It's Friday!

The end of another week already! I can't believe how quickly the time is passing. It's been six weeks since I started school and we're in the midst of our mid-term exams this week and next, plus still handing in assignments, so it's quite busy around here these days.

While it's ended quite nicely, it started off with a bump on Monday as I forgot to email the Word Processing exam to the instructor, along with handing the hard copies in. I lost 20 marks for that (5 points per missed attachment). I was so bummed! We got them back today and the instructor had added a little note to it, possibly to cheer me up (?): "you would have tied for the highest mark in the class if you hadn't forgotten the email." Thanks...I think!

Ah, well. What can you do? Learn and move on. Needless to say, I was overly paranoid at my Excel exam on Thursday morning and triple checked everything before sending, including counting the number the attachments on the email, the email address and subject line, etc. No WAY am I going to forget that again. I got my mark on my last accounting quiz and did better than I thought, although I made some silly (aren't they all?) mistakes. Our second term test is on Monday, so I have a few things to review and add to my - authorized - cheat sheet prior to that.

Overall, things are going well. I'm still motivated and excited to be there, and feeling more relaxed in the classroom now that I know a few more people a bit better. I think we're all getting used to one another, so aren't as shy or aloof or nervous as when we first started. I'm doing better in and enjoying accounting more than I thought, so I'm now waffling about which 'stream' I want to do next semester. Likely I'll stick with the Admin Assistant stream as it's more focused on writing and I like that. I can go back and do the accounting stream next year if I want and, of course, if I'm working in a place where that would be supported.

Have I said how much I like love not working?? :)

I had a lovely chat with my friend in Hong Kong last night. She and her husband now have two puppies, who I "met." One is Ella, a lovely little blonde Lab-X, about 5 months old. She has a few funny wrinkles, so there's possibly a little Shar-pei in there somewhere. The second one is Poppy, who is just a week old and was found discarded in a park where my friend her family were walking. They are, more or less, fostering her for the SPCA and have been doing the whole baby thing: getting up for regular feedings during the night. Poppy is now feeding at 3.5 hour intervals. Her eyes won't be open for another couple of weeks yet and she's the sweetest, tiniest little thing. Black and brown like a Rottweiler, although likely another mixed breed. Whether they'll actually be able to let her go after all the work they're putting in is hard to say. They have a few months yet to make a decision.

This morning I had a nice, leisurely breakfast with a friend. Although I'm supposed to be cutting out/down on sugar, I opted for the pancakes with a side of maple bacon. And a healthy dollop of maple syrup. I love pancakes, but only eat them when I go out for breakfast, which is very rare. My friend agreed, and it's something we need to do again. She's alone at work for now, so she's got some flexibility with respect to being in the office. She slipped out to meet me and we had a lovely time getting caught up over eggs benny and pancakes.

Kitties are okay. Dinah is still weak and very, very thin, but at least I have her eating more regularly now. It's a mix of two different foods, which she inhales and then yells at me for more. I don't know what the options are for her at this point. Just maintain with a diet? There isn't any medication she can take because she's not really sick in that way; it's just her pancreas that needs to heal and I don't know what it takes to do that. Just more questions and visits with the vet to see how she's coming along. I was given a lesson in administering IV fluids, but she won't sit still for that, although it's what she needs to feel better. As for Joey, he's a fat and happy cat, although the tumour is growing like a (slow-growing) weed. They didn't do the operation in October because there was fluid on his lungs that prevented him breathing properly. Instead, they drained that off (almost a cup!) and he's feeling much better. He's still wheezing on occasion, however, and I got a prescription from the vet on Saturday for a bronchial relaxer (like a human inhaler) that would help open the airways a bit. I haven't filled that yet, but it does need to be done soon. And it's a pill, just in case anyone was picturing me trying to get a little pump into his mouth. It's certainly what I pictured when the vet said it! Not that it being a pill makes it any easier.

Because I'm not working - full-time at least -, I'm realizing how much three cats actually cost me each month, although to be fair, it has become a lot more costly only recently given all the health issues that have popped up. Yikes! I hate saying it, but I have to be realistic in that I can only do so much. I also know that I would never forgive myself if I made The Decision before everything had been tried. So. Not going there. But just REALLY frustrated.

Apart from work on Sunday afternoon, I don't have many plans for the weekend. I have to review for my accounting test on Monday and I made a start on my Christmas cards this morning, too. I have some funds set aside for those. I'm sending several little parcels, but for the most part my Christmas presents are going to be baked. It's cookies all around, I'm afraid! :)

Have a great weekend everyone, and don't forget to change your clocks back an hour on Sunday!