Lizet's Place

First off! I totally made up for the BOMBED first exam in my calculus class! The professor offered a measly 10 points extra credit if we re-did the exam. Okay. I did the extra credit and moved my points from 39 to 49. It's still failing. HOWEVER! On Tuesday we had our second exam. 13 questions and a flat 2 hours. No extension. I was anxious all weekend about that. I was also hoping for at least 75 points. Nah, man! I ACED THAT SUCKER! 100/100! Excuse me, what?! I've been checking the class website because I'm convinced it's a mistake and I really got between 75-95 points. The next exam is later this month, and then the final is June 9th.

Also, I spoke with a completion counselor about why I got the email for the fall semester when this is supposed to be my last semester before transferring and she said that e-mail is sent to all students, but she could understand why I would be worried.

She also checked about why there was no "movement" on my graduation (the status hadn't changed from when I submitted it in January/February)...which led to her checking my transcripts to see if that was why my application hadn't been processed.

Apparently, because I hadn't applied to any universities to transfer to, they process the applications of students who had already applied to universities. But she was going to email them for confirmation, and then once she heard back, she was going to email me with her findings.

Either way, I'm still on track to graduate in June/transfer once I apply (looking at ASU, Cal State LA, and Washington University in St. Louis).

She asked me if I was going to participate in the commencement ceremony in June. I said that I wasn't sure as I have a final that day and the professor requires students to be present with their cameras on during exams. I also told her that I was going to ask him if the final was still going to be on June 9 and whether an exception can be made for me. But honestly, I still don't know if I want to participate in the ceremony. It will be another AS degree and I'd rather just wait for the big university graduation with my bachelor's (or master's if I do both at the same time) in a few years.

Well, at least for the Spring 2021 semester.

Accounting 1A: Financial Accounting - I'm sitting at 95% and I don't think everything has been graded. I CAN ONLY GO UP FROM HERE!

Spanish 2: Elementary Spanish - I'm sitting at 94%, but there are still 4 or 5 things to be graded. Mi puntuación para esta clase puede subir o bajar (my score for this class can go up or down).

I'll have the final grades by June 16.

Summer classes start on June 14. One of my classes goes until July 22 and the other goes until August 5.

I'm not really looking forward to either of them, but they are both required to transfer to the universities out here.

Fall classes start August 30, so I'll at least have 25 days for a summer "vacation".

Not that I'd really go anywhere.

Next entry about my family and my surgery. I don't know when I'll get to it, but soon. I'm just not feeling like thinking about them.

It should be a requirement that students take at least 1 online class in their college career so they realize just how much of a balancing act it is in regards to their other classes.

The downside of discussion boards for school comes when the instructor says that once we post our answer to the discussion question, to reply to 3 or 4 other people.

AND I CAN'T!

BECAUSE NO ONE ELSE HAS POSTED THEIR ANSWERS FOR ME TO REPLY TO!

It's not fair that I have to wait for other people to get around to answering so that I can complete my assignment...but they can post their response and do the required replies all in one go because they waited until the day of or the day before the assignment was due.

And I get it. They have work for other classes they need to work on. It's just frustrating having to wait and then worry about missing something because I wasn't constantly checking the discussion board for posts to reply to.

The posts are time-stamped so the professor can see who waited until the last minute and who is on top of things with their schoolwork.

Let me tell you the boneheaded mistake I made...THAT WASN'T EVEN MY FAULT!

So...classes start tomorrow, so professors are opening up the online forum where we have our discussions.

Accounting class is going along nicely.

But Spanish 2...holy cow! One set of links take you to one location, but another set of links, actually provided by the professor, don't take you to the same location!

Now, since I was already on the discussion forum due to reading up on my accounting class, I clicked over to my Spanish class to read up on what's going on.

There's a tab called Modules. That's where the daily/weekly assignments are. The one for this week shows how to register on the website where we will actually be doing our assignments and tests...and it's also where we purchase the textbook.

Okay, let me purchase the textbook NOW because it's going to take like a week, from the order processing date, for it to ship. So I follow along on the video provided BY THE PROFESSOR, on how to set up my account and which book to order.

I get that taken care of (and my bank account is $159 lighter) and as I navigate back to the discussion forum and click to see the syllabus, THERE IS A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT BOOK LISTED! WTF!

I BOUGHT THE WRONG BOOK!

Que me freaking out because I've already used the activation code for the website! I find a live chat on the publisher's website and chat with them about what to do.

I return the book (or rather contact UPS once I get a tracking number to refuse delivery and it will be sent back to the company at no charge to me) and once the company receives it, they will deactivate the code that I have and it will take 30 DAYS TO GET MY MONEY BACK!

and in the meantime! I HAVE TO SHELL OUT MORE MONEY FOR THE CORRECT BOOK AND ACCESS FOR CLASS!

I also emailed what happened to my professor and she forwarded my message to her publishing company rep to see what can be done.

While ALL of this is going on, I'm searching the website to see how I viewed this incorrect video (meant for a higher level Spanish class) and what's going on.

I take a picture/screenshot of what I see and how I got there to the professor and she thanked me for being a self-advocate and they will get me set up, whatever that means.

A big take away from all of this is that I found out the correct book for my class is only $96!!! *SCREAMS IN LOST MONEY* I don't have to shell out another $159, but I still have to take out a quick payday advance loan to cover the course (it would probably be like $120) because I just don't have the money.

OH! I still have to buy the book/online access for my Accounting class! No way out of that $119.99!

I went from 12 units and being full time to 10 units and not quite making full time

**CRIES**

But! Now I'm only taking classes that I need.

I dropped English 1 (Reading Composition) because I took it at a previous college and passed.

I dropped Law 20 (Property Law) because I didn't need it for my degree. I still might take it at a later time because I'm interested in law.

In place of those 2 dropped classes, I added Spanish 2 (Elementary Spanish) as it's needed to transfer to UC Riverside.

I need an art class and Art 10 (Art Appreciation) was added to my Ed Plan, but holy cow is that course full and so is the waiting list...for both classes that are available, so I can't take it this semester.

Spring 2021 (February 8 to June 9)
ACCTG 1A Financial Accounting M/W 8-10:30am
SPAN 2 Elementary Spanish T/Th 9-11:05am

ALSO!!!

The counselor said I would have enough credits and all courses taken to transfer to the university next year!

Umm, what?!

I wasn't expecting that soon and I'm not prepared! Of course, this hinges on being able to get the classes on my ed plan, of which there are 5, not counting the 2 that I'm actually enrolled in: Art 10 (Art Appreciation), STAT 1 (Elementary Statistics), ACCTG 1B (Managerial Accounting), COSA 50 (Intro to IT Concepts & Applications) and MATH 47 (Calculus for Business).

Those courses will be split between summer and fall of this year. And try as I might, there's no getting out of Statistics or Calculus.

The property manager contacted me on Monday and said they put the work order in for the maintenance man to come.

So I'm thinking that because it's termites and they can do major damage, they'd be over within 24 hrs. The man came Wednesday but the bugs had been dead by then and it appeared the cinnamon was keeping them in the walls and not in the apartment flying around/by the window. When the maintenance man did his business, it was to suction up the bugs and cinnamon, clean the area with disinfectant, spray outside and put some caulking down.

I want to say within 2 or 3 hours of him doing that, I happened to glance at the A/C and oh...look at that! more dirt in a previously clean area! Nope! I took a picture and informed the property manager that while I know bug spray isn't instant, something needed to be put in the wall where the bugs are and I told them I was putting cinnamon back in the hole to keep them in.

I'm not dealing with bugs inside of the apartment with Kim.

And what of the other units? They need to be checked as well. I'm sure the property owners don't want to have to pay for living arrangements for 20 units PLUS the tenting of the building to deal with the termites. I thought at the very least, the maintenance man would spray something into the hole where the bugs are to kill them that way, because there's obviously still some in the walls.

in other news...

I think I probably mentioned how on Saturday a Healthcare nurse was coming to check on Kim to see what services she will need post-hospital stay. Physical therapy twice a week for 3 or 4 weeks, Occupational therapist twice a week for 3 or 4 weeks, and then a nurse twice a week for 2 weeks and then once a week for 4 weeks?

A nurse definitely isn't needed. I've been arranging her medication since 2017 with no problems. I have a good working relationship with all of her doctors. They've explained to me what to look for if Kim has a reaction to them. Plus, this isn't new to me. I did it for 5 months while caring for my dad in 2014 and that was while he was in hospice and much more demanding than caring for an elderly lady with walking problems.

Monday evening, the physical therapist called to make an appt for Wednesday afternoon. Then when he came, it was just the intake process where they see what she's able to do and what needs to be worked on. Then said they would call next week to set up future appts.

Shortly after that visit, the occupational therapist called to set up an appt for this morning. It was about 11:15 or 11:20 when he arrived. He did the same thing as the physical therapist with Kim and then told me that sometime next week they'd be calling to set up appts.

My only request for them is that the appts be after 11am or after 3 pm. because I'm in online class Monday/Wednesday from 8am-1030am and Kim wakes up at 10am, takes her meds, and eats breakfast...then her lunch is at 2pm and it takes her 30 minutes to eat a sandwich, a fruit cup and drink a juice pouch. Little kids eat faster and cleaner than she does! *eye twitch*

But yeah. About me!

( School starts on Monday )

Apparently, the fee for Spring 2021 is due Jan 25 Jan 26. Thankfully I have a fee waiver that covers my classes, but I still have to pay the student health fee ($20), College Services Card (I think that's what they're calling the ASB as proof that they're a current student - $20) and Student Representative fee $2. That's $42 compared to almost $600 that I would have to pay for classes and fees...but I can't forget about books. I don't even know how much those are going to be or if there are going to be any. But I'll know in about 16 days when classes start on Feb 8.

Oh! I got an email about speaking with a counselor to make/update my Education Plan but by the time I saw it, it was too late in the day to do anything and then on Friday I just plain forgot. I really need to do something on Monday. The sooner I can do it, the sooner I can maybe switch classes around - if the counselor can do that but I don't mind taking class that I don't if it will make me be full time and help my overall GPA.

Monday I have an appt with the optometrist to check my eyes and update the prescription for my glasses. I hope they don't charge a lot for the actual glasses. I have VSP Vision Care for my vision care insurance and at the other optometrist I went to, they had specific lines of glasses that were "covered" with that insurance where I'd only have to pay out of pocket for the frames or something. I think it was like $80 and I had them in a week. So I hope this location (they're in the same building as the opthalmologist) is done the same way.

I still haven't been able to make an appt to see the dentist...but I also haven't been actually trying. I know I need to do it soon, but I'm still rather upset that I can't use the dental office I actually signed up with because they're no longer accepting new patients at that location. UGH!

I've been doing quite a bit of cooking the few weeks. Like, actual cooking, imo, with cutting up ingredients, cooking them and plating the finished product. It just so happens, that these meals have been done with help of the crockpot and 6-8 hours of cooking. Three meals here. My attempt at Caprese Salad (I was missing the basil). Last night's dinner (which is also dinner for tonight as well).

Now I have to help Kim with her shower, get our clothes ready for church tomorrow and heat up dinner.

Hope you all have had a productive/restful weekend.

Got an email notification about my final exam grade for Business Law 19. 180/200! I thought I was going to need to get 190 to pass the class with an A but apparently, the 180 was enough. I think I remember the professor saying something about if we were a few points from an A, the survey we took on the effectiveness of the online course would be counted as extra credit, so I guess that's how I was boosted to the A.

I'm not complaining though! The A from Business Law 19 and the B from Intro to Accounting gave me a term GPA of 3.5 but my overall GPA still sucks at 2.395.

I believe universities are looking for 3.5 and higher for the overall GPA. THIS is exactly why I really need to talk to a counselor. I need to know what relevant courses to my Business Administration major I need to take to boost my overall GPA to transfer, or other routes to take to get into a university to get my Bachelor's Degree. Like I said in a previous post, I'm 4 or 5 classes away from being "transfer ready" but my GPA isn't good.

I picked my possible classes for Spring 2021. I have 4 classes picked and I think the total units would classify me as a full-time student! I haven't had the classification since before I got my AS degree in 2007.

Also, holy shit! I've been doing this school thing for far too long! I graduated high school in 2000, royally screwed up at first community college after 5 years. My dad said I needed to get a degree so I applied at another college and got my Associate's degree after 18 months, but had to wait one more semester for graduation, which put me in 2007 for actually getting my degree. I worked for 6 years but missed school and was hoping that I could get my butt in gear to get my bachelor's degree, so I went back to first community college to see about taking courses in Criminal Justice Administration...oh and I applied to second community college again and took a couple of classes. Unfortunately, that was Fall 2013 and Spring 2014 and then I had to stop. My dad had a stroke and I spent June to his death in November 2014 helping my mom care for him. I didn't go back to school until Summer 2016 at the current community college (number 3).

Anyway, the classes
Spring 2021
Financial Accounting (5 units) [repeat as I got a D when I took it Spring 2018]
Property Law (3 units)
College Algebra (6 units) [repeat as I got a D when I took it Fall 2017]
Analytical Reading (3 units)

17 total units.

I have a feeling the counselor might say that's too much based on what I've done previous semesters, or to pick a different College Algebra class (the others are 4 units). If I take a different math course that would me at 15 units for the semester.

But I won't know anything UNTIL I TALK TO A COUNSELOR!

Just wondering
How often do you feel utterly worn down?
I don't know. A couple of times a week?

What makes you nervous?
Letting people down? But then I get to a point where I don't GAF and I'm going to do what I'm going to do.

Do most people tend to overestimate or underestimate you?
Probably both. Kim's sister says that she doesn't "give me enough credit" for whatever I've managed to do. It's almost like a backhanded compliment.

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So I can't remember if I mentioned this or not. My insurance approved the request my dr put in for me to get an ultrasound of my ovaries to see if there are any cysts. Part of me is hoping that many of the issues I've been dealing with are because of PCOS and not me trying hard enough with "diets" because let me tell you, the only time I lose weight is when I've only eaten once or twice a day and that's not healthy at all.

I need to go back to being more active. I want a bike to take rides, but there's no place here for me to store one. The other option is to get an exercise bike. I'd probably use it, but it would end up being a clothes rack or something and take up space.

On the school front, I started to look at universities again. If I figured things out correctly, Spring 2022 is when I'd be able to transfer to a university for my bachelor's degree.

The thing is, I don't know if I should look at universities in California (UC Riverside is tops for that) or look in Arizona or even go to Detroit where my mom is and check out Wayne State University.

I'll be 39 by Spring (January/February) 2022 and my mom will be turning 76 that April and likely need help and it shouldn't fall to her sisters and/or their kids...not when I'm available.

It's all something for me to think about.

Will you be getting any break (time off) for the holidays and do you have any plans?
My life is like one huge time off from work. Last year, though, I made plans to go to AZ for my BFF's 40th birthday weekend (this coming weekend). I was going to leave Christmas night, arrive early Saturday morning, party it up all day Saturday, and come back Sunday. Now we're doing it virtually.

What are your plans for Christmas dinner, if any? Take out, cooking, or something else?
Kim's sister and brother-in-law are coming down like last Christmas. I'm cooking the turkey, yams, and dressing and now pie since she wasn't able to find it but I was (woohoo!). Colleen is bringing down the ham, drinks, mixed veggies, biscuits (since she forgot rolls), and cookies. I think that's everything. She's already dropped off the festive plates we'll be using.

Am I the only one who can't believe Christmas is only four days away?
I can't either. Where the heck has this year gone! It feels like it's been forever...but also like this quarantine/lockdown/whatever just started

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It felt weird not having an online class tonight lol Grades should be posted tomorrow or Wednesday. I'm rather curious to know what I got on my business law final.

I ordered a couple of more things from amazon. This time that's it. I've gotten everyone I wanted to get gifts for. Something is supposed to arrive tomorrow and then another something else will either arrive on Dec 24, or in the days after Christmas. But it is what it is. I was lucky to find anything on Amazon that was still available to have guaranteed delivery by Christmas.

Now I'm going to drink some tea and go to sleep.