SNAFU

You may, or may not, know that I’ve been waiting to go to Nail Technology school for awhile now.  That, in and of itself, is a little ironic as I’ve been an unrepentant nail biter since I got my first tooth, but that’s besides the point.

I’ve been waiting a long time for classes to start…  A long, long time.  In fact, I think I just hit the seven month mark.

It really hasn’t been a big deal for me to wait though.  First, there is at least one student who has been waiting even longer than me.  Second, as soon as I toured the school and talked to the owner, I knew it was where I wanted to go, and I’m willing to wait to get a quality education.  The school, The Salon Professional Academy, not only trains some of the best beauty professionals certified today, but they also work very hard on teaching the business aspects of being a beauty professional in a competitive market.  Things like how to get new and repeat bookings, how to encourage customers to try services they might not think to book, and how to recognize what products a client should use at home, and how to encourage them to modify their beauty regimen.  In other words, how to make the extra cash.  Because those skills not only make you a better paycheck, but they also make you a professional who is in high demand with clients and employers alike.

And if I’m going to get a real job, then I want it to be worth the effort.

So I’ve been waiting, mostly patiently, for them to fill the class with enough students to get started.  They needed six to be able to pay the instructors fee, you see, and when I registered last summer I was number two.  So it’s been a long wait.

Yesterday was the big day though, I finally got THE call.  Classes are starting in just a few weeks, and since it’s only a four month program, I’ll graduate in early June.  Awesome!  Right?

Right?

It would be if I could expect life to cut me a little slack once in awhile, and just go according to plan.  No, no, no.  Life doesn’t work that way.  At every turn it has to see if you’re on the ball; if you have your coping skills in place.  Things can’t be easy, that would be too…  Well…  Easy.

Now before you think I’m whining, I’m not (well, maybe just a little bit).  My life is no harder than anyone else's, in fact I have it really darn good most days.  I’m just saying that every once in awhile it would be nice if things worked according to plan.  Maybe every ten years or so, something could work the way I had originally arranged it.  I’m sure you’re with me, and probably feel the same way.  So I say we petition the deities (whichever one you prefer) and file a formal complaint.  Life just shouldn’t have to be that difficult all of the time.  Right?

Anyway, back on track… 

I was really excited to hear that classes were starting, until the details started filtering through the phone line.  With each one, my heart sank a little more.  Instead of being able to jump right in to my new career path, I was going to have to find a way to rearrange my entire life for the next four months.

First off, just a few days ago John purchased tickets to fly out to New York for a weekend to spend some time with his Mom and Tommy D.  We spent a couple of weeks planning the trip, trying to decide when the best weekend for him to go would be, then finding the cheapest air fares.  March 5th was finally picked as the date he would leave, and he would return Monday, March 7th by driving his Dad’s car back for Alexi to use (if she ever gets her license). 

Want to guess when my first day of class is?  Come, on, I bet you can do it!  That’s right, classes start on Friday the 5th, with a full day on Friday, and another full day on Saturday the 6th.  To top it off, my kids are off school on the 5th, so not only would I need to find someone to watch the girls on Saturday, but Friday as well.

OK, so… That sucks.  Maybe John can change his flight that he JUST BOOKED, for a small fee that actually costs more than the tickets did, or maybe I can switch weekends with my ex so that Alexi and CJ can watch their younger sisters for me.  Not really thrilled about spending extra money on the trip though…  Nor is it how I like to spend my weekends with Alexi and CJ, especially since I don’t get that many.  We’ll work it out though, right?  No big deal.

Oh wait, they’ve also decided to change the class hours from a five hour day four days a week to an eight hour day three days a week.  Oh crap, now that’s a whole new load of trouble I’m going to have to figure out!

See, with the five hour schedule I would have been here for Jenna (the only one who really needs me at this point) either in the morning or in the afternoon (or all dang day if they’d stuck with the evening classes I originally signed up for), and would only need to find care for her for one or the other.  With an eight hour day though, I won’t be here for either.  So not only to I need to arrange for her to get to school, but also for her to get home as well.

And I don’t even want to talk about the fact that the dog is going to be home alone for eight hours a day either.  He is SO not going to be happy about that.

Well, let’s look on the bright side, at least it’s only for two days a week now; plus Saturday’s, but John will be home for most of them.  Also, the longer days will cut some time off of the length of the course, so I’ll graduate sooner.

Of course, with only three weeks notice, I have to cross my fingers and pray that my financial aid goes though fast enough.  Not to mention the other stuff like purchasing the school clothes I need (there’s a uniform/dress code), making sure that Tiana has someone to walk with and carry her trumpet home for her because she’s still not allowed to carry the weight of the instrument in its case, and making sure Alexi and CJ can find rides home with friends.  Now I just need to start riding Alexi’s rear-end about getting her license so that she can just drive her own dang car instead of leaching off her friends.

It just feels like an awful lot to figure out and rearrange in a short amount of time.  Considering the history I have of things not working in my favor though, you’d think I’d have known better.

Oh well, it’s only four months of my life, and then I’ll get the joy of trying to figure out how to work a job into my schedule.  Fun!

Hugs,