>>> <font color=#b22222>HERE I AM, HARR!!! ...
This is my first full term (3/4 actually) of school and I have to admit it is wearing on me more than I had anticipated. I’m surviving and doing OK, but it not enough for me; so I’m hunkering down and giving it another push. In math I’m hovering between a C and a B, I’ve even dropped to a D twice causing me to spend hours up in the tutoring section trying to catch on and catch up. My math teacher is a gem, he’s bright, funny, quick and very animated; I can only hope that teachers such as he come my way again, I will miss him greatly when this class is over. BTW, he has told me that he has no worry that I’ll step up in grade as we are busting through the toughest part of this term at this point; he also told me last week in a conference that he appreciates my hard work and what I bring to the class.
Sociology sucks, I hate this so-called science of causes and blame; every assignment, book, and class requires a lot of energy from me for find it extremely boring. The book we work out of puts me in sleep mode within 3 pages of reading. My instructor is an OK person and even humorous, but she hates me as she can tell how I feel the subject. I won’t speak up in class anymore as I quickly tired of being the ammo for her corrections, instructions, and lectures. The instructor and I have had a conference and have exchanged many emails; we have come to an impasse, I have drawn a line and told her so. I will not miss a single class, I will take class notes, read the books and the articles handed out, but again, I will not speak up and partake of class activities. With all that said am averaging a B in this class.
Writing is a challenge but I love it, it’s hard and it takes time as I rewrite and rewrite for seems forever. I love my teacher, she is bright, passionate, stern and clearly loves her work; again I can only hope another teacher of this quality graces my path again. She’s always up for a conference if help is needed; she has given me guidance more than once, I love this class! I have received an A- and two B’s thus far in this class I think I’m finally catching on, so maybe an A will come my way. Being forty-seven amongst mostly teenagers is hard enough, but the guidelines of my childhood teachings are mostly gone; so I struggle even more as my understandings of writing are outdated.
An interesting and quite flattering thing happened to me concerning my very first essay written for this class. At the end of the first class we were handed two photos and told to select one with the instructions of writing a page of observations about it for our homework assignment. On day two we were assigned the homework of writing an essay on this same subject matter. I about panicked, as I truly hated the photo! I asked the teacher if I could switch to the other photo and told her I did not like the one I had selected. She asked me why, so I told her I found it posed and contrite; to which she replied, “well then tell me just that.” I went home and went to work; with this great advice I found that I had plenty to say. The next day she started class by handing us an essay titled “Exit 17”, this was written on the same photo I had selected; she then instructed us to read this essay so that we would have an example of what a good first draft looks like.
Then to my to my surprise she then told the class on that she had nominated my first essay to replace “Exit 17” as an example of a good first draft. I was quite flattered and actually blushed at this point. Even more flattering was the compliment she gave me after class in her office. She informed me that she had been using this photo for years and never really cared for it; however, she couldn’t quite put her finger on it as to why she didn’t like it. She tells me that after reading my essay she agreed with my observations and now knows what it was she didn’t like about the photo. Like I said earlier, this is all very flattering; but now she has high expectations from me! I consider this as blessing even though it means more work on my part; I find this teacher very inspiring.
School is hard on me as I it seems all I do is attend school, bath, eat, sleep, and study with little or no time for other activities; but for all the stress and lack of free time I find like it. I miss all my friends here on I-Hub, truly I do! I wanted to let all of you know this, and I also wanted let you know why I have been absent; hence this lengthy post for which I hope you can forgive me.
Forever Yours,
Gary
