Well, as Archon pointed out over on the main page, it’s a new month. He said something about the year going by very quickly, and I must agree with him. It does seem like the year is progressing at a steady, fast pace. I tried to put my finger on it, and it took me a while before I could really determine why. My first thought was the situation in Iraq. But upon further reflection, I figured that the news was too monotonous in the first 2 months of the year. Now that I think about it, the news only made the time drag.

My next thought was of school. In my situation, I think that’s a cause, for two reasons. The first being my sister’s upcoming graduation from Northwestern University. Now, she started a couple of years after me, and although I took a few years off, I’m still feeling a little, ahem, jealous, of her…

Heh heh. At the same time, I feel immensely proud of her accomplishments. It does seem, however, that the time of her graduation is approaching rapidly. She only has one quarter left. I almost think I feel the stress of her graduation as well. Stress of the job market, stress about what she’s going to do, stress about her final term with a bunch of friends she probably won’t see ever again.

Coupled with that is the second reason I feel school is affecting the pace of the year: my own studies. It’s been awhile since I played this gig, with the classes and the learning and the reading and writing. While I feel I’m doing well in my academic endeavors, I had forgotten how precious a commodity time is when you’re a college student, or a student at any level, for that matter. I feel at times overwhelmed by the coursework, my desire to get outside and ride in the mountains, and my desire to spend time with my family and friends.

Regardless of the causes, one thing is readily apparent: 1/4 of 2003 is already over. Finished. Done for. April is upon us. For me, that means finishing 3 research projects and studying for finals. For my mother, it means Cherry Blossoms in D.C. For my father, it means testing and the promise of a day off for Easter. For my sister, well, the beginning of the end of her college career as a bachelor student.

For everybody out there reading this (all two of you) I hope that the portion of this year that’s already passed into history was fulfilling in some small way at least. I also hope that the rest of your year holds the promise of further fulfillment.

As a final note, I promise to stop stealing Archon’s ideas for rants. I’ll start doing my own stuff soon. I’ll try and post regularly, when time allows, so if you’re interested in what’s going on with me, check back often. Also, some of these won’t be rants, they’ll be raves. What a rave is, exactly, well, you’ll just have to come back and see.