Classes

The first week of classes has come and I'm well into my second week. I waited until I had taken all of them to ramble on about them in this blog. I'll elaborate on some, skim over others. I guess this is just something I want to write about.

First of all, swimming is brutal and unforgiving. In my college, you have to take four credits of physical education, which I think is... well, kind of stupid. But rules are rules, and since I'm not in a varsity sport (you can fulfill your credits that way), I have to take four 1 credit pass/fail P.E. courses. So far, I'm on my third (the previous being ice skating and softball), and I decided to take "Swimming for Fitness." Probably a bad idea.

The fact of the matter is, I was only taught how to swim two years ago, and to be honest, it definitely wasn't a formal lesson. So I learned how to swim in a mismatched way, I suppose. I think it's a combination of that, and the fact that I'm definitely out of shape that contributes to how much of an utter failure I am at swimming.

Luckily though, the coach doesn't really seem to care how bad my skill level is, at long as he sees everyone swimming for the 45 minute allotted time for the class. Maybe I can jack my skill up by the end of the semester.

I'm taking a class called "Ancient Philosophy" this semester, just so I can get rid of a history general education credit. I thought for sure it was going to be boring, but it's turning out to be quite opposite the case. The professor, Dr. Curry (who is notorious for his smoking habit, apparently), manages to make the subject interesting. One class he repeatedly said that the Greek hero Achilles "was a badass." So I think I'm in for a good time. 

The two other classes that are of intense interest are "Biblical Heritage" and "Nationality and Literature." The first class is taught by a guy called Dr. Steinberg. He's interesting, but he speaks very softly. I joked with my friends that he needs a microphone (the kind used in acting) so everyone can hear him. But the Bible as a piece of cultural literature is of course the focus of the course, and I think it's fascinating. I'm not what one would call a "person of faith," nor am I heavily passionate about faith (talking Christianity). So I guess when it comes to the Bible I have a secular point of view. I'm sure others in the class are devoted Christians, or other religions as well. So it will be interesting to hear their opinions on the subject.

As for Nationality and Literature, it's exactly the typical literature course that I've been taking for the entirety of my college career. But its focus is on British Literature from the 1800s. We started with Jane Eyre, and to be honest, I am really loving it. I think I'm going to enjoy this class more than I initially thought.

I'm sure there will be more rambling about these courses as the semester rolls onward. Probably also rambles about the student newspaper, The Racquette. I have also received a bunch of interesting postcards as of late, so I will do a feature of that. Heck, maybe I'll show some of my stamps. I've been collecting stamps since I was a little kid, and although it's not my main passion, I still have a collector's booklet I've saved.