General – Page 185

Crisis Averted

Breeder's Corner, Geek Wannabe, General Comments Off

Jun 172008

This morning I logged on to Blackboard to check my grade for the Week 2 assignment, and the Week 1 assignment had been changed from a 0 to 100. Looks like the instructor was willing to accept it, even though it was technically late.

I haven’t checked my school e-mail account yet, as my back is still up—I was all geared up to fight about it, and I don’t want to respond in that tone when the issue’s already been resolved.

Speaking of stress, The Artist has completed his driver’s ed class and is now chomping at the bit to get his learner’s permit. We’ll be going by the DMV tomorrow afternoon so he can take the written test. Just a head’s up in case you see fire raining from the heavens or the seas start to boil or anything.

stabbity

Geek Wannabe, General Comments Off

Jun 162008

I uploaded my first homework assignment on its due date. Several days went by, and no grades were posted for it. I’ve never used Blackboard’s “digital drop box” to submit assignments, so I started to worry that I did it wrong.

E-mail to tax instructor, 6/13:

Hi there! I just wanted to make sure my Chapter 1 assignments got to you okay–I sent them via the digital dropbox before the deadline, but I haven’t seen them show up in the grades section on Blackboard so I was worried something went hinky. Sometimes the first week or so of class has bugs to iron out. Please let me know if there was a problem and I need to re-send them. Thanks!

Response, an hour later:

I normally do not post any grades until after the end of add-drop. I will try and get grades posted sometime this week-end. If I have problems with your assignment, I will send you an email so you can repost.

I had several questions about this week’s assignment. Posted to the discussion board, no answer. E-mailed the instructor, no answer. So I waited until the last possible day to upload them, hoping I’d get some of my questions answered before I submitted the assignment.

While tediously uploading the files, I noticed that the “digital dropbox” has an “add file” and a “send file.” Apparently just uploading the file is not the same as sending the file. I went through and sent all of the files, then went to check my grade.

Yep, got a 0 for the first assignment. Never heard anything from the instructor that there was a problem with them, or that she hadn’t received them. I’ve e-mailed her asking if this is going to be my grade, trying to be diplomatic in pointing out that I did ask her if she had received them so she knew there might have been a problem, including the quoted text of her reply where she said she would e-mail me if there was a problem with the assignment.

Gah. On top of the utter lack of response to my questions about the assignment, this just frustrates the living hell out of me. If I’m supposed to be learning this shit by myself, what am I paying tuition for? And if that 0 for the homework stands, I’m dropping this class and getting my money back; I’m not going to take a hit on my GPA due to poor communication.

cough

Geek Wannabe, General Comments Off

Jun 122008

This morning there was a faint smell of smoke in the air. Throughout the day it got progressively worse. The air is hazy and thick with smoke; if you go outside for five or ten minutes your chest starts to burn. We’re at Code Red for air quality.

It’s not a local fire, but it’s bad: a wildfire in the Outer Banks started almost two weeks ago, and it’s still going despite the efforts of several hundred fire crews to put it out. It’s definitely spooky. I feel like I should be packing up the kids and bugging out for safer pastures—not because I actually think we’re in danger here, but because that constant forest-fire smell woke up the primitive lizard-brain at the top of my spine, and it’s saying “Fire! Get out now!”

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