Things I've Learned in College Part 9

There's something to be said about "2nd Timers", those who for one reason or another dropped out college and return years later to create an idea of self-fulfillment or advance their career further.

I have known several personally. My freshman year I met my first, a 26-year-old Iraq War veteran who was swimming in the G.I. bill (which I envy all the time). He had stories that made my sappy adolescent heartbreaks seem like a stubbed toe. Fantastic incredibly talkative man.

Others are close family friends with heavy conservative ideals.

The majority as it seems has lost the ability to abide by the collegiate code of nodding your head in agreement. Conformity, essentially. The life experience they bring to my politics of inequality tend to make focusing difficult. While I appreciate everyone's life story in an Ira Glass sort-of way, some seem to get a little too carried away.

...

There's a scene in Stanley Kubrick's classic "Full Metal Jacket" where the main character Joker confronts a sniper who turns out to be a teenage girl witha gigantic machine gun. Another person, before the sniper is able to shoot Joker, sprays the girl with machine gun fire. As she's laying on the ground with minutes to live, she begins speaking English (it's a Vietnam war movie, I forgot to mention) with a simple phrase, over and over again "Shoot me."

This scene comes into mind today in the aforementioned "Politics of Inequality" class. This class has halted along with all remaining structure (as a fucking 300-level class!) and I am forced to listen to two women expressing their love for small children in princess dresses. This seriously is clashing with Hemingway discussing war with an Italian priest during World War I.

I'm pretty sure I'm going to drop this class.

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In my Comm 220 class (the name actually slips as it my last required class before I submit my portfolio). The thing about all communication classes is the teachers are (obviously) excellent communicators. HOWEVER, some attempt the comedic, shall we say, "attention maintainer", aspect. This man for the first 45 minutes was enthusiastic about shaking hands with your neighbors (it felt oddly similar when I use to attend Catholic church services on Saturday nights when I was little..er.), and had a keen parent-like self awareness of things the kids to like ratemyprofessor.com and facebook, and yet, made it seem very much like he wasn't trying too hard (despite the fact that I'm pretty sure he was. the best teachers tend to be.)

ANYWAYS as he's discussing what creates great communication between two parties (here's a hint, it doesn't involve using parenthesis) and he keeps giving his t.a. "the eyehump". Often making absurd segways to say something somewhat flirtatious. After his most recent endeavor and several glances towards my neighbors with the eyebrow raise/sideways head tilt that signifies fornication, he goes into a story about the first time he told said t.a. that he loved her, "when I was 16". THEN he finally goes into the fact they he's been married to the random women for 22 years, which is followed by subsequent collection of sighs and "oooohh...."'s

It's been a hell of a first week.