I am going to board a plane and fly half-way round the world in exactly 14 days.
And as crazy exciting as that is, it gets better. Oh yes. Because, for these two weeks, I have nothing to do but get ready and enjoy the time with my family and friends. Well, that, and continue in my efforts towards learning Italian. But I don't have to study anymore.
That's right, I am officially done with college!
Technically, I can't say that I have my bachelor's degree in English. I need the grade and transcript for my final course before I can file for graduation and then, given the way Thomas Edison has things set up, there will be a couple months before the next graduation date rolls around. BUT, I can say that I have earned my BA in full. And what's even better is that I met the goals I had set for how I wanted to earn it: in less than two years, for less than $20K, and without putting the rest of my life on hold. It's a good feeling.
I'm glad at what I've accomplished and I'm glad to be done. I'm glad to be free to read and stay late at Jiu Jitsu class and lolly gag around the dinner table with my family because I don't have any more credits to earn. It's nice; really, really nice. And it's exciting too because now I get to think about what's next. I have no plans beyond Italy - and only God know what will or won't happen during, after, or because of my time there - but it's thrilling to have a wide-open horizon to come home to, even if the idea of charting a course is slightly daunting ;)
Showing posts with label School. Show all posts
Showing posts with label School. Show all posts
1.17.2012
4.28.2011
The X Factor
I miss doing Algebra.
No, really, I do.
I miss solving page-long quadratic equations. I miss the neat rows of equal signs running down the page until there was only an "X = " left of the equation. I miss knowing that there's only one way to correctly solve the problem and that I am capable of finding that solution.
After earning 84 credits towards my bachelor's degree in a little less than a year, I'm really starting to miss the finality of algebra. There aren't a myriad of perspectives to understand and/or decide between like there is whenever history or politics are concerned. You don't have to worry about identifying the ideologies, philosophies, or worldviews of different people, or trying to figure out how those ideas shaped their lives. All you have to do is solve for X.
Don't misunderstand me - I love history. I love studying historical figures and happenings. There's so much to learn from and discover about those who have lived before us. I've taken courses in Humanities, Western Civilization, U.S.History, The Soviet Union, Literature and all of them are fascinating. All of them are also almost never-ending subjects of study. One could literally spend a lifetime researching just one aspect or time period of any of the above topics.
That kind of in-depth, immersion research is part of why I write historical fiction (or, at least, that's what I'm starting with). I can combine my writing with further study and give my readers a time and/or place they haven't seen/been before. I can pick any culture from any time, study it, and then bring the past into the light of the present.
But knowing how much I don't know, knowing how much I could still study the things I've already covered in a general sense, is an exhausting idea. I think that's why I've had this hankering for Algebra. It's a finite subject. You learn it and then you're done. Sure, there's other math forms to go onto if you like (I'm still bummed that I graduated before I got to take Trigonometry) but Algebra is complete. You can put it on the shelf and know that you know all there is to know about Algebra.
I like that sense of finality, of completion.
I like being able to solve for X.
No, really, I do.
I miss solving page-long quadratic equations. I miss the neat rows of equal signs running down the page until there was only an "X = " left of the equation. I miss knowing that there's only one way to correctly solve the problem and that I am capable of finding that solution.
After earning 84 credits towards my bachelor's degree in a little less than a year, I'm really starting to miss the finality of algebra. There aren't a myriad of perspectives to understand and/or decide between like there is whenever history or politics are concerned. You don't have to worry about identifying the ideologies, philosophies, or worldviews of different people, or trying to figure out how those ideas shaped their lives. All you have to do is solve for X.
Don't misunderstand me - I love history. I love studying historical figures and happenings. There's so much to learn from and discover about those who have lived before us. I've taken courses in Humanities, Western Civilization, U.S.History, The Soviet Union, Literature and all of them are fascinating. All of them are also almost never-ending subjects of study. One could literally spend a lifetime researching just one aspect or time period of any of the above topics.
That kind of in-depth, immersion research is part of why I write historical fiction (or, at least, that's what I'm starting with). I can combine my writing with further study and give my readers a time and/or place they haven't seen/been before. I can pick any culture from any time, study it, and then bring the past into the light of the present.
But knowing how much I don't know, knowing how much I could still study the things I've already covered in a general sense, is an exhausting idea. I think that's why I've had this hankering for Algebra. It's a finite subject. You learn it and then you're done. Sure, there's other math forms to go onto if you like (I'm still bummed that I graduated before I got to take Trigonometry) but Algebra is complete. You can put it on the shelf and know that you know all there is to know about Algebra.
I like that sense of finality, of completion.
I like being able to solve for X.
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