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09:54

Final Exams: A few tips to cross the finish line

The dreadful final exam season is upon us, but that also means that Christmas break is just around the corner!

It can be a stressful 2 week period of studying day in and day out so I decided to put together a few things to help keep us going. By us, I mean me and an imaginary person.

1. Set study times accordingly

I usually like studying from 8pm-2am, I call it my prime time. For some reason, I cannot study in the morning for the life of me! However, my exams start at 8:30am so I'm setting my body clock so I wake up early and get in the zone that early on.

2. Study with a friend

They can keep you on track with your studying. You feel guilty when they're working and you're there scrolling through Facebook.
They brighten up your breaks. Instead of curling into a ball and crying during your 10 minute break, you can chat with them (preferably about anything other than school).
Studying with people in the same class is a bonus. Cause you can *collaborate and listen*!
Warning: choose your study buddy wisely, make sure it's someone with good study habits too otherwise they end up being a distraction

3. Choose a place that is conducive to studying

I'm rarely productive when I study at home. It turns out being 3 hours of work: 6 hours of procrastinating.
Look for cafes, libraries, etc. that you can study in. You might have to go to different ones. I've gone to some that were too loud, had sucky wifi, uncomfortable chairs etc. (yes, I'm quite picky) Find a place you feel productive and comfortable in because you're going to be there for quite a while...

4. Consume coffee as needed

As I mentioned earlier, I have a hard time focusing in the morning (cause I'm still half asleep). So I've embraced coffee with open arms (and hazelnut coffee mate flavouring) to make me more productive in the morning

5. Apps to help you out

"There's an app for everything" - me to my parents
The 2 apps I rely on to be productive are

Self-control app (https://selfcontrolapp.com/) - It's a free app that you download to your laptop. You create a "blacklist" of websites you can't access when the timer is switched on. So throw in Netflix, FB, youtube, etc in there. You set the timer (up to 24 hours) and no matter what you do, you won't be able to access those websites till the timer is up. Yup, even if you restart your laptop.
Pomodoro app (phone) - Studies have shown that you are more productive when you study in short intervals. Apparently when you study for 1.5hrs straight you end up taking a longer break than usual. I can attest to this. I study for 1.5 hours then think I deserve a 2 hour break. Lol. This app rings when 25 mins (you can change it) is up, then cues your 5 min break. You do 4 rounds of 25 mins of studying with short 5 min breaks in between, then a long break of 20 mins after the 4 rounds.

6. Relax

After sitting down for 8 hours straight, you need to stretch it out. I downloaded an app called SWORKIT which has easy stretching techniques. I did it once I woke up since my body was feeling quite sore (from sitting??). Thinking of doing it every morning to ease my way into the day.

Good luck studying for final exams! See you on the flip side xx

Pam

My ideal study place: Olive and Ruby Cafe on Broadway and Macdonald

13:36

This year, I'm really grateful for being able to live in this BEAUTIFUL city that is Vancouver/VanCity/YVR. #westcoastbestcoast. What other city has the beach, the mountains, and a city district within 30 minutes of each other? It's got the perfect balance of a city life with all the shopping and nightlife, but it also has the slower-paced neighbourhoods that are perfect for brunch, afternoon strolls by the beach, and food tasting in the public market.

On Thanksgiving day, Patch flew back from Toronto and we decided to go for a walk along Kitsilano Beach. After walking in the deceiving 12 C degree weather (it felt like 5 C), we ate dinner at Burgoo as a celebratory dinner before her first official day at work, and my...break from studying for midterms and celebratory "made it through 1.5 months of school". Yup, I deserved it. Ever since we moved here, Kits beach has been my favourite spot -- it's seen heart ache, homesickness, celebrations, new friendships, and rekindling old ones...I get taken back to those times whenever I go here.

Out of all the areas my parents chose to buy a house I'm so glad they chose one here. It's funny to think back to when we were house hunting in 2008/9, I remember driving to dozens of houses in different neighbourhoods. Out of sheer luck and perfect timing, we ended up finding a house in one of the best neighbourhoods/areas in Vancouver, one that we would quickly call our new home.

Never in my life did I think I'd have the opportunity to call two places my home. The world used to be pretty small growing up in Alabang. We lived in the same house for a long time and had everything and everyone we ever needed. Then suddenly, everythingEVERYTHINGeverything changed (that was for dramatic effect).

I always talk to my sisters about how "strange" our lives are, in the sense that we have two different lives. Majority of immigrants that I've met here in Vancouver (and trust me, there's a lot) have assimilated here and plan on staying permanently. In our case, since we moved here we've stayed very close to our roots.
Over the last seven years of living in Vancouver I've spent six of my summers in the Philippines so that just goes to show how half-and-half my life is between the two places.

I still feel so connected to the Philippines and it's largely due to family being back there. My parents mentioned a couple months ago that it was always their intention to keep us close to our roots (which I wasn't aware of). Their intention for us in Canada was to grow into independent adults while getting the best education, but hoped that we would bring back all our new perspectives and knowledge to the Philippines and contribute to improving the country.

So far my parents have done well in instilling that, for me at least. They've left it up to us to decide where we want to work and settle down, but hope that we find our way back home...and I just might end up doing that. Vancouver is the perfect city and has been so good to me all these years, but there's always the lingering feeling of the Philippines calling me back home. I know the quality of life is so much better here, but I feel like I have an obligation to serve the place that made me who I am, and to give back to those who aren't as lucky. Call it patriotism if you will.

It's been an ongoing internal debate whether I should stay or I should go, when is part of the question.

Well, I've got a year left in uni to decide (and figure out my life, really) but for now, I am extremely happy to call Vancouver my home.

Anyways, fall has definitely arrived here in Vancouver. There's nothing like orange/red leaves scattered all over the ground, chilly wind blowing in your face (while your nose is running, of course), and seeing people dressed so cosy.