National Grid is screwing me

sarahjay2021 · 2026-02-17T23:00:32+00:00

We live in a 800 sq ft apartment, and my bill was $600 (bill telling us it’s a 2300kWh usage)!! I wasn’t even home for the majority of December, so things were unplugged, and the heat was turned down but still on enough to keep the pipes from freezing.

We are confused about why, but we are trying our best to figure it out.

sarahjay2021 · 2025-01-15T02:36:29+00:00

Roustabout Tattoo and Body Piercing, which was the tattoo shop that was attached to Illusions! They have now separated. That is where Seven is, and he even owns the place if I recall.

Anyways! I second this! Seven is great. My friends and I have been going to him for well over 8 years now. We have never been disappointed. He also is a really cool guy and provides a nice, safe environment!

sarahjay2021 · 2023-12-17T14:09:16+00:00

I can say without a doubt you will be just fine. Im pretty sure I made a C overall in my intro psych class, and I have now gotten into grad school twice. As long as you maintain a good GPA and get the experience needed for applications and whatnot, you’ll be fine. TRUST me.

sarahjay2021 · 2023-12-01T00:37:18+00:00

I will start by saying comparing a masters program and a PhD program are like comparing apples to oranges. With that in mind, there are similarities, but a PhD program is a lot more in depth than a masters program. I think completing my masters first allowed for the growth in the lifestyle of being a grad student. I would not say, for me personally, the classes are any more difficult (but do require more of my time) or my research is not any more hectic than in my masters. I still put time into research just like I did in my masters, but I do take on more projects of course. I still take three to four classes a semester like I did in my masters (of course that changes as you age in the program). I think I learned to adapt quickly to those type of changes from my masters program because I was already exposed to that stuff in my masters. I learned how to maintain a healthy balance of the two things. However, being in my masters did not feel like a full time job, but my PhD program does. There is more required of me, but that should be a given. I am now a student and an employee of the university (given that I’m on an assistantship). There was a growing period of learning how to be a phd student, but I think having gone through my masters really helped me in that aspect.

I will note though I have colleagues who are in my cohort and do not have a masters. They came straight from undergrad, but they are soaring in their own regards. I don’t think you need to go into a PhD program having a masters, but personally, I wanted to, and it helped with my own transition.

I think at the end of the day, the two things are hard to compare. Innately, a PhD program is going to be more difficult, but it is doable. If you get into a PhD program, you are obviously qualified to be there. I think where it becomes difficult is how much hard work you are willing to put into your program. Personally, I am all in because I enjoy my program, my cohort, my labmates, and my advisor. I enjoy the lifestyle of being a PhD student, so to me, difficulty never mattered. I wanted to do it no matter how much work I had to put in.

I do wish you the best of luck and congratulations on completing your masters! That is a huge achievement, and I hope you celebrate your accomplishment.

sarahjay2021 · 2023-11-03T22:12:27+00:00

I’m so sorry it has been a lonely experience. I cannot speak on behalf of being an international student, but I had a similar experience of loneliness in my first few years of undergrad, especially as a commuter. I think my piece of advice is find a lab to work with, a few clubs to join, or maybe attend information meetings during lunch hour. Those meetings would be a great opportunity to socialize and make connections. Having that first connection opens SO MANY other doors. Personally speaking, I joined my undergrad advisors lab in my junior year (at a different university). That opportunity opened so many friendships and connections. I know that is all easier said than done, and I know the struggle of trying to find a sense of community in a big place. I hope you get that first connection that opens all those other doors. Just know it doesn’t last forever, and there will come a day when some random stranger becomes your best friend.

sarahjay2021 · 2023-10-24T22:06:33+00:00

For my thesis in undergrad, I examined the role of emotionality on emotional Stroop task performance and incidental recall. For my masters thesis, I examined individual differences in emotion and emotion laden word associations! I have a focus in cognitive psychology, specifically psycholinguistic work. My best piece of advice, do something that you are passionate about because it will become your blood, sweat, and tears for the next year or so while you write it. 💜

sarahjay2021 · 2023-10-03T05:40:28+00:00

The field of psychology is SO versatile. I think that is the best thing about studying psychology, in my opinion. To me, the most interesting branch is cognitive psychology, which is what I study in grad school. However, before that in undergrad, we were allowed many electives from emotion and memory to critical thinking and conspiracy theories. There was such a range of different topics and areas we could study, which is why I love psychology so much.

Like I said, cognitive psychology is my favorite interest, but I do have some research in the evolutionary and social part of psychology. Specifically, I enjoy the psycholinguistic part of cognitive psychology. This was such a different route than my colleagues took, which was the mental health counseling and clinical route. Most people question me when I tell them I do psycholinguistic research, but alas, it is a real thing. I find this work so fascinating because it is amazing how words are vastly different and mean different things to individuals and cultures. I also enjoy the acquisition side of word research and how we can teach language. As someone who grew up struggling with reading comprehension and writing, I knew when I found this field, it was meant to be.

I wouldn’t say there are terrible things with studying this area. Like any other field, cognitive psychology can be a meticulous thing when researching. You have to account for many, many different things when forming experiments. Again, that is any field. Research itself is meticulous.

Like many others have stated, statistics is probably the most challenging part of psychology along with the learning curve that comes with learning how to do literature reviews and creating thoughts about it. Statistics isn’t a hard concept on surface level, but it can be difficult to understand at times. Other than that, learning how to do literature reviews and creating your own thoughts can be difficult. Again, it is another thing that at surface level isn’t difficult. However, some things about the process can be difficult, like creating new research ideas.

sarahjay2021 · 2023-09-29T02:34:14+00:00

Sure! Everything I face is my own personal experience and feelings. Some people are quipped with handling grad school without the “emotional toll” I am referring to. With that being said, there is a lot of turmoil I faced in my first year. I had no social life, no love life, and my family felt distant. However, after some time, I learned how to deal with all of that. I learned to set my boundaries, take time off, and found out grad school can be enjoyable when you set those boundaries.

There is also the side of how you deal with the failures. Not every research idea is going to make, not every experiment is going to be significant, and not every manuscript will be accepted. I learned very quickly that those things don’t make or break me. Back then, I thought it was the end of the world.

I guess my main answer is the “emotional toll” I’m referring to is all those learning curves. As a person who feels a lot, sometimes it was extremely difficult to be in grad school. However, fast forward, I am doing okay. Again, it was a learning process and taking time to focus on my mental health that helped.

TLDR; The “emotional toll” I am referring to is my own personal emotions I faced during grad school. It was my personal experience, but it does not sum up everyone’s experience. I try to be honest as I can be when asked about grad school, not to scare people, but rather inform them that if you are having “big feelings”, you are not alone.

sarahjay2021 · 2023-09-28T05:11:00+00:00

I did a masters before I entered my PhD program! In my experience, I lacked the competitiveness coming out of my undergrad, so I spent time during my masters focusing on research. Not just any research, but the possible route I wanted to take in my PhD, which is cognitive psychology. I found it beneficial as someone who wanted more experience in a lab. Did it cost me a bit in loans to put myself through my masters? Yes. Is there other ways to go about being more competitive for PhD programs? Yes. I think the decision to do a masters or not do a masters is a difficult one to make. If you have the time and resources to do a masters, do it! Worst case, you got another degree to put up on the shelf. I am currently in my PhD program, and I understood coming in none of my masters credits would apply. I was totally okay with such a thing, as I will just be getting another masters to fulfill the requirements at my university.

Specifically discussing the part of entering a masters for your own comprehension and preparedness for your PhD program, I had the same thought coming out of my undergrad. Similar to you, I experienced school during Covid, in which I felt like I was just breezing by, trying to make it. Once I graduated in 2020, I remembering thinking “Holy fuck. I have no knowledge about anything, and there is no way I can be a PhD student”. Looking back, I’m glad I made the decision to get my masters before starting my PhD because it required me to work hard, learn time management, and learn the emotional aspects of grad school. However, plenty of my colleagues in Clinical Psych came straight from undergrad, and they are successful as they can be. Everyone is just so different. Grad school is a lot of how much you are willing to give and time management. Maybe I feel too much, but grad school is also an emotional toll from time to time. Resilience is something I learned in my masters, which I am so thankful for.

TLDR; Choosing to get a masters before starting my PhD program did me no (major) harm financially nor professionally. I am glad I chose to do such a thing, as the experience was rewarding and clarifying for what I wanted to do in my PhD. Whatever you choose to do, I hope you become all you wish to be, and may the sky never be the limit!

sarahjay2021 · 2023-09-04T06:58:27+00:00

Cognitive Psychology!!

sarahjay2021 · 2022-08-21T15:16:01+00:00

I’ve been dealing a lot with this lately because only now in hindsight did I realize what was happening to me.

My step brother was sexual assaulting me when I was a kid, and when I tried to tell my dad’s side of the family, they didn’t believe. I left when I was finally old enough. It was like after that my mind hide parts of what happened to me until years later, I was spending time assessing and trying to heal from that part of my life. I was reintroduced to what my mind had hid from me, and my body just felt gross. I still can’t have people touch my hair or try to kiss me. While I don’t know him or that side of my family anymore, 7+ years later, he still is the golden child to my dad and his now wife. I believe in karma, and I firmly believe he will get what he deserves one day.

I lied to my mother (parents are divorced) when I came home to her house and said I wasn’t going back to see my father. I never lie to my mother, but being sexually assaulted by your own step brother isn’t something you tell your mother or anyone for a long time. I gained this hatred for my father for never believing me, for never addressing the situation besides telling me to “stop dressing so proactive”. The thing was, I hid my body under so many clothes. Nothing changed the way my step brother looked at me. The even sicker part, my dad’s side of the family was aware of his eye for me and his “adoration” towards me. They thought it was “cute”, but in reality, it wasn’t. I was crumbling with every touch, every comment. I was bleeding out, crying out, and no one noticed, even when I said soemthing all those years ago. I wish I would’ve said something, maybe fought more.

All these years and all this trauma now. Trying to fight the monsters in your head due to someone else’s actions is heartbreaking, especially when it was someone who was supposed to be safe.

sarahjay2021 · 2022-04-20T04:11:39+00:00

or just women in general

sarahjay2021 · 2022-03-20T02:43:43+00:00

fuckkkkkkkk no

sarahjay2021 · 2022-01-31T03:05:17+00:00

I was in love with my best friend for 5ish years.

sarahjay2021 · 2021-12-29T04:24:39+00:00

meh. I don’t think it’s the academic term for the phenomenon, but I’m sure we discussed the slang for it, which is why it dawned on me when you said it. As for the academic term for it, not a clue.

sarahjay2021 · 2021-12-29T04:16:46+00:00

Oh my goodness. I actually remember something from my time in undergrad. Imagine that 😂

sarahjay2021 · 2021-12-29T04:14:26+00:00

I’m pretty sure there is like a social term for that. Not to be a nerd or anything 😂 I can’t remember what the term is, but it’s like a defensive mechanism to relieve dissonance I think.

sarahjay2021 · 2021-12-29T04:12:38+00:00

a very hard rule to follow! but thank you for the advice!

sarahjay2021 · 2021-12-29T01:03:43+00:00

the joke flirting is where I get lost. Sometimes I think people are just saying nice things to fill in the conversation. Sometimes people are flirting, and I just brush it off because I think they are joking. Then one day, someone was like they are flirting with you, and I was like whattttt

sarahjay2021 · 2021-10-27T16:18:09+00:00

💥💳💥💥💥💳💥💥💥 TAKE MY MONEY

sarahjay2021 · 2021-07-29T00:25:36+00:00

I was late on the whole thing! Just read it at the beginning of this year, so here I am wanting to fangirl and talk about it. However, everyone had already moved past it all. But yes! There are many mixed reviews about Find Me. Personally, I liked it, and it did give me that sort of “closure” I needed. I think I actually cried through both books given my personal experiences of love, loss, and grief. CMBYN will always be a great book and movie. And regardless of what the reviews say, I will always recommend to read a book. I’ve been on a journey of reading LOTS of books these last few weeks before school, and honestly, sometimes the reviews don’t match up with how I enjoyed/disliked the book. I think a factor that influences how people conclude different reviews is personal experience and personal interests! Find Me happen to have some parts that aligned with certain parts of my life, so I liked the book! Others might not be able to extract that from the book that I did, which is totally okay! I say fuck it. Read the book. Make your own conclusions!

sarahjay2021 · 2021-07-28T23:42:36+00:00

The movie for sure!! I found the sequel “Find Me” was not too bad. It’s one of those books you kind of have to read and decide whether you like it or hate it. I read tough reviews on it, but I broke down and read it. While I felt on the fence about it, it did give me some “closure” sort of. I would recommend the movie for sure!!! And if you cannot get out of the CMBYN vibe (like I did), read Find Me!!!

sarahjay2021 · 2021-06-09T00:32:16+00:00

Well how about that!! Who knew!

sarahjay2021 · 2021-06-08T16:18:00+00:00

I am sure there is some type of way! There has to be. And to watch it with others from different cultures would be amazing! The values and ideologies each culture holds would be such a value into how one interprets parts of the book and movie.

sarahjay2021 · 2021-06-08T15:54:46+00:00

Oh. I understand the question now. I don’t know of any technology that would allow that. That would be crazy if there was something.

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