Sorry for not posting lately. I have been trying to get ready for finals that are approaching and I have also been in a weird mood lately and haven't felt like being too productive. Also a couple of things have happened that you will read about, which have been stressing me out... But enjoy! :)
October 14
I had my first lab for Genetics. We mapped out phylogenetic trees for different organisms and proteins. This was a fun lab and we did a similar project in Evolutionary Biology back home, so it wasn't too difficult! I also had a group discussion for our Psychology papers and got some good feedback on my outline, so hopefully I can start writing it soon and get ahead!
My healthy eating has had a minor setback from Paris and let me tell you, Norwegian candy is gross! Seriously, what is with all of the black licorice?! It is disgusting! Blech. Hopefully I can get back on track soon and get out of vacation/travel mode, but I will deffinetly not be buying anymore candy, that is for sure!
October 15
I had morning class and then stayed in the library for a couple of hours to catch up on some homework. After that, I decided to go to Grønland to get a few groceries, but when I stopped at the ATM to get some money out on the way there, THE ATM ATE MY CARD!!!! Ugh! It was pretty late too, so I couldn't do anything about it. I am just glad it happened here and not in Paris, so maybe I still have a small chance of getting it back? The problem is that I can't withdraw any money. That was my only card that had a code with it. In Europe it is really big to have microchips in credit cards and people just enter in their pin-code, instead of doing signatures. My problem now is that not everyone accepts the signature cards, so I just have to be careful. I have some emergency cash put aside and my other credit cards if I need them, so I should be ok, but it was definitely an inconvenience. Hopefully I can go to the branch that services the ATM tomorrow and see about possibly getting my card back.
On the way home, I then stopped at a closer, but more expensive grocery store, that I knew would take one of my other cards, so I will be all set on groceries for a while!
Obtober 16
It is snowing!!!! First snowfall in Oslo of the Season! It was a mixture of rain and snow, but the flakes were pretty big! They weren't sticking though because it is still too warm. :( I wonder how much snow you need before you can ski?
I headed out in the morning to the University information desk and was able to track down my residency permit! More than halfway done with the semester, but now I am an official resident of Norway! That was exciting. :) From there, I went on to try and see about getting my bank card back from the ATM. But had no such luck. They said my best bet would just be to cancel the card and order a new one from home. :/ Not the best situation, but I have enough to get buy and some resources if I really need to buy something or if there is an emergency. I should be ok, I just can't withdraw cash for the time-being and will be mostly dependent on my credit cards. No shopping sprees for me any time soon! Luckily my mom works for the same bank and she was able to order me a new one and will send it to me. (Thanks mom! :) )
October 17
This morning I had a genetics lecture and then went swimming at the gym. After that, I stopped at the post office and picked up a package that my mom had sent me. When I opened it up, she had sent me a little Halloween care package with all sorts of goodies and decorations. This may not make it to Halloween... ;) Thank you!!! (Not helping the healthy eating though...lol)
October 18
Today was a veg day... I did get some preliminary scheduling done for next semester (not looking too promising) and I got to Skype with Michelle. She is on Fall break, so it was nice to catch up with her and see how she was doing!
October 19
This morning, I went with Frieda to the Refstad volunteer program to play with the kids at the refugee camp. The weather was kind of gross, so we made masks and did crafts instead. I had a lot of fun helping them decorate and my Batman and Princess crowns were a big hit! It is fun to get to hang out and do exciting activities with them. I think I will be shedding glitter for weeks, though. :)
After we got back, we had a roommate meeting with everyone from our floor. We have six people again, a guy and a girl moved in recently. We went over some rules and basic details for living together. I am glad we got together and layed some ground rules. It would have been really helpful to have a meeting like this when we first moved in! Would have saved us a lot of trouble and confusion!
After our meeting, our Sogn group and a couple of new friends decided to go check out a bar that has a free band that plays every Sunday night. The bar/club is called Blå and is pretty popular in Oslo. It was pretty crowded when we got there, but the musicians were amazing. It was a group of mostly older men and the music was a mix of old blues and jazz. I had a great time and it was good to get out of my room and the school to have some fun and explore.
October 20
I didn't have any classes today, so I read for my Political Utopias class for most of the day. After getting antsy from being cooped up inside for so long, I decided to head up to Sognsvann and do some hiking. The last time I was there, I noticed a few trails leading off of the main one and I wanted to check them out, so I though that this would be the perfect opportunity. Exploring those was fun, although a bit cold, but I couldn't have timed it more perfectly. Just as I was reaching the end of my hike and heading back to the lake, the sunset was starting. I stopped at one of the docks to take some pictures and just soak it all in, and the views were absolutely amazing. I just wished I had brought my camera because the pictures didn't turn out that well on my phone. :/ There is always next time!
October 21
Exactly two months from today I will be heading home! :) / :( I can't decide if I am sad about leaving Oslo and Norway or excited about going home for Christmas and seeing everyone... a little of both?
Today I had another lab for Genetics, but this time it was a real lab. With lab coats and everything! I was a little nervous and didn't know what to expect because I did not take the safety course that I was supposed to, but everything turned out ok and their lab procedures and equipment are very similar to ours.
I was paired up with a Norwegian girl, which was exciting! Although, when we were asking about the lab assistants questions, they would speak Norwegian and she would either have to translate it for me or they would notice me zoning off in the distance and switch to English for my sake, although after a while I think they stopped trying, which I found both amusing and frustrating.
There is one big difference I notice between the labs here and back home. I feel like they expect a lot more out of us here. We had to make our own gels for the gel electrophoresis and when we had questions, we were expected to pretty much figure them out by ourselves. I feel like back home, our teachers would at least hint and try to help us figure it out. But here whenever we ask the lab assistants, who teach the labs, they say that we should know this by now and we are pretty much by ourselves. I can't tell if this is a good or a bad thing yet... just different expectations.
After spending 6 HOURS completing the lab, we got our results back as... inconclusive.... Great. Half of the class got the same results though, so I don't feel too upset. Maybe something went wrong for all of us during one of the tests that we run or something. After that disappointment and frustration, I was finally able to head home.
I got an email from my advisor from back home saying that scheduling will happen soon, so I spent most of the night looking at the course catalog and trying to make my schedule for the next semester. This was also frustrating because none of the classes I need seem to be offered in the Spring semester, which means I will have too many for next Fall. It was frustrating and I still had a couple of questions about certain things, but I was able to put together a schedule of 14 credit hours, barely making me a full time student. I will have to look into that more, but at least I have something to go off of and I am ready to schedule!
After Skyping with my mom and Jim so that I could vent for a little, I called it a night. I can't believe I only have two more months left, the time has just flown by!
I also just booked my flight to Dublin, Ireland to meet up with Jess and Julia in late November and I am really excited!!! :D
October 22
I had my Political Utopias class this morning and then stayed in the computer lab after to do some homework. I was relieved to hear back about some of my scheduling concerns and it seems like a few things will be working in my favor next semester, which is a big relief! After studying, I went to Grønland to do some grocery shopping. I was surprised to see them working on a new organization method and I can almost make out what a few of the items are now. Progress! I got A BUNCH of fruits and vegetables and am planning to freeze some and get back on my plan for healthy eating! Only two months until I jump back into diving season and I want to be in my best shape! (Hopefully all the Christmas food doesn't ruin it!)
After returning home I made some dinner and got to Skype with my brother, Jack. We talked for almost two hours and got to catch up with each other and plan out some things for break when we are both home for Christmas. It was great talking to him and hearing what he has been up to. Other than that, for the rest of the night I FINALLY updated this blog and then got a little bit more homework done! Sorry I haven't updated in a while, but it has been a pretty stressful week with a lot going on!
October 14
I had my first lab for Genetics. We mapped out phylogenetic trees for different organisms and proteins. This was a fun lab and we did a similar project in Evolutionary Biology back home, so it wasn't too difficult! I also had a group discussion for our Psychology papers and got some good feedback on my outline, so hopefully I can start writing it soon and get ahead!
My healthy eating has had a minor setback from Paris and let me tell you, Norwegian candy is gross! Seriously, what is with all of the black licorice?! It is disgusting! Blech. Hopefully I can get back on track soon and get out of vacation/travel mode, but I will deffinetly not be buying anymore candy, that is for sure!
October 15
I had morning class and then stayed in the library for a couple of hours to catch up on some homework. After that, I decided to go to Grønland to get a few groceries, but when I stopped at the ATM to get some money out on the way there, THE ATM ATE MY CARD!!!! Ugh! It was pretty late too, so I couldn't do anything about it. I am just glad it happened here and not in Paris, so maybe I still have a small chance of getting it back? The problem is that I can't withdraw any money. That was my only card that had a code with it. In Europe it is really big to have microchips in credit cards and people just enter in their pin-code, instead of doing signatures. My problem now is that not everyone accepts the signature cards, so I just have to be careful. I have some emergency cash put aside and my other credit cards if I need them, so I should be ok, but it was definitely an inconvenience. Hopefully I can go to the branch that services the ATM tomorrow and see about possibly getting my card back.
On the way home, I then stopped at a closer, but more expensive grocery store, that I knew would take one of my other cards, so I will be all set on groceries for a while!
Obtober 16
It is snowing!!!! First snowfall in Oslo of the Season! It was a mixture of rain and snow, but the flakes were pretty big! They weren't sticking though because it is still too warm. :( I wonder how much snow you need before you can ski?
I headed out in the morning to the University information desk and was able to track down my residency permit! More than halfway done with the semester, but now I am an official resident of Norway! That was exciting. :) From there, I went on to try and see about getting my bank card back from the ATM. But had no such luck. They said my best bet would just be to cancel the card and order a new one from home. :/ Not the best situation, but I have enough to get buy and some resources if I really need to buy something or if there is an emergency. I should be ok, I just can't withdraw cash for the time-being and will be mostly dependent on my credit cards. No shopping sprees for me any time soon! Luckily my mom works for the same bank and she was able to order me a new one and will send it to me. (Thanks mom! :) )
October 17
This morning I had a genetics lecture and then went swimming at the gym. After that, I stopped at the post office and picked up a package that my mom had sent me. When I opened it up, she had sent me a little Halloween care package with all sorts of goodies and decorations. This may not make it to Halloween... ;) Thank you!!! (Not helping the healthy eating though...lol)
October 18
Today was a veg day... I did get some preliminary scheduling done for next semester (not looking too promising) and I got to Skype with Michelle. She is on Fall break, so it was nice to catch up with her and see how she was doing!
October 19
This morning, I went with Frieda to the Refstad volunteer program to play with the kids at the refugee camp. The weather was kind of gross, so we made masks and did crafts instead. I had a lot of fun helping them decorate and my Batman and Princess crowns were a big hit! It is fun to get to hang out and do exciting activities with them. I think I will be shedding glitter for weeks, though. :)
After we got back, we had a roommate meeting with everyone from our floor. We have six people again, a guy and a girl moved in recently. We went over some rules and basic details for living together. I am glad we got together and layed some ground rules. It would have been really helpful to have a meeting like this when we first moved in! Would have saved us a lot of trouble and confusion!
After our meeting, our Sogn group and a couple of new friends decided to go check out a bar that has a free band that plays every Sunday night. The bar/club is called Blå and is pretty popular in Oslo. It was pretty crowded when we got there, but the musicians were amazing. It was a group of mostly older men and the music was a mix of old blues and jazz. I had a great time and it was good to get out of my room and the school to have some fun and explore.
October 20
I didn't have any classes today, so I read for my Political Utopias class for most of the day. After getting antsy from being cooped up inside for so long, I decided to head up to Sognsvann and do some hiking. The last time I was there, I noticed a few trails leading off of the main one and I wanted to check them out, so I though that this would be the perfect opportunity. Exploring those was fun, although a bit cold, but I couldn't have timed it more perfectly. Just as I was reaching the end of my hike and heading back to the lake, the sunset was starting. I stopped at one of the docks to take some pictures and just soak it all in, and the views were absolutely amazing. I just wished I had brought my camera because the pictures didn't turn out that well on my phone. :/ There is always next time!
October 21
Exactly two months from today I will be heading home! :) / :( I can't decide if I am sad about leaving Oslo and Norway or excited about going home for Christmas and seeing everyone... a little of both?
Today I had another lab for Genetics, but this time it was a real lab. With lab coats and everything! I was a little nervous and didn't know what to expect because I did not take the safety course that I was supposed to, but everything turned out ok and their lab procedures and equipment are very similar to ours.
I was paired up with a Norwegian girl, which was exciting! Although, when we were asking about the lab assistants questions, they would speak Norwegian and she would either have to translate it for me or they would notice me zoning off in the distance and switch to English for my sake, although after a while I think they stopped trying, which I found both amusing and frustrating.
There is one big difference I notice between the labs here and back home. I feel like they expect a lot more out of us here. We had to make our own gels for the gel electrophoresis and when we had questions, we were expected to pretty much figure them out by ourselves. I feel like back home, our teachers would at least hint and try to help us figure it out. But here whenever we ask the lab assistants, who teach the labs, they say that we should know this by now and we are pretty much by ourselves. I can't tell if this is a good or a bad thing yet... just different expectations.
After spending 6 HOURS completing the lab, we got our results back as... inconclusive.... Great. Half of the class got the same results though, so I don't feel too upset. Maybe something went wrong for all of us during one of the tests that we run or something. After that disappointment and frustration, I was finally able to head home.
I got an email from my advisor from back home saying that scheduling will happen soon, so I spent most of the night looking at the course catalog and trying to make my schedule for the next semester. This was also frustrating because none of the classes I need seem to be offered in the Spring semester, which means I will have too many for next Fall. It was frustrating and I still had a couple of questions about certain things, but I was able to put together a schedule of 14 credit hours, barely making me a full time student. I will have to look into that more, but at least I have something to go off of and I am ready to schedule!
After Skyping with my mom and Jim so that I could vent for a little, I called it a night. I can't believe I only have two more months left, the time has just flown by!
I also just booked my flight to Dublin, Ireland to meet up with Jess and Julia in late November and I am really excited!!! :D
October 22
I had my Political Utopias class this morning and then stayed in the computer lab after to do some homework. I was relieved to hear back about some of my scheduling concerns and it seems like a few things will be working in my favor next semester, which is a big relief! After studying, I went to Grønland to do some grocery shopping. I was surprised to see them working on a new organization method and I can almost make out what a few of the items are now. Progress! I got A BUNCH of fruits and vegetables and am planning to freeze some and get back on my plan for healthy eating! Only two months until I jump back into diving season and I want to be in my best shape! (Hopefully all the Christmas food doesn't ruin it!)
After returning home I made some dinner and got to Skype with my brother, Jack. We talked for almost two hours and got to catch up with each other and plan out some things for break when we are both home for Christmas. It was great talking to him and hearing what he has been up to. Other than that, for the rest of the night I FINALLY updated this blog and then got a little bit more homework done! Sorry I haven't updated in a while, but it has been a pretty stressful week with a lot going on!