I particularly enjoy the time I get while waiting for the food to heat, because I do nothing else during this time except for displaying Pavolvian reactions at the prospect of being able to eat food, and because I use this time to reflect.

The ISB experience can be pretty overwhelming, and I speak solely for myself when I say that it is like throwing a person who can’t swim for his life into the deep end of the pool. Except that the admissions committee has chosen wisely enough to know that the person will not sink, at least more often than not.

Do not mistake the previous statement for arrogance of the chest-thumping kind. It is more a reflection of life-experiences most students have had, which temper them for tougher challenges, the kind that this course seems to be throwing at each and everyone of us faster than we can dodge them.

The water in the deep end is cold, and it does suffocate you at the outset. But once you get the hang of things, you begin to enjoy the feeling and eventually revel in it.

When I was told about how we’d have classes four days of the week, my mind set out to make numerous plans regarding the various things I could do over the weekend. But alas, the amount of work during the weekends prevents one from taking the day off completely.

This is not to say that you don’t have time to do what you’d like to. Aside from working on individual assignments, group assignments, post-reads to understand what was taught in class, pre-reads so as not to mumble incoherently when cold-called and so on, there are many other things on campus that ensure that one doesn’t need to go out.

Nonetheless, I’ve been able to put together and conduct a quiz, have timed electric wheelchair runs around the student village thanks to my quadqie having sprained his ankle, worked on preliminary plans to form a band on campus, read fifteen pages of Slaughterhouse 5 and watch a few episodes of 30 Rock in the middle of all this.

I’ve been told by most of my friends who’ve graduated from B-schools that you end up having a fair share of “What in the name of God am I doing here?” moments. So far, I’ve had none, but even if I do, that feeling will be ephemeral at best, and that is something I can say with absolute certainty.

The ninety seconds had elapsed by the time these myriad thoughts had rushed through the recesses of my mind at breakneck speed, and it was time to head back and begin work on the Global Economics assignment due the next day.

I also realize that I have a class at 0845 in the morning. Sheesh.