Back to Reality!

Hello everyone! Hope you are all doing well and surviving this crazy cold (it's currently 9 degrees at Saint Mike's)!  Since there's a bit of snow to make everything pretty, I don't mind it.  Having just begun my second week of spring semester, I wanted to take some time to update you on the classes I'm taking and how they're going.

I start my day on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at 8:30 with Cognitive Psychology.  I have the same professor for this class that I had last semester for Research Methods I.  Cognitive is definitely different but I really like it so far!  Right now we are going over some of the basic methods psychologists use to obtain data and how important the topics of validity, reliability, and falsifiability are in gaining knowledge.

After Cognitive Psych, I have Intro to Sociology.  My professor actually wasn't in class on the first day because he was in D.C. but we had another professor from the Sociology department introduce the topic to us.  I liked him a lot and almost wished he was going to be my professor instead!  But on the second day of classes when I met my real professor, I really liked him as well and I think Sociology might end up being my favorite class of the semester (I like it so much that I'm considering minoring in it...we'll see how the rest of the semester goes!)  I particularly liked our class activity yesterday in which we were given three different statements and asked to theorize some possible explanations.  For example, my partner and I focused on the topic of why people stand (instead of sit) at parties.  We came up with a few of our own ideas and then had a very interesting discussion with the rest of the class.  I think we'll be doing more of that type of activity tomorrow so I'm definitely excited about that!

After Sociology, which ends at 10:50, I'm done with class until Tuesday morning at 8, when I have Child Development.  All of my classes this semester start a lot earlier than I'm used to, but so far it's working out.  The only trouble I have is forcing myself to go to bed!  Anyway, Child Development seems like it's going to be a great class.  I have been babysitting since I was about 12 and have always loved kids, so it's fun to learn more about them and how they progress from infancy to adolescence.

After Child Development, I have Research Methods II.  To be honest, I was a bit nervous about taking this course, but so far I absolutely love my professor and the class is going well.  We have mostly just been reviewing what we learned in Research Methods I and making sure we have a solid understanding of the difference between theories and hypotheses.

Now on to the fun stuff!  Coming back to school and starting classes right away after having a month off definitely took some getting used to, so I made sure I packed in as much fun as I could this past weekend.  On Saturday my friends and I took bus (free to all SMC students) to Smuggler's Notch for a day of skiing and snowboarding.  My roommate Emma hadn't been skiing since she was three, so I did my best to help her out.  We took it slow but we definitely still had fun!

Me, Cait, Emma, and Alex

Once we got back from skiing, I ended up taking my friend Cait to Fanny Allen, the hopsital just across the street from SMC, because she had a little trouble getting on the chairlift at Smuggs and wanted to get it checked it.  I had never been to Fanny Allen before but I felt very comfortable there because I knew I wasn't far from SMC and the doctors and nurses were all very nice.  Everything was fine with Cait and we were on our way back home in no time!

Cait (right) and me :)

My friends and I ended our day on Saturday by going to Texas Roadhouse for dinner to celebrate my birthday.  I am completely obsessed with steak and had never been before, so I was beyond excited!  The food was absolutely delicious and I loved the atmosphere (especially the country music)!  On the way home we stopped at Cumby's to pick up some Ben & Jerry's, a Vermont classic!  Even though I didn't get much done in terms of homework (until Sunday that is), it was great to spend some quality time with my friends ~ I missed them after a whole month apart!

So overall, I'm so happy to be back at Saint Mike's and am very much looking forward to this semester!  As always, feel free to contact me with any questions and thanks for reading my blog!  Also, if you're free tonight between 7:30 and 9, definitely check out the Knight Chat where you can ask SMC bloggers all about Saint Mike's!  I'll be there :)

Have a great day!
~Merrill