It's been 34 days since the last time I've seen my fiancé, my older sister and the kids.. Bookish left to Germany to study for a Master degree, and my older sister left with her family to Baghdad where her husband will be studying and practicing for two years.
My sister hasn't been around much in the first place; she'd been living in the suburb for a while before they left to Baghdad. She's also still relatively close and will visit every month.
I have been occupied by missing Bookish so much that I don't have time to miss the kids!
For a while I was happy just to know that some people will be around tomorrow and won't leave.. Now I'm adjusting with the situation and finding all sorts of ways to stay in touch so as not to feel very lonely.
I had my second term exams in April.. My birthday was during the exams as usual. I've turned 21 already!
Looking back at this year's photos I feel like it's been forever since the beginning of my third year in college.. This year was hard especially because I could not adjust with my lecturers.. but now the final exams are approaching and soon enough I'll be busy preparing for these.
This year was full of changes but I'm happy with most of them, and more than happy with the most important change of all :)
Showing posts with label college. Show all posts
Showing posts with label college. Show all posts
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Monday, January 5, 2009
The Usual
I'm fine.. Stressed because of studying and can't believe the state of the process of teaching and learning this year.
I don't want to bore you.. and I'm tired of repeating the same old, same old.. and I'm short of words to explain just how tired and disappointed I am this year. So, I'll spare us all some time and cut it short this time.
Wish me luck, much patience, and the power to survive this without seriously hurting anyone.
I don't want to bore you.. and I'm tired of repeating the same old, same old.. and I'm short of words to explain just how tired and disappointed I am this year. So, I'll spare us all some time and cut it short this time.
Wish me luck, much patience, and the power to survive this without seriously hurting anyone.
Friday, December 19, 2008
What's happening?
This week went much better than expected.. Only two professors showed discontent about the days we skipped before Eid, but only one of them considered the lectures he had planned to give as given and done..
We had a microwave exam few days ago, I didn't do well but I can't care less! I'm done with damage control of the material we have taken but I still can't memorize few really long and complicated equations that are actually scary to look at.. Mom was surprised to see that we were required to memorize them and told me not to, and I'm more than willing to follow her advice for the moment!
******
Yesterday was the introduction party of the new first year students but there were no prizes unlike last year. One of my classmates and a dear friend brought me a bubble from the party after my whining about wanting and expecting a present :D Which was very cute but I didn't know what to do with it and ended up giving it back to him.
Also yesterday, mom invited us for lunch in the Science and Literature Forum: one of Saddam's palaces near the university, now includes a restaurant, a conference room, and few rooms for CISCO lessons.. I'm not sure since I've only been to the restaurant.
So, dad came and picked me up from college to the restaurant where mom and HNK were waiting.. Upon arriving I realized that a BIG number of my professors, and the dean, were gathered in the restaurant for lunch too.. Quite a coincidence :)
I wasn't comfortable eating but was absolutely the happiest person in Mosul (let's not exaggerate and say the world, though it's also possible)..
Now mom and dad just WISH they didn't bring me to the restaurant for I've grown so big-headed the house can barely fit me :D
If I recite the details one more time the keyboard will go on a strike :D So I'll surprise the keyboard, and mom, and keep them to myself this time!
******
And also yesterday, my sister and the kids came for a visit. Aya has started learning Kurdish at the preschool in the suburb. Ayman is extra cute, he speaks very nice and so gently! Anas hasn't learned to walk and has very few activities, smiles the whole time, rarely ever cries, and is very squeezable :) That's a photo of him at the top of the post.
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Frustration
Every time I get called "Najma" by a professor, I go into a small period of not-knowing-what-to-do, only to decide, after a while, to do the easiest thing: nothing..
Now I know both of the dean's associates know about my blog, both are very kind and encouraging however, and though it's weird, I still feel comfortable writing here.
These last two weeks were very frustrating. I have been struggling with two subjects: Microwave and Electronic Communications. The thing is, I know I can get good at them and I know I can love them, but as we have been told many times by our professors: A good communication system requires a good transmitter, a good receiver and a good environment. And it's certain that we have big transmitter problems in these two subjects.
What makes me frustrated is the fact that the seniors in the Electronics dept. study the very same material we study in Microwave, only by a different professor, and they LOVE IT!! This makes me VERY jealous and if it wasn't for our busy schedule, I would've attempted to attend their lectures too!
I exhaust myself so much that the few hours I spend sleeping I always dream of solving problems and deriving equations, and it's like a nightmare, my brain just wouldn't stop obsessing about the whole thing.
Today I decided to do something about it and headed to the room of one of our professors and told him all about my frustration. He promised to do something and I trust it would be good.
I only realize how fast I can talk when I'm frustrated. I go into a fast-forward mode, and let it all out. If the professor wasn't so helpful, I might have very much resorted to crying! But his attitude, and just remembering how much I love and respect him and many other professors in my college, turned the rest of my day to a good one.
And again came the weekend. Like every weekend, we all have HUGE studying plans. But unlike every weekend, I WILL HAVE THESE PLANS DONE, or I'm going to be angry at myself, and I can get really angry so I'd better watch out!
Wish me luck :)
PS: I've been posting some photos of our garden in my Flickr page, if you care to see :)
Now I know both of the dean's associates know about my blog, both are very kind and encouraging however, and though it's weird, I still feel comfortable writing here.
These last two weeks were very frustrating. I have been struggling with two subjects: Microwave and Electronic Communications. The thing is, I know I can get good at them and I know I can love them, but as we have been told many times by our professors: A good communication system requires a good transmitter, a good receiver and a good environment. And it's certain that we have big transmitter problems in these two subjects.
What makes me frustrated is the fact that the seniors in the Electronics dept. study the very same material we study in Microwave, only by a different professor, and they LOVE IT!! This makes me VERY jealous and if it wasn't for our busy schedule, I would've attempted to attend their lectures too!
I exhaust myself so much that the few hours I spend sleeping I always dream of solving problems and deriving equations, and it's like a nightmare, my brain just wouldn't stop obsessing about the whole thing.
Today I decided to do something about it and headed to the room of one of our professors and told him all about my frustration. He promised to do something and I trust it would be good.
I only realize how fast I can talk when I'm frustrated. I go into a fast-forward mode, and let it all out. If the professor wasn't so helpful, I might have very much resorted to crying! But his attitude, and just remembering how much I love and respect him and many other professors in my college, turned the rest of my day to a good one.
And again came the weekend. Like every weekend, we all have HUGE studying plans. But unlike every weekend, I WILL HAVE THESE PLANS DONE, or I'm going to be angry at myself, and I can get really angry so I'd better watch out!
Wish me luck :)
PS: I've been posting some photos of our garden in my Flickr page, if you care to see :)
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
What's happening? college-related only
It's been about two weeks since college and studying started..
At first my classmates were acting like strangers getting me really angry at them.. then *my dear Christian classmate finally started coming to college and upon complaining about the others' behavior to him, they immediately got back to normal and started acting like before..!
One thing that really upsets me about them is that they seem to consider lying to the prof. as a very normal, and very necessary thing. Also anybody who opposes them would be a traitor and a self-centered person. Now this is not the case with everyone, but the others don't act against it.
In general, and though I don't have enough experience to judge the year, I'd like to think that this year will be as enjoyable as my first year... Last year I had lost most of the fun by worrying and exaggerating things. This year I'm getting a bit careless when it comes to how I do in quizzes or how tidy my homework looks, also I'm trying to take it easy when I do not understand the lecture..
The subjects I like the most so far are:
*Microprocessors: The prof. is amazing.. Many people have a charming smile but none smiles so generously. My attention is divided between enjoying the smile and listening to him so competently explaining the lecture, which I really enjoy.
*DSP: The lecturer is a female, an amazing woman: intelligent, elegant, confident and beautiful. The material is enjoyable, it seems.. very similar to another I've taken last year, which I enjoyed very much.
*Control: The prof. is very capable and competent but tends to make us feel like little helpless incapable thingies that can't do a single thing! He's a challenge. I still like him though. The material looks enjoyable but older students say it gets really tough.
*Digital Communications: we still haven't taken enough lectures to judge the material or the lecturer but I am hoping it would be nice.
The remaining two subjects fall as victims to the incompetence of their lecturers who both tend to write a lot on the blackboard and do very little of explaining, I wish one of the other knowledgeable professors would attend one lecture of these and see how they go.
I understand that many of our competent staff have left the country.. but we're going to be the staff one day and it wouldn't be pretty if that's the way we're going to learn.
Now these are only two subjects so I'm not very pessimistic.. but I'm not optimistic either, at all.
Oh, and I almost forgot, there's lab, which seems to be easier than last year.. I can't stop smiling during the experiment!
On another note, I've gained 3 kilos since last year and have decided to maintain this weight.. finally! My appetite has gotten much better as I started taking multi-vitamins and minerals, with dad's consent of course. Also I'm sleeping much better (thanks to allergy pills), my classroom is in the ground floor, and most of the days we finish the lectures by 1:30 PM. In short, college life has gotten much easier than last year.
*Few days before college started, violent coward acts were committed towards the Christian people in Mosul causing many to leave the city.. At the beginning of this week some of the Christian students and employees in the university started coming back to college.
At first my classmates were acting like strangers getting me really angry at them.. then *my dear Christian classmate finally started coming to college and upon complaining about the others' behavior to him, they immediately got back to normal and started acting like before..!
One thing that really upsets me about them is that they seem to consider lying to the prof. as a very normal, and very necessary thing. Also anybody who opposes them would be a traitor and a self-centered person. Now this is not the case with everyone, but the others don't act against it.
In general, and though I don't have enough experience to judge the year, I'd like to think that this year will be as enjoyable as my first year... Last year I had lost most of the fun by worrying and exaggerating things. This year I'm getting a bit careless when it comes to how I do in quizzes or how tidy my homework looks, also I'm trying to take it easy when I do not understand the lecture..
The subjects I like the most so far are:
*Microprocessors: The prof. is amazing.. Many people have a charming smile but none smiles so generously. My attention is divided between enjoying the smile and listening to him so competently explaining the lecture, which I really enjoy.
*DSP: The lecturer is a female, an amazing woman: intelligent, elegant, confident and beautiful. The material is enjoyable, it seems.. very similar to another I've taken last year, which I enjoyed very much.
*Control: The prof. is very capable and competent but tends to make us feel like little helpless incapable thingies that can't do a single thing! He's a challenge. I still like him though. The material looks enjoyable but older students say it gets really tough.
*Digital Communications: we still haven't taken enough lectures to judge the material or the lecturer but I am hoping it would be nice.
The remaining two subjects fall as victims to the incompetence of their lecturers who both tend to write a lot on the blackboard and do very little of explaining, I wish one of the other knowledgeable professors would attend one lecture of these and see how they go.
I understand that many of our competent staff have left the country.. but we're going to be the staff one day and it wouldn't be pretty if that's the way we're going to learn.
Now these are only two subjects so I'm not very pessimistic.. but I'm not optimistic either, at all.
Oh, and I almost forgot, there's lab, which seems to be easier than last year.. I can't stop smiling during the experiment!
On another note, I've gained 3 kilos since last year and have decided to maintain this weight.. finally! My appetite has gotten much better as I started taking multi-vitamins and minerals, with dad's consent of course. Also I'm sleeping much better (thanks to allergy pills), my classroom is in the ground floor, and most of the days we finish the lectures by 1:30 PM. In short, college life has gotten much easier than last year.
*Few days before college started, violent coward acts were committed towards the Christian people in Mosul causing many to leave the city.. At the beginning of this week some of the Christian students and employees in the university started coming back to college.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Back to College
It's been a long time since I last wrote. Ramadan is over, it was a month that I devoted mostly to praying and reading.. the day was very short because of all the things I had to do. We went to the mosque occasionally and I had much to think about and didn't have the urge to write.
During Ramadan few of my friends had very hard circumstances that they're still suffering from. My friend's brother got kidnapped, was returned afterwards but now he's left outside Iraq to be sure of his safety. Another friend is living in a very gloomy atmosphere after the death of her cousin and the serious sickness of his brother. I am very bad at dealing with such situations and have no idea how to make any of them feel better which makes me feel quite helpless.
Then came Eid.. This Eid was very refreshing since for the past two years we didn't get to visit many houses as we usually do because we had grandpa (God's mercy be on him) and grandma (who's moved to the UAE and is enjoying her time now) at our house and were a main attraction of visitors rather than visiting people ourselves. Also, we had new friends to visit, those we have made in our trip to Turkey, and it was fun to see them again and talk about the journey and what's after.
This Monday was the first day of my new year as a junior is college. See how fast time goes! I was excited and fully charged to start the new year. I have forgotten so much of what I've studied in the past two years and would like to get it back!
We spent the first day chatting and congratulating the professors and our friends on Eid.. catching up with what's happened and observing the changes the vacation has made. We didn't take any lessons, and were told to come and get our books on Wednesday.
I didn't go to college today, because judging by the look of things yesterday we will only be wasting our time and have nothing done. Tomorrow I'll get my books.. I can't wait!
The male students got me really bothered yesterday, acting as if they don't even know us. Only two, maybe three, bothered to say hello!
This year is going to be my first in college without my cousin and his friends who have graduated. It feels a bit lonely already :(
We have a new building for our dept. (Communication engineering department) this year. The college started with one building and is slowly expanding to four buildings (one for each department and one for the deanery and administration) and we're only short by one now which I expect will be ready by next year. I love the new building, it's mostly blue (my favorite color) and is still very clean. Some of my friends think it's depressing and feels like a hospital, but I like it.
I still haven't met our professors who will be teaching us this year. That's my main concern, because seniors' talking about few wasn't very promising and I've had a bad experience with our new Eng. Analysis professor last year, which I really don't want to repeat.
During Ramadan few of my friends had very hard circumstances that they're still suffering from. My friend's brother got kidnapped, was returned afterwards but now he's left outside Iraq to be sure of his safety. Another friend is living in a very gloomy atmosphere after the death of her cousin and the serious sickness of his brother. I am very bad at dealing with such situations and have no idea how to make any of them feel better which makes me feel quite helpless.
Then came Eid.. This Eid was very refreshing since for the past two years we didn't get to visit many houses as we usually do because we had grandpa (God's mercy be on him) and grandma (who's moved to the UAE and is enjoying her time now) at our house and were a main attraction of visitors rather than visiting people ourselves. Also, we had new friends to visit, those we have made in our trip to Turkey, and it was fun to see them again and talk about the journey and what's after.
This Monday was the first day of my new year as a junior is college. See how fast time goes! I was excited and fully charged to start the new year. I have forgotten so much of what I've studied in the past two years and would like to get it back!
We spent the first day chatting and congratulating the professors and our friends on Eid.. catching up with what's happened and observing the changes the vacation has made. We didn't take any lessons, and were told to come and get our books on Wednesday.
I didn't go to college today, because judging by the look of things yesterday we will only be wasting our time and have nothing done. Tomorrow I'll get my books.. I can't wait!
The male students got me really bothered yesterday, acting as if they don't even know us. Only two, maybe three, bothered to say hello!
This year is going to be my first in college without my cousin and his friends who have graduated. It feels a bit lonely already :(
We have a new building for our dept. (Communication engineering department) this year. The college started with one building and is slowly expanding to four buildings (one for each department and one for the deanery and administration) and we're only short by one now which I expect will be ready by next year. I love the new building, it's mostly blue (my favorite color) and is still very clean. Some of my friends think it's depressing and feels like a hospital, but I like it.
I still haven't met our professors who will be teaching us this year. That's my main concern, because seniors' talking about few wasn't very promising and I've had a bad experience with our new Eng. Analysis professor last year, which I really don't want to repeat.
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