Back to Basics...

And I am not talking about running.  I am talking about Math.  Algebra to be more exact.  Why is a 32 (did I really just type that?) year old girl talking about Algebra?  Well folks, Ken and I have made the executive decision for me to go back to school.  Gasp...

You see, I did not go to college after high school.  People are typically shocked by this when I am asked about where I went.  I had no idea what I wanted to be when I grew up, so I decided to work instead and go back to school later.  Well, it turns out that I found my way into sales and you do not necessary need a degree to work in sales.  Well, I now know what I want to be when I grow up:  a nurse.  :)

While I do not regret all of the life experience I have gained over the last 13 years, I do realize that there is at least one thing that would have been easier if I had gone right after high school:  MATH.  More specifically, Algebra. 

You see, I was an over achiever in high school.  My grade point average was 3.85.  So imagine my surprise when I read that I had to take the Compass Test for placement into a math class.  I was all, I had a 3.85 in high school, how hard can this placement test be?  Um, yeah, I wish that was what I was saying after the test.

I started off by looking at a few study guides online.  I studied Monday and Tuesday on and off during the day.  Let's just say thank goodness I did this and did not try to wing it.  I totally had the Pre-Algebra stuff down.  I just needed a bit of a refresher, so I thought I was good.  I had it in my mind that I would walk in, and pass the test with flying colors and be placed in the College Algebra class.  I did have a 3.85 13 years ago.  Wrong.

I had debated about taking an extra day to study, but ultimately decided that I was freaking myself out more by waiting.  So I drove my happy self to JCCC last night to take the test.  Right out the gate the questions were not Pre-Algebra, they were Algebra.  Um yeah, this might be ugly.

I could have sat there all day and not been able to figure it out.  It was definitely above my refresher course level.  I was instantly glad that I decided to take the test now and not wait.  A day would not have helped me learn any of that mess.  It all came down to making educated guesses on the Algebra stuff.  There is no way to BS your way through Algebra, which is rather unfortunate for someone like myself.

I finished the math, the reading, and the writing and went to collect my scores.  There in black and white was the worst score I have ever received on a test in my entire life. 

Alegbra:  22.  A 22!

I was fine in the Pre-Algreba category, but the Algebra section killed me.  My first math class will be, wait for it, wait for it...Elementary Algebra.  Bam, talk about a shot to my 3.85 ego.

You can just imagine how much fun Ken had with that one.  I mean, a 22.  Out of 100.  Yikes.

In all honesty, I do realize that I have no business being in a College Algebra class without a refresher course since it has been 13 years since I have taken a math class.  It still stings a tad though.