Wild Goose Chases (or) Things They Don't Tell You About Grad School at BU

On Tuesdays, I work at Tsai Performing Arts Center, helping to set up for wind bands' rehearsals. I wait around for a few hours, help clear away the detritus after rehearsal, and consequently get paid to do my reading for the next day's class (or visit the library, in this case). Fortuitously, Tsai is in the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) which is where my stipend checks appear once a month. Or rather, appeared. Until this month, or rather last month, when they stopped appearing. As pretty much anyone affiliated with BU can tell you, this organization is not known for...organization. After pestering my adviser for literally two months regarding the fact that they had offered me a certain financial award I was not in fact receiving, something entirely unrelated materialized in my inbox: I was actually receiving a stipend. I found out I should have been picking up these checks when the office where they appear emailed me to remind me, firmly I might add, that I really ought to have come to get those, and didn't I want my money? I scampered over to another part of campus to pick up the check, then scampered back to pay a quick visit to the very helpful financial aid office which revealed that I was in fact receiving money every month, regardless of whether or not I was working as TA ("facilitating" they call it now). Sadly, I'm afraid I have to pay another visit to financial aid, as the equally helpful woman in the CAS business office informed me I was not scheduled to be receiving checks this semester. Having been surprised by the stipend in the first place, I feel a little strange being a squeaky wheel to get it back. At the same time, I've made plans that are quite dependent on having this money. Squeak squeak.