I'm sorry it's been a ridiculously long time since I've posted... Allow me to catch you up briefly on the past ten weeks:
For my program on ancient Greek philosophy, I read approximately 2,500 pages (of fucking PHILOSOPHY, people; we're not talking about Stephen King or some shit...), wrote 20 pages' worth of short essays and 30 pages' of long ones, and spent approximately 100 hours attending a student-run seminar.
For my job at the college Writing Center, I have spent approximately 200 hours persuading freshmen to beLIEVE me about semi-colons, explaining articles to ESL students (for reference to those of you with fluent English: articles don't make a bit of fucking sense), and generally keeping everybody entertained.
For my speech class, I have read approximately 700 pages, written about 14 pages' worth of short essays, and written and delivered a ten-minute speech.
Let's break this down. That's:
320 pages of reading PER WEEK. That's FORTY-FIVE pages a day. Including Sundays. Not including stuff I read just because I liked it.
7 pages of writing per week.
34 hours of class and work PER WEEK.
This does not count things like commutes and cooking breakfasts for my sweet, helpless-in-the-kitchen fiancé. So, anyway, I'm sorry I haven't updated. I'm sure you understand.
So, tonight was my last night of the speech class. I hate to say this, but I HATED that class. The seminars dragged on and on for eternities... The class was divided into two sections: for two hours, we'd talk about how great Abraham Lincoln was, because he gave the Gettysburg Address (big whoop; I give my email address, but I don't get talked about for two fucken hours a week); then, for the second two hours, we'd lie on the floor moaning and whining. Seriously. This was "voice training." Now, I know a thing or two about voice, and voice lessons, and this shit was just weird.
Anyway, it was the last night. I gave my speech (on the evils of the so-called Mandatory Arrest Law as it pertains to domestic violence), and I'm done. Actually, I did pretty damned well on the speech, and I'm seriously considering auditioning to be the commencement speaker this June.
Yeah, me.
Remember, like, a few years ago when I lived with a house full of crazy people? And how sometimes I'd dig through dumpsters with my friend Aaron for redeemable bottles and cans, just for a bit of spare change to bring to Denny's for coffee? Remember Santa Fe, where I chain-smoked and got a bunch of coke-heads pissed at me, and proceeded to sort of fall in love with a boy who wouldn't go out with me?
I cannot believe -- really -- that I've even got the guts to try out for something like this. ME, standing in front of literally thousands of people, talking to my graduating class? From dumpsters and coke-heads to auditioning for THE class honor? I mean, it's incredible enough that I'm almost eligible to graduate right now...
I dunno; some of you thought that Evergreen/Olympia/Washington/the West Coast would change me, and make me weird, and it would make me talk funny, and pull me away from friends and family and so forth... And some of you thought that it would make me fucken ALIVE for once in my life. I guess all of you were right.
I mean, probably lots of people will audition, and it's unlikely that they'll actually choose ME, but... dude, that'd be so cool...
I was going to start working on a tentative speech idea, actually, but then decided I was too damned tired to bother right now. The theme is this Gandhi quote: "You must be the change you want to see in the world." That's an easy one, really.
Ah, whatever.
Got an email from Norman today. I'd pretty much given up on ever hearing from him again, but of course, Norman is nothing if not unpredictable. The email didn't say a whole lot, but it made me happy. I like it when people I care about make an effort to demonstrate the fact that they're alive.
I have so much to write about. I have so much to think about. It will have to wait. I'm very sorry. I have to get up tomorrow morning at 8 for work.
But it's good to be back...
~Helena*
Oh yeah, and one more thing... A shout-out to you northeasterners, especially those of you who are expecting snow this evening: it was seventy freakin' degrees the other day, and all the neighbors' bushes have flowers on them... Yes, I am bragging. That's all.