Pittsburgh Girlie

Back to School (aka my countdown)

Photo Credit: Leo Reynolds

This is my last fall semester. Last for a while at least. I will eventually (or perhaps not so eventually) go back and get my masters, or something. Maybe I’ll just be so bored with all my free time that I’ll start taking classes again. Who knows.

With my current job, at a university, I have the luxury of just taking classes or auditing. I don’t have to worry about tuition or fees. Just an overly obnoxious form that I have to hunt down my boss and have a “chat” with him about my classes before he’ll sign. Actually that makes it sound like it’s awful. It’s really not. My boss, he’s pretty cool with all this.

My current countdown stands at 3*. There’s an asterisk because the actual count is 6. I requested incompletes in my 2 classes last spring. One of those classes has one project left. It would be done if said university had not deleted the software I needed. *sigh* So that is on hold and thankfully my instructors are super understanding. The other class? Um, yeah I was supposed to work on completing over the summer, but that didn’t happen. I have until the end of this semester to do that. *gulp*

My plan for the summer had been to not take classes. Until I found out that I could graduate in MAY 2011. GRADUATE! Like BE DONE! I’ve been taking classes since… (runs off to check unofficial transcripts…) Summer 2003. I’m vaguely burned out and I think I’m allowed to be. I dare you to tell me I’m not. I won’t listen anyway.

I don’t know how I’ve been working full-time, taking classes part-time, buying and handling a house, among the other things that get thrown at me. Please don’t ask me. If I think about it, it just falls apart. I just do it. I don’t have a choice. Well, I do. I always have a choice, but the other options were very much less desirable.

Summer, right…distracted much… I ended up taking 2 classes in summer mini 1. Somehow I ended up already having done much of the work for these classes. That was super easy. Then I was talked into taking a summer mini 2 class. Silly Beth. Again I requested an incomplete and I have until the end of this fall term to finish.

For those of you playing along at home, that’s 2 active classes and 3 incompletes that I’m finishing up on my own time. It’s going to be December before I know it.

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1. Now

Apparently, everyone is swiping this from Uncle Crappy. I’ve not been writing much and not for a lack of things happening but mostly due to not knowing how to put it all down.

So, now? Right now?

• I’m adjusting to some pretty scary life changes. I’m just going to leave it at that for now. And no, I’m not pregnant.
• We’re caring for a baby cardinal. Pretty sure she’s a she and um she’s loud! PEEPACHEEP!
  

  Peep-a-cheep!

• I’m running, a 5k, Saturday, in a TUTU. You should really come out and cheer for me/us. Also, go clicky on the side and mebbe win something! No, really. Go.Clicky!
• With the encouragement of a friend, I’m looking at you SecretAgentL, I’m working on paying of my not insignificant amount of credit card debt. (Click for article.)
• I’m finishing work from my spring classes and taking two summer classes. All at the same time, because I’m crazy like that.

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Cell Phone Etiquette

This is definitely going to be a ranty-style post. I will start by saying that I keep my cell phone on silent/vibrate. This is the best option for me and I realize it won’t be the best option for everyone. That said, there are circumstances where it really is the best option.

Like during lectures.

I really do not understand why students keep their cell phones not on vibrate. You are in and out of classes and other meetings all day. I’d be an advocate of just turning them off/down while in class; but, I get it, it’s hard to remember to do that. Off… On… Off… On… I get it and this is why I just leave mine off.

Some people won’t hear or feel it vibrating. Missing a call while you’re IN CLASS AND CAN’T ANSWER ANYWAY (or really shouldn’t answer – though I’ve seen it happen) WILL.NOT.THE.WORLD.END! I was in a class, the lecture was just getting started and I shit you not, the kid in front of me answer his phone, “I can’t talk right now, I’m in class.” Thankfully he was in front of me and I couldn’t not turn to him and say something that I would definitely regret. I sated myself by trying to bore holes into the back of his head with my laser vision. (This same kid seriously bitched about getting slapped with a DUI ticket. His defense? “I didn’t have that much to drink. I felt fine to drive.” Sorry, buddy, but that’s not how that law works.)

Cell phones ring in class fairly regularly and most professors are champs at ignoring them. But this is not just disrespectful of the professor/lecturer/whomever, it’s incredibly disrespectful of your classmates. I know most of the kids I am in classes with don’t remember a time before computers, email, instant communication. This new fangled shit is great, but the world will continue to go ’round without you taking a call in class.

On to my actual rant.

I have a 9 am class. I am almost always the last person to arrive, just as the lecture is starting. I know this is disruptive and I try to be as ninja-like as possible; taking my jacket off in the hallway, opening my velcro bag before coming in, etc. I come in, sit down, and don’t say anything about it.

Today someone came in after I did. She was, in fact, 10-15 minutes late. Fine, whatever. She came in and got situated quietly. No one paid her any mind. Ten minutes later her cell phone rang. Loudly. With a personalized (and obnoxious) ringtone. She caught it early though, I mean she was digging for her phone before I noticed it was going off. But, then she tapped away at it. Apparently, not answering isn’t enough to let the caller know you are busy, now you must also send a text message with the reason why you cannot answer the phone. Really!?

Silly me, I assumed she silenced her phone at that point. Seems to be the smart route to me at least. Cut to 20 minutes later. Her phone starts ringing, loudly, again! WTH! Only this time, it’s out, on the desk next to her, so instead of only the people around her hearing it, everyone does.

I would say that I am at a loss for words, but obviously this is not the case.

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Roller Coaster of Blog

Yesterday was crazy here. Thanks for reading, thanks for commenting and thanks for not commenting. I read through a lot of the comments left on Consumerist’s site and I read all of the comments here. It was a good time and I laughed a lot. And that was a nice change. I’m glad people think I’m wasting my time standing up for my rights, when a bunch of people are wasting their day bitching about me wasting my time…you see where I’m going. </feeding trolls>

Today will be less interesting for most. I’m okay with that. It’s my blog…so back off – or something – please?

I’m trying to get back into posting every few days. November totally wiped me out! I don’t think I even posted in December and January is almost over. Getting back into a routine will be easier now that classes have started and I’m not spending all day sitting on the sofa having a staring contest with the tree. (Which, btw, finally came down today!)

Classes! Yay! It’s only the second week, I can still be excited about them, right? In one more week I’ll loathe them. I predict I will complain first about having a 9am class 2 days a week (ugh!), followed by a 6:30-8pm class two other days of the week (blah!), and then the fact that said evening class is the night before said morning class. What was I thinking! Hey I have Friday off!! (Just not off from work…)

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The New Year

November was great for blogging for me, December not so much. Yeah I got busy, yeah I got lazy. Traveling and visiting got in the way of sitting stationary and anti-socially in front of my computer all the time. It didn’t help at all that I ended up taking a combination of vacation and holidays and haven’t been to the office since December 15. I know, poor me.

I made cookies to give around to people, except for the gingerbread. The Boy is in charge of gingerbread because the smell of molasses makes me yak. We cleaned, a bit. Sorted and packed up gifts to go out to The Boy’s family.

Christmas was great, the bit of it that we’ve done. I am an impatient child and we wait for The Kid to come down and have Christmas with us. It’s way more fun for us all to open gifts together, but I’m really bad at waiting. What’s worse is that I got a Kitchen Aide mixer and I can’t play with it because we’re re-wrapping it. If we didn’t re-wrap gifts from his family The Kid’s pile would take over.

I’d like to take a moment to bitch about how he’s been playing with the PS3 and has already beat one of the games it came with. I made two things of chocolate chip cookie dough dip for a NYE Party, BY HAND. Would have been nice if I had been able to play with my nice new expensive toy. This comment totally went over his head because he was busy with his game.

We’ve been butting heads a lot recently, mainly because I’m cranky and everything annoys me. Probably because I cannot have my Christmas yet. I am not looking forward to being mock surprised at things I’ve already opened. Whine whine whine whine.

Sorry, I know most people are doing their best of 09 posts and resolutions. I generally resolve, and fail, to be less bitchy to people. I’ve pretty much stopped making resolutions.

This time next year I will be entering (hopefully) my last semester of my undergraduate career. Worst case it’ll be my second to last semester. I’m still debating on walking for my graduation. I guess I have a lot of time to really not make a decision and stress about it later.

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Can’t Have Both

This past few months have been amazing. I’ve met a ton of awesome people and made friends. It’s all very exciting. It’s also very time consuming. I’ve sort of ignored my school stuff for the past month and I’ve attended things on weekends, which is my normal catch-up time. It seems I can’t have a full-time job and a full-time life along with a part-time schooling.

With less than a month left in the term I need to really buckle down and keep my A. I’m amazed I even have an A. Only one of my classes is graded, the other is pass/fail. I so wish spinning was graded though, I kick ass let me tell you. Sitting on a stationary bike, spinning my legs as hard as I can. Yeah, it’s a good time. The truth is that I can actually walk briskly across campus without being winded. And before any of you try to tell me I’m so skinny I must be in shape. It’s a lie. I have good genes, both my mom and dad are/were teeny people. Though my dad was pretty tall.

So, yeah. This is me ignoring things for a while to get my A done for the semester.

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School Status – Panic

I have a month left in this term until grades are due. A month. Classes finish December 2nd, but there will still be work to do after that; final projects and presentations.

It’s pretty much time to panic. I’m slightly behind, but I met with my prof and I will catch up. I have a plan. My other class is a spinning class. Yes I’m getting credit for indoor cycling. Shut up. Unfortunately it’s only a measly 3 units. This place works on a unit basis rather than a credit basis. A regular class is 9 units, this is comparable to 3 credits elsewhere. Yes it’s dumb, a lot of things are kind of dumb around here. I’m also still not sure who I fooled to get in.

Graduation requires 360 units and after this term I will have 285. The good news is that I have a minor in history, almost completely by accident. The bad news is that there are almost no classes (other than history) offered in the summer and I need to complete 2 classes next summer, classes that will actually count towards the degree hopefully. I can only take 2 classes per semester.

It will be sort of like slowly drowning myself in a fire, but if I can pull off 2 classes in spring10, summer10, fall10, and spring11 … I will be DONE. D-O-N

I don’t care about walking for graduation but I will probably do the departmental ceremony. It will depend on if family and others are going to make the trek out here for it.

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