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| Hello, all Well, it's been a long time that I haven't updated my blog. So many things happened in the past few months. One good news is... " I officially graduated from Indiana University at Bloomington!!! and received my Master degree from the School of Public and Environmental Affairs in this early May!!!" However, I have to wait until this August to receive my diploma...... Thanks for my American parents (Megan's parents)! Thank you for coming to my graduation :)  Thanks for all the Taiwanese friends :) Thank you for coming to my graduation :) 
After the graduation, I went to visit my good friend in Ft. Worth, Texas- Sara. We went to Austin and San Antonio last week and had lots of fun together :) Thank you, Sara for treating and feeding me so well! 
Currently, I returned to Bloomington, Indiana and already moved out my apartment (Tulip Tree) and stayed with my best friend A-Ram's place. She is really good at everything, especially cooking. I LOVE HER FOOD!!!!!Thank you, sis :) 
We will travel around some places together in these two weeks. On June 4th, Thursday, I will say goodbye to everything and everyone in Bloomington and return to my home- Taiwan. My plans after going back home? I will search for a job and start to work :) Time flies, doesn't it? I finished my two-year program and old enough to start to work... Click this for more updated pictures. | | |
| Disappearing for almost several months, this is my first time to update in this semester.
Time flies. I've been in this small town for 1 year and 3 months and I'm going to turn 24 years old in mid-Nov.
Except some extra-curriculum activities and part-time jobs, I've never had practical experiences outside the school. Probably I really enjoy the time being in the class, suffering from homework, and having lots of uncomplicated friends. Therefore, I expect to have four to six more years to stay in school for the highest program--my last stop.
However....
Life is tough here and I am really exhausted and frustrated. I spent lots of time and efforts pursuing the things that I desire to have for my future, but just found out I can't overcome and solve anything. Obstacles are still there. I can't remove them, instead, I get hurt whenever I give it a try. This makes me reconsider about the decision made before-the feasibility to implement my original plan. Probably something else is worthy for me to do, instead the original one.
Well, you don't have to know what I said. I'm just frustrated and trying to express something very abstract..
One thing is worthy to be happy. There are many good friends staying with me and comforting me. I got one card from my best friend/sister here. The card says " I am sorry things are tough for you right now.." with very sweet and nice words from her in the content, " my helping hug is borrowable during all you life". She also gave me a cup with words "sisters never forget- this is both good & bad" as a gift.
Conclusion? Well, life is tough, but I'm glad that I got precious friendships for good.
Should I thank God to give me this torture, but send me so many angels at the same time?
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| Sitting in front of the computer, I have to be "there" (Yup, SPEA again) for whole day, from Monday to Friday. No doubt, that's my 80% life now. Professor Pirog, the one whose characters are really like mom, went back here from Greek last Thursday.
Starting from this Monday, Professor Pirog started to teach me something about research from collecting to categorizing the infromation. Although it sounds like pretty easy to handle, it is quite difficult for me at first, especially not using my native language.
Professor Pirog began with the journal which she edits, named "Journal of Public Analysis and Management".
From 2003 to 2007, the total number of all the journals among these years is "21", not to mention there are 5 or 6 articles in each one. Browsing through the abstracts, I have to decide whether this is the one that the professor needs or not. Any information about "Government", "Law", and "Program Evaluation" needed to be picked out and put a sticker on it. I have no idea about "Program Evaluation", actually, I choose that class next semester.
I spent "2" days to read through all of articles.
After the first step to collect relevant information, the second step in research is to categorize the information.
Making a table with bibliography citation, data, and whether it is experimental or quasi-experimental, I have to review those articles again searching for the information. I think I need two more days to finish this part, not to mention I still have to look for articles in "Evaluation Review" <One Journal in America> The process of doing a research may be boring; however, the curiosity in my heart always encourage me to learn more and have interests in this process. "I just crave for knowledge!!" even though my reading ability remains problematic. Recently, I have been crazy about musicals. I borrowed "The Rent", "Hairspray", "Evita", and "Cats" to watch. (Our library is amazing) I am so captivated by those lovely songs and start to find the soundtracks. (Our library is amazing) I even borrowed the piano score!!!! (Our music library is awesome!) This stimulated me to practice piano!!! Telling this to my dear sis that I long for playing piano, we are heading for the piano rooms in Music School. Also, I found lots of piano scores for two people to play at the same piano at same time!
Wow, Enjoy the summer! Going out for swimming, practicing piano, studying the subjects for next semester, playing squash with friends, and working for the intern and professor consist my life in IU. In addition, living on my own is the most wonderful thing in the world, even though I hate that lonelyness feeling at first, but there is nothing can be compared with the freedom that I have. B-Town is no longer to be a boring place anymore.
But it becomes one part of my life, and one part of my memories forever. :)
Remember those joys, funny and unforgettable time not only with myself, but with all the people who take care of me, be one part of B-Town family, and be my friends.
Living in B-Towm, do as B-Town"ers" do. :)
Love Summer!!  By the way, I updated lots of pictures that I took on 3rd July and 4th July for celebrating Independence day. You can go to left bar and click visit my website to see those funny pictures. : P | | |
| After traveling for almost 24 hours, I finally arrived Bloomington. Thank God, my trip was pretty smooth and not like what I imaged before. Flying from Taipei to LA, transfering from LA to Cleverland and from Cleverland to Indianapolis, I think I become a plane expert, not that kind of expert who knows the operation or every machine in different airplanes, but the expert who knows how to sleep very well when taking planes. Some unexpected things (not the one that you want) happened in this trip. Instead of having a chance to sit right beside handsome and gentle young men (sorry, mom, I let you down!), I was surrounded by a weird man who put his foot on my left chair arm (his seat is right behind me), and an annoyed, spoiled girl who kicked me while she slept (my right side of body) more than ten times and seen my arm as her pillow, causing me have so many strange shaped bruises on my lap and right arm. Although that little girl's mother kept saying sorry to me (I can't exactly remember how many times, don't abuse that word), this can't stop me staring at the little girl and pretend that I am going to amputate her feet or any part of her body. (Just kidding, I'm not that kind of brutal person..but this is my firsrt that I really hate kids) These weird people that I met were all in the flight from Taipei to LA. (How come Taiwanese people are so so so weird?? ) But I am really glad that nothing strange happened in my rest flights. Good. There were only "two" hours for me to transfer in LA. (Can you believe that ?? only two hours to tranfer??) I was extremely anxious about the length of the time since I had a terrible and unforgettable memory about missing the connection back to Indianapolis and staying at the airport for two days. (I deeply understand what "homeless" means because I had a first-hand experience) I can't believe that Sandy and Megan just laughed very loudly when I told them about my worries. (How come I have that kind of friends??? ) But, they were right. There is no need to worry. I only spent 55 minutes finishing all the processes, waiting in the domestic airport, and keep saying "come on, hurry! let me bording!" (Thanks, girls!) To tell the truth, "Bloomingtoners" regarded this tiny, small, boring place as a "CITY". (I still can't believe) They called themeselves "The City of Bloomington". (Gosh..unbelievable...especially to me) I've confused and considered for more than 10 months about which standard of city that Bloomington achieves. (Sorry, I am an extreme Asian city animal...) I changed the 11-seats-in-a-row international flight into the 6-seats-in-a-row domestic flight, and changed the 6-seats-in-a-row flight into the "only" 3-seats-in-a-row tiny flight.  By accident, the internship and the job working for the professor were postponed to next week. In my original plan, it should be this Thursday that I start to work. Accidental four more free days make me start to wonder why I need to return so early and have no plans and no ideas about what I should do. (wandering everyday like a ghost...)(Of course I do have lots of readings, but just have no motivation to read them..) By the way, after being home (Taiwan) for six weeks and back here, I am a little shame on myself since I forgot how to use my debit card and how to order food...The worst thing is...I forgot how to cook but my friends keep urging me to cook Chinese food..... I need time to get back here and get used to this place again. To be an independent girl. | | |
| * See my profile picture? That's my sis in Bloomington, A-RAM!!! Isn't she cute? We took the picture on campus today.. Remember this?? "Still have 512 days. 512 days = 12310 hours. 12310 hours=738600 minutes. 738600 minutes = 44316000 seconds" 512 days already passed. 12310 hours already passed. 738600 minutes .....passed. 44316000 seconds?? passed. I'm going home. Next Tuesday morning, I will arrive home on Wednesday night. | | |
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