Mission Accomplished!
I just got back from my Economics 001 final exam about an hour and a half ago, and suffice it to say, I'm satisfied. I spent the last day and a half reading and re-reading my lecture notes from the course and going over the practice final and the answers to it. Fortunately, the real final wasn't nearly as complicated or as vague as the practice exam was - it was just longer. The test took me the whole three hours and my hand was cramping from all the writing. It was worth it, though. I think I totally knew what I was doing, and I just hope that I can ace this one. I need it, after all, as a GPA booster.
As for my Organic Chemistry final, which I had on Wednesday from 8 to 11 AM, I think I passed it. It was definitely a bit easier than I found the 2nd midterm exam to be, and the fact that I had spent the 2 days prior to it doing chemistry problems nonstop helped a lot. If there's anything I've learned over the summer about dealing with organic chemistry, it was that - you just can't get away from homework and it really does help you to understand the situations discussed in the course if you do it. The real exam was very similar to the practice tests that I had been taking, so most of it didn't give me too much trouble. Heck, I was even able to do both of the synthesis questions that popped up, for once. I only did one of them last time and last semester synthesis had me shaking my head in confusion. If I'm very lucky, I may even do better than I did on the first midterm (which I should have aced instead of getting a B- on; oh, well, still much better than the barely passing grade I got on the first midterm last time I took 3A); I doubt I'll be that lucky though. It's my rabbit nature, preferring to err on the side of caution.
So how am I right now? Tired and relieved, mostly. Very, very happy, too. This summer session and the results I got just vindicated me, convinced me that despite my horrific academic performance last semester, I'm no failure, that I did deserve my place at UC Berkeley after all, and that despite how hard my classes may be, that I do have what it takes to do decently and that I deserve the right to stay here, to call myself a Cal student. The only thing I must do now is take that spirit and keep it up. I can't rest on my laurels at this pace, or at this position. I've got more classes to go, many more requirements I need to fulfill, and the challenges will be much greater over the semesters to come because I'll simply be taking more classes at once. I still had a lot of free time during the summer and, I admit, I believe I slacked off far too much. I think I got away with it because I was only taking two classes, one of which I was repeating, the other I had already been semi-introduced to during my senior year of high school.
But all that is a worry left for another day. For now, I'm just glad that this leg of my journey is done, that my summer school experience is over and that it was a successful one. I have a free day tomorrow. I have errands to run and packing to do, but overall, I'm definitely going to enjoy it. For once, I can say that I deserve to have this break. I've won, and it feels good.
"It's been a long night,
Tryin' to find my way.
Been through the darkness;
Now, I finally have my day.
And I will see my dream come alive, at last.
I will touch the sky.
And they're not gonna hold me down no more.
No, they're not gonna change my mind,
'Cause I've got faith of the heart.
I'm goin' where my heart will take me.
I've got faith to believe:
I can do anything!
I've got strength of the soul,
And no one's gonna bend or break me!
I can reach any star;
I've got faith...
I've got faith...
Faith of the heart.
It's been a long road..."
Signing off,
Michael D. Lu
08/16/2006
As for my Organic Chemistry final, which I had on Wednesday from 8 to 11 AM, I think I passed it. It was definitely a bit easier than I found the 2nd midterm exam to be, and the fact that I had spent the 2 days prior to it doing chemistry problems nonstop helped a lot. If there's anything I've learned over the summer about dealing with organic chemistry, it was that - you just can't get away from homework and it really does help you to understand the situations discussed in the course if you do it. The real exam was very similar to the practice tests that I had been taking, so most of it didn't give me too much trouble. Heck, I was even able to do both of the synthesis questions that popped up, for once. I only did one of them last time and last semester synthesis had me shaking my head in confusion. If I'm very lucky, I may even do better than I did on the first midterm (which I should have aced instead of getting a B- on; oh, well, still much better than the barely passing grade I got on the first midterm last time I took 3A); I doubt I'll be that lucky though. It's my rabbit nature, preferring to err on the side of caution.
So how am I right now? Tired and relieved, mostly. Very, very happy, too. This summer session and the results I got just vindicated me, convinced me that despite my horrific academic performance last semester, I'm no failure, that I did deserve my place at UC Berkeley after all, and that despite how hard my classes may be, that I do have what it takes to do decently and that I deserve the right to stay here, to call myself a Cal student. The only thing I must do now is take that spirit and keep it up. I can't rest on my laurels at this pace, or at this position. I've got more classes to go, many more requirements I need to fulfill, and the challenges will be much greater over the semesters to come because I'll simply be taking more classes at once. I still had a lot of free time during the summer and, I admit, I believe I slacked off far too much. I think I got away with it because I was only taking two classes, one of which I was repeating, the other I had already been semi-introduced to during my senior year of high school.
But all that is a worry left for another day. For now, I'm just glad that this leg of my journey is done, that my summer school experience is over and that it was a successful one. I have a free day tomorrow. I have errands to run and packing to do, but overall, I'm definitely going to enjoy it. For once, I can say that I deserve to have this break. I've won, and it feels good.
"It's been a long night,
Tryin' to find my way.
Been through the darkness;
Now, I finally have my day.
And I will see my dream come alive, at last.
I will touch the sky.
And they're not gonna hold me down no more.
No, they're not gonna change my mind,
'Cause I've got faith of the heart.
I'm goin' where my heart will take me.
I've got faith to believe:
I can do anything!
I've got strength of the soul,
And no one's gonna bend or break me!
I can reach any star;
I've got faith...
I've got faith...
Faith of the heart.
It's been a long road..."
Signing off,
Michael D. Lu
08/16/2006