Vindication, or Ha, Ha, Ha, Ha, Ha!

In relation to this post, just read here.

In relation to this post, I got a 100 on my first forum (my post and my responses to others' posts.) I say this not so much to brag (well, maybe a little), but because I was truly anxious about how to approach this class, and now I know I'll be okay.

I'm going to throw up

Incidentally, the title is not related to my last post.

Last week I got an email saying that my online classes should show up on Blackboard by the 20th, the official first day of class for me. The email also stated that, if the classes didn't show up by mid-week, to contact the professor. Great, I thought. I'll just check on Monday. La-dee-dah, yay for school!

Oh, no, my friends. It is not to be so laid back as that.

I happened to check my school email today and found a welcome letter from one of my professors. (Great! How exciting!) I then discovered that my classes are already showing up on Blackboard. (Oh wow! That's even better! I can look over my syllabi and be prepared for "class" on Monday, with my little sharpened pencils and my brand new notebooks. How naive I was back then, an hour ago.) I THEN discovered that my first assignment is due by Tuesday night. And, not just an assignment. An assignment in response to 30 pages of reading. An assignment that is supposed to move beyond emotional gut reaction to the reading to intellectual analysis, connecting the content with the context and construction. Nothing more specific than that. No nice, neat instructions on where to go with this. Hence the gastrointestinal discomfort. I haven't even checked my other class yet. I'm too afraid. The honeymoon is over, and class hasn't even officially started.

(note: of course I will check the other class! Sillies. I think I may try to sleep before then though, so I don't succumb to a total nervous breakdown.)

Notes of great encouragement about my astounding intellect, superb writing, and astounding insight would be welcomed. After reading the syllabus, I am feeling overwhelmed and unworthy. I also haven't taken an English class in 10 years. Y I K E S.

Oh, God help us all

As if it isn't bad enough trying to fight the stereotypes of being a Texan, Fox brings us this new foray into repugnant reality TV, Anchorwoman. Click the link. Read the blurb.

Did you read it?

Yes, folks, that's right--this horrific farce for entertainment will be set in my hometown, Tyler, Texas. I'm cringing. I'm convulsing. I'm close to tears. I'd seen the commercials for the show--or is it the show itself?--at the beginning of "So You Think You Can Dance", and I was repulsed enough then. But when I learned that the show is being filmed in Tyler... *sigh* My little heart hurts with shame and some sort of mix between disgust and resignation.

(Only slightly tongue in cheek...) You can add this show to my list of answers on Mark's blog.

Four Things

Inspired by Andrea. Sorry 'bout the weird fonts. I have no idea what happened, and don't care enough to try to fix it.

And, to be technical, it's more like "4 x 8 Things."
I like little quizzes and things, but don't always like to take the time to answer 73 questions such as, "What's your favorite drink?", so this little "Four Things" quiz thingy is perfect. (Fun fact: "Thingy" is Noah's new favorite word. So if you hear him say, "Do you want to see my thingy?", he's not necessarily being exhibitionistic.) As always, though, I elaborate on almost every answer I give.

Four Things about Me

Four jobs I have had in my life:
1. insurance solicitor (I feel the need to explain this, since it's not what it sounds like. I didn't go door-to-door selling life insurance. I was the girl who answered the phone when you called your insurance agent and gave you a quote and worked up your policy and turned in your claims, etc.)
2. receptionist for a psychologist (or psychiatrist? I think he was a psychologist.)
3. customer service/cashier at the local Christian bookstore
4. customer service/general office go-to girl for CL&L at Baylor (raise your hand if you work or have worked at CL&L! Ah, yes, good to see you all in the audience.)

Four places I have lived: (have I lived 4 places?!?)
1. Sarasota, FL
2. Tyler, TX
3. (Oh, yes, I have) Whitehouse, TX
4. Waco, TX

TV shows I like to watch:
1. The Office
2. So You Think You Can Dance (final shows for the summer coming on tomorrow and Thursday!)
3. Mythbusters
4. The Unit

Four places I have been on vacation:
1. Marine City, MI
2. Siesta Key, FL
3. Colorado Springs, CO
4. San Antonio, TX

Four of my favorite foods:
1. Reese's
2. Papacita's chimichangas (which I haven't had in YEARS, so an On The Border chimi has to substitue, and does so pretty well)
3. Watermelon
4. Homemade cookies that have chocolate in them

Four places I would rather be right now:
1. Cherry Beach, laying out and reading
2. taking a nap
3. anywhere I could go outside and not encounter 102 degree heat and 300,000% humidity
4. other than that, I'm good

Four places I like to shop:
1. Target
2. Pier One (but it's been a while)
3. Old Navy
4. anywhere without children!

Four friends I think will respond:
It depends on who actually reads this...1. Angie
2. Maria (?)
3. Amanda
4. I would say Jennie, but she's awfully busy...I guess I'll leave 4 blank. (oh, wait...)

Now I don't want to give anything away, but some of this information might very well come up on your next test, so I hope you paid attention. Class dismissed!

More Harry Potter

I apologize to all you non-Potter fans. But here is a spectacular review of, not so much Book 7, but the entire Harry Potter series. It's written by none other than Stephen King, and is, as I already mentioned, spectacular. Come to it, though, even if you're not a Potter fan, I think it's worth a read. The byline reads, "Now that the dust has settled on ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,'' Stephen King reflects on why no review did it justice, and whether kids (and their grown-ups) will ever read the same way again."

*There are spoilers (although, I love what King says about that, even), so reader beware.

Harry Potter *no plot spoilers*

But, if you're a purist, you may not want to read this post until you've finished the book. I do not give anything away, but I do mention my own feelings about the end, which may give you hints about the book if you know me. Be warned. And, when in doubt, don't read.

I have emerged from a self-induced stupor of all things Potter, and I am satisfied.

I had determined to read books 1-6 again as preparation for the 7th and final installation in one of my favorite book series (book series's? I have no grammatical sense right now) of all time (also includes the Chronicles of Narnia and the Anne books. I would say the Lord of the Rings trilogy, but I don't enjoy reading them as much as I enjoy watching the movies, so I can't legitimately call them some of my favorite books, but definitely one of my favorite stories). I started reading Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (book 1) for the 8th or 9th or 10th time when I was in Michigan, and my world grew narrower and more Potter-focused when I got home, culminating in a read-a-thon of massive proportions as I read all of book 7 yesterday. Whole stinking thing. And this on top of a morning spent outside the house with a friend and going to the grocery store (during which I was not reading--thought I should clarify that. I'm not THAT much of a freak, though I must confess i took the book in the car with me and seriously considered finishing the chapter as I sat in the Wal-Mart parking lot). I finally finished the series this morning around 2, and spent at least another 30 minutes to an hour processing all I'd read, despite my tiredness and desire to sleep.

I have now spent a good 3 or 4 hours online this morning reading HP message boards, looking for more--answers to questions I still had, understanding of certain inconsistencies raised on those message boards, divergences from things that were "known" to happen in this book that didn't, explanation to some of the more complex happenings in DH, and some resolution to what I considered an inferior epilogue. The thing that has helped me most was this interview with J.K. Rowling. (Also helpful was this timeline that broke down the...um...resolution of the story, and this tidbit of info about Crookshanks that was good to finally know.) The interview resolved any lingering questions I had, and generally added to the "it's really over" sensation. I think it should be required reading for any Potter fan WHO HAS FINISHED THE BOOKS. As I am not of the die-hard-fan ilk that normally lingers on HP message boards, this interview was a great, all-in-one source of valuable information.

And now, having full sated my appetite, I must return to normal life and attend to my somewhat neglected house and children. At least, for a week or two, when i think I may have to read book 7 again.