So far, this semester has brought just about the exact amount of stress that I was expecting. I may have thought my friends were exaggerating last year, when they complained about the overlapping deadlines in classes and thesis, and the ridiculous extra work that goes into applying to graduate programs…

Sorry if I doubted you to your faces, 2014. That was not cool. I am filled with regret, and the only thing making it better is the way my cat, Wilson, has decided to not remove himself from my lap for the duration of Fall Break.

Many of my friends are traveling this week, either to their homes or to awesome vacation spots (shoutout to Syona in Copenhagen!). I’m jealous, because I miss my parents and my sister a lot, and I miss seeing the Hudson Valley in the Fall. The way the Catskills look when the leaves are changing…truly, there is no place on Earth more beautiful. I consider myself extraordinarily lucky to have grown up in a place so gorgeous, with New York a quick ride on the Metro-North away, and more cider donuts than I could ever eat (not for lack of trying). I’m not there this week, though, because I still have work. No such thing as mid-October break when you’re working.

I think I’m managing to make the best of it! I scheduled an appointment to take the GRE on Friday morning, and the days and nights before then are filled with practice exams, thesis reading, and preparation for the following week. Don’t worry- I’m scheduling in some fun, too. On Tuesday, I’m meeting up with a friend to build a board game based on the Bryn Mawr bucket list, and on Saturday, I get to drink away the sorrow of my GRE experience.

It won’t be that bad. Maybe. Tell me about your standardized testing/grad school/lap cat experiences!