There are many things I'm looking forward to about being done school. One is actually quite boring. I've been gearing up for a massive purge and spring clean and while its a great way to procrastinate I'm not letting myself do it because I have way TOO many assignments and exams. But spring cleaning awaits and the accomplishment of getting it done is going to be awesome.
Two...READING. I have so many books I want to read for fun. I have piles of classics I want to go through and trashy beach reads. Books on running and nutrition.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
The Home Stretch
I feel like I'm rounding the corner into the last 100m of a 400m dash. Not unlike my beloved Vancouver Canucks are doing heading towards the playoffs. The Western Division match-ups are far from set but my Nuckies are fighting for home-ice advantage. And like every year no matter what happens (Please let it be making the playoffs, knock wood) I will cheer them to the end. I also resolve to cheer myself and to lean on others while I get to the end of my 6 year race through university, perhaps more a marathon than a 400m dash, but the last 100m are a sprint no matter what race your run.
I'm done to 6 exams, 3 papers and an assignment before I get the heck out of SFU and I'm beginning to feel more comfortable about "graduating." I know I'm not done my schooling yet but I have a better idea what my heart and head want, as well as what is best for Steve and I as a family. Currently my plan is to apply for the January 2009 intake for a BSc in nursing at BCIT, and if I don't get in I will apply to the other schools that offer nursing, but use waitlists instead of success profiles.
Beyond school, running is going. I'm on week 4 of the Couch to 5K and I really enjoy it. The lighter I get the easier it is to run. I want to the Science Fair Fun Run 5K on May 31 and then on July 1st we have plans for the HBC Run for Canada (a 10K). I'm slow and still gaining stamina but I'm proud of myself that everyweek I run a little longer.
And the most exciting news I can think of for now:
I'm out of the 200s and storming into the 100s. That's right folks this week I broke the 200lb barrier and lost a whopping 3.2 lbs to be 197.0. I am NOT and I repeat NOT going back there.
Blog at ya soon.
B
I'm done to 6 exams, 3 papers and an assignment before I get the heck out of SFU and I'm beginning to feel more comfortable about "graduating." I know I'm not done my schooling yet but I have a better idea what my heart and head want, as well as what is best for Steve and I as a family. Currently my plan is to apply for the January 2009 intake for a BSc in nursing at BCIT, and if I don't get in I will apply to the other schools that offer nursing, but use waitlists instead of success profiles.
Beyond school, running is going. I'm on week 4 of the Couch to 5K and I really enjoy it. The lighter I get the easier it is to run. I want to the Science Fair Fun Run 5K on May 31 and then on July 1st we have plans for the HBC Run for Canada (a 10K). I'm slow and still gaining stamina but I'm proud of myself that everyweek I run a little longer.
And the most exciting news I can think of for now:
I'm out of the 200s and storming into the 100s. That's right folks this week I broke the 200lb barrier and lost a whopping 3.2 lbs to be 197.0. I am NOT and I repeat NOT going back there.
Blog at ya soon.
B
Monday, March 16, 2009
Time flies...
When you are at the hospital, finishing your last semester, planning a wedding and trying to remain sane I've been away from the blog. I keep thinking ooo I should blog that and then finding something that needs to be done more urgently.
A quick update. Dad is doing well, he's home the surgery was shorter than expected because they couldn't take the tumor out. Where treatment goes from here we'll see.
Weigh-in tonight so far I'm down 19.2 lb.s Still running when I can.
Wedding planning going well until today when the bridal store informed us they had lost some crucial information.
Hopefully more tonight after weigh-in but for now I have to pay attention in class!
A quick update. Dad is doing well, he's home the surgery was shorter than expected because they couldn't take the tumor out. Where treatment goes from here we'll see.
Weigh-in tonight so far I'm down 19.2 lb.s Still running when I can.
Wedding planning going well until today when the bridal store informed us they had lost some crucial information.
Hopefully more tonight after weigh-in but for now I have to pay attention in class!
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Tell Me Your Dreams
My Dad and I have an exceptional relationship. I remember after my parents first got divorced and he started dating again he ran his dates past me. Even though I was only 11 or 12, he still considered my opinion of the women important. Over the years I've been lucky to share some very special things with him. He has always been supportive of all my athletic and academic ventures. Be it as president of a figure skating club dealing with some pretty intense figure skating moms, or as a referee when I weightlifted he's been there for every achievement. He encourages me to strive for the highest goal possible and truly believes I am capable of anything I put my mind to. Much of my musical appreciation comes from my early years listening to the Fox with my Dad. I think I knew who ZZ Top was before I was 8. Christmas 2007 I was able to give him tickets to Blue Rodeo and together we saw one of the most beautiful concert I have ever been to. I, and I think he too, was memorized by their musicality and skill.
All that praise said, it's now my turn to be there for my Dad. In the past few months we have been sifting through his diagnosis with medullary thryoid cancer. From what I google it is the third most common of the four kinds of thyroid cancers. But all the stats aside all it is to me is what is inside of him. It is hard for me to think of him having a disease, he's my rock and my hero. Today I went with him to discuss the surgery he will undergo on March 5th of this year, 3 days before his 50th birthday. The doctor offered to try to postpone the surgery so that he wouldn't spend his birthday in the hospital, but like in everything he does in his life my Dad pressed on. This year he will spend his birthday in the hospital so that he can spend many more birthdays out of the hospital. I'm sure I will write more about this later, but I'm really still absorbing everything. As my Mom, a two-time cancer survivor says expect the worst and hope for the best. And a few prayers have never hurt.
All that praise said, it's now my turn to be there for my Dad. In the past few months we have been sifting through his diagnosis with medullary thryoid cancer. From what I google it is the third most common of the four kinds of thyroid cancers. But all the stats aside all it is to me is what is inside of him. It is hard for me to think of him having a disease, he's my rock and my hero. Today I went with him to discuss the surgery he will undergo on March 5th of this year, 3 days before his 50th birthday. The doctor offered to try to postpone the surgery so that he wouldn't spend his birthday in the hospital, but like in everything he does in his life my Dad pressed on. This year he will spend his birthday in the hospital so that he can spend many more birthdays out of the hospital. I'm sure I will write more about this later, but I'm really still absorbing everything. As my Mom, a two-time cancer survivor says expect the worst and hope for the best. And a few prayers have never hurt.
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Happiness and Disaster
Ok, perhaps not disaster, but small amounts of chaos. This past week and a bit has been incredibly productive and chaotic. Starting a week ago today we went into overdrive. The itinerary of the day is done, flowers are mostly finalized, rentals are sorted out, we had a fabulous meeting with our wedding planner to get all those details sorted out. Then yesterday we found a gorgeous suit for Steve to wear, which we will go pick up today, along with a suit for his brothers wedding since Moore's is having a 2 for 1 suit sale, can you say gift from the fashion gods? Now I'm getting ready to head out to The Bay to try and tie up loose ends with the registry and meet my cousin/bridesmaid for lunch. Oh yeah! By total fluke yesterday with time to kill before meeting his brother, Steve and I found the perfect wedding band and bought them. Phew holy wedding planning Batman!
On another note, I'm down 10.8lbs in three weeks and it feels fabulous. I still have a long way to go, though I haven't set any final goals yet. I've also started doing the couch to 5k plan. So far, so good, but I'll write a whole other post on that because running and I are a little love hate.
Gotta run!
On another note, I'm down 10.8lbs in three weeks and it feels fabulous. I still have a long way to go, though I haven't set any final goals yet. I've also started doing the couch to 5k plan. So far, so good, but I'll write a whole other post on that because running and I are a little love hate.
Gotta run!
Monday, January 26, 2009
Going down.
At least that's what the scale is doing. I'm down 2.4 lbs this week and 6.8 lbs over two weeks. It's pretty exciting and I can honestly say I'm not finding it that hard. However I haven't put myself into too many social situations with alcohol. I tend to be fine saying no to a glass of wine with dinner, but get tempted when I'm with friends. Truth be told I don't even like drinking that much. I could take it or leave. But I do it because I let people make me feel guilty for just having a diet coke. We'll see what happens over the next couple weekends when I have a couple more social events. For now I'm relishing in small victories.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Have You Got It In You?
After a long, busy day of serving cranky people I was walking home listening to music when I came to the conclusion that for the first time in a long time I'm at peace. Life may not be perfect, but I'm feeling a sense that things are going to end up alright. Perhaps this a product of finally seeing the light at the end of the university tunnel. After 6 years of school over 2 provinces, working full time at points to pay for my studies I feel like I'm tying up loose ends. Each time I finish an assignment, a presentation and an exam I am that much closer to having something to show for all my hard work. And boy has it been hard.
A friend and I were discussing that our degrees from SFU will simply say Bachelor of Science, they won't say that they're in Molecular Biology and Biochemistry. That little piece of paper we've invested so much of time into lumps all of us BSc's into one mass. We will look the same as someone who as a degree in math, or physics, or biology. I'm not sure how I feel about this. Everyone feels like they've chosen the hardest program. MBB exposes you to chemistry, biology, physics and everything in between and has challenged me to face things I hate like calculus. This semester I'm jumping through a final hoop to get my degree...thermodynamics, a calculus based chem class. The point of this class, especially after I've finished all but one of my 4th year MBB requirement is still alluding me but I will do it so I can get out. As an aside I went to the professor's office hours to get help with a question from our problem set and he told me to make more of an effort and make sure I go to tutorials. I have been to all the tutorials and have been a ton of time into the class, so excuse me if I don't remember an obscure calculus rule from Sept 2003.
I just really feel like at this point that whether I continue on into academia, or find a job I'm happy. I've almost completed something that only one other person in my family has and I can be proud of it. Between finishing this huge part of my life and getting married I feel like chapters are finally being concluded, chapters which sometimes felt like the entire plot of the story was being crammed in. I can honestly say I have it in me to face the challenges that await me after graduation, with my non-descript BSc.
A friend and I were discussing that our degrees from SFU will simply say Bachelor of Science, they won't say that they're in Molecular Biology and Biochemistry. That little piece of paper we've invested so much of time into lumps all of us BSc's into one mass. We will look the same as someone who as a degree in math, or physics, or biology. I'm not sure how I feel about this. Everyone feels like they've chosen the hardest program. MBB exposes you to chemistry, biology, physics and everything in between and has challenged me to face things I hate like calculus. This semester I'm jumping through a final hoop to get my degree...thermodynamics, a calculus based chem class. The point of this class, especially after I've finished all but one of my 4th year MBB requirement is still alluding me but I will do it so I can get out. As an aside I went to the professor's office hours to get help with a question from our problem set and he told me to make more of an effort and make sure I go to tutorials. I have been to all the tutorials and have been a ton of time into the class, so excuse me if I don't remember an obscure calculus rule from Sept 2003.
I just really feel like at this point that whether I continue on into academia, or find a job I'm happy. I've almost completed something that only one other person in my family has and I can be proud of it. Between finishing this huge part of my life and getting married I feel like chapters are finally being concluded, chapters which sometimes felt like the entire plot of the story was being crammed in. I can honestly say I have it in me to face the challenges that await me after graduation, with my non-descript BSc.
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