In the Air

Do you smell that?

Ahh, it's wonderful! New pens and notebooks, textbooks, novels, bookstores. It's time to dust off the old brain and begin a new semester of college.

And I think I love it.

Actually what I really love is getting organized. I love planning everything out and marking things in my calendar. I like figuring out a schedule and laying out books in the order they need to be read. Just makes me happy.

There's something about the hustle and bustle of a busy campus that I enjoy too. Of course, don't get me wrong, there are days where I am loathe to rub shoulders with one more frat boy or run up another three flights of stairs (because I don't want to be that one person that everyone judges for taking the elevator).

So far, so good though. I go up six flight of stairs twice a day Monday, Wednesday and Friday. I'm hoping that at least by October I won't be huffing and puffing quite so much. And the calf/thigh burn actually is quite nice. Feels like I can get a work out and go to class all in one go. No more trading one for the other. Ha!

But there will always be a fight between class and sleep. This morning I woke up at 7:03, 7:26, 7:48, 8:03, and for the last time at 8:24. I can't help it. I have two alarms; both of which stay on the other side of the room and I just go back and forth between my bed and my desk turning off alarms, practically asleep before I fall back into bed each time. Mornings are a beautiful thing! That's why I wake up so many times. I just want to relive it over and over.

I'm pretty sure I told you all about my Professor Snape. I've started a list in my notes keeping track of the new thing he hates each day. If you recall the first of the list is 'women and believers.' Now it also reads: children, Scots, Welsh, pirates. Today he finally just owned up to it and said "I hate everybody if you haven't figured it out yet. Don't take it personally. So many people do. I just don't like you." And I thought, "Finally!" You have to read that in Snape's tone of voice to get the full effect:



I don't think you have to watch the whole clip to get the picture; the first 40 seconds works well enough!

We also begin every lecture session with a loud, hearty bark that begins deep in the old man's cigarette tarnished lungs and comes forth as a gravelly growl. Then he coughs, says "ALRIGHT you lot. Let's get on with it. (pause) HISTORY of Rome. Now that's a fair topic, wouldn't you say? Easy to sum up, is it? WRONG! Not much is known about the origins. BUT let's begin. That's why they pay me now, ISN'T IT?" (Capitalized words are shouted). He is a riot! I think I may actually like his old curmudgeonly self in the end.

In my British Novel in the 20th Century class we've been watching a film about D.H. Lawrence, author of Sons and Lovers which we've begun reading. The film is hosted by Anthony Burgess (author of Clockwork Orange) and is hilarious though it's not meant to be. He waxes poetic about many things, and condemns women for being lazy during the 20th century while the men go to the coal mines. If he had even read D.H. Lawrence's Sons and Lovers (which was based on Lawrence's life) he would be fully aware that women do, in fact, work themselves nearly to death.

But I digress.

I just spent $221 at the bookstore today. That's the part I always hate about new semesters. I've bought about 22 or 23 texts. And that's the other part I hate about new semesters: staring down the reading lists and realizing that I will spend the next five months being bogged down with mandatory reading assignments.

Bright light on the horizon! I'm about 95% sure I'm going to Colorado for a little vacation. I am ecstatic! I love road trips. And I love Colorado. I remember going on trips with youth ministry when I was in the ministry and then as a leader. The bus/plane/train ride was always the best part for me. Once we got to where we were going I was ready to turn around and go back. That's the best part about traveling anyways: the getting there.