Yesterday was one of those days when technology worked, but also when it didn't. I got registered for Fall 2022 classes for seminary. It was rather unremarkable, in some ways. Back in grad school in the 1990's, when I first started, we first had online registration during my last year of classes, and I set my alarm so that I could be ready to register just after midnight when registration opened to everyone. I wanted to be sure I got a seat.
Yesterday, I registered in a calmer way, at 8:30, and for all but 1 class, I was the first one to claim a seat. I will take the first part of Church History, Pastoral Care and Counseling in Contexts, and Foundations of Preaching. I will also take Creative Process as Spiritual Practice (yes, that's my heart you hear singing) and Leading Innovation in the Church. There are so many good classes that it's hard to choose--what a delightful problem!
I will take 2 of my classes virtually, by way of Zoom session, Monday night and Tuesday afternoon. I will have a Tuesday night class, a Thursday afternoon class, and a Thursday night class, which will be face to face. I do wonder if I should take one more class, but I don't want to be so overworked that I can't enjoy them or enjoy D.C. So I will probably stick with those classes.
I got registered and did some grading for the online classes that I'm teaching; I'm underemployed, but not unemployed. Again, technology worked as it should. I realized that I hadn't heard about my unemployment benefits, even though I applied over a month ago, so I logged on to see what was going on.
My case is listed as pending, which it has been since I filed. I looked around the site, and as in the past, I found no information. I decided to call. And thus, technology failed me. I was bounced from recorded voice to recorded voice, before being disconnected. The instructional videos showed me views of screens and dashboards that I could never find. I was told that my account had been disabled because I tried to log on too many times, but it let me log on again from a new screen.
Finally, I gave up, which is what the state of Florida hopes I will do. I will keep trying. I am lucky--I have resources of all sorts. What would happen if I didn't?
I know what would happen. I have heard the horrible stories.
This morning I realized that I had gotten so snarled up in the "re-employment assistance" hell that I didn't go to my lectio divina session. My New Testament professor offered us extra credit for attending, and so I signed up. In some ways, if I had to miss an appointment, at least it was that one, since it's a come as you can appointment. I missed an earlier session of lectio a few weeks ago, so I've probably already forfeited the 2 points. Still it irked me to be consumed with something so soul draining when I could have spent time with the lectio group. Sigh.
My spouse came home from his on-campus requirement, and we looked online at some properties in South Carolina again. We have a variety of possible approaches to investing the profits from our home sale, and buying a house within commuting distance of LTSS, the seminary in Columbia, where I am likely to have to do a Lutheran year when I'm done at Wesley.
And then we disconnected from technology altogether, joining good friends who once lived in the neighborhood, for wine and cheese. It was one of the perfect outdoor nights that we so rarely get here, and we decided to enjoy time in their backyard, instead of going out.
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