Being as this blog is entitled "Robots in Switzerland," I think I ought to make mention of robots for once. Well here it is. We started our rovers this week and have worked on them for a total of two days so far. Each work day lasts from 8am-5pm, with a hour and half or so break for lunch. There are only 8 work days left, and so much to do. I am realizing just how much goes into embedded systems to make a computer make a machine do the simplest of tasks. And then trying to figure out how to do so in the most efficient way is a whole other story. I feel like I'm in a fog of blind confusion a lot, groping for any sudden beam of insight or comprehension. As challenging as it is, the thought occurred to me that maybe engineers don't really ever know what they are doing until they do it. Therefore, I don't need to worry so much about not understanding all that is going on at all times, just that I keep proceeding, and trusting my teammates as necessary. It is cool to work on a team and I am learning let go of things I just do not understand (like coding the communications between the rover and the LPS and the gyroscope and the accelerometer and other fancy sensors), entrusting it completely to someone else who is a specialist in that area. They understand it, but to me it is magic.
I am writing this at 12:30 in the morning because I have jet lag and cannot sleep. Thankfully, our professors have generously allowed for us to start class at 9:00am tomorrow as opposed to the usual 8:00am.
So much has happened in the last three days. One thing that hasn't happened: sleep. But I am rolling with it pretty well, if I do say so myself. I cannot possibly elaborate about all that I would like to here just because I do not have the time, but I have been keeping careful notes in a journal to remember what I eat for breakfast, who I talk to, and what I learn and observe. So no worries. Ask me when I get back. Settling.
That's what my feelings have finally gotten around to doing these past 24 hours. After finals, I did not know how to feel because while I was done with the semester, I was stuck in an odd spot knowing I was not about to turn around and jump right into the summer, at least not as I have always known it. If not for the fact that I am going on this trip, I would have let my head fill with thoughts of sun, sweat mixed with dirt and sunscreen, the smell of cut grass, and the people I would be spending the evenings with doing spontaneous things. But because I must put that state of mind on hold for a few weeks, I was instead filled with this uncertain apprehension, a sort of blank worry, not sure what to think about except that I have no idea what I am getting myself into. That blankness was soon tainted with loneliness as I continued to dwell upon the fact that I will be apart from the people I want to be with most for a good, long time. Fortunately, I can say the apprehension is waning now that I have had a few days to transition into "I'm really going to go do this and build a rover and eat bread and cheese for breakfast and ride on an airplane for 8 hours and climb real mountains and live out of my backpack" mode. It's going to be great. To that end, I have made final decisions on which camera lenses to take (just two) and which shoes to leave at home (shout-out to Mom for listening to me rattle through my packing list and for telling me how many socks to take). I have also obtained the first book of The Lord of the Rings to read on the plane. I almost forgot that one might read for pleasure and not just out of academic necessity. I have done all the packing I possibly can, so tomorrow evening, I will be off, hopefully not having forgotten my passport. All this international travel gives a whole new relevance to the Sunday school song, "God's got the WHOLE WORLD in his hands." I am looking forward to experiencing that first-hand. Hey guys. This is a little weird. I have never written a blog. If I'm being honest, I'd say that writing a blog makes me uncomfortable, mostly because it feels like I am talking about myself, to myself. BUT. If you are reading this, then I can feel a little better knowing that I am not talking to just myself. Although I'd like to keep this blog as my own record of what I do and learn during my three weeks in Switzerland, I know that some of you (perhaps secretly) actually want to know about what I do and learn, too. So thanks.
I have 10 days until final exams start, 12 days before they end, and 16 days until I leave the United States for the first time in my life. I am nervous. I ought to be more excited than I am right now, but finals aren't over yet. Consequently, there's that dark, heavy cloud of impending doom and anxiety in my head that hasn't allowed me to fully realize that, in a matter of mere weeks, I am going to be all the way across the ocean studying robots (of all things) and hanging out with new people I have never met, but whom all share my geeky love for engineering. Despite the mental haze, I know that there is much to be excited and nervous about. Let's start with the nerves. First off, I don't feel ready at all. What does it mean to be ready? I don't know, but I don't feel it. So, naturally, I must make a bulleted list. Here's one of all the butterflies in my stomach right now:
Hopefully, by the end of six weeks from now, I can look back on these goals and smile about each one. I can't wait to find out exactly how I will achieve them all. There seems like there are so many. But stay tuned, and we shall see. |