nuggets from econ

"The United States' military has become a public good. Why on earth would Canada want to spend money on the military? We're not going to let them get taken over. Get them a couple of ponies and they're good."

"The AARP is a truly vicious organization. Really. And they're really fun to watch, but they're just vicious."

"The marginal cost of murdering a second person is approximately zero. If I'm already going to burn in hell for all eternity, what are they going to do, turn up the heat?"

"We tend to be mortals. If you want to be immortal, there are a couple things you can do. You can move to Indiana, and your live will just seem like it's lasting a long time, since there's nothing to do there. Or you can move to a farm in Iowa and eat alfalfa and your life may be lengthened, but it will be as boring as hell."

"I am perfectly willing to sell grades. But nobody has ever offered me enough money."

"What is the greatest fault with our society? Traffic congestion."

Our class meet three days a week. Our professor told us that our TA only had office hours on two of those three days. Yesterday she told us that she had been sitting there alone every week on the third day and getting really confused as to why nobody was showing up.

*happiness*

A few things. This is a bad post to read if you're miserable.

1) Two more hours of shakespeare class, and then it's done. What a boring class. Discussing plays scene-by-scene, with no less than ten hours of class time devoted to each, is mind-numbing. Plus, we say the same things over and over again. (I'm pretending for a moment here that I don't have to write a six to ten page paper about something--anything--I want to, using any texts, and involving any outside sources. But I do have a topic!!)

2) My econ TA is really cool, and has actually given me good advice. Like, what course I should take next year. She tells us that the confusingly-worded questions on our practice exams are indeed confusingly-worded, which makes us feel less inadequate. She laughs about our professor with us, too. And, see number 5.

3) I now own a University of Chicago: Where Fun Comes to Die t-shirt. I love it. I'm wearing it someday soon. (Wearing it here, though, would feel weird. I don't know why.)

4) I heart Chicago. Seriously. I love it here. And I've found my favorite corners and little places to go and where to study, and I feel like I fit in here. (I hate the 10.25% sales tax, which is ridiculous to a New Jerseyan. But my only other concern is that I'm bored of the food. Not that I don't like it, just that I'm bored with it. Which is fine, since they have limited service in the summer.)

5) Oh my god. This one has me bouncing. My econ professor is a real big shot here. He used to be the provost, he knows EVERYONE, he teaches incredibly popular courses. And, on the advice of my TA, I asked him for a recommendation. And he said yes!! I am so, so, so, so happy. I asked him after class, which is held in the same building as the admissions office*, if he would write the rec, and as we were talking, he waved his hand towards their office and said "Yeah, I pretty much know everyone in there, so..." I am happy.

6) Tonight they're giving us pancakes. Yummy.


*It's rather unnerving to walk through the admissions office just to get to class. Seriously. And sometimes I have to go through their private little set of offices. Scary.

things i have learned in my first week of college courses

1) TAs are actually superhelpful. Our econ TA? Nice, smart, and very chill. Plus, she tells us the "tricks" and things we should watch out for on our professor's tests.

2) The easiest way to get a variety of healthy foods at the dining hall is by varying the types of salads you makes for yourself at the salad bar.

3) Libraries are awesome.

4) Study carrels and study rooms in the library are awesome.

5) Leaving the bathroom door open after a long hot shower will almost certainly set off the smoke detector. Leaving the bathroom door closed causes the bathroom to be disgustingly humid for hours.

6) Buying individual snacks (like small bags of cookies and chips or whatever) is expensive, but buying large boxes of snacks causes me to eat ridiculous amounts of junk food in short time periods.

7) I actually do miss my parents.

8) Having roommates who have to go to class four hours earlier than you sucks.

9) Some professors are brilliant, but completely disorganized. Example: my Shakespeare professor apparently didn't bother to preorder one of the books at either of the two bookstores affiliated with the university. NOBODY HAS IT. And I can't figure out how to order it on Amazon because my address at the dorm is no fewer than six lines, which Amazon doesn't allow.

10) My high school is crazy. Seriously. There are kids here who feel like they're buried by the workload. The workload here is easier than at my school. Seriously.

(Can I just point out that for once I'm publishing a post that relates to the title of my blog?? Congratulate me!!!)

Two things

One.

You know you're a chemistry nerd when you see that someone has written =O in their away message and instantly identify it as ethanal methanal.

Two.

I WILL BE IN CHICAGO IN 14 HOURS.

For the first time in my life, we have a president who's not stuck-up and out of touch. So the United States doesn't look like it's being run by a moron. Thank god.

not dead.

Busy.

The year is winding down at last, thank the lord.

But tonight I need to finish a second draft of a paper, and then maybe study for chem. I had planned to write a history essay tonight, too. And I should be in bed already.

So perhaps I shall return tomorrow, once the craziness has subsided slightly.

Enough is enough

For the fifty million people who get to my blog by searching "how do you say x in latin?"

http://www.archives.nd.edu/cgi-bin/words.exe

That is an online Latin dictionary. Use it.

Seriously, why do so many people need to translate random things into Latin?

On a related note, though, I got another gold medal on the National Latin Exam. And since it's my fourth in a row, I get a special prize :) This has been a good week for the college applications.

:D

Remember how, in January, I was spending ridiculous amounts of time writing a paper?

Well, that paper won a prize. I'm going to nationals!