The Story Behind The Title.

I am sure my friends and blog followers are wondering "why and how did she come up with this blog title?" I wish there was a more abbreviated way to explain . . .but here it goes.

Dateline: Friday, August 26 - I went to meet with an advisor at the nursing school my oldest daughter is entering. I had every intention of applying for the RN program thus making it a joint pursuit. Once discussing this intention with the advisor, he leans back in his chair with a light smirk on his face and said "Mrs. Ramirez, at your stage of the game, why don't you go for something a little less expensive and time consuming?" His words immediately seared through my brain .... "at your stage of the game ..." He might as well have screamed over the Sprint Center PA system "You wrinkled ole bat, because you have one foot in the grave and should leave your money to the younger generation, don't waste my time scheduling entrance tests you won't pass!" It was like a shot of pure determination had been injected into me. All I could do was smile and think "I am going to make him my biggest fan."

Within 30 minutes of our conversation, I was sitting in front of a computer preparing to take a 12 minute test with 50 questions (but as the advisor said, "Don't worry, you can't answer all of them and won't!") He then stated I would have to make at least a 17, and the median scores are 19-23, to move on to the TEAS test which would determin whether I don the scrubs and attend class, or tuck my tail and take myself and my stethoscope home. The next time I would see my advisor, he was sporting a rather dumbfounded facial expression and exclaiming, "Mrs. Ramirez, you scored a 31! You have exceptional critical thinking skills!" Of course, my sarcasm just had to make an appearance,  "Those are acquired with age."

Fast forward to Monday, August 29: I am sitting in the waiting area with several other YOUNG ladies awaiting to take the TEAS test. Two of these young ladies are sharing they have been prepping to retake this test for five months. Another young lady states she is taking it for the third time. It's not looking good for the above mentioned ole bat who spent the entire weekend dashing across Kansas seeing her son and his family rather than studying a few hours. But to my surprise, my advisor has appeared and informs me he is staying to see how I perform on the test and is requesting to see my score as soon as I complete the exam. I believe this young man is going to root for me now! Two and a half hours later, my advisor looks more like a proud father than a vaguely familiar face. He motions for me to enter his office saying "I don't want the other applicants to hear, but you have landed in the top ten candidates among all those applying!"

Hence the title of this blog! I hope as I write about my experiences going through this new chapter before me, that it will be the little nudge someone may need to pursue a goal or dream. It is NEVER too late and you are NEVER too old to make the choice to improve yourself! And in turn, I would bet my first born you are going to improve someone's quality/and or appreciation of life! Let us never stop observing our 'stage of the game" and revising and adding plays to our play book!