Europe has been getting more snow, and Dublin is no exception… there have been flurries on and off throughout the day, although it’s not sticking. According to this forecast map for this week, Ireland is supposed to get hit the hardest with snow (in green) on Thursday and then rain (blue) this upcoming weekend:
Today is my first day of the “CMA Academy” study program. The online videos and textbook seem to be well designed and thorough. The expected time commitment for the 16-week curriculum is 15 hours per week, or 3 hours per weekday (with weekends off). I spend probably more like 4 hours on it today, including some orientation videos to start and going through the first “lesson” of material, plus signing up for membership with the IMA (the accrediting organization). Thankfully, my study program offers a discount code that knocks ~$200 off a bundle that includes a 1-year membership fee and entrance fees for the 2 qualifying exams; still, the IMA fees total $1,000+ (not counting the cost of the study program itself). Today’s lesson covers financial statements, and most of the material is familiar to me although there are a few new tidbits. I score a 93% on the first quiz (I missed one question), so that’s a good sign. One day down, only 111 days more to go… I just have to keep up the pace.
Because of the weather and extra time to get started with the study program, I stay in the apartment the whole day and forego a walk. Ideally I would get in at least a short walk every day to reach my goal of averaging ~5,000 steps per day each week. I met this goal last week (Sun-Sat), so I have a good idea of what it takes, but my average for this week is already way down given my inactivity yesterday and today. The best strategy will be to get my studies done earlier in the day, so that I can get out for a walk each afternoon, come rain or shine. I’ll probably also be cutting back on the time I put into this blog, but we’ll see how it goes.
The FedEx package I expected to arrive almost two weeks ago now is still in Memphis, TN. However, this afternoon I receive an email notification from FedEx about an import tax I had to pay (which I did). So perhaps this will get the package moving again?
In other career news, this evening I receive a follow-up email from OCCRP to schedule a second interview / conversation later this week with a few more folks. There would still be a few more rounds of interviews after this one, so it’s still early on in their process. Nonetheless, it’s good to hear they’re still interested in me.
Until next time….
