At Last...........

Okay, I forgot my password for my blog. And I've been extremely busy, so I haven't blogged since last year. Well, there were some ups and downs and reshuffling my schedule and all of that, and now I am in my FINAL mod!! Yay!! My next step is to go out on my externship. I'm hoping to be placed somewhere that is looking to hire someone. That would be great! Well that's not for another 5 weeks, so here I am once again talking about my classes.

This mod, I have Research, The Study of Maturity (I asked if I could just go and hang out with my dad for 5 weeks but they said no.) and Health Unit Coordination. I like all of my teachers, and it's a good way to end my scholastic endeavor.

So today's classes were Study of Maturity, and Research. Since it was the first day, we didn't really do much. Just some handouts, and an overview of what we're going to be doing for the next 5 weeks. So I had to think of a topic for my research paper, and I think I'll be doing it on Physician Assisted Suicide, or the Death with Dignity Act. Right now 3 states allow for PAS, Washington, Oregon, and Montana. I've done some reading on it, and it's not an easy thing to do. There is a lot of red tape, and hoops to jump through, but that's because it's such a serious step to take. I have to try to be objective about this, but I have to say, I'm for it. If a person has a terminal illness, and will die in extreme pain, I don't see any reason why they can't go quietly, with dignity, on their own terms. So that's what I'll be doing in that class for the next five weeks. Writing a huge paper, that will impress my teacher and possibly change her mind. (She's undecided, I'm trying to tip her over.)

The Study of Maturity is exactly what it sounds like. It's the study of the elderly and aging. (I should get an A in this class, just for my experience.) The teacher said we were going to have fun in this class, so I'm waiting to see what she comes up with. I know we're going on field trips, and we're going to have a guest speaker, but other than that, she's not telling. Well I could teach this class just from the time I spent in South Florida. When I first arrived in West Palm Beach, I was a waitress. I worked for IHOP, and for Star Diner. Now the first thing I have to tell you is that the majority of elderly people are very nice, very polite, and don't give you any kind of trouble. Then there's the rest of them. The cheap people, who don't know how to do anything but complain, treat you like a non-entity, and figure what they are going to tip down to the exact penny. These people order a glass of water with lemon, then ask for Sweet and Low. They squeeze the lemon into the water, and add the Sweet and Low, and they have lemonade. For free. Because they're too cheap to pay the $1.25 for a soda. Then, if that weren't enough, when they left, and you went to clear the table, you find out that they have stolen pretty much everything on the table that wasn't nailed down. Salt and Pepper Shakers, the little vases with the silk flowers in it, the silverware, and your sugar/sweet and low holder. And to add insult to injury, they left you a dollar. A DOLLAR! These are also the people who run your ass off for the entire time they are there. More water, more bread (which the wife immediately puts into a plastic bag she shoves into her purse), more salad dressing, more gravy, more water...... it's never ending with these people. Now I'm sure you all know that IHOP stands for International House of Pancakes. But from the time I spent working there, I renamed it I Hate Old People. Now Star Diner was the same experience, except for one thing. The owner would not let us put the Sweet and Low on the table. When I asked him why, he said, "They steal it. One month my Sweet and Low bill was almost as high as my meat bill."
Now I know I'm showing you the extreme, and not all old people are like that. It's just that these are the "squeaky wheels" that make life miserable for everyone around them. So I'm going to try to go into this without any kind of bias, because three of my favorite people in the world fall into this age group. My dad, my uncle and my aunt. If we get to work with people like them, I'll be happy.
The other class I have is Health Unit Coordination. I have no idea what that class entails, but I will tell you on Wednesday.
Until then, think lovely thoughts, because I have the spot on my wall picked where I'll be hanging my degree!!!

Reach for the stars!!!!

I've Opened the Door of Hell!! I'm Free!!!

Well, it's time to take the knitting needles out of the fire, and put them back in the box. The mod from hell is OVER! I have to say, I thought these five weeks were never going to end.

I have to give a shout out to the instructors though. It must be frustrating to teach adults. I know it would be for me. Some of the instructors are retired teachers, and even in this age of snot nosed teens who think they know everything (Yes, I know, I was once one of them, but today's level of disrespect is off the charts!) at least there was some sort of recourse they could take if one of their students did something to disrupt the class. Send them out to the hall, to the principal's office, suspension, detention, whatever. Teaching adults is a whole new ball game. Students show up late, walk out in the middle of class, and don't come back.

Look, I'm paying a lot of money for my education. I do have grants and student loans, but eventually, I am going to have to pay it back. If I screw around, don't study, or don't finish, I'm not hurting anyone but myself. Because then I'm going to have no degree, and STILL have loans to pay off.

The type of students I'm talking about are few and far between. Most of my classmates study hard, get good grades, and are serious about their education. Most of them want a better life for themselves and their children. And I'm happy to see that. I'd hate to see them struggle like I did and have to go back to school at my age. It's not easy, (well, this part was) and it has to be harder for those who have small children. But they're doing it. And I'm happy to help them when I see them really trying, and struggling with something. The ones who are taking it for granted, though, I'd just like to shake them until their brain rattles.

I would go into the details of my finals, but unless you want a story that will put you to sleep, I'm not going to. They were pretty straightforward, and I was out of school at 10:00 am.

Now I'm going to go into something that actually brings tears to my eyes. I started this blog for a number of reasons. One is that I really like to write, and I love to entertain people. And while it sounds trite, I hoped that maybe I would inspire someone who was stuck in a dead end job to see what I was doing, and think, "I could do that!"

I was speaking to one of my old high school friends. I hadn't seen him since high school, and thanks to Facebook, we connected again. We reminisced about old times, and when we were speaking about what we were doing now, I told him I was back in school. He said he wished he could do that. I asked him why he couldn't. It was like listening to myself before I started! He said he'd think very hard about it, and a few days later, sent me a message saying he had enrolled back into school.

Today, I heard from him again. He's finished his first mod, and has his finals on Monday. He told me he is doing well and loves it! He also wanted to thank me. Well, I don't need thanks. Just knowing that I inspired him to do this is thanks enough, and the fact that he's doing well is icing on the cake.

So, to my old school friend, I'm extremely proud of you. I know you can do this, and I am pulling for you every step of the way. Hugs, Buddy!

Monday, I get to be a buddy, and have classes that sound like they're going to be interesting. Medical Terminology, Transcription and Pathology (with Dr. Older Hot-Guy).

See you all then! Have a great weekend!

Are You Bored Yet? Yeah, Me Too

Yes, it's Thursday. Yes, I didn't blog last night. Put it down to pure laziness, because that's what it was. That, and I sometimes need a respite before I write about things.
So let's start this day the way I actually did. We were doing mock interviews. We were told to dress appropriately as if we were actually interviewing for a real company. So I got up earlier than normal to make sure every hair was in place, and what I was wearing was nice and clean.
Now this had been postponed last week. We were supposed to do it on Friday. They were rearranging classes so that we'd have the interviews in the morning, and keyboarding in the afternoon. So yesterday, when I got to school, I went to my Career Development class, and it was a room full of strangers. I was a little bewildered, so I went over to my keyboarding class, and realized that they weren't rearranging classes that day, and that the interviews weren't going to be held until the afternoon.
Now anyone who knows me, knows that during the course of the day, no matter how much hairspray, mousse, gel, or other products I use, my hair will eventually revert back to it's sinful nature and just lie there. It's slothful, is what it is. And the fact that there were high winds didn't help much either. But all was well, I still aced the "interview".
As for Keyboarding, it was the same as always. BUT they added just a little more torture, as they BLOCKED FACEBOOK!!!! Can you believe it??? Luckily, I had enough work to do so it didn't really matter. When I was finished with all of my assignments, I helped some of the other students. That makes me feel somewhat better.
Friday is finals day! We should get out pretty early, so I'm happy about that. On Monday, I am going to be a buddy. That means I get to take a new student around and show them where everything is. That should be interesting!
More tomorrow!

Monday's classes--And Now for Something Completely Different!

So, I know it's Tuesday, and I didn't blog yesterday. I felt so guilty that I took today off so I wouldn't disappoint my legions (4) of fans. Today I was supposed to be in Keyboarding all day, so remembering the red hot knitting needle waiting by my stove, I decided I'd do the lesser of two evils. My eye hurts.

So! Yesterday's classes. In the morning I had keyboarding, which goes as it always does. Exercises, timed test, report with footnotes. Yay. Word 7 is pretty much idiot proof, but of course you know the old saying: "Make something idiot proof and someone will come along and make a better idiot." Luckily, my class seems to be getting it. My only problem is that back in the age of dinosaurs, when I took my courses in word processing, you actually had to work at it. So the hardest thing for me is finding all the little buttons that make my document do what I want it to do. No worries. I'm pretty quick when it comes to things like this. So I have a final on Friday. We'll see what happens!

Afternoon class was First Aid. We watched a video, then took a test. We learned how to do splints, bandage wounds, what to do when someone gets burned, or has a stroke, a diabetic emergency, and heatstroke.
The test was pretty simple and straightforward, and everyone got 100. Yay us! Since that was our final, we got out an hour early. I love final week!

I also got my new schedule for next mod. I'm incredibly excited. I have Medical Transcription, which is basically what I've done for the last 25 years. Listening to someone talking, and typing what they say.
I am also going to have Medical Terminology. Medical Terminology is cool because you can make the most minor injuries or illnesses sound like they're a life threatening disease. I mean, doesn't hematoma sound much more threatening than bruise? Not to mention I get to have one of my favorite teachers again.
And finally (how appropriate!) I have Pathology. Scenes of CSI, and Dr. Quincy ME are running through my head, although I know it's not going to be anywhere near that in excitement. But again, I get one of my favorite teachers, so it's good.

Oh, they also changed the name of my school. Why? I don't know. But the acronym for it used to be too close to America's Next Top Model (ANTM). Now it's the Latin word for Strong. Look it up.

Tomorrow:
Mock Interviews and more Keyboarding!

Learning to Spell, and Other Shit I Already Know How to Do

So today I had Keyboarding, the bane of my existence, and Career Development. We had a spelling test in Keyboarding, and while I hate keyboarding, I hate spelling more. I haven't had a spelling test since 4th grade and I could spell then, too. Now, I understand that spelling is important. The last thing you want to do is look like a total idiot when you're typing a memo or a letter, but technology is here. This is what spell check was invented for! It comes standard with Microsoft Word. They even put a little red line underneath it when you screw up, so you know you screwed up! Although I will say, that in my wanderings around the interwebs, I have found some of the most atrocious spelling and grammar I have ever seen in my entire life. I read things like 'your stupid' or 'im hangin wit my boiz' and all I can imagine is every nun who ever taught me spinning in their (not there!)collective graves. It's quite a pretty funny image, when I stop and think about it. Just as a primer:
They're over there with their family.
You're very proud of your grades.
And for goodness sakes, punctuation is your friend!

Now on to Career Development. We were doing catch-up on assignments. Our mock interviews were supposed to be on Friday, but have now been pushed back to next Wednesday. So, Resume, done. Reference list, done. Cover letter, done. Oh, and don't forget your personal story. That was easy, I just copied my first blog! Okay, so all of my stuff is done. Now what? Spent the rest of the class, doing what I do in keyboarding. I fucked off on Facebook, and the Cheezburger network, home of Failbooking, Failblog, and lolcats.
I'm NOT in any way blaming my instructors for this. I think they're both great, and I respect them both. I blame the administrators for not allowing me to test out of these classes, when there is no reason for me to take them. Sure, I can complain, but what the hell good is it going to do? Besides, I only have one more week of the stupid classes, then it's on to something that requires brain cells.

Yeah, today I'm venting. I told you at the beginning of this blog, that you would hear the good, the bad, and the ugly. Today, I'm feeling ugly.

Going to bed now, I have the day off tomorrow, and hopefully by then, I'll have all of my gruntles un-dissed.

Today's Classes and Other Observations

Since I'm blogging about real life, and real situations, I've decided to change names to protect the innocent (and my GPA). So if I mention a person, it doesn't mean I'm talking about you, so don't get paranoid. Or if I do talk about you in my blog, and you recognize yourself, and don't like it, come to me. I'll talk to you and let you know why I said what I said, and we can speak like adults.

So on to class. Keyboarding. No one can give me a satisfactory answer as to why I have to take it, when I already type 65 words a minute. There's no option to test out of the class, so I do the stupid exercises. fjfjfj dkdkdk slslsl a;a;a;. Yay. Type a memo. Type a letter, first block style, then modified block style. Type a report. Now type a bound report. So, what do I do? I type the memos, letters, reports, then spend the rest of the class fucking off on Facebook. I check my email. I would have blogged from class, but for some reason, Blogspot is blocked. Of course it is! So before we start our assignments for the day, we have to do warm up exercises. Here's an example:

Melva Bragg required exactly a dozen jackets for the winter trip.
The 1903 copy of my book had 5 parts, 48 chapters, and 672 pages.
Olga, the French Goalie, defended well against the frazzled team.

Isn't that riveting???? 672 pages!!! Dozens of jackets!! Frazzled teams!!!

Honestly, I'd rather shove a red hot knitting needle in my eye than have to sit in this class all day. And I have spoken to my instructor about this. Someone told her that I said I'd rather stick a pencil in my eye. I quickly explained that I never said that. I told her I said RED HOT KNITTING NEEDLES. She laughed pretty hard at that. She knows it's not her. She's actually a pretty cool lady.

The afternoon class was CPR. You will all be happy to know that I passed my certification test with flying colors! My practical was last week, and my written test was today. There were two parts. The first part was CPR, and the second part was for the AED. That's the heart defibrillator. The shocky thing. And just to let you know, it's nothing like what you see on TV. The person doesn't jump 6 feet off the bed, and there's not really a big loud noise. It doesn't even buzz. It's pretty anti-climatic, really.
So now, I'm required to stop if I see an accident, or someone in distress. If I don't, and someone finds out I failed to act, I could lose my certification. Ah, heavy is the head that wears the crown.

Now, I have something to say to some of my classmates. Not all of them, but the ones who are juggling being single moms, school and work. I don't know how you guys do it. I would be exhausted. Yes, I went to school as a single mom, but I also didn't have to work at the same time. So this last part is to let you know that I'm pulling for you. I admire the fact that you want something more for you and your child, and I'm telling you, don't ever give up. Because being older, I can tell you, there are not many things I regret doing, but there are millions of things I regret NOT doing. So hang in there guys! It's going to be worth it.

That's all for tonight. Have a wonderful day!

How I Got Here

To truly understand what I'm doing, you have to understand how I got here. It's not easy to make the decision at 47 to go back to school and make a total career change. But I did, and here's why:

1. I got sick. Not just a little sick, not sick and tired, but truly sick. My body had started betraying me. Now I'm the first to admit that I had abused it horribly in the past, and apparently it decided to exact it's cruel revenge. I'm not going to go into details here. I'm not dying, nor do I plan on dying any time soon. I just spent 2 years waking up every morning feeling as if I had been hit by a truck. Every inch of my body hurt. Sitting was painful, standing was painful, pretty much everything I did hurt. Now my doctor was very adamant. "You can not keep doing the job you are doing. You have to have a job that gives you freedom to move, and freedom to sit when you need to. You can NOT be tied to a desk for 8 hours a day, it is not going to work for you." My profession was Customer Service. Customer Service is a euphamism for "being abused by complete strangers because the company you work for has not lived up to their expectations and they want you to fix it NOW." In other words, I was in a chair, tied to a phone, in front of a computer screen for 8 hours a day. I loved my job. I was good at it. I'd had commendations for outstanding performance, letters written to the head of my company praising my efforts. Now I couldn't do it anymore. And it was all I knew how to do. 25 years and my life had to change. Now what?

2. The first two weeks being out of work is great. It's like a mini-vacation. Then boredom sets in. Now I'm pretty sure that Maury Povich is a nice guy. But if I heard him say "You ARE the father" or "You ARE NOT the father" one more time, my brain was going to explode. Along with Dr. Phil's "How's that working for you?", or Judge Judy's "They don't keep me here because I'm gorgeous, they keep me here because I'm smart." My brains were starting to turn into Cream Of Wheat, and leak out of my ears. Not only that, I started to get depressed. I felt like I couldn't do anything anymore. What was the point of getting out of bed, when I had nothing to do?

3. I decided that being permanantly disabled and collecting a check for doing nothing was not for me. My daughter,Lisa had been in school for a while, and was almost finished when she said "Mom, why don't you talk to your doctor about going back to school?" So I did. I told him I wanted to go for Medical Assistant Technician, and everything it involved. I was waiting for him to say "Are you crazy?" Instead, he said, "That's a great idea! That would be perfect for you." My next obstacle was "How am I going to afford this?" A chat with Financial Aid at the school I wanted to go to soon cleared that obstacle, with grants and student loans. Then the self doubt set in. Was I too old for this? I mean, I'm 47. I'll be 48 when I graduate. So I talked to my dad. His response to me was, "Well how old will you be if you don't go to school?" The wisdom of Yoda has my father. So much for that excuse.

So now I'm in school. I have been since November. I have 11 months to go. So I decided to write this blog so you could share this journey with me. Sometimes it will be long, sometimes short, but I'll write every day I'm in school. I'll tell you all the things I'm learning, how I'm doing, what I like and what I hate.

Strap yourselves in..it's going to be a bumpy ride!