Girl, Interrupted

So I did some cleaning last Sunday, reorganized some power cords and such and in the process lost my internet connection. All I did was unplug stuff and put it back again. Aaaaahhhh!!! I immediately start twitching and getting pissed off. Called up Verizon and they'll be here Wednesday..great. Due to some stupidity on their part, they didnt get here until today! Its been a long ass week without it. And to go down just when I'm starting school too....but its back now and all is right with my world.

I started classes on Monday. I think it will be a good semester. One class on Mondays, two on Wednesdays and 3 on Thursdays. Very busy but good too. All my professors seem to be good too. Here's a quick breakdown:

Objective Methods of Personality Assessment: MMPI-2 overview, lots of reading and a few reports. Lots of books and extra readings as well. Professor is excellent but demands a lot from her students.

Theories of Counseling: Class #1 in the licensure requirements that I'm taking. This is my elective because the licensure classes are not part of the regular 50 hour curriculum. The first class was canceled this week so I haven't actually been there yet or met the professor. The syllabus doesnt look too terrible though. A 4 page paper, a presentation on that paper and two tests. Not too bad.

Forensic Documentation, Report Writing and Testifying: Same prof as Methods so of course lots of work and reading. At the end of the semester we'll go to the Dirksen Federal Building and do a mock trial with real prosecuting and defense attorneys and a judge. We'll get up on the stand and testify to a case that we write and prepare. Good hands on experience to use what we will learn. Nerve racking now but I'm sure we'll be prepared when the time comes along.

Research Methods: My eccentric professor Dr. H will be teaching this and I'm looking forward to it because he's such a nutball and a VERY good statistician and researcher. I expect to learn a lot from him, more so than what I learned at the U. The first lecture was about Galileo, Descartes and Lavoisier...who he kept pointing our their "knee britches" and how that was a sign of high society where scientists came from. He also talked about his beatnik parents, his hippie days and Jamaican accent (he's white and from NYC).

Mental Health Law: One of my favorite profs thus far is teaching this class. He's a lawyer and a LCPC and an all around classy guy. This class will probably be one of the more interesting this semester and at times I'll fee like I'm in law school.

Evaluation and Treatment of the Sex Offender: This will be, by far, the most interesting class this semester. Also an elective course, just for the fun of it. The prof works with sex offenders so she's very well read and experienced. It will also be the easiest as she just requires a 4-5 page non-APA paper on our "favorite" sex offender and a final exam. Lots of videos of sex offender interviews too. Interesting as well as uncomfortable at times too. This might help me decide if I want to work in the sex offender population or not.

So overall, I think it will be a good semester. I also have practicum stuff to work on throughout as well.

It was 57 degrees in downtown Chicago yesterday!! It was amazing. I wore my leather coat. Its January isn it?? Well today it snowed just a bit but not enough to accumulate on the ground. We're 10-20 degrees above normal temperatures right now and have been for almost a month now.

Still having difficulty sleeping. I hope this clears up soon. It really sucks.

Ah lets see. The Sioux play the Gophers in Minny this weekend. Wish I could find a bar to watch the games, but I'll be listening to the feed on my computer. Go Sioux! I work Saturday and Sunday and will be working on homework as well. Hope ya'll are doing good, I still read up on yous guys.

Bye for now.