First Day of Classes: "Spring" 2013
The reason spring is in quotes in the title of today's post is this: It's FOUR DEGREES here. Southeastern Mass is experiencing super cold temps and the insane wind chill isn't helping matters AT ALL. It sucks. A lot, in fact. All of my classes today were on the east side of campus but when I arrived at the closest parking lot at eight in the morning, it was already full. I instead was forced to park on the opposite side of campus in the parking garage and hoof it. It was cold and eight in the morning, and I was without coffee; Needless to say, I was not a happy camper.
"Syllabus Day", or the first day of class, is usually fairly laid-back. The professors usually hand out the syllabuses, review them and send us on our merry way. I have a three hour lab Monday and an evening class. Tuesdays and Thursdays I have four classes in a row with no breaks from 9:15 until 3:15. I packed a LOT of snacks.
My first class was Major British Writers I with Professor Crowley. This man looks and acts like a bulldog. He's a chubby Irish man with a balding head and sagging jowls. He reminded me a lot of my high school English teacher from junior year. He was gruff and fierce at certain times, hilarious and kind the next. I can't decide if he's crazy or awesome. I suppose I will have to sit through a few classes before I know for sure. Maybe he's both! He spent the entire class time telling us stories; relevant stories but an hour and fifteen minutes worth. My good friend Hannah was in the class, much to both of our surprises. Somehow I always end up sitting next to the irritating kids. I sat down and immediately a girl sits down next to me. Normally this would be fine, but this girl had something to say about everything and wanted to share her whole life story. She also cut off the professor several times, which for this professor is definitely a no-no. I pretty much plan on sitting as far away from this girl from now on.
My Survey of American Literature class has me slightly concerned. I have always been much more of a British Literature fan, but I know how good some American literature can be so I had high hopes for this class (Plus, this class is required for all English majors.) However, my professor then informed us that we will not be reading any Faulker, Hawthorne, Poe. I love Poe; What else on earth could there possibly be to read in this class?! Apparently a lot - mostly Puritan literature, William Bradford and that kind of thing. We will be reading some Emily Dickinson, who is by far one of my favorite poets ever. I have loved her poetry since I was a little girl. I have mixed feelings about this class, so I guess we'll see.
My third class was Writing About Literature, which is required for all English majors. This course should really be named "How To Write A Paper 101 For Idiots". Majority of my classmates are Elementary Education majors, who were required to pick up a second major and thought English would be easiest. The eager girl from my Brit Lit class sat next to me, AGAIN, because I am now a familiar face. Lucky me. The professor is nice enough, a little dull and the subject matter is dull too so I expect to take lots of naps. I'm irritated that she's forcing us to buy a specific copy of Emma by Austen. I already own three copies, one with my own anecdotes. My professor wants that specific edition by that specific publisher though. We had a mini quiz that was ungraded, just to see what we know. The questions consisted of, "What's a soliloquy?" and "What's the difference between a simile and a metaphor?" Then we had to analyze a poem. The boy to my right nudged me and whispered, "What's iambic pentameter?" He's an English major. I'm in so much trouble.
My final class of the day was General Principles of Biology, which is the last of my general education requirements. Thank goodness! I've been postponing taking my lab science because the lab is three hours long, in addition to the regular class. The class itself isn't bad; it's definitely a biology class designed for people who have no interest in science. My professor is nice and she's fully aware most kids don't actually want to be sitting there. A cute guy sat next to me in class and our conversation was the highlight of the day.
I have a coffee date with my good friend Alyssa tomorrow morning, which is always something to look forward to. I feel guilty that we go long periods of time without speaking but when we're together, the conversation comes easily and I feel like I can be myself around her, unlike in most of my life. She's always been my most honest and least judgmental friend.
To all my fellow students, I hope your spring semester started off well and may you be warmer than I am!
"Syllabus Day", or the first day of class, is usually fairly laid-back. The professors usually hand out the syllabuses, review them and send us on our merry way. I have a three hour lab Monday and an evening class. Tuesdays and Thursdays I have four classes in a row with no breaks from 9:15 until 3:15. I packed a LOT of snacks.
My first class was Major British Writers I with Professor Crowley. This man looks and acts like a bulldog. He's a chubby Irish man with a balding head and sagging jowls. He reminded me a lot of my high school English teacher from junior year. He was gruff and fierce at certain times, hilarious and kind the next. I can't decide if he's crazy or awesome. I suppose I will have to sit through a few classes before I know for sure. Maybe he's both! He spent the entire class time telling us stories; relevant stories but an hour and fifteen minutes worth. My good friend Hannah was in the class, much to both of our surprises. Somehow I always end up sitting next to the irritating kids. I sat down and immediately a girl sits down next to me. Normally this would be fine, but this girl had something to say about everything and wanted to share her whole life story. She also cut off the professor several times, which for this professor is definitely a no-no. I pretty much plan on sitting as far away from this girl from now on.
My Survey of American Literature class has me slightly concerned. I have always been much more of a British Literature fan, but I know how good some American literature can be so I had high hopes for this class (Plus, this class is required for all English majors.) However, my professor then informed us that we will not be reading any Faulker, Hawthorne, Poe. I love Poe; What else on earth could there possibly be to read in this class?! Apparently a lot - mostly Puritan literature, William Bradford and that kind of thing. We will be reading some Emily Dickinson, who is by far one of my favorite poets ever. I have loved her poetry since I was a little girl. I have mixed feelings about this class, so I guess we'll see.
My third class was Writing About Literature, which is required for all English majors. This course should really be named "How To Write A Paper 101 For Idiots". Majority of my classmates are Elementary Education majors, who were required to pick up a second major and thought English would be easiest. The eager girl from my Brit Lit class sat next to me, AGAIN, because I am now a familiar face. Lucky me. The professor is nice enough, a little dull and the subject matter is dull too so I expect to take lots of naps. I'm irritated that she's forcing us to buy a specific copy of Emma by Austen. I already own three copies, one with my own anecdotes. My professor wants that specific edition by that specific publisher though. We had a mini quiz that was ungraded, just to see what we know. The questions consisted of, "What's a soliloquy?" and "What's the difference between a simile and a metaphor?" Then we had to analyze a poem. The boy to my right nudged me and whispered, "What's iambic pentameter?" He's an English major. I'm in so much trouble.
My final class of the day was General Principles of Biology, which is the last of my general education requirements. Thank goodness! I've been postponing taking my lab science because the lab is three hours long, in addition to the regular class. The class itself isn't bad; it's definitely a biology class designed for people who have no interest in science. My professor is nice and she's fully aware most kids don't actually want to be sitting there. A cute guy sat next to me in class and our conversation was the highlight of the day.
I have a coffee date with my good friend Alyssa tomorrow morning, which is always something to look forward to. I feel guilty that we go long periods of time without speaking but when we're together, the conversation comes easily and I feel like I can be myself around her, unlike in most of my life. She's always been my most honest and least judgmental friend.
To all my fellow students, I hope your spring semester started off well and may you be warmer than I am!
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