At the time I started writing this, my computer clock read 21:09. I'm on page 28 out of 33 of the notes on Company Law that I have to study and won't, in all probability, finish them tonight. The reason? I, like the majority of my peers at this moment in time, are the masters of time wasting and procrastination.
And the worrying thing is that I'm even willing to blog tonight and there's like... er... I think 25 days left until my first exam; and 27 days left until the exam that I'm currently studying for is also done and dusted. I should really get a move on, but there's no desire - at least at the moment, and, in all fairness, probably until the end of the evening too - to do so.
This is just horrible and it's starting to play on my head. Whenever I meet up with friends, all that's coming to the fore, at the moment, is how far we've got in our studies. Apart from people starting to sweat, naturally; myself included. It's getting hot, it both a literal and metaphorical (I actually lost my train of thought here, and was going to initially write 'not-so-literal' instead) sense. We got that update yesterday, and the day before that, and the day before that too. And I hate to burst anyone's bubble, but we're going to get it tomorrow too. At least the day after that is Saturday, so that's two days of not hearing a comparative analysis of studying. Or is it? The curiosity is practically too much to handle, and invariably, a problem will arise for one of us (knowing my luck, it'll be me obviously) and we'll be back to square one when we phone up each other to get to the root of the above-mentioned problem!
This afternoon, our disdain towards the horror topic took a new twist though, one that I suppose would want to make you cringe. The question that arose was which of the case studies that we have already done strikes us as our favourite and why. It just took my depression levels to a whole new (low) level, but invariably, simultaneously, I can't help but laugh about it. Our heads are so programmed in this manner at the moment that we are actually trying to find alternate ways of humoring ourselves vis-a-vis the work we have done. For good measure, after a little bit of thought, I opted to go for a case that involved some Arab dude purchasing a piece of furniture that was advertised as being made of oak when it wasn't. He only realised this was the case when he had taken it home. What was the furniture made of, might you ask? Chipwood. Yes, some fool couldn't recognise the difference between oak and chipwood. The best thing about this all is that his action for damages was not upheld by the court, and he was asked to pay the defendant company the remainder of the balance on the piece purchased.
And then they say Americans are stupid. Which they are, just for the record. Some answers they provided in a questionnaire asking the most basic of question produced the following results:
- A triangle has four sides;
- The currency of the United Kingdom is the 'Queen Elizabeth money';
- Iran is an island that is in the perceived South-Eastern part of the globe, i.e. it's a nation that is actually on a continent called Australia;
- There are ten Eiffel Towers in Paris;
- The non-knowledge of the name of a country beginning with the letter 'U'.
I wanted to cry, but instead, I just found myself laughing. And laughing. And laughing. It's when you actually do laugh at such stupidities that you realise that exam stress, perhaps, has finally taken over.
It is now 21:28. 19 minutes wasted on blogging, not bad. Time to get back to the black and white sheets that I don't really feel like seeing.
God Bless You all!
Matti
Showing posts with label Studying. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Studying. Show all posts
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Friday, April 30, 2010
The Month of Desperation
Incredibly so, we're already moving into the final stretch. Time has flown by so quickly and third year, in my case, is practically over!
It was around this time last year that I remember blog frequency increasing to the extent that sometimes, people were posting a blog a day so as to alleviate themselves from the boredom that studying emitted. I somewhat see the same thing happening sometime soon - indeed, it always seems to be that when May comes about, and us students' desperation increases day after day, so too do the amount of writings increase.
The horrible thing about this all is that this year especially, I really shouldn't have the time to stay writing away, yet I come back and time after time I stay rambling on about different things. It's like an addiction or something... at least though it's not one that's detrimental to my health! It's something worse than that... it's detrimental to my time!
So onto the month of May we go, that wretched month of desperation, where among the features I seem to expect Lanf's blog/vlog to resurrect, Matt to remain silent in an attempt to read as much information as that brain of his can absorb, Bettina to post more music, Krissie to not blog - as she tries to get out of touch with the world of technology* and Zoe to keep on worrying a bit too much about A Levels!
May. You've just got to love it. For its procrastination and desperation, and for its ability to post some utterly ridiculous things on Facebook (such as the group I created yesterday afternoon against those promoters placed at University, and the Law Restaurant menu this time last year).
God Bless You all!
Matti
*Thank God you don't use Windows 7 then (see Facebook group for further details).
It was around this time last year that I remember blog frequency increasing to the extent that sometimes, people were posting a blog a day so as to alleviate themselves from the boredom that studying emitted. I somewhat see the same thing happening sometime soon - indeed, it always seems to be that when May comes about, and us students' desperation increases day after day, so too do the amount of writings increase.
The horrible thing about this all is that this year especially, I really shouldn't have the time to stay writing away, yet I come back and time after time I stay rambling on about different things. It's like an addiction or something... at least though it's not one that's detrimental to my health! It's something worse than that... it's detrimental to my time!
So onto the month of May we go, that wretched month of desperation, where among the features I seem to expect Lanf's blog/vlog to resurrect, Matt to remain silent in an attempt to read as much information as that brain of his can absorb, Bettina to post more music, Krissie to not blog - as she tries to get out of touch with the world of technology* and Zoe to keep on worrying a bit too much about A Levels!
May. You've just got to love it. For its procrastination and desperation, and for its ability to post some utterly ridiculous things on Facebook (such as the group I created yesterday afternoon against those promoters placed at University, and the Law Restaurant menu this time last year).
God Bless You all!
Matti
*Thank God you don't use Windows 7 then (see Facebook group for further details).
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Cheesecakes for Sale! Going for Free!
I have just finished the best part of an hour and a half's work at one stretch, which, in normal terms, would be great - especially by my rather hopeless working standards where even the mere sight of my (non-working, dead battery) clock, which looks like a brake disc from a Formula 1 car, would generally distract me.
The only thing is that this last hour and a half has, when you look at it in personal terms, been wasted. This statement, on the facet of things, is rather contradictory especially considering what I have just said in the paragraph above. But I know for a fact that I have not lost my mind and that I still am indeed sane, despite the work constantly piling up at now alarming levels (don't we nonetheless always get through this all in the end?).
The fact of the matter is that for this last hour and a half, I have been organising many series of notes for others to enjoy and study from in the forthcoming exams. To use the Maltese expression, I feel like "qed nbigh turtiera pastizzi". Of course, there is a wee bit of a personal gain here as well as this organisation of notes and insertion of missing lecture notes into their proper places has obviously put me on track to just study everything in an apparent plain-sailing fashion, but I don't think much from that which I read has really entered my head at the moment, which is a tad worrying!
But I don't mind doing this. I'm not saying I enjoy it, but I don't mind it; and I don't mind it simply because I'm a Christian and because I'm being there for other people by doing this. It's not easy for me to give out my notes practically all the time, but who said being a Christian is easy? I do this because even though I try not to believe it, I do know deep down that it is a way of bringing out the Christian in me at the end of the day. I don't grumble when giving out these notes, and I never will - and indeed, this is not a grumble, but just a statement. Being a Christian, I don't expect anything in return for what I'm doing.
At least my life is serving a useful purpose, apart from stirring up debates, now that being a 'taxi driver' no longer really happens any longer.
God Bless You all,
Matti
The only thing is that this last hour and a half has, when you look at it in personal terms, been wasted. This statement, on the facet of things, is rather contradictory especially considering what I have just said in the paragraph above. But I know for a fact that I have not lost my mind and that I still am indeed sane, despite the work constantly piling up at now alarming levels (don't we nonetheless always get through this all in the end?).
The fact of the matter is that for this last hour and a half, I have been organising many series of notes for others to enjoy and study from in the forthcoming exams. To use the Maltese expression, I feel like "qed nbigh turtiera pastizzi". Of course, there is a wee bit of a personal gain here as well as this organisation of notes and insertion of missing lecture notes into their proper places has obviously put me on track to just study everything in an apparent plain-sailing fashion, but I don't think much from that which I read has really entered my head at the moment, which is a tad worrying!
But I don't mind doing this. I'm not saying I enjoy it, but I don't mind it; and I don't mind it simply because I'm a Christian and because I'm being there for other people by doing this. It's not easy for me to give out my notes practically all the time, but who said being a Christian is easy? I do this because even though I try not to believe it, I do know deep down that it is a way of bringing out the Christian in me at the end of the day. I don't grumble when giving out these notes, and I never will - and indeed, this is not a grumble, but just a statement. Being a Christian, I don't expect anything in return for what I'm doing.
At least my life is serving a useful purpose, apart from stirring up debates, now that being a 'taxi driver' no longer really happens any longer.
God Bless You all,
Matti
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
End of Exams... Soon
Finally, in 17 hours from the time that this has been written, exams will, at long last, be over. Until the end of May, but still.
The last week and a half or so has been relatively hectic for more than one reason, the principal one being trying to cram in every single bit of information possible into that relatively stubborn cranium of mine with mixed success. I always hate the period that ensues after exams, that lengthy bit of time that it takes to wait for results accordingly. People are all too often so curious to see how they've fared and whether they got the grades that they really desired and/or deserved after putting in a substantial effort into a particular subject. I believe I fall into that category. Others, of course, are quite nonchalant about this but to each his own, I guess.
So far, third year has been more pressured than last year, but I know all too well that the worst is still to come. As the second semester approaches, so too do 120 cases to remember solely in Contract Law (God help me, I was already struggling - relatively - to remember around 15 for our January test!!), another unspecified amount in Tort Law, more precious time (wasted) with everyone's favourite lecturer in Señor Quintano, and the horrors from hell at the end of May, all probably condensed into one week of sheer wrist-slitting. Something to really look forward to; it really makes me appreciate what former students have passed through, practically sweating blood to make it. At least if we're going to get our LL.B.'s, we sure as hell are going to earn them.
It just makes me want to go back to the January 2009 session of examinations and do Family Law all over again. And I thought that was bad... how wrong I was.
And on a completely unrelated note, I will conclude here with a powerful Bible verse that I came across...
"My son, do not despise the Lord's discipline and do not resent his rebuke, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in. (Proverbs 3:11-12)
God Bless You all!
Matti
The last week and a half or so has been relatively hectic for more than one reason, the principal one being trying to cram in every single bit of information possible into that relatively stubborn cranium of mine with mixed success. I always hate the period that ensues after exams, that lengthy bit of time that it takes to wait for results accordingly. People are all too often so curious to see how they've fared and whether they got the grades that they really desired and/or deserved after putting in a substantial effort into a particular subject. I believe I fall into that category. Others, of course, are quite nonchalant about this but to each his own, I guess.
So far, third year has been more pressured than last year, but I know all too well that the worst is still to come. As the second semester approaches, so too do 120 cases to remember solely in Contract Law (God help me, I was already struggling - relatively - to remember around 15 for our January test!!), another unspecified amount in Tort Law, more precious time (wasted) with everyone's favourite lecturer in Señor Quintano, and the horrors from hell at the end of May, all probably condensed into one week of sheer wrist-slitting. Something to really look forward to; it really makes me appreciate what former students have passed through, practically sweating blood to make it. At least if we're going to get our LL.B.'s, we sure as hell are going to earn them.
It just makes me want to go back to the January 2009 session of examinations and do Family Law all over again. And I thought that was bad... how wrong I was.
And on a completely unrelated note, I will conclude here with a powerful Bible verse that I came across...
"My son, do not despise the Lord's discipline and do not resent his rebuke, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in. (Proverbs 3:11-12)
God Bless You all!
Matti
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Of Countdowns and Observations
While the build up on my MSN nickname has been intense as ever in the last 14 odd days, today, the official countdown to the end of exams - and eventual promotion to LL.B. III (already!) - has now started with the completion of exam one out of four. At the time of writing, us law students are precisely 1 week, 6 days, 11 hours and 45 minutes away from freedom! Anyway, I'm happy to announce that Commercial Law remained as predictable as the past papers indicated it would be, and I'm also happy to announce that that will probably be the easiest 10 credit exam that I sat for in my life. Seriously. Let's now hope that the Commercial honchos aren't the worst or strictest of markers out there, to the extent that they have to get off their high horses to appreciate that with studying, the student can produce some good answers in an exam.
Onto this afternoon's happenings, where I was drafted into EF for Teaching Observation. To be honest, I didn't go in with many high hopes because I thought it would be a waste of time, but I actually ended up by realising how much one can learn from others with a certain amount of experience, no matter how short the sessions at hand are. This doesn't mean that I will not be adopting my own teaching style come when I settle into the job at the end of June, despite my inexperience, but it did help calm my fears about teaching being a real hard ordeal. When one has textbooks at his disposal, the ordeal automatically becomes a hell of a lot easier, and then it's simply up to the teacher to be in control of the class. At least, that's how I felt it.
And in a blog that is bereft of ideas, I might as well fill up another mini-paragraph with one common sentiment: for the one time that I went there to study; last Thursday, to be precise, because of the presence of the maid at home; I actually miss Room 101! Okay, maybe not the room itself, but the company that is associated with it. Seeing that I feel capable of getting more content done at home, this has kind of left people like myself a bit socially deprived during the week due to the fact that, well, I'm staying indoors! On the other end of the scale, however, I really am thanking God that I didn't take Architecture as a course at University... while I, and other law students, might be going bonkers over Administrative and Criminal Law now, our 'bonkers' is simply nothing compared to that suffered in Architecture. I actually pity the people there... and a clear example of what they're passing through can be seen and illustrated clearly by none other than the ever-increasingly popular Lanf! ;)
God Bless You all!
Matti
Onto this afternoon's happenings, where I was drafted into EF for Teaching Observation. To be honest, I didn't go in with many high hopes because I thought it would be a waste of time, but I actually ended up by realising how much one can learn from others with a certain amount of experience, no matter how short the sessions at hand are. This doesn't mean that I will not be adopting my own teaching style come when I settle into the job at the end of June, despite my inexperience, but it did help calm my fears about teaching being a real hard ordeal. When one has textbooks at his disposal, the ordeal automatically becomes a hell of a lot easier, and then it's simply up to the teacher to be in control of the class. At least, that's how I felt it.
And in a blog that is bereft of ideas, I might as well fill up another mini-paragraph with one common sentiment: for the one time that I went there to study; last Thursday, to be precise, because of the presence of the maid at home; I actually miss Room 101! Okay, maybe not the room itself, but the company that is associated with it. Seeing that I feel capable of getting more content done at home, this has kind of left people like myself a bit socially deprived during the week due to the fact that, well, I'm staying indoors! On the other end of the scale, however, I really am thanking God that I didn't take Architecture as a course at University... while I, and other law students, might be going bonkers over Administrative and Criminal Law now, our 'bonkers' is simply nothing compared to that suffered in Architecture. I actually pity the people there... and a clear example of what they're passing through can be seen and illustrated clearly by none other than the ever-increasingly popular Lanf! ;)
God Bless You all!
Matti
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Random (Miscellaneous) Occurrences
I think I'll fit in a short blog from the comfort of my bed before I get under the sheet and into my dreams. I'm also already half-asleep as it stands so please forgive me if there are any typos or any form of poor English. It happens when you're tired.
Today was an eventful yet uneventful day. Of course, it consisted in the normal amount of study time - today was my second scheduled day in which to study, and conclude, the notions of rape. I ably managed to do so by 5 p.m.; I feel that that was quite an achievement. I think tomorrow I'll study about managers in Commercial Law in order to vary the different topics that I have. I've been doing Criminal for around the last 5 days or so now and, to be honest, it's starting to get a bit annoying looking at the same provisions of the law day in, day out. So there's no better solution to that other than by looking at different laws instead! Oh well, on this point, I will cheer up, for surely anything is better than studying concrete or fluid mechanics...
Good old QIQ. It always has some kind of new problem, the poor car that has been through so much under my totalitarian regime. Today's episode was a slow puncture, or so I believed. So I decided to be a smart guy this morning and drive on it down to the nearest tyre guy. Luckily for me, after a thorough check, it turns out there was no slow puncture at all, and the tyre just needed to be inflated. Oh well, I'm not one who likes to get my hands messy in this regard and I'll be the first to say that I haven't checked my tires in kingdom come. Or around 2 months. But at least only the right indicator remains problematic at this stage in time.
Today I took to the football pitch for what I believe has got to be the final game of the season. At least pre-exams. And I realised that as soon as you take a week off, due to the flu in my case, you suddenly lose match fitness in the blink of an eye. True, we didn't play for that long today - an hour and ten minutes to be precise, of which 45 of them must have been in goal - but I felt rather exhausted by the end of it all. Not even the sudden downpour of Gatorade into my body straight afterwards could really revitalise and reenergise me. It must also be due to the heat; summer really and truly is on us now. Or if it's not, it's just around the corner. For those who are interested in the game, there were around a million goals scored at either end, so it was a rather open match.
And I will conclude on that note, as well as a personal thank you to Krissie once again (this is what, around the fifth time I'm saying this tonight?) on teaching me how to print screen on the MacBook. The thing is that I desperately wanted a photo of myself (you can see on my Facebook profile picture if interested) but there was no way to just right click and save, because the photographer is kindly asking for the grand total of €6 for a print. Meaning that supposedly, it's not even obtainable in electronic format. Anyhow, I obviously (embarrassingly) didn't know how to do the wretched thing, but now I've learnt how and I've actually just been asked by another MacBook user how to do it. I've related the command successfully. Ah, you learn something new everyday. :)
God Bless You all!
Matti
Today was an eventful yet uneventful day. Of course, it consisted in the normal amount of study time - today was my second scheduled day in which to study, and conclude, the notions of rape. I ably managed to do so by 5 p.m.; I feel that that was quite an achievement. I think tomorrow I'll study about managers in Commercial Law in order to vary the different topics that I have. I've been doing Criminal for around the last 5 days or so now and, to be honest, it's starting to get a bit annoying looking at the same provisions of the law day in, day out. So there's no better solution to that other than by looking at different laws instead! Oh well, on this point, I will cheer up, for surely anything is better than studying concrete or fluid mechanics...
Good old QIQ. It always has some kind of new problem, the poor car that has been through so much under my totalitarian regime. Today's episode was a slow puncture, or so I believed. So I decided to be a smart guy this morning and drive on it down to the nearest tyre guy. Luckily for me, after a thorough check, it turns out there was no slow puncture at all, and the tyre just needed to be inflated. Oh well, I'm not one who likes to get my hands messy in this regard and I'll be the first to say that I haven't checked my tires in kingdom come. Or around 2 months. But at least only the right indicator remains problematic at this stage in time.
Today I took to the football pitch for what I believe has got to be the final game of the season. At least pre-exams. And I realised that as soon as you take a week off, due to the flu in my case, you suddenly lose match fitness in the blink of an eye. True, we didn't play for that long today - an hour and ten minutes to be precise, of which 45 of them must have been in goal - but I felt rather exhausted by the end of it all. Not even the sudden downpour of Gatorade into my body straight afterwards could really revitalise and reenergise me. It must also be due to the heat; summer really and truly is on us now. Or if it's not, it's just around the corner. For those who are interested in the game, there were around a million goals scored at either end, so it was a rather open match.
And I will conclude on that note, as well as a personal thank you to Krissie once again (this is what, around the fifth time I'm saying this tonight?) on teaching me how to print screen on the MacBook. The thing is that I desperately wanted a photo of myself (you can see on my Facebook profile picture if interested) but there was no way to just right click and save, because the photographer is kindly asking for the grand total of €6 for a print. Meaning that supposedly, it's not even obtainable in electronic format. Anyhow, I obviously (embarrassingly) didn't know how to do the wretched thing, but now I've learnt how and I've actually just been asked by another MacBook user how to do it. I've related the command successfully. Ah, you learn something new everyday. :)
God Bless You all!
Matti
Monday, May 18, 2009
I'm in Love With a Fairytale...
... even though it hurts! Boy, is that song sticking in my head. It's got something to it which cheers me up whenever I attempt singing it, such as when writing notes. I just smile at it. Ah, well, weird.
Anyway, in what is rapidly becoming as addictive as Facebook, another post comes by your way today. And this time, it's about my poor self. As today, I decided to subject myself to studying what is almost definitely one of the most gruesome and descriptive topics in Criminal Law, that being the topic of rape.
Yes, us second year law students learn about rape. Needless to say, my volumes of notes on the topic are quite graphic, giving us poor souls plenty of ideas about how rape occurs, the different ways of it occurring, and other things. I don't think I really want to go into further detail than that, not because it's not apt (which it most certainly is not), but simply because I don't think it's right to start remembering that that I wrote during the day at around 10 past 11 at night.
These series of days leading up to my (our) final examinations are going to be uneventful to say the least. They mostly consist of waking up in the morning, having breakfast, studying, having lunch, studying, having dinner, possibly some more studying, free time on the computer and sleep. Subject to interspersed breaks during the study periods, as well as a final football game of the season (I managed to get myself fit just in time for the match due to me suffering from the flu last week) tomorrow evening.
This evening that plan was disrupted slightly as, seeing that I study in the kitchen and the living room is adjacent to it, and my mother wanted to see her favourite programme Days of Our Lives at quarter past 6, I had to retire for the day, especially considering that afterwards, I had to start getting ready for a family dinner. Normally, I don't enjoy these that much. You can understand why - I'm the youngest in the entire family and I'm 20. My eldest cousin is 31. HUGE gap. Oh well, in all fairness, time passed by quite quickly today and I actually didn't mind it at all, for a change. I guess it's nice to get together with the whole family sometimes just to be with them, even though my mouth, for once, didn't do much of the talking as I was stuffing it with spare ribs and, subsequently, After Eight ice-cream.
I think that's it for today. I don't really have much more to add on... I don't care if I lose my mind... I'm already cursed...
And yes, I acknowledge that the title of this blog, for once, has nothing to do with its content. :)
God Bless You all!
Matti
Anyway, in what is rapidly becoming as addictive as Facebook, another post comes by your way today. And this time, it's about my poor self. As today, I decided to subject myself to studying what is almost definitely one of the most gruesome and descriptive topics in Criminal Law, that being the topic of rape.
Yes, us second year law students learn about rape. Needless to say, my volumes of notes on the topic are quite graphic, giving us poor souls plenty of ideas about how rape occurs, the different ways of it occurring, and other things. I don't think I really want to go into further detail than that, not because it's not apt (which it most certainly is not), but simply because I don't think it's right to start remembering that that I wrote during the day at around 10 past 11 at night.
These series of days leading up to my (our) final examinations are going to be uneventful to say the least. They mostly consist of waking up in the morning, having breakfast, studying, having lunch, studying, having dinner, possibly some more studying, free time on the computer and sleep. Subject to interspersed breaks during the study periods, as well as a final football game of the season (I managed to get myself fit just in time for the match due to me suffering from the flu last week) tomorrow evening.
This evening that plan was disrupted slightly as, seeing that I study in the kitchen and the living room is adjacent to it, and my mother wanted to see her favourite programme Days of Our Lives at quarter past 6, I had to retire for the day, especially considering that afterwards, I had to start getting ready for a family dinner. Normally, I don't enjoy these that much. You can understand why - I'm the youngest in the entire family and I'm 20. My eldest cousin is 31. HUGE gap. Oh well, in all fairness, time passed by quite quickly today and I actually didn't mind it at all, for a change. I guess it's nice to get together with the whole family sometimes just to be with them, even though my mouth, for once, didn't do much of the talking as I was stuffing it with spare ribs and, subsequently, After Eight ice-cream.
I think that's it for today. I don't really have much more to add on... I don't care if I lose my mind... I'm already cursed...
And yes, I acknowledge that the title of this blog, for once, has nothing to do with its content. :)
God Bless You all!
Matti
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