Lately it's been snowing/sleeting in Maryland. Lately as in ... two days ago. It rained frozen rain yesterday, so all the snow has turned to ice. It's actually quite blinding with the sun shining down, like it was today. But it's also very pretty. Took pictures, but I have been kind of too lazy to upload them to the computer, much less internet. Sigh. Laziness is bad.

Anyway, so today we were walking to the bus stop to go to Montgomery (aka Westfield) Mall. There's this slope we have to walk down, and thankfully the sidewalk had be cleaned. But there was still some ice on it, just that it was really hard to tell since it all looked wet anyway. At some point, I slid, but managed to stay on my feet by holding onto my sister. But then ... my sister went down next to me. Thankfully I had stabilized myself before then, so I didn't go down with her. But yah, she thinks she may have hurt her ankle. Oh noes!

Frozen sidewalks are a terrible thing. >.< They look so innocuous, but in reality, not so much. Woosh, ahhhhhh, splat. Ouchie.

Well, not quite. One more massive paper and then the semester ends. But at least I've pretty much finished it. Just need to do some touch ups. But at least final exams are over. Had my first oral exam today ever! So nerve wracking, I have issues talking to professors already. Can you imagine having to do an oral exam where you have to look at the professor and answer questions and he can ask followup questions and you can see how he's reacting to your answers?! ahhhhh!!! Talk about stressful. Well, that's what ran through my head before the exam.

Thankfully it wasn't that bad. We got time to prepare beforehand. He handed out the questions on paper and gave us time to write down what ideas we had. So basically we could just write out our answers and then read it to him (heh. Is what I did.). And also he just told us to go up to him whenever we were ready, one by one. So, there was plenty of time, although once people started going up to him, my concentration level went down. I really can't take exams when there's talking in the room. Although I can study with music on, I can't take exams with talking. Eh. So randomly weird. But yah. The most nerve-wracking part, besides having the prof stare at you while you talk, is that the other classmates are in the same room as well. So they can hear your answer (and you theirs, which is mind-boggling. Doesn't that make cheating too easy?) .... scary. >.<

But apparently this is the normal way of doing exams here, not our classical written exams. Ahhhhhh!!! So, I have to go through this again and again. Ugh. I'm going to develop an ulcer. Sigh.

So now I just finish that paper and stress about the results. Yay. Jk. I won't stress about it until probably the day before the results are due out (mid-Feb, I think). I'm going to enjoy my time in D.C.! Mmmhmmm ....

Oh! Before the exam, I thought I'd be a good student and show up there earlier to do some last minute cramming, so I left an hour earlier. But! At the bus stop, I thought all the buses that stopped there went to the hospital where my exam was taking place, so I just hopped on the first one that came without looking at the destination. Ugh. Not a smart thing to do. Ended up taking the wrong bus and got off as soon as I realized. But then I had to walk in the rain and strong wind to the nearest bus stop that would get me on the right bus. By this time, it was 1/2 an hour before exam time, and I was standing in the cold wet rain blowing all over me waiting for the damn bus, who took its own sweet time in getting there. I stood there for 15 minutes without a single bus going by and I started stressing. 15 minutes till exam time. Should I walk? Should I wait? It's raining! If I walk, the umbrella will be useless because the winds are too strong. I'll be soaking wet! But I can't be late! Ahhh!!! Thankfully the bus showed up, and I got to exam place with time to spare.

But it didn't make a difference! Why? Because our professor was late! He thought it was taking place in the building where we normally have exams (yah, he's very ... laid back :P). And then when he got to the right place, he realized that he'd forgotten the questions. So. Yah. Guess I wasn't the only disorganized one right before the exam. :)

Sigh. But it's over and done with, and I'm glad. Have to get used to finals season again, but at least there's no midterms season here. And finals season spreads out over a month rather than a week. I guess that's better? Well, not really considering how much I enjoy procrastinating. Doesn't make much of a difference. :P

And I thought I had difficulty with keeping a neat room during regular school days.

My room is officially a mess. I have cans and bottles and coffee and soymilk cartons all over my desk. Papers everywhere. Clothes everywhere. Dishes are still in the sink. Bed's not made ... oh wait, it's never made. :P

At least I took out the trash! But that's because my bread went moldy :(

I can't be bothered to tidy up after myself. Just sit here and study or take a break and surf the internet. Prior to my endocrinology exam, I didn't step out of my room for like three days until I had to go and buy some groceries (or starve). Ah, become a total book worm (a little too late). Heh.

But! I'm studying for my last final, and then I get to go back to Amelica. Exciting. Just ... need ... to ... survive Thursday. It's an oral exam! Who does oral exams?! It's not like I can even slack off because it'd be embarrassing to have a crappy answer when the professor is right there. Ahhhhhh. Oral exam?! really?

Well, break's over. The cramming continues. :(

This morning when I got up, I had the scariest sensation of being tilted to the right. Like when I tried to walk in a straight line, I couldn't. I'd just move towards the right and bump into everything. I can feel my body being slanted to the right even when I tried to stand straight. >.< So I decided to go back to sleep.

After I woke up again, no more slanting, but the room was spinning, making me want to throw up. I thought, maybe if I ate something it might make me feel better. Eh, no such luck. The only time when the room stops spinning is when I'm flat on my back and not moving, so I thought maybe sleeping some more would be a good idea.

Now, after the nap, the room is still spinning, but I can't sleep anymore. I still have 30 pages of notes to memorize, but it's kind of hard with my stomach on the verge of rebelling and the room non-stop spinning. Sigh. I don't know why this happens!! This isn't the first time, but it's the first time that the spinning has been this strong and non-stoppish. :( I don't know what to do. I have an exam on Tuesday and Thursday and no time to see a doctor if this problem persists.

Sigh. I'm kind of scared. >.< blaaaaah. I hope it goes away.

It's like an extreme hangover except without the alcohol the previous night. Arrrrrrrr.

I've nearly been run over by bicycles at least 3 times since I came back to Leuven. After three weeks in the States, I keep forgetting to look both ways even on one way streets. There are way too many bikes here!! >.<

Anyway. Finals season. :( I don't want to write a 10 page single spaced paper. :( SIGH. wish me luck!

Think this post is three days too late, but eh, feel like I should still do some retrospection of 2008!

It was a year with its ups and downs, more so than usual. Let's see ...

- First Chinese New Year spent back in Chia-Yi after graduating from high school. First Chinese New Year as a working person rather than a student, but still got a decent amount of Red Bag money. :P

- Applying for school in Leuven and getting in ... Woo!

- Quitting work and all the agonizing and guilt-feeling that came with that. At the same time, a lot of relief after the deed was done and could enjoy summer once more.

- Going to Kenting with sister, Picker, and Dan. Hopefully the start of a yearly tradition. Will see how this summer goes.

- Finding out parents are getting transferred to Washington, D.C. during Kenting trip ... @#!@#$!@#%$#@$%

- Finding out our grandpa had lung cancer during the trip to Kenting as well. Then finding out grandpa passed away during our flight to Belgium. Sadness. But it's a good thing we spent quite a bit of time with him that summer as well. Especially with my mom coming back for relatively long periods of time.

- During registration for school, learning that my program had been canceled. Then having the program re-opened.

- Starting school in KU Leuven. Meeting the three other classmates in my program and realizing how much we had in common even though we were all from different countries and cultures. Also bonding over how inefficient and disorganized our program was. =.=

- Wandering around Leuven taking pictures of everything and anything.

- Going to Berlin to visit JC and eating Thanksgiving dinner (it's been a while!) and doing very little sightseeing. :P

- JC visiting Brussels with his parents.

- Visiting parents in Washington, D.C. and visiting the old schools, malls, etc. Trying to recall things from the childhood and failing more often than not. Sigh. Memory sucks!!!

- Seeing old elementary school friends. Oh how we've all grown. Good times.

I think those are the main highlights/lowlights of 2008. Hope 2009 will be even better! Happy New Year everyone!

Not for me, of course. I wish.

However, first day of the new year, and I witnessed a proposal take place right in front of me. Generally I'm so unobservant that I don't notice these things. This time, though, we were at Jefferson Memorial in D.C., and this guy asks my dad to take some pictures of him and his girlfriend. My dad pushed that job to me, so while the guy was showing me how to use the camera, he said, "Be ready, I'm going to get down on my knees." At first I was confused, unsure what he meant. But then he took the ring box out of his jacket to check, and I was like, "oh shit! He's going to propose!" And that is what he did.

So I was just snapping away and watching the story unfold in front of my eyes. At first I was kind of worried about her saying no, then that would be awkward. But after some gasping, laughing, and hugging, it was clear she said yes.

Man, that was kind of scary, though. What if the pictures sucked?! I mean, this is like once in a lifetime (I hope, anyway) opportunity.

But anyway, best of luck to that happy couple and on the subject of engagements, to Wazi and John too. :D Congrats! <3