Back In School

Posted on August 29, 2026 by TheJessicaness

The first week is over.

I spent months preparing for the first day, making sure I had approval from the VA and acceptance from the school, USF St. Pete. I still have forms to submit, and some of those will be on a per-semester basis, along with classes to pay for. I’m on the veteran deferment plan because the process takes so long. I’m taking Medical Terminology, Intro to Environmental and Occupational Health, Public Health Programs and Policies, and Intro to Health Professions (in-person) this semester.

The last class is a requirement for receiving the GI Bill that Caleb spent 21 years earning. I’m the oldest student in the class, but I’m not the only one who didn’t just graduate from high school. Omar likes to look at sweaters online while the teacher is presenting. She has two daughters, and I can’t imagine being a parent, even though at one point, I wanted nothing more. I’m also not the only student who traveled over the summer, as I would learn from our introduction discussion board, but one of two who shared in class. Some students are living in Florida for the first time.

All my books are online, and each one is through a different company (just like when they were printed). I brought a bag expecting to carry a book to class and left with a coffee coupon and a class code to access the textbook. One professor participated in the discount-book program offered on campus. There are so many apps available, and I’m delaying downloading as many as I can get away with. I’m glad these students have so much at their fingertips and think it would be amazing if everyone had this opportunity, whether as a work program or in the military, etc.

I left for class early the first day, and it took me 50 minutes to get to school. I left as scheduled the next day, and it only took me 40 minutes, so I will see how the second week plays out. I haven’t struggled to find parking yet and always seem to find someone new to talk to, even if they’re just passing through the campus. I found the Veteran Success Office, which has MREs and coffee, and realized I was on the wrong internet browser to access certain school links and websites. I found the gym, and it is much larger than the little window in the locked door had me believe.

So far, I’ve introduced myself five times (one of the intros didn’t get submitted or got erased) and taken multiple syllabus quizzes and academic integrity quizzes. My first discussion was about the effects that diabetes has on the environment, such as plastic waste and transportation emissions, and how managing the disease can lower diabetics’ carbon emissions by 7%. Multiple studies are being done in the medical field to reduce single-use plastic, introduce telehealth, and educate patients on positive lifestyle changes (such as less red meat and more walking) and proper disposal of medical equipment.

To help combat the idea of AI taking classes and writing papers for people, the school has multiple ways to deter cheating. In class, leave your bag against the wall and mind your business during testing, and submit papers via Turnitin. At home, or wherever I can find a quiet place (as no noise is allowed), I need to take a picture of my face and ID, say something to test the microphone, and allow a website to have complete access to my computer so that it can record my screen and surroundings, after I send a video of the room to make sure I’m alone with no contraband within sight.

Sarah’s table

I think every building has snacks available for purchase. The library allows talking and has access to 3D printers, sewing machines, puzzles, board games, books, computers, and archives (not available for checkout). The first week, the campus has tables set up with water bottles, magnets, handouts, etc to make students feel welcome. It is helpful having so many people available to ask questions to, but it seems all the dorm residents moved in last week and spent the weekend getting familiar with the campus layout and learning how far away the other campuses for this university are.

Outside of school, I treated myself to a croissant sandwich (with a free coffee), had more surgery than planned (I thought one suture, not more), and had the water turned off when I got home (due to a leak in the community). I’ve been getting intermittent rashes on my hands (red and burning) and on my legs (red goose bumps) that appear at night and are gone in the morning. I have afternoon tea with some of the ladies, Sarah, Jan, and Deb F., and they will be taking me out to brunch to celebrate my 40th birthday in my husband’s absence.

I have plans to walk the neighbor’s dog, Tequila, for a few days while still walking Sarah’s dogs. I am invited to celebrate her son-in-law’s 50th birthday with cake and karaoke. I try the Café Quindío coffee that was gifted to us from Mary Jo and Roberto when they got back from Colombia. It’s a fine grain, so it doesn’t take as long in the French press, and it gave me the energy needed to do some studying while listening to the rain. Caleb is still in the Upper Peninsula helping his brother and is definitely missed. I’m grateful for the support (conversation and food) that our neighbors and friends share.

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Roughly Two Weeks Later

Posted on August 18, 2026 by TheJessicaness

I was taking time to readjust my circadian rhythm, and my feet needed to be covered in socks because the amount of peeling in the shower was grossing me out, and I didn’t want to have to clean the floor or bed more than usual. The internet says that repeated exposure to the ocean can help loosen dead skin. I might need pedicures just for the epidermis removal service so I don’t have to see that again.

I’m prolific with my posts, knowing that I’m returning to school soon and may write about that experience or be too busy doing homework and watching the sunset. Caleb finds out he’s still struggling to make knitted pant legs the same size, so he undoes them again. One morning he makes English-style muffins and a lemon hollandaise sauce (it does catch me off guard).

The neighbors say it’s been raining for a week, and it rains for another, which only helps my writing. I say hi to Elaine, Anita, Jim, Jill, Nancy, Deb Y., and Deb F., who just got back from Michigan a week after Caleb went up to spend a month with his brother in the Upper Peninsula. It’s only fair that since I missed his birthday this year, he wouldn’t be home for mine.

I hang out with Jen, walk a lap with Linda, and share some meals with Mary Jo and Roberto. I go out with Randy and Teresa, stroll with them through First Friday in Tarpon Springs, enjoy the sunset on the Dunedin Causeway, and then spend a few hours at their place. I get bitten by mosquitoes at Tina’s and brush kitties at Christine’s.

I submit my residency forms for school, take a two-hour nap since I don’t sleep as well when Caleb is gone. Kris now has two axolotls in addition to the rotten-mouthed dog that constantly accompanies guests. Sarah shares some food with me, and Fallon takes me for ice cream, then we get to watch Zeus try to keep his paw dry while also touching the pool for the lizard that already ran away.

I find out, only too late (for this last trip), that obviously GoPros come with camera settings that I didn’t bother to look into, so all my photos are low quality while the other divers share their GoPro captures with more clarity. Caleb video calls me to show me the project he is working on. It’s going well, but the more that’s done, the more seems to be needed. He’ll be home in time for his appointment either way.

When I’m not writing and doing other things, I pass the time by doing crosswords, reading, running, and eating ice cream. I find an afternoon to put a couple of miles on my bike and sweat through enough clothes each day to necessitate using the washing machine. I’ll spend hundreds of dollars on campus (my second visit) in preparation for starting classes on August 24th.

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Going Back In Time

Posted on July 31, 2026 by TheJessicaness

We’re up at 345am, instead of 4am, since we already had our bags packed; oh well. Our checked bags get marked “heavy” again, which explains why there’s a quarter of empty space in my carry-on. The stewardess says she needs to only check our boarding passes for security, no one else; usually it’s for seat assignments or ensuring the customer is on the correct flight. I don’t quite look like a zombie yet, so I’m not sure what her concern was, besides wanting to slow down passenger flow. Only to have a staff member come on the plane looking for a person who’s not there.

Perhaps their training and customer logging system is down. I see the safety issue there. We make it to Brisbane, wait on a bus because each staff bus only waits for one person, but they have so many buses running, to eventually show up and take us to another terminal. It seems a bit convoluted, but that’s what I get for being rundown already. We have to go through security again, and one man has a large full tube of toothpaste, and another has over 90 batteries. I didn’t know the limit was 24, but the agent offered to cut one of the packs in half so the guy could be on his way with his “very heavy” bag.

We walk past all the dining options and find a place to sit. Caleb will wander off to find us sandwiches and me two donuts because he loves me. He sits behind me, and that gives me an extra seat and a half to stretch out (while people walk by aggressively) in an attempt to nap, twice. Thinking about it now, I’m not sure why we didn’t ask the strangers in our rows if they would switch with us so that we could drool on each other and they could continue as they were. Caleb signed me up for Asian vegetarian meals, which was fine until I got the medu vada (lentil donut) for breakfast.

The good thing about the flight not being full is that I also got the pancake breakfast. My eyes are burning when we land in San Francisco, magically 25 minutes after leaving Cairns after 15 hours of flying. We get coffee in Denver, and then I read on the flight to Tampa, where we land at sunset. I’m exhausted and want to take a shower, but the hot water heater breaker decided to burn out, so that will have to wait… over 24 hours. I had the luxury of sleeping all but a few hours on Saturday so I could walk my neighbor’s dogs while Caleb did laundry, washed our dive gear, and made dinner. I’m up at 3am on Sunday to shower and get on with my day. Hooray for jet lag.

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Half a Day in Cairns

Posted on July 30, 2026 by TheJessicaness

Caleb can’t sleep, so he decides to make sure I’m up at least an hour before the last time we will hear Kerrin going through the halls with his sing-song, “good morning, wakey, wakey.” We are encouraged to have breakfast or relax outside our rooms while the crew collects our bags on deck for debarking and delivering to the airport or a hotel in between. They are also stripping the sheets and collecting towels in preparation for the boat’s departure in ten hours with another group of divers. The moon is still full and bright as we make our way into port at 630am.

Guests also use this time to share WhatsApp numbers, Instagram usernames, and personal websites, such as divingmore.com. We find out the kid on board won the Hasselblad Masters 2026 Project // 21 with his submission Dwellers of the Night. Once off the boat, we take a group photo, then load onto a bus or van, depending on our destination. We repack our bags at the hotel and are told we can leave them until early check-in. We were roughly 3km away, so we walked to the Cairns Botanic Gardens, where sadly we had to see a dead eel on the sidewalk. Perhaps a bird grabbed more than it could carry.

There’s a spot for kids to play in water, dig for treasures in sand, and climb wooden steps — all the hazards that the US is removing from their play areas and replacing with hot plastic. There’s a boardwalk and lots of shade, but brunch is more enticing. We each get a fresh juice blend in a mason jar, then a mango-orange Schweppes to try while they make my mocha with whipped cream, eggs Benedict, and salmon-avocado toast for Caleb. We also order a slice of hummingbird cake and a chocolate muffin. This might not replenish our energy, but it also doesn’t consume it.

There are some large steps behind the gift shop and café that deliver a place to repose until it’s time to return to the hotel. We pass a Sikh Cremation Ground that was active between 1953 and 1980. The grounds were relocated until 1985, when a crematorium opened, along with two other locations that allow the construction of a pyre for the traditional funeral rites. Many immigrants from the Punjab region were self-funded when they came to work in the sugar industry in the 1880s and began buying farms and bringing their families, but some of their practices took longer for locals to accept.

Caleb tried getting us a ride back to the room, which would only take 4 minutes, but no driver would accept, so we continued on. We dragged our bags up in the lift, and I was getting off the bed an hour later. We took a bus to the grocery store, located in a mall, to get some dinner and breakfast items, and I grabbed a pistachio-coconut milk to try (good combo). The pay system is down for the return ride. We showered, ate spicy ramen while Caleb sweats with the A/C at 18°C (64°F), the lowest it will go, and got cozy for a full night’s rest at 630pm.

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A Shrimp On the Barbie

Posted on July 29, 2026 by TheJessicaness

The title comes from a 1980s Australian ad to invite American tourists to the country. A 1990 film inspired by the catchphrase was a local box office failure because real Aussies call them prawns. The phrase was also used in a scene of Dumb and Dumber in 1994. This will also play a role in tonight’s dinner, but more on that later. Caleb will raise his hand so we can be with the first half of divers to explore Crack-A-Jack, a standalone coral formation (a bommie). This one starts at 16ft below the surface and continues down over 120ft to the ocean floor.

Another bommie was discovered in 2020, a coral “skyscraper” that stands a third of a mile high, making it taller than the Empire State Building. It is the first of its size to be found in the region in over 120 years. Recreational divers aren’t allowed because the peak sits at 131ft, which would only allow an eight-minute visit, so it’s explored by robots from the Schmidt Ocean Institute instead. We see a blue linckia starfish, a pustulose wart slug, an olive sea snake, five-lined ribbon worms, two lionfish, banded ribbon worms, and an unidentified shrimp. I averaged 40ft and only stayed 32 minutes.

I follow the line up, and a cute pipefish is swimming near the rope. Caleb lets go and makes his way to the boat, so I think I can do the same. I have to grab the line again to avoid being rescued when the current carries me past the steps. I finish pulling myself in and am glad I conserved energy for the return. Caleb is done diving, so I skip the opportunity to see stonefish on the next dive and start cleaning our gear while he rests. Tonje, Becky, and I take the 130pm tour of the engineering space with Guido. He has everything off, just in case, and has the only room with a grab bar so he doesn’t get burnt.

Emma shares some Violet Crumble (with peanut butter!) I start to bring our semi-dry gear down as others hang theirs up. It’s a good thing I secured anything that wasn’t tied down, as others weren’t so lucky. When the boat moved, I thought someone aimed something from above into the trash can next to us, where a few divers were having snacks and drinks with our conversation. The crew told me to leave the lid on the wet deck, and when word spread, people could grab what was left of the stuff they left to dry. Crew members take turns on the grill and passing out shrimp and champagne.

Trevor is eventually coaxed from the pilot house to play a few songs on guitar with Helen accompanying on drums while we all wait for dinner to finish. We sing along to Who the F* Is Alice, by Smokie, 1977, but replace the name with Simon. It’s definitely a crowd-friendly chorus. The variety of grilled meats, corn, and potatoes is served inside with mint jelly and a few other sauces. Dessert will be served on the couches so we can vote on best picture: DSLR, compact, and fun while the boat slides us about.

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