Okay I know I can not call myself a superstar, but that is what I feel like after this last semester. As you read previously in my blogs; this Accounting Payroll class was defiantly challenging and really took a lot of hard work and dedication. Not to mention the computer nightmare at the end of the semester that drove me bananas.

I spent many of long nights on the computer scratching my head and really trying to understand payroll and all the laws, codes and taxes that come along with it. Not to mention how confusing the test questions were which really brought my grades down.  I do not know what it was, but I was having difficulty really understanding this class. As I had mentioned before; thank goodness for the teacher and her patience with me. The one good thing was I got to write a paper in this class, the paper was about the Family Medical Leave Act. I am pretty good at writing about something once I have the topic of choice so that was a relief. The downside of that was the APA formatting as I am still having difficultly with this. I try to use sites online that help with this, but the citing that I had trouble with was citing internet sources. Still have a lot to learn I guess. 

The Payroll class was great overall and I say this because I learned a lot of great things regarding taxes and how they are figured out. I learned how laws differ from state to state, I learned about what companies have to pay towards your taxes and I learned the break down by city, state and federal. Along with much, much more so if you ever have to take this class I will say it is not easy, but you will learn a lot through out which makes it all worth while at the end of the day.

Here is a funny one for you just to show how learning this stuff can be helpful. I had a meeting with an Insurance person as work the other day. They are now hiring companies from the outside to come in and handle all this insurance. So I meet with this lady and she proceeds to tell me about the hidden paycheck I get from my company. As she asked if I knew what this was I stated no and please explain; she began to tell me what my company contributes for me to Social Security, Taxes that are matched (both state and federal) and the matching of Medicare. Well if it wasn’t for this class I would not have known that all of the above mentioned things are not the employer doing that out of good faith, but they pay or match those things because the law requires it. It kind of upset me because they were making it seem as if they are doing a great thing and I should feel lucky. The audacity of people…

 None the less this was an interesting semester and I am please to announce that I recovered my near failing grade of a D- at mid terms and brought it to a high C. Yes that is right I passed the class and passed it with pride on my back. It was so difficult for me and I ran into so many challenges along the way with getting laid off from work, searching for new employment, computer failing on me three weeks before finals and I had to redo do three weeks of homework to finish the remaining three weeks, but at the end of the day it was all worth it. I Passed and Passed with a C.

Let’s face it guys and girls…I do not get to watch much TV, but I do have a few select shows that I can not miss out on. The Pick of the Season this year is Grey’s Anatomy, American Idol, Nip Tuck and my favorite of all The Food Network. Now I know that is not a show, but a TV channel; there are many great cooking shows that I watch day and night.  The TV is a great break for me and allows me to unwind after long hours on the computer. I am not a real big TV person as you can tell I do not have many favorite shows, but there are some that I just can’t miss.

American Idol is one of them and I have been watching the majority of the shows this season. I will admit to missing a few of the audition shows, but those are more for entertainment of other people’s expense. I mean some of these people that try out for American Idol are awful.  How do their families allow them to go on National TV and humiliate themselves? I am not saying I do not laugh with the best of them, but geese. I really like the part of American Idol once all the weak contenders are voted off. Then that is when the show really gets good.

Right now they are down to some amazing artist on American Idol. I think it is one of the best seasons in a long time and they have really discovered some real talent. There are a couple people that I am not impressed with like Megan Joy for one. She is just ok and there were many “just ok people”. She is a pretty girl, but no comparison to the others on the show as far as talent. And what is with that cork screw thing that she does while she is singing. Ah it bugs me.  Also Scott Macintyre is another one that I think is just ok and really isn’t all that great. Plus he looks weird when he sings because his top lip doesn’t move. Not that makes a difference, but you know how some things just bother you about a person…that is one of them for me. So anyhow while they have made it this far I really do not see much light at the end of the tunnel for them. Now I will tell you who I really like and I think they are amazing. The first one is Adam Lambert and let me say Wow because this guy can sing. Yeah I will agree the theatric side of him is a bit much sometimes and his look can be a little weird, but that is Hollywood for you, right? He really knows how to use his voice and can do just about anything. I have not heard one bad song from him. I know some may disagree, but I that’s my opinion. Allison is another great contender on the show. Yes I will agree she has had some good and bad choices for songs, but I really feel she has a great voice and sounds amazing. Not to mention she is only 16 and can really show some vocals. Great show this far for the season and I am so anxious to see who makes it to the finals.

My other show that I just can not live without is Grey’s Anatomy. This show has caught my heart since day one. I love every character on the show and I am always in suspense as to what is going to happen next. The last show I watched was Mc Steamy freaking out because of his last surgery and is refusing to do any more. I will agree that he has killed some people in his career, but like Meredith stated he does get them as last hope. He really needs not to be so hard on himself and what is he doing pushing Meredith away…I was ready for them to get engaged. The other character that has been bugging me is Izzy and her talking with her dead boyfriend. That was starting to get old and a little weird, wouldn’t you agree? I am sad to hear she is sick and I wonder what is going to happen next. I have the next episode recorded I just haven’t watched it. I can not wait to see what is going to happen. Do you think Meredith is going to be leaving? Ah see this is what keeps me going. Well stay with me for more of my favorite TV show talks and all of my other blogs as a student’s life.             

Do not let yourself get into the situation I did this past month.  Computers are technical pieces of equipment and they will break down. And that is what happened to me around the first of March. Three weeks left in the semester and I need to do every assignment, quiz and post to make sure I get a good grade and pass this class. Remember in my last blog I told you I had a low C. So I was in panic mode and was not sure what I was going to do.

Well I had to figure something out and something quick. My boyfriend is an IT Support person who would know what to do, but guess where he is…London, England for 3 weeks. And because it is International we can not talk on the phone because of crazy charges. Needless to say it is not getting fixed right now and the Payroll Software that I have been working in for three weeks and adding payroll disbursements for the next few assignments is stuck on the computer and I can not get it to turn on so I can generate reports to continue my homework assignments. Guess who is in big trouble? Yep, me… What am I going to do? Well I use to have a laptop that I kept for back-up when my computer was done but that thing died and if my boyfriend was home I could go to his place, but I can not do that so I decided to reach out to a few friends to see who would allow me to use their computer, This is when you can really test who your true friends are.

I found one of my friends to let me use their computer and not only was I using it, but I needed to download this Payroll Software and redo three weeks of work which is several hours worth, mind you not. This had to be done before I could even start working on my home work assignments. And because I was at someone’s  home I did not have hours at night to stay up and work on this  because people needed to go to bed, so on days when I could use it I would work for a few hours and save. It took much longer to do it this way but it was my only option.

Needless to say several days and many of sleepless hours I managed to redo three weeks of homework and do three new weeks of homework. It was a relief when I completed my last assignment, that’s four sure.  My teacher was aware of my situation and was as flexible as only one can be, but deadlines are deadlines and nothing could be done about that. I managed to complete my homework assignments and exams and get them in on time which made all the headaches and stress I went through results worth my while.   Now let’s keep our fingers crossed to see what the end results will be. Moral to the story is having a back up computer near you at all times is important, especially when taking online classes. Also I recommend backing up your files on a regular basis. I recently bought a external hard drive with 80GB at Cheap Guys Computers, but you can find one any where like Amazon and Comp USA  to just name a few. Also we have a local company that teaches you how to protect your computer from viruses and how to do recoveries for free www.lakemarycomputerdoctor.com. The backing up of the Payroll software is not as easy of a solution, but there has to be some way to back that up for school. Any ideas would be great.

Stay tuned… for results from school and my final grade for the Payroll Class.

I have been taking online classes with Rasmussen College for almost two years now. While all of my classes have been challenging and really require your focus and attention; I will say there are few classes that are really challenging and wish I had more one on one time with a face to face teacher during these times. Not saying classes should be easy, but some things you really need to have a clear understanding.

My classes that have been the most challenging are Accounting I and Payroll Accounting. Accounting one I had to take twice because the first time I just didn’t get it. Then the second time I barely passed. However I passed and that is what really matters. I was studying hard and asking the teacher questions and genuinely trying to get a B or higher, but there is just so much to learn and accounting in general is a hard/confusing subject. The whole aspect of debits and credits are just the beginning of how the process works. The funny thing is I have been in accounting and finance for several years of my working career, but never really dealing with bookkeeping and general ledgers.

Then there is Payroll Accounting which is another difficult subject. I have a new found respect for payroll and human resources managers. Keep in mind when you learn a subject like accounting in college they teach you have to calculate everything manually without the use of a software database. This is a great thing, but it really shows the complexity behind it. Payroll has so many taxes, codes and a guideline that has to be followed it is very complex. There are Federal laws, state laws and city laws. You have different Federal Acts to follow and you must always stay updated because additions to the Acts can take place at any time. One wrong file or late payment to the government can cost you money.

I am currently in the Payroll Accounting class and I had a D mid semester.  This class has been very challenging, but I have been hanging in there and my teacher has been amazing. I have probably spoken with this teacher more then any of my other teachers in the last 2 years. She doesn’t mind and loves trying to help which has made a difference. I have a few weeks left but my grade has increased to a low C and I am finishing the semester strong. If the teacher wasn’t so helpful, I would probably be facing the problems I had with my accounting I class.

Rasmussen offers free tutoring which I wish badly that I could take advantage of, but I am not near a campus. The closest campus to me is Ocala, but for many of you the campuses are near. I recommend if you are having trouble with a class, please reach out to the school tutor. There is online help too through Smarthinking, but that is more for a specific question or paper needs you might have. Great to have...I used it after midnight one night. Tutoring is expensive so having Rasmussen include that in our tuition is great!

Well I will keep you posted as I get to the end of my payroll class. Wish me the best in luck as I near the end of this semester and as always if you ever have any ideas, suggestions or feedback; please feel free to comment.