NEWS

Hi there.

I should be reading about Critical Thinking.  (Did you see that “should” there?  It has been following me around all day.)  Instead, I am here.  Finally.

Here is what has been happening since my last stop at the ol’blog:

1.  It snowed and felt like winter for most of the time.  SNOWED.  IN MAY.  SHEESH.

2.  But, yesterday?  I saw a crab-apple tree in BLOOM when I was walking to my car after work.  IN BLOOM!  Most trees are not there yet, but I looked out my window today and my big maple friend that watches over me while I sleep has itty-bitty leaves on the ends of the branches!  AND!  I wore flip-flops and skirts with no tights to work all week!

3.  Speaking of work, I am DONE teaching.  I only have to give a final!  I have a little more correcting left to do and I have to update grades online, but I am obviously NOT WORKING right now.  (See that “should” whispering in my ear?)

4.  I sucked as a teacher this semester.  I am ready for a do-over.  READY.

5.  Also?  I GOT THE JOB!  I am now an Unlimited Full Time Real-Life NOT Fake Anymore Professor!!!!!!!

6.  This means that I am guaranteed full time status and I will be paid accordingly.

7.  This means that I can carry our family’s health insurance and save us a TON of money each month.

8.  This means that I will HAVE MY OWN OFFICE (which trumps everything else)!

9.  This means that my kids will have less of me.  (This makes me sad.)

10.  My mother-in-law moved into a Nursing home on May First.  This broke my heart.  And made me happy.  Bitter mostly, but wow.  I can get my work done ( SHOULD!!) now.

6.  I am on my last leg of my class.  Only one week after this week.  TWO major assignments.  Doable now. (Should be doing them now…)

I will be back with the whole scoop about the J-O-B.  AFTER I get rid of this darn “should”.  Annoying.

How are you?

 

Heartbreak, and a Full Heart

Monday morning.  It has been a long week.

Boston.  I have so much going through my head about this, but it is like trying to catch rabbits with a butterfly net.  Mostly, my heart is broken.  I think I have cried more this week than I did in all of 2012.  It is so interesting to stand back to see how this is all handled by the humans.  How everyone wants to know WHY and HOW.  Especially me.  But something about the justification of motive doesn’t sit well with me on this one.  It is feeling like such a cop-out to be okay with the whole, “Islamic Extremist” theory.  Even if it is true.  Which it sounds like it is.

My heart broke first for the victims.  All those people celebrating an amazing feat of friends, family, and strangers.  They were there to support something hard that people challenged themselves to accomplish.  Not to mention the runners themselves.  They were coming off running for 26.whatever miles.  Why were these people targets?  Was it just because there were a lot of people gathered?  Was there something with the marathon itself?  Does it even matter?  It felt so much like 9/11 again.  And after the shooting in Newtown, it felt like another piece of our humanity fell from the Earth.

My heart then broke for the 19-year-old, shall I call him a terrorist?  Or just a messed up kid?  I heard the interview on NPR with a woman, Robin Young, who has a show on NPR whose nephew is friends with this kid.  She hosted the prom party at her house.  He was there.  She knew him.  This interview twisted my heart like a sponge.  He was “a normal kid”.  Bright, popular, fun.  After hearing this I couldn’t write him off as just another “Islamic Extremist”.  This complicated things.  A lot.

In the midst of people condemning him, which…they SHOULD, right?  I should too, shouldn’t I?  All I can think of is WHAT HAPPENED?  How can a “normal kid” who had many diverse friends and was happy, and popular…FUN in a truly American sense end up hurling bombs at police officers?  I kept thinking about Robin Young and her nephew, and all his friends, they are grieving for the “terrorist” as well as the victims.  I guess I am too.

Next, my heart filled while listening to the radio and hearing of the whole city of Boston being shut down for the entire day on Friday.  The personal accounts of people seeing the SWAT team in their yards guns drawn were eerie and scary and kind of like a really good movie.  Only it was real.  And happening.  I sat later that night watching the celebration in the streets of Watertown with tears running down my cheeks. I am so proud of our country, and how law enforcement handled this.  So. Proud.  And when I saw that 19-year-old boy lying on the pavement, I was happy he was caught, but I still felt sorrow for a life of potential wasted.  I hope we all get some answers.  And I hope he dies of his injuries now.  If he lives?  I shudder to think of what his future holds.

Did you see the Boston Bruin’s national anthem clip from Wednesday?  I bawled through that too.

I hope this is the last killing spree we have.  I fear that it is just becoming commonplace.  I don’t understand it.  I don’t know how to stop it.  I guess I need to take advice from Glenna at Momastery:

“Here is the World.  Beautiful and terrible things will happen.  Don’t be afraid.” -Frederick Buechner

LOVE WINS.

Back at last, but only briefly

There has been so much going on here in this life of mine.  So much that I haven’t had a moment to try and untangle it (think spaghetti) for you.  So forgive my bullet-y post, but I literally am going to be doing this in three minute entities today just to get a post up.

Interview:

On Friday morning at 11:00 CDT I will be in an interview for a full time teaching position at my college.  Yes, I AM nervous, why do you ask?  I will have to teach a 10 minute lesson introducing Main Idea in paragraphs.  This is my LEAST favorite thing to teach.  It is also my biggest weakness.  I haven’t had a lot of time to prepare for this interview.  I have planned out my lesson, however.  I think I like it.  I am still not sure if I do or if I don’t.  I won’t know until Friday after the interview.  I would love prayers and good thoughts and whatever positive stuff sent my way if you can spare a moment or two.  I need to stay calm and nonchalant for this interview.  Getting all whipped up is my enemy.  I tend to whip.  Thank you in advance.

Work:

I am behind.  Really behind.  Enough said.

Class:

Right now I am wishing that (1) I only took one class or (2) I didn’t take any classes.  I  am having a very hard time keeping up with the big papers.  The content is still really cool and exciting, but the readings are getting longer and the papers are getting more and more time consuming.  I have taken A LOT of graduate classes.  (Around 53 graduate credits.)  I have never had THIS MUCH homework.  Ever.  I don’t know if it is because it is an online class or what, but goodness.  I don’t have this much time.  There is usually a chapter to read for both classes…which fine.  And then there is a weekly post in a discussion…and then the replies.  Cool.  I can do that.  It is the big papers that cause the problems.  These are in addition to the reading and the posting.  Plus it includes every reading in the module, so I only have a couple of days to complete them.  Posts are due in one class on Thursdays and the other class on Fridays.  Big papers are due on Mondays.  Right now, there is so much going on, I am feeling like I won’t be able to keep up.

Home:

This is the big change.  Jeff’s dad fell in early March.  The doctor did not do X-Rays.  For three weeks Jeff was bringing them meals, I was grocery shopping and we were both cleaning their house for them.  Jeff’s dad is the primary care-giver to Jeff’s mom who is in the advanced stages of Alzheimer’s.  This fall happened right before my spring break, so my spring break consisted of meetings at Jeff’s parent’s house with nurses, social workers, occupational therapists…trying to coordinating his mom’s care.  The doctor had said that Jeff’s dad should be walking in 3-4 days.  Three weeks later, he still couldn’t walk.  Finally he decided to go back to the doctor.  He ordered an emergency MRI and found out that he had broken his hip.  He had to be admitted to the hospital for a hip replacement.  This was the Friday before we were to go to California.  Obviously Jeff didn’t go with us.  He stayed home, his mom moved in with us, and his dad had surgery.  He has been running ragged caring for his parents.  His mom is at a toddler level cognitively.  We are still adjusting to this.  This makes it extremely hard for me to do any work.  At all.

I am feeling overwhelmed.  But we are managing.  This is primarily why I haven’t posted.  I SHOULD be working right now.  Even though I hammered this post out in 10 minutes.  Still:  Guilt.

Gotta go get dinner going.  I have been reading you guys.  It is my reward.  So….KEEP WRITING.  Don’t follow my example!

Sending Love out to you!  xoxo

Elementary Teacher meets Adult Learning Theory

Okay.  I love my classes.  The classes where I am a student.  They are a definite time suck and I totally wish that I didn’t have that pesky J-O-B getting in the way of my studying, but alas, I have to actually, you know, TEACH between reading and writing about how adults learn best.

I am in many states of disequilibrium right now.  I wish I could invite my professors out to dinner, or maybe just over to my house so we could sit down on the living room floor and sift through everything…my entire course.  I sort of don’t know where to start.

This week’s assignment for one of my classes is all about learning theory.  I read the Stages of Reading Development by Jeanne Chall and oh!  I was so happy.  This progression begins at BIRTH, which, YAY!  I read through all of her early childhood and emergent reading stuff and vigorously nodded throughout.  THEN!  I started reading through the high school and adult stuff!  And!  I finally know where I am going.  And end result.  FINALLY.   I have been missing this.  Kind of blindly trying to get my students to read for meaning, and understand what they are reading and to know what to do when they don’t understand.  Trying out some analysis here and there.  Guessing at what to focus on, relying on the textbook that is really skill and drill.  It was like opening the shudders and letting the sun shine in.

Our next assignment was sort of review.  I read about the three major psychological theories of learning:  Behavioral (Skinner, Watson, Thorndike, Gagne).  You know.  Stimulus and Response.  Positive and negative reinforcement.  Learning is reinforced and anything not reinforced falls away to extinction. Cognitive (Brain based Learning).  You know.  Piaget and his cognitive stages.  Metacognition, connections, short-term and long-term memory, motivation.  Bloom’s Taxonomy, Learning Styles, and Multiple Intelligences.  And then there is Constructivism.  This is newer, but was the thrust of my graduate courses for my master’s degree.  Learning is social.  You construct your own understanding of reality.  Discovery Learning, simulations, problem based learning.

My feeling is that I use all three intermingled together.  I still use some stimulus and response.  GRADES, for example.  Feedback on papers, and verbal ‘good jobs’ during class.  I am still firmly in the Cognitive theory.  I have my students figure out their learning styles, and I love the brain based stuff.  A major part of my class is Metacognition, but I need to be better about teaching it.  Bloom’s Taxonomy is prevalent everywhere, but really the application, analysis, synthesis, evaluation stuff belong with Constructivism.  This is all the higher-level thinking.  Taking in information and then coming up with your own theory.  Kind of what I am doing RIGHT NOW.  This is the big goal.  And, I don’t know if I am requiring my students to do it.  Do I ever require that they do THIS?  No.  I don’t think so.  Gah!  BUT I WANT TO!

Finally I read an article called “Position Statement on Rights of Adult Readers and Learners.”  One of my instructors co-wrote it, but it was the other instructor for the other “theory” class that assigned it.  It made me stop.  I have so much work to do.  I feel like I have to revamp my entire way of thinking.  And? I have about a million questions.  This is where I need my instructors to come over.  Do I have anything in my courses that are in compliance with these “rights”?

But my biggest question is more about my students.  All of these articles assume that the adults are motivated and want to learn.  This is not the case for the majority of my students.  I am unsure that if I changed everything my students would be able to keep themselves engaged and WANT to do the work.  They need to be taught how to get excited about learning.  How to read and evaluate and construct their own opinions and methods of dealing with a variety of topics.  What makes them work–intrinsically?  I have been reading these three articles since Sunday.  I annotated and re-read several parts as I read them.  After each section, I wrote a quick reflection.  Now I am here further writing about it, but in very generic terms because I already know that there are exactly two readers that I have who give two hoots in hell about this.  But, see?  I am MOTIVATED.  I wish I could sit down and hash this out with someone!  How do I get my students to be where I am?  As adult learners?  How?

I am so glad I am in this program.  I haven’t felt this excited for a long time!

Before the Sun Awakens

It is cold in Minnesota.  We have had the high of Zero Degrees Fahrenheit more than once this week.  I have been wearing my long-johns daily.  Right now I am still half way under my warm covers, but my arms are cold.  My shoulders are cold.  My nose is cold.  I hear my husband downstairs banging around in the kitchen.  He attempted to make English muffins last night and set them aside to rise overnight.  I am looking forward to breakfast.

I woke up anxious this morning.  Stomach tight  with worry.  I don’t have anything to worry about that is out of the ordinary, but sometimes it creeps in.  I want to pull the covers up over my cold, cold shoulders and stay here.  In bed.  Sleep.  Dream.  But already Katie has been in here twice.  I hear Nicholas down stairs with Jeff, talking too loud for the morning.

I see that the sun is lightening the sky beyond our big maple.  The sky is no longer black, but turning periwinkle.  The stray patches of snow glowing.

I have a long “to do” list…well, maybe not long, but time-consuming.  Jeff works this morning.  That makes it the perfect day to clean this disaster of a house.  The Christmas Tree.  It has been stripped of its ornaments for a month, but still stands tall in our living room with its lights twinkling in the darkness.  It needs to come down.  Today.  While Jeff is away.  It gives me a deadline if nothing else.  The rest of the house is just dismantled.  We all have been ignoring it.  Today it rises to the top of the list.  Maybe that will help the anxiety.

I will go into work at some point today as well.  I have a lot of copies to make, and I didn’t get them done yesterday.  My friend who shares my office is there all the time.  All. The. Time.  I am constantly trying to find some place else to work.  I love her and we are good friends.  But.  I don’t get ANY work done when she is there.  See above:  She is there ALL THE TIME.  I try to plan my extra trips when she is NOT there, but look!  There she is.  So, I went in yesterday to get all my copies done, and didn’t get it done.  Hardly got what I absolutely HAD to get done, done.  And I didn’t have time to go to a drop in training that I wanted to go to.  I am frustrated by this, but unwilling to jeopardize our friendship over it.  I think she is starting to get it (maybe).  She isn’t real keen on social cues.  I have said several times, “When will you NOT be here.  I am trying not to get in your way.”  Which means I am trying to get some WORK DONE.  But she has not figured out that it is a problem for me.  Yesterday, I think I even put it in the correct terms and said, “When you are here I would much rather talk to you and I don’t get any work done.”  She laughed.  Because I said it in a joking manner.  But, most people would pick up on that.  Anyway, I get to go in again today.  To try to make my copies and be ready for Monday.  Maybe I will guess right and she won’t be there?  She was last Saturday.

My classes have been loaded into our classroom portal.  I have printed out all the syllabi and handouts for this week.  I am going to get started today if my tree is down, house is clean and copies are made.  I am nervous about this.  It is different from Hamline University (where I have taken all of my post secondary/graduate classes).  There are actual POINTS assigned and little assignments that must be completed.  EVERYTHING has to be done in APA format.  Not just the end paper.  That is a lot of busy work.  I am excited too.  I am eager to learn everything, and I am eager to see how this all relates to my job.  I remember when I was beginning to be an elementary teacher and how the classes enriched my teaching.  I hope I have the same experience with these classes.

My application has been submitted.  Yikes.

Out my window, I now see the brightening morning.  The  sun still low on the horizon.  I smell English Muffins.  And here comes another kid to wish me good morning.

Happy Saturday to all of you.  What are you up to today?

The semester begins, so does the rambling

I am really going to try not to stop posting just because my job is starting again.  I have no guarantees, just hope.  I am terrible at budgeting my time, but remember I am going to STRIVE to do things differently this year.  One way to do that is to write a “to do” list EVERY DAY.  I am out of the habit, and it helps me so much.  I have written one for today already and “Post” is on it so I am being productive right now!

Yesterday was the first day of the semester.  I got to meet the class that my friend gave to me.  They seem sweet and were engaged for the first day, so I am really excited.  I am also excited because my department has taken on a project that is researching how to find predictors of success in our classes.  My office-mate has sent in a grant for some money so we can try out some non-cognitive assessments to see if they are more predictive than the cognitive assessments that we already give as placement tests.  We pulled numbers last semester and found out that the placement test score does NOT predict who passes our classes.  We all knew that on some level.  Most people who are not passing are not coming to class and not doing the homework.  There are a few students who are just too low functioning to understand the material, but they are the minority.  We are trying to figure out WHAT will predict success and then we will come up with some interventions to help lower the fail-rate and boost retention.  It is incredibly exciting!

At least to me…  sorry.

Moving on…

Last week it was in the 40s (F) here.  The “Frank” (our ice rink) was one big puddle.  My husband was CRABBY.  Then this weekend it was 5.  FIVE.  DEGREES.  Really?  Can’t we just stay around 20 or 25?  Is that too much to ask?  Apparently.  It is still cold out today, but it is climbing toward that magic 20-degree mark.  I am waiting to run my errands until it warms up a little.  The sun is shining and my dog is laying beside me.  Ah.  All is well.

I don’t have to teach until tonight.  My schedule is turning out to be awesome.  I teach on Monday and Wednesday mornings and Tuesday nights.  It was great to send my kids off to school this morning in my pajamas.  And to write a post today, still in my pajamas.  I will probably cross many things off my list in my pajamas today.  Although, I think I need to go to St. Paul to pick up a transcript.  I don’t really want to, but I need it to apply for this j-o-b.  The application is due on Friday.  I have re-done my resume and I have written a cover-letter.  I am out of practice for both, so I sent them off to 6 people to review.  I haven’t heard from most of them.  My friend Anna who sometimes reads this very blog (Hi Anna!) was kind enough to read them.  I was expecting to have to write the cover letter over.  She said as much.  I wrote it from the perspective of why I wanted to teach at my college instead of why the college should want to hire me, what I would bring to the college.

But that is the problem.  I don’t know what I am bringing to the college.  I feel like I am getting way more out of this deal than they are.  I don’t even know where to start with that.  I am going to wait a bit before rewriting in hopes that at least one or two other people reply back to me.  Maybe they will list some suggestions?  So I can use them?  Honestly, why would they hire ME?  I am an elementary teacher swimming way over my head.

Okay.  Enough negative self talk.  I need to figure it out.  That is the yucky task for today.  This turned out to be more of a mind dump than anything.  Any resources on writing a great cover letter will be greatly appreciated.  Or if you just want to write it for me…that would be great!

Hope you are all having a lovely sunny morning!

Topsy-Turvy, Roller-Coast-y

I began the year with three courses.  Two of the lower-level reading courses that I have taught consistently, and that study skills class that I told you about.  I also began the year knowing that there would be a posting for two permanent positions in my department beginning next fall.

On Wednesday, I decided I should check out the posting.  There were many directions:  Go to the government site, fill out that application, go back to the college site, fill out that application, write a letter of interest, submit a resume….  But, something caught my eye under requirements for application.  It said that those with elementary licensure needed 4 graduate credits of adult education.  Shit.  That is ME.  I didn’t know I needed that.  So, I began to search.  I googled “adult education” and got hooked up on how to learn how to read if you are an adult.  No, don’t need that.  So, I began to go to college sites.  I found something at the University of Minnesota, but it was a night class, and I can’t be away from my kids two nights a week.  I decided it needed to be an online class.  Which I couldn’t find.  I went to bed without a resolution, but determined to figure it out on Thursday.

On Thursday, the study skills class still only had three people registered for it, and it suddenly disappeared from my course load.  I figured that this would happen, and I was relieved because I had not done any planning of this course…Nada.  But.  Still.  I lost some income there that I was excited to have.  (Really the stress out-weighed this point.  I was relieved.)

I moved on to try to find a class.  I began calling colleges because every ding-dang college has a different way to navigate their website.  It was taking too much time.  Then, I remembered an email that I had saved from last spring.  It was asking the opinion of which “program” was the best….so I went through my email.  I had A LOT of emails.  I began deleting them as I went.  Finally, I found the email, and went to check out California State at Fullerton and University of Cincinnati.  I couldn’t find the phone number for Cal State, so I called UC.  They got back to me in the late afternoon and their program sounded amazing.  It is a post-secondary literacy certificate.  It would involve reading and writing, which fits my philosophy, and I specifically asked if it would qualify for my adult education credits…yes it would.  The problem was that class was to begin on Monday, January 7.  I was given the name of the person who would help me register, and I emailed her, and then waited.

That same day, I got an email from the chair of our department saying that one of my courses was on the chopping block and she would be talking to the dean and letting us know what was what.  So, I emailed her back saying that the study skills class was already gone and asking her if my day class (that only had 6 or 7) was to be cut as well.  She didn’t know that the study skills class was gone, and she wasn’t sure about the other class, but she did inform me that if one of the permanent instructor’s 8:00 AM class was cut she would be taking my day class.  I was not expecting this.  I don’t think I am ever expecting Spring Semester Woes, but they happen every year.  That 8:00 class only had 6 people in it as well.  I knew that a noon class had a better chance to fill than an 8 AM class, so I knew that this would happen.

When you teach at my college, in order to be on the pay scale, you must teach at least 5 credits.  Each of our classes for developmental reading is 4 credits.  If you are below 5 credits, you get paid by the credit.  I don’t know how much per credit, but it isn’t much.  Many people won’t even do one class because it “isn’t worth it” you are working for free.  I run out of money by the end of the summer anyway, and with a significant pay cut, I would probably run out of money before the end of the semester.  I was devastated.  It was around 5:30 when I found out, and that was not a good time to process this and grieve.  Kids were under-foot, and I was making dinner.  I was teary and upset when Jeff got home.  And, of course everyone was trying to make me feel better, but I wasn’t ready to feel better.  I was upset.

Once we got the kids to bed, I went to bed too.  I got caught up on Gray’s Anatomy and Nashville online, curling myself around my laptop, with my headphones on.  I needed to sit with this.  To be sad for a little while.  I went to bed with prayers to find peace, and fell asleep.

Friday was much better.  I began listening to the good parts of this.  I wouldn’t have money, but I do have credit.  I have 12 credits in the fall, so I would just have to be as careful as possible with my money and stretch it as far as it would go.  There were some good things about one night class:  Days free.  I could focus on my perfectly decorated–Architectural Digest-like–home!  I could really tighten up my class, curriculum-wise!  There would be TIME.  I could maybe read books for fun.  This could be a really good thing!  I could focus on this job application.  I could focus on my classes!  I could go on spring break with my family…the whole week!

I had a holiday breakfast celebration with my wonderful reading department in the morning, and I heard  from the person at UC who was set to get back to me sometime that morning by phone.  I emailed her and let her know when I would be home from my breakfast.  Breakfast was so much fun.  I love the people in my department.  I brought everyone a book called The Other Wes Moore by Wes Moore.  I wanted to give them a book, and this one sounded good.  I hadn’t heard anything about it, which is good…because that meant that nobody would have read it…but bad because what if it sucks?  Time will tell.   I am hoping we can have another book club together with this book.  They all seemed happy about the choice, so there is that.

Of course, we ended up talking shop for most of the breakfast.  I didn’t say much.  I am a little bit worried about Developmental Education in general.  I am sure you haven’t heard about the controversy, but there is one–nation wide–about the effectiveness of developmental classes.  Students don’t like to be put into these classes because the credits don’t count toward any degree.  Time and money are issues for them which makes retention is an issue for us.  If students can’t (or won’t work to…) pass a remedial class, often times they quit school all-together.  This could be a whole post, so I am not going to go further, but it worries me.  The direction that my college is taking is one that may revolutionize the whole thing.  They want (from what I understand) to figure out how to module-ize our program, and have developmental classes that are linked to specific majors.  So, if you are going into law enforcement and don’t read at college level, you would take my class but my class would be tailored to law enforcement in terms of vocabulary and content.  And, if you only need help in one area…fluency or comprehension, vocabulary or decoding…you would only have to take those modules.  This may or may not be perfectly accurate, there were a lot of people talking and there were many opinions.  I haven’t thought enough about this in order to form a good opinion.  I think I like the tailoring curriculum part.  Students would be more engaged for sure.  And the modules have merit too, then people aren’t wasting a whole semester.  But something doesn’t sit well.  I just can’t pin-point what that is yet.  I left feeling uneasy about the whole thing.

When I got home I had a link in my inbox for the application to the Post-Secondary Literacy Certificate.  I filled it out immediately.  It was short and easy.  I then drove to Jeff’s work so he could fax it for me.  I got home and thought I would have to wait two business days to get my ID and my username in order to register for classes.  I got both within an hour!  Yippee!  I started figuring out how to register and got registered.  I decided to take two courses to make sure I had 4 credits…each course was 3 credits.  I went through all of the hoops got registered and then clicked on “see my bill” so I could pay for this new opportunity.  I clicked.  I saw:  Total:  $8,400.  Or something over $8,000.  My heart STOPPED.  I UNREGISTERED.  Oh, I was bummed.  There is no way on God’s green Earth that I could afford that.  (Or be willing to pay that!)  I wrote a nice email to all the people who helped me so much thanking them, but no thanks.

The one thing that was going well…crashed and burned.  So I went back to the Cal State certification.  This one was only four courses, which I didn’t realize…unlike UC that had 6 courses for certification.  That is a saving of time and money right there.  These courses were specialized to reading only.  It is called the Post-Secondary Reading and Learning Certificate.  I kind of liked that it was specialized.  And?  The prices were RIGHT THERE.  I also found a phone number embedded in the text.  So I called.  I left a message.  I had hope.  I also called my mom.  Moms help during times like this.  Especially MY mom.  She always agrees with me, which is exactly what I needed.

In the meantime UC had gotten back to me.  I was supposed to get the “professional rate” but since I filled out the quick and dirty application it didn’t apply.  I was supposed to fill out a different application.  I was so happy!  I began filling out the application as fast as I could, I wanted that thing faxed ASAP.  Then, I stopped and emailed them back asking exactly how much the “professional rate” was.  They had said “half” in the email, but that was still double what I was willing to pay.  They got right back to me:  $335 a credit.  Just over $1,000 a class.  That was comparable to most graduate level classes.  Whew.    I flew back into the application.  This one was easy too, but a bit longer.  I got done!  I called Jeff to tell him I was on my way!  He had left.  And, as I hung up the phone he walked in the house.   I started dinner, and decided I could fax it after dinner.  As soon as those words came out of my mouth, the phone rang. It was Cal State.  I talked with such a nice woman for about a half hour.  So.  Nice.  Now, what was I going to do?

UC had been jumping through hoops to get me able to begin on time.  But Cal State didn’t start until the end of the month.  Way better.  I had to get ready for my own class!  For which I had done NOTHING.  The money was still an issue.  Cal State was $275 a credit.  That is a big difference for someone with only one class this spring.  Remember I would be taking 6 credits.  I was leaning toward Cal State, but feeling obligated to UC.  So I called my friend.  She set me straight.  I chose Cal State.  I filled out the application, wrote the essays, and got all my ducks in a row.  I submitted it on Monday morning.

Right after I got done submitting that application, the chair of our department called to tell me that I lost my noon class.  I already had grieved that.  It was fine.  But.  She then went on to tell me that my friend had emailed her and had given up one of her classes for me.  I really have no words.  I was amazed.  I felt weird.  That is a lot of money she was giving up for me.  I wasn’t sure if I should accept this or not.  I was told that she was adamant.  So, I accepted.  Gratefully.  I called her right away to make sure she was okay with this.  She was so kind and I only can hope that I can pay this forward some day.

A little while later, I was accepted into the Post-Secondary Reading and Learning Certification Program.  I immediately called and registered.  I also began the process of buying my books.  I still have to wait “three business days” until I can buy one because I have to sign in with my ID and Username, but it takes “three business days” to get me in the system.  The rest of the books I got from Barnes and Noble.  I used all of my Christmas gift cards, and then some.  Books are expensive!  But, they are on their way to me now.

So far, 2013 has been a wild ride.  I am ready for the Lazy River for a little while.  Maybe for today.  I have already begun the long climb with getting my syllabus done last night.  I will start on my course schedule next.  Life is good.  Who doesn’t love a roller coaster?