I appreciate all of you who have checked on my blog and reminded me to write. I realize it's been a long time. My excuse...online classes have kidnapped all of my free time. I am taking 15 units and working full time. I take one five-week class at a time, back-to-back. Each class is worth 3 units. To complicate my schedule even more, I decided to double up classes, so I am taking 2 eight-week classes from the community college. It is complicated to keep track of where I'm at. Next week I will be in week 1 of an 8 week class and week 4 of a 5 week class. Since there is no professor or classroom setting to remind me of what assignments are due, it is completely up to me to keep it all straight.
I just finished an 8 week class on the history of graphic design. Fascinating, because it incorporated history, literature, and music all from a design perspective. The problem was I did not know that I would have to actually do graphic design work. I had to produce 32 different "spreads," each one depicting a particular design style from the past, including characteristics of the style and the main artists. Each spread took me at least 2 hours to do. Since I don't have a graphic design program, I had to do it in Microsoft Word. Anyone who has ever tried to manipulate images and text boxes in Word will sympathize with me. There were also 2 essays due a week, plus the midterm and final. I am so glad that class is done, although it is the only textbook that I plan on keeping so far. It learned so much from an unusual perspective.
The rest of my classes are business classes. There is a lot of work to do for them, but nothing like that graphic design class, which, by the way, was a 100 level class at a community college.
Everyone tells me I am crazy to be taking on so much. I don't doubt it, these people cannot see the light I see at the end of this tunnel full of speed bumps. Every week the light gets brighter. I have a goal to finish my degree by the end of the year and that is what I am going to do. If I had to do this for another semester next spring, I don't know if I could get through it. I figure I can just cram it all in now to get it done faster. It is doable, although it has consumed my life. I have made a decision for 2009 to be the year that all I do, practically, is work and school. And then I will have my life back.
One thing that I am happy about is that I think I found a solution for my migraines. I am seeing a world-renowned acupuncturist. He has assured me that my migraines are going to be less frequent, less intense, and the recovery will be shorter. All of those things have been happening. I had a migraine a couple of weeks ago and took Ibuprofen for it, which took it away. That is amazing! The acupuncturist said I need to sleep more, and not over schedule myself. Well, I am trying to get more sleep and I just have to put the over schedule part on hold, until all my classes are over. He says I have years of sleep to catch up on. That part is fun. I like to sleep, and now I can give myself permission to not do so many things that used to keep me up.
Acupuncture can hurt. I feel like I am Gulliver when I lie there. I feel like the needles are pinning me to the bed. If I dare to move a finger with needles in my hand, pain (or some kind of sensation, not quite pain) jumps up my arm. I have had 14 to 25 needles in me at once. He leaves me for an hour to rest, with the lights off. I usually sleep for 40 minutes and then spend the next 20 minutes trying to relax. I get needles in my ears, forehead, hands, elbows, knees and feet.
I really feel like it is helping. So, in that sense, I feel like I already have my life back.
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