Four Months of Intense Learning and One Unforgettable Weekend
I am 1.5 weeks of classes away from finishing my first semester at SOM. Time has gone by rapidly and slowly at the same time. I couldn’t tell you what I did on half of the 17 weekends I have been here at Yale, mostly because it seems like so many less. However, I can tell you that this past weekend I won’t forget (more on this later) and that I feel a whole lot wiser than 4 months ago. I sincerely believe that the last four months have been the period of most intense learning in my life. Not only do I now know what a balance sheet actually looks like and how to value a company, but I also now have a much better idea of how I will go about achieving my professional and personal life goals and what are the tradeoffs I am willing to make (because no, you can’t have it all).
So about this past weekend; Saturday was the 138th Yale-Harvard game. Celebrations started the night before as alums and friends flooded campus for different pre-game events or just to be ready for the big day. On Friday night, my three bedroom apartment in East Rock was packed with 8 people, which made for an awesome Saturday early morning when we all shared mimosas and banana pancakes while deciding how much blue gear to wear. As we arrived at the tailgate at about 10:30 am, all we could see was a sea of blue with patches of crimson extending parking lot after parking lot. After half an hour of mindless walking around, we finally found the SOM tailgate. Spirits were running high. People were smiling, drinking, telling jokes, eating burgers and hotdogs, but most importantly, having fun. Even after we found out Yale was letting Harvard win (we are just nicer), we still headed to the stadium to catch a glimpse of our glorious football stadium and team. As the game and congregation at Yale Bowl started dwindling down, we decided to head to Bar, famously known for its bacon mashed potato pizza, which is of course what I ordered. Alas, there was a lot of eating –and some awkward dancing on the side, everyone reveling on the amazing day and looking forward to the well-deserved 9-day long Thanksgiving Break. The night was capped by a walk back home that saw the first flurries of the season delicately land on the streets of New Haven. What a perfect day to be a bulldog!