Thank you for not being psycho-over-involved parents who had our whole lives planned before we were brought home from the hospital.
I met with a girl today who told me her parents are in Korea- she was sent here. When I asked her what she wanted to do, she told me "my parents want me to be a dentist". I said "What do you want to do?" She said "I don't know. I might like being a dentist I guess." When I asked her where she wanted to go to school, she said "my parents expect me to go somewhere on the East coast. I don't know."
Later, I met with a boy and his mother and father. The boy and father spoke very little. I was going over his graduation progress report and his mother said they knew it and didn't need to talk about it. Ok, so then I asked him his first or second choice of college, and when he said something, his mother snapped "Yeah but do you really want to go there?"
Then I was going through a Utah website that collects information from every US College (tuition, admissions, application, etc.) with the kid. I usually start with a job and go through that to find a major and school to show them how it works. His mother interrupted me and said, "We have a daughter who was a Hinckley scholar and another daughter who's on a full-tuition scholarship, so we know how college works. We don't need to go through this." So I tried to be as accommodating as possible and said "Ok, well the next thing is to talk about the ACT," for which I had a handout for some practice exams to which she said "Yeah he doesn't need that. We know all this."
So the only thing left to do was class requests. When I asked the kid what English class he wanted to take, he looked at his mother. She already had his classes all planned. "We're going to take English 11 Honors." Then she proceeded to tell me all the other classes that "we" were going to take. When I asked the kid if he had any electives he wanted to take, his mother said "He doesn't have time to take electives." She had a reason for everything: "We're not taking that class because the teacher is awful," "we're taking this class online," "We're not taking that AP class because it won't get him credit at Stanford." Who said anything about Stanford besides you?
And I guess this is the end of the appointment if you are uninterested in anything I have to say. It was certainly the fastest appointment I ever had. They left.
Maybe the kid was happy that his mother had his whole life planned and he didn't have to worry about anything. I hope so. Because the whole thing was ridiculously uncomfortable for me. And I had to try SO hard to be kind and happy. I also thought she was a bit rude in telling me that they didn't need the information I was supposed to be giving them. If you didn't need it, why did you come? And, despite the fact that you have two kids who have already done this, THIS kid has never done it before- maybe HE wants to know. Then again, maybe he doesn't because his mom has always done everything for him. And if or when your kid DOES get to Stanford, who says he's going to like it, or be successful? Are you going to move into his dorm room with him??
I'm sorry. I'll simmer down now. I'm just saying: If you insist on being the crazy hovering parent, you could be the nice crazy, not the mean crazy. Like the lady who brought in a variety of muffins for the counseling staff when she had an appointment to talk about her kid.
So anyway. Mom (and Dad)- thanks for not being an obnoxious parent. Thanks for not planning out every course I was going to take or what teachers I was absolutely NOT going to take classes from; thanks for teaching me to be respectful and get good grades despite not liking teachers. And thanks for not telling me where I was going to college. Thanks for not telling me who and what I was going to be when I grew up. And thanks for not being rude to my teachers, counselors, administrators, etc. and expecting the whole world to bend over backwards for *your* children, because obviously they are better than everyone else's kids and therefore obligatory classes or even practice ACT exams are simply below them. And thank you for not being overprotective in an if-my-kid-gets-a-scraped-knee-we're-suing-the-sidewalk kind of way. Regardless of whether or not you believed that your kids were better than everyone else's, you never treated people like you thought so or that they should think so too.
It is experiences like answering the phone at Freshman Academy or talking to this mother today that make me realize the true meaning of helicopter parenting. Ick. Gag. Barf. Thanks for not being helicopter parents; at least not to the extent of this mom.
Somehow you managed to encourage us to do our best without micromanaging. You let us be involved in different activities and do what we wanted to do. And being the youngests (plural for me and Megan), there were things you knew from your previous children, but you were not convinced you knew everything about everything by the time we came along and that our lives should be exactly like Michael's or Erin's or Evan's. Today's kid's mother seriously made me want to barf.
Anyway. So thanks Mom and Dad, for being fairly normal parents.
Oh, and please make sure I never become *that* mother.
your favorite daughter of course,
mollie
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Monday, February 22, 2010
grad school update
well ladies and gentlemen,
It's official.
As expected, I have been denied admission to the PhD program, which was a relief. But, I got an email this morning informing me that I was admitted to BYU's MSW program. Hallelujah. I can breathe a sigh of relief, because if nothing else works out it looks like I will be in Provo for the next two years working on a Master's in Social Work.
It wouldn't be my top choice (I would prefer to go into one of the 5 school counseling programs I applied to), but it is extremely comforting to know I have somewhere to be next fall. So now I guess we wait to hear from all the other schools.
-mollie
It's official.
As expected, I have been denied admission to the PhD program, which was a relief. But, I got an email this morning informing me that I was admitted to BYU's MSW program. Hallelujah. I can breathe a sigh of relief, because if nothing else works out it looks like I will be in Provo for the next two years working on a Master's in Social Work.
It wouldn't be my top choice (I would prefer to go into one of the 5 school counseling programs I applied to), but it is extremely comforting to know I have somewhere to be next fall. So now I guess we wait to hear from all the other schools.
-mollie
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Caution: Kidney Stones Ahead!
Ok.
This is just weird. My roommate had kidney stones last Friday and I spent most of the day with her in urgent care before I left for Denver. Today, I got out of church and got a message from Bryce around 11:30 saying he was taking Erin to the ER and could I watch the boys.
I met him at the hospital, took the boys to my apartment (and later back to their own house) and Erin and Bryce came home at 6ish. Erin's diagnosis? Kidney stones.
So if you are female and live with me, or are related to me, it's possible you'll be getting kidney stones next weekend. Or maybe it's a sign that I'm next. Gasp. I hope not. Erin told me I'm passing around the kidney stone germ. Sorry- can't help it.
Anyway- I hope you're all having a marvelous day! And any day without kidney stones seems to be marvelous compared to a day with, so count your blessings I guess.
-mollie
This is just weird. My roommate had kidney stones last Friday and I spent most of the day with her in urgent care before I left for Denver. Today, I got out of church and got a message from Bryce around 11:30 saying he was taking Erin to the ER and could I watch the boys.
I met him at the hospital, took the boys to my apartment (and later back to their own house) and Erin and Bryce came home at 6ish. Erin's diagnosis? Kidney stones.
So if you are female and live with me, or are related to me, it's possible you'll be getting kidney stones next weekend. Or maybe it's a sign that I'm next. Gasp. I hope not. Erin told me I'm passing around the kidney stone germ. Sorry- can't help it.
Anyway- I hope you're all having a marvelous day! And any day without kidney stones seems to be marvelous compared to a day with, so count your blessings I guess.
-mollie
Friday, February 19, 2010
Dr. Dickerson?
Well, I had my PhD interview today.
I was nervous, but my boss kept telling me not to worry about it. So I tried not to. It started perfectly harmless. We all introduced ourselves (there were 20 of us) to the faculty. I did not realize they had 65 applicants, so I'm happy I made it to the "top 20". I was the youngest one there- everyone else had at least one year between them and college graduation. I think there was one girl who graduated in December. And, for any of you recent BYU-ites, Matt Meese of Divine Comedy was there, which made me want to laugh out loud quite a few times- not because he was so funny, but because he seemed so out of place there.
Then we were split basically into groups of 4 and rotated to different activities. We got our pictures taken, had 2 interviews (15 minutes each) with different sets of 3 faculty members. They asked me what I was interested in, etc. I think I did well in the interviews, but I said I wanted to work in education or something related to that, and I think they ignored everything after that. Either way, it was obvious they didn't think this program was good for someone who wanted to work in education, even though the Ed. Psych. people told me I shouldn't apply to their program either. So... whatever. I guess I was supposed to say I want to work in private practice. But I don't.
We also had a writing assignment where they gave us 30 minutes on a computer and asked us to write about an issue or question in psychology, why it was important, and how to fix it. I think I did well on the writing as well- I'm pretty good at writing on the fly.
The last thing was a group assignment. They gave us a scenario- they said we were the admission's board for this program, and we needed to decide how to assess applicants and what to do about affirmative action. Then they sit and watch what you talk about. (LAME group activity if you ask me.) Then they interrupted us and said "Ok, we have to interrupt because there's a suicidal student across campus and you, as the board, need to deal with it. What do you do?" (Also LAME.) I just hate the whole "group" thing. There was one girl who commented at the beginning (before faculty got there) how awkward these things are because "everyone's trying to fight to say something intelligent." Well, she would NOT stop talking. I said a couple good things, but it wasn't the strength of my performance today.
Anyway. So that was the whole thing. At the end they got us all together and said they'll be accepting 6 of us, so I have about a 1 in 4 chance, and they'll notify us by the end of next week. I do not expect to be accepted, and I would not be heartbroken if I was not. But part of the issue is that my boss (who was once a faculty member in this PhD program) really wants me to get in because she doesn't want me to leave, and thinks I should get a PhD, so she mentioned putting a word in for me with the current program faculty, which puts undue stress on them and me, though I am very grateful for her support.
Anyway. It was the only PhD program I applied to, on a whim, to see if I could get in. I made it to the "top 20" and I am satisfied regardless of whether or not I get accepted. My heart is not invested in this program (like it is in some others), though it would be a great opportunity. If nothing else, the whole experience made me realize I feel much more comfortable starting a 1-2 year master's program right now than a 5 year PhD. So, here's hoping I get accepted to some of the Master's programs I have applied to.
And, Dr. Dickerson? Not just yet.
-mollie
I was nervous, but my boss kept telling me not to worry about it. So I tried not to. It started perfectly harmless. We all introduced ourselves (there were 20 of us) to the faculty. I did not realize they had 65 applicants, so I'm happy I made it to the "top 20". I was the youngest one there- everyone else had at least one year between them and college graduation. I think there was one girl who graduated in December. And, for any of you recent BYU-ites, Matt Meese of Divine Comedy was there, which made me want to laugh out loud quite a few times- not because he was so funny, but because he seemed so out of place there.
Then we were split basically into groups of 4 and rotated to different activities. We got our pictures taken, had 2 interviews (15 minutes each) with different sets of 3 faculty members. They asked me what I was interested in, etc. I think I did well in the interviews, but I said I wanted to work in education or something related to that, and I think they ignored everything after that. Either way, it was obvious they didn't think this program was good for someone who wanted to work in education, even though the Ed. Psych. people told me I shouldn't apply to their program either. So... whatever. I guess I was supposed to say I want to work in private practice. But I don't.
We also had a writing assignment where they gave us 30 minutes on a computer and asked us to write about an issue or question in psychology, why it was important, and how to fix it. I think I did well on the writing as well- I'm pretty good at writing on the fly.
The last thing was a group assignment. They gave us a scenario- they said we were the admission's board for this program, and we needed to decide how to assess applicants and what to do about affirmative action. Then they sit and watch what you talk about. (LAME group activity if you ask me.) Then they interrupted us and said "Ok, we have to interrupt because there's a suicidal student across campus and you, as the board, need to deal with it. What do you do?" (Also LAME.) I just hate the whole "group" thing. There was one girl who commented at the beginning (before faculty got there) how awkward these things are because "everyone's trying to fight to say something intelligent." Well, she would NOT stop talking. I said a couple good things, but it wasn't the strength of my performance today.
Anyway. So that was the whole thing. At the end they got us all together and said they'll be accepting 6 of us, so I have about a 1 in 4 chance, and they'll notify us by the end of next week. I do not expect to be accepted, and I would not be heartbroken if I was not. But part of the issue is that my boss (who was once a faculty member in this PhD program) really wants me to get in because she doesn't want me to leave, and thinks I should get a PhD, so she mentioned putting a word in for me with the current program faculty, which puts undue stress on them and me, though I am very grateful for her support.
Anyway. It was the only PhD program I applied to, on a whim, to see if I could get in. I made it to the "top 20" and I am satisfied regardless of whether or not I get accepted. My heart is not invested in this program (like it is in some others), though it would be a great opportunity. If nothing else, the whole experience made me realize I feel much more comfortable starting a 1-2 year master's program right now than a 5 year PhD. So, here's hoping I get accepted to some of the Master's programs I have applied to.
And, Dr. Dickerson? Not just yet.
-mollie
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
The Run-down.
dear friends,
let me describe the last week or so to you.
TUESDAY FEB. 9
- my computer got a deadly virus on tuesday night.
THURSDAY FEB. 11
- Went to Erin's to try and salvage some stuff from my computer. It worked. Yippee.
- I stayed up to pack my back until 2:30 am
FRIDAY
- 10 am. Drove my roommate to urgent care. (She ended up having kidney stones)
- 1:45 pm. I was in the FA office to get in the van.
- 4:55 pm. Flight departed from SLC to Denver. In my company: my boss, her husband, the "assistant boss", his wife, and four other peer mentors. The other peer mentors are sophomores, and I am almost a full 2 years older than them.
- Arrive in Denver, take the bus to the rental car agency. I got appointed "co-pilot" (if you know me, you know this was a bad idea)- but the directions were easy, so we successfully made our way to the Sheraton downtown.
- Check in to hotel rooms- 3 rooms for 5 girls, meaning, I got my own room (since none of the other girls wanted to be alone, and remember how I was the old satellite peer mentor. Room 643)
- 8 pm. Walk down to the restaurant Maggiano's. Each plate could feed probably 3 people. We had tons and tons and tons of food that we all shared.
Note: I got a travel advance of $150 to pay for my food.
- Dinner was $15 each, with creme brulee for dessert
SATURDAY
- Up at 9 to meet in Pat's room and go to breakfast at a little bakery. $6
- Walk downtown to the Colorado state capital (which was closed) and then to the Denver Mint (which was also closed). Saw the Denver art museum, but no one wanted to go in. Boo. Then to an old church- we so brilliantly walked in during the middle of mass. Then touristy shopping down 16th street.
- 2 pm. Met Candace (one of the peer mentors who was doing homework) for lunch at the same bakery we ate breakfast at. $8
- 4 pm. Meet the staff to look at our presentation room and go to the opening session of the conference. (By the way, it was The National Conference on First-Year Experience)
- 7:30 pm. Dinner with authors of some books. You see, there were publishers there with big displays of free books, hoping that people attending the conference were also choosing a book for their first-year reading programs. They had authors there to discuss their books over meals, which were free. This was one such meal. It was salad, steak and chicken and rice, and sorbet.
- Meeting in Pat's room to go over our presentation. Bed at midnight-ish.
SUNDAY
- 7:20 am. Meeting the staff and going down to breakfast. Conference sessions until 10, when our presentation was. Our room was full- probably 60 people. When we started though, some people left, possibly because we required audience participation, possibly because we read student work as part of the presentation and it was overtly religious.
- 10:40. The formal presentation ended and the peer mentors were sent into the crowd to answer questions. My group had many questions, and I was honestly surprised they wanted to know so much.
- 11:15 am. HUMONGOUS sigh of relief. The presentation was over!
- Free lunch- salad, stuffed chicken, carrot cake.
- 5:30 pm. Conference sessions ended, up to Pat's room to debrief.
- 7:30 pm. Arrive at The Cheesecake Factory. Wait 1.5 hours for a table. Happy Valentine's Day.
Going to any semi-nice restaurant in downtown Denver on Valentine's Day was a BAD idea.
Pulled pork sandwich (surprisingly delicious) and chocolate cake. $20.
- 10:30 pm. Pajama party with the girls in my room, with Valentine's chocolates we bought for ourselves.
MONDAY
- 12:30 am. Sleep.
- 7:30 am. Conference sessions until 11:30.
- 11:30 am. Packing our bags and bringing them down to the car.
- 1-3 pm. More conference sessions, with another free author's lunch.
- 4 pm. Drive to the airport.
- 6:55 pm. Flight departs from Denver to SLC.
- 8:45 pm. Flight arrives in SLC. Wait for luggage and rental car.
- 10:30 pm. Dropped off at my apartment.
TUESDAY
- Talking to my roommate, until 12:30 am. Sleep.
- Up at 7:30 to go to THS.
- Home at 2:30 after full day of 9th grade SEOP presentations.
- 8:30 pm. Going to Erin's to pick up my resurrected computer, thanks to Bryce!!!!
WEDNESDAY
-Up at 6:00 to get ready to go to THS for another full day of 9th grade SEOPs.
-Home at 2:30, class at 4 until 6:30.
And I am planning to go to bed early tonight, because I haven't slept a full night since last week. So, I have to wrap this up. Results of the conference: net gain of $112, 17 new books, and something pretty nice to put on my resume, plus new friends and lots of laughs. (aww)
Note: To see my name listed as a presenter in the official program, with a synopsis of our presentation, go here. I'm on page 31.
Looking ahead:
-Friday, 8 am - 1 pm. Group interview for Counseling Psych Ph.D. program at BYU.
-Saturday, 6 pm. Date.
let me describe the last week or so to you.
TUESDAY FEB. 9
- my computer got a deadly virus on tuesday night.
THURSDAY FEB. 11
- Went to Erin's to try and salvage some stuff from my computer. It worked. Yippee.
- I stayed up to pack my back until 2:30 am
FRIDAY
- 10 am. Drove my roommate to urgent care. (She ended up having kidney stones)
- 1:45 pm. I was in the FA office to get in the van.
- 4:55 pm. Flight departed from SLC to Denver. In my company: my boss, her husband, the "assistant boss", his wife, and four other peer mentors. The other peer mentors are sophomores, and I am almost a full 2 years older than them.
- Arrive in Denver, take the bus to the rental car agency. I got appointed "co-pilot" (if you know me, you know this was a bad idea)- but the directions were easy, so we successfully made our way to the Sheraton downtown.
- Check in to hotel rooms- 3 rooms for 5 girls, meaning, I got my own room (since none of the other girls wanted to be alone, and remember how I was the old satellite peer mentor. Room 643)
- 8 pm. Walk down to the restaurant Maggiano's. Each plate could feed probably 3 people. We had tons and tons and tons of food that we all shared.
Note: I got a travel advance of $150 to pay for my food.
- Dinner was $15 each, with creme brulee for dessert
SATURDAY
- Up at 9 to meet in Pat's room and go to breakfast at a little bakery. $6
- Walk downtown to the Colorado state capital (which was closed) and then to the Denver Mint (which was also closed). Saw the Denver art museum, but no one wanted to go in. Boo. Then to an old church- we so brilliantly walked in during the middle of mass. Then touristy shopping down 16th street.
- 2 pm. Met Candace (one of the peer mentors who was doing homework) for lunch at the same bakery we ate breakfast at. $8
- 4 pm. Meet the staff to look at our presentation room and go to the opening session of the conference. (By the way, it was The National Conference on First-Year Experience)
- 7:30 pm. Dinner with authors of some books. You see, there were publishers there with big displays of free books, hoping that people attending the conference were also choosing a book for their first-year reading programs. They had authors there to discuss their books over meals, which were free. This was one such meal. It was salad, steak and chicken and rice, and sorbet.
- Meeting in Pat's room to go over our presentation. Bed at midnight-ish.
SUNDAY
- 7:20 am. Meeting the staff and going down to breakfast. Conference sessions until 10, when our presentation was. Our room was full- probably 60 people. When we started though, some people left, possibly because we required audience participation, possibly because we read student work as part of the presentation and it was overtly religious.
- 10:40. The formal presentation ended and the peer mentors were sent into the crowd to answer questions. My group had many questions, and I was honestly surprised they wanted to know so much.
- 11:15 am. HUMONGOUS sigh of relief. The presentation was over!
- Free lunch- salad, stuffed chicken, carrot cake.
- 5:30 pm. Conference sessions ended, up to Pat's room to debrief.
- 7:30 pm. Arrive at The Cheesecake Factory. Wait 1.5 hours for a table. Happy Valentine's Day.
Going to any semi-nice restaurant in downtown Denver on Valentine's Day was a BAD idea.
Pulled pork sandwich (surprisingly delicious) and chocolate cake. $20.
- 10:30 pm. Pajama party with the girls in my room, with Valentine's chocolates we bought for ourselves.
MONDAY
- 12:30 am. Sleep.
- 7:30 am. Conference sessions until 11:30.
- 11:30 am. Packing our bags and bringing them down to the car.
- 1-3 pm. More conference sessions, with another free author's lunch.
- 4 pm. Drive to the airport.
- 6:55 pm. Flight departs from Denver to SLC.
- 8:45 pm. Flight arrives in SLC. Wait for luggage and rental car.
- 10:30 pm. Dropped off at my apartment.
TUESDAY
- Talking to my roommate, until 12:30 am. Sleep.
- Up at 7:30 to go to THS.
- Home at 2:30 after full day of 9th grade SEOP presentations.
- 8:30 pm. Going to Erin's to pick up my resurrected computer, thanks to Bryce!!!!
WEDNESDAY
-Up at 6:00 to get ready to go to THS for another full day of 9th grade SEOPs.
-Home at 2:30, class at 4 until 6:30.
And I am planning to go to bed early tonight, because I haven't slept a full night since last week. So, I have to wrap this up. Results of the conference: net gain of $112, 17 new books, and something pretty nice to put on my resume, plus new friends and lots of laughs. (aww)
Note: To see my name listed as a presenter in the official program, with a synopsis of our presentation, go here. I'm on page 31.
Looking ahead:
-Friday, 8 am - 1 pm. Group interview for Counseling Psych Ph.D. program at BYU.
-Saturday, 6 pm. Date.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
based on a true story
So.
Let me tell you a story. Once upon a time, there was a beautiful, wonderful, fabulous girl(poetic license) who had a laptop. She received this laptop when she graduated from high school. A present from her parents. "Go out and conquer the world with it," they said. So the girl did.
She carted her trusty laptop to college with her, all the way across the country. It stayed up with her many nights as she wrote papers, completed assignments, and watched movies. It brought her much happiness by delivering emails from friends and family, while also connecting her to the outside world through news etc. The laptop was the girl's only companion as she flew all the way to England and lived there for 2 months. That laptop had earned a special place in the girl's heart.
And then, one fall day, the girl started getting funny errors on her laptop. What was happening?! She worried that her laptop might be sick. She purchased an external hard drive so all her important life's documents could be saved in case her laptop didn't make it though. It was rough for a while, but then things started looking up.
So, the laptop followed the girl through another semester of school, dependably working through more papers, assignments, movies, and YouTube nights. For Christmas that year, the girl got a new netbook; but she was still loyal to her trusty laptop. The netbook, though cuter and younger, still played second fiddle. And then, it happened. Two months before the girl graduated from college, and the laptop could have been retired for a short while, it happened. She was reading the news online and went into the kitchen to make a peanut butter and banana sandwich. When she came back, she saw it. Her screen had gone black, with a big white box and red lettering: "YOUR SYSTEM HAS BEEN INFECTED."
Her heart raced. "How do I save you?!" she frantically wondered aloud. Relying on her cure-all for computer problems, she shut it down and rebooted. And there again, the same words. The task manager was frozen, and her anti-virus software said "No components"- wiped clean. She couldn't click on anything. Shut down again. Reboot. Same thing. And then the pop-up windows came. First one, then another and another until her whole screen was covered. "If only CPR stood for Computer-pulmonary resuscitation!" she moaned.
She thought. And thought again. "Where are my brothers when I need them?!" she thought. So she called her brother, but no response. More pop-ups. She called again. Still no response. Ok, plan B. "Where is my brother-in-law?" So she called her sister and announced she would be over shortly to deliver the dying machine. Like an ambulance with a critical patient, she left her computer exactly as it was and carefully strapped it into the front seat, driving to her sister's house as far over the speed limit as she could manage without being obvious.
And she rushed the trusty laptop inside, to the waiting hands of her brother-in-law. He reassured her, as doctors probably do even though they know it's the end. He tried to fix it. It didn't work. He tried to fix it again. It didn't work. "Look, maybe you should go home and get some rest." "But I don't want to leave his side. Don't you have a cot?" Finally, at 10:30pm, the girl drove home. Disappointed, and worried. She got ready for bed and washed her hands thoroughly and mindlessly, before realizing what she was doing and remembering that washing her hands would not prevent the spread of a virus on a computer. She slept anxiously dreaming of every possible outcome. "Please, just come back so I can say good-bye. And by say good-bye I mean get everything off you. Please." She even entertained a short thought about having to pull the plug once and for all. But she was not ready to accept that possibility.
It's been 24 hours. Still nothing. No word. Things don't look good.
And now, the girl sits to blog. On her new, younger, netbook. Was her laptop just jealous? "You've replaced me. I'll show you." Or was it just holding out long enough to know that the girl would be taken care of. "You've found someone new; I can go now; you'll be alright." The world will never know.
And now we wait, with bated breath, to see if they live happily ever after.
-mollie
p.s.- I hate whoever or whatever gave my laptop a virus.
p.p.s.- I took a test yesterday. The professor curves the score so whoever got the highest score then becomes 100% and everyone moves up. I set the curve with a 92%- sweet!
p.p.p.s.- I was inducted into Phi Kappa Phi tonight, and enjoyed my $70 dinner as much as was possible. And ate two desserts, thank you very much.
p.p.p.p.s.- I am flying to Denver on Friday around 5 with my bosses and 4 other peer mentors to present at the First-Year Experience Conference (presentation = How to use peer mentors to facilitate student reflection and deep learning). I will be back on Monday night
p.p.p.p.p.s.- since The Incident, I have developed an intense internet phobia. I don't know how much you'll hear from me in the near future. I only go to gmail, and log in and out as fast as I can. (Note: I have no idea if this is a rational way to behave in regards to computer illnesses)
Let me tell you a story. Once upon a time, there was a beautiful, wonderful, fabulous girl(poetic license) who had a laptop. She received this laptop when she graduated from high school. A present from her parents. "Go out and conquer the world with it," they said. So the girl did.
She carted her trusty laptop to college with her, all the way across the country. It stayed up with her many nights as she wrote papers, completed assignments, and watched movies. It brought her much happiness by delivering emails from friends and family, while also connecting her to the outside world through news etc. The laptop was the girl's only companion as she flew all the way to England and lived there for 2 months. That laptop had earned a special place in the girl's heart.
And then, one fall day, the girl started getting funny errors on her laptop. What was happening?! She worried that her laptop might be sick. She purchased an external hard drive so all her important life's documents could be saved in case her laptop didn't make it though. It was rough for a while, but then things started looking up.
So, the laptop followed the girl through another semester of school, dependably working through more papers, assignments, movies, and YouTube nights. For Christmas that year, the girl got a new netbook; but she was still loyal to her trusty laptop. The netbook, though cuter and younger, still played second fiddle. And then, it happened. Two months before the girl graduated from college, and the laptop could have been retired for a short while, it happened. She was reading the news online and went into the kitchen to make a peanut butter and banana sandwich. When she came back, she saw it. Her screen had gone black, with a big white box and red lettering: "YOUR SYSTEM HAS BEEN INFECTED."
Her heart raced. "How do I save you?!" she frantically wondered aloud. Relying on her cure-all for computer problems, she shut it down and rebooted. And there again, the same words. The task manager was frozen, and her anti-virus software said "No components"- wiped clean. She couldn't click on anything. Shut down again. Reboot. Same thing. And then the pop-up windows came. First one, then another and another until her whole screen was covered. "If only CPR stood for Computer-pulmonary resuscitation!" she moaned.
She thought. And thought again. "Where are my brothers when I need them?!" she thought. So she called her brother, but no response. More pop-ups. She called again. Still no response. Ok, plan B. "Where is my brother-in-law?" So she called her sister and announced she would be over shortly to deliver the dying machine. Like an ambulance with a critical patient, she left her computer exactly as it was and carefully strapped it into the front seat, driving to her sister's house as far over the speed limit as she could manage without being obvious.
And she rushed the trusty laptop inside, to the waiting hands of her brother-in-law. He reassured her, as doctors probably do even though they know it's the end. He tried to fix it. It didn't work. He tried to fix it again. It didn't work. "Look, maybe you should go home and get some rest." "But I don't want to leave his side. Don't you have a cot?" Finally, at 10:30pm, the girl drove home. Disappointed, and worried. She got ready for bed and washed her hands thoroughly and mindlessly, before realizing what she was doing and remembering that washing her hands would not prevent the spread of a virus on a computer. She slept anxiously dreaming of every possible outcome. "Please, just come back so I can say good-bye. And by say good-bye I mean get everything off you. Please." She even entertained a short thought about having to pull the plug once and for all. But she was not ready to accept that possibility.
It's been 24 hours. Still nothing. No word. Things don't look good.
And now, the girl sits to blog. On her new, younger, netbook. Was her laptop just jealous? "You've replaced me. I'll show you." Or was it just holding out long enough to know that the girl would be taken care of. "You've found someone new; I can go now; you'll be alright." The world will never know.
And now we wait, with bated breath, to see if they live happily ever after.
-mollie
p.s.- I hate whoever or whatever gave my laptop a virus.
p.p.s.- I took a test yesterday. The professor curves the score so whoever got the highest score then becomes 100% and everyone moves up. I set the curve with a 92%- sweet!
p.p.p.s.- I was inducted into Phi Kappa Phi tonight, and enjoyed my $70 dinner as much as was possible. And ate two desserts, thank you very much.
p.p.p.p.s.- I am flying to Denver on Friday around 5 with my bosses and 4 other peer mentors to present at the First-Year Experience Conference (presentation = How to use peer mentors to facilitate student reflection and deep learning). I will be back on Monday night
p.p.p.p.p.s.- since The Incident, I have developed an intense internet phobia. I don't know how much you'll hear from me in the near future. I only go to gmail, and log in and out as fast as I can. (Note: I have no idea if this is a rational way to behave in regards to computer illnesses)
Thursday, February 04, 2010
from Erin Ott (mom's computer)
i'm at Erin's house babysitting.
Will has been pestering me to build him an airplane. He carefully layered a bunch of blankets on top of each other, gingerly placed a cloth diaper in the middle of them, and then put a pillow on top. He told me to pick him up to help him fly. I dropped him down on the couch and he got mad. "No! No Mawwie! You were supposed to throw me into the kitchen so I could actually fly! Not on the couch!" When I told him I wasn't going to throw him, he ran off into Bryce's office and said "I'm never seeing you again! You won't throw me so I can fly!"
Will is now dictating to me-
"To: the shop that makes planes fly.
We need wings please. Wheels please too. They have to be the size of the real airplane."
And... wait a second. What's our building? [I tell him his address] He says Yeah, write that.
"And be sure to watch out for a big person and her name is Aunt Mollie. That's it. We don't need anything else.
Love, Will"
He's happy with the product, so now I have to act like I'm sending it off, which I shall do by posting this. (The subject is also his dictation because he thinks we're sending an email and it needs to say who it's from)
Also note: this is harder now that he can read some words, and is picking up that there are words on here he didn't ask me to include.
Will has been pestering me to build him an airplane. He carefully layered a bunch of blankets on top of each other, gingerly placed a cloth diaper in the middle of them, and then put a pillow on top. He told me to pick him up to help him fly. I dropped him down on the couch and he got mad. "No! No Mawwie! You were supposed to throw me into the kitchen so I could actually fly! Not on the couch!" When I told him I wasn't going to throw him, he ran off into Bryce's office and said "I'm never seeing you again! You won't throw me so I can fly!"
Will is now dictating to me-
"To: the shop that makes planes fly.
We need wings please. Wheels please too. They have to be the size of the real airplane."
And... wait a second. What's our building? [I tell him his address] He says Yeah, write that.
"And be sure to watch out for a big person and her name is Aunt Mollie. That's it. We don't need anything else.
Love, Will"
He's happy with the product, so now I have to act like I'm sending it off, which I shall do by posting this. (The subject is also his dictation because he thinks we're sending an email and it needs to say who it's from)
Also note: this is harder now that he can read some words, and is picking up that there are words on here he didn't ask me to include.
Wednesday, February 03, 2010
Newsflash
I feel much better this morning, FYI.
So I shall go to the high school. And meet with my 10th graders. And go to lunch at GoodWood (just so you know, I have already tried to talk them out of it twice because I feel really awkward going to lunch to be "appreciated" when I don't even work there. I would much rather be filing paperwork in my little cubicle. They gave me a cubicle and a place to be for 5 hours every day, which earns me 7 easy credits this semester, and they've been really nice- I don't know why they think they owe me anything.)
Then back to the school until 2, then work 3-4, then class 4-6:30.
Long day ahead!
So I shall go to the high school. And meet with my 10th graders. And go to lunch at GoodWood (just so you know, I have already tried to talk them out of it twice because I feel really awkward going to lunch to be "appreciated" when I don't even work there. I would much rather be filing paperwork in my little cubicle. They gave me a cubicle and a place to be for 5 hours every day, which earns me 7 easy credits this semester, and they've been really nice- I don't know why they think they owe me anything.)
Then back to the school until 2, then work 3-4, then class 4-6:30.
Long day ahead!
Tuesday, February 02, 2010
...
I think I may have spoken too soon, or at least the title sentiment of my last entry is even more true today.
Today I am not feeling so hot, despite having my hopes up about being on the upswing from my cold. But seriously, my lower abdomen does not like me right now. And the chills are not putting off good vibes either. My thermometer is telling me my temperature is 96.7, which I think would mean I died about half an hour ago, so I think there's something wrong with it. WebMD, my very personal and thorough doctor, seems to think I might have some form of food poisoning. Well that would suck. And then I saw the types of food poisoning it was suggesting supposedly last 5-7 days? Oh nuh-uh. I am not ok with that.
I am hoping lots of sleep will do the trick and I will be fine and dandy by morning, or even later tonight. I have my second day of 10th grade meetings tomorrow, and lunch with the counseling department for counselor appreciation week, and it would be awkward (and really inconvenient for them) if I had to call out sick.
So now you know. And I am going to sleep. Yes, at 7 pm. But lying down is already making it feel less bad.
Today I am not feeling so hot, despite having my hopes up about being on the upswing from my cold. But seriously, my lower abdomen does not like me right now. And the chills are not putting off good vibes either. My thermometer is telling me my temperature is 96.7, which I think would mean I died about half an hour ago, so I think there's something wrong with it. WebMD, my very personal and thorough doctor, seems to think I might have some form of food poisoning. Well that would suck. And then I saw the types of food poisoning it was suggesting supposedly last 5-7 days? Oh nuh-uh. I am not ok with that.
I am hoping lots of sleep will do the trick and I will be fine and dandy by morning, or even later tonight. I have my second day of 10th grade meetings tomorrow, and lunch with the counseling department for counselor appreciation week, and it would be awkward (and really inconvenient for them) if I had to call out sick.
So now you know. And I am going to sleep. Yes, at 7 pm. But lying down is already making it feel less bad.
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