Back to School

I've been procrastinating for a long time. Too long, in fact. But now, I'm thrilled to be getting back into the groove.

When I graduated from high school, I was burnt out on school and ready for a change for a while. I joined the Air Force thinking I'd use it as a tool to get myself into the Air Force Academy through a back door, just so I could go to college in Colorado (flawed thinking, right?) Though I tried for 2 years, I didn't make it in, but it probably ended up being a blessing in disguise. I like how my life turned out, even with out it.

So I picked up a few classes along the way at each of the bases I was stationed. Unfortunately, I'm a bit of a math and science geek. The universities overseas only had lower level credits for Chemistry, Calculus and the sort. I racked up nearly 120 credits, but nothing added up to a degree.

Which brings us to the present.

Two weeks ago I started back to school and I love it! It's all online, so it may end up taking a bit of extra effort to stay diligent to studying, especially when warm weather beckons me outside. I felt like a kid the day the class opened up online for me to start digging in. I almost wanted to go out to buy a new outfit to wear, despite nobody being able to see it online.

There's just something wonderful about the smell of a new textbook and the sound it makes as you flip the corners to make that bbbrrrriiiip noise with the pages. There's magic in learning, even at the ripe age of 40. (Notice I left out the word "old"?)

Despite warnings from nearly everyone I talked to, I'm diving in head first with Statistics as my first course. As I said, I'm a bit of a math geek, so it hasn't been as awful as the dire warnings that have come unsolicited. Actually, it might have been a good thing to wait so long because through this online course, the angle is actually towards using a practical application of statistics. The course was developed in a way where all the homework and tests point the student towards using Excel effectively, rather than memorizing formulas and going through the math. Genius!

So now I'm working through my plan of action over the next 2-3 years so I can finish up in Aviation Technical Management, which is the path of least resistance. Other than a basic English class, all the credits I have are upper level management classes. I have this year planned out so that I can finish about 21 credits. We'll see how that pans out.

Yay! I'm so excited!

Kari Kennedy

Embry-Riddle University 2011