oof.
Hi. I have no idea how it is already February, let alone the ninth of February. OMG, this semester is craaaaaazy. The biggest chunk of free time I have is approximately 1.5 hours on Monday nights, and not because I actually have the time to spare, per se, but because I can't actually concentrate on much of anything between getting home from a three hour evening lecture and going to bed.
I have so much reading to do that I have taken to listening to audiobooks in order to maximize all available hours. I'm more of a visual person, though, so I can only do this for the books I've read before but need to reread for class discussions or paper-writing. (I can listen to books I haven't read and I enjoy those, too, but listening to a new story requires concentration and therefore defeats my current purposes of multitasking.) Tomorrow I start on HP5, because wow do I not have time to read that 900-page behemoth. I am a slooooow reader, even for rereads. I am actually excited about this, though, because I do love audiobooks and so it's cool to broaden my audio horizons. Harry Potter, in particular, should be fun because I haven't listened to a whole one yet, just snippets for class discussions on audiobooks, and Jim Dale is awesome with the voices.
So I am busy like whoa (and had to give up NASM volunteer days, which makes me sadface-y), but the classes are interesting so at least it's good(ish) stress. I mean, I even actually say stuff in both of these classes, which like never happens. Apparently I am better at thinking on my feet for topics of particular interest. Communities of Practice is pretty awesome (because, you know, hello, internets!), but oh I love my children's lit class. The discussions are brilliant, and children's lit always makes me glow and fills me to bursting with thinky thoughts and things to say. And I adore the professor (same as last term) and I am sort of hero-worshiping her.
We had a fascinating discussion of two Newbery winners today, and we had two guests who had served on the Newbery committees for the books we read. We read E.L. Konigsburg's The View From Saturday (which is quirky and lovely and has tea-parties) and Susan Patron's The Higher Power of Lucky. I'd read Lucky before, when it first won in 2007, and I love it to pieces. It's quiet and subtle and full of wonderful characters, and it's kind of heartbreaking but it ends happily, but oh it makes me want a hug something fierce. Particularly a mommy-hug. :( *clutches teddy bear*
I have so much reading to do that I have taken to listening to audiobooks in order to maximize all available hours. I'm more of a visual person, though, so I can only do this for the books I've read before but need to reread for class discussions or paper-writing. (I can listen to books I haven't read and I enjoy those, too, but listening to a new story requires concentration and therefore defeats my current purposes of multitasking.) Tomorrow I start on HP5, because wow do I not have time to read that 900-page behemoth. I am a slooooow reader, even for rereads. I am actually excited about this, though, because I do love audiobooks and so it's cool to broaden my audio horizons. Harry Potter, in particular, should be fun because I haven't listened to a whole one yet, just snippets for class discussions on audiobooks, and Jim Dale is awesome with the voices.
So I am busy like whoa (and had to give up NASM volunteer days, which makes me sadface-y), but the classes are interesting so at least it's good(ish) stress. I mean, I even actually say stuff in both of these classes, which like never happens. Apparently I am better at thinking on my feet for topics of particular interest. Communities of Practice is pretty awesome (because, you know, hello, internets!), but oh I love my children's lit class. The discussions are brilliant, and children's lit always makes me glow and fills me to bursting with thinky thoughts and things to say. And I adore the professor (same as last term) and I am sort of hero-worshiping her.
We had a fascinating discussion of two Newbery winners today, and we had two guests who had served on the Newbery committees for the books we read. We read E.L. Konigsburg's The View From Saturday (which is quirky and lovely and has tea-parties) and Susan Patron's The Higher Power of Lucky. I'd read Lucky before, when it first won in 2007, and I love it to pieces. It's quiet and subtle and full of wonderful characters, and it's kind of heartbreaking but it ends happily, but oh it makes me want a hug something fierce. Particularly a mommy-hug. :( *clutches teddy bear*