And So Another Month Ends

Here I am, sitting in the second-floor computer lab in Morgan Hall on a beautiful mid-spring day in Tuscaloosa, enjoying a brief respite from the go-go-going of the end-of-semester flurry that involves a last week of work, "Dead Week" (in which the students are more dead than the week, as a fellow Avanti observantly noted), studying, attending a last few classes, cleaning up my room and getting it ready for check-out next Thursday, and helping Stephanie put the last details in place for our imminent wedding.

As of now, though, I have one less class to worry about. And to make it even better, it was my least favorite course of the semester! There must be a better way to teach business communication, but apparently it has not be discovered yet at this campus. That is alright though, because I do not have to see the inside of Bidgood 373 another time this semester.

Remaining on my plate are three accounting courses and my second introductory Spanish class, which have finals between Tuesday and Thursday of next week. I am looking forward to my cost accounting final, because I like the applicability of the material, but it is likely going to be the toughest one of the bunch. Intermediate accounting, on the financial side of the spectrum, will be challenging as well, especially if there are many multiple choice or short answer questions, which are never my strong area. Numerous times now, I have aced or nearly aced the problem sections of accounting tests, only to have my grade lowered by bombing the accompanying non-traditional questions.

Last night, upon my return to town with Stephanie from a last weekend of wedding planning and house preparation in Huntsville, we went to the boathouse for a last hurrah of the semester with the crew team, enjoying some hang-out time and some deliciously grilled food, thanks to Drew and Jason, the team's expert charcoal chefs. Katie-Beth, one of the members new to the team as of this semester, had made up a sheet of "superlatives" for the team to vote each other. I received "Best All-Around" and "Most Likely to Succeed."

May is going to be another crazy month, full of ends, beginnings, excitement, hopes, apprehensions, and adventures. Thursday is May 1 (Mayday! ...right?), and I will be working for a few hours and then going to my last three accounting classes. Friday is a longer day at work, with my last Spanish class dropping in at one o'clock. Then begins the weekend before finals week, and Saturday marks one week until the wedding! Saturday and Sunday will hold more studying and getting ready to move out. Monday does not have any scheduled events (gasp!), but I will be able to keep myself busy with preparing for my intermediate accounting final on Tuesday morning, and my cost accounting and Spanish finals on Wednesday. Tuesday, I take my final starting at 11:30, and then I may be able to relax a little...but then Stephanie will be leaving town that night or the next morning, so I will be helping her pack up and check out of her room. Wednesday, most of my family will be driving down to visit for a little bit in between my two finals. Thursday, I have my last final at eight in the morning, and then I will be finishing up my packing, checking out, picking up the tuxedos for my groomsmen and myself, picking up one of my groomsmen from the airport, and settling in for the night. Friday, the rest of the family and wedding party will be arriving, and in the evening the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner will take place. Saturday, of course, is the day I have been counting down to with Stephanie for the last two months--our wedding! Sunday...well, that is the day after the wedding... Monday...we will still be honeymooning for a little bit longer. The rest of that week, Tuesday through Friday, we will be going through "Orientation MAY-nia" with the Avanti team, which will culminate with our first orientation session at the end of the week. Friday afternoon, after all the new students are oriented, Stephanie and I will be driving down to Panama City for the rest of our honeymoon. Five days later, we will drive up to Huntsville to get ready to leave with Stephanie's family for their big family reunion in West Virginia. We will be traveling and visiting for the next week before leaving the day after Memorial Day to drive back to Alabama. The day after we arrive, Stephanie and I will head back to Tuscaloosa, and the day after that, we will start work again with a two-day freshman orientation.

That was my month of May--minus the 31st--in one long paragraph. Hopefully sleep and other rest will be plentifully interspersed through that...

Ah, I think that tidily tames my blogging urge for the time being. Now I am going to get back to something a little more useful.

Until next time.