Of transitions, and waiting.
The last couple months have been an exercise in patience, which I do have at times. I feel as though I'm well positioned and prepared for my second whack at college, and have just been waiting around for the day to arrive, stagnating a bit but not by choice. The courses I've been taking this summer have served as a warm up, confirming for me that my brain still works, and reminding me of what I'm good at and what I'm not. Still doing well at learning and retaining information that I find appealing, and still pretty half-assed at dealing with those subjects I find tedious.
I have been enjoying Biology for the most part, somewhat as a surprise to myself. Chemistry, which I'm told I need as a prerequisite for Biology (disagree) and possibly other things, not so much. I do have the same excellent instructor for both courses, a fellow by the name of Doug Friedman. He has a masters in Biology from NAU, takes pains in his teaching, and most importantly, appreciates my sense of humor. I think that makes about seven people, altogether. (If you laughed at the last sentence, let me know and I'll add you to the list). I think I'd be willing to take another intensive summer course, but not more than one at a time. I'd been seeing Doug for close to thirty hours a week, which is more waking hours than he spent with his wife, he confessed to me one morning. For my part, I recall being so tired one day that on my way home I missed the turn to my house, and almost found myself lost, on foot, in the neighborhood where I currently live.
I finished up Biology last week, and am now down to just taking Chemistry and looking for a job, now that I actually have the time to work at one. I may have found a student position with a timber harvesting crew in Williams, one that I can continue with while I'm attending classes. Nothing finalized as yet, but it sounds like it might work out.
I had a lengthy conversation with my friend John a couple weeks ago, which I'd been meaning to have for several months. I'd long been out of touch with him, partially due to the excessive use of karaoke at his family's periodic get-togethers, as well as simple geography. I'm hoping that now that we've gotten back in touch that we'll stay that way, and I'm looking forward to seeing him and his wife in August.
We had become friends over the course of our junior year in high school, during the Fall cross-country season. Prior to this I'd only known him as the guy who didn't talk much and got A's in everything. I've missed his reasoned and practical outlook on events, more balanced and nuanced then my own, as well as his sense of humor. I'll always remember that it was John who first invited me to come over and hang out with the social circle I knew in school but had never seen outside of class. I was incredibly grateful at the time, but never thanked him. Thanks John.
My purpose in bringing up our conversation is primarily to express my comfort in the fact that he and I are in similar places at the moment, starting anew with school, in pursuit of new careers. I've had second and third thoughts about spending the time to acquire another bachelor's degree, and possibly a couple more in pursuit of a masters at the age of thirty. He and I are nearly the same age (he's five days older, if I recall correctly) and from similar backgrounds. His take on signing up for another degree and the years necessary to invest:
"I figured that I'm going to get older anyway, and I may as well go to school as I'm aging".
Not a major revelation, but this simple thought settled things for me somehow, quieting some of the doubts I've been having. I was never jealous of John or any of my friends, but I recognized that my parents would have been happier if my eighteen year-old self had had something resembling his work ethic, and direction. The fact that the valedictorian of my high school class and I are on the same page is perhaps more comforting that it should be, but I'm once again grateful.
I used to play the "where were my parents at my age" game (a real job and several kids) but clearly our society has been drifting towards a purer form of capitalism with fewer of socialism's perks. Jobs with retirement benefits have become harder to find, but I feel like I've been given this time to explore, and settle on something pleasing, instead of being forced into a questionable career path for the sake of job security. I'll take the trade-off.
So here I am, waiting for August 26th, the first day of classes at NAU. I'm passing the time by reading, and getting into better shape. I've been walking back and forth to class, about a mile each way four times a day, and am now transitioning to running most mornings. I feel almost embarrassingly eager to learn this new discipline, Forestry, and to be more involved with the entire college experience, which I was distanced from my first time around. I want to join clubs, and form study groups, and talk with professors during their office hours. I feel like I'm ready for this now, much more than I was at eighteen, or even twenty-five, and actually have the time to put into it. If you see a guy with a huge grin biking to class on the first day, well, that will be me.
I have been enjoying Biology for the most part, somewhat as a surprise to myself. Chemistry, which I'm told I need as a prerequisite for Biology (disagree) and possibly other things, not so much. I do have the same excellent instructor for both courses, a fellow by the name of Doug Friedman. He has a masters in Biology from NAU, takes pains in his teaching, and most importantly, appreciates my sense of humor. I think that makes about seven people, altogether. (If you laughed at the last sentence, let me know and I'll add you to the list). I think I'd be willing to take another intensive summer course, but not more than one at a time. I'd been seeing Doug for close to thirty hours a week, which is more waking hours than he spent with his wife, he confessed to me one morning. For my part, I recall being so tired one day that on my way home I missed the turn to my house, and almost found myself lost, on foot, in the neighborhood where I currently live.
I finished up Biology last week, and am now down to just taking Chemistry and looking for a job, now that I actually have the time to work at one. I may have found a student position with a timber harvesting crew in Williams, one that I can continue with while I'm attending classes. Nothing finalized as yet, but it sounds like it might work out.
I had a lengthy conversation with my friend John a couple weeks ago, which I'd been meaning to have for several months. I'd long been out of touch with him, partially due to the excessive use of karaoke at his family's periodic get-togethers, as well as simple geography. I'm hoping that now that we've gotten back in touch that we'll stay that way, and I'm looking forward to seeing him and his wife in August.
We had become friends over the course of our junior year in high school, during the Fall cross-country season. Prior to this I'd only known him as the guy who didn't talk much and got A's in everything. I've missed his reasoned and practical outlook on events, more balanced and nuanced then my own, as well as his sense of humor. I'll always remember that it was John who first invited me to come over and hang out with the social circle I knew in school but had never seen outside of class. I was incredibly grateful at the time, but never thanked him. Thanks John.
My purpose in bringing up our conversation is primarily to express my comfort in the fact that he and I are in similar places at the moment, starting anew with school, in pursuit of new careers. I've had second and third thoughts about spending the time to acquire another bachelor's degree, and possibly a couple more in pursuit of a masters at the age of thirty. He and I are nearly the same age (he's five days older, if I recall correctly) and from similar backgrounds. His take on signing up for another degree and the years necessary to invest:
"I figured that I'm going to get older anyway, and I may as well go to school as I'm aging".
Not a major revelation, but this simple thought settled things for me somehow, quieting some of the doubts I've been having. I was never jealous of John or any of my friends, but I recognized that my parents would have been happier if my eighteen year-old self had had something resembling his work ethic, and direction. The fact that the valedictorian of my high school class and I are on the same page is perhaps more comforting that it should be, but I'm once again grateful.
I used to play the "where were my parents at my age" game (a real job and several kids) but clearly our society has been drifting towards a purer form of capitalism with fewer of socialism's perks. Jobs with retirement benefits have become harder to find, but I feel like I've been given this time to explore, and settle on something pleasing, instead of being forced into a questionable career path for the sake of job security. I'll take the trade-off.
So here I am, waiting for August 26th, the first day of classes at NAU. I'm passing the time by reading, and getting into better shape. I've been walking back and forth to class, about a mile each way four times a day, and am now transitioning to running most mornings. I feel almost embarrassingly eager to learn this new discipline, Forestry, and to be more involved with the entire college experience, which I was distanced from my first time around. I want to join clubs, and form study groups, and talk with professors during their office hours. I feel like I'm ready for this now, much more than I was at eighteen, or even twenty-five, and actually have the time to put into it. If you see a guy with a huge grin biking to class on the first day, well, that will be me.