Life in the slow lane

So it's been a long time since my last post. Since no one reads this, it's ok, right? I have a lot to say but i have no idea how much will make it out of my head.

I am almost finish with my master's degree. That's right, final class and almost done with that. I'm not at all where i want to be in my life. I haven't retaken the GRE yet, which is horrible because there is no way i can get into a good PhD program if i don't. I am -slowly- taking the Kaplan self study course  for it. The site says i should be ready to retake in November. I also have not gotten letters of recommendation from my undergrad teachers which is way worse than not retaking the GRE. How will they react when i turn up out of the blue to ask them for a recommendation? Which teachers should i ask? Can i get away with mostly sending in work references? I have only a few months to do these things becasue most program app deadlines are in December. A few go until February but still, i have to light a fire under my butt.

With the end of a program comes the return of student loan payments. Except i'm supposed to have 6 months from the end of my program. My bills don't seem to know that, so i have to call Sallie Mae. I hate calling these companies, you wait forever and then the person on the other end acts as if you're an annoyance or a criminal and you hardly ever get what you want done actually done.

I have a job so i can pay my loans if i can't get the deferral. Sort of anyway. I worked for a few months as a Field Interviewer for Westat and they ahve rehired me to work for them on another study starting in September. The work is by contract but it's interesting work, sort of in my field, and doesn't pay horribly. My base pay is 12.95 and i get paid mileage. The mileage pays better than the hourly base becaue of how much i have to drive so it's great. I sort of wish i was in the lab rather than being the grunt collecting data outside of it though. Now that i have my MS maybe that can happen?

I can't wait until the new contract starts. Literally because even if my loan payments aren't due just yet i have other bills to pay. Like my phone bill and credit card bill. I have just enough money to survive another month. Because stuff came up and i ended up having to pay for a few things i didn't intend to. So i'm holding on by a thread. I'm really just praying and hoping that nothing else comes up because i can't handle anything new being thrown at me. My life is moving at a snail's pace and i still can't handle it. How pathetic is that?