Victory Dance

I've paid my dues, time after time,
I've done my sentence, but committed no crime.
And bad mistakes, I've made a few,
I've had my share of sand kicked in my face,
But I've come through.

We are the champions, my friends!
And we'll keep on fighting till the end!
We are the champions,
We are the champions,
No time for losers,
'Cause we are the champions of the world!

I've taken my bows, and my curtain calls.
You brought me fame and fortune, and everything that goes with it,
I thank you all.

But it's been no bed of roses, no pleasure cruise.
I consider it a challenge before the whole human race,
And I ain't gonna lose!

We are the champions, my friends!
And we'll keep on fighting till the end!
We are the champions,
We are the champions,
No time for losers,
'Cause we are the champions of the world!

Queen
We are the Champions

Grades were posted last night. I got my A. That gives me a perfect 4.0 GPA for my Master's Degree.

Holy Cow. A perfect score. It belies the fact that this was two long, hard years of intensive study like on other I've attempted. It may look easy, but I put a lot of hard work and long hours into it. And I definitely believe that I got a lot out of this effort. I'm a lot better prepared to tackle my career path, especially now that I've moved up into management. There's a lot I still have to learn, but I've learned a lot already that I can use every day.

Test anxiety has now been packed away and sent off to cold storage.

Now all that's left to do is order my graduation robes an mortarboard. My wife and daughter got a big laugh from the order form: it asks for my height. Smartasses.

Will I wear anything underneath?

Stay tuned...

The End of the Line

Well it's all right, even when push comes to shove,
Well it's all right, if you got someone to love,
Well it's all right, everything'll work out fine,
Well it's all right, we're going to the end of the line.

-End of the Line
The Traveling Wilburys

I posted my final, final exam this morning. I did it entirely by accident, however. Pushed the wrong button, but maybe it was a good thing. I was still reviewing my answers, tweaking my responses to the questions, and just all around agonizing over the damn thing. Time to be done with it. Worst I can do is flunk the test and if I've done my math right, I'll still pass the course with a C. Good enough to graduate, but I'd really like to get that last A.

What a long two years it's been. When I first started this, I had no idea how hard it would be to see it all the way through. I put a lot into this, and I feel like I've gotten every bit as much out, plus interest. Education is always a good investment, but more especially if you dive into it like there's no tomorrow.

So now, no more homework. no more reading thick textbooks or scrambling to organize research for papers. Test anxiety has been packed into a box and put in cold storage. I'm now in decompression mode, numb from the knowledge that I have lots of free time on my hands. It just feels weird not having so much stuff to do all night. I've accomplished something big for myself. It feels good, yet at the same time, a journey has ended. I've reached my goal.

This truly is the end of the line.

Time to start a new one.