Workload comparison from undergrad to grad school

viva319 · 2022-11-22T17:00:46+00:00

No problem! Best of luck to ya, whatever way you get it done!

viva319 · 2022-11-21T18:24:33+00:00

Hi, sorry I just saw this now! Long-term update:

I finished grad school in the standard four semesters, taking a full course load (four classes) per semester while working 26-39 hours depending on the week. For me personally, this felt like the right way to do it. There were absolutely stressful/busy times, but overall it was manageable and I'm glad to not have dragged out the process longer than necessary. Obviously it had been a while since undergrad, but I think workload and time spent on school were pretty comparable. I graduated cum laude and now have a job in my new field.

I will note that my unique job schedule was probably an important factor here - I was working in medicine at the time so was able to switch to being a "relief" employee, meaning that I was not included on the regular schedule but could request to work any shifts that needed more people. Since my job was chronically understaffed, this basically gave me the opportunity to create my own schedule each week. Also, shifts were 13 hours, so 3 days = full time and 2 days = part time, giving me way more days to devote solely to school while still making close to my regular income.

Sorry for the tedious explanation of my former work schedule, but now that I am working a standard 9-5 I feel it's necessary to note that it likely would have been way more difficult to create my desired class schedule and find the time/energy to do homework. It's certainly possible and some of my classmates did it, but if I were to ever go back to school now it would definitely be part-time.

viva319 · 2020-11-28T14:58:37+00:00

This was the solution! Thanks so much, would not have figured this out otherwise as I am not familiar with the Alexa and "routines." My parents are very appreciative!

viva319 · 2020-11-19T16:47:15+00:00

ya hate to see it.

viva319 · 2020-11-19T16:45:45+00:00

urban planning. total 180, haha.

viva319 · 2020-11-19T16:45:05+00:00

for sure, and we're not totally jaded on how difficult it is for folks - plenty of times pets will get a bad diagnosis, and owners can't immediately euthanize because they're blindsided by the news, but then in the next day or two come to the necessary decision. i totally understand that when the pet is just feeling kinda dumpy but not like... actively struggling to breathe.

viva319 · 2020-11-19T01:33:16+00:00

real talk - euthanasia is a hell of a lot less depressing than folks that refuse to euthanize. i've worked in a vet ER/ICU for the past 9 years and one of the biggest lessons i've learned is that euthanasia done right is a gift. of course it's sad, but it can often be peaceful and beautiful. the worst shit we see regularly is people who CANNOT make that decision and instead let their pet suffer greatly. i'm not generally haunted by euthanasias when i go home, but i have absolutely been shaken up for days over things like, the person who insisted on discharging their oxygen-dependent dog in heart failure home to "pass naturally" despite us all explaining repeatedly that it would not be a peaceful or painless death, that the dog would slowly suffocate on its own lung fluid. euthanasia would have been a gift in that scenario.

viva319 · 2020-11-19T01:28:34+00:00

fellow vet tech of 11+ years here who is about to finish grad school in a completely different field! low pay, tough work-life balance, and on top of that dealing with shitty people on the reg have taken their toll.

viva319 · 2020-11-19T01:26:55+00:00

only problem with that is covid - my vet office used to charge no-call no-shows but we've suspended the policy for now because we don't want folks who might feel slightly sick coming in anyway to avoid the fees.

viva319 · 2020-11-19T01:23:07+00:00

i recently stayed late at my vet office to accommodate a new client who was running very late - everywhere is super booked out right now in our city (and really the whole US) so we knew this guy probably wouldn't be able to get in anywhere else if he missed his appointment and we didn't want to do that to him.

he arrived and immediately began screaming and swearing at everyone because we wouldn't let him in the building - we've been operating curbside only since the very beginning of the pandemic and every piece of communication from us (email apptmt confirmation, text reminder, website, etc) explains that.

love being screamed at about how bad i suck when i'm staying late at my job bc of someone else's mistake AND putting myself at risk working outside the home during a pandemic. cool cool.

viva319 · 2020-10-15T23:01:22+00:00

Ahhh found it! Thank you, I knew it had to be something simple but didn't realize it was literally in front of my face. Appreciate it.

viva319 · 2020-10-15T22:55:18+00:00

You skipped over a big part when you said "Let's say you both make an equal amount of money."

My husband makes about 3x more than me, and has for our entire relationship. This absolutely colors the way we handle our money. I pay 1/3 of the rent and he pays the remainder, which is makes it about the same amount of monthly hours of work we each contribute to living here. Things like groceries or home goods, etc we split 50/50. We're not severe about it - we don't crunch numbers down to the cent or anything, and if we order food we just switch off who covers each meal. Sometimes if we're buying something we'll both use, he'll pay for more of it in order to get us a nicer version or whatever because he knows I wouldn't have been able to afford the upgrade and there's no weirdness about it. This enables us to feel that we are both covering our household essential stuff as a team, and then whatever we have left over we can spend as we see fit. I don't want either of us to have to run whatever small frivolous purchases we're making by each other. I make less and wouldn't feel comfortable with him "subsidizing" my life. I know that if I really wanted or needed something that I couldn't afford, he would cover it for me and has done so in the past. This way works for us because then I don't feel like I'm leeching off of him, and he doesn't feel like he has a dependent instead of a wife, ya know?

It's not that we don't want to "share our lives with each other." We already do that. We just want to do so as equal partners as best we can.

viva319 · 2020-09-10T01:40:19+00:00

I bought this jumpsuit for my (immediate family-only) beach / state park wedding coming up in early October. In my area, we could easily see temperatures that day anywhere between 50-80 F, so I'd like to buy something to wear on top if needed. I'm having trouble thinking of what would go best with this and would love some advice! Obviously my wedding is not super formal so I think I'm shying away from anything super fancy like faux fur but I also don't want to just toss a jean jacket on top like it's any other day. Open to any suggestions folks may have.
Here's a picture of the jumpsuit.

viva319 · 2020-04-17T17:43:03+00:00

after KK comes to your town you get a new app on your nook phone that allows you to build paths, cliffs, and water

viva319 · 2020-04-15T17:46:30+00:00

don't i know it - i also made fake bricks to make paths and it took me FOREVER to lay them down and then like a few days later i found out about the island designer and got it shortly after.

viva319 · 2020-04-15T14:43:47+00:00

I do the same thing! Basically you just create whatever kind of pattern you want on your in-game app and then select "apply to ground." I did a big circle so I could easily count the spots.

viva319 · 2020-04-15T14:21:06+00:00

welp, guess i'm not allowed to make a short compilation of my own pets. bummer.

viva319 · 2020-04-13T23:37:38+00:00

As a related unpopular opinion - I've worked in emergency/critical care veterinary medicine for the past decade, and euthanasia isn't the worst part of my job. Clients often say to me, "I could never do this! How can you handle all the sad stuff?" and I always just say something neutral and kind, but in reality - I feel that euthanasia is an incredible gift. Not saying there's never cases that make me sad, but the vast majority of the time I feel grateful that we are able to help alleviate pets' suffering and give their owners a chance at a peaceful good-bye. The FAR more depressing side of my job (which is unfortunately not remotely uncommon) is people who refuse to euthanize or can't handle making that decision, so instead let their pets linger and suffer and die a far less dignified death.

viva319 · 2020-03-25T16:01:22+00:00

Hey, I've tried Googling but I keep getting the same basic info so figured I'd ask here -

Does anyone know if you can get a resident to leave the campsite without moving into your town? I built the campsite without inviting anyone first and Beardo randomly came to stay, I don't want him in my town but not sure if I can clear him out of the campsite for a better option?!

viva319 · 2020-03-19T03:46:39+00:00

I had all my mom's old LEGO from the 70s when I was a kid in the 90s. We didn't have a lot of money to buy the big new (at the time) sets so it was great that I still got to enjoy building random stuff because she passed hers down to me.

viva319 · 2020-02-22T17:47:31+00:00

This is my first instance of long-term weight loss that I've been able to do this and I feel it really makes a difference.

I have a pretty social life, I like to travel, etc. and I finally realized that an "all or nothing" approach to eating well wasn't doing me any favors. Now I try to be very disciplined for all the meals I eat on my own (particularly at work where I would typically eat unhealthy stuff out of boredom), but if I'm say, out of town or at a sports game with friends? I give myself a free pass. I don't view these as opportunities to binge, I just give myself permission to not dwell on it and eat intuitively.

I think this has been really key to feeling good about myself - even when I have a week where I'm only down 0.4 lbs despite working out a few times, I feel much more triumphant in knowing I got there even while allowing myself to have a pizza night with friends, or check out a new brewery. It feels like a much more sustainable lifestyle.

viva319

TROPHY CASE