I was online the other day and I was in a crunch.  You see, I needed to get my essay done for my MBA, but my computer had crashed - and I lost most of my data.  With my thesis defense coming up, I really needed a solution, and I needed it fast.

Now, throughout my college career, I have never borrowed anyone else’s work.  I have never copied an assignment, and I have really kept things above the table.  Even my college application essay I did myself without anyone else’s help.

So, when I found myself looking at a site where you could order essays, things didn’t feel quite right.  Sure, it might solve my problem of needing the essay, but what guarantee did I have that it would even get me a passing grade, let alone passable for someone at a college level.

It only took me a few moments to decide that it was me who had to write the MBA essay, not someone else.  I will just have to figure things out for myself.

I had mentioned a little while back how I managed to have problems with a Linux computer I own - and how I managed to lose the data on it.  Well, history has repeated itself, but this time, it is my Windows based notebook that is the problem.

I don’t know what happened, but the computer was working perfectly one day, and then the next day all my data was gone.  All I could do is feel the stress and frustration rising - things were not supposed to turn out this way.

But I had a plan.

Since I had the mishap last time, I had purchased some of the best data recovery software on the market just in case something like this happened again.  I had passed on just getting photo recovery software and instead purchased Recovery My Files, a full fledged data recovery software package.

It was as simple as installing the software and running the wizard - the software did the rest.  I am happy to report I was able to restore everything - but I think I will make a backup this time just in case it happens again.

My husband and I decided that it is time to downgrade our home. We only have one child left living with us and he is ready to be on his own. We figure that by selling the house and buying a condo, this will give him the little push that he needs to leave the nest. It may sound like we are mean, but we know that he will do just fine on his own.

In fact, if we continue to let him live with us, we are enabling him not to take any responsibility in his life. He still complains about doing chores and I am tired of picking up after him. He leaves his dirty dishes all over the house and takes for granted what he has.

We have not told him yet that we are considering this. We figure that when we have our picture in the paper under for sale by owner, we will stick it on our fridge. He spends enough time in there that he is bound to see it. Yes, it is time for him to spread his wings and fly on his own.

I had a chance to dig out my wedding photos today.  For me, it was one of the most amazing days of my life.  You see, I was marrying my best friend and that meant more to me than anything.

But things didn’t go as well as planned.  You see, we had paid for a wedding planner to be in charge of everything, but we must have hired one of the biggest buffoons in our home town.  She didn’t seem to get anything right, and that made me very angry (especially based on her bill).

What made me the saddest about everything was that she forgot my wedding bouquet.  Don’t ask me how that is even possible, but somehow she made it happen.

I remember sitting in the church crying, and my mother trying to calm me down.  But, it was my day, and I wanted it to be perfect.

For most of the trips that I have made by air in the past, I have relied on a cab to get from the airport.  That has been a relatively good experience so far during my life and I thought that it would be the only type of transportation that I would rely on during my lifetime.

But that wasn’t going to be the case.  You see, a couple of years ago I broke one of my legs and had a full leg cast.  Needless to say, between the crutches and the cast, I couldn’t really fit into a regular vehicle.

I had to go on a business trip to Philadelphia, but I wanted to make sure I had a ride to my business meeting once I got there.  I called ahead, and spoke to someone from the Philadelphia Airport Transportation company, and they informed me that they had a special needs van all ready to pick me up from the airport.

All I can say is that the trip was a success, and the help from the transportation company were very helpful in ensuring that I was well taken care of.  From that day forward, I have made a point to utilize their services whenever I am in Philadelphia – I would have it no other way.

I was so far behind in school after the birth of my baby that I did not think that I would ever catch up. I knew that there would not be much in the way of special attention given to me. I was out of the classroom for three weeks, but I never realized how little time I would have to work on assignments at home. The first day that I got back to school, I found out that I had three book reports due the very next week.

Whoever said that babies sleep all the time the first few months obviously never had my baby. I tried so hard to get caught back up in my classes, but it seemed like every time I sat down to crack open the books, the baby would need to be fed or changed or held. I am ashamed to admit it, but the breaking point came and I bought a custom written essay for one of my classes that I really could not afford to lose and grades on.

I had always hated the people who would buy term papers. I said that if I had ever gotten to that point, I would not be in school. So, I made the tough decision to finish the term and then not return to school for the following semester. It was a tough one because I really loved it. But, I decided that I loved my little one more than this and that is where I needed to be right now.

One of my most favorite times of year is spring.  I love the end of the dreary winter, the end of having to shovel the driveway, and the promise of summer.  But, there are some other things that I treasure about the season of new beginnings.

First off, I would have to say that one of my favorite things about spring is the chance to walk in mud puddles with my children.  Honestly, I don’t think I have ever really grown up, and playing in the mud is just so much fun.  Couple that with playing with young children, and you have a recipe for smiling faces and dirty clothes.

Perhaps my most favorite part of spring is the new fragrances that greet your nose.  Instead of smelling nothing in the cold, you can smell the snow melting, the rain falling, and the flowers blooming.  These smells make me feel more alive than any other time of the year, and breathe life into my soul.

I am so happy that spring is here – nothing ever smelled so good.

I made it through my first week at my new job. I am now officially an insurance salesperson. It was stressful, but I really enjoyed it. My first sale was for condo insurance. It was for an older couple that had retired the year before and were ready to sell their house and downsize to a condo. They were very pleasant to deal with.

Unfortunately, I can’t say that about every customer I had to deal with this past week. There was an especially difficult gentleman who was interested in renters insurance. I told him that it was a very important thing to have and that he should purchase some right away. He informed me that he was just getting quotes right now.

I said that was fine, but that there were many things that he could be liable for and needed to be insured as soon as possible. He said he couldn’t buy until he got his annuity in three months, but wanted to shop around until then. He was very rude and made me want to cry. But, believe it or not, I made it through the first week with no tears.

When I was to be working on my dissertation, I went back to my local high school for some of my research. I went to high school in a very small town and thought that the kindergarten through grade twelve school, was the perfect one to use for my research. It was awesome to see the school again and to see some of my old teachers.

I talked to my old history teacher about my thesis writing. He was the man that made me want to further my education. He was always very supportive of us when we were in high school and he never chose favorites. He loved us all and it was so wonderful to see him again. He encouraged us to always be the best that we could be, whether that meant going to college or not.

He was very excited to hear that I was working on my dissertation. He said that he had always known that I would go very far and be very successful. He remembered me having drive and determination that most high school students just don’t have. I am glad I chose to come “home” for my research and I know I made the right decision.

I don’t know if you ever went to college, but I sure did.  One of my most lingering memories of those days (besides studying, friends, and good times) was my orientation day.

You see, my parents signed me up for orientation so that I could learn how college worked and where all my classes were to be.  Though that day was mostly a blur, I can remember the most life changing event that occurred that day when I looked through the student credit card applications.

You see, up to this point I had never had a credit card.  But, there I was looking at college student credit cards - about 20 different pamphlets of them.  There seemed to be ones that would suit anyone - you could get cash back, rewards or lower interest rates.

Out of all the credit cards for students, I ended up picking out one and I applied for it.  That was the day that I started out with credit.