Sunday, August 14, 2011

My Christmas vacation lasts four and a half months!

This week was the end of summer term. I was able to do a bunch of studying in my own apartment because after six weeks, my air conditioning got fixed. That was Tuesday. I moved out Thursday. It definitely was annoying. But it was also good. It kept me more social than I otherwise would have been!

So, yeah...finals. My archaeology final was ridiculously easy. The history one...well, I'm just glad I studied about the Islamic Caliphates in medieval Spain on Wednesday night, or else I would have been doomed on Thursday. I know I could have done better and should have known more, but I hope I did decently.

Friday sealed my fate for the rest of 2011. Last year I took fall semester off because I couldn't get a job in Provo and I didn't get a scholarship for the 2010-2011 school year. Taking last fall off had a lot of good advantages, one of the most prominent being that I ended up getting a scholarship for winter that I wouldn't have otherwise had.

This year I attended spring and summer because I had a full-tuition scholarship for those terms. I got a half-tuition scholarship for the 2011-2012 school year. But that extra $1000 per semester has to come from somewhere. I don't have enough to pay it (well, I could, but it would leave me broke), and my dad was laid off last May, and has been unlucky in finding a job. So I figured if he didn't have a job by the time fall rolled around, I'd take this semester off too.

Well, even if he does find a job in the next week before tuition is due (which is unlikely), I won't be going to school in the fall. That's because I got my job back from last year! I worked for the Church at the main Distribution Center, picking orders and packaging them up before sending them off all over the world. Last year I was only hired as a temporary crew (for "Annual Curriculum"), but it was an awesome job. It's easy, pays really well, everyone's nice, and we get Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners.

Last year I had applied earlier on, but when the human resources lady found out that I was leaving to go back to school in January, she told me they were looking for someone more permanent for that position, but I could apply for the temporary crew. I figured the same thing might happen this year, since I'm applying for a non-seasonal position. But they hired me! In fact, they're still interviewing this week, but I start Tuesday.

I am somewhat disappointed that my education gets halted again. I'm a little sad because this means I can't go on the Yellowstone vacation that my family planned for me to go on. I'm very sad because I can't go to Tennessee to visit my adorable nephews. But working for four months will give me a bunch of cash, and I work a morning shift which will let me have an actual life, unlike last year when I worked in the evenings. Getting up early in the morning is no bueno, but I get off early enough (it's only part time) that I can take afternoon naps.

I think about how lucky I am to have this job. Last year it took me two months of applying before I finally got a job, and from all the dozens of applications I sent in, this was the one I got. It pays better and is easier than most jobs I would be qualified for! The environment is awesome. They treat us well. I'm lucky to get it this year. I was lightly monitoring the Church employment opportunities, waiting to see if this one happened to come up, and it came up at just the right time.

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