The Next Chapter Begins...

Friday marked the day I said my goodbyes to my grandmother's house.  It really makes me feel old to say that I have known that place for 39 years.  I have spend a lot of time there.  Grown there, dreamed there, cried there, fought there, screamed there, but most importantly, learned to love there.  Grandma may have been many things to many different people (mostly good, mind you) but to me she was one of the purest forms of grace and perseverance through the storm.  She was a fighter and never ever gave up hope.  That home was always filled with warmth and love.  I will truly miss it.

This weekend is the first time in nearly a year that I do not have to leave my wife on Sunday to travel back for school.  What a relief that I can stay here and sleep in my own bed with my wife right beside me (and the dog in the middle as usual).  It feels good to be home to stay.

Getting settled and all of my stuff unpacked will be the next big chore.  It is amazing how much stuff I had up north.  I would've never thought that I had accumulated that much in such a short period of time.

As this next Chapter begins and the blank page lays there before me I can't help but sit and stare at it's pristine emptiness.  Knowing that as soon as I make one indelible mark the new journey has begun.  One Degree down and at the very least, one more on the way.  I will sincerely miss you Pitt Bradford.  I will miss all of the memories we have created together.  I will miss all of the friends and connections made.  It will be hard not to see all of you every day.  In some ways it feels like my safety net has been taken away and I must walk this tight rope all alone.  I just have to make the first step and the journey begins.

The relationships we build must always be cherished.  Never burn bridges they always say.  I now, fully know the truest meaning of that phrase.  The most important thing I have learned while at Pitt Bradford is not to place so much stock in what pen and paper say about you.  But, you should define your worth in the the relationships you have built along the way.  The friendships and alliances you have made will define you more than any grade or title they can give you.  The respect you have earned and the gifts you have given of yourself to aid others in their success will speak louder than any mark on a page.

To all of my professors, colleagues and friends at Pitt Bradford I wish all of you the best in your own personal journey.  I do hope, however, that you will all continue to be part or mine for the foreseeable future.  Because, I am not nearly ready to bid any of you adieu.

Truly exhausted...

So much has gone on since my last post, I don't even know where to begin.  I figure I won't go too far into the past, as I am so tired today I don't think I can muster the energy to think any farther back than 24 hours or so.

As I have stated before I work part time and attend college full time.  So my life is rather hectic much of the time.  As of 8:20 this evening I feel as I have just been freed from the snare of absolute boredom.  The lecture I just sat through for 2.5 hours was truly monotonous.  I really, really like my professor.  He is a great friend to me, but this lecture was so long and dry.  I know I did not retain an ounce of it.

I was up last night studying for a Sociology exam I most likely bombed today.  Now my wife of course would tell me that I always say that and I always wind up doing very well.  You don't get to be a straight A  student by bombing tests.  With that in mind, I really have never done poorly on an exam.  I feel like I guessed a lot on this one though.  Many of the questions were not in the textbook and I know they were never lectured on.  Moreover, another part of the test posed questions with the most ambiguous answers I have ever seen.  Have you every had questions where more than one answer is correct, but one is more correct than the other? They are horrible and you just never know till the test is returned how you did.  I went and visited the professor and made my case.  He seems to believe that all but one question was covered in the book.  I meet with him on Thursday to discuss the matter further.  I really hope it I don't need to, but if I do that means I didn't do well and need to beg for extra credit.

On a much lighter note.  I am applying for a scholarship through the National Honor Society in which I am a member.  My advisor/professor/director/boss (yes he really fills all those roles in my situation) wrote me a gleaming letter of recommendation.  One would think after reading this letter that sun shines out my backside.  I was blown away by it's content.  To know that someone thinks so much of you as to write such a letter is very humbling.  Thank you, Don!

All in all the day was not too awful.  Some good, some bad, but over all I made it through one more.  One more day closer to the end of the semester and the completion of my Associates Degree in Information Systems.  I will try and update on the situation with the exam in case I did better than I thought.