It is official: I am now a third year! Whoo hoo!

This past week was the last week of the summer quarter, so we are free for the next month. I won't be able to go home, so my main focus is going to be getting a job. Man, will I be glad when the long hard job search is over.

In the meantime, I found out I was eligible for unemployment, so that's at least some help until I find something else. I'm also working with financial aid to apply for as many scholarships as I can; they have been a great help!

The break is getting off to a busy start. My biggest worry was that I would die from boredom, but I might be in for a few surprises. Hopefully they are good ones. The free time should also give me the chance to see some of my friends in the area and do something I haven't had the chance to do in 6 months... hang out. I actually already did it two times this weekend! Pathetic, I know, but trust me, that's a big step for me.

I also retake my comps this week. I'm being retested only on the portions I was weak on during the first test, and I actually feel ready this time. When I did not pass the practicals in May, I felt awful. I wondered how it would affect me and how I would be viewed as a student. Since then, I've been meeting with each professor every week and going over everything with a fine tooth comb. As a result, I actually know the "why" and "how" behind many of the concepts I had merely attempted to memorize before.

Ironically, I feel a lot more confident about my knowledge and abilities as a future audiologist. Go figure--that 4^th year student I spoke with a few weeks back was right!

The countdown to my 4^th year externship has officially started, and I am so excited because we have the chance to choose where we want to begin our careers!

Of course, I want to go back to the southeast where I belong. I am so homesick, it's ridiculous. It's sad to say it, but I even miss the sticky humidity, because that brought the thunderstorms, and I love the thunderstorms.

In any case, I met with my professor, and we discussed some great programs that are available in that area. I had to bring up the idea of finding a paid externship for me, and I know, I know,.it definitely is not the first thing to look for, but I'm in a unique situation. I don't have student loans to pay for my living expenses, and it's kind of hard to work enough when you already go to clinic for 40 hours a week. Sometimes I feel they really forget about students like me that have no choice but to do it the hard way. I'm fortunate that this professor knows my situation and knows why I asked. I was told it would limit my options, but I have to do what I have to do.

I've also been talking to a few classmates from undergrad who already have their AuDs, and they gave me so much great advice and insight about what I want to do. And that's another thing--trying to decide exactly what I want to do. So far, I know I don't want to do hearing aids all day every day; I'd just die of boredom. I don't mind doing it sometimes, but I really like the odd stuff like vestib, or the weird stuff you see in an ENT's office. I've also found out that I REALLY like cerumen management. Does that make me weird?

Whatever I wind up doing, my main goal is to avoid doing the same thing every day, because my undiagnosed ADD demands it. I can't wait to see where this goes!

The mystery has been solved, and my suspicions were right! My employer is having financial difficulties and, therefore, they are having difficulties paying us. They actually sent us an e-mail 2 days after we were supposed to get paid that said they had not been paid through the state, and so they could only pay us half of our earnings. No predictions on when we were getting the other half.

As a result, I have been hitting the pavement to look for another job. I already had two job interviews this past weekend, and I have another in a few days. I just keep running into the same issues: either they are looking for full-time people, or the part-time pay is awful. It's kind of hard to find a part-time job that has good pay.

Even though all this is going on, somehow I continue to remain focused on school. This summer has actually been pretty mellow compared to the spring quarter, and I am so glad. Third year is coming very quickly and I can't wait. We are already being asked to meet with a few of our professors to see about our 3^rd and 4^th year placements!

I think I might have to stay in Arizona until my fourth year, but I can deal with that as long as I know I'm going to end up in a good place. I am getting increasingly homesick and now know I want a placement as close to home as I can get. Not at home, mind you, but close. I look forward to the possibilities, and we'll see what happens.

What a busy week! This quarter, I am taking a class on cochlear implants and similar devices. All three companies have come to speak to us since the class has started, but this week we had a day-and-a-half workshop with Cochlear Corp.

There was a bilateral recipient in attendance, and so the most interesting part of the workshop involved getting to use the software on a real patient!  The audiologist showed us how to use the software, and even let us try it ourselves.

Yeah, I know! Try it ourselves!!!

Trust me, it's not as scary as it sounds. It was an adult patient, and we were under the watchful eye of the audiologist, so everything was fine. I admit I was a little nervous at the initial announcement, and just pictured myself hitting a button, and seeing smoke come out of nowhere. But I had great guidance, and it turned out to be an absolutely amazing experience that opened my eyes to yet another direction I can go in with this degree. Cool stuff!

I also requested an application from the Navy. To be honest, I never saw myself as the military type, but I must say, the 4^th year externship opportunity they offer sounds pretty sweet, so I thought I'd just give it a try. We'll see what happens.

Oh, and I had a job interview this week for a part-time speech therapist position with a small school district nearby. The interview went very well, but they were trying to find a full-time therapist first. They said they would keep me posted if the spots did not get filled, so I'm hopeful.

So, yeah... I've been just a little busy this week. No complaints from me, it keeps me out of trouble, and I look forward to what positive things next week will bring.

That's it! I think I'm going to write a book after I finish school. The title will be, "Where I Go, Crazy Follows: The Weird Experiences of a Working Grad Student."

Catchy, huh?

It just always seems like the most unbelievable things happen to me, and not always in the best way. Case in point is this past week.

I was working two jobs until recently when my main job finally increased my workload and pay enough to make the second one unnecessary. I've been working this job for about 8 months and, until the last few months, haven't had any problems. The issues started in March, when they laid us off and then hired us back. They've also been purposely stalling to pay us on time over the last month. This week, however, was the straw that broke the camel's back.

We got our checks in the mail as usual, but this time I had a few questions so I decided to go to the office and ask payroll directly. Keep in mind, this is a contract job, so I work outside of the office and only go there about once a month to pick up extra forms and such. On this trip, I was in for a big surprise-when I arrived, I found the door locked, the lights off and all the furniture gone! I mean, it was COMPLETELY empty!

As I was sitting in front of what use to be the office trying to figure out what the heck to do next, a co-worker pulled up. She told me that she had noticed that the office had been empty for a few weeks. She questioned our supervisor, who informed her that our company was still there, but the other company sharing the building had moved out and our company was not there all the time anymore. Hmmm...

Of course, my initial thoughts were, "Thanks for informing us lowly employees, lady!" My co-worker and I agreed something was very wrong, and I felt this was my sign to up the ante on finding another job. The icing on the cake: finding out the next day my paycheck bounced. Yep, time to hit the pavement... hard!

For the rest of the week, I've pretty much been obsessed with finding another job. The good news is, I already have a job interview next week and, hopefully, the way I've been applying, many more very soon.

I've been out of the loop for so long because of school, that I don't know where to go, what to do or who to do it with. Is this a sign I'm finally getting old? The July 4^th holiday is coming up, and, to be honest, I'm dreading it. My whole family is back east, so I have no family reunions or barbeques to go to. And when I mention the word "cookout" around here, I get looked at like I'm speaking a foreign language.

Now, I'm on a mission! I refuse to stay home on July 4^th like I did last year. I've got to make some serious phone calls and some serious plans. Hopefully, I will stumble upon some interesting happenings around here.

That's actually one of the perks about living in a metro area like Phoenix. You can usually find something to get into. But, of course, that depends on what you're in to. I think I'm a simple old timer; a nice relaxing atmosphere, good company, and, of course, good food--sounds like the perfect holiday to me!

Who knows? Even if I don't find any place to go, sitting home doing absolutely nothing may not be so bad. In fact, it might be just the holiday I need.

I think I have been more than fortunate as far as fathers go. My daddy had the ability to snap my sister and me straight with as little as look and then make us feel ten feet tall with the praise he would give us on our accomplishments. And trust me, even from 2,000 miles away, that man still has the ability to make my stomach bubble whenever he has "the tone" in his voice. Oh yeah, you know... "the tone."

My father and mother have been married for 35 years come this December, and because of that, their relationship gives me direction on what I want in a marriage. (That is, if I ever get married).

He grew up picking tobacco in South Carolina and later became the first in his family to earn a college degree. I think about that a lot whenever I've had a bad week, because there is no way I can go back home empty-handed. He is a good part of my motivation, and I refuse to let him down.

Now, in the looks department, there is no denying I look exactly like my mother, but the feistiness and bold nature is all him. My classmates have even dubbed my facial expressions "The Skyler Look." And, well, that's all my dad's fault too.

In any case, I made it my business to call him Sunday so I could wish him a Happy Father's Day. Only my dad would be proud of the fact that I decided to plant tomatoes and cucumbers on my balcony and give great gardening tips. What can I say: you can take the girl out of the country, but you can't take the country out of the girl. 

But seriously, I couldn't have had a better dad, and I wanted to take this week's blog to thank him, for the job he does 365 days a year.

I love you, Daddy!

I took the job in Arizona knowing I would be by myself, but since I had never really known life without family and friends, I felt no need to worry. Little did I know how different the social atmosphere in the southwest would be compared to what I was used to. There is no knowing your neighbors and saying "Good Morning" to everyone whether you know them or not. I'm lucky if I get a simple "Thank you" if I hold the door open for the person behind me. 

So as I began my quest to make friends here, I realized I actually had to put effort into it. That was new concept for me. I had always been the social butterfly, and now I was searching for cool people to hang out with. How ironic! Since I did live in Phoenix a year before I started school, I had the chance to go out and explore, and finally was able to find a few cool people to hang out with.

The important key I have discovered since starting this school thing is that I HAVE to have friends outside of my class. Think about it: you are in a small class with the same people, all day, everyday. You become a family. And like most families, you get on each other's last stinking nerve sometimes. 

I have to have my breaks. Sometimes it's nice to hang out and not have to talk about the quiz due this Friday or a paper we have to write. It's a healthy thing to do, and is just one of those little things I have to make the time to do, in order to maintain my sanity. Definitely brings meaning to the term "Get a Life."

It always amazes me how I happen to make it through another week in one piece, and this week was no exception.

It was the week of finals, and to be honest, my brain was still fried from Comps! In the meantime, I still had (and still have) to figure out how to keep gas in my car, food on my table, and the lights on.

So, yeah, my hands are a little full at the moment. But I knew going back to school was going to be anything but easy. I had been out in the working world for a little more than 5 years before I decided to go back to school full time. Even though it was a job I had come to despise, I do miss my students, and the regular paycheck with benefits wasn't bad either.

Now, I get loans for my classes, and, until recently, had to work two jobs to pay my bills. Whenever it comes up in conversation, I usually get the mouth drop, and then the question, "How da heck are you doing that?!"

It's simple. I have to. I know what I want to accomplish, and I know what I need to do to get there. The hard part, of course, is the path to get there. And trust me, my path has had its' share of potholes, but somehow, I always seem to find my way out of them. Don't think I did this totally by myself. I have been VERY fortunate to have people on my team that catch me when I'm falling.

So keep in mind if you are in a similar situation, that it's ok to ask for help. As my mom used to always tell us, "A closed mouth don't get fed." I'm learning this the hard way. I just try to keep my mind focused on the end result, because in the end, it will pay off... or at least, it better!

Drumroll, please... OK people, I found out I passed my written portion of comps (yay!), but failed my practical portion (boo!). 

What's next, you ask? REMEDIATION! I have to remediate with each professor I did poorly with and postpone my next clinical rotation until the fall. I admit I was REALLY bummed about this. I think I seriously went through all the stages of grief. I started to question myself and my abilities. I was so embarrassed, and I feared what my professors thought of me as a student.

Last Friday during Grand Rounds (when all the AuD students and staff meet once a week to talk and listen to speakers), our 4^th-years came to speak to us about their experiences. Afterwards, I pulled one of them aside. I knew this person quite well, so I felt comfortable telling her what happened to me at comps. She reassured me that I wasn't going to be looked at as a failure. In fact, she said it would make me a better clinician for having the extra time to practice and prepare.

I must say, it was as if a ton of bricks had been lifted off my chest. Man, did I feel better. So on to begin my next journey--REMEDIATION! And as the spring quarter comes to a highly anticipated close, the summer quarter will soon begin.

As I reflect on my 2^nd year as an AuD student, I think it has been, by far, the most traumatic year of school I've ever had. I'm sure I'm going to need therapy and a good personal trainer when this is all over. Oh yes, and did I forget to mention I gained 15 pounds during my comps seclusion? (Talk about insult to injury.)

But that's OK, because 3rd year is so close, I can taste it. And when it does get here, hopefully I can enter it with a more peaceful state of mind... and new abs of steel!

I know what you all are thinking this time of year-the dreaded "C" word. You have to be thinking COMPS, right? Well hey, that's I'm thinking, anyway.

‘Tis the season for comps, people. Yes, it's the time of year where I eat, sleep and breathe audiology 24-7 (as if I didn't already) and where I deprive myself of all free time (if I had any to begin with) and devote to study, study, study and practice, practice, practice. Here at ATSU, from the first day of class, I was constantly reminded, "You better know this for COMPS!" And on that fateful day of the spring quarter of my second year, I have to be able to exhibit this plethora of information I've learned over, ummm.........only the past two years!!

Do I know it? I think so. Did I prepare? I think as much as I could have. Am I nervous? I'm scared you-know-what-less!!! Of course I've gotten the advice, "You'll be fine, just prepare," or "You know more than you think you do." All sounds nice, but really, do they expect me NOT to freak out? After all, it's a pivotal point in my education, and I would be even more freaked out if I wasn't freaked out.

So what am I doing about it? Printing out every slide show, meeting with every professor, jumping into every study session I can find, and most important, sneaking in some "relax and chill time." For me, that usually consists of a hot bubble bath and a glass of wine. Anything to help the cause, right? So everybody, keep your fingers crossed and do a couple Hail Mary's for me. It's now or never, so stay tuned to see what happens next...