No, because vegemite is absolutely disgusting

“What passes for psychology astounds me… like Freud, for example.” — Richard Ennis, PSYCH 101, commenting on the conflict and divides between accepted and ‘pop’ psychology

“I’m all for affordable housing… but put it over there.” — Mark Seasons, PLAN 103, referring to fickle nature of people’s concern for others and fear of the unknown

“The geezer factor is becoming very important [in city planning], and I can say that because I am a pre-geezer.” — Mark Seasons, PLAN 103, referring to the challenges that an aging population places on a city and its community

“This could be in Spanish… or, y’know, whatever language we don’t speak.” — Chris Eliasmith, PHIL 145, making some point or another

“Don’t listen to what I say, it’s what I mean…!” — Chris Eliasmith, PHIL 145, after a slipup of words (one switched for the other)

“Is it sound? No, because vegemite is absolutely disgusting.” — Chris Eliasmith, PHIL 145, referring to an example argument where he also made fun of Australia for loving abovementioned disgusting food item

“Bob has disappointed me this term. (term 1)”
“Bob continues to disappoint everyone but himself. (term 2)”
“My opinion of Bob has not changed, and he continues to disappoint. (term 3)”
— Robert Shipley, PLAN 102, snippets from one of his Elementary School report cards that he decided to show us in some scheme to gain our trust, or something of that insidiuous nature

“What’s going through your head?” — Andrew Browne, spoken to kid with ADD
“[drawing air thru teeth, slight pause] …Muffins.” — Kid with ADD

Those were just a few choice quotes that I bothered to copy down from my first week of classes and have decided to share with you.

Here are impressions of my classes thus far:

PSYCH 101 – Taught by amazing prof; class of 674 students, largest on campus and barely fits in largest theatre (not lecture hall) on campus; uses overheads rather than powerpoint (hurrah); very knowledgeable and eager to impart that knowledge to us.

PHIL 145 – Another amazing prof, seems barely 26 or 28 yet has Ph D in Neuroscience and Philosophy from the #2 Science school in the USA. Good lecturer, very casual and open to questions, input. Absolutely loved first class. Uses overheads, not powerpoint. Looks like he should be off somewhere practicing to be a Wizard, or at the very least playing Magic: The Gathering.

ENVS 178 – I’m still not sure what this class is exactly. It’s kind of mathish, with statistics and probability and the like. But also… more? Unclear. Enthusiastic but scattered female prof. Approachable, friendly. I have a hunch she has spent too many years inhaling chemicals in a darkroom. Uses powerpoint, but is forced to because the projector cannot be placed far enough from the screen to display a large image (ie must use electronic projector attached to ceiling).

PLAN 102 – The fellow has written 8-10 books, “depending on what you consider to be a book.” Balanced this bragging with exhibition of his subpar report cards. Unclear of what exactly he was trying to show — be a dolt and you can get a Ph D and laugh about it later? Very disorganized and gives unclear instructions, was not aware of the proper tutorial schedules and thus mucked up our heads and wasted much time in trying to fix errors… not a great start for a man who is supposed to teach us Professional Communications.

PLAN 103 – Taught by a prof that is decent, but not amazing… nothing distinctive. Jolly, seems to want to help us learn. Friendly. Uses powerpoint, but in a fashion that is more or less agreeable. In all fairness, this course is by definition dry so there is only so much he can do to provide respite.

I had meant to write about my walk back from my night class, and how it was very… cleansing, what with the wind, snow, and cold. And Nine Inch Nails, of course. But that all just seems out of place now, what with the above meaningless crap. Next entry, perhaps.

Books just completed:
Alexander Solzhenitsyn’s One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich
Albert Camus’ Stranger

Okay, I’m editing it and adding that bit I mentioned above anyways.

Having just exited my PHIL 145 Critical Thinking night class at around quarter to ten, I began walking back to residence in quite the jolly mood, having just enjoyed an amazing three hour lecture period. The night was eerily beautiful. Cold, -10 to -15 celsius with windchill, but not overly uncomfortable given that you have dressed for the weather. I had my headphones under my toque and was listening to Nine Inch Nails. The snow was blowing off in sheets and streams and tendrils and was forming all sorts of wonderful shapes and drifts, and quite simply seemed alive and to be breathing and exploring the contours spread before it.

The cold was marvelous, actually, but the wind provided much of interest as well. I loosened the top of my jacket so wind could clash with my bare neck and it felt so incredibly cleansing and wonderful. Numbness more or less set in eventually, but it still felt wonderful. As far as clarity and focus goes, this cold temperature is far better than sex in what it provided. Sex, for me, provides clarity and a feeling of euphoric simplicity and confidence only momentarily and immediately afterwards. Soon enough the stress of the world returns to my mind, intrudes at will.

As I was trudging around from drift to drift, from path to path, I came across a lamp post that had lit up the blowing snow under its cone of light. It had also softly illuminated the nearby pines with a yellow and orange glow.

It was such a pleasure to focus on the cold, the sensation of being erased by nature, and the wondrous intricacies of the patterns in the tendrils and sheets of blowing snow. I hope that the temperatures remain reasonable so that I can continue to experience nights such as tonight… it will not be nearly so enjoyable at -40 celsius with windchill.

I remain,
Andrew