Update

I've been putting off blogging for far too long and for no particularly good reason. Let's fix that!

What has happened since last I blogged?

1. New Years

I did quite little for New Years Eve. Fortunately, I didn't have to! I could see a fireworks display right outside my dorm. I do not know precisely who was setting them off, but kudos to them for a lovely show.

I did make a resolution: No more candy or desserts. I can enjoy candied fruits (too expensive to go overboard with) and Nutella (still working on portion control there...) However, the days of eating nothing but chocolate for a meal really need to be over.

2. Instructions concerning residence permit

In the mail, I received both a letter with the codes for accessing my electronic residence permit as well as one telling me where to pick up the physical card. The electronic residence permit system is pretty nifty. Officials can scan the card, enter a code of their own, and view all your relevant information. However, no one else can get a peek. That makes forgeries a heck of a lot more complicated as they would require fancy hacking skills. Then again, any hacking is fancy and magical to me.

The instructions are simple; go to the foreigners' office with the letter as well as current and old documentation, pull a queuing ticket and wait to be called. I hope the fact that I have no old documentation is not a problem...

3. Resumption of lectures

The first week after break is over, and I am so proud of myself. I got myself to go to every lecture and exercise except my last one on Friday. Since all the notes from that lecture are uploaded anyway, I can still perform the exercises at home. I do, however, need to make sure that I focus in my room. The recent, rather unintelligent decision to get a Tumblr will not make studying for the upcoming final exams any easier. However, if I treat it like being back at CMU where every problem is required, not just recommended, and I find a good site blocking program, I ought to keep myself on track.

The finals coming up in February: Heat and Mass Transfer, Introduction to Literary Studies, and Translation from Middle High German. Time to get to work!