My fellow jellies, can I get a little luck?

how about this?

@ragingloli: That’ll do.
but I would have preferred an angry Bassett Hound ;^)

Right then.

Here’s my heads-up penny, a horseshoe tines-up, a bouquet of four leaved clover, a wish bone, the number seven, a wishing well, a cricket, a scarab beetle, and Schrödinger has just caught you a fresh rabbit’s foot.

For the ride, here’s a dozen sugar cookies in the shape of the alchemic protection charm.

Best wishes and all good luck to you, @cookieman! Learn a lot, have a fabulous time and keep us apprised of your progress.

Oh what a lot of fun! You’ll do great @cookieman.!

Goddard College by any chance?

You wouldn’t be accepted if you weren’t capable of succeeding. Do your best and you will be fine.

@Seek: Excellent choices. Thank you. I shall place them in a duffel.

Thank you @tedibear.

@janbb: It’s the Vermont College of Fine Art.

@johnpowell: That’s what my wife tells me. Thank you sir.

Listen to your wife.. About everything. 90% of the time she is right.

You don’t need luck – you are a motivated, smart cookie – destined to succeed!

Than you @hearkat

Congratulations! You certainly don’t need luck, you made this all on your own brilliance.
But you should realize that the good jellies of Fluther will be right here cheering you on and we will be your biggest fans.
Don’t forget us while you are out persuing your dreams.

Good luck. Just apply what you’ve learned in life to master the lessons they’re teaching. You’ll do fine.

Good luck and best of wishes!
You’re going to kill it!!

Best wishes on your big adventure!

All the very best on the journey of knowledge, may you broaden your horizons ever more!

@chyna: Thank you my dear. I actually feel better knowing you’re behind me.

@Adirondackwannabe: I sure hope so.

@Katniss, @Coloma, and @ZEPHYRA: Thanks a heap.

Good luck, @cookieman! There will be moments when you have no idea why you got yourself into this mess, and there will be moments when you can’t believe how lucky you are. Not everything you try will succeed. Sometimes it really is a matter of finding 99 ways that don’t work before finding the one that does. But you should listen to @johnpowell and your wife. They know where it’s at.

¡Buena suerte!

Here, @cookieman, that just about covers it. :-)

Oh, lovely! Vermont is such a beautiful state, and going to school is so exciting and fulfilling, and you are still so enviably young. What’s better than going after a dream? You don’t need luck; you already have it. What you need is confidence.

Don’t let being surrounded by younger students take anything away from you. Don’t apologize. You don’t need to discuss your age at all. Just remember your right to be there (and you’re right to be there) and focus on what you came to do. But do be open to friendly interactions with your fellow students. I’m sure you won’t try to act 19. Plenty of younger folks realize that people over 30 are still human beings.

Older learners are not such a novelty these days, either. I was a somewhat conspicuous when I went back to college at the age of 23, early in the seventies. However, when I started taking classes at a junior college after my retirement, wrinkles and creaky bones and all, I was looked at a little curiously by some—that’s all. I wasn’t a weird anomaly. I wasn’t even the oldest person in my film studies class; he was 70 and white-haired and rode a bicycle to school.

My mother got her M.A. at 51. My aunt got her Ph.D. at 64. The world is full of lifelong learners; that’s an actual registration category in the online programs I’ve seen.

I admire you for taking this big step and hope you will stay in touch with us as you progress.

Sounds to me like having an abundance of good—no, GREAT—luck! Relish your new adventure, however it unfolds.

You have a great state to explore as well as an inspirational place for innovation. Enjoy your opportunity! You’ll find Vermonters intriguing.

My first full day begins now. I checked in yesterday and got settled.

Thank you to everyone for your advice, encouragement, and insight. Lurve you all.

Keep us posted on your progress and tell us about the new things you will be experiencing.
[[[hugs]]]

You already are lucky but here’s some more (To be cut out and hung on your study door.)

Knock ‘em dead, cookie! Have a wonderful time!

Thank you @auggie.

@cookieman – How’s it going?

@tedibear: Pretty good. Thank you so much for asking. My first monthly “packet” is due to my advisor on November 17th. I have to turn in a 50-page document every month consisting of photographs, drawings, and oodles of writing.

Thanks for the update, @cookieman (and thanks for asking for one, @tedibear)!

I’m glad to hear you’re doing well, friend.

Hey folks (assuming anyone is still following this thread)

Next week marks the half-way point for my graduate degree. One year down, one to go. Also, in a week, I’m off to Vermont again for my third (of five) residency.

Can’t believe I made it this far.

We all knew you would. Congrats on all the hard work!

Thank you @chyna. Much appreciated. :^)

Keep up the good work!

Cookies are being baked for you!

How is this adventure going? We need an update!

@tedibear: Thank you for asking.

Let’s see… I am a little over a year into it (past the halfway point) and have completed 3 out of 5 residencies. I’ve written about 600 pages of material, including micro-stories and a script for an original graphic novel. I also tried my hand at audio storytelling and a bunch of image creation (illustration) experimentation). Oodles of reading of research too.

I’ve also met some amazing folks from around the world and made some friends. It’s been really great overall.

In January I start initial work on writing my thesis.

Cookies instead of kudos for you!!

Wonderful news! Thank you for the update. :-)

Time for another update, wouldn’t you say, @cookieman?

Yes, please.

Ah yes, UPDATE (thank you for asking ladies):

I graduated a week or so ago after a crazy-busy final semester. Two very-busy years (with no breaks) has come to an end and I earned the fuzzy hood and an MFA in Graphic Design.

Thesis semester was a ton of work but resulted in a 200+ page book that I wrote and designed, a three issue comic book (the first issue is printed), and a gallery show and final critique that went really well. I was also the class speaker at graduation, which was an honor.

I spent last week doing as little as possible and turned 44 this past Sunday. So a nice cap to it all.

Thank you fellow jellies for all the support and inspiration.

Congratulations!

@cookieman Will bake cookies for you!

Congrats! Now how about you finish my undergrad for me?

@dxs: What’re you majoring in?

Umm…cookieology? with a few math courses.

Hmmm, math. With the exception of geometry, not my strong suit. Cookieology though…

And thank you all for the congrats and follow up.

I actually used a bit of Fluther in my graduate work too. Even in my graduation speech.

Congratulations, @cookieman! Would love to see some of the work that came out of your thesis semester.

@cookieman, thank you for the update. I hope that you took some time to revel in the satisfaction of a job well done. Is there somewhere that we can see your work?

Cookies for you!!

I’m happy to see your good news of a triumphant finish. You know we knew you could do it.

And now on to yet greater things.