September 05, 2004

First Impressions (Fall 2004)

Another first day of school, come and gone; perhaps my last for a while, depending on my as of yet unmaterialized post-graduation plans. To tell you the truth, had no one mentioned this fact to me today, I probably wouldn't even have realized that school started last week. What an anticlimatic beginning to the end.

I suppose it was because this was my senior year, my fourth and final year at Cal, that I was expecting something to be different when classes resumed this fall. But, contrary to all my expectations, it turned out to be quite a routine week, composed of mindless shuffling between classes, half-hearted attempts at notes, and the usual superficial greetings for vague classroom acquaintances. Although I'm currently enrolled in 20 units, I'm planning to only keep four classes. The semester is looking tough already. I suppose that might be because I'm taking four technical classes this semester and planning to apply for jobs, but I think it's mostly a result of me not really knowing any math and taking two EE classes which basically are just applied math.

It wasn't supposed to be this way, you know. I had a perfect schedule set, with a couple of EECS classes, a MCB class, and a chill History class, but as it happens every semester, some random, stupid event ruined it all completely. So now, instead of having a nice, chill semester, I'll be slaving away in four technical classes, including three EECS classes. Goddammit! So much for relaxation. Compound that with the arduous process of job applications and I have a sufficiently shitty semester ahead of me. At least I got to go home for a couple days this weekend; it was fun seeing everyone from high school at Kim's 21st birthday, although it was pretty tiring driving back and forth twice in three days. From the looks of things, this might be the last fun thing I do until well after November, when things calm down again. But on the plus side, it seems like I'll probably know what I'm doing next year before the end of the semester, which means I can totally stop all semblance of work in the spring. So here's to the next few months of grueling work! Cheers to sadomasochism!