Financial Fridays....

I am thinking about starting a series called....... FINANCIAL FRIDAYS

Since my 28th birthday is coming up in September, I am now more than ever, focusing on becoming the woman I've have always wanted to be.  In order to do this, I need to become more in control with the following things:

1. Faith
2. A positive attitude
3. Good Health
4. Financial Security

During my time in law school, I will be putting myself first.  I will use the remainder of this year to focus on taking the steps needed in order to achieve my goals. 

The two most important ones for the this year is to do extremely well my first semester and to become current AND one month ahead on ALL MONTHLY EXPENSES. 

How am I going to do that?  Of course by using the good ole refund check and continuing to work while I go to school.  The last time I mention employment, I told you guys about the job offer that fell through.  Well guess what????  I have a new job!!!

It is in the legal field and I know that I will gain valuable knowledge (just as I did at my last job) and most importantly, I have very good hours and my boss is very encouraging about me obtaining my law degree.  He even offered to help me regarding course work!!! 

The only negative thing is that I was told one thing regarding my pay, but the pay is actually lower.  Nevertheless I think this place is an excellent fit for my first semester.  It is a great environment where I can get some reading done when there is not a lot to do and I don't have to worry about being interrupted.

However after finals, I will start looking for other employment...... Maybe I will just like it here so much that I would not want to leave...... So knows. 

WE SHALL SEE!!!!

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND

Soon and very soon.......

Orientation is actually ONE MONTH from today!!!

I am getting more nervous as the days go on.... LOL.....

The one question I keep going over in my head is:

Is it better to know what you going into or go into something blindly?

Okay back to the subject at hand, I am about to embark on this great adventure (again) in exactly one month, and you know what?  I have yet to receive any information on what I am suppose to be doing.  Meaning all I know (and this came from the acceptance letter) is that Orientation is on the 12th and Registration will be on the 16th.  HOWEVER no correspondence has arrived as of today informing me of a time or any additional information.  I was worried about this until I made a call to the school and they informed me that I should receive something in July.  So I guess I will have to bug my mom every other day to see if anything has arrived. 

Other than that, the only thing I am focusing on is getting settled into the new apartment.  We get the keys on Friday so basically I am continuing to do what I did over the weekend (other than watch YouTube videos), clean up, organize, and pack.

I don't know how it go at other schools, but at the one I am attending, it crucial that you obtain you some "POOP".  Poop is basically old outlines, notes, and xams from 2Ls and 3Ls.  Particularly from individuals who took the professors that you will be taking.  This is a welcome guide to help you throughout the semester.  It helps you weed out the riff raff early on and not to be studying unnecessary things.  The only thing I recommend is to not accept anybody's poop.  PLEASE make sure that whoever poop you get, they have made a good grade.  Also never pay for this information.  There are some decent individuals out there who are willing to help you, all you need to do in return is to PAY IT FORWARD.

I haven't took a look at them yet, I am staying true to my word.....I am not doing anything (other than enjoying my last days of freedom---as I call it) until the first Monday in August.  There is really no need. 

Lastly, I am going to start working out again.  Get back into the habit of it.  They say 15 days straight of anything becomes a habit.  So this weekend I will go to the park and have a walk and the next 14 days do the same thing.  Slowly incorporate some healthy eating into my life.  Now the only thing I need to figure out is how am I going to figure out my workout schedule once school starts.  Should I work out early in the morning (5:30am)? I am thinking my schedule will be Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday nights, so should I just work out Thursday-Sunday?  Still trying to figure that out..... 

What do you guys suggest? 

The Week "END" Review! 7-11-10

This week has been interesting... More of a roller coaster ride to be exact.

I learned that the job I was offered is no longer available (well it is no longer available to me!). I was really not given an explanation other than to call HR. This is after the FACT that I was offered the job, took and pass the drug test, criminal background check, AND lie detector exam. Most importantly this was AFTER they told me that I needed to register my car in Louisiana before the week was over (this was on a Monday and had to have it done by that Friday). So here I am trying to come up with $800.00 to register the car, get my Louisiana license back, and to get a Louisiana insurance policy. After all this you tell me, "I am sorry, but the job offer is no longer available to you." WHAT????!!!! Thank goodness I was smart enough to stay at my current job until I was given my start date.

After the anger went away, I started to think that maybe this is a blessing in disguise. Maybe I am right where I am suppose to be. It may not pay well, but other things outweigh that significantly. I can and am making great connections with people in the legal community and I am gaining tons of real life courtroom experience that I would never receive from sitting in a classroom. Basically I am walking in faith because it is obvious that this is where God wants me to be right now and who am I go against that?

In other (good) news......

I will officially be moving closer to work and school Friday!!! I am becoming roommates with one of my closet friends (she has been on this journey with me and been one of my biggest supporters). To say I am excited is an understatement:

1. I will literally be TEN MINUTES (at the most) away from work!!! It has been taking me 2 hours to get to work and at least 1 1/2 hours to get home.
2. 15 minutes from school.
3. No more country life!!!! I will be living in the capital city downtown in the heart of everything!!!

Lastly, I basically spent the weekend packing and being up under my mom.  I had not lived with her since I was 17 and went off to college.  So here I am after 10 years moving back in with my mom, this was a major adjustment for us to say the least.  LOL!!!!  Nevertheless a great one, I would not trade it for the world, but its time for me to go.  SEE YA LATER!!!!

Retrospective - LSAT (Part 2)

Last week in Part One of my "Retrospective - LSAT" story, I gave you guys the beginning of the journey and how the complicated relationship I had with the LSAT exam started.

Soooo.......

After meeting with my department head and getting the encouragement to give law school one more try, I started the necessary steps needed to take the LSAT.  

Now finding a prep course was the tricky part.  I didn't go the normal route (Kaplan and Princeton Review) because I known several individuals who used them and did not get the results they desired (whose fault that is, I don't know).  After looking around and doing research, I found courses being taught at Emory and Georgia State.  They both were being taught by the same individual!!  After I goggled him, I decided that he was the one I wanted to go with.  I picked a class section, paid for it, submitted my reimbursement sheet to HR, and waited for the class to start.

Two months later......  Classes begun.

Tuesdays and Wednesdays I was going to Georgia State University for my LSAT prep course.  THANK GOD I went with this prep course.  The teacher was funny and very much down to earth and really took the time to help everyone learn the tricks and the trade behind the LSAT.  It was him that inform me that there was no such thing as "studying" for the LSAT, instead we need to start "practicing" it.  Going to class was wonderful!  I loved parking in the parking garage near the school (because I stop parking where they told us - it was too expensive) and walking towards the school.  I started picturing myself actually being in school coming there for my classes.  I was really speaking it into existence!!!!

Being in class was great, it was trying to "practice" outside class that was the kicker....  For some reason I could not get it together to pick up any of the LSAT material outside of the class setting.  It was NOT for the lack of trying.  I definitely tried, but something was mentally holding me back.  I started to feel a lot of pressure to make sure that I do well on the exam.  To many people from my job knew what I was doing  and I kept thinking that if I mess this up, everybody is going to know and I will fall right into the hands of some of the individuals I work with (some were actually wanting me to fail).  I am really hard on myself and nothing I was doing was enough.  Studying.....I mean practicing for this exam really had my head gone.  I would basically get up on Saturdays, drive to the library (had too many distractions at home), find an area and get comfortable, open up the book, and basically break down.  Random people coming to my cube asking is everything is okay, and honestly I didn't know if everything was okay.  I could not for the life of me understand what was going on. 

So as I sit at the library (or coffee shop or bookstore), trying my damnest to hide that fact that I am having a mental break down in public, I am thinking to myself, "What the hell is going on?"   I decided that it was time to see someone. 

I found a therapist and after several sessions, we (okay she) came to the conclusion that I was not afraid of failure, but afraid of success.  She found that I knew that I was a brilliant individual and could do anything I want if I put my mind to it, but if putting my mind towards something is going to take me outside of my comfort zone, I am (and will and have) going to self sabotage myself!!!  DING DING DING!!!

This is EXACTLY what I did in law school!!!

So after several assignments given by her for me to do, I became comfortable embracing actually doing the things I want to do in life.   After getting to the real reason for why I could not pick up the LSAT book outside of the classroom, practicing for the LSAT got a little easier to do. I actually started understanding what I was doing. 

Some may say, "Wow you went through all that just with the test!  What is wrong with you?"  It was not about the test, I was basically doing the same thing I did in law school six years ago.  I needed to go through that journey so that I could get the help I needed so that when I start law school in less than 40 days, I will not get another letter in January saying that I have flunked out!!!