Newly Grad I

It’s been a while again. I came back from China ten days ago, got sick, came up to Stanford six days ago, and started school today. One perk of going overseas is that jet lag resets my biological clock, so after I returned, I was able to establish a more reasonable sleep schedule than that of before I had left. 2 AM to 10 AM has been adjusted to 12 AM to 8 AM. As they say, “Early to bed and early to rise.” Yup.

I am wavering right now in deciding whether or not to take quals in January. I do not feel like I will be prepared by then. I don’t even have a group yet, and I haven’t taken the necessary classes. The perceived competition from the self-isolating Korean EE graduate crowd is enough to make me… well, you get the idea. And never mind the fact that some graduate students had already started studying at the beginning of summer.

In the meantime, I’ve moved into 307. Our house is quite messy right now, but hopefully things will be shaping up in the next two weeks. We went grocery shopping today, so the food situation should improve from the quotidian burrito runs to something less mundane. I must remark that I feel a lot like the grad students in the Ph. D. Comics, always seeking social events for free food.

Well, on that note, it’s time for my confession. I am a grad student now, whether I like it or not. And grad life is hard, on more than one level. Time is now more precious than ever, and I mean that on more than one level as well. On the most basic level, taking graduate EE classes, small group leading, table tennis, website editing, and cooking leave no room for leisure.

It’s 11:40 PM. See what I mean?