Yippie! It's officially over - my 3A term is finally over. I wrote my last final exmination this morning, and as of 12 noon today, I was a free man! Hahaha! No longer have to subject to various tortures and endless nights in the library. Unfortunately, the cycle is only going to continue for another two years.. but always look on the good side - at least I can enjoy myself for the next four months!

With my job lined up, all I need to do now is to find a place to live and I'll be set. On to house searching!

What am I doing still up?

Just to keep all of you (yeah, the three of you that read this) updated.. I'm in the middle of my final examinations.. yes, those dreadful things. There are three things for sure in life : death, taxes, and exams. You just can't escape!

Luckily enough, they will all be over this Wednesday. Stay tuned for an extended version of my blog this coming Thursday (yeah right, I think I'll be sleeping)

I'm in the library right now. Yes, yes, final examinations. I know I have been talking about this forever, but if this weblog is about my life, and my life surrounds school, then that's exactly what I am going to talk about.

Looking at all my friend's blogs (they are all listed on the left side of the page - WHAT? You haven't visited them yet? You should - they tend to update more frequently than I do and probably have more interesting things to say), I realized that everybody accomplished *something* during their term. My friend Tania, for example, visited numerous countries in Europe, learned a lot of German, and hooked up with tons of German boys (alright, I made that up). My buddy Adrian is doing what he loves most - math, while enjoying his peaceful yet eventful life in the US. He also got to visit a couple of places too, and having a blast everyday with his co-workers and his housemate. Not to mention the chicks he gets, oh boy, like girls are just flocking his way and he has trouble peeling them off himself! (fine, I made that up too, but hey, at least I have faith in all my friends' attractiveness to other people) Andrew is having fun in the east coast, enjoying his studies and still has time to party. Then there's Evie.. well, she's in school too, so she doesn't count :) Even she accomplished in getting her favourite stuffed Pooh to study with her!

Then let's look at me. Hmm, what have I accomplished this semester?

.......... ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!

That's right, ladies and gentlemen, nothing. I have been stuck in school for three months already, day-in and day-out I have been slaving away at labs/library/empty classrooms/home. I am serious. There was not a single moment which I had for myself, that I was truly relaxed. The only 'thing' I accomplished this semester was elevated blood pressure, an extreme tolerance for school, and a worse-than-ever temper. None of which I consider a 'good' accomplishment. I admit, I might not be the most interesting person on the planet. Some may consider me a 'geek', but I *do* know how to have fun. Simply put, I am NOT having any fun right now. I'm not even CLOSE to having fun. Being here, slaving away, seem like a chore more than anything. Educational experience, yeah right.

So what's my point after my rambling? I have no idea. I just thought I should share it with you - whomever you may be. This is the reason for my blog - my space, my identity on the planet. This is one place where I can be myself, share my thoughts, and propose my views on life, the universe, and everything.

Getting back to studying. Sometimes you just gotta do what you gotta do.

Oh right, I almost forgot to mention this. Classes were officially over on April 1st, and I have accomplished a feat that I promised the world (alright fine, it was mostly myself) that I would see it completed. Are you ready for this?

I attended every single lecture this term!!!!

Once upon a time (I am making myself sound so old), I was young and naive. (more like stupid and useless) Anyhow, I made this bet with a certain individual (actually, more like several people, since nobody believed me at the time) that I would attend all my classes in my frosh year. Of course that never made it through the first three weeks. :P Being frosh was just so much fun (there were other reasons, but I won't elaborate now - e-mail me if you want to know more) and as such, the bet was off. Of course I still owe this certain individual a night of free flowing alcohol and women (hey wait, I never said anything about the women part). So bring it on, show me how much you can drink!

PS: See what happens when you study for 16 hours a day for a week? Absolute insanity!

Study study.. finally studying for final examinations.. sometimes I wonder why I put myself through all the stress, when I could easily just pass, get my 60, and complete my degree. This little thing called "striving" really annoys me at times.

Why am I still here in the lab? Can somebody explain to me why I always leave things till the last minute? Better yet, why do I *forget* things?

If a lab is due on Monday, it is to my benefit to finish it early, no?

Well, better get prepared for the long three weeks ahead of me.

One more night dammit, just one more! This is it - two reports are due tomorrow.. when I get these completed and out of the way, just a couple more days and I can start studying for final examinations.

Don't get me wrong, I don't especially *enjoy* studying for finals. I mean, who does? At least I know that no new material will be presented between now and the examination - which is a good thing. I can finally see the whole thing in the big picture.. it really helps with studying!

Just when I thought my late nights in the lab is over, here I am again in the lab. Little did I realize that by devoting my life to operating systems, I have neglected the other five subjects I am undertaking this term. It often makes me wonder how other people manage to get through effortlessly. Funny, perhaps I am not smart enough to be here?

A 10-page report on an embedded system design, a small report on the operating systems design, two electronic circuits labs to complete.. when this is all over, I think I'll need a vacation!

T minus 100..

We finally got it working with a certain sense of stability (of course, at 6am, anything is stable when it doesn't start crashing down and telling us there are 'Format Errors' or 'Illegal Operation of Bus Read'). I have been running some rigourous test cases.. and now I'm sitting back, taking a break, hoping for the best during the demonstration. I mean, it is 15% of my final mark at stake here. Not exactly something that I like to toy around with.

There is quite a strong blizzard outside - perhaps its a sign that it will be peace and quiet in the laboratory during the demonstration? That we won't be slaughtered by the TAs, asking us next-to-impossible questions?

In approximately 36 hours, it will probably be one of the very few 'life-or-death' situations in my life. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I'll be demonstrating the operating system that I've been working on for weeks to the TAs. Which explains why I am still in the lab at this hour of the day. Hopefully things will go well :)

On to other parts of my life.. oh wait, school _IS_ my life during these four months of a school semester. Nevermind :)