Sept 2
Orientation couldn't have been more fun and relaxing. We walk in the first day and we have these huge binders that tell us everything we need to know about classes, getting a job, picking a thesis, and navigating the campus. Dave tells us companies are paying $35k and up for a chance to give us a thesis topic. John tells us that the average starting salary of last year's class was $97k. It's virtually impossible for us to fall behind, cause the program is counting on us to succeed and spread goodwill for future classes.
Orientation has a party atmosphere from the beginning. Either we're having beers at one of the three pubs on campus (R&D, Muddy, and Thirsty,) or we're being wined and dined courtesy of the Grad Student Council. I can't believe the sense of community here. Everyone's automatically in the in-crowd, a member of the student council, part of the engineering systems division, and an
affiliate of all the other scientists in the room. Future braintrust central feels great. I feel like I've arrived. The only thing missing is ice cream, so I'm taking a break to enjoy my personal stash.
Sept 5
Orientation is getting wild. The mock classes totally kicked my butt. It took me a while to get everything set up on my machine, but at least the IT guys were friendly, thorough, and happy to help. I realized I know absolutely nothing about Excel, not having used it since I got my bachelors. But now I know how to make charts like a pro again. Necessity breeds invention. I might even master pivot tables and access queries by the time I graduate.
I've lived here six years and I've never gotten off a ferry to explore any of the Harbor Islands. The Outward Bound leadership training day was fantastic, for that experience alone. But it also forced me to hug quite a few people. I'm happy to report that all my classmates (so far) use deodorant.
Look at how amused I am! ===>
Sept 10
I walk in the first day of classes to get a cup of coffee from the lab kitchen. A fellow classmate (hi, Anindya) asks, "Have you done your homework?" and I almost drop the pot. I must have looked horrified, because he and a few others burst out laughing.
Sept 15
Today was resume submission day. Somehow word got out that I was a decent editor. With a flair for buzzwords. Suddenly there was a queue of five guys waiting for critiques. There went the afternoon. But editing is its own reward. I'm a dork and love grammar, at least more than most engineers. So I
moved a few commas, and got to write red ink all over the most amazing resumes ever.
This guy generated millions of dollars of sales in Russia! This guy kept a billion bucks worth of trains running! This guy made cool computers and rearranged the product's supply chain already! Why isn't he teaching our class?
Yeah, well, at least I'm still a rocket scientist.