Weekend

Daniel is skiing today, and Hope is gone somewhere, and I don't know what Eric is doing. So I'm basically home alone. It's kind of sad. But it's a beautiful day outside, so I've been spending lots of time in the backyard. I'm trying to teach Jackson how to play fetch the right way. We throw the ball once, and then he fetches it, but doesn't bring it back. He is very possessive of his toys. So I got some treats and exchanged those for the ball. Hopefully he'll catch on eventually. It's not very much fun playing fetch when you're chasing after the dog with the ball in his mouth.

I'm also getting a teeny bit of homework done today. I didn't do any yesterday. I'm very protective of my weekends. It's nice to have an entire day with no obligations. So I try to do all my homework on one day, and leave the other open. Since last week was midterms, I don't have that much homework anyways. Just the usual lab report and textbook reading. This is the first quarter in my entire college career that I have kept up with the reading this far. In anatomy and nutrition, I consistently read the chapter before the lecture. I like it a lot. I feel like I know the information so much better, and I don't have to study as much because I remember a lot more.

Summer feels so close now that the weather has warmed up. In five weeks I'll be done with my third year of college. I am really looking forward to a time that I don't have tests anymore. It adds so much stress to my life that I really don't need. And unfortunately it is a way that I measure my self-worth. If I get a bad grade on a test, it can make me really depressed and upset for a long time. Mostly, I feel like I need to get good grades as "payment" to my grandparents for paying my tuition and living expenses. I mean, if they're willing to spend $40,000 a year on my education, the least I could do is get good grades. But Grandpa and Grandma tell me consistently that they think I'm doing great, and that they just want me to try my best. I know they are very proud of me regardless of my grades. Maybe it's a good thing that I'm so hard on myself. It certainly is motivation to do well! Anyways, I'll be glad when I don't have grades anymore. I think there are much better ways to measure success.