I just finished my Master's program. I am done!!! I just submitted my last final, with 20 minutes to spare. And I can say honestly that I've never felt anything like it. I can't believe it's over. Somehow it always felt like this is what I was going to do forever. It became almost my whole life...and it's over. The feeling of accomplishment and excitement is bubbling up finally, and it's preventing me from sitting here any longer. I have spent so much of my time on a computer....
AGH!
Is this the last post that I can tag "esp mpa"? Is it possible that this part of my life is completed? I mean, it is. I guess I'm in shock.
And now I am going out for margaritas.
5/06/2012
Today is: Studying all day, inside the 6th floor of SIPA.
The balance of payments model, the open economy, the relative change in expected exchange rates.
Thai food delivery.
This song:
And this spreadsheet, which I built from scratch and am very proud of- I've created a metric for identifying beneficial energy efficiency measures, while staying under budget:
The balance of payments model, the open economy, the relative change in expected exchange rates.
Thai food delivery.
This song:
And this spreadsheet, which I built from scratch and am very proud of- I've created a metric for identifying beneficial energy efficiency measures, while staying under budget:
4/28/2012
Champagne before noon
Yesterday, two of the most significant and valuable experiences of this program came to a successful end, and were recognized.
In the morning, my workshop team had its final client briefing. I put an enormous amount of work into managing this team project-- I never once said, screw it. I never once gave up, stopped caring, or said it didn't matter. I cared and did my best every day. I really did lead this team to an amazing conclusion, and it feels amazing. It's so worth it. We provided clear and practical environmental and policy advice to a private conservation group in Patagonia...It was one of the biggest reasons this program has been such an amazing and invaluable experience. I brought champagne and gave a pink-themed presentation to my team about their awesomeness, complete with statistics about the project (Deadlines missed: 0. Emails sent: 450. Incidents of unproductive animosity: 0. Fucks that were given: Innumerable.) Then we had a fabulous lunch.
In the afternoon, the Earth Institute had a showcase for the interns and researchers who got funding this year-- my internship was paid for by their fund. I kind of went into a dream vortex when Jeff Sachs gave the introduction to a set of interviews with students working on climate change...and I was one of them. It was like, "Is this real life?" They are going to post the videos online soon...
Then, I went to the dentist and got myself matched with the right shade of tooth...in just over a week, I'll meet my right anterior lateral incisor for the first time ever! (By the way, dental implants are as weird as they sound. They surgically insert a hollow piece of metal, let your gums heal, uncap it, and screw in another piece of metal with a crown on it....wish me luck, and 80% acknowledgement goes to Obamacare.)
In the evening, I had a call in which what had been a potential job offer fell through...but good things are still in the works for me...and not even that could make the day a bad one.
My team and I after the Final program workshop briefing this Wednesday:
In the morning, my workshop team had its final client briefing. I put an enormous amount of work into managing this team project-- I never once said, screw it. I never once gave up, stopped caring, or said it didn't matter. I cared and did my best every day. I really did lead this team to an amazing conclusion, and it feels amazing. It's so worth it. We provided clear and practical environmental and policy advice to a private conservation group in Patagonia...It was one of the biggest reasons this program has been such an amazing and invaluable experience. I brought champagne and gave a pink-themed presentation to my team about their awesomeness, complete with statistics about the project (Deadlines missed: 0. Emails sent: 450. Incidents of unproductive animosity: 0. Fucks that were given: Innumerable.) Then we had a fabulous lunch.
In the afternoon, the Earth Institute had a showcase for the interns and researchers who got funding this year-- my internship was paid for by their fund. I kind of went into a dream vortex when Jeff Sachs gave the introduction to a set of interviews with students working on climate change...and I was one of them. It was like, "Is this real life?" They are going to post the videos online soon...
Then, I went to the dentist and got myself matched with the right shade of tooth...in just over a week, I'll meet my right anterior lateral incisor for the first time ever! (By the way, dental implants are as weird as they sound. They surgically insert a hollow piece of metal, let your gums heal, uncap it, and screw in another piece of metal with a crown on it....wish me luck, and 80% acknowledgement goes to Obamacare.)
In the evening, I had a call in which what had been a potential job offer fell through...but good things are still in the works for me...and not even that could make the day a bad one.
My team and I after the Final program workshop briefing this Wednesday:
The whole bunch:
4/03/2012
It takes so long
To tell you everything. Especially when it has been so long since I've told you anything.
So instead of doing nothing, I can only tell you about the things that move me:
And this:
Also, tell everyone you know that I am "an energetic environmental professional with proven effectiveness in complex project management and policy analysis, and a developed specialty communicating information within the government, non-profit, and private sectors." I'm quoting my resume. I have been focusing on energy policy, energy efficiency, and renewable energy in this program, and I know enough about the technical side of things that I can understand engineers (not all the time) and I see myself working within and learning more about energy generation and distribution to identify the areas that need more policy support.
Because you know how Homer Simpson called beer "the cause of, and solution to, all life's problems"? Energy is the same. The way we use it is the source of the biggest problem to ever face humans, and it's also the way we'll solve that problem.
I'm available May 18th. Because I graduate May 17th. Holy moly!!
So instead of doing nothing, I can only tell you about the things that move me:
Also, tell everyone you know that I am "an energetic environmental professional with proven effectiveness in complex project management and policy analysis, and a developed specialty communicating information within the government, non-profit, and private sectors." I'm quoting my resume. I have been focusing on energy policy, energy efficiency, and renewable energy in this program, and I know enough about the technical side of things that I can understand engineers (not all the time) and I see myself working within and learning more about energy generation and distribution to identify the areas that need more policy support.
Because you know how Homer Simpson called beer "the cause of, and solution to, all life's problems"? Energy is the same. The way we use it is the source of the biggest problem to ever face humans, and it's also the way we'll solve that problem.
I'm available May 18th. Because I graduate May 17th. Holy moly!!
2/21/2012
Moon day
Its so hard sometimes to manage the stress. This life is non stop. No matter how many warriors I summon and inhales and exhales counted, the waves keep coming.
Today is a moon day. The moon is luminous because of reflection. Just like how sometimes reading the email a third time, and not reacting to the parts of it that cause immediate stress, really reflecting on it, reveals the light.
Today Robyn was the soundtrack from the subway to the yoga studio, and I felt so glad that this is my life...the city, Lincoln Center. I felt free. I reflected that some of the best experiences I've had have been in the yoga studio. I wondered if getting to yoga would always feel like a more impressive achievement than anything else. (I applied for a job at the NRDC yesterday, for comparison)
But then the stress always comes back.
2/14/2012
One day
I wonder how not being in a relationship would have changed my experience living here in New York. I can't really imagine it. I can't think of a single way that my relationship has negatively affected the experience. I can't think of a single way my relationship has negatively affected anything about me or my life. Which is the way it should be. This person is supposed to make your life better-- make the good things better, and the bad things easier. And I have someone who actually thinks my rambling is pleasant. And is pretty strict with me, actually, when I'm complaining, or being a wimp, or not doing what needs to be done. Or worrying. He even tells me what to do about this terrible grad-student insomnia.
He's got a natural togetherness that I love. I LOVE that he FOLDS ALL HIS LAUNDRY. (Seriously, I can't even believe that shit. ...and I love his response to my amazement at that: "What do you want me to do, throw everything in a pile?" Like it's no big deal that he folds everything so neatly. Seriously people, even like undershirts.) Anyway: Happy Valentine's Day!
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| He drinks margaritas with me |
 |
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| One of the best times we've spent together was this trip to Bakersfield for a conference I was speaking at last year. |
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| Our trip to visit Tucson, before he moved there. |
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| because his nickname is hippo ...don't ask me, I didn't give it to him. |
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| BEARD! |
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| My sister's wedding |
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| ROW! |
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| Ahh, this face. |
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| I love how he braves crowds to see floats being blown up. |
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| Central Park + a prime example of how having braces made me look less exuberant and more snooty in pictures. I mean who does she think she is??! |
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| This is always how the ones I take come out. |
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| Patagonia, AZ |
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| Outside Patagonia |
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| Oakland, CA |
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| I just like this one of our feet. |
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| Because this is my blog: My mom and my aunt Jean with baby Gus. |
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| Summer of 2009. |
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| Valentine's Day, 2010. |
1/23/2012
Who has time?
Not me.
But I wanted to give you an update. I miss giving you updates. Unsolicited Sharing!
I had my dental implant surgery last Friday. I was asleep for more than an hour, groggy for about a day, and just today am able to eat pasta. Good thing too- That's one of my main food groups.
I was selected to be Manager of 12 of my peers in our Workshop this semester. This is the capstone project of this program, and each team performs actual policy analysis work for an actual client. Hello opportunity, I'm Maria!! Our client is an organization called Patagonia Sur, and they want us to conduct a feasibility study to determine whether they should begin a REDD (a UN program, stands for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation of Land) project in their lands in Patagonia, Chile. Here's a picture of Patagonia.
So I'm in charge of coordinating...everything. And it's so exciting and challenging. Surprisingly, especially based on last semester, I've been sleeping anyways!
Otherwise this semester hasn't really picked up yet. Still doing the internship...not doing enough job searching...ha! Job searching. Who has time for that? Not me!
Focus on the time you are in right now and don't try to be anywhere else. You will never be in the exact same place again, so learn as much as you can. If you have problems being strategic sometimes, like me, think about things you've done in the past that you don't want to repeat. And just make very small steps towards an idea, no matter how hazy, that will get you somewhere else. That is what I did to get here. I didn't ever say out loud, I can't do this. That part matters too.
I am rusty, as you can see. Too little razzmatazz in this post, and the insights are lite too. My creative energies are going elsewhere, such as to creating a Project Control Plan with 12 separate responsibilities and a calendar and ....a project that could help make the world a little bit better.
This is me today on the way to the post-op appointment. It's snowy and I can't smile because my lip got so swollen...it doesn't look swollen, but it's the gums, or something. They opened everything up!! Ick. Anyway I look more angsty than I am.
<3
But I wanted to give you an update. I miss giving you updates. Unsolicited Sharing!
I had my dental implant surgery last Friday. I was asleep for more than an hour, groggy for about a day, and just today am able to eat pasta. Good thing too- That's one of my main food groups.
I was selected to be Manager of 12 of my peers in our Workshop this semester. This is the capstone project of this program, and each team performs actual policy analysis work for an actual client. Hello opportunity, I'm Maria!! Our client is an organization called Patagonia Sur, and they want us to conduct a feasibility study to determine whether they should begin a REDD (a UN program, stands for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation of Land) project in their lands in Patagonia, Chile. Here's a picture of Patagonia.
So I'm in charge of coordinating...everything. And it's so exciting and challenging. Surprisingly, especially based on last semester, I've been sleeping anyways!
Otherwise this semester hasn't really picked up yet. Still doing the internship...not doing enough job searching...ha! Job searching. Who has time for that? Not me!
Focus on the time you are in right now and don't try to be anywhere else. You will never be in the exact same place again, so learn as much as you can. If you have problems being strategic sometimes, like me, think about things you've done in the past that you don't want to repeat. And just make very small steps towards an idea, no matter how hazy, that will get you somewhere else. That is what I did to get here. I didn't ever say out loud, I can't do this. That part matters too.
I am rusty, as you can see. Too little razzmatazz in this post, and the insights are lite too. My creative energies are going elsewhere, such as to creating a Project Control Plan with 12 separate responsibilities and a calendar and ....a project that could help make the world a little bit better.
This is me today on the way to the post-op appointment. It's snowy and I can't smile because my lip got so swollen...it doesn't look swollen, but it's the gums, or something. They opened everything up!! Ick. Anyway I look more angsty than I am.
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