Playing Hooky.....

I had to play hooky from classes today....not willingly.

We have been having issues with our car for a week now. We thought the alternator was going out on it last week. It started having some whining issues but eventually stopped. The other day, the battery light on the dash started coming on and going out. Kevin came in that evening from work and took it to a local parts supplier and had them check it out....alternator- charging, and battery-good to go! Mmmkay so what's the deal? Kevin tells me that he thinks it will be ok til this weekend, when we would have the funds to replace it (if it indeed was the culprit) and he would have the time.

I made it to school all week just fine and even made it to and from my astronomy class last night. I prayed the whole way home.....nothing was happening but I didn't think it would hurt to ask the good Lord above to help me make it home safely.

This morning, Megan asked to ride the bus to school so we all got ready to go. Kevin was already gone, as he had to leave at 4:30am. We pulled out of the drive and made it to the bus stop, then I realized the driver probably had already been by. I decided to just meet up with the bus, drop off Megan, and continue on to school. That's when it happened! The radio, which was off, began to flicker, the battery light came back on, followed by a light that read "ABS", then the brake light, then the engine light, then a light that reads "traction off". When that light comes on, it means you are almost screwed. The gas pedal apparently does nothing then except cause your motor to rev. The car is still in motion but at a turtle's pace. Thank goodness, and by the Grace of God, I got Megan on the bus. I decided right then and there that I was NOT going to school today. I would rather miss then get halfway and end up stranded.

I made it home and called my instructor. She was more than sympathetic, considering I never miss class unless my kids have to go to the doctor or come down with something that does not permit my attendance. I tell ya it sucks not to be able to go to class. It almost made me cry. I know to some I may sound stupid, "I would be jumping up and down if I had to miss.", but not me. I take pride in knowing that I am bettering myself for me and my family and I do not take it for granite. The degree I am pursuing has a purpose.....and its purpose I will full-fill upon graduation.

One good thing did occur this week. We took our daily exam in astronomy yesterday evening.....I scored a 94. We took a break and resumed with notes and math problems. Wow! I never knew I would ever be doing math like that....EVER! I totally sucked at math in school. I barely passed high school algebra with a D. Those exponents and such meant nothing to me. Now, they do. Mr. Nowicki does a GREAT job at explaining the process. I could have made better grades in high school if he had been one of my instructors. He never goes on if you don't understand it. Questions? Ask away.....he LOVES it! Now that is an instructor whom I can and do show respect. After a few notes and math calculations, we all gathered outside and Mr. N showed us Venus. Ever gazed up at the stars and wondered what that extremely bright one was? It's actually the planet Venus. I learned that Venus has phases exactly like the moon. The phases are: New(which you cannot see since it happens only during the day), crescent, quarter, gibbous, and full. Venus was in the gibbous phase last night. Gibbous is when almost all of the moon, or planet, is lit....like there is a slight bit left untouched by light. It was very cool to observe. The next thing we saw was Orion's Nebulae. This is below the 'belt' in Orion. LOL It's actually the sheath or spot where the sword would go, if in his belt. If you have a good pair of binoculars or a telescope, you could actually see it. It looks like a cluster of stars surrounded by a blue-ish(sometimes green-ish) gas. You can't tell it with the naked eye. Fascinating!! I am so ready for next Thursday to get here!

I have got to go sometime this weekend and get things for a project. I also need a protractor for astronomy. I keep forgetting it! I have a nursery rhyme (Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star) on a regular sheet of printer paper that I have to take to Staples and have blown up to poster size. Thank the Heavens above that they only charge $3 for this. I have a ''rainstick'' to decorate and homework to complete as well. It looks as if this will be a busy, busy weekend.

Hope everyone's weekend goes well! Over and out!

A Reason to Smile

I cannot believe we have 10 more days and it will be Christmas Eve! Time is flying by so quickly. Seems as if I was just getting ready to attend my first class as a college student yesterday and in less than a month I will be starting anew with my second semester.

We have our tree up. It doesn't have any ornaments on it yet, only garland. Why you ask? Well, for some odd reason, a few of the lights decided to burn out and not come back on. We worked and swapped lights to no avail. I am so disgusted with the thing right now that I had already told Kevin that we were chunking it out after Christmas and buying new. I think I may remove all the light bulbs off it and use those as spares for the next one.

I know this has been a very bad year with lots of ups and downs. I am hoping the new year brings us more on the up side. Recently, some things have come abound that required us to visit a lawyer. I am not at all happy about it. I would rather not have, but the circumstances left us no choice. The decision was a hard one but one we felt was necessary. I really don't want to travel down that road but if it is our last option, we just might have to do it. But on to the reason for my blog title.

A few days ago, I emailed my psychology instructor. I had taken my final in that class the week before Thanksgiving and had still not heard anything on the final outcome of my grade. I did know that going into that final I had a 91.7 grade average and since NOONE ever aces her exams(not sure why), but she was going to possible curve the grades after all the students had taken their exams. I anxiously checked my college email everday, looking for that instant reply to my question. I was beginning to lose all hope in getting a response soon. As I awoke this morning, the thought of checking it today crossed my mind. In a way, I figured since I had not gotten any reply yesterday there was probably no way for me to have one today on Sunday, but I figured what the heck! I logged into my account and clicked on the links to get me to my email inbox. OMG! There it was!! An email from my instructor! My hands started shaking, lol, but I managed to open it. Here is what it said: "You got an A. Merry Christmas!" :o You would not believe how shocked I was! With the A in this class, that means I have 5 A's for this semester!! *YAY* I am so thrilled!

Even through all the bad crap, I have a reason to smile!