A year in review...
Since I was so bad about blogging this year, I can't really do what Melike did (first sentence from each month). But it will be one of my resolutions to do a better job next year. Next year promises to be exciting and new, and hopefully working will give me some more time to my own thoughts. I wish my hard drive hadn't crashed so that I would still have my iCal entries to remind me of what happened this year, but I'll try my best... Also, resolutions which I will hopefully keep next year (I failed miserably this past year, so I won't even bring it up).
Year in review:
School:
- Taught two more successful semesters of 6.042. Particularly enjoyed this past semester with Tom Leighton - the style was a lot more like when Srini taught, which was why I liked it in the first place. Made friends with all the TAs, made friends with a lot of students as well. Learned LaTeX.
- Attended a bunch of workshops for StarLogo, which were fun. In retrospect, it was a fun project to be working on, I just wish I had more time during the school year to actually commit to it, and that I would have been more focused during the summer and got more done. Cross my fingers that I'll finish by the end of January.
- Had a blast in advanced graphics and Fredo's awesome awesome computational photography class. Too bad for hot professor not getting tenure and moving away though...
- Finally took the math classes needed, including 18.06. A little embarrassing to sit in front of some of my students during tests, but that's ok. Being so old made the class pretty easy. My TA was also so nice, and cute in an awkward get-chalk-all-over-himself-then-try-to-wipe-it-away-with-his-sweater-and-then-upon-failing-clutching-the-sweater-insecurely-to-hide-the-chalk kind of way. Also, 18.085 where Gil Strang signed my textbook - adorable!
- Got straight A's in all of my graduate classes.
Jobs:
- Attended a career fair for the first time and volunteered. Learned how to schmooze with company reps, even though it ended up being pointless. Went to a fancy SWE dinner at the Hilton and chatted up some more people for fun.
- Considered going into consulting and went to some case interview workshops, which also ended up being pointless. Bought my first suit and interviewed at BCG. Interview went well, even though I didn't get the job. It was interesting to see a bit of the corporate world.
- Did my first and only all day second-round interview with a video game company in Cambridge. About six hours, including lunch and some fun conversation. I also had to take and hour and a half written test. I think I failed that, and I didn't get the job. But it was also a good experience to go through what most people go through with their job searches - all that stuff that UAT was talking about that I had never heard of doing only biology and UROPs.
- I only really applied and interviewed with those two places and Pixar, so all things considered I was really lucky to get a job. But I just didn't have the energy in me to apply everywhere when all I wanted was to work at Pixar. My dad said I should be spanked because when he was applying for jobs he sent out like a hundred resumes because it was during the depression of the early 90's. Then again, I guess there is something to be said for knowing what I wanted so that I could put all my efforts into securing it...
Dance:
- I don't know much about my latin and standard, which haven't really improved much competitively, but I feel like it's improved a bit technically so I'm still somewhat satisfied.
- I bought some new dresses. Those were fun =P.
- Jeff and I won every single smooth competition since we started competing together (after that first accidental time where I was supposed to dance with Phillip), with the exception of MIT 08, where we got something like fourth. This includes silver at Brown 07 and BU 08, and gold at Harvard Invitational 08, Brown 08, and Tufts 08. This means that we're now placed out of gold and into open. It's really too bad I don't get to stick around to dance open with Jeff, though we would need a lot of work to get our technique up to par.
- DJ'ed ballroom socials twice. First time was kind of difficult because I was using CD's, and I got really nervous the whole time and screwed up a couple of times, but I still had Shlomo tell me I was one of the best DJ's he's heard in a long time. Second time was this past month for the holiday social, and it went off flawlessly because I had chosen all of the music carefully on my computer. Songs that I'm proud of introducing to the dance floor include "Santa Baby" by ? (foxtrot), "Why" by Annie Lenox (rumba), and "Just Dance" by Lady GaGa (chacha). I got a lot of compliments about songs that people loved.
- I did dance troupe last spring semester. Just one dance, but I started to feel kind of awkward because of the whole knowing students thing. I saw the show this past fall semester, which had a lot of nice contemporary pieces and sort of wished I was still doing it, but I know it would have taken up too much time, and it was fun to watch anyway. Still waiting until I have time to learn some bboying, though Robin wants to take a class during IAP which I might want to join in on.
Vacations:
- Went to Europe in January to visit friends. Went to the French Alps, around Germany, Krakow, and Vienna.
- Went to Costa Rica with Andriy in August. Saw volcanos, hot springs, waterfalls, rainforest, and sandy beaches.
- Took a trip to New Hampshire, where Andriy and I got lost in the middle of the dark snowy woods.
- Went to Maine to take lots of pictures of leaves.
- Went to Martha's Vineyard for the first time with Andriy's friend Alex. Water was cold but bike riding was fun.
Shows:
- So You Think You Can Dance! Also, SYTYCD Australia, Canada, and Ukraine, which were all awesome. Got to meet the dancers again this year with Kristin and Jacinda, even though it was freezing.
- Romeo and Juliet, the ballet. An awesome Valentine's Day thing, and the dancing was one of my faves.
- Cinderella, the ballet. Cute, but I didn't like it as much as Romeo and Juliet. The lead was pretty good, but I didn't like her final dress. I loved the stepsisters though.
- Chicago. Really excellent. Great singing, dancing, acting.
Other:
- Old C3 friends came to visit over the summer, and we had a good time around Boston.
- Did couchsurfing for the first time and met two really cool Polish guys who have since no longer responded to my emails in typical European fashion.
- Made some new awesome friends at 165 this year, when all these new people moved in who like to party. Too bad Lev had to go though, I miss having him around. Started having some pumping parties in our basement, thanks to Gabi always bringing tons of her friends.
- Fourth of July on our awesome rooftop with Nora's friends and sparklers and then watching Cars afterwards with Sally, Neil, Rob Wang, Simon, and Andriy.
- Started hanging out with ballroom people a lot more, like Dima and Olga and Esya. Really, a lot of Russians, thanks to Andriy. Went to both a Finnish sauna and a Russian sauna (banya) for the first time. Also, became better friends with Eileen, who is awesome.
- Learned a lot about photography and played around a lot on Andriy's DSLR. Went out on multiple picture taking trips around the area.
- Discovered some great restaurants: Longhorn Steakhouse (near Fenway movie theater), Fin's Japanese Sushi and Grill (Kenmore), Blue Room (Kendall Square), amongst others.
- Voted for the first time and got caught up in the whole election whirlwind. Obama winning was really a momentous occasion in the history of our country, and it was cool to be a part of it.
Okay, that's all I can remember, but I'll add more if I think of anything.
Resolutions:
- Journal every day when possible and keep updated on days that I missed.
- Start doing yoga and pilates (I should be able to do this thanks to facilities at Pixar, hopefully it will help with flexibility).
- Learn Russian (not just words like "butt").
- Learn web design (Maya and Python will likely just come as a result of work).
- Organize old journals and pictures and stuff.
I think this is all that is feasible.
Year in review:
School:
- Taught two more successful semesters of 6.042. Particularly enjoyed this past semester with Tom Leighton - the style was a lot more like when Srini taught, which was why I liked it in the first place. Made friends with all the TAs, made friends with a lot of students as well. Learned LaTeX.
- Attended a bunch of workshops for StarLogo, which were fun. In retrospect, it was a fun project to be working on, I just wish I had more time during the school year to actually commit to it, and that I would have been more focused during the summer and got more done. Cross my fingers that I'll finish by the end of January.
- Had a blast in advanced graphics and Fredo's awesome awesome computational photography class. Too bad for hot professor not getting tenure and moving away though...
- Finally took the math classes needed, including 18.06. A little embarrassing to sit in front of some of my students during tests, but that's ok. Being so old made the class pretty easy. My TA was also so nice, and cute in an awkward get-chalk-all-over-himself-then-try-to-wipe-it-away-with-his-sweater-and-then-upon-failing-clutching-the-sweater-insecurely-to-hide-the-chalk kind of way. Also, 18.085 where Gil Strang signed my textbook - adorable!
- Got straight A's in all of my graduate classes.
Jobs:
- Attended a career fair for the first time and volunteered. Learned how to schmooze with company reps, even though it ended up being pointless. Went to a fancy SWE dinner at the Hilton and chatted up some more people for fun.
- Considered going into consulting and went to some case interview workshops, which also ended up being pointless. Bought my first suit and interviewed at BCG. Interview went well, even though I didn't get the job. It was interesting to see a bit of the corporate world.
- Did my first and only all day second-round interview with a video game company in Cambridge. About six hours, including lunch and some fun conversation. I also had to take and hour and a half written test. I think I failed that, and I didn't get the job. But it was also a good experience to go through what most people go through with their job searches - all that stuff that UAT was talking about that I had never heard of doing only biology and UROPs.
- I only really applied and interviewed with those two places and Pixar, so all things considered I was really lucky to get a job. But I just didn't have the energy in me to apply everywhere when all I wanted was to work at Pixar. My dad said I should be spanked because when he was applying for jobs he sent out like a hundred resumes because it was during the depression of the early 90's. Then again, I guess there is something to be said for knowing what I wanted so that I could put all my efforts into securing it...
Dance:
- I don't know much about my latin and standard, which haven't really improved much competitively, but I feel like it's improved a bit technically so I'm still somewhat satisfied.
- I bought some new dresses. Those were fun =P.
- Jeff and I won every single smooth competition since we started competing together (after that first accidental time where I was supposed to dance with Phillip), with the exception of MIT 08, where we got something like fourth. This includes silver at Brown 07 and BU 08, and gold at Harvard Invitational 08, Brown 08, and Tufts 08. This means that we're now placed out of gold and into open. It's really too bad I don't get to stick around to dance open with Jeff, though we would need a lot of work to get our technique up to par.
- DJ'ed ballroom socials twice. First time was kind of difficult because I was using CD's, and I got really nervous the whole time and screwed up a couple of times, but I still had Shlomo tell me I was one of the best DJ's he's heard in a long time. Second time was this past month for the holiday social, and it went off flawlessly because I had chosen all of the music carefully on my computer. Songs that I'm proud of introducing to the dance floor include "Santa Baby" by ? (foxtrot), "Why" by Annie Lenox (rumba), and "Just Dance" by Lady GaGa (chacha). I got a lot of compliments about songs that people loved.
- I did dance troupe last spring semester. Just one dance, but I started to feel kind of awkward because of the whole knowing students thing. I saw the show this past fall semester, which had a lot of nice contemporary pieces and sort of wished I was still doing it, but I know it would have taken up too much time, and it was fun to watch anyway. Still waiting until I have time to learn some bboying, though Robin wants to take a class during IAP which I might want to join in on.
Vacations:
- Went to Europe in January to visit friends. Went to the French Alps, around Germany, Krakow, and Vienna.
- Went to Costa Rica with Andriy in August. Saw volcanos, hot springs, waterfalls, rainforest, and sandy beaches.
- Took a trip to New Hampshire, where Andriy and I got lost in the middle of the dark snowy woods.
- Went to Maine to take lots of pictures of leaves.
- Went to Martha's Vineyard for the first time with Andriy's friend Alex. Water was cold but bike riding was fun.
Shows:
- So You Think You Can Dance! Also, SYTYCD Australia, Canada, and Ukraine, which were all awesome. Got to meet the dancers again this year with Kristin and Jacinda, even though it was freezing.
- Romeo and Juliet, the ballet. An awesome Valentine's Day thing, and the dancing was one of my faves.
- Cinderella, the ballet. Cute, but I didn't like it as much as Romeo and Juliet. The lead was pretty good, but I didn't like her final dress. I loved the stepsisters though.
- Chicago. Really excellent. Great singing, dancing, acting.
Other:
- Old C3 friends came to visit over the summer, and we had a good time around Boston.
- Did couchsurfing for the first time and met two really cool Polish guys who have since no longer responded to my emails in typical European fashion.
- Made some new awesome friends at 165 this year, when all these new people moved in who like to party. Too bad Lev had to go though, I miss having him around. Started having some pumping parties in our basement, thanks to Gabi always bringing tons of her friends.
- Fourth of July on our awesome rooftop with Nora's friends and sparklers and then watching Cars afterwards with Sally, Neil, Rob Wang, Simon, and Andriy.
- Started hanging out with ballroom people a lot more, like Dima and Olga and Esya. Really, a lot of Russians, thanks to Andriy. Went to both a Finnish sauna and a Russian sauna (banya) for the first time. Also, became better friends with Eileen, who is awesome.
- Learned a lot about photography and played around a lot on Andriy's DSLR. Went out on multiple picture taking trips around the area.
- Discovered some great restaurants: Longhorn Steakhouse (near Fenway movie theater), Fin's Japanese Sushi and Grill (Kenmore), Blue Room (Kendall Square), amongst others.
- Voted for the first time and got caught up in the whole election whirlwind. Obama winning was really a momentous occasion in the history of our country, and it was cool to be a part of it.
Okay, that's all I can remember, but I'll add more if I think of anything.
Resolutions:
- Journal every day when possible and keep updated on days that I missed.
- Start doing yoga and pilates (I should be able to do this thanks to facilities at Pixar, hopefully it will help with flexibility).
- Learn Russian (not just words like "butt").
- Learn web design (Maya and Python will likely just come as a result of work).
- Organize old journals and pictures and stuff.
I think this is all that is feasible.