And the final answer is......

I PASSED THE F.E. EXAM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

In case you've never heard of it, the F.E. (fundamentals of engineering) exam is a two part, eight hour exam that tests all of the stuff one apparently should learn in college while obtaining an engineering degree. Essentially, it's eight hours of pure stress... and then eight to twelve weeks of waiting for the results. My letter arrived on Christmas Eve... nice timing State of Delaware! After a few seconds of considering waiting until after Christmas to open it, I gave in to the curiosity... luckily I passed or there may have been a few tears in the Christmas pirohy! I was perhaps a bit too excited to add the E.I.T. (Engineer in Training) to my signature... my signature finally looks like I'm more than a secretary!!!! I called my mentor right away... on Christmas Eve... what nerve (luckily she didn't answer so I didn't feel the need to appologize for disturbing her on a holiday).

Here in the wonderful Commonwealth of Pennsylvania one cannot call themselves an engineer until they hold a professional license... which requires five years of experience and another 8 hour test... I'll worry about that in a couple of years. For now, I'll celebrate the great relief! (I really didn't want to take that test again!!!)

PS - Don't forget, the Christmas season is not yet over!!!