So much to tell!
My stomach was all upset Tuesday, my first day of school, but the nausea was completely unnecessary. I think it’s going to be a very successful semester.
Here I am--had to have the traditional First Day of School picture :-) Too bad my eyes weren’t open yet…
Here are my observations, reactions and whines:
**I got to school my first day an hour and a half early, anticipating horrible first week parking. I drove around the structure just long enough to see that the best option was to go up and park on the outside tier, where there were still plenty of spaces. It actually took me three times as long to leave at the end of the night as it did to find my parking space! Second night, I lucked into a space half a tier down and it only took twice as long to get out :-)
**Had a leisurely snack wrap and soda at the nearby McDonald’s. Then walked back to the zoo--I mean, the campus bookstore. I looked for what I thought was my French 1 textbook. Went into shock and left--more later. Second night, I drove through and got a burrito to take to school. Here’s where I ate:
Nice, huh?
**Before class on the first night, I sat on a bench in the shade and read for a while. It’s been an extraordinarily mild summer--of course, the first week of school it turns blazing hot.
**First night I didn’t think I was the oldest in the class but the second night thinned out (people dropping, not coming back…) and so now I know I definitely am. That includes the teacher…
**The classroom--can you say “sardines”? Little desk/chair combo’s with just enough space to walk through. Claustrophobia! Even the teacher doesn’t have much room to move. Like I said, though, we lost some folks, so the second night wasn’t so bad. With a few empty seats, it doesn’t seem so squashed.
**Textbook--$162.50!!!! Well, to be fair, it’s a textbook, two workbooks, a lab book and the key to the Supersite website that goes along with the class work. When I saw the package at the bookstore that first night, I really thought I was looking at the wrong thing… Then someone in class had already gotten it and quoted the price. Amazon only sells the textbook, not the other things and even that was outrageously expensive… The teacher says it covers both French 1 and 2 and most people just take the first class and use the book to continue their study afterward… And to add insult to injury, the textbook is loose leaf, so then you need to get a binder!! The Husband went out and bought me a purple one the next day :-)
So supportive!
**Our teacher’s name is Abeer and her first language is Arabic but she sounds like a native French speaker. She’s a lot of fun, working us hard but also making us laugh. For some reason, she reminds me of Kate Winslet in The Holiday. She doesn’t really look that much like Winslet but it’s something about her facial expressions.
**We are required to have four hours of tutoring at the Skills Center, with two more for extra credit. Joel, the main French tutor, came to speak to us the second night, explaining all the rules. He can take a number of students at a time, so it won’t necessarily be one on one but he’ll have time to answer the questions we don’t get to in class and keep us current on pronunciation and grammar. All tutoring is free, which makes me very happy because I know I’ll need it for math…
**The first week, there are stations set up around campus (see the blue canopy in front of the library) to assist you with questions and information. So thoughtful. Since I’ve been to this campus before, I was ok but I’m sure there were a lot of straight out of high school freshman who needed a little guidance.
**The bookstore is very efficient. Tchotkes and snacks at the front, books by alphabetical order of the class name in the back. I went late Wednesday afternoon, the day between my classes, so I could have the package and look through it before my second night. All of the registers were open and the line to pay snaked through the aisles. A young guy behind me talking to his girlfriend nailed it: “Yeah, they have you walk through the aisles so you’ll grab a greeting card for your aunt’s birthday, a bookmark and an energy bar”. I admit, since I was writing a check from my savings, I figured I might as well buy a t-shirt and support my school…
**Never thought I’d have to relearn the alphabet but it was like first grade all over again! The pronunciations are very different, especially Y (i grec--how do they get that??!!). We’re already speaking in class and doing some conversation. I’m there to learn, so I did do some speaking in class--but I didn’t raise my hand to do the whole alphabet--although I did spell out my name :-) I’m usually The Quiet One, so this is going to be interesting!
**This morning, I logged onto the Supersite and took a look around. There are no assignments yet, so I clicked on a few things and watched some video’s in French--they go along with the lessons. Right now, we’re on greetings and goodbyes. Once we all have our books/website keys, required by tomorrow, it will start to move a lot faster. Whee!!!!!
“Life is only as interesting as the number of times you say yes.”
Harvey Fierstein
This morning, The Husband and I dragged ourselves out of bed early, so we could be at the Student Center to get my school ID. I knew I’d be having my picture taken, so what to do with my hair was a topic of discussion in my head for a few days. Curly? Straight? Since you get one picture ID, then each successive semester you get a sticker updating the ID, this is for posterity. How did I want to present myself? I’ve always blown my hair dry and relatively straight and this new, shorter style has been liberating in that I can let it dry naturally and curly, so curly it is. And what to wear? I didn’t want to wear anything too “old lady”--my definition of that deserves a blog post of its own--so I decided on a boat neck striped shirt. I figured not much of it would show but I like that shirt and how it makes me feel.
So, we got to school and the parking lot was fairly empty, which is the last time I’ll see it that way. I know from now on, it’s going to be a madhouse.
Anyway, we walked across the pleasant little campus, to Building 200. Signs led us around the corner to a little patio with a half dozen wrought iron tables and chairs. Since we were 45 minutes early, we were actually the first ones there. As people wandered in, they took seats and many, like us, communed with their cell phones. Some kids had parents with them for support--one girl was French braiding her mom’s hair. Other people sat and stared--apparently, also like us, they hadn’t had their caffeine fix yet. There was one man older than me and a guy probably in his late 30’s. The rest were young freshmen.
When the doors opened, the two girls who’d arrived just after us made sure I was in the door first. Are college students just more polite than the norm or maybe I’ve just only experienced the nice ones at school, so far. No, I’m not anticipating surly teenagers but… we shall see. Anyway, we were led into a room where they’d set up chairs and tables in a kind of obstacle course that led to the desk where you presented your paperwork for inspection. Hmmm, that sounds very Casablanca! You’re required to show your zero balance for class fees and the payment for the ID. Check, check, double check. Onto a small room with a section taped out on the floor for you to stand for your photo, like at the DMV. A sweet young guy with a Police K9 t-shirt on chatted a bit, then explained there was a 3 second delay with the camera, so don’t smile til “3”. :-) A short wait in another room, and shazam, my student ID was hot off the press!
Collected The Husband, who’d waited outside, and headed back to the car. Here’s the picture he took to commemorate the event:
I bought him breakfast and lamented that the picture he took was too close and I look awful. Crepey neck, wrinkles everywhere and my teeth look weird. But here it is anyway, because more than anything, I think I look happy. There is a huge element of silliness in being so excited about these little things--ID’s, parking stickers, new notebooks--and that’s a gift. We should all be happy with the little things!
So, I think I’m getting nervous. No second thoughts, just wanting to get the syllabus and textbook and get this show on the road. I want to see how hard the homework will be and push myself to talk in class and memorize stuff. Failure scenarios abound--a crappy teacher, not being able to understand the grammar, flunking tests… In 5 more days, all will answered! Well, some anyway.
I’m irritated that they don’t put the syllabus and textbook title online before class, so you can be prepared and not basically waste the first night of class by not having all the info already. We do have a class website online but so far, all it has is the names of the students and teacher. It gives you a place to link your own website, so I put my Etsy shop in there. Never know, might get some holiday business from my classmates!
Anyway, next Tuesday is The Big Day. I’m going to school right from work, even though class doesn’t start until 7. I want to get parked--Lord knows how long that will take… Then I’ll walk to a nearby McDonald’s for a snack wrap dinner and some reading time. That’s one thing I know I’ll be sacrificing--I probably won’t get to read as much for pleasure. But that’s ok, it’s a good trade off. Eventually, I’ll be able to read books in French. :-)
Never think you’re not good enough yourself. A person should never think that. People will take you very much at your own reckoning.
Anthony Trollope
