My dad's surgery went great! Everything went according to plan and he's doing really well. He will most likely be able to go home from the hospital tomorrow - yippee! He'll have several checkups in the next weeks and months to make sure the stint the doctor put in to reinforce his aorta and cut off the blood supply to the aneurysm is doing what it's supposed to, but right now all signs point to "Wahoo, it's over!"
I'm back home after a very tiring trip (we left my parents' house at 4:50 a.m...which wasn't so bad until my car, which lives on Central time, told me it was really 3:50 when I started it up this morning), but not for long. I leave first thing in the morning for a (thankfully short) business trip. It will be much easier to focus now that I know my dad's doing okay.
Thanks to everyone who said prayers or thought happy thoughts for my dad today. They worked! :)
Whew.
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Monday, September 24, 2007
Tests and papers
I realize I post a lot about school here...but it's a major new force in my life, so that's why.
This weekend I had my third class, at which I had to hand in a paper, give a presentation based on the paper, and take a midterm. I think the paper and the presentation were okay. I studied like a maniac for the test (or at least, I tried to remember how to study) and it seemed to go okay, too. However, I did have kind of a breakdown Friday night that involved wailing, "There isn't room in my head for all this information! There's nowhere for it to go! I can't do this! I'll forget it all and I'll fail! I should just quit now!"
Brock handled all this extremely well. He told me I should go to bed and get some sleep, then get up early and study. He turned out to be quite right about this, as the early morning studying was way more effective than the late night studying, and all that info was perched at the front of my brain come test time - perfectly poised to spill out onto my test paper and away from my memory. I'm waiting to see how I did, but I don't think it was awful so I was fairly pleased. Considering I had to absorb seven book chapters and about 10 hours of lectures in just two weeks and then take a test, I didn't think I could have done any more to prepare, anyway.
I have to say, though, that I really have to learn APA style. We didn't have to use it for this paper, but we do have to use it for another paper. I used MLA as an undergrad and now at work I use a weird hybrid of AP style, corporate style and "Jessie style," as appropriate. So when I sat down to write my paper for school I was questioning all kinds of things...like do you put one space after a period or two? Do you indent your paragraphs or just put an extra return in between them? How do bold and italics (two of my favorite writing tools) work on a college paper? It just amazes me how much my writing style has changed in the past seven years.
On another note, for those of you who read this but whom I don't get to talk to very often, my dad is having surgery for an aortic aneurysm on Thursday this week. I will be down for that so I can hang out at the hospital with my mom and my sister, and then I have to drive home and be ready to catch a plane for a business trip early on Friday morning. So that's going to be kind of crazy. We're all just hoping surgery goes smoothly and Dad doesn't get too cranky without food or coffee in the morning. This is a real danger that I don't think the medical team fully understands. He seems like a really sweet, easygoing guy until you take away his caffeine, and then bad things start to happen...so please think happy thoughts for my dad on Thursday that all will go well.
This weekend I had my third class, at which I had to hand in a paper, give a presentation based on the paper, and take a midterm. I think the paper and the presentation were okay. I studied like a maniac for the test (or at least, I tried to remember how to study) and it seemed to go okay, too. However, I did have kind of a breakdown Friday night that involved wailing, "There isn't room in my head for all this information! There's nowhere for it to go! I can't do this! I'll forget it all and I'll fail! I should just quit now!"
Brock handled all this extremely well. He told me I should go to bed and get some sleep, then get up early and study. He turned out to be quite right about this, as the early morning studying was way more effective than the late night studying, and all that info was perched at the front of my brain come test time - perfectly poised to spill out onto my test paper and away from my memory. I'm waiting to see how I did, but I don't think it was awful so I was fairly pleased. Considering I had to absorb seven book chapters and about 10 hours of lectures in just two weeks and then take a test, I didn't think I could have done any more to prepare, anyway.
I have to say, though, that I really have to learn APA style. We didn't have to use it for this paper, but we do have to use it for another paper. I used MLA as an undergrad and now at work I use a weird hybrid of AP style, corporate style and "Jessie style," as appropriate. So when I sat down to write my paper for school I was questioning all kinds of things...like do you put one space after a period or two? Do you indent your paragraphs or just put an extra return in between them? How do bold and italics (two of my favorite writing tools) work on a college paper? It just amazes me how much my writing style has changed in the past seven years.
On another note, for those of you who read this but whom I don't get to talk to very often, my dad is having surgery for an aortic aneurysm on Thursday this week. I will be down for that so I can hang out at the hospital with my mom and my sister, and then I have to drive home and be ready to catch a plane for a business trip early on Friday morning. So that's going to be kind of crazy. We're all just hoping surgery goes smoothly and Dad doesn't get too cranky without food or coffee in the morning. This is a real danger that I don't think the medical team fully understands. He seems like a really sweet, easygoing guy until you take away his caffeine, and then bad things start to happen...so please think happy thoughts for my dad on Thursday that all will go well.
Monday, September 17, 2007
It's like riding a bicycle...sort of
Tonight, I kind of remembered how to "do" school. It was a major breakthrough, because I'd been having serious anxiety and stress over it. I mean, I have a paper and a presentation due plus a midterm exam this Saturday, and it'll only be my third class! That's because I'm taking this accelerated course (7 weeks instead of 14). In essence, I've had about 5 weeks of lectures in just two. The great thing about this is, in 5 more weeks, my class will be over and I'll start a new one. The bad thing is, there's really no time - particularly if you've been out of academia for awhile - to remember how to do stuff like papers and midterms (presentations, on the other hand, are no problem, since I have to do them a lot for work).
I still don't feel like I have a very good system in place for getting everything done. In undergrad, I went to class, went to work, came home, studied/did homework, and then did it all again the next day. That was kind of it. I mean, sure, I had fun on the weekends, but that was different. Now, I get up early, get myself and the kid ready to go, drop her at daycare, go to work, pick her up, make/have dinner, hang out with the family, put her to bed, then try to do my reading or studying...which so does not work, because after all that I'm tired, and I end up falling asleep on the couch with random highlighter marks all over my book where I dozed off and scribbled.
But tonight...I started getting back in the swing of things. I worked on my paper, with helpful feedback and perspective from my fabulous husband (the topic is one that's close to his gamer heart, having to do with brand positioning of console game systems), and actually started feeling like I remembered how to do school work. At least a little bit. We'll see when the grades come in, I guess...but I feel, for the first time, like I might have some teensy semblance of control over this thing.
It's a wonder anybody ever goes back to school when they have families and jobs. This must be sort of like pregnancy and childbirth - in the throes of it, you're like, "Why on earth did I think this was a good idea?!" But after it's over, you go, "Oh, that's why."
Of course, if I were getting my degree in nine months instead of, say, four years, that would be nice.
I still don't feel like I have a very good system in place for getting everything done. In undergrad, I went to class, went to work, came home, studied/did homework, and then did it all again the next day. That was kind of it. I mean, sure, I had fun on the weekends, but that was different. Now, I get up early, get myself and the kid ready to go, drop her at daycare, go to work, pick her up, make/have dinner, hang out with the family, put her to bed, then try to do my reading or studying...which so does not work, because after all that I'm tired, and I end up falling asleep on the couch with random highlighter marks all over my book where I dozed off and scribbled.
But tonight...I started getting back in the swing of things. I worked on my paper, with helpful feedback and perspective from my fabulous husband (the topic is one that's close to his gamer heart, having to do with brand positioning of console game systems), and actually started feeling like I remembered how to do school work. At least a little bit. We'll see when the grades come in, I guess...but I feel, for the first time, like I might have some teensy semblance of control over this thing.
It's a wonder anybody ever goes back to school when they have families and jobs. This must be sort of like pregnancy and childbirth - in the throes of it, you're like, "Why on earth did I think this was a good idea?!" But after it's over, you go, "Oh, that's why."
Of course, if I were getting my degree in nine months instead of, say, four years, that would be nice.
Friday, September 14, 2007
Cheating cheaters who cheat
I should really be getting ready for work right now, but I just had to find a minute to say something about the New England Patriots.
It's no secret to those who know me: I am a passionate Patriot anti-fan. This is partially due to the fact that I am, and have been since about the age of 5 or 6, an even more passionate Indianapolis Colts fan. The two teams were division rivals for years and the Patriots regularly beat the Colts, and so I hate them (not as people, but as a football team). One of the best moments in my life was watching the Colts pull out a come-from-behind victory over the Patriots in last year's playoffs. I also enthusiastically enjoy watching the Patriots lose to just about anyone else.
So the fact that the Patriots illegally used sideline video last week against the Jets, and maybe previously against other teams, is both somewhat vindicating and really pathetic. I mean, I may hate the Patriots, but they're good - so why even bother? They don't need to cheat. But they did, and they are officially Cheating Cheaters Who Cheat, and I hope everyone knows this and stops talking about what a revolutionary head coach Bill Belichick is. He's acted kind of like a jerk through this whole thing and he deserved his big fine ($500,000). The team deserved their fine, too ($250,000) and I'm happy they're also losing a draft pick or picks. They acted like idiots and they cheated, and I don't care if they never used the video inappropriately (as they say) - they shouldn't have done it. So there. There' s just no excuse, and they all should have known better.
As a side note, I really wish everyone would stop fawning over Tom Brady. He's good. But really, give it a rest. He's not a god.
It's no secret to those who know me: I am a passionate Patriot anti-fan. This is partially due to the fact that I am, and have been since about the age of 5 or 6, an even more passionate Indianapolis Colts fan. The two teams were division rivals for years and the Patriots regularly beat the Colts, and so I hate them (not as people, but as a football team). One of the best moments in my life was watching the Colts pull out a come-from-behind victory over the Patriots in last year's playoffs. I also enthusiastically enjoy watching the Patriots lose to just about anyone else.
So the fact that the Patriots illegally used sideline video last week against the Jets, and maybe previously against other teams, is both somewhat vindicating and really pathetic. I mean, I may hate the Patriots, but they're good - so why even bother? They don't need to cheat. But they did, and they are officially Cheating Cheaters Who Cheat, and I hope everyone knows this and stops talking about what a revolutionary head coach Bill Belichick is. He's acted kind of like a jerk through this whole thing and he deserved his big fine ($500,000). The team deserved their fine, too ($250,000) and I'm happy they're also losing a draft pick or picks. They acted like idiots and they cheated, and I don't care if they never used the video inappropriately (as they say) - they shouldn't have done it. So there. There' s just no excuse, and they all should have known better.
As a side note, I really wish everyone would stop fawning over Tom Brady. He's good. But really, give it a rest. He's not a god.
Monday, September 10, 2007
Saturday, September 8, 2007
My first day of school
I survived my first day of school! Actually, it was very good - quite interesting, and I already feel like I learned something, which is an improvement over many first-day classes I had as an undergrad. It was sort of odd actually sitting in a class and talking about things that were immediately relevant to my career; it felt more like a professional development seminar than a college class. I mean, I have a liberal arts degree, and I do think that's valuable in many ways, but honestly - I took a lot of weird electives that aren't really that pertinent at this point in my life. I actually took a few classes that were so irrelevant, I kind of don't remember them that well. (I just now remembered I took some kind of basic sociology class...and I know I got an A in it and I vaguely remember talking about Karl Marx.) So my point is that it was refreshing to be learning things I know I will actually use other than in a game of Trivial Pursuit.
I was very nervous yesterday about starting school. I've been nervous all week, actually, but I was really nervous yesterday. I was really paranoid about oversleeping and being late, with the result that I hardly slept. At one point, I was so sure my clock was broken - stuck at 4:45 AM - that I actually got out of bed and looked at my watch AND my cell phone. They all said 4:45, so the problem was just that I couldn't sleep. I finally gave up and got out of bed at 6:40.
In a way, it was a very funny echo of the other first days of school from my past...I wore my favorite t-shirt, and I carefully packed all my school supplies in my new bag, and I was happy about having new pens. The big difference is that I'm much more willing to talk to new people now than I ever was during old school days, so I actually got to know a few of the people from my class a bit.
I think this is going to be a really good thing. A lot of work, but good. I'm feeling much better now that day one is over. I have a paper due in two weeks and four more chapters of the book to read, but I'm taking tonight off!
I was very nervous yesterday about starting school. I've been nervous all week, actually, but I was really nervous yesterday. I was really paranoid about oversleeping and being late, with the result that I hardly slept. At one point, I was so sure my clock was broken - stuck at 4:45 AM - that I actually got out of bed and looked at my watch AND my cell phone. They all said 4:45, so the problem was just that I couldn't sleep. I finally gave up and got out of bed at 6:40.
In a way, it was a very funny echo of the other first days of school from my past...I wore my favorite t-shirt, and I carefully packed all my school supplies in my new bag, and I was happy about having new pens. The big difference is that I'm much more willing to talk to new people now than I ever was during old school days, so I actually got to know a few of the people from my class a bit.
I think this is going to be a really good thing. A lot of work, but good. I'm feeling much better now that day one is over. I have a paper due in two weeks and four more chapters of the book to read, but I'm taking tonight off!
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Killer popcorn
I get that the story about the guy who got "popcorn workers' lung" after eating two bags of microwave popcorn a day for 10 years is compelling. (Here's the story if you haven't read it.) But I think the media is getting a little wiggy about it. I just saw a teaser for it on our local news, and I imagine a lot of other people are seeing it on their local news broadcasts, too. Really...there's nothing better to talk about? I appreciate that it's interesting, but why can't they just position it that way, rather than, "Popcorn lovers beware...a killer lurks in your crunchy snack"?
I think if you eat two bags of popcorn a day for 10 years, you're in trouble, even if you don't get popcorn workers' lung. The article says this guy lost 50 pounds (and can breathe better) after cutting microwave popcorn out of his diet. Hmmm...so maybe they should do stories about how eating that much popcorn isn't good for you, anyway, rather than focusing on some crazy thing that you're unlikely to get unless you do, in fact, work in a popcorn factory.
Although I suppose they should figure out how to remove whatever it is that's bad for you to inhale...just on principle, inhaling the aroma of your food should not be a health hazard. Besides, why didn't anyone care about popcorn workers' lung when only the popcorn workers were getting it?
I'm glad we just bought a spiffy new popcorn popper. We don't add any diacetyl to our popcorn when we make it, so I guess we're probably safe - for now, anyway...
I think if you eat two bags of popcorn a day for 10 years, you're in trouble, even if you don't get popcorn workers' lung. The article says this guy lost 50 pounds (and can breathe better) after cutting microwave popcorn out of his diet. Hmmm...so maybe they should do stories about how eating that much popcorn isn't good for you, anyway, rather than focusing on some crazy thing that you're unlikely to get unless you do, in fact, work in a popcorn factory.
Although I suppose they should figure out how to remove whatever it is that's bad for you to inhale...just on principle, inhaling the aroma of your food should not be a health hazard. Besides, why didn't anyone care about popcorn workers' lung when only the popcorn workers were getting it?
I'm glad we just bought a spiffy new popcorn popper. We don't add any diacetyl to our popcorn when we make it, so I guess we're probably safe - for now, anyway...
T minus 3 days
Three days till I start school. I bought a really fabulous new messenger bag (chocolate brown with aqua hibiscus flowers), a new lunch bag (because my class is more than 5 hours long and I will starve and get cranky without snacks), new pens, new highlighters, a new binder, a new folder and a new notebook. I will say this: shopping for school supplies is just as fun as it was the last time I had to do it, ca. 2000. I also am just as picky now as I was then. I spent several minutes searching for the perfect pens. But I'm officially excited about starting school now that I have fun new gear.
My first time management conflict: I am supposed to read the first three chapters of the textbook prior to Saturday's class. I haven't done it yet. I thought I would do it tomorrow, but the Colts season opener is tomorrow night. I'm looking at this as an opportunity to recall a process I perfected at Purdue: reading while watching TV. You do what you have to do.
I am particularly interested in tomorrow's Colts game because I have Marvin Harrison on my fantasy football team. My dad has Peyton Manning, and we're playing each other this week. Last year, by some magic, I had Peyton AND Marvin on my team, and I won the league (some would say under dubious circumstances, but I say this: not everyone can be a champion, and I understand that it's hard when it's not you). My team needs some work this year, but we have a good foundation.
I suppose school is going to affect my fantasy football management. And my Guitar Hero II habit. Because really, I do have enough time to get schoolwork done...it's just that there's more fun stuff to do.
My first time management conflict: I am supposed to read the first three chapters of the textbook prior to Saturday's class. I haven't done it yet. I thought I would do it tomorrow, but the Colts season opener is tomorrow night. I'm looking at this as an opportunity to recall a process I perfected at Purdue: reading while watching TV. You do what you have to do.
I am particularly interested in tomorrow's Colts game because I have Marvin Harrison on my fantasy football team. My dad has Peyton Manning, and we're playing each other this week. Last year, by some magic, I had Peyton AND Marvin on my team, and I won the league (some would say under dubious circumstances, but I say this: not everyone can be a champion, and I understand that it's hard when it's not you). My team needs some work this year, but we have a good foundation.
I suppose school is going to affect my fantasy football management. And my Guitar Hero II habit. Because really, I do have enough time to get schoolwork done...it's just that there's more fun stuff to do.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
