Saturday, June 02, 2001
The Adventure Begins. Step one toward the journey toward obtaining my MOUS certification: I bought an Exam Prep book for Word 2000 from Borders tonight.
Baby steps. Start with the easiest of all of the MS Office suite products and work my way up. I will get that certification.
Did you know that it's awfully hard to find MOUS exam prep books? There are shelves of MCSE, MCSD, A+, CNA books ... but you'll be lucky to find one or two books on the MOUS. I guess everyone is lusting after those high-level certifications. They cannot be bothered with a little MOUS certification. *squeak squeak?* I think the MOUS is a perfect place for me to start, however, since it will go nicely with what I'm already doing at work, which is software support and software training classes. We've all got to start somewhere.
This is my starting point right here.
posted by Donna, 6/2/2001 01:01:44 AM
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Thursday, May 31, 2001
What am I doing still awake? I have a class to teach at 7:00 am (!) tomorrow morning. The last one of the week. Hooray! Then I can catch up on all of the stuff piling up in my IN-BOX on my desk...
posted by Donna, 5/31/2001 09:29:57 PM
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WANTED: Credentials. I taught 2 more computer classes today. From each class, I had one inquiry about my "background" or so-called "education." Hah. "10 years of computer experience, mostly gotten on the job, and via my own initiative resulting from my keen interest in all things relating to computer software and the online world. Attended a private university for a couple of years. (Those years resulted in the acquisition of tons of knowledge, all of which is completely useless in my field. No degree was obtained to complement all of that useless knowledge gained and money wasted.) I attended public schools all my life. Oh yeah, and did I mention... I create web pages." Okay, so maybe that's not exactly what I said, but it's what ran through my mind when the question was asked. Sounds pretty unimpressive.
If I can at least say that I'm a MOUS, then maybe I'll feel a little better about it. Then I'll have some sort of credentials to speak of when someone asks me.
I won't discount the fact that all of the experience that I have gained is extremely valuable to me. After all, it got me this far ... and I'm quite happy with how far I've gotten and where I am right now at this moment. I'm a happy camper and feel ultimately blessed by the Lord. Without him, where would I be anyway? All the glory to him. I can't take any of the credit, it's all his doing and I know it. Looking back at all of my experiences, I can see that it's all carefully orchestrated... not some random act of fate. I know he's working everything out for my benefit and I'm thankful for his hand in my life. If it's in his plan, I'll get that MOUS and who knows, maybe even a degree if that's what he has in store for me. In the meantime, I've got to trust him and leave it in his capable hands. That's the hardest part sometimes -- relinquishing control. (Yes, I'm a control freak sometimes.)
So now, I'm trusting in him to help me find my motivation to move off my lazy butt and get moving toward obtaining the MOUS certification. Lord knows I can't do it alone. :)
posted by Donna, 5/31/2001 09:24:03 PM
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Wednesday, May 30, 2001
I am a mirror. I really ought to get to bed. After all, I am teaching again bright and early tomorrow morning at 8:00 am. *yawn* Let's hope we have students who are motivated to learn tomorrow. Unfortunately, I am simply a mirror. I reflect the vibes that I get from my students. If they're enthusiastic, then I'm full of energy as I teach. If they all look stone-faced and bored witless, then I find myself drained and discouraged. The latter really makes it hard on me, especially if I have to teach more than one class in a day. I wish I wasn't so affected by the reactions of my students. When I teach, I almost feel like I'm onstage and my students are the audience. If I don't get a favorable reaction from them, I figure that my performance must not be all that entertaining... or in this case "educational." Hope to get some "bravos" and "encores" tomorrow.
posted by Donna, 5/30/2001 09:50:21 PM
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Don't know what you've got 'til it's gone. It just figures... now that I can't use my scanner, all of a sudden I want to use it. It's been laying dormant for some time now, laying there unused for months at a time collecting dust. Now, when it doesn't work due to a lack of Win 2k drivers for the decrepit old thing, I am awash with ideas for stuff to scan. Chock it up to Murphy's Law of broken hardware.
posted by Donna, 5/30/2001 09:42:45 PM
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2 words. Not Pregnant.
posted by Donna, 5/30/2001 09:32:07 PM
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Two-handed mouse technique. Oh my goodness, it's already Wednesday night. Where did the week go? The 3-day weekend has left me out of kilter and I'm still thinking that it's only Tuesday.
However, don't get me wrong, I'm very thankful that we're in the homestretch of the week. I've been teaching basic Windows classes every day this week and it's been a little strenuous. I find that it's most difficult teaching people who don't believe they can learn -- or worse yet, don't want to learn.
In my usual fashion, at the end of the class I may make some kind of comment like, "Well, I hope you learned a little something today in class that you'll find useful in your job."
I usually get the run of the mill, "yeah, it was interesting... I didn't know how to do this-or-that and now I know how" or the "yes, Donna, thanks for the class. I enjoyed it."
Today, I got this and it was disheartening, "No, not me. I didn't learn anything. I'm too old for this stuff."
This came from a man who looked like he was in his late 50's or early 60's, an old-timer at the organization how had never laid hands on a computer until today. In fact, I had to show him that using the mouse requires only one hand -- not both. I thought that I was patient and gentle with him, but his lack of motivation and lack of belief in his own abilities hindered his own learning process.
Hearing comments like that saps my energy in the blink of an eye and leaves me withered and discouraged. Luckily, a few others were a little more enthusiastic about the class, so that made up for the one negative comment. I just feel like with enough patience, I can help anyone -- however, if they're not even willing to help themselves, it's quite impossible.
I taught two 3-hour sessions on Introduction to Windows and at the end of the day felt completely drained, as if I had poured every single ounce of my energy into the teaching process. I hope someone gained a grain of benefit from my effort.
posted by Donna, 5/30/2001 09:25:29 PM
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Monday, May 28, 2001
Additions to the Menu. I have added a link to the Picture Book section of the site. I have also included an index to the Guam Chronicles in the sidebar menu as well.
Time for bed! Oyasumi!
posted by Donna, 5/28/2001 09:58:48 PM
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"Every little thing that you do, baby, I'm amazed by you..."
Written in invisible ink.
posted by Donna, 5/28/2001 09:45:24 PM
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False Alarm. Hubby has been working some insane hours recently. As a result, his sleeping habits aren't exactly on the same wavelength as mine. After cleaning up the kitchen after dinner and taking another freshly baked loaf of bread out of the bread machine, I came back to the computer room to futz around on the computer for a while before turning in for the night and I found Hubby sleeping on the floor next to the Total Gym. Knowing how difficult it is for him to fall asleep (and stay asleep for any prolonged period of time), I was careful not to wake him. The lamp was off, so I sat in front of the computer in the dark for a while until my eyes started feeling the effects of fatigue and eye strain. In a moment of genius, I figured I'd provide some soft light via some of the candles I had in my collection. I lit up 3 small votive candles and happily surfed the web via candlelight until...
BEEP BEEP BEEP!!! BEEP BEEP BEEP!!! BEEP BEEP BEEP!!!
The smoke alarm in the computer room went off, of course, waking Hubby and causing me to panic. I immediately blew out the candles, grabbed the Vornado fan and pointed it at the smoke alarm. The alarm stopped beeping, but Hubby was already awake. He was looking around the room, obviously disoriented by the rude awakening as I apologized profusely and told him to go back to sleep. He told me to put on the lamp, which I did (on the lowest setting) and he fell back asleep a few minutes later.
Well, the good news is that the smoke alarm works.
*ahem* File that one under the "Duh" Chronicles.
posted by Donna, 5/28/2001 09:20:37 PM
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Sunday, May 27, 2001
Sickie Poo. Poor Hubby is still sick. He's been sick for the past several days. I've been trying my darnedest not to contract whatever he has -- which is probably just a bad cold, or possibly a flu. I actually convinced him to call in sick today, pretty much against his will since he's a very dedicated employee. After all, working from 3 AM to 4 PM for 8 days straight can't be good for you. Pray for Hubs to get better!
posted by Donna, 5/27/2001 10:31:16 PM
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Making the Memorial Day Rounds. I posted a Real Entry for yesterday's Memorial Day weekend adventures with the folks. We made our rounds to the various cemeteries around the island and also toured around Oahu's north shore, taking the long way home.
posted by Donna, 5/27/2001 10:20:18 PM
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Road Blocks. Hubby gave me some great ideas to incorporate into the graphical aspect of my site. I got all excited about it, then realized that I can't do it without a scanner. There are no drivers for Win2k for this particular no-name scanner that I bought a couple of years ago. I guess it may be time for a new equipment purchase. Hmm...
posted by Donna, 5/27/2001 05:25:19 PM
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Net.Funk. I'm in a net.funk. I want to redesign the site (yes, again) and I can't find the inspiration. After church this morning, we had lunch and washed the dog. After that, I spent the greater part of the afternoon lying in bed with Hubby watching National Geographic specials on TV. I'm TV'd out now and looking to conjure up something creative. No luck so far. I guess my brain is in lazy Sunday afternoon mode.
posted by Donna, 5/27/2001 04:21:44 PM
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