Learning stuff
Sep. 11th, 2011 06:07 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sereneOn my kitchen table right now, because I haven't set up my school desk yet, are the following books:
Our Bodies, Ourselves (for Women's Studies: Women and their bodies)
A couple of ethics textbooks
A book and workbook for grammar
ASL book and DVD
Book on teaching oneself Dutch
Beginning Braille for adults
It occurs to me that I'm starting to learn three languages, only one of which involves speaking. (Dutch and Braille are for my personal use; ASL is for my language requirement at school, for work, and because I took a class in my 20s and have always wanted to learn more.)
This week, I work one day, take the GRE the next day, then go visit my mom. Next week, I work one day, then start school. I'll be going to school Tuesdays and Thursdays (along with two online courses) and working Mondays/Wednesdays/Fridays. After the disaster-filled summer in my family, it took me a while to get excited about this again, but now I am. I'll take my schoolbooks to my mom's and study in the downtimes; only four of my classes have books, but I've already bought all of them, so I can get a head start.
Sometimes, on a rough day, I wonder if I'm biting off more than I can chew, but then I remind myself it's only a year (or possibly a year and a quarter), and this time around, I'm not trying to go to school and hold down a minimum-wage job while being way too young to do all that. This time, I'm middle-aged, fairly responsible, and financially stable, albeit not highly paid. The kid is old enough to take care of herself, and the partners will miss me but are totally behind this step of my adventure. And of course, the Best Job Ever is making this possible by allowing me to tailor my work schedule to my school schedule. AMAZING of them, and I so appreciate it.
Our Bodies, Ourselves (for Women's Studies: Women and their bodies)
A couple of ethics textbooks
A book and workbook for grammar
ASL book and DVD
Book on teaching oneself Dutch
Beginning Braille for adults
It occurs to me that I'm starting to learn three languages, only one of which involves speaking. (Dutch and Braille are for my personal use; ASL is for my language requirement at school, for work, and because I took a class in my 20s and have always wanted to learn more.)
This week, I work one day, take the GRE the next day, then go visit my mom. Next week, I work one day, then start school. I'll be going to school Tuesdays and Thursdays (along with two online courses) and working Mondays/Wednesdays/Fridays. After the disaster-filled summer in my family, it took me a while to get excited about this again, but now I am. I'll take my schoolbooks to my mom's and study in the downtimes; only four of my classes have books, but I've already bought all of them, so I can get a head start.
Sometimes, on a rough day, I wonder if I'm biting off more than I can chew, but then I remind myself it's only a year (or possibly a year and a quarter), and this time around, I'm not trying to go to school and hold down a minimum-wage job while being way too young to do all that. This time, I'm middle-aged, fairly responsible, and financially stable, albeit not highly paid. The kid is old enough to take care of herself, and the partners will miss me but are totally behind this step of my adventure. And of course, the Best Job Ever is making this possible by allowing me to tailor my work schedule to my school schedule. AMAZING of them, and I so appreciate it.