It just gets better...?

Today I found out that I love polymers and I hate math. Okay, hate is a rather strong word; I am terrible at understanding math when it is taught in another language. So is the disappointment of my college life. I hope this doesn't mean instant failure, because I would really like to continue taking a four hour block of logic once a week, but I don't see how the exam will be feasible if I can't comprehend the simplest exercise on our homework sheet, nor do I understand the solution. I thought that a good start would involve borrowing a book in English. I did that. Now the true test - see if I can translate successfully any or all of the words that came out of our TA's mouth. "On vera." (We will see.)

The next disappointment of the day...orchestra auditions. It doesn't help when you are first on the list and have no idea what to expect. Then, you walk into a room with about TEN JUDGES and you start to freak out a little. It doesn't help that the stand is way too low, you don't understand the guy when he says "Nice to meet you," you have to repeat the name of your piece, you have a bad start, and you have a complete panic attack and play way too fast. Of course, they never tell you that they have limited space, but they do tell you to wait until the end of the violins to find out if you made it. I was one of two out of 10 violinists who received bad news...I was in the lower 20%! Sad day. So, the other guy and I joked about how we, fortunately, don't have to take 2 1/2 hours every Wednesday to devote to rehearsal. It is still disconcerting.

Is there a light at the end of the tunnel? I'm sure you're wondering. Well, there is, actually. I found out that bike insurance is only about $5; that is the first cheap thing that Switzerland has to offer! Thus, if I get a bike this weekend, I will only have to worry about the hundreds of dollars it costs to get a bike second-hand. Maybe that was more of a mixed blessing.