Why can't days be 48 hours long?

"Give me less time for this assignment!"...said no one ever.

Time. Time is a love hate relationship. Time means that there is a definitive beginning and end to the day, to classes, to school years, etc. Time also means that I often feel crammed with trying to finish assignments by the deadline...say 10pm on April 21st...I always feel like I could use some more time!

Mod2 was truly a whirlwind. I got to learn new techniques, performing cell culture for the first time. Mod2 also marked the first time that I worked with R, though that was a slightly *less* shining moment for me. Learning how to navigate and use R was quite difficult, and honestly drove me a little nuts.


With the Mod2 Report, I tried my best to write sections early, with the goal of finishing most of my sections at least three days in advance of the deadline, knowing that the week prior to the deadline would be quite hectic. Monday would be taken up by the Boston Marathon, exams scattered through the week, and Friday being pretty much be booked with ring delivery meant that there was limited time for Mod2. Why does everything have to fall on the same week??


I think that the Mod2 report taught me a lot about time management. Starting early was definitely the right move for me personally, both in terms of being able to get more feedback and also just having time to edit. I feel like I revised my Mod2 report more than I've revised any piece of work since my college application essays - which is a lot. Whether having this much time for revision, and doing this much revision, was a good thing, I've yet to see. 


Throughout writing the Mod2 paper, I've definitely been on a journey of ups and downs. I cycled between feeling confident with what I had written and how much I had accomplished, to feeling like I was so behind and had nothing done. Having been taught to write papers very differently in high school, it was definitely an adjustment learning to write papers in a different style for 20.109. I've felt like it has been a huge adjustment, and that I've had a really hard time unlearning habits that are ingrained in me. This concern along with time pressure made it harder and harder to write well with the deadline looming.

All in all, Mod2 was a journey, and the Mod2 report taught me many new things about myself. As for any piece of writing, there will always be improvements that can be made, and things that others may not like. But, putting in your best effort and making it the best you can is good enough - and that's what I'm leaving the Mod2 paper with.

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