Pawprints From Space

Recently received a questionnaire from my first grad school and suddenly realized how long it had been since I graduated - 19 years. The school is celebrating its 150th this year and wants to put together an alumni newsletter around the fact so they are asking alumni who their favorite professor was, fondest memory that sort of thing. Had to dig through the textbooks to find the guy's last name. I thought I had it, wasn't 100% sure but voila! I was right. Now I am five weeks away from a second graduate degree. So what is this? Every 20 years or so I go back to school, spend scary amounts of money and make myself even more unemployable? Works for me. Happy 150th Birthday Illinois State University!

Hmmm.... Could it be true? Could this travail finally be coming to an end? Well it is possible. I am still in the running for a job I had a great interview for over a month ago. Talked to the guy yesterday (gee I only left a message a week for four weeks what kept ya?) and he has a research question (think mini-paper) that he wants me to answer for him. Kind of a test. Seems they got burned in the last couple of hires and want to make sure I can do research. Can fish swim? Duh! So... if this pans out and they make an offer in the next couple of weeks my summer could look a whole lot better. Heck, I might even be able to - oh I don't know - have a life! Save some money! Work in the garden! Fix the bathroom floor even! Of course he was supposed to call today with the question and to set up a time.... he didn't

Well the project for the Class From Hell is done and safely emailed away to the Professor From Hell. Thank God that's over! All that is left is the presentation in class tomorrow night. Nothing should be this hard, cause this much stress or otherwise destroy every sinlge bit of free time you thought you had. The worrisome thing of the moment now is... what are we facing in the next class? This is the last class after all. Normally by now we have a syllabus and textbooks. We got nada. That in and of itself is unnerving. As is the fact that the cat just stole my seat on the couch, the big jerk.

It is Saturday. The sun is shining and it is a cold 30-ish degrees with a wind chill of something like 15. And yet it is probably the best day that this town has had for a St Patrick's Day parade in about 20 years. We were cold at 9:00 a.m. decorating the "float". We were cold at 10:30 a.m. lining up along the parade route. We were cold at 12:00 p.m. when the parade actually started. By 1:00 p.m. it was over we had no feeling in noses, toes and fingers but we had at least had fun. Cold fun to be sure. But fun. Now it is back to the homework - the final project for a class that has been nothing short of hell. No one can explain to me why on earth we need to know upper level calculus in order to understand economics from a managerial standpoint in business. Hello! There is software for this sort of thing thank you very flippin' much. But no we somehow have a physicist teaching managerial economics in the MBA program. A man who does not understand that a nonprofit is not...

Sheesh! I've been away from this longer than I thought. Of course I'm going to blame work - saw that one coming did you? - and it would be an accurate statement. Suffice it to say that I am fed up, burned out, had enough, want out. As in "I want outta here yesterday". Only 7 more weeks of classes and then the MBA will be in hand. Okay it will be once the school mails the diploma to me. Apparently even if you have paid all your bills (thank you student loans) you don't get the piece of paper until they are good and ready. Back to the work thing. I did not sign up for a job that involved sales - cold calling sales. I wanted out of a bad micro-managing situation and now thanks to all the nervous nellies at division since the reorganization I am right back in a micro-managing situation. This has got to stop. I have no nerves left. Huge project due on Monday. Haven't started yet. Had meetings almost every night this week. Have started sending out the resumes but it...