Starting the semester….

 So, in the chaos…..about 3 weeks ago my program of study committee (well, in particular, my methods person) decided the methods course I was registered for this semester wasn’t good enough. The professor of the recommended methods course was out of town and not responding to my emails as I tried to register for her currently full class. Eventually, days before classes started, she told me she’d already used up all the overload spots, which left me scrambling. I contemplated just dropping the class, and then was informed by my department that this would make the sky fall in as far as financial aid and bill paying is concerned, because now, students are considered part-time if they have 6 hours and an assistantship (new change to the university policy). 

After some frantic emailing and a couple of in-person meetings, I’m doing an independent study with my methods person. However, because this is an independent study in Nursing, a different college than the School of Public Health, I’m on my second round of not being allowed to register for it (the first time I was denied because the instructor permission wasn’t in the system yet).

Research participants have been straggling in for their final weights this week, which means I’ve needed to stay late three different days. The erratic nature of these things being scheduled  means that on these days I’ve wound up walking the 0.75 mile across campus to my car. Which is fine, except that this includes crossing the two biggest roads in town, and going up and down several major roads, in 90 F temperatures plus humidity , while carrying laptop and books. I *could* wait on the evening shuttle, but this would put me getting home 30-45 minutes later, and I have a very extroverted cat who’s already having problems with me being gone for that much of the day.

Also, student health insurance is its usual evil self. Each year they terminate your previous year’s policy a few days before the new one goes into effect, and then you have to re-register for the new policy, which takes 2-3 days to clear the system. Which means students spend 1-2 weeks uninsured. I have two refills I needed last week, which would be $3,000 out of pocket, at least. I’ve been off one of my meds (the less important of the two) for about a week now. I’m due for my Humira shot next week, and don’t want to be late on that (I’m usually feeling pretty run-down and allaround crummy the last couple days before shot day- good motivation to take my medicine, possibly a sign disease isn’t being completely controlled, but I really don’t want to think about that possibility.

I’m taking an online course this semester and the instructor hasn’t even bothered to post the syllabus yet, and I’m still trying to finish that class I have an incomplete in from last semester. Was hoping to make some progress on that this past week, but all the general back to school craziness prevented me from doing so. Also a little anxious about his ears- his right ear is itching again. I’ve been keeping it clean and putting olive oil on it. If he’s not doing better next week we’ll be off to the vet again.

And I’m tired. That worn-thin, deep-down-to-your-bones tired. There’s a line from Lord of the Rings where Bilbo says that he feels like butter scraped over too much toast. I’ve felt that way often these past couple years.