Wednesday, October 20, 2004
Inspiration: Aldous
It never failed, while taking classes at university. I never completed an assignment earlier than absolutely necessary. I was known amongst my group of friends to be the type to not fret about the fact that I had 3 different professors demanding 20 page papers on the same day. I could write better when I knew it just had to be done within so many hours. I could focus and concentrate. My thoughts had had enough time to orient and organize. Most papers required excessive research and reading materials. In order to suck up that information, somehow - I wouldn't let myself be distracted by neighbors walking into my flat or friends coming over to visit. I just didn't even acknowledge the fact that it would be possible to distract me. I could lock myself away for just the right amount of time to finish the 20 pages, thoroughly researched and properly cited - within APA style guidelines, even. I never felt that much stress or that much worry over my grades. I usually gave the assignments my best effort, I usually produced good work - and dare I add in an efficient manner. And I always caught up on my sleep. REM rebound is a good thing.
I used to stay up entire nights during finals week in order to study for my exams. I rarely had more than one exam on the same day, and I managed to somehow not die. I hardly cracked a book during the semester, but before the exams, I miraculously found my way around the texts rather flawlessly, wasting very little time on locating pertinent information. My notes were always in order and always legible. I never felt the need to clean up my notes in order to study, and I didn't need to rewrite them just to be able to study. I didn't create a huge amount of work for myself studying for exams because there wasn't really a need at all. When I would stumble across something on an exam that I was slightly unsure of, all I had to do was remember where in my notebook the notes about the topic were located. I haven't needed it for a while, but I suppose I have a semi-photographic memory with pretty robust association skills. And sleep somehow didn't seem to factor into my success rate. I didn't need to sleep. (I had coffee.) And I didn't need much in the way of
sustenance.
And now I have just two questions.
How in the hell did I survive and get a degree?
And what happened?
I still procrastinate. But it's a whole new world.
I used to stay up entire nights during finals week in order to study for my exams. I rarely had more than one exam on the same day, and I managed to somehow not die. I hardly cracked a book during the semester, but before the exams, I miraculously found my way around the texts rather flawlessly, wasting very little time on locating pertinent information. My notes were always in order and always legible. I never felt the need to clean up my notes in order to study, and I didn't need to rewrite them just to be able to study. I didn't create a huge amount of work for myself studying for exams because there wasn't really a need at all. When I would stumble across something on an exam that I was slightly unsure of, all I had to do was remember where in my notebook the notes about the topic were located. I haven't needed it for a while, but I suppose I have a semi-photographic memory with pretty robust association skills. And sleep somehow didn't seem to factor into my success rate. I didn't need to sleep. (I had coffee.) And I didn't need much in the way of
sustenance.
And now I have just two questions.
How in the hell did I survive and get a degree?
And what happened?
I still procrastinate. But it's a whole new world.
notes:
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