Excited!

I'm feeling a little dorky for this, but today I had a class that got me really excited for my (financial) future! I knew going into this that I would have a great career, but this class will also teach us how to invest our money to secure a great financial future. How to set goals aligned with our values and how to achieve those goals.

My biggest career goal as of now is to own an optometry practice. I thought that goal would be far down the road (10+ years after graduation, but apparently it can be a reality in half the time. There is a credit union for optometrists that helps doctors to buy practices--even with student debt still outstanding. The credit union helps along every step to help ensure success of the practice. It would be great to own a practice around 5 years out of school--I'll be 33. Even more ambitious would be to own several practices and to really make a business out of it. I never really thought about that until today, and it really seems like something I want to investigate further.

I am so excited. I think this class (and the subsequent classes) will be vital to the eventual success of my career--just as much as the "optometry" knowledge.

My future is mine to mold and create. I hold the potential and I will have to be the one to capitalize on that potential.

I am so filled with hope! I need to make sure that I have goals in place to focus on when things get tough in school (which will happen soon, I'm sure!)

Gasp! An Update!

Well, I've just finished my first week as a Professional Student. It was a bit tedious at times, but mostly enjoyable. Orientation was overly long and could have been converted into a few hours, rather than two days. The highlights?

1. Study all the time and don't fall behind.
2. It's going to be harder than anything you've done before.
3. I am now part of a huge family--OSU's College of Optometry faculty, staff, students, and alumni.

They told us the above about eighty billion times. I feel like most of us get it--no slacking off like we may have done in undergrad.

We also had a day of "diversity training", which while mildly interesting, also seemed to be a bit wasted. Such is life!

All negatives aside, I'm really excited to finally be HERE in my life. I haven't quite grasped the fact that I'm going to be a DOCTOR, but I'm getting there. I think it will really sink in during the spring of my second year, when I start having patients. (Come one, come all, I'll accept volunteers!) By the time I get my degree and license, I will have seen anywhere between 1800-2000 patients. That boggles my mind!

So that's my life now--studying! Currently my classes are Human Histology, Pathophysiology, Optics, Genetics, Optometry Career Options and Financing, and a survey class of the profession. It seems like a lot, but the last three courses are "baby" classes. It's the first three that will occupy all of my time!

Off to study. Whee!

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Today was my interview at OSU for admission to the College of Optometry and...

I AM THE NEWEST MEMBER OF THE CLASS OF 2013!

Yay.

Cold toes!

The weather is a-changin'. I like fall, but I also know that it means that dreaded season is just around the corner. Luckily, it's not that bad in Columbus (certainly not as bad as NE Ohio).

I'm so anxious to move in! I want everything to go smoothly--I have a plan in my head for exactly how I want to move my stuff in. Only a few more days.

I observed (or shadowed, whichever you prefer) my optometrist on Monday as part of being able to apply to Optometry school. I enjoyed it! I talked with both my doctor and one of the other doctors in the practice and they were very enlightening. I'm nearly certain that this will be a good career path for me, so that's refreshing.

My brother is a very strange kid. From where my computer is, I can see him at his computer. And he is very good at performing for me. What a goof. I'm almost excited that he'll be in Columbus and we can hang out away from home. I'm almost not excited because it means my kid brother is almost grown up. Which makes me super grown up. I'm not an adult! I don't think of myself as a woman! (Really, what woman asks her mommy if she can go to a sleepover? This one!)

Speaking of old, my boyfriend is turning 23 on Friday. Thinking about that makes my brain hurt, then I realize I'm 22, and my brain nearly melts. WHEN DID I GROW UP?

Various Topics

I just felt the need to post tonight, but on nothing in particular. So here's bulleted list of some things I'm thinking about now...

• My bike has been repaired (again). In June, you may recall that I had it repaired. No, I didn't get into an accident or anything of the sort. The bike shop I originally went to utterly screwed up. Either there was a crappy guy working the maintenance shop or my bike got lost in the shuffle. At any rate, I think the only thing that was done was to replace the brake pads. At the time I noticed that the brakes were really tight, but not knowing ANYTHING about bikes, I figured that they needed time to loosen up. Duh. Turned out the brake was constantly riding against the tire. No good. I brought it home hoping to Google some self-repair bike tips. (loosen up the brake line or something). When I put the tire back on and was looking at it with my brother, I realized the brake was entirely messed up beyond what I could fix--the brake was riding on the tire rather than the metal rim of the wheel. We then took it to a different shop and explained what happened. They got it repaired in ONE DAY (compared to a week with the first shop). It certainly seems more repaired than before, so I'll ride it around here over the next few days to make sure. What really sucks is that now over $100 has been spent on a 12-year old bike (though it was in very good shape to begin with). Live and learn.
• I really wish that we could move into our apartment even a day sooner. I want to be able to have ample time to settle in before classes start. Unfortunately, even if you move in one day early you have to take the apartment in "as-is" condition, and folks, I'm not dealing with that. So wait till move-in day it is.
• I've finished watching Season 1 of Ugly Betty. I really liked the show during the season, but never got a chance to watch it (at first, my beloved OC was on at the same time, then I just didn't have time). I really liked the season finale as it had a different, more dramatic tone than the rest of the season. I like tear-jerkers! Hopefully I'll be able to watch it this season (or at least faux-Tivo it to watch).
• My mom doesn't have a "real" job yet. She's currently in a 9-week long term sub position for a teacher on maternity leave, but that's not really satisfying. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for enrollment numbers increasing so that a new classroom is needed or that the lady she's substituting for decides she just can't leave her cute little baby at home. Or that a job application that she put in today goes somewhere. *crosses fingers*
• On Monday I'm going to observe my optometrist (I need 10 hours to apply to school). And I need to ask for a letter of recommendation. Or at least, warn him. (I think there's a special form he'll need to fill out. I should get on that.)
• Speaking of that, I need personal and professor evaluations as well.
• And I need to fill out "minimum wage" job applications in the meantime. I want to waitress somewhere because I really did like it when I did it a few summers ago. I should be able to get something--there are a LOT of restaurants in Columbus.
• My tailbone hurts. Not in the "I must've broken it way", because I've done that before and it feels different. I'm not sure what this is. Except that it is hurt.

That's enough. It's pretty long, now that I look at it!