Shake, Shake, Shake

So, it has been quite a week. Nearly one week ago (April 18) at 5:30 a.m., the earth beneath us shook. The Midwest is certainly no stranger to earthquakes, but in the same sense, we don't have them every day. This one was the second largest earthquake the area has had in 40 years - 5.2 magnitude. In fact, it was only the third one I ever remember living through.

I remember the 1987 earthquake. It was a 5.1 magnitude, and I remember thinking "What the heck was that?" My mom ran outside because she thought my sister and her friend had done "something". I was so little (8 years old) that I barely remember it, but I do remember the earth shook.

The next one we had after that was in 2002. I remember being at work when I felt it. It was a 4.6 magnitude. I worked in a place where about 20 people or so used the same printer, and if we were printing something important, we would run to the printer to get our printout. That is what it felt like, but when I looked up, there was no one standing. Very weird!

This one came in the very early morning hours. Lee had gotten up to use the bathroom, and he had just laid back down in bed. The bed started to shake pretty bad. At first I thought the kitties were fighting under the bed, which is not that unusual. But it just kept going, and no kitties were even in the room. I ran down to the garage and basement to make sure nothing else was going on. After that, I couldn't get back to sleep, so I got on the USGS website and called my mom. Yep, it was an earthquake. I turned on the TV and watched some coverage. Thankfully no major damage was reported.

About 11:15 a.m., we had a larger aftershock - a 4.5 magnitude. It rumbled the ground but wasn't nearly as volatile as the original quake. In all, there have been dozens of aftershocks, many of which cannot be felt my most people. We’ve all been lucky; although, we know a bigger one could happen at any time.

Also, this week I finished graduate school!!!!!!!! I had my very last class and turned in my very last paper. Next Friday, I will go through my Hooding Ceremony, and all of my family will get to see me graduate with my master’s degree. It seems surreal, but I’m so glad the end is here.

Hopefully this week will be a little less shaky………………

Final Days

Here I am, 19 days away from graduation. I never thought this day would come, and here I am, a little less than 3 weeks away. It has been a long four years, and I can't wait for it to be over.

Right now I am working on my final paper as a master's student. It is 15 page research paper that I can't seem to get motivated to finish. I have completed 5 pages so far, and I have been working on it for nearly 3 hours. That certainly is not my normal rate, but I typically don't have to write research papers.

On Friday, May 2, I will become an official alum of Indiana University. That night is the Educational Policy and Leadership department's hooding ceremony, where master's and doctoral students will officially get their hoods and complete their degrees. My whole family is coming in for it, and then we are having a celebration afterwards. It will be a proud and happy moment for me!

As with the end of the spring semester every year, it has been a stressful two weeks. My mom had surgery a week ago Friday, and my sisters and I took off of work for the day to sit with my dad during surgery and help my mom after. She actually did very well and was walking the halls after just 6 hours. She was released the day after and gets to take six weeks off of work. She's been doing great!

I moved offices (and buildings) this week. The School of Informatics has been renovating an old frat house next to the current School of Informatics building. Some of my colleagues and I have had temporary offices in a residence hall about 1 mile away, which has caused many problems with meetings, student accessibility, etc. With renovations nearly complete, I moved into my new office on Thursday. There is still much to be done, but I am happy to finally be settled in a permanent location.

All of these changes have caused much stress in my life and trying to complete this paper hasn't helped. I have no motivation. I can finally touch the light at the end of the tunnel I have been walking for nearly four years. It is so close, yet I still can't stroll to the end. I have to finish strong.

Thanks to all who have supported me in the last four years (and especially the last few weeks). It has been a wild ride, and I'm glad it will soon be over.