Hooray for Plan B!

This was my last week at KRON after almost twelve years. It was actually a week of mixed emotions, but not like what you might think. When I arrived at KRON in September of 1998, I felt that I had arrived. Years of toiling in small markets making nothing had finally paid off. I was at a station I could be proud of, and perhaps I could work here the rest of my days and financially be taken care of. Any sense of nostalgia I might have had heading into my final days there had long been killed by years of watching it's demise.

What I was actually feeling was the coming sense of freedom from a job and responsibility I no longer wanted, mixed with a feeling of looking into the abyss of unemployment. It's a little scary not having a job, and the feeling for me is a little like the feeling I had when I was eight-years-old taking swimming lessons at the University of Puget Sound pool. They would send us kids up the ladder to the top of the 12-foot-high diving board, and I would stand alone on the board looking down at the water that seemed like a mile away.

So why did I have the huge smile on my face for the past month? It's more than finally getting away from a job, directing newscasts, that I never wanted in the first place. The smile and the happiness came with it was from having a direction, a plan for after KRON. I thought I knew what I wanted to do and how I would do it. I met with some schools and some professionals, and I thought I knew the career I wanted to pursue and where and how I would pursue it.

Last night before going to bed, I felt the first twinges of fright. Knowing my future gave me a sense of control over my circumstances. Last night all that disappeared. An important first step for me is taking Anatomy at the College of Marin. But while watching Craig Ferguson as I usually do before going to bed, I discovered College of Marin's Summer 2010 class schedule. Neither Anatomy or Physiology was being offered! Add to that, I have heard nothing from anyone about my application to enter the College of Marin. The warning from the COM counselor two weeks ago was that state budget cuts could make entering COM much more difficult, and she encouraged me to apply right then, two weeks ago. And I've heard nothing.

I went to bed last night trying to subdue a real sense of panic. My firm belief that my plan to be a radiation therapist is the key to my having a contented route to my old age. Last night, the plan vanished during Ferguson's show, and I went to bed with a sick feeling in my stomach.

As fast as my plans vanished the night before, a new plan materialized this morning. The first thing I did when I got up this morning was to go back on the computer and confirm that the College of Marin was out. So now what?

In checking my emails, my sister wrote me asking why I was going to school in one of the most expensive places to live? She suggested moving somewhere cheaper. That thought already occurred to me. While looking at Craigslist, it was apparent that things would be much easier for me if I lived in Sonoma County.

Like Santa Rosa?

Santa Rosa Junior College. I was so focused on going to the Kaiser School of Allied Health in Richmond, I had forgotten about SRJC and their radiology program. There are six community colleges in California with just such a program. SRJC was my fallback plan in the event I couldn't get into Kaiser. But I need pre-requisites for Kaiser, and SRJC offers them, including Anatomy this summer. Why not move there and just get into their radiology program? Why am I killing myself to get into Kaiser??

After thoroughly looking through the SRJC program on the internet, I decided to apply and we'll see what happens. As I started to fill out the application, I discovered it was the same application I filled out for College of Marin. All community colleges in California share the same application process. All I did was confirm all of the information was correct, and submit this application to SRJC.

About ten minutes later, while checking my email, I had six emails from SRJC. The first was, "Congratulations! You have been accepted at Santa Rosa Junior College." The others were information for new students.

In the course of ten hours, I went from the demise of plan A, and my subsequent confusion and fear, to an entirely new and real plan, Plan B, and renewed confidence about my future. I'm in! I'm enrolled in a radiology program! And the only way they will get rid of me, will be to graduate me!

I have a plan again, and a new and bigger smile!