I have recently been asked to reflect on my majors (Psychology and Criminal Justice). What I tell most is that Criminal Justice has housed the most interesting classes but I have felt that I have obtained the most information through my Psychology courses. Understanding the human condition and what makes people tick is invaluable. I constantly find myself psycho-analyzing people, not to scare you, and it has allowed me to feel confident in my opinions.
A struggle I have had lately is my frustration with kids that enjoy raising their hand to answer innocuous questions. My thought is that I would never raise my hand in a college level algebra class to answer “what is 2 + 2?” I will leave that to the students that frequently raise their hand to hear themselves talk and earn the teacher’s pet award. Wait.. I was the teacher’s pet for most consecutive years up until college but then I LEARNED that I appreciated my boisterous personality more outside of the classroom. But now I think, what’s wrong with raising your hand to answer 2 + 2 =4? What’s wrong with taking an active participation in your education and milking it for every penny (which is many) you/your parents are spending?
I have had the most horrifying class this semester that wasn’t a requirement titled “Post Soviet Russia and China” with an old fashioned professor. I was convinced that I would retain nothing from the class, that it was a complete waste of time and that I would fail, stunningly. I was right, until the final week of class, after I was recovering from an intense sinus infection. I had to write a term research paper on a topic of my choice centered around either Russia or China. What would normally prove to be another exercise, that I find pointless, researching available information and then regurgitating it back to the professor, I was able to see the bigger picture. I could make writing this typically boring research paper FUN, yes believe it. I wrote on the current political and economic climate in China and the global effect it will have especially pertaining to terrorism. This is most likely one of the last things my professor anticipated reading but I wrote HONESTLY for the first time since my dim sum paper freshman year. Writing from an honest perspective was so refreshing that I enjoyed writing the paper because it had my opinion and research. Maybe this is what professors have been trying to get us to do since we learned APA format and maybe I’m the last of my peers to learn this. Better late than never, I still haven’t received the grade for it so I’m holding my breath.
I’ve been sick as I mentioned with a dazzling sinus infection for the last week (week before finals naturally) and am slowly recovering on antibiotics. This is the first major cold I’ve had since having my tonsillectomy so in the grand scheme of things I think I’m doing good (Knock on wood). We’ll be celebrating the 1 year anniversary of the tonsillectomy soon, pictures to follow.
The snow in Spokane has stopped for now. Records set for snowfall in November. Paige is now talking about joining me on my road trip this summer. Noelle and I have been discussing the cruise we are going on this summer with my Mom and Alysha and plotting where we want to travel. Maps of both trips will be coming soon. Suggestions for both are appreciated JI love you all, thank you for checking in on me.
God Bless,CM
