A little Humor

I started my Business Law class yesterday. It's a online class, how I prefer classes to be taken. In order to "participate" students are required to post at least 2 "substantive" posts on at least 4 days for a total of 8 posts.

Sometimes Professors will give a student credit if he or she posts 8 substantive posts in the week. THIS Professor is clearly against that as he states "The participation requirement is that you must have at least 2 substantive posts on 4 separate days to receive full credit. You cannot have 8 substantive posts in one day and receive full credit."

Participation is not something I care too much about, it's not worth a lot of points and to me not that important. In other words I am lazy and only usallu contribute enough to "get by" with an A. I am also known to be one of those students who posts 8 messages on the last day pertaining to various topics in relation to the class and cross my fingers hopeing the Professor wont notice or care.

This Professor, after stating 8 posts on the last day does not count, continues on by stating, "You may, however, have 28 substantive posts with at least 2 on three days and 22 on the 4th day and receive full credit."

That above statement cracked me up and continues to do so as I can't help but imagine myself trying to scramble on the last day of class to post 22 messages that substantive and relevant to the course material. That would of course me assuming I bothered to post on the prio 3 days.

I think I might actually be forced to participate in this class and the Professor has already, in his own way, motivated me to want to. Plus, I like Business Law and I might actually learn something new for a change.

You can't be in the club anymore!

We interrupt this Christmas Blog for one of my tangents....

Remember back in the day when you and your friends started "secret club." The kind that met on Sunday afternoons when all the Mom's gathered for their weekly book club meeting to talk about the latest book. Only, now that you are able to read and you remember the sounds they made your questioning whether or not they were talking about a book or sex.

I bet you remember the exact Princess Barbie sheet you draped over your dresser and bed to make little fort and the exact color of gel pen you used to make the "NO BOYS ALLOWED" sign that you pinned to the Princess Barbie sheet with scotch tape, because you weren't trusted with anything else.

Remember when Becky promised she would bring cookies for everyone, and you could already feel the gooey deliciousness in your mouth, only to find that Becky didn't come to the meeting, which inadvertently left you with Sarah's crummy crackers and cheese? So, you being the leader of the group decided that Becky was kicked out of the club.

OH Ooorr! Do you remember when everyone took a task to do to help the club get better. Sarah had to bring stuffed animals to guard the fort, you had to type up the club rules (because only a REAL club had rules), and Jessica was assigned to bringing extra sheets to expand the fort in the hallway? Yea! I bet you also remember when Sarah forgot to bring the guard animals and how upset you were and that you also KICKED HER OUT OF THE CLUB!

This is a classic example of the "You hurt my feelings, so now I am going to hurt yours MORE" attitude. I thought everyone moved past this in 6th grade. Apparently, we didn't, and apparently it is following us all the way through the completion of our MBA.

The degree program I am completing requires team assignments (luckily it's the same team throughout the class). Generally, teams handle the assignment by splitting up the work, submitting it on a early date, and one person compiles it all, edits it and turns it in. It's a full proof method to an A. However, sometimes shit happens, it's inevitable and the person who SAID they wold write 300 words on cow dung, backed out and now the rest of the team has to figure out what to do next. Welcome to the real world!

What I am about to tell you happens often, and my often I mean there is always someone from one team your brings it up or suggests it.

One team member suggests that in the event someone does not complete the work he or she was assigned/volunteered to do, then he or she's name will be removed from the assignment.

Fair, right? It sounds fair. If Jane didn't do the work, why should she get credit? I'll tell you why...

BECAUSE SHE IS IN THE TEAM TOO!!!

Now, let us take out the obvious excuses as to why Jane didn't so the homework: She didn't pay her internet bill, so she couldn't submit the work? Her dog ate it? She dropped her cell phone in the toilet at the bar and hadn't gotten around to getting a new one, so there was no way she could call to tell you what happened? Wait, that was me. Anyway, now that we have all the bull shit excuses out of the way let's focus of those that have merit.

My grandma died. Some of you might be thinking that this is not really a good excuse. Well, I am close to my grandmother and if she did die, I would want some time to grieve. And I can guarantee that the LAST thing I am going to be doing is writing about cow dung OR letting my team know that I will not be writing about cow dung. The team all of a sudden takes second priority and I no longer care for their well being.

I digress...

Jane has no valid excuse and her grandmother died 3 years ago. Should her name still go on the assignment? YES! Why?

BECAUSE SHE IS IN THE TEAM TOO!!!

Let me explain further with more explanations:

1. If you think of a classroom like a business you would have the boss (the professor) and the employees (the students). By removing an employee from the workload (for lack of participation) the team would be in a sense "firing" said employee. Well, the team does not have the authority to fire the employee; that is the boss's job and should be left up to the boss. The employees' job is to inform the boss of the situation so that the boss can handle the situation properly.

2. You're reverting to your childhood self by saying, "If you are not going to bring me any cookies, then I am kicking you out of the club." You're an adult, behave like one, even when you are challenged by adults behaving like children. Stooping to their level makes you no better.

3. Regardless of which team member participates or HOW MUCH each member participates it is still a team effort. If I decided that I was going to do JACK SHIT (hypothetically of course, not physically) I am still apart of the team. I may not be acting like much of a team member, but you can't control that.

4. It's a threat, more so a scare tactic. "IF you don't do the work, you don't get your name on the paper!" Is that the best you can come up with? My NAME doesn't go onto a piece of paper? You really convinced me to write that paper on cow dung. In fact, I am so worried about my name isn't going to go on the paper, I am going to write 600 instead of 300 words. The point is... If someone is not going to do the work, it doesn't matter if you threaten them with assignment points. I'll call your bluff, and raise you a trip to the managers office where

5. An eye for an eye. We are not in the Roman days and we all know this method doesn't work. It will always end in someone's death. For example:

I take your eye.

You take my eye for taking your eye.

I take your other eye for taking my eye.

You take my other for for me taking your other eye.

The result: You and I are both left blind!

END TANGENT

All I Want For Christmas - Day 9

I think about money a lot. I love money. For those people who say, "Money doesn't buy happiness," well, you are right. Partially right, that is. Money cannot BUY happiness, but money sure can make things a-whole-hell-of-a-lot better!

Take today's Christmas wish for example, all I want for Christmas is...

My current and any future student loans paid off.

Do you know how much it effing costs to go to school these days? It's expensive! To add to it, no one is hiring, but they want you to have a degree, so that when they decided they are going to hire someone, they can pick up, because you are qualified and then cross their pretty little fingers that you will desperate enough for a job, ANY job, and pay you about the same and a high school graduate is being paid to clean gutters at the local Pigley Wiggley. Education, huh? I might have a Master's and $60,000 in debt, but at least I don't have to clean gutters!

That's really want it feels like. I'm no longer different from gutter cleaner, expect he is cleaning gutters and I feel like the gutter. YIKES!

Christie's Wish List:

1. Paid off furniture.

2. My dream home.

3. A nap.

4. My hair done.

5. The new PostSecret book/go to the event.

6. Laser hair removal.

7. A milkshake.

8. Work Out.

9. No student loans.

Famous Last Words

"UH OH!"

That's exactly what I was saying when I remembered that I was back in school. (You can stop laughing now).

How does anyone truly expect me to remember that I am enrolled at a University for their Masters program? Come on, it's me we are talking about. :D

I remembered on Friday, I set everything up, so that all I had to do over the weekend was log in and post it for participation. Then, Sunday night rolls around and as I am about to drift into the most beautiful sleep imaginable:

"Babe, are you doing your homework?"

*dead silence*

"It's just that I never see you do any homework."

*My jaw hits the floor*

"Are you still going to school?"

*My eyes are about to pop out of their sockets*
In a haste to remember. "Umm... Yea, I'm in school. I do all my homework at work, you know that."

*silence*
Trying to recover, "I did forget that I was in school this weekend though," *deep breath* "But, I'll be fine, like I can recover from it, it won't hurt me."

I've been really busy lately, and wow! I can't believe I forgot, for 2 days I forgot. Good thing Lover said something! Who knows how long I would have forgotten for.

...But I Don't Wanna!

Trying to explain the entire U.O.P online classroom environment is pointless, because no one cares. Each week you have assignments, usually due by day 7 or Monday. It's day 7. I have 2 assignments to do. I don't want to.

I forgot this is what school was about. The professor giving assignments, and me complaining all week and waiting until the last minute to do the assignments. So, why am I back in school working on my Masters? Oh yea! I remember. It's because I can't pay back my loans for my Bachelors. Also, because I need the "extra" financial aid in order to continue paying my bills. Isn't that sad? OH and did I mention that my work reimburses? I could use that money too! Because if you think I am going to take the yearly $5,250 my work gives me to pay BACK the loans, you haven't been following along very closely.

Oh and for an added bonus. Instead of following the 18 month program it would take for me to get my degree, I am stretching it out over 3 years, so that is $5,250 EACH year! YAY for me! That is if I stay with this company, which I am trying desperately hard NOT to do.

I Miss Recess

Remember when your school day was only 6 hours long. I wish the work day was 6 hours long. I also wish we had recess again. Companies should implement this into their schedules, it will keep employees from getting "burnt out." Not that I am getting burnt out, I just want a recess. Oh and while you are at it how about decreasing the work day to 6 hours too? Actually, I couldn't afford to only work 30 hours in a work week so that wouldn't be any good. See, where I am going with this?

Vote Yes For Recess!

The new 9-5 has become 8-5 for a total of 9 hours a day (1 hour for lunch) that you will never be able to get back. Imagine you had a recess in there somewhere. Or even split up your lunch into 2 30 minute breaks OR you could just turn your hour lunch into 2 15 minute recesses and a 30 minute lunch. This transforms your work day into:

WORK 8 - 10

RECESS 10-10:15

WORK 10:15 - 12:30

LUNCH 12:30 - 1

WORK 1 - 3:30

RECESS 3:30 - 3:45

WORK 3:45 - 5

Now, I don't know about you, but I like the new schedule. I want recess again. If I could go back to any time in my life, I think I was pretty happy in Kindergarten - where we had NAP TIME too!!!

How's Your '09

Man do I suck! October of 2008 was my last post?

Well, I just graduated with my B.S., so I am pretty sure I will have a lot more time on my hands. I thought I might get back into blogging (not like I was deep in it the first time).

Not too much has changed. I have a boyfriend, Lover! The first boyfriend ever. We live together and love each other! :D

Horrible Professor

I have never in my life had a Professor that was so unhelpful, so unforgiving, so inconsiderate, so, so,, UUUUGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!

A teachers job is to teach the student, right? Well, that means when the students asks a question the teacher provides sufficient help, right? Well this teacher deciedes to tell the student that there is nothing she can do for the student and why should such student recieve perferential treatment?

ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME!!!???!!!!!! SERIOUSLY!!! BITCH IT'S YOUR FUCKING JOB TO HELP ME!!!!

I post the formatt of a chart she required us to prepare. I asked if the chart was what she was looking for. She then said that I was the student and it was my job to complete the assignment and she wasn't going to do it for me.

Umm... I understand that and never once did I ask you to do the assignment for me, I simply requested a yes or no answer to the formatting of the chart...

Relief

At first I was dreading taking 2 economic classes at the same time, Principles of Microeconomics and the Principles of Macroeconomics. However, after 10 horrible, grueling, and demanding weeks of Research and Evaluation (Statistics), I am quickly finding my economics class a HUGE relief. It is nice to back on a subject that actually applies to my profession.

I still dislike economics. This could possibly change in the next 5 week considering the circumstances. Maybe I just previously took the classes at the wrong time.