Graduation Day - June 16th 2012 !!!

Tomorrow, June 16th 2012, is my graduation day from Université Laval (Québec city). I am so excited!

I graduate with my Master degree in French-Canadian Literature (M.A. - Master of Arts) and I could not be prouder of myself! It took me a lot of time to finish my Master degree but I finally DID it! I can say that this is my biggest achievement and the thesis I wrote might not be the best, but it's mine and I'm proud of it! I will have a 140 pages book with my name on it and this is the result of my hard work!

I look back on all those years (22 years) I was in school, pursuing an education and I can't help myself but think about my beginnings.

This is where it all started, in 1990, in kindergarden, when I was 5 years old. This is the year I started school and where I started to LOVE school... I have always been a good student. I loved homework! Teachers loved me and I loved them all. They were real role models for me, I thought they were so impressive! Grades were important for me and I wanted to only get A's. And I was getting A's and I was so happy and proud! I have always felt very encouraged by my parents, they were proud parents!

21 years later, I still love school and I think that education is SO important.  A higher education is the biggest gift you can give to yourself!!!

I'm not sure what I will do with my Bachelor's and my Master's degrees, but I know that my education will bring me a lot.

Tomorrow is my graduation day and it may mark the end of an era. I think that my educational career is over but I'm not sure yet!

Cheers to all students that have graduated in 2012 and I wish, for all of us, a lot of success!

Life Lately and Menu Monday!

I have not written in a while on my blog, I didn't feel like blogging at all.

In the past 3.5 weeks, I have done a lot and a lot of things have happened, like those things:

• I am officially done with my Masters. I'm getting my diploma on graduation in Québec city on June 16th! I can't wait!

• I met my niece for the first time, she was born on March 30th. She is so precious!

• I have done more than 300 km of bike.

• I have done the 30 Day Shred!

• I lost 5 pounds.

• I have organized old pictures (more than 2000!) and it was really fun to go through more than 2 decades of pictures!

• I read 6 books, just for fun! 

• I began to write a novel! Not sure how it will turn out but I'm trying to write! 

Also, I'm leaving for Montréal in a few days to work for 6 weeks, as I do every year. I will stay at my sister's apartment and I can walk to work, I love it! I can't wait to be in Montréal, I love that city! I will miss Boyfriend of course, but I need to work! 

* * *
It's the beginning of a new week! I have not done Menu Monday in a while!

Menu Monday


Monday: Tacos
Tuesday: BBQ pork chops, wild rice and a salad
Wednesday: Asian sauté
Thursday: Chicken tournedos, veggies and tomato salad
Friday: Pizza and feta salad

What's on your menu for this week?

To-Do List

I have so much to accomplish today and tomorrow and I feel like doing nothing!

The list goes as follows:

To Do

• Vacuum house (3 floors)
• Clean bathrooms (2)
• Do dishes
• Clean the fridge
• Grocery shop
• Go to the pharmacy to get my prescription
• Write an economics paper for Boyfriend's MBA class (well, I'm helping him out!)
• Develop Powerpoint presentation (again, for the Boyfriend!)
• Write two chronicles (500 words each) for the website I work for
• Correct a chronicle I wrote last week
• Read my thesis for the last time before printing it!
• Email my thesis director some papers she has to sign
• Email my University faculty
• Print final version of thesis (3 copies)!
• Go to the post office and mail out my thesis!
• Apply online for a job
• Look for full-time jobs offers
• Make dinner

Happy Thursday!

January 16th 2012

Yesterday was a big day for me!

It was the day I sent my thesis to my committee for evaluation!

143 pages... 3 copies = a lot of pages!

I'M FINALLY DONE!!!!!!!! I'm a M.A.!

It's the best feeling in the world!!!

Here it is! The official version of my thesis.

At 9:45 this morning...

I sent the FINAL draft of my dissertation to my thesis director!!!!!!! 150 pages!!!

I am SO happy and SO relieved!!!



I think I will have a great weekend!!!!!!

Keeping It Real!

This is how our office/guest room looks like right now. 

This is where I write my thesis on a daily basis, this is why papers are all over the room!!! This is an organized mess ha! 

The important thing is that I actually got a lot writing done in the past days and this is going well! I have to keep up the inspiration and the motivation! I have a lot of edits to do. Can't wait to be done!

Weekend Recap and Menu Monday!

First of all, I want to thank you all for your feedback on my last post! (Some of the comments have been deleted due to the blogger shutdown, sorry!) 

Things are now way better, we had a communication problem and there was a big misunderstanding between the boyfriend and I. We are going through this together and everything will be fine, I know.

* * *

How was your weekend? Mine was pretty relaxing, but I also got a lot of things done around the house! I did a lot of laundry, cleaning and organizing. The second bedroom (that I use as an office) was still a mess after 2 months but I cleaned it up, I'm so happy and I feel way better to write my thesis in a nice and clean environment! On Saturday, we had a great dinner together, we made brie & fig chutney burgers on the BBQ and it was so good! We also had a great time relaxing in the jacuzzi yesterday night, it was the perfect way to say goodbye to the weekend!

* * *

(image via)

Menu Monday

I had a hard time deciding what was going to be on our Menu Monday this week! But I managed to get some ideas from a cookbook!

Monday: Homemade Legume Loaf 

Tuesday: Asian Tofu Sauté

Wednesday: Turkey Panini with tomato salad on the side

Thursday: Chicken zucchini casserole

Friday: Leftovers!

What are you cooking this week?

* * * 

I have some goals I want to achieve this week: I want (and will!) to send my third (and last!) chapter to my thesis director at the end of the week! I know I can do it!!!

Have a great week everyone! Hope it's a great one! 

Is Tomorrow a Better Day?

Sometimes, I wish I was still a kid. Life was so easy back then.

Sometimes, I want to be that little girl again:

Me circa 1986

I'm feeling very nostalgic right now...

Life is good but it could be better.

But I feel that I can't complain because I know that some people may envy me for all the things I have. 

But sometimes it's hard to appreciate all the things I have because I'm worried about my future. I do have a university degree but right now, it doesn't guarantee me a job at all. 

My master degree will not help either, I think. I feel very very very insecure right now.

We moved km away because the boyfriend got a job, after months of being unemployed (almost a year). I didn't want to move but we didn't really have the choice, he could not find a job in Québec city (well, in fact, he could have find one, he turned down an offer) and his unemployment benefits were ending.

He has been working at his new job for 6 months now. And he doesn't like it. At all. Day after day, he tells me that his job is boring. It makes me mad. Really really mad. Because of all the sacrifices I made for him, because he asked me to do so. I'm mad because he quit his job last year to travel around Asia and that he told me to not be worried, that he would easily find a job in Québec city when he would be back (you can see that he didn't. Because he was picky, in fact, this is why.). If he had not quit his job, we would still be living in Québec city, I think. I'm mad because I moved back there for him. I was not happy to have to move, I was less than thrilled because I liked so much living in Qc city. And I can't find a job here, in our small hometown, right now. I don't like running into someone I know here and got questioned, and having to tell the person that I don't have a big girl job yet, despite my university degree. I'm mad because here, people who don't have a higher education make big money. It's so frustrating because I spent thousands of dollars to get an education. I'm mad because in 2 weeks, I will have to leave for Montréal (I will be living at my sister's apartment) to complete a work contract for 5 weeks and I don't like being in a distance relationship (we did that for years already, I had enough!). I need the money, so I have to go. It's a job I love to do (marking college dissertations), but the distance is killing me.

I'm mad because he is well paid and still, our expenses are almost 50/50. I told him what I thought about me paying the same amount of money for rent, food, and he doesn't want to pay more than he already does, he doesn't want to help me out, can you imagine?! He didn't say exactly that he didn't want at all, but it sounded a lot like that. He seemed really reticent about that. I'm not a princess, I don't want him to pay everything, just to help me out for a couple of months, you see. He sees that I struggle a lot these days, with my thesis, adjusting to our new life, etc, but he doesn't seem to want to help me with the money aspect and that help would be a big relief for me. He should be the one proposing that help. This is probably the reason why I'm so mad right now. I'm mad because I can't do all the things we would like to do together, like traveling. He wants to make big plans, but I can't because of my money issues. I have students loans and he doesn't (he was debt free when he graduated, seriously). 

I'm mad because I've always been there for him, I've always been the comprehensive girlfriend. And he knows it, maybe too well.  

I love him. He loves me, I know that. I really do.

But something is wrong. 

I know that money has and will always be a delicate subject in a relationship but I never thought that it would apply to mine. I'm really mad, what else can I say?!?
I know that I should talk to him again about that subject, to make things clear.

I'm a mess right now because I'm hurt, because I have so much on my mind. Like I have been trying to finish my thesis for months now and I don't see the end of it. I just keep telling to myself that having a master degree will change nothing, so why should I continue to write it? The answer is that I'm proud, my master degree cost me thousands of dollars, I don't want that money to be wasted like that, no way! So I will continue to write it, I will finish it. By summer. 

I feel better now that I have written all that stuff.
But I'm still hurt.

Internet Is Evil!!!

I am certainly not the only one in this situation... Internet is keeping me from writing my thesis! I'm always checking my emails, my blog, my bank account, watching some videos on YouTube, etc, etc, etc!!!

I'm sure that students were more able to get their work done when Internet was not in the world!

I have to work on the computer and it's really hard to focus on my thesis! There is so many distractions!

And I have to get to my goal: being done with my thesis next week!

* * *

The boyfriend and I are leaving for the weekend tomorrow after lunch! We will be in Québec city until Monday, B has a doctor's appointment there Monday morning. We will hang out with some friends Friday night, Saturday will be a shopping day (yé!) and we will have dinner with B's cousin and his wife. On Sunday, we are going to see our friend Jo and her baby Antoine (born in February), can't wait! We will stay at a friend's place, it saves us some money! It should be a fun weekend!

So, tomorrow we will hit this road and about 8 hours later, we will be in Québec city!

 [Picture taken by my dad in 2009]

Happy Thursday and have a great weekend everyone!

Tuesday Thoughts

• The week has just started and I'm already exhausted!

• My meeting with my director thesis went well! She liked what I wrote!  I'm so relieved! I have now an other deadline, my 3rd chapter has to be done by March 29th, so in 5 weeks!!! No rest for me!!! 

• My work contract is ending Friday!!! It was supposed to end on next Wednesday (March 2nd), but no! :( I'm sad, less money in my pockets!!! One girl in my team works too fast and because of that, the contract ends early, all the dissertations are going to be marked by Friday... This girl marks around 20-25 dissertations per day!!! She's crazy!!! The average is around 7-8 dissertations (I do around 11 dissertations). So, she is really crazy and I don't  really like her, she seems to think she's the best... She doesn't seem to care about finishing early though, she lives at home with her parents and doesn't seem to need the money! Ahhh I'm really angry!!! 

• My younger brother O has a first job interview tomorrow! He graduated in December with an engineering degree and he is in the job hunt! I hope it goes well!

• I have not been to the gym in 3 days, I'm bad! I have to go tomorrow!

• I'm looking forward to watch the final episode serie of 24 tonight!! Jack is my hero haha!

• I made myself an hair apointment for next Friday (March 4th)! It was really a necessity!!! I love to get my hair done, it's so relaxing! And the best thing is that the salon I go to is just 5 minutes away from my brother's place!

• I have a hard time these days with English writing... I have been writing a lot in French for my thesis, so it's kind of hard to switch to English! I really have to think a lot before I write! I hope I'm not too bad!

Hope everyone had a great day!!!

I'm Here!

The past week had been crazy!!!

Saturday was our moving day! The boyfriend and his step-dad arrived around 3h00pm at our apartment and we started the move around 4h00pm. One of B's friend came to help, it was very nice of him. It  took us  almost 4 hours to put everything in order in the moving truck!!! 4 hours is a long time!!!!  So we were done by 8h00pm and we were exhausted! We went for dinner in a restaurant near our place (a restaurant called St-Hubert) and it took forever to have our food, it was really slow, and we were so hungry! We finally ate and it was good and we came back to our place around 10h00pm and we were off to sleep! The next day, we got up really early (5h45am) because the boyfriend and the step-dad had to hit the road really early and we still had to put a matress in the truck and some things that were still not in. Everything was finally in  and they finally left around 6h30am! I was sad to only be with B a few hours, not even 24 hours!!! (Like 16 hours only!) I will only see him again in March (the 8th or the 9th, I will be probably missing his birthday on the 7th, I'm sad!)

So, I'm now staying at my brother's place, in his tiny room but it's alright. His roommate is so nice, I have a great time with him. 

I worked a lot this week and I also went a couple of times to the gym, so I'm proud of myself!  I lost 2 pounds in 2 weeks, so I'm happy!

This weekend, my plans are pretty simple: I have to write my thesis because on Tuesday afternoon, after work, I have a metting with my director thesis, so I must do that writing! I also probably hit the gym tomorrow, because today, I don't think I will go outside... Yesterday, it rained a lot  (in February, we don't see that often here!) and now, the sidewalks are covered in ice, so dangerous!!!

Have a great weekend everyone!!!

Hello Weekend!

 I am so happy that we are finally Friday night! I have only worked 3 full days this week, but I'm so exhausted!!! Reading those bad dissertations all day long gets me really tired! I marked 7 dissertations today, about 1000-1200 words each, and 5 out of 7 were really really bad, those students flunked! Too bad for them, they will have to do it again in May! It's terrible to see that those 19-20 years old students don't know how to write in a proper French and don't know how to write a good dissertation (although they have been taught how to do it!) When I see a dissertation with like 50-60 (and more!) spelling, grammar, punctuation and syntax errors, I'm just so discouraged!

I don't have any big plans for this weekend. Tomorrow, I'm going to the gym and after that, I will cook some meals for my lunches of next week, do some cleaning around my apartment and I will probably go to the shopping centre to buy this fantastic lamp I showed you yesterday! I sent a picture of the lamp to B but he didn't email me back yet! 

After that, I will probably relax and watch a movie home, maybe read a book! I need to take some time for me! I think I deserve it!

On Sunday, this is thesis writing time! This is the only time of the week I have to write it, so I have to get back to work and be efficient! My goal is to write about 8 pages on Sunday, I think it's a realistic goal! I have to get it done! I can do it because I rock!!!

Happy weekend to all of you, hope you 
all have a great time!!!

Back to Reality!

I'm back to Québec city! The bus ride was sooooo long (almost 11.5 hours!) and I was exhausted but I'm here now! I'm glad to be in my own things but I already miss B!

Today I have a lot of things to get done: unpacking my suitcase, cleaning, doing laundry and grocery shopping, going to the pharmacy, reading some stuff for my work which begins tomorrow! ( I'll still be marking French dissertations, but this time, it will be more difficult exams and it will a 2 whole months employment contract! That's good for me!)

College also started yesterday but since I have no class this semester (only working on my thesis from home on the weekend), I don't get to go to the campus! I save a lot of transportation time by doing that!

Let's start the day now! 

I will be back later with 2 posts on 2 awards I received!

Happy Tuesday everyone!

Busy Busy Busy!!! Did I mention the word busy?

I'm actually living a really crazy week! It explains my lack of posting! In the past days, I have been up by 5h20 and I go to bed at 11h00-11h30!

Work, thesis, stress, coffee, those are the key words!!!

I'll be back in a few days when things will be less crazy!!!

Happy Wednesday to all of you!

Random Friday!

• It's finally Friday! But I don't really have a weekend because I will be working on my thesis all weekend long! Deadline is approaching so fast!

• I didn't sleep good at all this week! So, I'm really tired! Hope to get better sleep tonight!

• I'm stressed because of my thesis! I have so much to do!!! I don't see an end to this! I have so much to write about, I always think of new things to add to my current thesis plan! I have now written about 95 pages!  (I thought that my whole thesis was going to be about 100 pages long, but it won't. It will be about 150 pages, I think! It's like a novel!) 

• I will maybe have to work on my thesis during the Holidays and I'm not happy with that! :(

• I'm jealous of my friend P, she finished her thesis last week, so she is free! But I know that my thesis is much more longer that hers, and it's not a competition!

• I have not done any Christmas shopping yet! I'm not sure what to buy for my boyfriend!

•  I have a hair appointment next Thursday, it's a good reward for the hard work I have done!

• I also have to go to the doctor next week. I hate doctor appointments, I feel so nervous before going and when I get there, I'm so stressed, even if I have no health issue and just going to have a new prescription! I also hate the fact that I don't have a family doctor, so I have to wait at the «no appointment clinic» and I never know when my turn will be!

• I drank way too much coffee yesterday!

• I feel like the days are all the same! I get up, have breakfast, get in the shower, get dressed (I dress with the same kind of comfortable clothes everyday! Sweatpants, t-shirt, hoodie!) and I do the same thing over and over: I write my thesis! 

•  I'm going to work 5 days, between December 15 and December 21. I'm going to mark French dissertations for the Québec Government. (Students have to pass that exam to have the High School diploma! If they fail, they can not graduate!) I'm used to this job and I love it!

• I feel lonely without B!

• I can't wait to be home!

This was a long random Friday post!!!


Bonne fin de semaine tout le monde!
Happy weekend to all of you!

I like books but...

Here's the work I have to accomplish today:

I have to read those 7 books for my research project... Well, I read fast, but I actually don't have to read all the chapters in the books, but most of it...It is now 11h30am, I'm at my second cup of coffee today and I have read 3 books! I just have to keep up the good work!!! I can do it!!!