Updates & New Year's Resolutions

Well, I haven't visited in a while, but here I am again. Lots of stuff going on. Jeff & I had a conversation right before finals about my ability to continue as a full-time student in the Spring 06 semester, as in, having no ability to do that. Now, the good news is that I did very well in my 4 subjects, including the dread Chemistry, but alas, I'm all out of money to pay rent and expenses. If I would continue that would involve taking out the regular school loans, an additional loan for tuition that the fed loans didn't cover, credit card debt for textbooks and a loan to cover living expenses. And I would have a few more semesters of this. So, upon graduation, I would be so in debt that I could have gone to law school for the price, with only an additional undergraduate degree to show for it. So...because I DO actually want to finish this degree, I'm going to study part-time for a year, working at one or two jobs to pay bills and save cash for Spring 07 semester, wherein I would become a full-time student again. This semester I'll take the 2nd part of Chemistry to knock that out of the way.

Now, let me tell you how much this sucks. I'm very unhappy about this and the "poor-me syndrome" does apply here. Big set-back. I question every day whether all this hassle and stress is worth it. And, I'm paying $2,500 (by credit card by the way) for a class that I'll essentially have to teach myself. The truth is, though, that I should have started saving money 4 years ago and dispensed with the scholarship applications. While I'm sure there's lots of money out there theoretically, the only money that matters is that which I have in my hand. So...my first resolution is:

1. get a job or jobs that cover(s) expenses (ie, that pays considerably more than $7.00 an hour) and allows me to take time off for class (a whopping 6 hours per week for lecture and lab).

Certainly, something that would help alleviate cash-strain would be decreasing expenses, so my/our next resolution is:

2. move to a less expensive apartment.

Now, I'm not really all that jazzed about moving, but with luck we could move within the building, although that would involve losing a bathroom and possibly square footage. To that end, though, Jeff insisted that we clean out our store room and dispose of stuff we didn't need or sentimentally want. That was a good start to my/our next resolution:

3. decrease clutter

On a more positive side, I'm already engaging my next resolution:

4. blog more.

Keeps me writing which is good for school. Now, with the above in mind, you can believe I'll be suffering fools and illegals (and their proponents) even less than before. Few punches will be pulled.

This year, I will also:

5. learn to drive

Sad, isn't it? I have a valid driver's license, but need the actual skill set. Time to finally get with it.

Even given the aforementioned restrictions, my final resolution is a must:

6. have some fun and add interest to our lives (trips, book club revival, theater, etc)

Coasting hasn't made our lives fun or that interesting, so we'll have to put some effort in making them better. Jeff's the prime mover in this effort so far, organizing a long-weekend in Las Vegas for our first year anniversary. Can't wait - I've never been there!

Well, that's the skinny. Wish me luck!