the econ commencement was rather unglam. walked up to the stage half-drenched... posed for picture with wet hair and raindrops-speckled glasses... haha. but it was especially memorable, i guess. perhaps it was good that i walked yesterday already... and so didn't feel particularly disappointed that the rain somewhat wrecked the commencement ceremony and most ppl just wanted to get out of Greek Theater ASAP... but i mean sentiments were still high; perhaps nothing can easily "douse" the joy and excitement felt by the many parents, friends and family members there... my very own lil sis claimed that she shouted 'shi min' very loudly, but was inaudible much to her disappointment.... :)

PEIS (IAS) commencement

i wonder if every graduate ends up like the 11th-hour me? had a good sleep yest night to make up for a finals-drained me... so after i woke up, (abt 2 hrs or so before fetching parents) i literally pulled out all my shirts from wardrobe and desperately tried to look for presentable-looking pants (to my horror, most of them dun really fit anymore.... ) i really dun get why finals and commencement have to be so close to each other... you barely recover from exam shock and then you're expected to be all nice and presentable and happy to walk, with little or no time to catch your breath in between!! but at least everything went well... it was actually pretty exhilarating to sit on stage at Zellerbach, feeling elitist and all... i guess for those 2 hrs or so i did feel proud of myself and hoped my parents did too; then, i certainly felt that those hours of hiding in the libraries, all that typing, eyesight-wrecking and regular fretting during thesis writing was worth it.so the first one shows my family.... and the second one, my thesis prof, without whom, i certainly wouldn't have had a chance to sit on stage today. i actually like this picture a lot (courtesy of my dad) because it seems as if we are engaged in some really intellectual conversation. (when in fact he was just asking what i was going to do after graduation haha) well, appearances do deceive.

a really short post before i head off to some final studying.... it's been great meeting and hanging out with family, yet emotionally and physically draining at the same time... sure, they aren't the most adventurous and independent when it comes to travelling, but perhaps i was also so afraid that everything would be too foreign that i might have babied them too much? and little glitches that come up at untimely moments might have made me excessively upset/worried. oh well. i'll hopefully be able to feel my way better the next 2 weeks or so. in meantime, had better really concentrate on studying for the LAST final....

am trying to study but not really either... but at least i'm trying =P anyway, it's a great day and i'm studying at the table in my backyard (it's great that you get wireless here!) and i've done this before, but weather and stress has prevented me from doing this very often. anyway, am blogging just to say it's great how while studying, you hear insects buzzing, birds chirping, neighbors' dogs barking; you hear cars in the distance, leaves rustling.... i feel like there's life all around. nothing like being cooped up in room, studying on your bed and straining your back :P yes, i should get back to studying...

and so parents are coming tomorrow afternoon! it's like one of those big moments in your (MY, i suppose) life where you can show your parents that you're really not the little girl they thought you were when you left home anymore... that you're capable of taking care of them... (ok technically i guess i'm still naive/unworldly in some ways but have definitely matured i think!) and let's hope my driving skills dun immediately make my dad think otherwise! else i'll almost certainly get endless nagging to fly instead of drive to and from LV to LA every single night from tmr till trip:P am of course exaggerating, but it can be that bad... :P hmmm.... it's just 5 days to graduation/commencement! dun really feel any excitement yet, but i think i soon will... in the meantime, i have to try very hard to motivate myself to study for my last final... am also debating over whether i ought wear a free 5'6"-5'8" (the size) graduation gown passed down to me by good gal frens, which unfortunately almost reaches ankles; or be vain and get a proper right-length one... we'll see :P