Returning to Status Quo

First off, in case you were wondering, Isaac was a bust. We didn't even lose power - the most that happened was the TV satellite signal went out periodically. Luckily we still didn't have class Monday, as a nasty flash cold/cough hit me when Isaac did. I'm fine now, but Sunday and Monday were spent alternative sleeping, drinking fluids, and trying to get as much homework and knitting in as I was capable.

This semester I'm taking four classes: Physics III (the kind with calculus), Calculus III, Physical Oceanography, and... American Literature II (aka post-Civil War). So basically lots of math with a random gen. ed. Physics is more of the same - this semester is the last one, and it's electricity and magnetism, which should be fun. It's seems like Dr. Huerta's been teaching this forever, and really enjoys it, which means he has a good, entertaining narrative down pat. Not really sure how well that transfers to knowing how to do the homework yet, but we'll see. Calc teacher is pretty quiet, kind of speeds through things rather than elaborating, but whatever; the book is good and clear, problems not too difficult, so this should be fine. Physical Oceanography is basically Story-Time with Dr. Olson. A little bit of actual physical oceanography, a LOT of semi-relevant yet amusing tangents and stories (and jabs at Dr. Millero, much to Jen and I's delight). The English class, is, well... and English class. Today we analyzed some Walt Whitman, looking at how this word is an unusual choice and oh! look at the juxtaposition of the passive and aggressive voice in this phrase and what does he mean when he's talking about being cared for by dinosaurs? Yeah.

The most striking difference between "normal" classes and Galápagos classes is the aggressiveness of the students. In the Galápagos, we all sort of wandered towards the classroom five minutes after class was supposed to start, stopping for tea and coffee along the way. In "normal" classes, half the class is mobbed around the door five minutes before the previous class ends, pouncing the minute the outgoing stream falls to a trickle. I don't know if this is a new behaviour brought on by more and more competitive incoming classes, or a long-standing phenomenon I am only now noticing because of my absence. In any case, it is terribly frightening.

This semester looks to be semi-promising on the knitting front. This is what I have after two days of class:

When I was at my highest for knitting productivity, this would have been maybe one class. Lowest, probably a week. So right in the middle. And in case you're wondering, these are going to be footies.