Crazy November

The past month has been an odd trip. In October, several friends were talking about doing NaNoWriMo -- National Novel Writing Month. The goal is to write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days. At first, I dismissed it entirely, as far as personal participation goes. Then I started thinking that maybe I'd try it. But I certainly wasn't going to tell anyone about it! After all, I've never written anything that wasn't required for school, except for a few sporadic attempts at journaling over the years. Then I actually opened my mouth. Long story short (too late!) after a crazy month and far too many all-night typing sessions for someone of my advanced age, I actually won! (Meaning that I finished the 50,000 words before 11:59:59 p.m. on November 30.) And I was one of the few winners among those who attempted it. How on earth did this happen?

Of course, the novel's not finished, even though it's over 51,000 words. And most of it is complete dreck. And no, you can't read it. Sorry. But I actually did it. And it's created the most bewildered sense of triumph that I've ever experienced.

Just don't ask me how my schoolwork is going.

Country Music

You know, it's probably not a good thing when a Brad Paisley song sounds like your life. I was listening to his Part II CD tonight ... for several reasons, none of which were a burning desire to hear any of the songs on this CD. And I realized that the chorus to one of his songs fits my life quite well at the moment.

Of course, the rest of the song's about wanting to get back together with his girlfriend, which doesn't apply nearly so much.

"Two Feet of Topsoil" chorus
There's two feet of topsoil
A little bit of bedrock, limestone in between
A fossilized dinosaur
A little patch of crude oil
A thousand feet of granite underneath
Then there's me.

Word Counts

Okay, just because I have to. I know it's boring, but it's been driving me crazy(ier) not to post it somewhere.

History Prof's Word Counts:

(class date).....9/27...10/4...10/11...10/18
Essentially.......410+....269....352......266
More or Less------22+.....32......70........6
Any Way, Shape
or Form............6+......5.......11........4
However Though..................24.......27
Sort of.............................209.....127
Basically.....................................69


I didn't count today because he barely talked, since it was the mid-term. He did manage 1 "sort of" though. lol

P.S. I apologize for all the dots (although it does fit with the page theme). I couldn't get it to stay in table format without them.

History Midterm

Well, it's over. I think it went pretty well. I haven't actually had anything graded by this prof yet, so we'll see what he thinks.

And no, I didn't use the word "essentially." lol

I guess I'm moving, too.

Well, I've begun to move over to BlogSpot/Google Blogger, too. Let me know if you want an invite.

I'm going to miss the Comic Sans MS font though.

(moved from old blog)

Comments:

Pansy: Why don't you send me an invite at pansymakehay@gmail.com, babe. Then I can keep up with ya!

I wonder why Yahoo is being such a butt head all of a sudden?

New Blog *sigh*

Just setting up over here. I'll have to copy my stuff from 360 when I've got some time.

An Essential Update

It's Thursday, so I had history class again. There has been more or less no drop in any way, shape, or form in the "essentially" counts.

13.5 Ppt pages

294 "essentially"s

22 "more or less"s

6 "in any way, shape, or form"s

High count -- 39 "essentially"s each on pages 7 and 10.

Low count -- just 4 "essentially"s on page 12.

He seems to say it more when he's not as interested in the topic he's lecturing on.

(moved from old blog)

Comments:

Aibrean: That's so hysterical, Beccaie! Sounds like drinking game potential! lol!

History Class

Essentially, I think my history class may be interesting.

It's a freshman-level class, of course, so there are ... well, LOTS of freshmen in it. I think there's one other woman somewhere near my age, although I didn't exactly get a friendly vibe from her. The prof is much younger than I am, which is a first for me. He's a doctoral student, and has been teaching at the college level for 4 years, 3 of them at COD. This makes the whole thing essentially more funny.

Think I'm using "essentially" a lot? Come to class with me! ;-)

He's a very freshman-friendly prof, in that he gave us printouts of his whole Powerpoint presentation at the beginning of class. I think I was the only one who even bothered to jot additional notes in the margins. *rolls eyes* We got 3 handouts during this class: the syllabus, naturally; a brief (1.5 page) Powerpoint presentation on the status of Europe in 1600, which should be helpful; and the main (7.5 pages) Ppt lecture. As he was going through the syllabus with us, I realized that he was fond of the word "essentially" and thought I should remember to use it in at least one of the papers I'll have to write. As he was going through the Europe in 1600 presentation, I remembered Bella talking about one of her classes last spring, where a group of people smuggled in alcoholic beverages for a drinking game whenever their prof said whatever "his" word was. Halfway through the second page of the main lecture, I decided that it was a good thing we weren't playing a drinking game, because most of the class would be seriously drunk by now. On the third page, I started counting his "essentially"s. 116 times in the last 4.5 pages. Yes, you read that right. It's not a typo. One hundred sixteen times.

I can't decide if I should say something to him, or start running a pool on the counts. lol

(moved from old blog)

Comments:

Aibrean: lol! Isn't gambling essentially illegal? ;-)

Estelina: Oh good heavens! That is so funny - and a little sad. Someone should tell him - though I'm not sure it should be student, whose grade could be essentially effected.
tee hee
Good luck.

Elhf: Save the poor guy after your final grade, till then keep counting...

Well That's a Switch!

Slight change of plan this semester. For reasons I don't want to go into right now (because it's taken me about 2.5 days to calm down, and I don't want to upset myself again), I'm no longer taking the suck-up-to-the-program-director radiography class. This is good, because (a) I never wanted to do radiography in the first place -- it was just a stepping stone to sonography; and (b) after getting the syllabus and stuff the first week, and enduring the yammering of the prof and the guest speaker, there's no way this would have been a remotely useful class (other than the suck-up factor). Two of the community colleges in neighboring counties have expanded their sonography programs into Associate's degrees, so a radiography degree is no longer a prerequisite for them. Perhaps COD will follow suit; who knows? It does seem like, if you've already got a 15-month (5 "semester" -- they're actually trimesters) certificate program that consists exclusively of sonography-specific classes, you might as well throw in a math and a couple English classes and make a degree of it. I'm glad that at least some schools agree with me.

Of course, this means that I need to find another class, so I can keep my student health insurance. Luckily there are some 12-week, and even 8-week, courses offered. Of course, many of them are already full. There's still a space in one class that's offered in the evening (doesn't interfere with my other classes), on Thursdays (doesn't interfere with work), in the 12-week session (which doesn't start for another 1.5 weeks, so I can still register without a permit), at the Addison Center (8 minute commute, woohoo!) instead of the main campus (20 - 25 minutes, plus parking time). So this could be a good thing. It's World History, from 1600 to the present. Do you suppose this is the year that one of my history classes will actually make it to the 20th century???

Okay, that's unfair. My AP/Honors US History class, senior year in high school, did make it to about 1910. Then we jumped to 1929 for the stock market crash. But we ran out of time before we could get to the Great Depression. (Ironic, considering my personal depression issues. Yeah, yeah, different kind of depression.)

So I guess I'm okay with this. It's really messed with my timelines though. Okay, they were fairly arbitrary timelines, and certainly vulnerable to change anyway, but I do feel a bit de-railed.

(moved from old blog)

Comments:

Aibrean: Well, all that certainly sounds like a "cluster," but it does seem to be working out for the best?? Hang in there!! Hugs!

Rayna: Just in case I haven't said this enough...I am so very proud of you for going back to school and working so very hard...I am just continually impressed!

Now...mail me some jeans babycakes...I'm in the painting mood !

Mini-Moot Report from Fond du Lac

I know that only the Garden got advanced notice about this mini-moot, but here's the report anyway. I'd been pouting and sulking that I couldn't make it to the KC Moot, but I finally realized that Fond du Lac is much closer (and thus financially possible), as well as being home to TWO Shieldmaidens.

================

Mini-Moot ReportWell, I'm back from Wisconsin. I'm so glad I thought of going up there. It was really nice to have another weekend completely off (since Moot), and to see Shieldmaidens!
I don't have any pictures, but Joie took a few and Amy was snapping away like a madwoman, so I'll try to get copies or links from them.

I left far too late Saturday morning, since I'd forgotten that I had to drive right by Great America (giant amusement & water park). So it took me about twice as long as it should have, but I still got there before 2. Joie was at her parents' house, helping with their rummage sale. They're very nice, as is Joie's sister, Julie, who was also there. Then Joie and I headed over to the fairgrounds to meet Amy. She and Bob (and the kids, and his parents) were all involved in the Labor Day Street Rod Show & Corn Roast, so we hung out there. Got to meet her MIL, Gloria, who is as wonderful and welcoming as Amy has always said. She even invited Joie and me to crash the family's traditional dinner at a local supper club that evening. Joie and I "helped" Amy and Gloria play bingo (car owners only), and Amy won a very nice Mikasa vase. Gloria won an electric can opener, but hey, at least she won.

Originally I was just going for the day, but Joie and Amy both asked me to stay the night with them, so I ended up spending the night at Amy's. Very nice pull-out sofa, in case anyone else is interested. Joie also has a nice sofa, which looks very comfy, although it doesn't pull out.
Saturday afternoon, Joie and I headed back to her house, with Amy's Ashley, while Amy ran home for an hour of power cleaning because her house was "a disaster area." (Hmph. I wish my disaster area was that clean.) Dinner was fun, although I think the restaurant could do with a bit more fabric in the dining room, as it was very difficult to hear ourselves speak, much less tablemates. After dinner, Joie and I took Amy and Ashley home, and stayed to help clean a bit, since Amy thought it still wasn't clean enough. Then Amy and Ashley picked up Joie's Maggie and went to the 50s themed dance at the car show, and Joie and I went back to her house and watched The Incredibles. :lol

Sunday morning, Bob and Jared left at 6 *shudder* to get a good spot at the car show, and Brian and Joie cooked breakfast for the rest of us at a more civilized hour. There was so much food that we ended up using her dining room table as a buffet, and we ate out on their new patio, which is lovely. They've been working on the landscaping in the backyard this summer, and it's just gorgeous. Then everyone except Brian headed back to the car show. It was a beautiful day -- cool in the shade under the great tree that Bob and his dad had gotten up so early to stake out for their parking area. There was a lovely breeze, too.

In the afternoon, Joie and I went back to her parents' house to help close down the rummage sale, and then I headed home. Brian had marked out a different way for me to drive, so there was much less construction, and I saved 1.5 hours, even though it added about 60 miles.

==============

(moved from old blog)

Comments:

Aibrean: Wish you could've come to KC with us - but very, very glad you got to moot with Amy & Joie!

Moonie: You were a busy bee Beccaie! Glad you had fun!

Week 2 of 18, Fall Semester

Well, at least physics is interesting. Of course, I can't get a copy of the lab book, because the bookstore's order has been put on hold by the publisher. And I have to get it at the campus bookstore, because it's not only written by one of the professors there, but it's also the 2nd edition, which was just finished in July. No used copies on this one. Oh well, at least the class is interesting and the prof lectures well. And I do have a copy of the 1st edition, from last spring, so I can probably use that in a pinch.

It's so interesting to see how different the class is in a regular classroom setting, as opposed to independent study. We've got these "clickers" -- each student has one -- and periodically the prof asks us a multiple choice question, and we respond with the clickers, like an audience poll on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? or something.

Of course, the slight downside is the group of (I think) former Physics Club members who like to argue every little point with the prof -- like the pronunciacion of "Syene," an ancient Egyptian city, and whether it was a well or a pillar that Eratosthenes (or something like that) used to calculate the circumference of the Earth in 2300 B.C.

But even that's interesting, in a weird sort of way.

Now if only my "fun elective" doesn't get cancelled again...

(moved from old blog)

Comments:

Wiz: Hey Beccaie! What's the fun elective??

Hugs to ya!

Me: Hawks & Cranes -- Fall Migration. It doesn't start until October. However, I've got an amazing history of having fun electives cancelled on me due to insufficient enrollment. This one's up to 7 registered students, out of a maximum allowed of 13. I'm cautiously hopeful...

Me: I was going to take a basic astronomy class, focusing on the fall sky, but that was ... wait for it ... cancelled for low enrollment. :-/

Moonie: oooooooo I would adore that class Beccaie! Hope it fills up! And about the lack of motivation??....here take a spoonful of mine. I have a little to spare this week. wink wink

Wiz: Hawks and cranes - sounds great! Sure hope it doesn't get canceled.

Elhf: "physics is interesting" this is a good thing...
Love the sound of both electives - Hope the bird one flies
>;-)

ArwensRose: I couldn't follow physics worth my life. I was so lost in that class. I had been decent in science up till that point, but after that ... I gave up all together.

Now the astronomy I would be all over. I can't believe that there was low enrollment!

Back to School

Wow, it's that time of year again already. Somehow I'm not terribly motivated for this semester, and I'm not sure why. Maybe because my summer was so packed that I don't feel like I've had time to catch my breath. Maybe because two of my classes are ones that I couldn't complete last spring, because of the pneumonia. Possibly because another one of my classes is essentially a suck-up-to-the-director-of-the-radiography-program class. But I'm kind of afraid that I'm just getting bored with school. This is my sixth semester. I'm coming up on the two year mark. Anymore, that really seems to be the length of my attention span. :-S

(moved from old blog)

Comments:

Wiz: Beccaie!!!! Good to hear from you.

Hang in there, Lady. Think of all the time you've already put in. Once you're done, you're done. You are doing great.

Hugs!
Wiz

AIbrean: Almost two years already?! Maybe the classes just aren't challenging enough?? Are you done with the boring core curriculum? Can you take something that will really stimulate your mind??

Ehlf: 2 years, that's half way home ... hang in there - find a really fun elective

Better and Better

Good news! Had another doctor appointment today, and he didn't charge me for it! AND he gave me/us (my mom actually paid) a 30% discount for paying the whole balance, for his visits while I was in the hospital, at one time, instead of making payments. $174 off!!! Woohoo!
Also, he thinks that the pneumonia is gone. What I'm dealing with now is either asthma or asthmatic bronchitis. I'm hoping for the ab, since that does go away eventually. Anyway, he gave me new and different drugs, and my sister approves of his choices. He even thinks I'll be feeling better by this Friday! :-o We'll see. I'm having trouble visualizing that. But I'd love for it to happen. At any rate, I'm feeling much encouraged today, despite my mom's semi-silent nagging to "just get better already!" (She doesn't say that in so many words, but it's definitely present as a looming cloud of psychic energy.) So yay me! :-D

Oh, and my blood pressure is back down to normal: 120/78. (I know, I know, borderline high. Whatever.) So now my mom can stop bugging me about asking for blood pressure meds. My doctor, my sister, and I all thought that it was just running high because I wasn't getting enough oxygen, and apparently we were right. :-)

(moved from old blog)

Home again, home again

Hi Everyone,

Got out of the hospital last night. I think I'm a finally caught up on sleep, since that's about all I did today. It's just lovely to be home again! I did wake up briefly this afternoon, when a lovely bouquet of bright spring flowers arrived. Thank you all so much! They're just gorgeous. Thank you also for all the beacons. I got out of the hospital faster than the doctor, my mom, or my sister originally thought I would, so I know they helped. And I think they might also be the reason that I only had to have 2 IVs started in 2 days, and I only got stuck 4 times, and only 1 vein totally blew. (I've got really yucky veins, as far as stabbing them goes.)

Okay, it's probably time to head back to bed. But thanks again.

Beccaie

(moved from old blog)

Comments:

Wiz: Oh my!!! You were one sick little kitten! Glad you got some medical help and are now feeling better.

Rest, heal. (you know the drill)
Hugs!

Aibrean: Welcome home, Beccaie! Rest & relax! No sickies at Moot!!

Basic Update

Good morning Everyone! I posted this over in the Garden, and Sofia said that she liked reading my updates on my life. A lightbulb went on, and I realized that I had the perfect blog entry, to break my over 3 months of silence. ;-) So here you go...

Just peeking in from the library today. Lab's done (YAY!), but I have a federal compliance meeting for work early this afternoon (BOO!), so I can't play as long as usual. We've got our first lab exam next week, and I think I'll do pretty well on that. I've aced both quizes so far, and everything on the test list is also on the quiz list, so that should be a pretty good indicator. We'll have to see how the lecture exam goes. No quizes for that.

Of course, I missed the first 2 questions on the quiz this morning, because some idiot from Florida got confused at a stoplight and BACKED INTO ME! BACKED??? WTF? (Yes, I was honking at him as soon as I saw the reverse lights. Possibly he's an idiot with severe hearing loss. ) *rolls eyes* It's not even snowing today. Yesterday I might have cut him some slack. We only got about 5 inches, but it came down all day, so the roads weren't really cleared until this morning. Or at least, they were still messy when I was heading home from work last night at 10. It was a lot warmer though. According to my car, it got up to 9! And there wasn't really any wind either. Of course, we're back to 0 today, and the windchill's about -15. Ahhh, February. :-D (Note: I'm not complaining! I like this kind of weather in the winter.)

Found out yesterday that my work schedule has been changed (again). My boss didn't like the new evening girl (for no reason I understand), so she fired her and rehired a girl who used to work at the Jeep dealership. Whatever. I'm back down to 2 nights a week. This is a good thing, because I never wanted 3 to begin with, but I'm not too pleased about the way I was informed (not asked) about my new shifts. :-S I'm still working Wednesdays though, so I don't know if I'll ever get back into LOST. I stopped keeping up late last spring, and I'm not sure it's really worth the effort to catch up at this point. After all, MY Sawyer (clone) is completely loyal to me and can't stand Kate. lol

Can't think what else is going on at the moment. I've been reading, but often at least a day late. Beacons and get-well wishes do get lit/sent. It's just that you might not hear about them. :-)

hugs to all,
Beccaie

(moved from old blog)

Comments:

Aibrean: Some people shouldn't be allowed outside each day, eh? What an idiot! Glad you and "Felix" didn't get hurt!

Moonie: Hope your not still sick Beccaie! Sorry about the car too. Your cars too new to have anyone mess with it!Hope we can connect again in the garden. Seems I am there when no one is around.