Sunday, May 24, 2009

To Panic or Not to Panic....That Is the Question

A week from today, I will be loading my car and driving four hours away to stay in campus housing for three weeks without my family in order to complete a significant portion of my master's degree studies.

Part of me wants to panic. Okay, the biggest part of me wants to panic because I keep thinking:

  • I'm stressed about all the things I meant to get done before I left (that I haven't).
  • I'm sad about all the things I will be missing while I am gone.
  • I'm nervous for my husband and the babysitter whose task it is to keep my six-year-old entertained (she announced that she was already bored by 10 a.m. the day after school let out).
  • I'm worried about making it through eight hour class days without getting a migraine.
  • I'm wondering how well I will get along with my classmates. Will I be the odd man out because I am not a certified teacher nor have I ever taught?
  • Will the cafeteria food be bearable? I have valid fears: I lived on this particular campus the year before I married, and the smells from the cafeteria made me nauseous as I passed by each day. I still claim it was the worst food in the history of university cafeterias! Even the salad and cereal was unsuitable to eat, in my opinion. No joke! I lost so much weight that year....

On the upside, there are several things to look forward to in this experience:

  • I get to meet new people and (hopefully) make some new friends. If not, it will be a great exercise in networking.
  • I will have completed nine hours of courses in three weeks. There is no other way I'd be able to graduate in a year's time if not for this intense session.
  • I won't have to cook any meals and I will only be responsible for dressing myself, cleaning my tiny dorm room and keeping my small stash of laundry clean. What a load off!
  • Evenings should be free for reading a good book or working out at the really nice Wellness Center (they are even having Zumba classes!) or taking a walk around the track just like I used to do in the "good ol' days."
  • I don't have to be in class until 9 a.m. which means I can sleep in if I want!
  • If the cafeteria food is bad, maybe I will drop those last few pesky pounds before we head to the beach for vacation!! :)
  • It's free! All of this is free even down to the textbooks and meal plans. Whoo-hoo!

I decided that instead of looking at it as being gone for three straight weeks, I'd take it one week at a time. I will only be gone five nights before I can come home for a short weekend. That's not bad. I'm pretty sure the week will pass much more quickly than I anticipate. Between Zumba and working on my portfolio...well, you know what they say: "time flies when you're having fun." ;)

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think a small panic is justified!
I do envy you the summer school experience, in the UK they seem to exist mainly for school kids retaking their High School exams or for those who want to learn English. I have time on my hands atm before the girls finish school for their summer break and could do witha timely short course on Victorian Social History.

There is an award on my blog for you :)

flit said...

I'm going to be away for 3 weeks as well...June 6 -->

AND I am away this week as well...I am ready to go HOME ...but 2 more days to go...

this week in residence has made me SO happy that I never had to do the residence thing... I don't think I could cope long term.

Ladies of Virtue said...

You know what the Bible says about worry?

Megan said...

Oh hush your mouth, LOV. ;)