After class, I met up with Jeff (Jefferey) at the travel agency across the street from campus. The mosquito bite I got while waiting for him has now enlarged to the size of a mid-sized chestnut or strawberry. Regardless, our meetup at the travel agency was to discuss possible traveling plans in the future (Penghu and Japan), but the information acquired from the travel agent didn't really help us in our planning. She had only listed the expensive hotels and flights listed on their website, so we decided to rely more on our own searches. After our fruitless visit, Jeff and I grabbed some lunch at a nearby restaurant before heading our separate ways.
Food coma hit me and I decided to take a 30-minute nap before doing some studying and heading to class. Unfortunately, that supposed "30-minute nap" took about an hour and a half, so studying was omitted from my schedule and to class I went.
My next class was Judo (not the club), but we were only watching judo matches today rather than practicing our throws. I sat next to Henry, but he was rather glued to his phone, so I decided not to say much to him. Class starts. We watched several clips of international matches, both boring and interesting, before class ended (early). Our teacher asks me and Henry whether we were doing fine after last week's intense Judo club meeting. She knew I bruised, burned, and scraped my foot that day, so she asked if I was okay now. Apparently, she had also acquired a few burns on her arm from sparring with some students, so I guess we're all suffering (and enjoying our times) the same. I asked Henry if he was going to today's club meeting, but he told me he probably wasn't going anymore. It shocked and scared me at first. He was one of the main reasons I continued Judo, because I had someone who was new, like me, to practice with (and not with the alumni). I can tell through our practices that he wasn't a very aggressive person, so I can see why he was scared of being tossed around by our seniors. I mean, I've experienced it first-hand as well, but I still find Judo more fun than it is intimidating. Anyway, I'm working on persuading him to continue attending club meetings, so we'll see how that goes.
Can't even begin to explain my growing passion for Judo.
I spent the rest of the night doing nothing, but watching Youtube videos and laying in bed reading. I should have submitted a paper by midnight, but I had already decided that I'd finish it by the next day. I regret not going to the Judo club, but it was to late to go now. Stupid thoughts, stupid ideas. Sleep.
I had hoped to wake up around 7AM to continue my readings for my paper, but being the lazy and unmotivated person I am, I slept until 10 before climbing out of bed. By the time I got to lab, I was already 2 hours late. I apologize to my senior (學姊) and begin my work. She leads me through a few details regarding the upcoming PCR I was supposed to run. Before I got a chance to begin my experiment, we begin a conversation about how the school system in Taiwan and America is different. We also discuss how Ph.D students in Taiwan are less likely to find a job in a research company than student's with a master's degree or even a bachelors. It's weird. Take America's ideas, flip-flop it, and you get Taiwan. Apparently, companies here aren't willing to pay more money for those with a Ph.D when they could train someone else and pay them less. She says this is one of the main reasons why Post-Docs travel outside Taiwan to publish a few big papers or so before returning (it increases their chances of getting a stable and high[er] paid job). I spend the rest of the time talking with my co-workers before heading to class.
In case you didn't know, I'm working with zebrafish
Tennis class was both boring and exciting today. It's been a while since we've learned a new technique and that's what our teacher provided us for today. Unfortunately, we were forced to play with sponge balls indoors due to the never-ceasing rain outside. Nonetheless, I've learned something new, so I can't wait to use it in my next tennis game with Jomi (Jonmichael), Jeff, Ethan, etc.
Next was an herbalism and zoology tour on campus. I wasn't really close with anyone in that class, so I just jumped into a group and began talking with them, but half the time I chose to walk alone, simply because they were arguing about something that I didn't want to participate in. The tour was overall interesting, I mean, I got to see a fetus in a jar. Odd, but interesting. I can't say I have an abnormal passion for biology, but I definitely enjoy studying different life forms and learning more about them. It's just not something I do in my free time, if you know what I mean.
After the tour, I head back to lab, finish my work and go home. At 7:15PM, Connie, Cindy, Mindy, Benjamin, and I headed to a nearby hotpot restaurant with a punny title, 馬辣. I don't know if it's because it's the year of the horse that they decide to use that character, but surely, there's got to be some punny explanation behind it. Anyway, we had all-you-can-eat hotpot with racks upon racks of beef and lamb, followed by our own selection of vegetables, seafood, and (other) sides. I'm not sure what everyone else thought of the place, but in my opinion, it was okay. I still like Little Sheep (Mongolian Hotpot) more, due to the unique herbal soup base. Yum~
I head back before everyone else so that I could finish writing my paper and submitting it, which I did.
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I decided I'll be doing these more often now because I feel the need to update my friends back home and allow my future self to relive these moments (just not so much the bad ones).
-jeffjeff
&&Thanks to those who offered their time for me!! You know who you are.
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