A Few Questions From A Frustrated Person

[little_miss_late]

[quote name='missionseeker' date='22 October 2009 - 02:02 AM' timestamp='1256191378' post='1989519']
so far I've gotten "get another foam thing and see how that works" problem: foam things are expensive.


[/quote]

OOOoooohhhhh.... that is ridiculous. I am mad on your behalf over here. Ask them if they will pay for your foam thing. Or for your new bed. There has to be a medical professional who will write you a scary sounding official letter. Play every card in the deck. You need your rest!

[mommas_boy]

[quote name='missionseeker' date='16 October 2009 - 12:43 AM' timestamp='1255668210' post='1986309']
2) This is a kind of extension of the first but: for those of you with a SO far away at the time, how did you do that? It seems like to get everything done, I would have to just stop talking to him at all and I am just not willing to that. And I don't know how to make it better. And it isn't good for him, either. And that upsets me.
[/quote]

I'm the SO in the exact same position. Our main difference is that we are much closer together, though: South Bend is at most a two hour drive from Chicago. Still, her work schedule is sporadic (I now hate retail with a passion!), and so every weekend is different. This weekend, I don't get to see her. Lately, every other weekend is now a blessing.

My advice is to prioritize evenings when you can talk, and on evenings when you really can't talk, still pray together, but limit it to that. Also, talk up the fact that now is a sacrifice that will better prepare you for marriage later. Text messages are a blessing, also! They take very little time to write, but can brighten up someone's day so greatly. Even something as simple as "I love you" is enough. It lets us know that in the face of everything that you are doing, you are still thinking of us. You can also use it to update us on your day, so that talk time at night is lessened. Bring back love letters. Send one another surprises, (a dozen roses every once in a while is still very sexy, Jeff). Agree to offer up an intention throughout the day together. Maybe put a small rock in your shoe as a reminder. Do anything and everything that you can to be romantic.

Honestly, done right, I'm told by older married couples that Emily and I will look back on this time with very fond memories. We will pray for you, also. Please pray for us, too.

Blessings,
Kris

[mommas_boy]

[quote name='missionseeker' date='16 October 2009 - 01:06 AM' timestamp='1255669576' post='1986326']
Well... [b]I have 11 classes[/b]. So they are all in a block of time. They just take ALL day. heh I think my advisor could/would say something. I can ask him.
[/quote]

Heh. I can remember living with a music major for 2 years ...

[N/A Gone]

I will pray for you.

Short answer is that you endure. Knowing that it is worth it in the long run. You simply need to endure. If it becomes too hard then you need to trim your budget to work less. I suggest a private/personal loan. Most FinAid offices will help with this because it is a common student request. Remember you priority is to finish school.

It is tough, but in the end it is worth it.

[jeffpugh]

[Maggyie]

I am so sorry You can add my Hail Mary to the pile. This is such a tough situation especially with the SO. With regard to school, I think there are usually three options:

1. Complete school more slowly - If you can only afford to take four or five classes at a time without turning into a work zombie, then scale back... this has the advantage of both cutting your school stress (fewer classes) and possibly your work hours (less money needed for fewer classes). Nobody says you have to graduate in four years, most people don't, in fact. If you are in a major you realistically want to pursue as a full-time profession for decades into the future, it doesn't make much difference economically whether you get to it three years from now or six years from now! If it's your passion, your love for it will never fade.

2. Complete school more quickly - this is what I did. If I had a job I could only take so many classes per semester. If I didn't have a job I could load on the academics and finish the whole thing faster. When I added in room and board it made more sense to just stop working and plow through my coursework at a heavy rate so I could finish and get the heck out of there. Eventually I graduated in fall of 06 saving 2/3rs of a year worth of tuition and r&b. Not much but it helped. Your academic adviser would be a big help with planning this out because if you make a mistake and one of the classes you neeeeeeed is not being offered that semester, you are up carp creek without a paddle. The only problem with this plan is that graduating early results in the "what now?" syndrome setting in much sooner.

3. Change schools - this may stink of elderberries as an option for you since I think you have already switched schools before? So if you do it again it could just set you back further in terms of credits transferring etc. Sometimes it is the only option though. The public schools are soooo much better with the financial aid than the private colleges. With your major though you probably would want a Catholic school. Arrrrgh.

Please, please badger your RA etc without ceasing about your bed. You don't want to work so hard to get through school and then leave with a lovely "parting gift" of permanent health issues. I am sure plenty of your fellow students who don't already have your back issues are suffering, too. A plywood board bed is worth about $1,000 for the school year but I bet they aren't charging $1,000 for room and board, are they. Maybe I am wrong but I don't even think the homeless shelters around here have that kind of sleeping arrangement.