Catching Up

Well, as most of you know, we recently moved from our home in Morgantown, WV to Baltimore, MD. It has taken us a great deal to complete the move and begin to get settled. I stress the word begin, because we are far from being settled. We are just now getting to the point of being caught up. The move has turned our lives upside down, but we are managing. We thought this would be a good time to update everyone on how we are doing and what we are doing.

The Family - The move has been extremely disruptful to our "normal" routine. We started out in our new home without phone and internet, but luckily those have been installed. We are still living without cable and hopefully will have that installed before Thanksgiving. Verizon is currently wiring for FIOS in our community as we write this. The installation of FIOS is suppose to be completed by the end of next week.

One of the great thing to come out of the move has been the elimination of the Risk family's debt. With exception of student loans (Lori's are paid off this month) and about six months of car payments on the Honda, we have been able to pay off all of our debt.

We are planning a weekend get away this coming weekend since we did not get a real vacation this year. Holiday plans are up in the air because Lori will not have accumulated enough time off to be away for long.

Jim - I have started graduate school at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) in pursuit of my Master's degree in History. As many of you know, the path to graduate school was very stressful and at times seemed hopeless. After applying to 10 different schools, I ended up enrolling in the 11th as a non-degree seeking student. I have applied to the formal progrma for a Spring 2010 admission and I am currently taking two classes which will apply to my degree. This was the best option for me without "losing time" considering the course that transpired. I have some how managed an A in both classes to this point, but the one class has not had any real assignments yet. In January, I will take on a full course load and over the summer hope to complete an internship and take a class at Mystic Seaport in Connecticut that will transfer back to UMBC for credit towards my degree.

Lori - Lori has started her new job as an Occupational Therapist at Harbor Hospital on the southside. The commute is a little longer than we expected, but the hours are good. The job is still too new to know whether she will truly like it our not. It will take four to six months to really get to know how she feels about it. Lori's job is less stressful, but more physically challenging.

James - James has had a rougher time with the move than we expected. When we first moved, James was constantly asking to "go home". He has accepted that Baltimore is his new home, but he misses his friend Morgan a great deal. This evening when we were looking at desks at Office Depot, James saw a Christmas teddy bear and said it looked like Morgan.

A big part of the transition was that the daycares here would not take James before he turned two years old. James had almost four weeks from the time we moved until he was able to start daycare again. One of those weeks was spent with Grandma and Grandpa in Pittsburgh, and the other three with Daddy at home. James is definitely a child of structure, and the lack of structure really made it rough for him. Since starting daycare, James has become more settled both at school and at home. He enjoys being near Uncle Mike and Aunt Kathy and he enjoys his new school.

James has begun speaking in sentences, and can now recite "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" word for word. He is fascinated by the moon and the stars and seeks them out every night after dark. James also is fascinated by the sirens of firetrucks and ambulances. James' daycare had a visit from the fire department (no, not for a fire) and he really enjoyed seeing the firetruck up close.

James' class has also gone on a field trip to a local farm and pumpkin patch. He had so much fun, he fell sleep on his teacher on the hayride. One of the worse things about starting daycare has been the germs. As to be expected, James has become sick over the last two days. He has a horrible cough, and starting running a slight fever last night, but is otherwise doing fine.

James has taken to drawing a great deal and is constantly asking for a pen to "write" with. He believes that everything belongs to him and has become very possessive of things. On a recent trip for ice cream, we bought James soft serve vanilla because we thought he would do better with it. Daddy got a scoop of blueberry and Mommy got a scoop of chocolate carmel. James tasted Daddy's ice cream and then took it from Daddy. When James was told that it was Daddy's ice cream, James said, "No! James' ice cream", prompting Daddy to let James have the ice cream and go get another scoop for himself.

Socks & Shadow - Socks and Shadow have shown the greatest amount of adaptation to their new environment. They seem to have had no ill effects from the move and have made themselves at home.

Our Home - Our home has been downsized by at least 150 square feet. While that may not sound like much, it has been rather difficult to find space for all of our stuff. In fact, we had to get rid of a lot of stuff prior to moving and had let a few things go since we moved. (In addition, our computer died in the move prompting us to convert from the PC to the MAC.) The real problem is not the square footage as much as it is that we lost two full rooms, a basement and the garage. We have had to combine our den with our bedroom and the guest bedroom with James' nursery. Our living room is about 80% complete, but our dining room has become our storage room. We are still "unpacking", and hope to have that complete by the holidays.

We apologize for how long it has taken us to update this blog. Please bear with us as we continue the adjustment to our new home. Hopefully we will be able to keep up to date better now that we are starting to get settled.

My Letter to Comcast

For those that have followed this blog for a while, you know that a little over 2 years ago Lori and I switched from Comcast to DirecTV. It was one of the best decisions we have made. When we moved to Baltimore, however, we are unable to get reception for DirecTV. Our only option for TV is Comcast. Begrudgingly, I called them. They blew off the installation appointment and we have now decided to wait until Verizon installs FIOS in our area (starting next week) to get TV service. With that said, I decided it was time to write a letter to Comcast.


Mr. __________________
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Comcast Corporation
One Comcast Center
Philadelphia, PA 19103




Dear Mr. _____________,

A little over two years ago, I was a faithful Comcast subscriber (Morgantown, WV) who would never have thought to look elsewhere for paid television service despite all the prodding I received from family and friends. Today, I will never subscribe to a Comcast service again.

Comcast first lost me when, more than two years ago, I called to upgrade my existing service. I was a current Comcast customer with the very basic cable service. When I began experiencing a pixelized picture with greater frequency, I assumed it was because everything was being switched to digitial and I was still subscribing to the non-digital service. I called Comcast to upgrade to digital cable and scheduled the installation of my upgrade for a few days later between 2 PM and 5 PM. I took that afternoon off work and waited for a technician who never arrived and never called. At 7 PM that evening, I called to find out why the technician never arrived. I was told by the customer service representative that the technician never picked up the work order to install my upgrade. That meant that I not only missed a half day's work, but that I would have to miss another half day's work for the return appointment. When I explained my frustrations to the customer service representative, I was suprised by the response. Yes, the customer service representative apologized for my inconvenience, but she did so in a tone that said "I don't really care" and did not try to make any ammends for the inconvenience. When I told her that I would cancel my service and go with DirecTV, her attitude remained the same as if to say "we don't need you as a customer anyway." It was only when I followed through with switching to DirecTV that I got any sort of real concern from Comcast. It was almost like the customer service representative didn't think I (or anyone else) would actually leave Comcast. Needless to say, I was very happy with my DirecTV and DirecTV was very happy to have my business.

A couple of weeks ago, I moved to an area (Baltimore, MD) where satellite reception is not good. To my dismay I had to cancel my DirecTV service. DirecTV did everything they could to try to keep me as a customer, exactly the way a company should respond when they are losing a valued customer. To add to my dismay, the only option for paid television service at my new home was Comcast. Verizon FIOS is coming to the area, but it is still a few months away. So I contacted Comcast through their website and scheduled to have Comcast's Triple Play (TV/Phone/Internet) installed. Because we live in a gated community, I left specific instructions for the installer to contact the leasing office when he arrived at the gate. Since Comcast was installing our phone service, we did not a phone coneccted to the gate to let him in ourselves. I also explained very specifically that we did not get any cellular phone service inside our apartment, but that I would be home the entire day. Again, contacting the leasing office would have allowed the technician to complete the installation as scheduled.

You can imagine my ire when I received a voice mail on my cellular phone that the technician had arrived at the gate of our community and because he could not get inside the gate, I would have to reschedule. Understand that rescheduling would not have solved the problem. Without the phone service that Comcast was suppose to install that day, I would never be able to open the gate for the technician and the technician would still have to contact the leasing office to get into the complex. Just as my original instructions had stated.

My ire increased when I called Comcast back and tried to get the installer to return. I was told that a request would be put in and I would hear back in 15 - 20 minutes. Two hours later, I called back. I was told that because I missed the scheduled appointment, I would need to reschedule. I MISSED THE APPOINTMENT????? I was at my apartment the whole time. The technician is the one who didn't follow the instructions. This time, I missed a full day's work and would miss another day's work for the return visit. I told the customer service representative that I did not need reschedule my appointment, but that I needed to cancel my installation. I informed her that I would have Verizon install my service. The customer service rep apologized for the inconvenience with the same lack of concern as the rep two years ago. Once again I was left with the feeling that my money was not good enough for Comcast and that Comcast didn't need me as a customer.

May I ask how Comcast expects to stay in business if they treat customers like they have so little value? Companies are built on their customer base. A satisfied customer will tell one other person about their experience, but a dissatisfied customer will tell many more. (I personally have already told more than 75 people about my experience with Comcast through Facebook and will be posting this letter to my oline blog.) To treat a customer, or potential customer, as though they don't really matter is a very poor business model.

Needless to say, my eperience with Comcast has led me to never do business with Comcast again. Two different Comcast locations in two different states two years apart and I received the same lack of concern both times. If in the future I should move again and I am faced with the choice of Comcast or doing without, I will happily do without.

Sincerely,
James Risk

P.S. - Could you please remove my name and address from the mailing list used to recruit new customers? Seems kind of pointless to keep killing trees since Comcast apparently doesn't need me as a customer anyway.

Life Without the Internet

Many people look forward to the days when they can get away from it all and just forget technology altogether. That is not the case for us, at least not at this moment. Since moving to Baltimore, we have struggled to get everything done while continuing to work and study full-time. Neither of us has really taken any "time off". So needless to say, getting internet setup at our new home has been put off until we could get some semblence of what was even going on. This is one of the reasons we have not updated this blog, James' scrapbook, or our facebook pages on a regular basis.

Although, getting internet has been put off, it has also been one of the most importnat things we need. Research for school papers, checking emails for our contract jobs with WVU, and arranging for utilities to be hooked up (including the internet) at the new home.

What this means is that life without the internet has been very difficult. In order to accomplish these things, we have had to resort to some pretty creative ways of getting internet service. All have cost us a great deal of time and money. While the internet access has been "free", there are costs associated with it - time, gas, and the feeling of obligation to buy something from the establishment that is offering the free wi-fi access.

The nearest spot is the local Dunkin Donuts, which I have visited on several occasions. Although it is only a few blocks from the house, it takes about 30 minutes to pack everything up, drive there and unpack everything to get set up (including the return home). Time is money. If we had internet at home, we could be saving a lot of time, and thus a lot of money. Luckily for use, the Dunkin Donuts is open 24 hours. But then that brings up another cost - the feeling of obligation to buy something. I've spent roughly $3-$5 everyday at the Dunkin Donuts on a juice/water and a donut or two. That $3-$5 adds up and quickly. Especially when you have to go almost daily.

Other places that have free internet are the public library and the UMBC campus. The library is nice because it is close and quiet, but it closes at 9 PM and you have to pay to park. Parking can cost anywhere from $1-$8 depending on how long you are there. The UMBC campus has free access and free parking, but with traffic, it can be upto 45 minutes away. Again, time is money.

So with all of this strugle to access the internet, we finally were able to get our internet service scheduled for hookup. Yesterday, Comcast had an appointment to install our phone, internet, and cable between 12 Noon - 3 PM. However, in the typical Comcast fashion, the technician blew off the appointment and customer service acted like it was no big deal. (That will actually be my next post.) Needless to say, we have cancelled our install with Comcast and gone with Verizon. Verizon will have our phone and internet (but no TV) installed at the end of next week, meaning we have another week to wait for internet service.

Frustrating! Rest assured, once our internet is hooked up, we will do our best to update all of our family and friends through our blogs, scrapbooks, and Facebook pages.

Casualties of Moving

As most of you know, we recently moved to Towson, a Baltimore area suburb. We did our best to pack everything as carefully as we could to make sure that nothing broke in transit. As we begin unpacking our many boxes, we have come across our first casualty of the move -- our computer!

It is really a stretch to call it a casualty of the move. When I disassembled the computer to move it, it already had a blank black screen. We did not pack it because it was moved in our car as a precaution, something we had planned to do anyway. When the computer arrived in Baltimore, we set it up and quickly realized our worst fears - the computer had indeed crashed. When booting the computer, I continually get a blue screen error message stating that Windows has shut itself down to prevent further damage to the computer.

I can't really blame anything for the computer crash. The computer is five years old (ancient and antique in the computer world). We needed to replace it anyway. I have taken the computer to the Geek Squad at Best Buy (didn't know where else to take it having just moved) and they are going to try to retrieve the data from the computer. While it went against my better judgment because of cost, I asked them to repair it as well, assuming it is repairable. This really is more to buy us a little more time until the sell of our house closes and we can get a new computer. Luckily for us we have a laptop that I bought last year for school. Unfortunately, the data on the desktop that may not be recoverable is our checkbook (in Quicken) and several songs from iTunes that had not yet been synced with our iPod.

Hopefully both will be recoverable and we won't lose any money we paid for the any of the iTunes songs. I can reinstall the Quicken and recover the data from my backup (yes, I have a backup of our checkbook), if I could just figure out what box they are packed it. It is maddening trying to go from day-to-day without knowing exactly how much money you have to spend -- and because of the move having to spend money like crazy to get things done. We can always check on the balance online, except that we don't have internet service yet! We are having to use the free Wi-Fi at Dunkin Doughnuts, which isn't exactly free considering you feel obligated to buy something while you are there. Besides, their internet access is not secure and even if it was, the online balance may not be correct because it doesn't show checks that have been presented until after they post. Good news is that we are getting internet, phone and TV installed on Thursday. Hopefully as we get these little things accomplished, we will begin to feel settled.

More Wasted Money

A few days ago, I wrote on our blog about wasting money on items that we ended up never using. The list was relatively short and really didn't amount to much money wasted (still a penny spent is a penny unsaved). My list, however, was primarily confined to items found in a 1 1/2 foot wide by 9 inch deep closet. Yesterday and today while continuing to pack, I came across several other items that we bought with good intentions, but never seemed to find the time to use. These items were a bit more expensive than my first list making this list a little more disheartening than the first. Below is the list of the newly discovered unused items.

1. Two sets of Pyrex® baking dishes. We bought these seven years ago when we were putting them on our wedding registry at Kohl's. It so happened that as we were putting them on the registry, they were being put on clearance for $5.00 each set. We purchased the last three sets in the store, but we have only used one set. (They are all the same, so unless something in one of the sets breaks, we won't likely need the other two.) We had said that we would give the other two sets away as wedding gifts. We have been invited to several weddings since then and yet the two sets still sit on the shelf in the closet of our spare bedroom. We will take these with us when we move just in case we are invited to another wedding and need a gift.


2. Two party style games. Over the past couple of years, we had hosted a monthly game night attended by several friends. Each month we would try to have different games, so for a while, we were buying a new game once a month. Each game typically costs $15 - $25. The two games we have never used are Loaded Questions and Scattergories. We never used these games because we had bought the same games for our friends as Christmas presents. When our monthly game night rolled around, our friends brought their new games with them and we played using their games instead of our own. We will take these with us when we move. Maybe someday we will open them up and play them.


3. Two sets of landscaping lights. We bought these a few years ago during one of Ace Hardware’s holiday rebate sales. (I think it was the Memorial Day sale, but they have similar sales on the 4th of July and Labor Day.) I had intended to line our driveway with the lights, but after purchasing them, I decided to wait until we put in landscaping (railroad ties and gravel) along the driveway to avoid the lights getting damaged by the lawn mower. I never seemed to find the time to start the project, let alone finish it. The lights cost $19.99 per set and if I remember correctly the rebate was $5.00 per set for a total loss of $30.00. We have decided to give these to our good friends Jennifer and Patrick who will hopefully get more use out of them than we did.


4. A bag of soil starter. Last fall, we had to have the drainage system for our house replaced. The contractors dug up our entire backyard and when they were done, they planted grass seed. I watered the grass seed for two weeks as the contractor had instructed me, but it turned too cold shortly thereafter. When the spring came, the grass had come in very spotty. I attempted to patch the yard by mixing some grass seed with three bags of soil starter and then spreading the mixture over the areas that needed it. I ended up with one extra bag of soil starter and never got around to returning it. Unfortunately, the grass seed that I spread never came in and the yard is still as patchy as it was before.


5. An exercise ball. I purchased this on clearance shortly after my back surgery. i had intended to do back strengthening exercises and stretches with the exercise ball, but I never seem to find the motivation. Something else always seemed to take priority. Life just got in the way. We will take this with us in hopes that I will use it now that I will have more time.

Well, that’s it for this list. I am sure I will find more as I continue to pack. Hopefully, it is not too much more. This list alone totals about $100 in money wasted.

Wasting Money

As everyone knows, Lori and I are not ones to waste a lot of money. We are frugal to a point and do our best to balance our budget with a happy and enjoyable lifestyle. We watch every penny closely and do not indulge in friviolous spending. So you can imagine how disheartening it is to find out how much money we have wasted over the past couple of years.

Let me back up a step. I have been packing up the house for the past two days in preparation of our move. During that time, I have come across several items that we had purchased with good intentions, but have never even opened. Imagine how much money we could get if we could return all of those items. Unfortunately, we have had them for too long and it would take too much time to find the receipts. Here are a few of the items I discovered just today.

1. A solid brass eyehole. We had intended to install this on our front door. We bought the eyehole when when bought the door two years ago, but just never got around to installing it.


2. A tube of concrete sealer/silicone. I don't remember when or why we bought it, but chances are the sealant is no longer any good. Even unopened, it will only last so long.


3. A 15 foot indoor extension cord. We could take this with us, and probably will, but if we haven't used it yet, it is not likely that we ever will.


4. A twin pack of Woolite® Carpet Spot and Stain remover. Maybe we will use this as we clean the house before we go.


5. A six outlet surge protector. If I remember right, we got this free after rebate, so maybe we didn't waste any money on it. We will pack this up and take it with us.

All of this was found in a small 2 foot wide by 9 inch deep closet. Imagine what I will find in other rooms of the house that are much larger. Not much we can do about it now, I just hope we don't find much more.

Finding a Home

After two weekends in Baltimore, we finally found a home. It was not our first choice, but it was probably the best choice. Our home will be in Towson, just five mintues from Lori's brother Mike and his wife Kathy. We have secured an apartment at Versailles. Sounds a bit luxurious and exotic, and in some ways it is compared to the other places we looked, but in general it is a pretty standard place.

The community is gated. The only access is through the leasing office or a resident. Our apartment is a two bedroom, 1300 sq ft ground level unit. This will be great for James as he will have lots of room to play and won't be distrubing the neighbors below us. The apartment is a short 20 minute commute to Lori's new job and to my classes at UMBC. It is near a major shopping center and several daycare centers. The area is also one of the safest in Baltimore, rating 92 out of 100.

We do not have our physical address as of yet. We will get that when we sign our lease on September 12. For more about our new home, please visit Versailles Apartment Homes.

Sold?!!!!

After being on the market for 14 days, we received an offer on our house today. We countered, they countered, we countered again, they countered again, we countered a final time and they accepted. We will sign the contract tonight or tomorrow. As long as everything goes well, we should close around the middle to end of October. Please keep your fingers crossed and pray that everything continues to work out.

Our move to Baltimore is tentatively scheduled for the weekend after Labor Day. Lori is suppose to start her new job in Baltimore on September 23rd and her last day at work in WV will be September 18. Therefore, we will move 90% of the stuff the weekend after Labor Day, leaving the bare necessities. I will commute to Baltimore for school for the first couple of weeks of class.

Now all we have to do is find a place to live.

Baltimore Bound?????

For those that have been following the saga of the Risk family this past summer, you know it has been a very stressful time for us. In some instances, that stress has finally found a resolution, but in others, the stress has just begun.

On Friday, Lori received a verbal job offer from Harbor Hospital in Baltimore. Today, the official Letter of Intent was mailed out. Lori has decided to accept the offer and we have decided to move to Baltimore. Fall classes start September 1 at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. We are going this coming Friday to enroll in classes as a non-degree seeking student (program deadlines have long since passed). I will then apply for admission for the Spring semester and if accepted, the classes I take this fall will be applied to my degree.

What this means is that we have a lot of work to do over the next three - six weeks as we attempt to move. Our house will officially go back on the market tomorrow (Tuesday) and this weekend while in Baltimore, we hope to find a new home. We also have to look at daycare options for James, and I will need to find a part-time job. All within this three - six week time frame. We don't expect the house to sell before we move, but we are hopeful that we might have an offer.

We ask that all of our family and friends help us pray so that we may be able to make this move and continue to work for what is best for our family and our future.

We would also like to let all of our friends here in Morgantown know that we will miss them and once we are settled, they are more than welcome to come visit us. We will make sure we keep in touch. So easy to do these days with Facebook, blogs, email, and instant messengers. We will do our best to keep everyone updated on our progress, but if we get behind, rest assured that we will catch up once we are settled in our new home.

Saturday's Fortunes

On Saturday, Lori, James and I ate at the Mall with James' friend Morgan and her parents. James ate Chicken from Chick-Fil-A, while Mommy and Daddy had Chinese from Wong's Wok. At the end of our meals, we opened our fortune cookies. Lori's cookie had THREE fortunes inside. Not sure exactly what that means. Do they cancel each other out, or is she bound to have all three fortunes come true? Lori didn't keep her fortunes and we can't remember exactly what they said, but here is a recap what our fortunes held:

Jim's

• "You will be fortune in the opportunities presented to you"

Lori's

• "Now is a good time to make new friends"
• 
  
• Not exact - "You will find success in your business venture."


• Not exact - "You will find happiness in new surroundings"

All of these fortunes lead us to believe that our attempts to move will come to fruition. We just don't know when or how. I don't want to jinx our fortunes, so I will say that we fully believe in this method for predicting what our future holds. I will also say that we are praying every night for answers, because while the cookie may tell the future, it is still very cloudy and vague.

Revising Our Plan, Learning the Ropes, and Playing the Game

After two very sobering days, the Risk family has revised their outlook for the future. Although the timeline for the future is not what we had originally planned, our new plans seem to make things a little brighter and hopefully a lot easier. In retrospect, we have discovered many errors and oversights in our original graduate school application process and have decided to remedy the problem with a new perspective.

In our original plan, we applied to several MA/PhD combined programs and were not admitted to a single one. We quickly backtracked and applied to three MA programs and were accepted to all three - lesson number #1.

After being accepted to three MA programs, we then proceeded to the next step of selling our house and finding jobs in the the area of our school of choice. To our surprise, the house received an offer within 9 days, and we were no where near landing a job. - lesson #2.

With that we backtracked again, pulled the house off the market and "settled" for what was suppose to be the last resort for school. This created a very sobering dilemna because the school did not actually have the program we were seeking, but would have been acceptable to at least get through the next step. It was also the most expensive choice, even with a tuition waiver/graduate assistantship because of the cost of living. This choice made us very unhappy and had begun tearing us apart. - lesson #3.

So our revised plan incorporates all of the lessons we learned and hopefully allows us to proceed with greater success, but at a different pace. Instead of applying to schools first and then hoping all of the other puzzle pieces fall into place, we have decided to put the pieces of the puzzle together and then apply to schools. We will apply for jobs in one or two geographic locations (Baltimore, MD or Richmond, VA). These two areas offer us the best potential for success. Lori and I will find a job, we will THEN put the house on the market to make the move. Once moved, we will get settled and then apply to the area schools. Each area has three to four schools that will be great possibilities (some of them were my original schools). Lesson #2 learned.

How does this make things better? How do we know that we will be accepted the second time around? First, things will be better, because we will already be settled and that will result in less stress. Second, we will have a greater chance of acceptance because we will apply to these schools differently. Originally, we had applied to MA/PhD combined programs and did not get accepted to a single one. Shame on us for not realizing the natural progression of the academic world and thinking we were "exceptional" enough to bypass certain necessary steps. Each of these combined MA/PhD programs offer a terminal MA degree. I was accepted to three terminal MA programs. Duh! The combined MA/PhD programs will accept "exceptional" undergraduates, but realistically that just doesn't happen. By applying to the terminal MA program at each of these schools, I will have a better chance of acceptance. A terminal MA does not close the door on a PhD as the term "terminal" might imply. In fact, the opposite is true. If one does well enough in the terminal MA program, they are usually recommended and welcomed to the PhD program with open arms. Thus, we could ultimately achieve our original goal and land somewhere for several years, simply by applying ourselves differently. Lesson #1 learned.

So what if this still doens't work out? There are no guarantees. That is lesson #3. Do what makes you happy. By being in a larger metropolitan area, there will be more opportunities for both of us, before and after enrollment in graduate school. Lori's opportunities in healthcare and goverment program management go without saying. For me, history jobs, even with only a BA, will be more plentiful. If I do not get accepted to an MA program where we move, I will at least be working in my field and that will make me very happy. The same thing holds true if I am accepted into an MA program, but I am unable to get into a PhD program. In either case, I can find a job that is much more interesting. In the interim to starting a program at one of the schools in either of these areas, I will have access to the research materials I need for my thesis and dissertation. I will be able to get a jump start on my research.

So that is our revised plan. We don't know how long it will take to implement. It likely will not result in time for the fall semester, meaning, I will sit out at least one academic year. It may be possible for me to attend one semester at WVU and transfer two classes (6 credit hours) to another program. This would allow me to keep my job and defer my undergraduate student loans for another six months. Most programs will not allow you to transfer more than six credits.

Maybe God will smile a little brighter upon us this time.

Sobering Day

Today has been a sobering day for the Risk family. We turned down our potential buyer's second offer and removed our house from the market. We have withdrawn our acceptance to Salisbury University in Maryland and East Carolina University in North Carolina. Currently, we are debating on withdrawing my acceptance to West Virginia University and sitting the academic year out. More realistically, not returning to school...period.

Although I have expressed my dislike of Morgantown, the state of West Virginia, and West Virginia University, it is not simply about me or the two years it will take to complete my degree. WVU is an acceptable school. Morgantown and West Virginia are tolerable for two years. I have already tolerated them for eight. It's much bigger than that. It's about the fact that in two years, nothing will change. We will go through the motions of leaving, but when the time comes, it won't happen, no matter how much I want to leave. (You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink.) With no careers in history in the area (except for WVU if you have a PhD), there will be no reason to spend time, money and energy earning an MA. I would never have the chance to use it.

Some may read this as me being pessimistic. I have never considered myself a pessimist or an optimist. I am a realist. One of my better traits is to visualize the future and work towards that goal. If I do not return to school, I will become too involved with James and everyday life to ever return.

Offer....Counteroffer...Counter again....

This afternoon we received the first offer on our house. Our house has only been on the market for 9 days! The offer was a little lower than we wanted, so we countered the offer with our own. The buyers countered our offer with a second offer and we will mostly likely make a second counter offer. Right now we are about $7,000.00 apart, so I think our next counter will be pretty close to where we want to be. Now we just have to find Lori a job....AND QUICKLY! The offer is for closing at the end of July.

Becoming a Pirate?????

We have been in Greenville, NC for two days now looking for potential housing and checking out the area for a potential move. I have not been overly impressed by Greenville, but I also have not found anything to really dislike about the area. I believe that this is an area I could live in for a couple of years while earning my Masters degree and I feel the area will grow on me. I believe I will come to think of Greenville as home, but I don't know that I would want to live here for a longer period. Greenville has all the basic amenities, but it is still lacking many of the same things that Morgantown lacks. It is over an hour to the nearest metro area.

We hope to check out more tomorrow and see the university on Tuesday. As long as my visit with the department goes well, I will be trading my muzzleloader and coonskin hat for a saber and black eye patch.

On the Road Again.....

Our travels have taken us to Greenville, NC as we are checking out the area for a possible move. I have been accepted to East Carolina University's program in Maritime Studies and we are trying to decide if this is the right choice for the Risk family. Today we looked at three sets of apartments. The first was really nice, but too small. The second complex was larger, but not as nice. The third....HOME! Although, we will continue to look for a house to rent, the third apartment - The Reserve at Waterford Place, was one of the nicesrt complexes I have ever been in. Gated entry, interior entrances (think hotel penthouse) Marble countertops, security systems, crown moulding, arched doorways, decorative column supports, decorative sconce wall lighting, etc....... all for less than a smaller sized apartment in Morgantown.

Tomorrow we will continue to explore the area, but so far our trip has been very good. We had a very nice dinner at CPW's (Carolina Pasta Works). It is a must visit if you are ever in the area. A high-end chef-prepared gourmet meal at Applebee's prices. On Tuesday we hope to visit the actual campus and some daycare centers before returning home.

Clean Sweep Week 19

Clean Sweep had a good week at the Risk household. We took three more bags and two boxes of stuff to Goodwill and completed our de-cluttering of the house for our realtors. The biggest success of the week was our trip to the dump. We dumped 440 lbs of garbage to the dump. Most of it came from some old ceiling tiles that we had planned to use when we finished the basement. Since it doesn't appear that we will be staying, I decided it was a good time to get rid of them. If counted individually, we probably got rid of more than 150 items. I am guessing that total rises to more than 225 items if you also count the rails that the ceiling tiles hang on. Because they are made of aluminum, and the price of aluminum is good these days, I let our friend Patrick have them to recycle in return for the use of his truck to go to the dump. All in all, I was very pleased with our progress this week, as were our realtors.

Real Estate Market Day 1

Well, the first day on the market was a busy one. We had three showings today from three different real estate companies. We heard that the one individual really liked what he saw on the outside, but he was waiting for our realtor to get the key to them to look at the inside. We have a lock box, but the realtor makes a key from our key to put in the lockbox and then gives us our key back. They hadn't quite got that done yet before they started showing the house. ooooops!

Anyway, we should hear feedback tomorrow. The first thirty days will have the most showings, and having three the first day is a good start. Now, if I can find time to bury Saint Joseph.

For Sale!

Well, all of our hard work the past two weekends has really paid off. OUr house is now on the market for sale. We have our first showing tomorrow morning between 10am - 11am. Lori broke out the chocolate chip cookies to see how long the smell lingers. We will bake some in the morning to make the house "smell and feel like home" to our potential buyers. We will bury our Saint Joseph statue in the front yard tomorrow and ask that everyone pray everyday to Joseph that our house sells in a timely manner - like yesterday! Sorry, but we were a month late getting the house on the market, so we have to squeeze the sell in quickly.

We are suppose to say the prayer to Saint Joseph for nine days straight. When I sold my house the first time, I said the prayer nine times a day for nine days. This time around, I will need some help for my prayers to be heard. The man upstairs has not been smiling to brightly upon me these days because of a disagreement he and I have regarding my admission (or lack there of) to the University of Delaware. Yes, I agreed to abide by his wishes, but I never said I had to agree with them.

Anyway, back to the house. Three bedroom ranch with full unfinished basement, two car attached garage, with newer roof, paint, water heater, dishwasher and garbage disposal. Nice yard with natural fence and mature fruit trees. Friendly neighborhood with lots of families, good schools and great curb appeal. Steady growth area. $175,000.00 list.

Wednesday's mailbag

Wednesday's mailbag brought lots of good news. I received my "official" notification of acceptance to East Carolina University as well as an unofficial email notification of acceptance to West Virginia University. WVU even mentioned the possibility of a partial tuition scholarship. I plan to schedule a meeting with the graduate director at WVU next week to find out more information.

So now it is deciding between three schools. While I am leaning toward ECU, I will have to weigh all options carefully and make sure that I make the best decision for all of us. Salisbury has a good research center and faculty, but their small program means taking classes of little or no interest (like Latin America history) in order to complete the program on time. If I get the assistantship I applied for, Salisbury is the most affordable option. East Carolina has the program that is specific to my interest and seems to have a decent program in public history as well, which would be a good supplement to any field of historical study. With the Academic Common Market, I would be eligible for in-state tuition rates which makes it more affordable than WVU. WVU is the easy option. No stress of finding new jobs or selling the house. WVU also has an excellent public history program to supplement my studies, but does not have a formal program in my area of interest. Even with a partial tuition scholarship or a tuition waiver as a graduate assistant, WVU could still be the most expensive option.

Wednesday's mailbag brought much to think about and hopefully we will be able to settle some of our stress by making a decision very soon.

Thursday's Mailbag

After visiting Salisbury University yesterday, I decided to check up on my application to Ohio State. I have been admitted to Salisbury, but before I make a decision, I wanted to see if I had been admitted to Ohio State. Ohio State's program is a combined MA/PhD program, so it would naturally rank higher than a program that ends in a terminal MA degree.

Much as I had suspected, I did not get accepted at Ohio State. The graduate coordinator at Ohio State said that the University and the department were experiencing cutbacks due to the economic situation and that they were unable to offer as many admissions as they would have liked. In a normal year, applying to six schools should have been enough to get me into at least one, but I was unable to secure admission to a single one of my original six schools. I will reapply to a PhD program in two years after I earn my MA degree, but I suspect that I will apply to different programs the second time around. If I wasn't good enough for them the first time, I doubt that I would be good enough the second time. I will save my money not applying to those schools a second time and try my hand at some other very fine schools. It will be their loss, not mine.

I have also pretty much crossed Old Dominion in Norfolk off my list. The school was much nicer than I expected and the program was exactly what I was looking for, however, because I missed the deadline for financial assistance, I would be unable to afford out of state tuition. Sure, I can take out student loans to pay for it, but at 20k per year, it just doesn't seem practical.

Out of state tuition is almost quadruple the in state rates and I can attend other university's for less money. If I get an assistantship at Salisbury, my tuition will be waived and I would only pay fees. That's about $1,500 a year as compared to 20K. At East Carolina, I could get in state tuition rates through a program called the Academic Common Market. If I am accepted at East Carolina, I would pay just under 10K total for the two year MA program. Again, much more practical than 20K per year at Old Dominion. Finally, if I have to use my last resort and attend school at WVU, I would pay just over 11K total for the two year program because of in-state tuition.

So those are my options for the fall. Wish me luck on the assistantship.