The End is in Sight!

Just two more assignments stand between me and freedom:

• A leadership analysis about Alma's upcoming presidential transition. The completed draft is out to my team for editing, and I'll submit the final version tomorrow morning.
• A post-campaign summary on a Google AdWords campaign for UM-Flint's BBA program. I'll finish the draft, minus the final numbers, this morning and send it to my team for editing. They'll return it by tomorrow morning, I'll plug the final numbers and graphs in (the campaign goes through today) and then I'll turn it in.

Like most things, the grad school experience has both flown by and dragged on. It doesn't seem so long ago that I enrolled in my first course, but at the same time, I can hardly imagine life without being tethered to a computer even when I get home from work. One thing is for sure, though: I'm very excited to celebrate this accomplishment and, for all I have complained about it, I'm glad I put in the time, effort and money to earn my MBA.

So today's goals are to finish the assignments by lunchtime; catch up on some housework, get a few more things ready for the puppy; and pick up Macie, our sweet little lab! We've done quite a bit of "puppy prep" already, and I've been told by the breeder that the most important thing is simply lots of love and attention right now. I can guarantee she'll have plenty of that!

New Puppy!

We have a house. With a yard. By Saturday morning I'll be done with my MBA. Obviously, we need to tackle another big life event and apparently, we don't know how to take things slow. We just started seriously looking for puppies on Sunday evening, and yesterday we put a deposit on this little girl:



She's a purebred chocolate lab with a sweet personality. We don't have a name yet, but we'll have one by the time I pick her up on Friday afternoon. Isn't she adorable?!?!?

My New Road Bike's First Ride

You know your priorities are screwed up when you by a new bike in January, and it takes you over a month to take a photo and show her to the world. Well, better late than never. Here she is: my Trek 1.5 WSD!





I've been getting a few trainer rides in here and there, but no bike is content to sit inside and be pedaled without going anywhere. So Mitch and I took advantage of the warmish weather (he may have had to coax me out of the house) to go for a short road ride this afternoon.



I was surprisingly warm! With my ridiculous pink hat under my helmet, new cold weather gloves, Mitch's old booties and a windbreaker, I was downright toasty on a few uphills. Mitch, on the other hand, froze his fingers because, riding at my leisurely pace, he wasn't working hard at all.

Now I hear they're calling for some more serious snow this week. We have one more skiing weekend planned, so I'm OK now that I've gotten a little biking fix. But after we hit the Highlands with my family next month, bring on spring!

Eight More Days!

Here are just a few things I'm looking forward to once my MBA is done:

• Not spending all evening on the computer, especially after having spent all day in front of a screen.
• Working on the house - most of the walls are still bare, we haven't chosen a color for the basement yet, and my library is not the cozy haven it was intended to be.
• Getting more involved in our church.
• Training and riding. I'm especially excited to ride my bike home from work when the weather warms up...something I intended to do last year but could rarely spare the time.
• Keeping the house clean. I don't even want to think about the dusting I've neglected.
• Writing for me again. I have some projects I'd like to attempt, and maybe this blog won't be so dull once I have more time.

There are lots more, but I have to (you guessed it) study if I want to take my very last exam on Saturday!

Yes, more government services, please!

This week, I discovered that the government has misplaced two separate payments: interest due to the IRS because we made a mistake on our taxes two years ago, and the substantial student loan interest payment I made last summer.

So yes, I'd feel very, very comfortable with government run health care. In case you were curious.

In other news, just eleven days, two papers and one exam until I'm done with my MBA!

Progress, Progress

I finished my final journal entry and discussion board post last night, despite not getting home until almost 7 pm. Mitch works some long hours, which means I work some long hours since we drive in together. Despite still having lots to do, we made time for that sauna: I had a long, hectic day at work and I'm trying to fight off another budding cold. Steam and sweat...that's the treatment for stress and sickness!

Today is study day during lunch, and Mitch will probably work a bit late again. My goal is to make some solid headway on my self-improvement plan and ride the trainer this evening. Though my muscles are in a constant state of semi-sore thanks to the increasing intensity of our lunchtime workouts (which now include about a mile of running - a huge feat for me!), I've severely neglected my bike. In March, perhaps, my road bike and I can make a solemn vow to spend more time together.

What's Between Me and an MBA?

• Seventeen days
• One journal entry
• One discussion board post
• One exam
• One 8-10 page paper on leadership at Alma College
• One leadership self-improvement plan
• One quiz
• One Google AdWords campaign for UM-Flint's BBA program, and the accompanying summaries

I'm taking two days off work this month so I can crank through all this work, and then I'm DONE! It's been a long road, but I'm almost there...

Music from Another Time

I bet Grandma Eccles never thought her only granddaughter would someday sit in an office and listen to her old vocal recordings to melt the stress away. Yet here I am, sandwiched between an impossible workload and looming deadlines, knowing that each precious second means I fall farther and father behind. At this moment, a break for song and scripture seems perfectly appropriate.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
and lean not on your own understanding;
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
and He shall direct your paths.

Proverbs 3:5-6