Okay, yo. I guess it has somehow become the end of the month already, so I might as well do a post about how school is going.

I’ve written some tests already. I wrote a history test wherein I had to identify some regions in Early Modern Europe. I aced that one. I also had to do a punctuation test for English which I haven’t got the official mark from my professor back yet, but before handing them in we had them marked by fellow students and, assuming that student did a competent job, I did well and better than a large portion of the kids in the class. That’s what really matters.

Also in that English class I was told to write an essay about my writing style or whatever. I liked that one pretty well. I was able to write 700 words about how I don’t know what I’m doing, so it was basically like something I could do on this site if I bothered to do more than one draft. And the points of that essay was quite explicit: I don’t know how to write academic-style essays. Hey people I went to high school with. Hey. Did we ever learn that? I don’t remember learning that. But the fact that that is what the essay is about makes me feel that maybe it will be judged a little easier. After all, any mistakes I make in the writing will be supporting my thesis, right? I don’t know what the rules are for this sort of thing, but I’d like to have that essay up in this online repository of my self-obsession someday. I’ll have to ask about that. Anyway, the essay has also drilled into my head how much I don’t like the idea of writing in strict academic stylings.

What if I think ending a sentence with “f’realz y’all” is the best way to get my point across? Am I supposed to suppress such an urge just because it isn’t “intellectual” or whatever it is that they’re going for? I don’t think PDR can do that, f’realz y’all. I look at the sheer volume of essays I will apparently be writing for my English, Mythology, and History classes and I don’t like the look of it. You want me to write about the Epic of Gilgamesh? Man, I enjoyed reading the Epic, but I have nothing to say about Gilgamesh that hasn’t been said by people better at it than me. You want me to summarize these two articles and then give reasons why you assigned them to us? I would imagine you already know what they’re about, man, you assigned them. I’m probably going to be harping on this point a lot this year, but I’ll say it again: These assignments are just about me proving to you that I’m learning and I don’t freaking care if you think I’m learning or not. I care if I am learning. And these assignments only make me feel overwhelmed and pressured. I like writing when I want to write, but writing crap I don’t think matters is not what I want. I find myself wondering if I should just try to see how far I can stray from good essay-making without failing. That sounds more PDRish, but does come with the risk of actually failing.

And finally, my other class, Astronomy, does not require me to write essays. I like that. It does require math, though. I don’t like that as much. I had one assignment there too not due until the eleventh, and have finished it already. That’s nice. Unfortunately I have a Mythology assignment due tomorrow I haven’t finished. Whoops!

In the theme of learning, I can also mention I have been out driving twice times since getting my training license thing. A few more times and I will probably have doubled the number of times I’ve driven in my entire life. Anyway, I think it is going well. I’m starting to get the hang of it. I’ve stuck to parking lots and unused roads so far, though. I am not looking forward to getting onto places where there will be more than the occasional other vehicle. Driving, like most aspects of my life, is not improved by my proximity to other folk.

Well, looks like it is time to stop playing on my website and start pretending I care about this Gilgamesh essay.

I thought going back to school might give me more to write about on this here site o’ mine, and that is probably correct, but I kinda feel like I have less time to spend saying it. Oh well, let us see if I can’t bang out a post before I have to go to work…

I’ve got homework and tests and stuff now. This is the stuff I hate about school. I love being there and learning stuff. I could happily be sitting in lectures and such all day, but the second I have to start proving to them that I am learning, I start to take umbrage. I’m sure I’ve mentioned it before on the site, but I really find that the amount of time I have to spend proving to them that I am learning cuts into the actual amount of learning I do. It’s annoying. I will try, but I won’t enjoy it.

Anyway, something I noticed: Kids these days are sick. Seriously, I don’t know if it is flu season or what, but it seems like the professors can’t get through two sentences in a row without coughing, sniffling, sneezing, or some other sound of illness. Maybe it was like this when I was a student too. Maybe it is always like this in a group of people and I am only noticing now because of how diligent I have managed to avoid groups of people for my adult life. But I can’t sit in these lectures without a constant awareness of how sickly the populace surrounding me apparently is. If I get sick this year I am blaming all these children.

Haiku!

His mother told him
“You should wear your tuxedo.”
So he wore that shit!

Oh hey, I also got my Learner’s Permit thing for learning to drive cars and stuff. It’s been almost half my life since the last time I drove a car, so I don’t know what to expect of me really, but hopefully I’ll learn to drive. Not because I have any actual desire to learn to drive, but because I think it is a thing I will need to know soon. Stupid society always pushing its stuff in my face. Luckily I will basically never be able to afford a car, so I don’t have to worry about that just yet.

Oh how silly I felt as I reached into my pocket to find not a wallet. Usually that pocket contains a wallet, so not a wallet was not what I had expected. I had already been through the whole lost wallet thing once this year and I thought I’d like it if that was the maximum number of times I did so.

Luckily I found the wallet in my apartment. False alarm everybody. But here is the thing: It seems like every time I take my wallet out of my coat, I lose it. Today I went to the school bookstore to get my superexpensive books for my classes, right? They don’t let you take your bags with you into the bookstore, I assume to prevent stealing (because broke students would clearly benefit from having their superexpensive books for free and we can’t have that), and I left my coat with the bag. I wasn’t wearing the coat, just carrying it around (it is like my security blanket as those who know me already know) so leaving it with the bag made more sense to me than putting it on. Thus, I took my wallet from the coat! Anyway, I guess after I bought the superexpensive books (they were appropriately superexpensive), I stuck my wallet in my pants pocket, gathered my stuff, went home, and dumped my pockets. When I left, I gathered my phone and keys, but not the wallet. What an idiot! What an imbecile!

Anyway, when I went back to the bookstore because I had to buy one more superexpensive book, I didn’t have my wallet. I headed back to the apartment, on the way encountering and petting a black cat. I took the kitty visitation as a sign of good luck and, sure enough, my wallet was found. Hooray. But I’m too tired to go back outside tonight, so I will buy the superexpensive book I still need tomorrow.

Now, you may not have noticed, but I have just used the story of my wallet as a framing device to mask my real point. I think the books I’m buying are a touch expensive. If only we lived in a futuristic age wherein a digital copy of all relevant information could easily be distributed to all who were trying to learn! What a shame it is that that is beyond our technical limitations.

So, I have been through three classes now. It’s all been easy stuff so far. “Here’s what we’re gonna do” and that sort of thing. Oh how great it would be if the whole year was like that. But no. Sadly I’m going to have to do things at some point. Lame.

But at this point all I have is first impressions. High among these is: Young people are everywhere!!! Why did people make so many young people? Do we need this many? It seems excessive. Oh well, I assume that as the year goes on they’re going to be dropouts and get alcohol poisonings and leave to join circuses. Ideally the place will be more organized in a month or so and I won’t have to look at so many darn young people.

Speaking of young people, I have been given my student ID card and it would seems that the school still had my photo on file from 1999. Thus, the image of me on that card fits in well among all the young people around campus. Also from my original school stint, at least two of the chairs in the Student Union Building still have my initials carved into it. UH OH! My legacy is vandalism!

Oddly enough during one of my classes in a lecture hall in a building that didn’t even exist back in my original universattempt I sat down to find the initials “LDR” on the desk before me. Who could this LDR be? It is a mystery.

Anyway, to sum up: My “first week” of school was, in fact, only two days of school. I can’t really tell anything about what to expect. I’m nervous about the work I have ahead of me, but I kinda expect (or at least hope) that it won’t be as bad as it seems like now.

I guess that is all I’ve got. More details in the future.

Tomorrow I go back to school after a thirteen year-long Summer, I guess. I do not anticipate this being a great time for PDR while it is happening, but maybe it’ll be good in the long run. Here’s hoping anyway.

Over the last few days I have tried and failed miserably to switch to a daytime sleeping schedule. My first class tomorrow is at eleven-thirty, which is late by Day People standards, but is going to be a rough rise for PDR.

Haiku!

The gods of fire sleep.
They wait in the wood for you.
Why not let them out?

By apparent coincidence I just had my Visa limit upped by over $2000. This is almost like getting another loan for school, which I desperately need. And it also means I’m going to have more to pay back when this is all over. Uh oh.