One Degree

So, this is the first week of the second semester of my Masters degree. I'm already behind.
I just finished the readings, but have not yet responded to them (task #2, or #4....can't remember). I also haven't done task #3, which is to meet with classmates and find our 6 degrees of separation. And I missed my first online meeting with the professor because I fell asleep mid-day due to the extreme exhaustion I am still feeling from my new work schedule. All in all, not off to a great start. 
It can only get better, right?
Let's see...what are the good things?
1. I have two friends in one class, which is really nice. Last session we made our own little support group, and through weekly Google+ chats, were able to kind of help each other figure stuff out.
2. I have a chance to re-do that meeting that I missed....tomorrow morning at 9:00 am.
3. I really liked the 2 articles that I just read, as they talked about the learners' experience in distance and online courses. For the first time since I started this degree, I finally felt that somebody understands what I'm going through. It hit me very emotionally. Friends, family, and co-workers do not realize the massive challenges that the online learner faces, and do not know that every aspect of your life is changing in ways that you can't always control, and don't always like. For everything gained in studying, something else precious is lost. Friends fall away because you can't make time for them, family is shifted aside because you can't get to them, work schedules must be rearranged to accommodate the studies, there is a huge loss of income, and as a result, a loss of social contact (hard to go for a beer or a burger, and the theatre is just out of the question!). I'm lucky if I can pay the rent. Financial worries are a BIG concern. Even the reduction in student-contact time is a loss, because I need to be able to relate what I'm learning to real-life classrooms. I also had to re-arrange my house; my office space...to make room for a growing collection of binders, papers, and textbooks. Then, there's the constant, constant exhaustion, and the sleepwalking between work and studying, and the constant feeling that you are 12 steps behind everyone else. And nobody seems to get the isolation. Not only geographical isolation, but the feeling that you can't really talk to anyone about these challenges because they just accuse you of whining. "Suck it up" I was told! 
So, these articles acknowledge that these are very real concerns for online learners, and that institutions that want to implement online and distance programs cannot simply rely on technological advances to solve all of their problems. They need to understand where the students are coming from, and understand how students will, or will not take advantage of the opportunities afforded them. 
4. I think University of Manchester has done a really good job of meeting students' needs with regards to "socializing, support, interaction, flexibility, minimizing technological difficulty" (Schrum and Hong, 2002).  The challenges are real, but I believe that my courses were designed with 'people like me' in mind.  I'll get there....