Sorry that I was MIA over break, but just lots of relaxing and enjoying family and friends :) Loved to catch up with everybody and see how people changed in their little ways.

I've already had three days of classes and I LOVE them. True, I'm in for a lot more work this quarter (plus winter quarter is like 1 week shorter than the other two, so it's more intense anyway), but I love all the things I'm studying.

My favorite class (I can already tell) is Psych 6, Intro to Neuroscience. The professor is awesome and I love the way he teaches. He doesn't provide a lot of information on his slides so I can actually listen to what he's saying instead of frantically writing down every last detail on the slide. He's really funny and makes Neuroscience even more interesting (if that was even possible.) Plus, Jing and Anne are in the class too (and Odochi haha) so it's like best friends and best subject put together! It's a big class (like over 150) and in the same auditorium that my bio class last quarter was held.

I really like my Writing 5 class, which has the theme Nature, Technology, and Imagination. I really like that it seems to have more emphasis on architecture than I would have thought when signing up for it. I think architecture is really interesting (possibly taking a class on kind of architecture history? maybe next year?) and then there is also the huge theme of nature, which I've always loved. The teacher is a total sweetheart and truly interested in each of his students. When he had us introduce ourselves, he wanted us to describe what we think of as home and a good place in our minds...like a childhood hideout or a vacation spot filled with memories. It's the basis of our first writing assignment which should be awesome. We also are reading some really cool books that I actually enjoy, unlike the science textbooks that aren't really known for their dazzling storytelling or intriguing plots. Plus Chris from my floor is in my class and a couple of other people I know from orientation, CnT, and San Diego.

My last class is Chem 5, which promises to be the least interesting but possibly the most work. But even at that, I've always loved Chem so it really says something about the other classes if I consider this the least interesting. The class is about 100 people and my professor is pretty intense about no talking and getting work done. She also doesn't use any powerpoint; she just writes on the blackboard. She's pretty old-fashioned in that sense but she does teach very well. She will go back if someone doesn't understand or asks a question. I'm apprehensive about lab which starts next week, but hopefully that goes really well.

I've already put some time in at the library, considering that all my classes require reading and chemistry requires extra work on problems. Not all the activities have started up yet so I have extra time but I'm really glad I didn't decide on going for an internship this term because I might have died from work overload haha. I'm also trying to get used to walking in the cold and avoiding snow which I think I'm doing pretty successfully.

I love that I can get accustomed to life here at Dartmouth so quickly after a long break, just like I did when I came home for Christmas break. Already back in the swing of things and ready to take on the awesome classes of this winter term!