Okay, my update:

I just got home about 2 hours ago from taking the GRE. I have to tell you, after much trepidation through the math part, I was feeling pretty low. Then I was asked to do this random research part, so after completing that, and wanting to leave with my head hung low....my preliminary scores popped up.....and omigosh....holy "mother of pearl" (as my cousin would say)....I passed!!! (Not only passed, but did so with flying colours, and surprisingly enough scored even better on the maths section than verbal!!) So I'm not a dumbo after all!!! Am running on empty as I did power crunch study time, all nighters the last several days after convincing myself I don't know any English and my Math skills were never tested in the last 5 years.....So, whew...what a relief!

Miri, Abbie: you guys were right though, I managed to have time to edit my essays, and my grammar has gone down the tubes!!! Miri says that after spending so much time with international friends, I've lost my American grammar/accent and sound more like them : ) That's okay by me though! And American's grammar, as I found out when my first essay at Oxford was editted and graded, is not very good to begin with! : ) Unfortunately though, I've picked up quite the Boston accent....and I 'pahked my cah in the pahking lah-ot.' : ) I don't know. We all laughed last weekend because I remembered how to sing Mary Had a Little Lamb in Korean and Japanese (from an event we did in undergrad for international students) -- we all switched places (Abbie wore a Korean dress, I wore a yukata from Japan, Satomi, our Japanese friend wore an wrap from Uganda -- where Abbie grew up -- and I dressed Miri up in an overly typical American style). We walked on stage one by one and said a greeting (me: Konichiwa) sang our songs and then said thank you (Arigato). "Meri-san no hitsuji, hitsuji, hitsuji, Meri-san no hitsuji, kawa i-i-na!" The Korean song was to the Mary/Lamb melody, but actually translates into "my airplane" "Tuhtah tuhtah beehengi narara narara, nopi nopi narara, Uri Beehengi (my airplane)." Yes, after 4 years I still remember it!! : ) I don't what it is with me and singing in other languages -- I find myself singing "Bheegey hont" in the shower all the time now! haha. : ) (Sorry for that diversion...been reminiscing a lot lately).

And yesterday I finally picked up my new car!!! Will try to blog some pictures soon of it! It's a standard (manual shift), 2005 Toyota Corolla, and will hopefully last me for many, and I mean MANY years to come! I'm excited, and after a shaky drive home (hey, I didn't stall out, except when my Mom stopped short ahead of me in her van, thinking I wasn't behind her), I was happy. Today I drove my Mom in it, (she's never driven a standard and thinks I'm crazy for doing it), and to the bank we were a little shaky: (Mom): "Why is it making that noise? Why is it revving like that? What's a clutch? (holding on to the sidebar on the car door) Are you sure you know what you're doing?" Then, a very smooth drive home from the bank: (Mom) "Okay, so you like driving standard? So, you just need to get used to the clutch? So, maybe you could teach me or your sister how to drive a standard?" YES!!! Sure, I will!!!! Hahaha....so Mom's finally settled down. So, please, anyone want to go for a ride?

I'm also going to be applying for Spring admission into PhD programs at Penn State, Tufts University and University of Virginia ecology/entomology programs. I'll keep you posted on that! And, what I would love to see happen, is my application to an ecology program in Belfast to work out. I really and truly do miss England.

Cait is doing her first rotation in OB-GYN and as far as I've heard hasn't gotten to deliver a baby yet, hopefully, fingers crossed, she will. I think she might like the OB part....not sure on the GYN! She's got 4 weeks in OB and 2 weeks in GYN. I'm excited for her, and really proud too. Jared is settling into the Navy really well and as far as I know getting along nicely with his CO and XO. So, let's hope that stays, especially when they really get into the swing of things. He's studying to pass a test because he's been assigned to operations intelligence for the ship, am not sure what that entails (he was 'not at liberty to disclose that information'). But am proud of him too. The loser though, bought himself a queen size bed!!! WHAT!? Sigh, he's got it made!