Things are, um, crazy.
Thankfully, though, I’m starting to see a faint glimmer of light off in the distance.
Today I had the last meeting with one of my two SAT classes at Kaplan. I’ve been with this bunch of six students since the day after I got back from England — they actually started the Saturday after I left for England, and have met with them most Sunday afternoons since then. We ended the class today talking about Halloween festivities and what we’re all doing for Thanksgiving … it was just really bizarre. Normally my SAT classes run about six weeks (meeting twice weekly), but this was one of the rare ones that only met once weekly. Whew. Twelve weeks is a long time, y’know?
Meanwhile, my murderously difficult stats class is quickly winding down. It’s not even November, but I literally have two more classes to attend. This week, we’re working on the “exam” — it was never clear to me whether it’s technically a midterm or a final, but as it comes nearer to the end of class and covers the entirety of the content of the course, it seems more realistic to call it a final. If we can grant that, then this is the earliest final exam ever. Still, it’s due at 5 p.m. Thursday and I will be happy to have 1/3 of my final exams done with by November 1st, that’s for sure!
(Of course, I’ve only barely begun to work on it, and have had it for five days, so I am really going to have to get cracking tomorrow. Pronto!)
My other classes are okay. I have to write two papers by the end of November and should probably be more stressed out about that than I am. There’s also Thanksgiving and a totally top-secret trip to Arkansas between now and the time of my other two finals, plus the 60+ kids I have to get ready to take their exit writing test Nov. 19… whew!
But the good news is, once I turned in my last stats homework assignment (it was HIDEOUS) and went to the last “let’s cover new material” class meeting on Tuesday, a huge weight lifted and I have (gratefully) been in a much-improved mood. This semester has been just plain AWFUL. My schedule is approaching unmanageable and the days just drag on and on…
The good news is that my spring semester, which will be much more certain tomorrow when UTD unveils the class schedule, should be much improved. I only have one required class left, and the other two classes I take in the spring will be electives. Further, at least one of those will be an independent study/focused readings “class” with my two favorite professors, who have already promised I don’t have to write a paper or take an exam. Summertime will bring muchos studying for comprehensive exams (scheduled for July), and then come early August (fingers crossed!), I will be officially ABD (academic-speak for “all but dissertation”), a huge big deal in my world.
Anyway, I’ve been an awful friend these last couple of months … I’ve already missed two weddings this fall I’d have really liked to attend, and I feel just awful about that. (Sorry, AnnaLisa and Tommy.) I will be better.