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February 08, 2005
Last First Day of Classes
And what a day it was. I'm beginning to believe that they let you graduate once you realize what a joke college is. And when they realize you're starting to figure it out, they make less of an effort to conceal it, so that by your last semester it's completely out in the open.
I have two of the same Profs as last semester. My poetry Prof is now teaching me Advanced Creative Non-fiction Writing. (Sounds to me like someone needs to teach whoever named that class how to take it easy on the modifiers.) My mass media Prof is teaching me mass media part dos. (And I have a fresh face for my Journalism Prof.)
Class 1 - the Writing one, or ACN-fW, at 9:30 AM. Prof has grown a bushy beard, I note. Could he be more eccentric? We go around the room talking about things we could write about. He doesn't have the syllabus done, but wants ideas for good essays to read by 8PM tonight. We're done with class by 10:00 AM, even though it's supposed to last until 11:00 AM.
Class 2 - mass media part dos. Five minutes go by. No Prof. I take out my notebook and a pen. Ten minutes gone. Still no Prof. I put my notebook and pen away again and get ready to leave. A slightly more ambitious student heads downstairs to check the Prof's office for signs of life. She returns with the Prof, who looks slightly frazzled, and states, "This is really interesting. I have this class scheduled for next period, and you all have it scheduled for this period." He then realizes that there is no chance in changing it, because he is vastly outnumbered. He asks for a few more minutes, and heads back down to his office with a "Lord have mercy." He returns an additional 10 minutes later, announcing that the registrar screwed him (he now teaches 3 classes in a row), to which I cannot help but reply, "Join the club." He spends 5 more minutes attempting to make the document camera work so he can project the syllabus since the secretary hasn't finished copying them yet. He gives up. We waste a few more minutes. The secretary brings the syllabus, which is startlingly ambiguous and includes a course packet which is not ready yet. We listen to the Prof talk, which he is amazingly good at doing, for the rest of the time.
Class 3 - Journalism. The Prof reminds me of a cross between Barbara Boxer and my 3rd grade teacher. That is all I have to say about that.
After my classes, I proceed to the bookstore to purchase my textbooks. As I search the shelves for the first one, my media studies Prof walks up.
"You come here for fun?"
I mumble something about good times and blowing my money on books.
"I finished the reading list for the packet." He shows me a reference page full of authors and titles. I glance at it and half-heartedly fake some interest.
He points to the last author on the list. "I'll be interested to hear your thoughts on this one. He's a Marxist."
"Oh."
"I don't agree with everything he says, but he has an interesting perspective."
"Okay."
He turns away, and I spot the book I need.
"What class is that for?"
"ACN-fW."
"Ah. I've heard of that book."
"Good things?"
"Yeah."
"Good, good."
We wander our separate directions, and I'm left wondering if he really admires my intellect enough that he is indeed looking forward to my thoughts in the class, or if my conservative perspective is simply so rare on this campus that I am a token of sorts, and being extremely open-minded in comparison to most other Professors at this college, he is eager to milk me for the "alternative" way of viewing media-related issues. Whatever. It's been a long day, and after three classes I'm done thinking.
I'm off to a mardi-gras get-together, but first I need some help deciding on how I should observe Lent this year:
A) Give up chocolate.
B) Be a better Christian; give up all sweets.
C) Give up carbonated beverages, for the love, you know you have a bad Coke habit, even if it is diet.
D) Give up alcohol, even though you should be living up your last semester of college, because God will bring you to judgment for it (Ecc. 11:9).
E) Don't give up anything, fasting is over-rated, and besides, you gave up American food for a whole month, and that is worth a year of Purgatory.
F) Add something to teach yourself discipline, like a daily quiet time, only actually stick with it this time.
Anyway, I promise to post the Ireland pics once I have Windows reinstalled and my computer is more than 42% functional, which should be soon.
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Quote of the Day: "I like words." -Mass media prof, after assigning the glossary of our textbook as reading for the next class.
Posted by Megan at February 8, 2005 06:50 PM
Comments
Interesting take on Ecc. 11:9 :)
Posted by: Matt at February 8, 2005 10:46 PM
I kind of like the last one there. One year Pat Sokoll challenged the Rock leaders to fast for a week... whether that was physically actually fasting or like from something like media or whatever. It was kind of sweet. I gave up media 'cause I really didn't think I could go a WEEK without eating, and I learned a lot about discipline.
Posted by: Angie at February 8, 2005 11:23 PM