Diary of a College Senior

March 30 - Three Things

Friday, March 30, 2018

Yesterday was the group presentations for the construction methods class. Everyone had to show off their final designs for a new hypothetical building on campus. Since there are over one hundred people registered in this class and five or six people per group, as well as ten minutes per presentation time limit, we all had to sit through four long hours of presentations.

At 2 pm, everyone piled into the classroom. Josef, Toby, Blair, K., S. and I arrived early so we can get seats in the back. It seems like many of our classmates had the same idea as the last three rows in the classroom were filled first. I guess everyone wanted a place to hide and do other stuff instead of listening to four boring hours of people talking.

Soon, the judges arrived, along with the teaching assistants and our professors. They all sat in the front row with their judging papers out, ready to make notes.

As the hours went out, I ended up going on my phone to read articles to kill time. Many people around me had also taken out their laptops to work on homework, browse through Reddit, or go on Facebook. Blair was rather nervous about going up to present, but I assured her everyone will be on their phones or laptops anyway instead of paying attention.

When six o'clock finally rolled around, we piled out of the classroom, exhausted. 'One presentation down, one more to go'. I thought.

Today is a holiday so the school buildings were closed. But Haley, Pablo and I wanted to work on our water resources presentation together so Haley ended up inviting us to work at her house. She lives in a beautiful large house in an outer subdivision, about a twenty-minute drive away from where I live.

Pablo was already there when I arrived. He was so nice and even bought a coffee for everyone, along with a giant box of Timbits to share. And of course, I remembered my manners too and brought a box of chocolate almonds with me. It's unbelievable how nice Pablo and Haley are. I wish I had hung out with them more in the last two years instead of with drama-loving people whom I've since cut ties with. I guess if there's anything I've learned in university, it's how to find and make better friends.

For the next four hours, we all toiled away at our presentation slides. We had to present a design for erosion protection at a bend in a river and there was a lot of calculations to show. At around 3 pm, Haley's parents and older brother came home and greeted us. Her brother is autistic, which I was surprised to find. Haley had never talked much about him but I guess it's her family's private business. Though I must admit I had always pictured her as having this perfect life and perfect family because she just seems like someone who has it all.

So that was how I spent my day. The one last piece of news I have is that I won the lottery system for the Explore program, which means I will be spending June in Montreal! Stella got it too, but she decided to pass on this trip because her internship was intended and she really needs this experience.

Oh well, at least I now have a chance to go on another adventure. Now that I've been abroad on my own, I no longer feel scared at the prospect of travelling alone. In fact, I am rather looking forward to some more free time - me time.

I also found a buyer for my small guitar yesterday for $220. This money, along with the $250 from the mapping project, the $100 I got for Chinese new year, and $200 earned from tutoring, I finally have enough to pay the registration fee and plane ticket required for the trip.

Yes, I am finally going. I can't believe it!