UGH.
This past 6 weeks have been dragging on so slowly in some ways and flying by way too fast in other ways. It's certainly not easy being a student during the holidays. I have so many family and social obligations but I have lots of academic obligations too, balancing them has been quite the challenge this semester. The parts that have been flying by too quick are my days off of work, time with family and any free time that I have. I think this is because I'm anticipating, more like dreading, the upcoming schoolwork and just plain work I have to do.
I'm very thankful for flexible professors in both of my classes accepting assignments late, otherwise I'd be totally lost this semester. I'm not concerned about my grades at all, it's just more of a struggle and rush to get work done, and less enjoyable than last semester.
I'm really hoping that after these last 2 weeks of December are over things will relax a bit and I'll be able to be that full-time student again. It's not very fun, but it's all about what I'm working toward, my career.
When Kaplan sent me my welcome packet, on the cover is a picture of a diploma with my name on it and everything. I cut this diploma out and taped it above my work computer, every time I get down about school or start hating my job, I just look at it and remind myself that every little day I'm working to my ultimate goal, my degree.
It's so close, but sometimes feels so far away! :(
Monday, December 21, 2009
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
How School Has Changed My Life So Far....
It is sort of hard to say that school has changed my life so far, seeing that I've been a student since I was 5! But I can say that COLLEGE has changed my life in some pretty drastic ways. I've been to 4 different schools since I graduated high school, 5 if I include Kaplan. I've learned something about what I do and don't want for my future from each school.
I was an art education major, an interior design major, an allied health science major, almost a dental hygiene major, and now finally, I'm a medical assisting major. The funny thing is, that in high school I was always so good at science, and really loved my AP Biology class senior year, but I was convinced that anything medical would mean I was in school for a long time. So I settled on art education because I loved babysitting and being around kids and whenever I wasn't in class I was in the art wing doing something creative. I discovered while I was in school for art education that when you try to make a career out of your hobby, you lose your hobby! I really began to HATE art and I still am not able to just sit down and paint or draw for hours like I used to.
I really had no idea what to do after I decided to give up on art education, I worked in retail for a while, which really taught me to love business, but I knew I didn't want to work in retail forever. So I decided to move 900 miles from home to go to school for interior design. This to me was the perfect compromise, it was artistic but not in a way that I would be painting all day, and it was business oriented. But after a few months I realized that I didn't want to have to convince people that my career was useful and not just a luxury. I also don't want to worry about losing my job especially in an economic recession like now. I also knew that I wanted a job where I was making a real difference in someones life, helping them. So yet again, another major change.
I was so afraid of choosing the wrong major again that I chose something basic, allied health sciences, which would cover the basics and leave me options for what to do later. I was really torn between dental hygiene and medical assisting. The only true reason I chose medical assisting over dental hygiene was that I could not find any online dental hygiene programs, but now I'm so happy with my choice.
I really feel like I'm learning important and useful information, the things I'm learning I'm actually using in my daily life and job now. It feels great to finally be in school for the right thing. I can feel the change and its wonderful!
I was an art education major, an interior design major, an allied health science major, almost a dental hygiene major, and now finally, I'm a medical assisting major. The funny thing is, that in high school I was always so good at science, and really loved my AP Biology class senior year, but I was convinced that anything medical would mean I was in school for a long time. So I settled on art education because I loved babysitting and being around kids and whenever I wasn't in class I was in the art wing doing something creative. I discovered while I was in school for art education that when you try to make a career out of your hobby, you lose your hobby! I really began to HATE art and I still am not able to just sit down and paint or draw for hours like I used to.
I really had no idea what to do after I decided to give up on art education, I worked in retail for a while, which really taught me to love business, but I knew I didn't want to work in retail forever. So I decided to move 900 miles from home to go to school for interior design. This to me was the perfect compromise, it was artistic but not in a way that I would be painting all day, and it was business oriented. But after a few months I realized that I didn't want to have to convince people that my career was useful and not just a luxury. I also don't want to worry about losing my job especially in an economic recession like now. I also knew that I wanted a job where I was making a real difference in someones life, helping them. So yet again, another major change.
I was so afraid of choosing the wrong major again that I chose something basic, allied health sciences, which would cover the basics and leave me options for what to do later. I was really torn between dental hygiene and medical assisting. The only true reason I chose medical assisting over dental hygiene was that I could not find any online dental hygiene programs, but now I'm so happy with my choice.
I really feel like I'm learning important and useful information, the things I'm learning I'm actually using in my daily life and job now. It feels great to finally be in school for the right thing. I can feel the change and its wonderful!
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
I'm Internet Phobic!
I would definitely agree with the statement that the internet seems to blurr the lines of the term "legally owned." I mean, just look at the music business! People create things, music, writings, videos etc, and want to share them with others, so they put them up online. It's a great thing, we are so much more knowledgeable and "worldly" because of the information available online at our fingertips. But because it's so easy for people to post online, it's even easier for people to take from the internet and there is almost no proof that it was someone else's creation, so the entire concept of ownership is distorted. It's a pretty messed up situation!
I'm one of the internet-phobic people, I say that even though I attend school online. LOL. I guess I mean that I would NEVER dream of putting anything wildly personal or creative that I did not want to claim as entirely my own online. I'd be too afraid of it being "stolen" and used as someone else's. Instead the things that I choose to put online are things I want to share. I think that if you want to use the internet to post your original creations, you need to be ready to give them away to others, after all, the whole internet is one big collaboration!
I'm one of the internet-phobic people, I say that even though I attend school online. LOL. I guess I mean that I would NEVER dream of putting anything wildly personal or creative that I did not want to claim as entirely my own online. I'd be too afraid of it being "stolen" and used as someone else's. Instead the things that I choose to put online are things I want to share. I think that if you want to use the internet to post your original creations, you need to be ready to give them away to others, after all, the whole internet is one big collaboration!
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
This may be my best Christmas yet.
I was raised as a non-denominational Christian by both of my parents. When I was young my parents took me to Sunday school and AWANA (a "cool" teen verison of Sunday School) and we were happily at church every Sunday. We also prayed around the dinner table and read Bible stories before bedtime. My favorite memories of my childhood involve my parents teaching me something about my faith, and I am so greatful to them for every second of their time they spent teaching me about faith and God.
As many Christians do, I had my ups and downs and kind of gave up on being a Christian for a while in my teens. It was too hard, there were too many restrictions, but most of all, my parents gave up too. Not gonna lie, my life wasnt pretty for a while, at least not to me. I think I was around 18 when I did a complete face-plant and realized that something was terribly wrong with my life, and I knew how to fix it. I grew up with God, and I'm glad that I did, because if I hadn't known faith and God, I wouldn't have known what was missing. Since that time, I've grown spiritually, and most of that growth has come from the relationships I've had with other Christians. People that are no longer in my life have left lasting impressions on me, some of them by one simple action.
At this point in my life, I'm starting to pull things together. I'm finally going to finish school and begin a career. I'll be getting married in the next few years and having children after that. This Christmas season, as my fiance and I have started Advent, I've begun to realize what's truly important in my life. It's so easy to become distracted by the world around me and let the anxiety of life swallow me whole. I'm a totally worrier, I worry about things that are months away and it does absolutely no good.
This Christmas season I'm not going to worry. I'm going to be thankful for my relationship with God and how I got to this place in my life. I'm putting my faith in Him, and focusing on the only thing that matters. Especially this season. I can't begin to say how much of an impact Advent has had on me, and today is only the 3rd day! I'm excited to learn and grow, it's like a mini-retreat at home. I wonder what I will learn tonight?!
For anyone interested in how to do Advent you can visit http://www.teachingmom.com/features/advent.html. It's a great way to get your kids involved in faith too.
I was raised as a non-denominational Christian by both of my parents. When I was young my parents took me to Sunday school and AWANA (a "cool" teen verison of Sunday School) and we were happily at church every Sunday. We also prayed around the dinner table and read Bible stories before bedtime. My favorite memories of my childhood involve my parents teaching me something about my faith, and I am so greatful to them for every second of their time they spent teaching me about faith and God.
As many Christians do, I had my ups and downs and kind of gave up on being a Christian for a while in my teens. It was too hard, there were too many restrictions, but most of all, my parents gave up too. Not gonna lie, my life wasnt pretty for a while, at least not to me. I think I was around 18 when I did a complete face-plant and realized that something was terribly wrong with my life, and I knew how to fix it. I grew up with God, and I'm glad that I did, because if I hadn't known faith and God, I wouldn't have known what was missing. Since that time, I've grown spiritually, and most of that growth has come from the relationships I've had with other Christians. People that are no longer in my life have left lasting impressions on me, some of them by one simple action.
At this point in my life, I'm starting to pull things together. I'm finally going to finish school and begin a career. I'll be getting married in the next few years and having children after that. This Christmas season, as my fiance and I have started Advent, I've begun to realize what's truly important in my life. It's so easy to become distracted by the world around me and let the anxiety of life swallow me whole. I'm a totally worrier, I worry about things that are months away and it does absolutely no good.
This Christmas season I'm not going to worry. I'm going to be thankful for my relationship with God and how I got to this place in my life. I'm putting my faith in Him, and focusing on the only thing that matters. Especially this season. I can't begin to say how much of an impact Advent has had on me, and today is only the 3rd day! I'm excited to learn and grow, it's like a mini-retreat at home. I wonder what I will learn tonight?!
For anyone interested in how to do Advent you can visit http://www.teachingmom.com/features/advent.html. It's a great way to get your kids involved in faith too.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
What I think about this week's reading...
Hello everyone,
Just wanted to share what I learned from some of the reading for this unit.
I found the article, "Set the Right Tone" by Tamra Orr to be really helpful. In a way it was information that I already knew, but it was nice to refresh my memory on the importance of word choice when writing.
I really liked the example she gave with the Johnson Letters. It clearly illustrated how effective correct word and tone choice is and how ineffective poor word choice is. In the end you have to think about who will be reading what you write. Some people say that they "write for themselves" and I don't think that is the way to go when it comes to professional writing. We need to write for our reader.
I think the best authors are the ones who consider who their reader is, and try to relate with them or connect to them. That's what makes good writing!
Take care all! :)
Just wanted to share what I learned from some of the reading for this unit.
I found the article, "Set the Right Tone" by Tamra Orr to be really helpful. In a way it was information that I already knew, but it was nice to refresh my memory on the importance of word choice when writing.
I really liked the example she gave with the Johnson Letters. It clearly illustrated how effective correct word and tone choice is and how ineffective poor word choice is. In the end you have to think about who will be reading what you write. Some people say that they "write for themselves" and I don't think that is the way to go when it comes to professional writing. We need to write for our reader.
I think the best authors are the ones who consider who their reader is, and try to relate with them or connect to them. That's what makes good writing!
Take care all! :)
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
My Second Post
So I'm new to this blog thing, and my first post is blank because I have NO IDEA HOW TO DO THIS! I guess I'll figure this out as the semester goes...
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