It feels good...

...to know that what you did wasn't for nothing. I have spent the last four years working my tail off to get really good grades in college. So far my lowest was a B in Calculus and another in Spanish. Other than that I have had A's and A-'s, with a 4.0 GPA one semester.

I have had to take an enormous amount of criticism and ribbing over the fact that I preferred going home and working and doing homework and studying for hours for exams ands quizzes and the like. I've just brushed it off for the most part, though when it comes from your friends it does get you down a bit! When I first decided to go to college I knew I wanted to get my money's worth, so that is what I did.

I took every class I could fit into my schedule, some for extra emphasis within my major, some just for sheer joy, such as Art History 2 after taking Art History 1 for a gen ed requirement. (I loved the teacher, and the material really was fascinating.) So I basically just did what I felt was right. Took as many credits as I could, in whatever I wanted, and still be able to meet all my requirements for graduation. As a result I have 145 credit hours completed, with 126 being all that is necessary (and I am pretty sure that doesn't count my internship).

Then this morning vindication for what I have done came in the mail:

"Dear Ms. Friers: Congratulations! As the Bachelor of Technology Degree December 2007 graduate with the highest grade point average in the School of Agriculture and Natural Resources, you have been selected as the recipient of the December 2007 Commencement Academic Achievement Award... current cumulative grade point average of a 3.79."

And so I feel much better. I feel like my grades really DID matter, unlike what everyone said about the "as long as you pass" mentality that made college so much more fun. And all the profs telling me I needed to act more like a kid than an adult. Ah well, guess my work paid off. But dang it now I'm gonna have to go to commencement. And I really didn't want to!

Things that Make Me Happy!

For once, the day is, knock on wood, going well-ish. For starters, I checked my college email. And finally got a reply from Semex USA about the Silky Cousteau semen I want to purchase. They are going to get it to me. Which is score one.

And then I decided to see if any more of my grades had been posted. Four were there yesterday, but I was still missing three. And they are all up. The class I was most worried about, Art History 300, History of American Art, I got a B in. Personally I will admit to thinking there was some serious gifts in the grading on that class, but I am not going to complain. I have one other B, in Fruit and Vegetable Marketing. Then I have two A-'s, one in Milk Marketing and Dairy Policy, and the other in Agricultural Business Financial Management. And my last three classes, Art History 2, Introduction to Sociology, and my favorite class of the semester Applied Bovine Reproduction, are solid A's. Which is a 94 or better I believe. Not sure though so don't quote me on that. That gives me a semester average of 3.68, not bad, that puts me on the Dean's list for my 6th straight semester. And my cumulative average is now 3.79. All in all I am a very happy girl. Talk about one heck of a fine 21st birthday present. Doesn't get much better than this.