But unfortunately the fog of tests has not lifted. This post is to celebrate two weeks left of this summer session. One week of class left and then it’s on to finals. Whoopee.

We have a functional anatomy lab test next week where we will be tested on our palpations of structures underneath the skin, such as bone, muscle, tendon, etc. As beginners to this art we outline the structures we find with dry erase marker. It’s become a way of life to walk around with joints covered in marker. And no one really questions it. That is, until you step off campus and then you get some funny looks like “that tattoo went waaay wrong”.

So two weeks left, or more specifically 5 more tests left. All I can think about is the 2.5 week break we get and what I want to do on that break. It mostly involves sleep. I’m accumulating a stack of books to power through. Sleep. I want to try and work on one of my current projects “Worldjumpers”. I hesitantly say that I’m about half way done and approaching the main action so it shouldn’t be too hard to finish it up. Sleep. Did I mention sleep?

The stress of the semester has been there since day one but now the effects of getting about 6 hours of sleep a night (or less) is finally catching up. We’ve moved from deer in the headlights look to the grad school version of the Walking Dead. The profs have become the intrepid survivors who must navigate halls full of zombie students. We’ve pretty much all hit that wall that marks the limit of brain space available for the cramming of information. And we still have a week of class left.

A friend asked me if the fall semester was going to be any easier. Sadly, it’s not. But isn’t this what we continue our education for? To bring ourselves several years of pain and misery and anti-social behaviors until we emerge blinking in to the light of the grownup world where we can make enough money to buy alcohol to drown the sorrows of the past several years to provide for that family we can finally start? (Please cue “I’ve Got A Dream”)

Looking back over this post I can see that it meanders a bit. This is what happens when you write up a blog post at 11:15 pm after a day of studying instead of going to bed to try and get 15 more minutes of sleep in the long run. To all my fellow students- my condolences. You know my pain. To all you who are not currently in school- I hate you. I hope you’re happy with your carefree lives that don’t involve studying and papers and tests and permanent banishment from the gym. Someday I’ll join your ranks and look down with pity upon those poor innocents who blithely dance their happy little selves into grad school. But now I’m here and suddenly I see. Standing here, it’s all so clear. I’m where I’m meant to be. And at last I see the light. And it’s like the semester is almost over. And at last I see the light and…I’ll stop. I’ll stop. And I’ll leave you with this oxymoron: Happy Monday.

Also- a brief reminder and shameless self promotion-  My book The Rise of Aredor is up for giveaway on Goodreads.com. Check it out, tell some friends. If you win you get a signed copy. If you drop me a line on here or one my various sites, I might could see about personalizing it. Food for thought, my friends. Food for thought.