I think I've figured out why it is taking me so damn long to finish college. The fact that schools charge thousands of dollars in tuition, yet we (the students, paying customers) are required to take various core courses, even if they are not directly related to your major. Yes, I know that these courses are low levels and are only to give you a well-rounded education, but it is still extremely discouraging. For example, I am taking a computer class. It happens to be the second one I've taken during my college career. My professor is (for some unknown reason) teaching the course as if all of the students are accounting or business majors. We just did a unit on Microsoft Excel (which I do not use because I use the Mac version), and everything that we were required to do was directed towards accounting spreadsheets. I can say with 100% certainty that I will never be an accountant. Math is one of my weakest areas. Knowing how to create an amortization table will most likely never be a benefitial piece of information for me...not to mention that if I ever need one, there are free templates for things like that. I hate being forced to do things that do not directly relate to my goal. I'd much rather take an extra psych or sociology course and gain more pertinent information, instead, I have to take a nonsense class in order to simply fulfill a meaningless requirement. I really think that the core curriculum should be modified for each major.
Today Donna, Joanne and I visited Delicious Orchards. I need to remember that this is open all year, and not just during autumn. They have the best apple cider, and delicious apple cider donuts. I also bought some cranberry apple cider, which i'm drinking as we speak. It's probably my new favorite drink. It's not too sweet, and a little tart, but it's perfect. I'm curious to try warming it up with a little cinnamon. I'll let you know how it is when I get around to trying it.
After dropping Donna home, Joanne and I went on a 3 hour tour of the Christmas Tree Shop for some bargain hunting and impulse buys. I didn't do too much damage, mostly bought stuff that we actually needed, and a few nic-nacks that I wanted. As I've previously stated, I'm very excited for the upcoming holidays and was looking for some seasonal decorations. They had a ton, but I refrained from buying too much. I'm really looking forward to Christmas time and having our first tree together, which means that I'm going to have to start accumulating ornaments. I think the best word to describe my feelings is "excited", even if it is becoming somewhat redundant in this blog. I'm looking ahead into the near future and there's just so much I'm looking forward to reporting on. You, my adoring audience, will, of course, get all of the (mundane) details.
Showing posts with label holidays. Show all posts
Showing posts with label holidays. Show all posts
Friday, October 16, 2009
Monday, October 12, 2009
look around, leaves are brown...
For the first time in many years, I am embracing the change of seasons. Typically, autumn has been a huge source of anxiety for me, probably because of returning to school after summer break paired with the unavoidable return of the cold. I am not particularly fond of winter, mainly because it is so cold and I find snow to be especially obnoxious. But this year I am trying to be more optimistic. I'm getting excited about seasonal recipes. I'm anticipating the holiday seasons (Halloween, Thanks Giving, Christmas, etc), and I'm trying to find ways to be excited about these annual events in order to distract me from the lack of warmth. I'm am looking forward to being able to stay warm under my blankets and not having to get up for work every morning. As the days go by, it's also fun to gradually reincorporate my sweater collection into my daily wardrobe.
I have a new found optimistic view on life. I've been unemployed for a month and it has proven to be the best unexpected change in recent years. Virtually everyone I've talked to has commented and agreed with that. Emma* had commented about her old job that there were certain aspects that she could not improve or change, and it basically came down to having to accept the faults and just work around it. I think that was a big problem at my job as well. Every workplace has its issues, but I feel I was aboard a sinking ship. It was supposed to be a school, but it wound up being a business. There was a lack of accountability all around. Some teachers did outstanding lessons and tried an eclectic approach to best help their students learn. At the same time, other teachers do basically nothing above the bare minimum, refusing the modify their teaching habits or explore new methods. It was very discouraging to see such inconsistency being overlooked, and even ignored. Its just unfair. Some people break the rules and are not reprimanded, there is no follow-through regarding consequences for some people, but others are constantly ostracized for challenging the issues they are presented with. It has become a very unsupportive environment. People who work there can be categorized into 3 groups: 1. Loyal to the company because they've been there for so long, 2. Waiting for something better to come along, or 3. Lack substantial skills needed to be a public school teacher. It's sad because at the end of the day, the people who are most greatly affected by these teachers are the students...students who are already at an incredible disadvantage because of their special needs, and aren't receiving the education they deserve. I'm not trying to bash the school, a lot of this has to do with their inability to offer a pay competitive with public school salaries (generally about $10-15,000 less), so they aren't able to be as particular about who they hire. Even in this economy, their applicants are lackluster. The people at the top need to be held accountable for their actions. It's a commonality for the director to flat out lie or at best, offer partial information regarding changes in the company, which leaves the staff with many unanswered questions and thus rumors begin to spread. While employed there, I felt as though the staff was considered to be stupid and unworthy of getting the full story or information. I'm glad I'm done with that aspect of my life. I can only go up from where I'm at. I look forward to all of the exciting changes my future holds.
*You'll notice I've updated my links with my very good friend, Emma's blog. She's much more interesting and informative than she gives herself credit for. Even if you don't know her, it's a solid read ;)
I have a new found optimistic view on life. I've been unemployed for a month and it has proven to be the best unexpected change in recent years. Virtually everyone I've talked to has commented and agreed with that. Emma* had commented about her old job that there were certain aspects that she could not improve or change, and it basically came down to having to accept the faults and just work around it. I think that was a big problem at my job as well. Every workplace has its issues, but I feel I was aboard a sinking ship. It was supposed to be a school, but it wound up being a business. There was a lack of accountability all around. Some teachers did outstanding lessons and tried an eclectic approach to best help their students learn. At the same time, other teachers do basically nothing above the bare minimum, refusing the modify their teaching habits or explore new methods. It was very discouraging to see such inconsistency being overlooked, and even ignored. Its just unfair. Some people break the rules and are not reprimanded, there is no follow-through regarding consequences for some people, but others are constantly ostracized for challenging the issues they are presented with. It has become a very unsupportive environment. People who work there can be categorized into 3 groups: 1. Loyal to the company because they've been there for so long, 2. Waiting for something better to come along, or 3. Lack substantial skills needed to be a public school teacher. It's sad because at the end of the day, the people who are most greatly affected by these teachers are the students...students who are already at an incredible disadvantage because of their special needs, and aren't receiving the education they deserve. I'm not trying to bash the school, a lot of this has to do with their inability to offer a pay competitive with public school salaries (generally about $10-15,000 less), so they aren't able to be as particular about who they hire. Even in this economy, their applicants are lackluster. The people at the top need to be held accountable for their actions. It's a commonality for the director to flat out lie or at best, offer partial information regarding changes in the company, which leaves the staff with many unanswered questions and thus rumors begin to spread. While employed there, I felt as though the staff was considered to be stupid and unworthy of getting the full story or information. I'm glad I'm done with that aspect of my life. I can only go up from where I'm at. I look forward to all of the exciting changes my future holds.
*You'll notice I've updated my links with my very good friend, Emma's blog. She's much more interesting and informative than she gives herself credit for. Even if you don't know her, it's a solid read ;)
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