Candidacy Exam Rant #1

Yes, I'm calling this #1 because I'm sure there will be more to come. If not, then I started a numbered sequence and never finished, which fulfills the Procrastinator's Creed, so it's a win-win either way.

Anyway, my rant for today comes as a follow-up to a rant earlier in the semester. I had started to organize a group of the people who were planning on taking the candidacy exam this semester so we could start studying for it. (Not that that did much good. The group's kind of fallen apart recently because we're all too busy.) Once I found out who was all taking it, I had an "organizational" meeting to more or less push my own agenda. I was proposing moving the exam from early January to before Christmas. It sounded like a very fine idea to me, so we wouldn't have to have that thing looming over us over the holidays. Most of the group thought that was a fantastic idea. There was one, however, who was adament about having it in January because he was taking three classes this semester and had finals the week before the one we were proposing the exam should be moved to. I can sort of understand that after having three finals, he probably wouldn't want to study for another exam after that. He was just being a whiny little bitch about it that I was getting incredibly frustrated by him. (I'm sure you can tell from my description of him.)

So, since it wasn't unanimous that we move the exam, I told Dr. Shirer not to worry about it. I only proposed it veyr early on in the semester on the chance that this kid would realize he wouldn't be able to handle three classes and studying for the candidacy exam in November and back out of taking it. Well, lo and behold, we get an email from Dr. Shirer (the associate head of the department, and organizer of all things related to the department) saying he was going to hold a meeting about what the candidacy exam entails in the last two weeks of the semester. Guess who wasn't on the list in that email? The kid who was so irritating about not moving it. Little bastard.....

So, that's my rant about the candidacy exam. Or at least about a certain someone in the department who was supposed to be taking it. As you can tell, I hold on to grudges quite a while.

But, really, it's not bothering me too much that the exam is in January now. I almost like that better, because I'll have extra time to study for it. It just kind of sucks that I won't be able to stay at home for that long over Christmas break. I'll be coming back here before New Year's Eve because there's no way I'll be able to study at home for this exam. I'll be too distracted by everything else. Not that studying here has been accomplished all that much, but I'll have a better chance to get it done here than at home. It also sucks that I'll miss my sister's birthday (which is New Year's Eve). This'll be the first one I've missed, but there's nothing I can do about it, unfortunately. Unless I fly home for a day or two and then come back, which could be an option as well. But, even if I can't, she says she understands, because she's only turning 20. She definitely wants me there for her 21st next year, though. I promised to take her out to a gay bar. That is, if I can find a good one sort of close to home. I highly doubt it in my hometown, so I may just end up taking her out somewhere else. But, we're definitely going to celebrate that one well.

Alrighty, I'm done ranting and blabbing on for now. It's almost time for Related, which is a very cute show. I also need to relax a little bit. I've been working most of the day on my presentation for tomorrow (which should be fun since today my voice has been threatening to leave me) and my lab report due on Thursday that I'm trying to get done early because my family's coming out here on Wednesday!! I don't want to have to do anything important while they're here. We'll see how well that goes.

OK, I think I'm truly done babbling for now. Plus, I'm getting tired, so it's definitely time to just plop in front of the TV for the rest of the night.