I'm one month in, and before I get whisked away by my first wave of midterms this week and next, I wanted to take a little time here to think through these past weeks and how much my life has changed. To think that (a little over) a month ago I either barely knew or didn't know the people I now spend most of my time with is sort of hard to wrap my head around, despite the fact that this is not my first rodeo in that regard. Last night I was talking with friends about trying to find the balance between school and fun, and we all agreed that it's hard to know whether or not you've found that balance until later, when you might regret doing too much of one or the other. Living at school adds another layer to that, because suddenly the places you study and the places you party are one and the same. Also, having been at Jumpstart with no academic responsibility makes it hard to tell yourself that it's okay that you spent all day doing homework because you're constantly comparing your level of fun and use of time to that week when you could go out every night or spend an evening watching Netflix because there was no reason not to. This week I took some more steps towards a life that finds that balance between school and fun, but I'm sure I'll get some feedback as to how balanced I really am when my first midterms are taken and graded.
I started my week with an afternoon of classes, then my first Tandem meeting. Tandem is a program through UBC where you spend an hour and a half a week teaching and learning languages. My partner is a Japanese exchange student, so while I teach her English, she teaches me Japanese. On Monday I learned some greetings and basic questions, and hopefully over the course of the next ten weeks I'll be able to learn lots more, as well as teach some of the more advanced sides of English to Ayaka. Tuesday I had my first chem lab, which was an overall mediocre experience. It was a little hectic and stressful but it went fine, I just don't find myself particularly looking forward to the next one. Hopefully I'll have reason to change that next time, but for now I'm putting off doing the lab report part in hopes that it will magically disappear...
Wednesday, and most of the days this week, was a beautiful day, albeit a little cold. Between my chem and computer science classes I ate lunch with the usual group plus a few, and we ended up sitting outside in the sun for a little while to enjoy it while it lasted. After classes that day I did some chemistry studying with friends from class before going back to get dinner and finish my work in my room. Thursday was my long day, but I was able to get lunch and dinner with friends, and thankfully my 3-hour comp sci lab didn't take much more than an hour, so it wasn't an unmanageable day.
Friday, UBC had its own climate strike, so Amy and I went with some friends in the late morning to join thousands of students on campus. A large group of the people there went downtown to participate in the Vancouver strike, which had a huge turnout, but we ended up staying on campus for the afternoon. We were all very tired that evening, so we stayed in and I went to bed so I could get up for yet another early Saturday morning. This week, it was to row!! I found a local rowing club that has a very casual recreational program, and yesterday I went to try it out. I got up at 6:15 to take the bus over and get there around 7:45, and although I did get a little lost trying to find it, once I did I had a great time. I went out in a double with a woman who does postdoc research at UBC and we spent an hour and a half or so on the most beautiful water I had rowed on. It wasn't far from where the dragon boat team operates out of, and we rowed down False Creek and English Bay alongside Stanley Park and by Granville Island. In the protected waters of False Creek it was perfectly flat, and the half of the row we spent in there was some of the best rowing I think I've ever done. I'm really looking forward to joining the club and being able to row at a level that fits me well!! Look forward to lots of pictures from False Creek in the future:)
After the row, I came home and showered and ate, then Amy and I went over to UBC Farm's Farmers' Market where I got some locally grown apples (that are quite good). We went to the grocery store as well, then came back and did some work before going to get an early dinner at a restaurant called the Point with our friends Esther and Lilly. Then, Esther, Amy, and I went down to Wreck Beach to watch the sunset which was as beautiful as it gets. I definitely live on the prettiest campus in the world, and I'm constantly reminded of how lucky I am to be here. I'm so grateful for the chance to go to school here, and I'm looking forward to so many more adventures and relaxed nights and sunsets and sunrises and everything else that is good. My heart is very full today, and I hope yours is too:)
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| Last night's sunset. No words. |
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| Me and Ayaka after our first Tandem meeting |
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| Some of the Japanese I learned on our first day |
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| The trees are turning here! |
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| UBC Climate Strike |
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| Early morning light on my way to crew |
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| Found this cute little garden built on an abandoned railroad |
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| Layers of sun and clouds over the skyline |
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| How lucky am I to live here?! |
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| Farmers' market |
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| Light filtering through the trees on the stairs down to Wreck Beach |
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| This picture has 0 (zero!!!!) editing |
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