practical application of abstract concepts

I've been afraid of math all my life. Somehow I got through the first year of high school algebra, but have since forgotten all of it. I still don't understand how to work with fractions or decimals.

One source of frustration with the way math has historically been taught is that had no obvious practical application. I never understood word problems. I didn't care about a random guy on a train or how quickly he could get to Chicago traveling at a certain speed. It was not relatable. There was no context, no relevant problem applicable to my life or experience. There was a lack of immediacy.

I'm not sure how to convert a word problem to a math problem or how to identify the relationship between the parts of a word problem and the various operations that would need to be done based on the information available - nor would I know if there simply was not enough information to get an answer.

What I'm looking for is a step-by-step method for converting real life problems and questions into math problems. It occurs to me at this moment that a "variable" is probably a math term for something we don't know. Information like that would be useful.

If there is a course that goes over this type of problem, I'm not sure where to find it, so maybe someone could point me in the right direction. 

Thanks!