The only two problems with it are these: I still have to take a writing class, and now I have more unscheduled time to manage. To resolve the first problem, I really want to meet with the different teachers and figure out which class option will be the best for me.
I think I'm actually making progress in managing my time. Surprise! I'm still far from perfect, but I'm getting better. Part of it is that I was bored and dissatisfied when I wasn't being productive and was just wasting time. Part of it may have also been the reduction in stress after dropping the writing class; when I felt like I could actually do it, the work became a lot less scary and intimidating. Part of it may also be that the internet at our apartment broke this week. Luckily I guess, most of my homework can be done offline while a lot of my distractions can't.
Audiology 1 - Playing catch up because I've gotten behind on several labs.
Audiology 2 - Still going great. Class is often boring unless we have a guest lecturer, but I learn some really cool things and I've been doing fine on the tests.
Family history - I'm way behind. I need to figure out how to fix that.
Speech - I think that this is one of the most humble and student-centered professors in the program. I think I'm keeping up ok in it. I should check that.
We also haven't been doing as many dinners with other people in the last couple weeks, so we're trying to get back in the swing of that. (Really, so rewarding and so much fun)
I just read part of my aunt's journal that she shared online today from 6 years ago when my grandpa's liver was failing. I don't think I realized at the time how severe the situation was because it happened so fast: after being diagnosed, he was put at the top of the organ donor list and the doctors said they could "hold him" for 7-10 days. I feel terrible now because I don't remember being affected by it as profoundly as my aunt was. I hate this feeling - this lack of a deep connection to my extended family. I hate the sense of lost time and lost relationships. My grandpa is pretty healthy now, but my other grandpa died a couple years ago after the combined forces of age, a stroke, and Alzheimer's, and I knew the latter grandpa even more poorly. And now that I finally live in the same state as both my grandparents, I still rarely see them. I hate, hate, hate it. I'm jealous of my cousins who grew up down the street from my grandparents. I'm envious of people whose cousins are some of their best friends. I'm jealous of people who have a fun, easy time at family gatherings and don't wonder to themselves at the relationship they're expected to have with people who are mostly strangers. It's not always that bad, but it's something that's hurt inside of me for years and has only gotten worse. My husband and I decided before we were even married that we wanted to live where we could be close to family for the kids' sake. I guess this is maybe another learning opportunity for me to see how important it is to have close relationships with family. That's one of my goals for becoming a better person, I guess.