and trivial. I know they are, in the grand scheme of things, but they really don’t feel that way. 

My high this week is that I can yawn without pain. Now my body can express its exhaustion (truly, I’m exhausted) by fully opening my jaw, a luxury I have not had since my wisdom-tooth extravaganza (see my last blog for details). 

Overall, I hope everyone else is doing better than I am. And if you’re not, I hope reading this can reassure you that you’re not alone in the pain of the second wave of midterms. 6 more weeks guys. 6 more weeks.