Notes on GRE preparation:

In my ample free time the past week, I've been trying to prep for
GREs. I was so super excited to realize that I'm coming home in less
than a month, but for some reason, I didn't grasp the fact that while
I'm home I will be taking the test. Now that that fact has settled in-
I'm cracking down (as opposed to cracking up haha) and really trying
to study hard. I haven't "studied" in what? A year and a half? My
study habits are a little rusty. These are a few of the thoughts that
have crossed my mind while studying this week:

- If the GRE people have to use Henry VIII in the example sentence,
the word probably hasn't been used since he was king and therefore, I
don't need to know it.
- One should take care when listening to music while studying
otherwise; the lyrics to James Taylor's Sweet Baby James might
suddenly show up in your notebook under the definition of
"mountebank." Sigh.
- If I could spell, I could get through the vocabulary section much
quicker: having to double check the spelling of the word AND half the
words in the definition really slows down the process.
- It is really helpful to learn the vocabulary words, but when you
have to find the antonym of the vocabulary word and don't know the
meaning of the multiple choice options… all the prep in the world and
I would still revert to the old standby- always guess "C" haha
- Who knew that fourth grade math would come back to haunt me while
I'm applying for graduate school. Seriously, when will ever I need to
divide fractions? And if I'm never going to need to divide fractions,
why to I need to prove that I can do it? Same goes with finding the
area of a circle or half of an equilateral triangle. Sigh.
- If you're writing definitions and forget all about the cup of coffee
next to you, it will eventually turn into a passable substitution for
iced coffee. Minus the ice.

miss you
love from Kyrgyzstan,
jess

p.s. I think I have bedbugs.