My Education - Get it Done!

I applied to the local community college. I got my letter of acceptance, which I am instructed to take with me when I meet with my advisor. I plan to go to the financial aid office and get as much information as possible. I meet with the advisor at 2.

According to the letter I received from the unemployment office, special consideration is being given to the unemployed in the form of grants, scholarships and low-interest student loans. Regardless of whether I am eligible for any of these, if I am enrolled in a full-time accredited education program, I am able to continue to receive unemployment benefits until my 26 weeks run out. I am not obligated, however, to seek employment while attending school full-time.

My first goal is to earn my Associate's Degree within a year. I have some credits already from classes I took years ago. With my advisor's help, I hope to piece everything together in order to accomplish this in the time period I have allotted to this task. Do I know what I am getting myself into? Probably not. However, it is necessary in order to make myself marketable. I AM EXCITED!

Beaten Down

So . . . , tell me, just why do they call it a Job "Fair"? Fairs are supposed to be fun. This wasn't. I couldn't even find the Ferris Wheel . . . :)

Don't get me wrong. I'm glad I did it. It was a sea of black suits. It was very well organized. They kept my resume. However, I came away with the realization that nothing will compensate for my lack of a degree. The stark reality is that there are tons and tons of applicants with Bachelor's and MBA's and, I was told, they will be the first to fill these positions. I'm going to re-tool my resume and go in another direction. Something more attainable. I'll think this through over the next couple of weeks and make a plan. No hurry.

Job Fair

Tomorrow, I plan to attend a Job Fair from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. I am told there will be thousands of applicants for potentially 300 jobs. Each applicant is allotted enough time for a 5-minute interview. To tell you what kind of person I am, I am most looking forward to this because I'm curious to see how many people I will know among the crowd. So, wish me luck. Remember in my earlier posts that I planned to "have fun" during this process? Hmm. OK. Here goes. Let the fun begin.

On another note, my dear husband believes that I'm enjoying my unemployment too much. He's wrong, slightly. Here is why. If being unemployed means I must continue to cook, I need to get a job, and soon. Have I mentioned that I HATE to cook? Other than that small issue of cooking, though, I have not had a moment of despair since my job ended. I do think that everyone around me sees a new person. Relaxed, happy, joyful.  It has cleared up my complexion. I swear!