Happy Martin Luther King Day!
Here's an Instagram post from the King talking about another King:
This long weekend of NFL Divisional Playoffs is an instant classic. Niners lost got me messed up, but I am happy they made it that far. I miss that 2022 and 2023 teams, they were special. Purdy dicing up the Seattle, making one of the best touchdown throws just for Aiyuk to drop it. What a time!
Forever faithful though!
Bills lost was tough too, I feel bad for Josh Allen, watching those interviews was a gut punch.
Texans suck. I admire CJ Stroud's character and faith, but he has terrible decision-making. He should have never tried to coach up Caleb. Give Caleb the key to Chicago and induct him to the Chicago Sports Hall of Fame just off that play alone. One of the greatest playoff moments ever. Caleb TD Pass on 4th down > Minneapolis Miracle. Those are the reasons why we watch sports, this means something to me! Terrible ending, in classic Bad News Bears fashion, Caleb threw an interception, at least this was better than the double doink. The Bears should not be mad about their season, Ben Johnson turned the whole city around, and there's hope in Chicago now. Crime probably went down in the city too.
This past week was super busy, and the pacing of the quarter system has ramped up. The quarter system keeps you on your toes, and I promised myself to keep up with it. Fortunately, I have kept my promise so far, but then again it is only week 2. I made a pretty good schedule for myself this quarter, daily 9 a.m. lectures, two classes a day, it's very manageable. My lab grades transferred from the course I failed, so I do not have to go into a lab for that course this quarter. I have a gap in between my lectures, I designated to going to office hours, and doing homework there, but this week I have been in the athletic training room during that time. Concussion rehab sucks when you do not have a concussion. If I did not show up to watch my team get belt, I would not have to deal with this, but it is what it is. Doing the Concussion Return-to-Play (RTP) sessions are just HIIT workout tests rather than head evaluations. I passed all the tests, except the eye test. Doctor said my eyes exhibit signs of concussion or head injury, but I think that is overblown. I told him I wear prescription glasses in class, and he suggested I look into wearing contacts for hockey. Maybe that could be a game-changer, but I do not if I am trying to do all of that. However, since I pay for the UC insurance, it does not hurt to book an appointment, and try to get an optometrist's opinion. I will try to go in this week. Unfortunately, because of my eye test and having no practice before the games, I did not get cleared to play this past weekend.
I had my Academic Difficulty webinar regarding my status on Wednesday. Turns out, I am not on academic probation, I just got a warning, I must get my grades up this quarter, however. I also found out that I can take more quarters to finish my degree. Thank God, I am not in Berkeley because I would have to finish that degree in five semesters. Can not afford to fail there. Since I am not on probation and hockey is recreational, I can not get kicked off the team, which is huge. It does not matter that much since the season ends in three weeks, but it is good to have reassurance. I am probably going to try and get a walk-in appointment with my major counselor this week, I need to assess the damage done by my first quarter, and get a sense of the overall direction I need to head in. If I have to take an extra few quarters I could minor in Data Science. I do not know though, oftentimes I bite off more than I can chew, and end of choking on my words. Nothing is ever wrong with being ambitious though.
The unemployment/academic leave of absence is officially over. I am back in the workforce, and it is not an engineering internship or back at Cane's, it's the dining hall. $16.85 an hour, 12 hours a week, $200 a week, about $1200 I am going to make this quarter. This is definitely the lowest paying job I ever had, my community college paid me more to tutor, but beggars can not be choosers. I need the money for Kyoto, it's very convenient since I do not have to commute, and I do not have to work in a drive-thru either. There's a lot of negative stories coming out of working at dining halls, but a lot of people say it is a gateway towards other jobs on campus. Hopefully next year I can be a receptionist at the recreational gym, a trainer's assistant in the training room, or maybe even a TA. TA's make $22 hourly, but why do that when I can just be promoting AI study tools instead 😂.
I had my first golf lesson yesterday. The instructor only did a 1-on-1 for less than five minutes, and adjusted my stance, grip, and back-swing. After those five-minutes, I started getting into a groove and hit for over 120 yards with a 7-iron, but that only lasted so long. Golf is fun, I know once I get my swing down, golf will be addictive. I guess it is a universal thing to get into golf after you realize you are washed/retired in your respective sport. At the age of 19, I have fell victim to the triple G's (Golf, Gambling, Gym) not the other one.
Besides the concussion, the big 26 moving along pretty well, winter in La Jolla is peaches and cream. The weather is absolutely beautiful here. I started to build some small better habits too; waking up earlier, getting a lift and shower before class, reading books (just finished Twice by Mitch Albom), walking more, eating cleaner (just got an air fryer in the suite), and enjoying things more. Things definitely looking up, but I know this is the calm before the storm. I got two quizzes this week, then midterm season starts next week, and that's where the real grind begins. I believe the grind gets easier, the hard part is just doing it every day.
See you next week!