And the days get longer...

So as I write this entry, I realize that I have class in less than 7 hours. It's a lab, so it's not like I can waltz in there like I can with a lecture. So just to brief w/my day:

First the uneventful stuff: Woke up at 10, went to school at 1, posted the SPEAR/SPACE Director Interview sign-ups and turn-in folder, and went to my Electrical Engineering 115 class.

Now the interesting stuff:

1) Went to my first official University Chorale rehearsal.
I had already done University Chorus (which is kinda like the conductorial training ground for PhD students) for two quarters, so I wasn't exactly a newbie at this chorus thing, but Professor Neuen, who is in charge of the choral department, simply conducts at a level that just blew me away! In Chorus, we would break up into our choral components to learn our parts at a leisurely pace before coming back into the group. Here in Chorale, we're sight-singing (which is a friggin' challenge) and our pencils are flying trying to catch every single nuance and mark that Professor Neuen gives us. It was a helluva lot more intense than I was used to, but I got a kick out of it! It kinda makes me wonder what would have happened if I had ended up leaving engineering sooner to do something like theatre or chorus. Would I have become a much more refined actor/singer? Or would I have been turned off by the intensity and the grueling paces they would've put us through? There's no way to know for sure, but as it stands, I'm just happy to be in the space where I'm in now, and extremely happy that theatre and singing are still passions that have yet to be tempered.

2) Worked with James on Project staff selection stuff and Advisory Board.
For those not familiar with Samahang and its projects, we have two projects, SPEAR and SPACE, dedicated to retaining students at the University and outreaching to high school students and encouraging them to go to higher education, respectively. Because it's Spring Quarter, we have to hire our staffs for next year, and so James and I wrote up some drafts of applications, interview templates, timelines, etc. The projects also need to be evaluated to ensure that they are doing their jobs; enter Advisory Board, the body within Samahang that evaluates and makes decisions concerning the projects. It's a helluva lot of work that requires a lot of coordination between a dozen people or so, but as a Retention Coordinator, I must say that I am really privileged to be in the position I am now. To be in a position to make positive changes to two projects that have served thousands of students over the past several years, and preparing for their future and their growth to help students reach their goals of entering and graduating from college, while working with a team of people with such passion, such knowledge, and such talent, to say that I was blessed is an understatement. SPEAR and SPACE do amazing things, but knowing that there is that extra potential, and that collectively, you have the power to take it there, how can you settle for anything less? It's always been this ongoing debate within me about whether I'm too consumed with my work, if I should take some steps back, but it's hard to pull away when you love it so much. By no means does it mean I look forward to EVERYTHING that's Samahang, but in the big picture, I can't think of any other place that I'd want to be right now.

Wow, this feels like a big change of pace from my past entries. Maybe it's just dreamy, groggy, late night talk, but I'm just in this optimistic mood... maybe because I think I've been productive; yeah, that's it.

Ohhhh, I almost forgot, I had my interview for the Pilipino Alumni Association scholarships on Monday. If I get the scholarships, I get an award, and will be honored at their banquet in a few weeks, and some cash that will go to SPACE (honestly, I'm so not financially strapped). Yeah, the Gobernator plans to cut all the cash that goes to high school outreach for college, and while we're banging on Sacramento's doors for that $ back, we've gotta do what we can down here to help outreach out.

OK, I'm gonna wrap things up. It looks like I might not be able to go to the Samahang Party tomorrow (or tonight, depending on your outlook), 'cuz I'll be damn beat after Thursday =(. I'm thinking just donating my money and going to bed. Geez, I'm getting old (old-spirited that is; there are a bunch of folks older than me with younger spirits out there).