If any of this writing seems unorganized / like a random stream of thought / poorly written / just plain bad, its because I'm focusing on studying. not combing over my progress entries.

-Oct 19. 2017

	So I've decided I want to go to college. I have big problems though. My entire life I took my education for granted and never used
the resources I had at my disposal to any advantage. I was always told about how smart I was but by the time I realized that hard work
was what got you places, and not the intellect you were born into, it was too late to change my path. I had already dropped out of highschool
and opted for a half assed GED. I passed with the minimum requirements just because I didn't want to try. I've come to this conclusion, I want
to make something out of myself. I don't believe for one second that it's too late for me to achieve my dreams, and the first step of that is going to be to study
for and to take the SAT on December 2nd, 2017.

	The basic run down of my highschool experience is that I 1- Did a lot of drugs, and 2- Slept a lot in class. So my highschool
education is hardly going to help me, as I didn't take any math past geometry and I don't even remember seeing that class to the end.
I also need to review the math I do know, which is a substantial amount but Isn't ALL of the information I'll need for the test. Fortunately my
reading and writing ability are what id consider above average so hopefully I'll already do decently on those portions.

	This is the plan. Between Today (Oct 19) and Test Day (Dec 2nd) there are 44 days -1 for test day. Between those 43 days I've got to:
>1. swiftly review all math up to Highschool level
>2. take slightly more time to review Algebra 1 / Geometry
>3. Teach myself Algebra II / Trigonometry
>4. Read adult literature and scientific articles to boost my reading skills
>5. Study SAT vocab lists and learn words I don't recognize
>6. Review what I have learned
>7. Take practice SAT tests, many of them.

I'm mostly going to use Khan Academy for my learning. Lets see what I've got cut out for me:
<1. I've got 25%(33 skills) of arithmetic, and 45%(97 skills) of pre-algebra left to review, for a total of 		130 skills.
<2. There is 96% (202 skills) of Algebra 1, and 87% (96 skills) of Geometry left to review, for a total of		298 skills.
<3. Starting from scratch in Algebra 2 I have 139 skills to learn, plus 95%(33 skills) of Trigonometry, for a total of	172 skills.
											Total:	600 skills

I have to do all of this in 43 days, and I've got to have days for actually practicing the SAT which means All the skills need
be "mastered" in the next 30 or so days. Thats 20 skills per day. That seems manageable alone, but I've also got other tasks to account for.
Another thing to keep in mind is that different skills take different amounts of time, 20 skills could take me 2 hours to complete one day,
then the next day my 20 skills could take three times as long. So instead of doing skills then quitting once i reach 20, I'm going to do as
many as possible within my alotted time frame and getting past 20 will be the benchmark that eases my mind. Once I'm a few days In I'll
have a better idea of what im doing. but for now this is the system.

<4. I should probably read for at least an hour per day no matter how solid my reading skills are
<5. Vocabulary is likely going to be the least important of my studies considering the other seemingely insurmountable tasks ahead.
but 10 or 15 minutes per day couldn't hurt.
<6. I'd like to review any new content I learn every 20%(35/172 tasks) or so of the NEW material.
<7. For SAT specific practice I'm going to use the 8 Free Khan academy tests + The Princeton Review SAT practice book and I MIGHT opt
to acquire a CollegeBoard practice book as well. Id like to refrain from doing more than one per day as they're time consuming and mentally
taxing. The plan in my head is to sprinkle a few in after I've completed a majority of the new content, then do 1 per day after I'm finished
exposing myself to all of Algebra II and Trig, then two per day for just a few days leading up to day 40 or so. Afterward, rest and relaxation
with short+refreshing review blocks of an hour or so leading up to the day of the test.


If im functioning optimally but also taking care of my human needs I'll have something like 14 hours
per day MAXIMUM to dedicate to this. however 14 hours daily for 44 days is extreme and an incredibly difficult amount of work, there is no way
I'll be able to work that many hours straight effeciently. So instead I'll probably split my work into smaller blocks of time and take care of my
needs inbetween. My current line of thinking is to implement a polyphasic sleep cycle into my life - 4 hours of focused studies, 1 hour relax
(plus eat / anything else), 3 hours of sleep. repeat. This might have to be altered, but 4 hours doesnt seem like too many hours to go on for
and as long as i let myself crash maybe once or twice per week I should be ok as far as sleeping goes. I'll also revert back to a monophasic
sleeping schedule or at least make sure im well rested for several days before I go in to test.

I'm going to try and complete the 428 skills im reviewing as quickly as possible even if im haphazard about it. Then id like to be done with new
materials around day 30 or so followed by 10 days of SAT specific preperation and reviews.