Well the exam weight is starting to feel heavier and heavier as I get closer and closer to December. Right now I am basically spending almost every free hour with Tam, my partner in Géographie de la France, working on our presentation, because not only is a relatively large and complicated presentation (in a foreign language) but it is also imperative that we get a fantastic grade on it because we need the security for our final exam, which is going to hard, really hard. And even more so for me because I am going to have to take the exam either within one hour of David arriving in Le Havre or during his arrival to Le Havre, depending on which train he manages to take. AHH, I do not know how I am going to be able to stay concentrated! So anyway, if I think I even have at all a chance of passing what is likely to be the hardest final exam I will ever take, with that kind of distraction, I am wrong, so it is super duper necessary that Tam and I rock the socks off of this presentation, which is equally weighted with the final.
But besides that class, I have a lot going on everywhere else too. I have a large presentation in Analyse de Données, which is due very soon, not this week but next, which seems to be coming along quite well, but is quite terrifying since it is worth 100% of my grade! I hope I pass!!! Then I have three exams, one for macro-econ, one for Recherche Marketing, and one for Management International and I am not entirely sure what I should study for them, but I am quite sure that I am going to have to memorize a lot before I take them, because when in doubt I figure it is best to make sure I know everything... hahahahahaha, except that I am not sure if my brain can hold everything necessary. I guess we will see. Then of course there is Chinese, the course for which I know exactly what I have to know and I know that it is simply too much for me to possible master. But I will try quite hard!! I will have my exam for Chinese on Tuesday the 13th of December, Macro-Econ the 14th, Recherche Marketing the 15th, and Geo France the 16th. I still do not know when I will be taking Management International because he wasn't sure last week, but I should know this Thursday. I think it would just be best for my sanity if I stopped thinking about all this. I am quite nervous about failing some of these exams and then bot being able to get credit back at Miami. That would be quite tragic because this is the key to me being able to graduate on time.
Ok, so new topic. I was speaking with some of friends over lunch about my accent, and how interesting it is how I can't hear it unless it is a recording of my voice (that is, I cannot hear my accent while I am in the process of producing the language, or speaking, but only when I have the opportunity to listen to myself). And then I noted that I hoped that my accent would get better while I spent more time in France... then they told me that my accent had already improved! I was super excited! Also it is unbelievable how many vocab words you learn on a daily basis. Today it was inondation (flood), economie herbagère (the act of farming based on grasses - livestock etc) and pipelines (pipelines), but technically speaking I had no idea that pipelines was the word for pipelines in French until today, lol. And in fact I am sure that there were others but I just can't think of them. And there will be more tomorrow, and the day after that, and the day after that. It is awesome being abroad in terms of vocabulary acquisition.
Oh, and one more topic for today. I got my first e-mail of the semester from Savoie, preparing my welcome for next semester. It was great, actually awesome, because I got to learn about the skiing excursion in the Alps. It will cost 110E but I think it is well justified because in fact it is actually combined with a 2ECTS course on winter/alpine economy/tourism/management or something like that, for 5 hours each morning, (actually this sounds quite interesting) then the afternoons are open for free unlimited skiing. And transportation and meals are included, including a special dinner gala. Also, I didn't know this until this e-mail, but this is the first year that foreign students have been invited to this, so I am more than excited to go. I think David is also planning on going, but in his case it is more to experience the skiing. Luckily, the classes will provide useful exposure to French no matter what. So anyway I am quite excited and I definitely plan on participating, assuming the finances hold up.
Finally, (sorry I thought of one more thing) I am starting the process of sensitizing my Miami professors to the courses I have taken abroad in the hope to receive transfer credit, at least as far as the business department is concerned. It is not as imperative that the courses in the French department be transferred as rapidly, because I know what I should get and therefore what I need to take to graduate. However, in order to secure an on-time graduation, it is extremely essential that I have certain classes transfer successfully (or know if they will not transfer) so that I can take what I need in order to fulfill credit requirements. I literally have just sent the first e-mail even asking if it would be possible to start this talk online while I am still abroad. The response may be no, and may have nothing more to say on the topic until later. But just letting you know.
Oh, and finally finally, I would like to wish all my American buddies a Happy Thanksgiving, since of course there is none out here, and I wish you a belly full of turkey. To Mom, Dad, Karen, Grammy and Grampy in Florida, to Mormor and Opa in Michigan, and to David and all of his family enjoying a splendid get together in.... Tennessee right? This is embarrassing but I have forgotten...
Eat up for me!
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