(no subject)
I was feeling a bit frisky last week, and my geology professor gave us a 2 paragraph extra credit dealie. I lapsed poetic on him and gave him a GLOWING account of a field trip we took to "the bat cave"
Today he called me up to the front of the class, and said "This young man has restored my faith in education. He wrote a description of the batcave that would make batman blush. Ladies and gentlemen, your next governor or president."
My morning was made.
Edit:
The brief essay, followed by the response.
"The first time is always the hardest.
Through the bars, the black maw of the cavern leered at me, a caged monster beckoning me towards its stony fangs. Apprehensively, I don my well-worn helmet and by the dusky glow of its headlamp, follow my colleagues into the abyss. While the midmorning sun shrank to a spot of light at our backs, Dustin carries on in a cheerful monologue, discussing the bell holes, a groundwater lake ahead, goethite, and a bizarre constellation of pockmarks he refers to as "Swiss Cheese." I press on, falling to my knees, then to my belly, as the rock ceiling presses us closer to the dirt-and-clay floor.
After what seems an eternity of scuffling through a twenty inch high passage, we enter "The Lake Room." Living up to the moniker, the cavern is dominated by a pool of groundwater, which upon closer inspection is occupied by several tiny white slivers which, we are informed by our noble shepherd, are actually tiny albino crayfish. When the whole group assembles, he rattles off the formations he discussed during the initial descent, and then ushers us into an antechamber of the main cave. Here, he encourages us to turn off our lights and experience the eerie darkness that is unabetted by all light save the suddenly radiant glow of a few phosphorescent watches. After fifteen seconds, we turn our lights on, and amidst nervous laughter, make our way past the gargoyles, eagerly clambering towards the sun."
"Mr. McCullough, I surely hope you have an interest in being a writer for you have a way with words. Maybe not the technical words I was looking for (karst, limestone caverns, speleoliths, Ocala LS, etc), but the BS is excellent!! You get a full 5 for artistic content and a 2 or 3 for technical. I truly enjoyed reading your report although I am not sure you were actually there."
Today he called me up to the front of the class, and said "This young man has restored my faith in education. He wrote a description of the batcave that would make batman blush. Ladies and gentlemen, your next governor or president."
My morning was made.
Edit:
The brief essay, followed by the response.
"The first time is always the hardest.
Through the bars, the black maw of the cavern leered at me, a caged monster beckoning me towards its stony fangs. Apprehensively, I don my well-worn helmet and by the dusky glow of its headlamp, follow my colleagues into the abyss. While the midmorning sun shrank to a spot of light at our backs, Dustin carries on in a cheerful monologue, discussing the bell holes, a groundwater lake ahead, goethite, and a bizarre constellation of pockmarks he refers to as "Swiss Cheese." I press on, falling to my knees, then to my belly, as the rock ceiling presses us closer to the dirt-and-clay floor.
After what seems an eternity of scuffling through a twenty inch high passage, we enter "The Lake Room." Living up to the moniker, the cavern is dominated by a pool of groundwater, which upon closer inspection is occupied by several tiny white slivers which, we are informed by our noble shepherd, are actually tiny albino crayfish. When the whole group assembles, he rattles off the formations he discussed during the initial descent, and then ushers us into an antechamber of the main cave. Here, he encourages us to turn off our lights and experience the eerie darkness that is unabetted by all light save the suddenly radiant glow of a few phosphorescent watches. After fifteen seconds, we turn our lights on, and amidst nervous laughter, make our way past the gargoyles, eagerly clambering towards the sun."
"Mr. McCullough, I surely hope you have an interest in being a writer for you have a way with words. Maybe not the technical words I was looking for (karst, limestone caverns, speleoliths, Ocala LS, etc), but the BS is excellent!! You get a full 5 for artistic content and a 2 or 3 for technical. I truly enjoyed reading your report although I am not sure you were actually there."