Well, here we are. My last post I was starting what became my hardest semester of school ever and being kind of grumpy. On many occasions I asked why I would do this to myself and fretted that I was going to fail miserably and all my hard work would be for naught. However, happily here I sit in my Pittsburgh apartment, having achieved a 3.8 semester in the fall and looking towards the next several months with excitement. Christmas break, though shorter than I had in undergrad, was wonderful. I'm so glad I was able to be with my family- the last few months have been difficult, with moving to a new city, loads of schoolwork, and a constant over-criticism coming from my own head, but I've thankfully had some rather spectacular support in my parents, siblings, and friends. This coming year I have some really interesting classes and some truly exciting trips planned, so at this point in time, I'm generally pleased. I'm only in the second week of the new semester, choosi