first days....

the semester has started and my two new classes have too....this semester i will be traveling to albany twice a week- mondays and tuesdays....i know you are all jealous of the amount of time i will spend on the road, but i promise to share my fortune with you all....

so, monday was my first day....i had arranged with my advisor to meet before my first class to discuss my program plan and credit transfers....i showed up to her office at 6:15 like she had asked me to....i introduce myself, because our only communication at this point has been through email...and she says, "oh, now i remember why your file has been sitting on my desk for so long." now, mind you, back in october i gave her my program plan and course transfer information....and then heard from her at christmas time...that's right, two months later....i had emailed her a number of times through the semester to see how things were going, but never did i guess she hadn't looked at it....now i was standing in her office hoping we would finalize this....i was wrong....she says to me "i have another student coming in, so we will have to do this another time." awesome...she gives me my paperwork back and tells me what to do and actually writes in her calendar that i will be back the following monday to go over everything....

i have one hour until class to now kill....so, i meander downstairs and go find the building my class is in....now buildings at albany are very creativly named- education, humanities, science, social science, etc....those of you who work at SUNY's get it....those of you who don't, it's just how things go around here....my class is in humanities, which is a building i was in last semester too, but on a different floor....find my class and then leave, since it doesn't make sense to sit outside it for the next hour...

on my adventures i spot a sign....it says, "are you a regular marijuana user?" i look at the sign again, because i am convinced my mind must be playing a trick on me....but, it's true...the sign was looking for people to participate in a study on regular marijuana users....there are a few rules- no cigarette smoking, must be 18, must use marijuana at least once a day, and must be willing to come to interviews- that's it....participants will be compesated....i think, i could use the extra money, i wonder if i could fake it....

now it's class time....i had this professor last semester...i like him alot....so i am excited to have him again...the class is a core class and needs to be taken by all people in the EAPS program, so we are mixed class of higher ed and teachers....he tells us about the class and then, like any good education class, we have to go around and introduce ourselves and say a few things....this is always my favorite part....mostly because i can hear what others do and of course i form my opinion on whether or not they will annoy me....one man annoyed me....he we will call the principle...mostly because that is what he is....

the priniciple introduces himself....says he is the principle at such and such school in dutchess county....in the advance certificate program (ACP)....wants to be a superintendent....then he says, "Dr. Lane, this will be the one and only time I will be on time for this class. I travel here from Dutchess county and it's at least an hour and a half away, so you can not and should not expect me to be here on time. I have a job." I sit and watch Dr. Lane's face....sometimes he gives stuff away, sometimes he is pretty good....i would say he was pretty good....i think if anyone was watching my face, they would have seen my surprise and shock....and then i thought maybe when it's my turn i should make some smart comment about how my drive is 2 hours and i will always be on time....but as we know, i am shy- so this won't come out of my mouth....but my annoyance for the principle officially began...

on tuesday my class is called- College Student Affairs. this is a class i hope i do well in ;) basically the class is to learn about the profession i have been working in for the last 11 years....more if you count grad school...but we won't.....the professor is interesting....he has bad hair and is very nervous....he is balding, but has grown long the hair he does have...it sits just on his sholders...straight down....but nothing really on top of his head....bad hair. the nerves were strange to see...in all the classes i have ever taken, i have never experienced a nervous professor....he was shaky and so was his voice....the good news is that he seems very intellegent and knows his stuff....so, maybe the nerves were a first day thing....

in the class, we again had to introduce ourselves...one woman who was in my monday night class was in this class too (she is new to the program)....she just graduated in december from her undergrad....she told me that she has decided she isn't going to work or get an assistantship because she doesn't want to be overwhelmed....i chuckled and told her it would be good practice for her to take classes and work, because it will get her ready for the real world....i don't think she appreciated that....she did ask me if i was working...well, you all know how that goes....

but my favorite part of this young woman is this...we again had to do the introduction thing....one of the things we had to share was why we were interested in college student affairs....my new young friend's answer-"because i want to be in charge some day." right then i decided that i should be this woman's mentor....mostly because we have the same goal- being in charge. i used a different answer for why i was interested- it's been my career for the last 11 years....but i plan to get this woman to be my mentee...

on my way home, i decided to try and listen to the radio...my ipod was boring me and i didn't have a book to listen too....i came across christen talk radio.....it was the only station that came in on that part of 88, so i decided to listen....it was some kind of call in show and people were telling stories of how they prayed to god or put all their faith that jesus was going to bring them something and it did....one caller in particular talked about how they had lost their husband and how she prayed to jesus to save her from her pain and it worked....this of course hit a nerve for me...i guess i will say this, i give her credit for feeling like jesus just took her pain away....but the non-believer in me says, she is just supressing it all....mostly because i know that the pain of the loss of a loved one just doesn't go away....two years later and it's still pretty raw....so, i changed the channel....

those were my first days....lots of homework this semester...the social life i had during break is officially over....but i just remind myself it's all worth it....