Ponderings - Semester's End

So yesterday was my final class for Storytelling. Tuesday ended Intro to IT. I am 99% certain that I got better than a 4.0 this semester, which would be a first for me. That's pretty cool. But it's bittersweet--a great many of the people I've gotten to know over the past two semesters are now gone for good; many have gotten librarian jobs very quickly, but far away from Pittsburgh. I'm happy for them, but sad for me. I would've liked to be able to spend more time with them. Damn this whole responsibilities thing. Sometimes I hate maintaining my current standard of living. Was I happier when I had less and was living in an apartment back in my 20's?

...probably, overall. It was nice to have all that free time that came with just doing school and a part-time job.

But looking backwards never did anyone any good. I have to look forward to move forward. Next step--financial survival over the next three months. This tuition crap is getting really obnoxious. It's actually to the point where I would be better off with student loans than with Pitt's staff benefit.

Right now I am looking at $680 per month for the next three months in tuition payments. And that's with Pitt's benefits. I was considering filling out my FAFSA, taking the $20,000, and running back in May/June. I could've paid my tuition bills, finished by next May instead of next July, and had enough to pay the mortgage left over. A part-time job would've covered my other expenses. Sure, I'd have been $20,000 more in debt, but I also would've had another 6-month grace period after graduation and if I'd have gone through a bank other than AES, I could've had a better chance to consolidate student loans.

Unfortunately, I decided to try and make a go of it without more debt...and now I'm not sure how I'm going to meet my bills in October. And gods forbid my car needs major work on inspection in September. I really don't know what I'm going to do at this point. So much for the wonderful benefits of working for the University of Pittsburgh. I need to come up with at least $1000, fast. Preferably $1500.

In other news, it's back to all-online classes for the Fall. One of my classes meets during the day while I am at work, and the other is on Thursdays and I suspect Ken would assassinate me if I dropped out of gaming for five months. On the up side that means more free time on weeknights, which is a *very* welcome thing. On the down side, I find I enjoy on campus classes more than online, and get more out of the classes on campus.

Three more semesters left. I can do this. Just, someone keep telling me that things are going to get better for me after I have my MLIS. I need to hear that. A lot.

That's all for now. I hope this didn't come off sounding too depressing. I am actually fairly upbeat today, save the money issues from tuition. No boss for two days at work will do that for you.