Third Time’s a Charm!

So, after two unsuccessful attempts to write this post, I’m back for a third try.  Hopefully, this time I’ll have the words to actually complete this entry 🙂

Anyway, it’s been a crazy couple of weeks here at The Ohio State University College of Optometry!  Last Monday’s Pathophysiology  exam marked the end of an intense week and a half of straight studying in preparation for our first round of midterms.  It felt so good to be done!!  Unfortunately, there was little time for celebration (though I did take one night off to go rock wall climbing, cook a delicious dinner, and binge watch TV), as I was already behind in studying material for the second midterm.

(Helpful Tip #1: Stay on top of the material.  Yes, it sucks to study every night, but this drastically reduces stress come test time.)

Thankfully, Monday also marked the beginning of Academy week!  During Academy week, literally all of the professors travel to the American Academy of Optometry’s (AAO) Conference, which was held in New Orleans this year.  As a result, our last class of the week ended shortly after 10:00 on Wednesday morning.  While it would have been smart to stay on campus and try to catch up on the material, I decided to trek home for the long weekend.

Needless to say, I didn’t really get much studying done.  I did, however, have a great time seeing my family, attending homecoming as a Trine University alum for the first time, and seeing Celtic Woman in concert.

Good trade-off? I’d say so.

(Helpful Tip #2: If you need to study, don’t go home.  This is a pretty obvious piece of advice, but it’s one that I cannot stress enough.  After all, I’m in my fifth year of college, and I still continue to find myself under the illusion that I will actually accomplish something when I’m not at school…)

This past week (since it’s now Friday… #latenightblogging), though not terribly eventful, still proved to be a bit hectic.  Between professors trying to fit as much new information as possible into lectures before fall break, to catching up on the material that I didn’t learn during Academy week and studying for our first practical, I found myself constantly busy, and honestly a bit overwhelmed.  My main strategy for studying for the first round of midterms was to know all the information going into midterms week.  How was I going to be able to keep on that path when I was already behind?  Especially in lieu of being home for multiple weekends in a row?

Thank God for lecture recordings.

(Helpful Tip #3: If you have to travel long distances and are afraid of getting behind, this tip is for you.  Check out the lecture recordings!  As far as I have discovered, they’re not currently available for download, but they can easily be streamed through a phone or iPad and listened to during the trip…which is my current plan for studying during the at least 15 hours of traveling that I will be doing in the next several days.  I’ll let you know how it turns out!)

Well, it’s getting later, and I should probably attempt to catch up on sleep sometime..

Happy Fall Break!

-Hannah

*Blogging afterthought: Well, it took me 14 hours, but this post is actually going to be published!