This week I decided to pull a Rory and take some time off school. This was a very difficult decision since I’ve never dropped a course before. Of course in undergrad, if I didn’t have the bandwidth to do the course I would just float along, show up to classes, attempt the assignments and get a C. It got me through the university and got me a job. I don’t regret it since I have great memories of hanging out with friends and doing great fun things that you only get to do in university.

The underside showed up much later when I was not able to get into grad school with that record and ended up doing half a Master’s degree worth of courses just so I can prove that I can do Masters. When I got my first A+ in grad school it was a complete surprise. I finally figured out how to get good grades. I went through pretty much my entire education getting Bs and Cs because those were the only grades I knew how to get. The thing is that I always wanted to do grad school. I got fed up with my teacher the second week of elementary school because I wasn’t in grad school. I wanted to read journals that analysed plant growth and benefits of watering or the effects of communal and personal ownership on society. When all I got was condescending speeches on importance of washing hands after going to the bathroom (which was what I have been doing since I was old enough to go to the bathroom and wash hands by myself thank-you-very-much) I was outraged. It didn’t help that all of the kids around me were drinking in this wisdom like it was the first time they’ve heard it.

The gist of it is that I love grad school. I love submitting quality work and getting good grades. But I am really exhausted this year and can’t get myself to work full time and do a good job in school. I caught myself slacking and drifting in class. It is not because the class is boring. In fact, this is one of the most interesting classes so far, but I am not in a shape to deal with it and I need to rest. I am no longer interested in getting a C and just pulling through. I had to drop the class.

So now I have some time to rest. It is getting really busy at work too so I will have to put in extra effort to get things running smoothly. I am also very excited about the things I can do with my newly vacated time, but I have to make sure I get enough rest.