At least someone still thinks I’m smart

As I previously posted, I began grad school this semester.  When I originally made the decision to go to school, I was working for a company with a generous education reimbursement program – funny how things change.  Now, with grad school on my own dime, I’m still very happy with my decision to pursue my Masters degree, mostly because while I get rejection letter after rejection letter from job applications - my intellectual capabilities are reinforced through my professor.  I revel in her comments to my assignments – ’cause let’s be honest, they’re really  the only positive reinforcement I’m getting these days. 

Julia, Absolutely wonderful job! Your use of images was highly effective, and your paper was well-written and organized. Your assessment of Nike’s sources of brand equity — from brand elements to athlete endorsements — was right on the money. I also appreciated your thorough answers to each question. Your class participation also continues to be excellent. I particularly appreciated your effective argument in supporting Dupont’s original slogan. I also appreciated your direct interaction with me on my audience question. Please keep up the great work!

Thank God for her – without her, I would really start to have self esteem issues.

Quick & Concise

Sometimes, I just have too much to say. 

When I first started this blog, my friend BabyBird gave me the advice to keep my posts short.  I try, but frequently pretty much always fail her as I write this blog.

My Masters degree program is very writing intensive, which frankly scares me a bit.  I enjoy writing, but once somebody gets all like ‘here’s how you’re supposed to be doing it‘ I imagine it will promptly take the fun out of it for me.

In the program, we are supposed to consult and utilize the APA manual regarding referencing and basic writing rules.  Here’s an excerpt from the book about keeping things simple that I really liked:

“Say only what needs to be said…Short words and short sentences are easier to comprehend than are long ones.”

I like the way they did that.  But advice that I have often received from my Father is far better:

“Julie, tell them what time it is, not how to build a watch”

The First Day Jitters

With today being my first day of grad school, I thought I’d look back to a warm August day in 1986 when my educational journey began to see how I handled things then:

Total Excitement at this point (and who wouldn't be excited with that snazzy backpack)

Now, its off to the bus and its starting to settle in that my mornings will no longer be spent snuggling with mom on the couch with a pop-tart watching He-Man:

I'm trying to feign excitment for my snap happy Mother down below, but my eyes say it all...

At this point, I’ve got my first day under my belt, and from the looks of this picture, it seems to have gone alright:

Thumbs Up Mom!

I think all in all, there are a lot of similarities here: excitement, a bit of apprehension, but overall its probably going to be a good day.  I will say this – its definitely not the same when your mom doesn’t make you breakfast and you are sans snazzy new backpack.

Oh, and one other relatively major difference: $14,000 out of my wallet.