[nabs-l] Intro

[Len Burns]

Good evening all,

My name is Len Burns.  I am a returning student who finished my M.A. in
Family Counseling back in the eighties.  I was laid off about a year and
a half ago, from a good position with a mid-sized non-profit here in San
Jose California.  I found myself in the strange position of being over
qualified for entry level positions, and lacking the credentials for
management level.  I discussed this with several people whom I respect in my
field, and they all said the same thing.  Take course work.

So, I found a certificate program in Business Admin that met everybody's
requirements, and last October I began my adventure.

Fortunately for me, I have also had a foot in the tech field for many 
years, so centering my life around my laptop was not new.  Thus far, 
what surprises me most is how much technology has changed how I manage 
classes, and simultaneously how similar the headaches are to what they 
were when I was in school in the eighties.  I am here in part to 
strengthen strategies for things like the two statistics classes that 
are the next steps on my path.  I did stats as an under grad, and did 
well at it.  This will be a different flavour however.  That was social 
science stats, this is for business.  While I am here, I will contribute 
whatever bits of knowledge I am able, although I am fairly certain many 
of you are far more adept at this dance than am I.

In my spare time, I manage several email lists, have been baking bread 
since I was in my early teens, and am chief of staff for a fluffy feline 
we mostly just call Gata.

Two years ago, I would have never imagined myself in this circumstance, 
but the same can be said for lotta lotta other folks these days.

-Len
len at gatamundo.com