Author Archives: Christene

Serendipity

Today was just one of those days that was just meant to be. I originally arbitrarily picked today as a shopping day because I needed a new dress and I happen to have Friday’s off, unbeknownst to me that it happens to be the first day of a major seasonal sale at just about every store at the mall. I found an amazing black dress demure enough for a wedding, but lovely enough for anything else I want to do in it. Plus, it was on sale, so having saved way more money than I had anticipated I also bought another dress that just as easily converts from office to whatever. And even with buying two dresses I spent less than I was expecting to spend on one. I am happy.

Prior to going to the mall I also found out about two other things I had never heard of. While both are interesting, one is far more relevant to me. Tanya wanted to go to a specialty breast feeding store. Two kids, and I had no clue about this. Considering I will not be having any more children, I have no need for this type of store. But if any of you are interested, Google the concept and I am sure there is something like this in your area. I wish I had known about this, um, four years ago. It is actually a pretty useful store.

Then, as Tanya and I were walking to get lunch, I saw something called a Dry Bar. I found the name rather strange, so I looked them up (as opposed to just walking in and figuring it out right then). Apparently dry bars are places where they give you champagne while blow drying your hair. I was intrigued. A hair dryer *and* champagne. It sounds like a great idea. What more can a woman ask for?

 

Pleasantly Perplexed

I have been studying for the GRE subject exam quite a bit lately, and thought it might be a good idea to study for the general as well. I figured the easiest way to see where I am and what I need to brush up on would be to take a practice exam and go from there.

I did very well on the verbal reasoning and reading comprehension sections. Honestly this wasn’t very surprising. In fact, I would be terribly worried about my life choices thus far if I didn’t do well on these sections. Yes, I would like to get a doctorate in English literature, but I can’t decipher a two paragraph section of text. Um… See? That would be a problem. Luckily I don’t have to worry about that.

However, I was slightly worried about the math section. Even though I did very well in math in high school and undergrad, I haven’t much dealt with math (except basic functions) in over a decade. Considering I assess students on their math skills on a daily basis I know just how fast unused math skills degenerate. In case you were wondering, very fast.

So when I got a 37 out of 40 on the practice exam, I wasn’t just surprised, I was quite shocked. I remembered all my formulas and concepts. And the three problems I got wrong had more to do with my own carelessness than anything else. How did this happen?

Granted I have been surrounded by math books a large part of my life, considering what my parents did for a living, and their educational background, but I don’t think I was learning by osmosis. Last time I checked, simply being in the same room as a book did not lend itself to learning.

I guess I am pleasantly perplexed?