Not for Too Long, At Least  July 16th

I guess I couldn’t stay away from blogging for too long, no matter how busy I get our what events go on in my life. I’m not sure exactly what I plan to talk about, but I feel like there should be a focus to my blog. By that I mean I should try to write about a particular subject or aspect of my life, notably, my journey as a chemistry student. I want to offer a new perspective on what it means to study chemistry, to pursue a career in chemistry, and the like. I definitely had misconceptions about science and scientists before I decided to study chemistry seriously (and I’ll be honest, I probably still have many misconceptions or perhaps even delusions about the world of chemistry), and I think I can offer a fresh, inviting view into what people like me do.

I’m not sure exactly what I mean by that. And this is no guarantee that this will happen. On one hand, I’m really good at getting off track and talking about random things, and on the other, I’m not very good at keeping promises to myself anyway.

But here is what I think I mean. I want to let you peek into my joys and triumphs, without getting too technical. I want to express my doubts, questions, and convictions that I feel as I pursue a career as a scientist of sorts. I want to tell you about the fun, the real fun, that I do with my science-y friends. Maybe I think I can help you take a look at one of the commonly-hated areas of science—try to help you develop some understanding as to why I continue to do chemistry. Perhaps that is my motive, after all.

And I also want to talk about my purposeful escapes from chemistry. So there, I guess I won’t talk about school and/or chemistry all the time. I do like other things. I have hobbies. (Granted, not all of my peers do, but I can assure you, most of us do. I swear!)

…So I guess my plans for this blog aren’t really any different than they were before.

Truthfully, the reason that I was motivated to blog again was because I was browsing scholarships online. One website told me about a blogging scholarship for students in post-secondary educational institutions, with a first prize of $10,000! Holy moles, right? Unfortunately, the maintainers of that website have not yet updated their page for 2010, and they don’t have a 2009 winner up, either. Bummer. However, it would be pretty cool if I could participate, since it involves doing something I like to do anyway.

So, here’s the first thing I’ll mention about being a chemistry student: it’s really expensive to attend college in America. My merit-based scholarship from my school only covers half the yearly tuition. I’m trying not to be up to my eyeballs in debt, hence why I’m embarking on a serious external scholarship search. I’m a pretty good student! I think I can earn something if I try!