Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Arghhh...Just Let Me Register Already!!!

Ugh, it took me forever to register. I get to Pitt to register and I had a feeling that I should stop in student accounts to make sure they applied my payment. Nope. Not only did they not apply the payment I sent 2 weeks prior, they didn't even know where the check was!! WHAT?!?!? My account is now delinquent because the payment was late. Meaning no registration because they have a hold on my account.

After arguing and throwing a temper tantrum they admitted that the person who was handling my account was on a leave so the payment was probably on her desk. So they tell me to come back in an hour. Great, except my registration appointment is in 20 minutes. I talk to my advisor and explain what happened. We set up a new appt. for Friday at 5:45pm.

I still have to pay my bill before the hold can be taken off. A quick call to my credit union and they tell me that I can put a stop payment on the check for $26 and they'll give me a new one. Ok, so I can get to the credit union and back in a little over an hour and have the hold off today.

I pace around in circles for 20 minutes, then go back to student accounts. As soon as I walk in, the lady handling my account looks up and says "oh, we found your check. You can register now." Did I mention that I used a vacation day from work for this so now I'm super ticked because the day was wasted?

On my way to the elevator I decide to stop back up at the advisors office and see if she can squeeze me in. The receptionist pulls up Ms. M's schedule and tells me she's booked for the rest of the day. But....her 11:00 hasn't gotten there yet. I run (yeah I literally ran) down the hall to her office. I ask if she can squeeze me in. She tells me that she can see me but if her 11:00 shows up, they take precedence. Ok by me. I sit down and give her the class code that I wanted. She types it up and prints it out. As I'm signing the paper, her 11:00 knocks on the door. I'm done I say to her as I stand. Sweet victory.

With registration in hand, I head to the Panther Center to get a new student id. I even took time to look presentable. I curled my hair (rare occurrence), and put on some lip gloss. I give the guy my drivers license. Oh, spring registration can't get a new id until after December 1st. But they're open 24 hours and give out id's until 10pm. Friday is December 1st so I'll just head over after work. Mission almost accomplished I head home. Now I just have to find out what books are required for the class.

Friday, November 17, 2006

You're An Advisor?

My advising appointment was a joke. I already know what I want my major to be and the classes that I want to take so there wasn't anything my advisor could tell me. She was like well here's the major sheet. I had that and a copy of my transcript so I knew what classes I needed. All she could say was "oh, well that's your advising appointment". Great, and I have to go through this every semester. I have another appointment in a week and a half to register.

I'm looking at 1 class on for 3 hours per week. I can handle that. It still gives me plenty of time to study. Since my gpa is so low I want at least a B in every class. Hopefully I can still pull a B- for an overall gpa when I'm done. Wish me luck!

Sunday, November 05, 2006

Why Do So Few People Vote In The U.S.?

Check out this article from aol on voting. Only about 40% of the voting population votes in a nonpresidential election year. According to the article: Participation, paradoxically, is highest in states where making it to a polling station can be misery on a wintry day. Minnesota, Alaska, Maine, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Wisconsin and Wyoming are among states that lead the nation in getting voters out.

Let your voice be heard! Vote Tuesday November 7th.

Saturday, November 04, 2006

Get Out And Vote

It's that time of year again. Tuesday November 7th is election day. There are state senate seats and governors races that are very close. Some of them will be decided by a few thousand votes.

How many times have you heard someone say what a poor job an elected official was doing but then add that they didn't vote because "it's only one vote" or "my vote doesn't really count"? Now multiply that by all of the thousands of people who say the exact same thing. Hundreds of thousands of people miss voting. These people could have possibly changed the outcome of the election.

It doesn't matter what your political affiliation is or who you plan to vote for. Just get out there and vote. Let your voice be heard.