Four. More. Days!

Ahhh, I can almost taste it! Four more days until I'm done with this program. Until I have my MBA, which, I have to say, has meant a lot more invested time than I had originally anticipated.

And then...we're gonna have to do something to celebrate, to mark the beginning of a new journey in life. I love learning new things, and especially in actually finishing a project to the end, but I'm quite done with the pressure of learning teams, deadlines for research and papers, and so on. It will be nice to have a weekend where the only thing I have to worry about is whether Christopher has homework or if he wants to play Monopoly, Connect Four, or Waterworks.

I think I have to do a reality check on the new journey, which has already been in process for awhile. Looking for a job "in my field" in my hometown has proven to be a little more challenging than I have ever experienced before in my life. Today I was turned down for a job that I am fully qualified for, and not even being considered for the interviews, because they are interviewing "candidates who more closely match our qualification requirements". I wouldn't have taken the time to apply if I wasn't qualified, perhaps this is an oversight or a mistake, but it's frustrating! Further, I have a friend who is first on my reference list, that I've known for over 30 years now, and who holds a high position at this company...and still I wasn't called for an interview.

Of course, I know I can go pay them a visit to find out what exactly is wrong with my resume, letter, experience, or otherwise, so I can "fix" it on my next application elsewhere, or I can ask my friend to find out. It's embarrassing and frustrating. I am more qualified to do many of the jobs that I have applied for than most folks who could be applying, and I can't even get an interview. I don't say that in a conceited way, it's just the truth that there are good workers and there are excellent workers, and I've never been anything but the best at my jobs wherever I've gone along the years. Put it all together, and you'd think that an employer would want a skilled, talented, and dedicated employee.

Then there's the part about where I took off 6 years to be a stay-at-home mom, and to finally finish my schooling that I had started when I was 17. Two excellent reasons to make a break in a long career, and now no one will let me back in. Sure, I substitute teach, and I home teach a student. Both positions have their rewards (that have absolutely nothing to do with the pay rates), and I'd even considering doing them for a longer time if they did pay a decent wage. For substituting, I get to interact with my son's school from the "inside" and not just as a parent, and I also get to see the inner workings of the high school system up close and personal. It's more fun for me, because I also get to see many of our nieces, nephews, cousins, and other young friends of those kids. As the other students are more exposed to me in classrooms their levels of "abuse to the substitute" have finally started to subside a little. For home teaching, I get to re-learn 9th grade algebra, english, us history (we're in the 20's now, moving into prohibition times and bootlegging!), fine arts, business technology, and earth science. Most of it is entertaining and interesting, and my student is pretty bright, so it's rewarding on a good level.

And that brings me back to tonight. I have to finish a paper tonight that was due on Monday. Then tomorrow, need to work on the next paper that is due on Sat and in final on Sun. Then on Sun finish up the biggest paper of all, a 5,000-7,000 strategic plan for a company, due on Monday. And-Then-I'm-Done!

On a positive note, at least Chris got his Valentines all written up tonight so he can exchange them with all his little friends in 1st grade on Friday (with help from his Aunt Becky)! Sure, it's February 19th and past the 14th, but the little ones just love that holiday so much, the chance to give and receive their cute valentines and candies.

So, back to focus on homework again for me. A little trouble here staying focused on the deadline, but almost there....