Will It Rain . . . Or Not?

Old Capitol, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, about 12:30 PM on Wednesday February 22, 2012

Old Capitol, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, about 5:15 PM on Wednesday February 22, 2012

Lots of Work

Last night, I sure was feeling that beginning-of-the-semester overwhelming tiredness! I had my 2.5 hour, once-a-week class yesterday afternoon (Native American Women and Religious Change), and I already have 80+ pages to read AND a paper due for this particular class. I was momentarily overwhelmed when she told us about the paper, especially since she wants it no more than two pages (I tend to get wordy, and sometimes it's hard to keep within such a limited number of pages). But then I realized that it should be fun to write, considering what she told us she wanted out of our papers. And to top it all off, our professor told us that this is her favorite class to teach. I love having a professor who is so enthusiastic about the subject!

This 2.5 hour class that I had yesterday had a reading assignment due for our first meeting (yesterday afternoon) - this was the one where I'd checked the online course management system on Monday, but the reading hadn't been posted yet. She actually got it posted sometime on Monday afternoon (or early evening); I'd checked after dinner and there it was! So I actually had plenty of time to read it before today's class; I had nothing to stress about after all. (I guess somebody was a little too impatient eager to jump in on the readings!)

Anyway, I've got my other class this afternoon (the anthropology one about Native American peoples of North America). 50 minutes and then I'm heading home. I've got to start reading in preparation for this class. Good thing it's in the afternoon - that leaves me time to get the reading finished (and take notes).

So this will probably be the last of the "daily" posts . . . for the rest of the semester, I'll be back to my usual "a few a week."

Liv's posing at the building where my Wednesday afternoon class is held.

Back to School!

Actually, I was thinking of the movie Finding Nemo, when Nemo was excitedly saying, "First day of school! First day of school!"

I took this at the University of Iowa last Saturday when Livie, Andrew, and I headed to campus to buy this semester's text books. It's the Old Capitol building (where Iowa made its first Capitol). Now the Capitol is Des Moines.

Today, I head back to the University of Iowa for my third semester. I'm getting a graduate degree in English, and hopefully a graduate certificate in Native American Studies.

This semester, I'm focusing solely on Native American classes: "Native Peoples of North America," which has a "lecture" class on Tuesdays and Thursdays (and where I'm headed this afternoon), and a "discussion" class on Mondays (but since yesterday was Martin Luther King day, we're starting the semester today). These classes meet Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays for 50 minutes each. My other class is "Native American Women and Religious Change," which meets on Wednesdays for 2.5 hours.

I tried my best to get morning classes like my previous two semesters, so I could be in school when Liv is in school. But that didn't work out. All of my classes this semester are in the afternoon after Liv gets out of school. Since it's a bit of a commute to Iowa City (45 minutes one way, not including time to park and walk across campus to my classes' buildings), I will have to leave before she gets out. That means Andrew will have to adjust his work schedule so he's getting in early, allowing him to leave early for Liv.

I'm looking forward to the subjects I'm studying this semester. But since they're not English classes, I'm not sure exactly what to expect, and therefore, I'm kinda nervous. I'm good at the "read a lot of literature, then write a lot papers" aspect of English/Literature classes. So to take an anthropology class and a religion/women's studies class . . . well, we'll see. Since they're both Native American Studies classes, I'm very interested, so I'm sure I'll do well, nonetheless.

Anyway, for those of you "regulars," you may have noticed that I've been posting more regularly . . . okay, daily, since January 1st. I hadn't originally planned on a daily thing, since the "a post or two, every few days" route seemed to work for me. But by January 4th, when I realized I'd already accomplished a post a day, I figured I'd see how long I could keep it up. That is . . . until the start of the semester. It was a fun goal while it lasted.

So this first week, I may be able to do a few more "daily" posts back to back. But since I'm not taking English classes this semester, I'm not sure how the work load will be, so we'll see. I will definitely go back to a few posts a week, so I'll still be publishing posts. Just not daily. 

Now I'll sign off with a couple more photos from on (and around) campus. 

The view from the steps of Schaeffer Hall - snowy and sunny. The bookstore where Andrew got some of his books is across the street (hidden from view by those trees). There are a number of other book stores on and around campus, though.

This is near the Bluebird Diner, where we ate lunch on Saturday. I snapped this photo because I liked the look of this old tree against the blue sky.

It's Already Started!

Okay, so my semester begins tomorrow, but the desk mess has already started!

 I checked my University e-mail this morning and saw that I had an e-mail from my "Native American Women and Religious Change" professor. She wrote to let us know the syllabus was posted on "ICON" (Iowa Courses Online), the University's online course management system (where grades, tests, assignments, brief reading selections, etc. can be accessed by students and instructors).

Apparently, we already have a short reading assignment for Wednesday (the first day this particular course meets). However, upon looking on ICON, I only see the syllabus, and not Wednesday's brief reading assignment. Hmmm.

I guess this means that tomorrow, I'd better head to campus a little early, so I can get Wednesday's assignment (tomorrow's class has nothing posted for us to do ahead of time).

A Day Off

Well, yesterday ended up being a kind of day off of sorts.

First, the coffee maker has finally broken! Waa! When I woke up realizing I didn't smell freshly brewed coffee (since I program it to brew at the same time my alarm clock goes off), I immediately headed to the kitchen, bleary-eyed, only to find a malfunctioning machine (meaning, it basically went kaput! and failed to turn on). Needless to say, it was a day off from caffeine. It was hard!

I ended up having to go out for coffee. I need caffeine more than I care to admit. I just couldn't face the whole day without it! See, I sometimes go for a time not needing coffee, but then something prompts me to start drinking it regularly, and in larger than normal amounts (going from 8-9 hour shifts to 12- to 14-hour shifts at work . . . or starting graduate school . . . you get the picture).

Since I hadn't weaned myself off coffee after my last semester ended mid-December . . . well, it was kinda hard simply going without it this morning.

So I decided to go to the bookstore, where I could sit in the café with one of my current reads (Death Come for the Archbishop by Willa Cather) and a mocha. (And a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup cookie.) Partly because I had some time while Livie was at school, and partly because I won't get much of a any chance to just sit and read for pleasure (with a coffee and a treat) once my semester starts. Okay, so maybe I'll have some time before I go to bed, because I usually try to allow 30 minutes of pre-bed time to chill out and read before turning out the lights. But that's not exactly the same as treating myself to 30-45 minutes of leisurely reading in the middle of the day, just because I feel like it. 

And let me tell you, as soon as that mocha hit my tongue - it was like liquid gold! Such a welcome relief, partly because it tasted good, but also because it seemed (after a few minutes) that it took the edge off a headache I'd developed earlier in the morning. I wasn't sure if it was solely due to sinus pressure or the lack of caffeine. Who knows? The headache never completely went away, so maybe it was a combination of both?

Anyway, the second reason why yesterday was a day off was because I'd accidentally whacked the top of my foot (just below the middle toes) on the edge of my dresser Tuesday afternoon. I'd been running around doing something (barefoot) and boom! It hurt like a you-know-what. I immediately wondered if I'd broken something! (After a bit of icing, I realized I hadn't.) I woke up yesterday with a massive bruise on my foot along with some soreness . . . so I figured I'd just skip the run/walk today. Tomorrow will have to be on the elliptical at the gym, because we're supposed to get snow (finally?) and blowing winds tomorrow.

And third, it dawned on me that my semester starts NEXT WEEK!! I start school on Tuesday afternoon! I knew it was coming up, but the realization that it's in less than a week really surprised me, if you can believe it.

So starting next week, I'll be back to sitting at a desk looking something like this:

 And glad I study at a campus like this:

. . . but will most likely look something like this (that is, until Mother Nature changes her fickle mind once again):

Oh, and that reminds me, I am going to do another "4 Seasons Series" (like this one). I've been thinking (since around October) about good locations, and have narrowed my choices down to two spots; I'll make my final decision on my first day of class next Tuesday. I definitely had fun last year taking photos in each season from one particular spot on campus and have been looking forward to doing it again.

So be on the lookout for that photo . . . I should have "The Winter Shot, 2012" posted within the month, I'm assuming.

Random Post-Semester Photos

Okay, so my semester finally ended yesterday when I submitted my last two pieces of work - two completed final papers (one was 16 pages(!!) and the other was 7).

Today was spent running some errands on campus: returning a ton of library books to their home in the University of Iowa's Main Library; selling back any and all textbooks that the bookstore would accept; dropping in on the veterans' liaison to smooth out any potential snags with next semester's VA benefits; buying a few last-minute gifts; and grabbing lunch at the Bluebird Diner in Iowa City.

Here are a few photos from the past couple weeks, which I hadn't had a chance to transfer to my computer 'til today (although there are two photos from today in this bunch, too) . . . 

During studying . . . yes, I have a scorpion paperweight (you know, because I love the Southwest - and this one can't sting me!).

Study break with Livie!

"Chile ristra" lights (this photo didn't come out quite how I'd hoped).

Stargazer lily anniversary flowers!

Walking on the University of Iowa campus in Iowa City today.

The registrar is in here.

Another Study Break

You know somebody needs a study break when you find her taking photos of her messy desk!

Here's how messy things get toward the end of the semester:

And in this last photo, Livie's happily holding the most recent addition to my desk. It's a little pink glass stone decorated with a pink swirl and the word "Begin." We got it Friday night at The Dreaming Bear's gift store. I have it near my keyboard, sort of as inspiration to help me start my writing projects. There were a whole bunch of other little "tokens" with other words/colors. I may have to pick up some more later.

And yes, it was pajama day today, here at home.

Back on Campus

My semester at the University of Iowa started this week. I've got two classes, both on Tuesdays and Thursdays. One is a Philosophy class - Aesthetics, and the other is Contemporary American Women Writers.

I majored in Philosophy way back when, during my undergrad days (I graduated in 1993). And since I'm working on a graduate degree in English, it's a bit of a "Whoa! It's been a while!" moment for me getting back into the Philosophy state of mind.

Anyway, here are a few photos of the campus in summertime.

A partial view of the Old Capitol, obscured by leafy trees.

My writing class is in the curvy building on the left.

Another view. I look out those windows when I use the stairs.

It's only the first week, and I'm tired! (And the day's not even over yet!) But hopefully I'll be back in "study mode" full blast by next week.

(If you click on the "University of Iowa" label below, you should be able to find my winter and spring campus photos.)

Ahhh, Spring at UI!

Okay, so back in January, Andrew and I were at the University of Iowa to register for Spring 2011 classes (as non-degree graduate students). Click here to read about that exciting day of nervousness.

Well, today I was back on campus on a beautiful spring day because I needed to talk to my advisor about upcoming semesters.

Know what? Back in January on that chilly, overcast, depressingly gray day, I made a mental note to enjoy the campus on a cool, green, spring day. Today was that day, and I enjoyed it as much as I could. My meeting was at 9:30, and not knowing how parking would be, I got there about 30 minutes early. I used that time wisely, finding a bench shaded by a bunch of trees. The sky was robin-egg blue, with gentle bits of cloud, artfully dotted around. The bench I'd chosen had a fantastic view of the Old Capitol building in the center of campus.

Iowa's original Capitol, Iowa City, Iowa.

Here's a closer view.

When Andrew and I were here in January, I took a few photos, which you'll see if you click here (and haven't yet clicked on the link at the top). I took one back in January, as you can see here:

And today's spring photo, in approximately the same place:

Big difference, eh?!

Here are the rest - take a walk with me:

At the foot of the Old Capitol building, looking down the hill.

 

Here's the other side of the Old Capitol.

  

The Old Capitol is a National Historic Landmark.

 

Another view . . .

 

Taking a walk back to my car, and enjoying the view . . .

 

Straight ahead, down the road is Bruegger's Bagels (where I sometimes get lunch). To the right, just out of view, is one of the book stores.

 

Behind the trees, out of view, is the Old Capitol.

 

The view down the street (my car is to the left, out of view).

The Good and the Bad

Well, I have some good news and some bad news.

The good news (in no particular order):

• My first semester of graduate school was officially over as of Thursday, May 12, 2011, at 5:00 PM. This is when I turned in my final paper for my Early American Literature class.
• I received an A- for my oral presentation (via Power Point) on the history of New Mexico (including a discussion about New Mexico in print) for my Early American Literature class.
• I got a 100% on my final exam (a 3 page paper) for Native American Literature (which I turned in on Tuesday, May 10, 2011).
• My final score for my Native American Literature class is 97.83%. That's a pretty solid A!!
• I have until June 2012 to return my library books to the the University of Iowa's Main Library. I'm glad I don't have to rush to return them. It's a 45-minute drive one way to campus!
• Livie and I are having a relaxing Sunday morning. She's watching PBS Kids (shows like Sesame Street, Arthur, etc.), and I've been leisurely reading a book for fun and not for a class (it's Sherman Alexie's The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven).
• I'm on my second cup of hazelnut coffee. And a big ol' glass of ice water. 
• I slept well last night, and Livie let me sleep in 'til 7:48 AM this morning. 
• I enjoyed a Guinness beer last night after Livie went to bed.
• She and I ordered pizza for dinner, for the second night in a row. 
• I was in bed by 10 PM. 

The bad news:

• Out of the $298.48 worth of textbooks I bought for TWO (and ONLY TWO) classes this past semester, the bookstore bought back $0.00 worth.Yep. A big fat ZERO.
• The paper I turned in on Thursday wasn't exactly my best work. Now I've got butterflies in my stomach as I wait for my grade. 
• Because I got "so much" sleep last night, I woke up with a headache, and feeling hungover. (I'm usually up by 6:30 at the very latest, regardless of when I went to bed. Because - like my grandfather, Sir Rafa - I'm a naturally early riser.) I'm still a little groggy, even after two cups of coffee. 
• We ordered pizza last night for dinner - for the second night in a row. That's good because it's tasty. But it's bad because . . . well . . . because it's two nights' worth of pizza. 

To end this with some good news - the good news outweighs the bad.

And the rest of the day? We have nothing planned, other than being able to hang out at home. Oh, and we may go to the store later to get some milk, coffee, and orange juice, because we're out of all three.

Halfway through my second cup of coffee.

Liv has taken over my room!

The Main Library, obviously! (I have a long while before I need to return my books! Woo hoo!) 

These are the books I'm taking back to the library within the next week.

These are the ones I'm going to keep a bit longer, so I can read them at my leisure.

Liv Goes to the University

Here's the "photo tour" of Livie's trip to the University of Iowa. (I meant to get a photo of her in front of the Main Library, but I forgot. She'd gotten scared in that HUGE place, and actually started crying a bit - even as she held my hand - so we kinda rushed out of there, forgetting to get a photo.)

Liv's in front of "EPB," my home away from home (as I work toward earning a Master of Arts degree in English).

Here's another photo of her in front of EPB.

She had it easy riding in the BOB up that monster hill. I, on the other hand, got a good cardio workout!

She likes "The Golden Dome" (which is actually Iowa's Old Capitol), so I took her picture in front of it.

Bucket List Revisited

Okay, I've just been looking over my bucket list (click here for Part I and here for Part II), and noticing something . . .

I am in the midst of working on #13! It'll take a while, but the important thing is that I've started it! My two graduate classes this semester (at the U of I) are both English classes: Native American Literature, and Early American Literature I.

A Day in the Life of a Reader

Okay, so I've recently started taking graduate classes. One of my classes is Native American Literature. We were assigned James Welch's Winter in the Blood as our first assignment.

Well, we had a quiz yesterday, partly on Winter in the Blood, and partly on last Thursday's lecture.

I'd wanted to get to class early so I could review my notes, the handouts, and the novel. I didn't get there as early as I'd wanted (45 minutes early), but I did get there early enough to review (about 25-30 minutes early).

I was the first one in the classroom. After getting my materials out of my book bag, I started flipping through the book, looking at the notes I'd jotted in the margins.

A few minutes later, another student came in, went to the opposite end of the room, and began reading his copy of Winter in the Blood.

And then my mind started wandering.

My copy of Winter in the Blood was already comfortably worn, like a favorite pair of slippers, even though I'd had the book only a few days.

It seemed like this other student just cracked open his copy. His looked new, just off the bookstore shelf. Mine had dog ears, notes in the margin, a yellow highlight or three, some sticky, colorful tabs to mark the place of something I'd thought was important.

All I could think was, We've got a quiz today and a paper due on Thursday. What the . . .?

I don't think I could study like that . . . anymore. Sure, in high school and college, I studied for English exams like that and still did well . . . but I'm pretty sure I couldn't do that anymore. Plus, I've been stressing out about this quiz, wanting to do well.

I stayed up WAY TOO late Monday night ('til 12:40 AM, to be exact). When my alarm went off at 5:45 AM on Tuesday, my body protested. As hard as I'd tried to get all my studying accomplished before bedtime Monday night, the evening's family obligations were a priority, and I was left to finish my studying at 9 PM Monday evening, after Livie had gone to bed. Of course, studying at that time (after a long hiatus of NOT having to study at night), was harder than I remembered. I'd actually accidentally dozed off for about an hour! Not helpful at all!

So after a few minutes of letting my mind wander, realizing I'd lost a few minutes of time, I glanced back at this other student. Looks like he was further along in the book than I had realized. However, his book still looked brand new, as though he'd just started reading it.

Ah, well. If it works for him, so be it.

Now for the tough part - waiting for our quiz grades.

I am totally wiped out!

Last week, in my Butterflies and a New Educational Adventure post, I mentioned that I'd be starting graduate classes at the University of Iowa this week. I'd gotten into a class entitled American Literature I, for 3 credit hours. But I needed a second class so I'd have at least 6 hours total this semester.

I'd tried signing up for a Native American Literature class last Thursday during my first visit to the campus, because this is a topic that really interests me.

However, upon finding up that this class was full, I had to show up at the first class on Tuesday, in hopes that there'd be an opening; if enough people had dropped, then I could get the professor to sign the "add" slip and then I could rush it to the registrar's office.

Well, guess what? When I got to the first class on Tuesday morning, I found out that enough people had dropped, so I actually got a spot in the class!! I was SO excited.

Since we got out of class a little bit early the first day, I rushed to the registrar's office to get myself officially added to the roster.

Then I ran back to the same room, where my second class (American Literature I) just so happened to be (and taught by the same professor, by the way).

Anyway, this second class is solely for graduate students (unlike my Native American Literature class, which has both graduate and undergraduate students).

Once this second class started, I immediately wondered if I got myself in over my head, wishing my Uncle Hector were around so I could've gotten his advice before signing up for this particular class.

As the professor began going over the syllabus, and giving an overview of the class, I became very nervous, thinking I'd bitten off more than I could chew. Some of the stuff went way over my head.

Fortunately, there was another student in the class in the same boat - she and I have both recently returned to school after a hiatus; we're also both parents. She'd felt the same way.

I felt a little better, a little more confident about being in this class.

This feeling didn't last long, once she and I went to the book store to get our required books. For both my classes, I have a total of 18 books! I tried to buy as many used books as I could, but not all of them were available as used books. I walked out of the bookstore with a total of $298.48 worth of books!! For TWO classes!

That confident feeling continued to dissipate once I started in on the required readings. It was a big load to take on, and intimidating, to say the least.

But I'd exchanged e-mail addresses with my fellow "older" student, and she was feeling as intimidated as I. Once again, I felt a little better knowing I wasn't alone.

Anyway, today was the second meeting of both of my classes, which obviously meet Tuesdays and Thursdays.

After the first class (Native American Literature), I was even more excited about the subject matter as well as being able to continue with the reading assignments (even though we have a quiz on Tuesday, as well as a paper due on Thursday . . .yes, during week #2).

I was still nervous about the second class, since it would have much more reading to accomplish, and the professor would expect more from us, as it was a graduate student only class.

Once we began discussing the assigned reading, however, my nervousness eased up a bit. I still felt like a dunce, having been out of an academic setting for so long compared to the majority of the class, but it was still a rush, and fun, nonetheless.

When class was over, I walked out of there thinking, Hey, I can do this . . . it's just one reading at a time.

After stopping at the student union for lunch, and a bit of time to myself for reading the assignment for next week, I headed home.

Let me tell you, after commuting (about 45 minutes one way), and two days' worth of classes this week, I am WIPED OUT. My eyes have that scratchy I-stayed-up-too-late-and-I-can't-keep-'em-open feeling. I[m so tired, I almost can't think straight. This is the one drawback - the exhaustion.

And I have yet to put Livie to bed for the night.

I think I'm going to pass out as soon as my head hits the pillow tonight.

It's been an exciting and challenging, yet fun week.

Butterflies and a New Educational Adventure

Today was a big day.

See, a couple months ago, Andrew and I applied for Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits so we could continue our educations; our applications were approved.

That means that we will both have funding for grad school (both tuition and books)!!

The next step, therefore, is to get accepted to a graduate school in the area. One of the closest schools? The University of Iowa, in Iowa City, IA.

Iowa's Old Capitol, now a part of the University of Iowa.

Andrew's idea was to take two graduate courses in the non-degree program to 1.) get back into the school/study habit, and 2.) to establish a pattern of being able to get good grades at the graduate level, in case his GRE scores weren't as good as he'd hoped.

I thought that was a good idea, and was toying with doing the same thing myself.

So today, Andrew was planning on heading down there (about a 45 minute drive) to turn in the required paperwork, as well as dropping off his sealed undergraduate transcript at the graduate school office. Then he could sign up for a couple classes. He'd wanted me to go with him so I could do the same.

Here's Andrew on campus.

Well, I hadn't known until last night that he was planning on doing this, so I didn't have my transcripts sent. I told him I'd have to go down another day.

But since I had a bit of time today, I decided at the last minute, to go with him, just so I'd know exactly where I needed to go when I ended up going next week to drop off my paperwork (which I decided to take with me in the event I had a chance to sit down and finish filling it out).

Guess what? Once there, I realized that classes start NEXT WEEK!!

Good thing I brought my paperwork with me, right? (Except for the VA stuff, which I'll have to take with me next week, and drop off after class).

I got really excited about the prospect of signing up for a couple classes. As I scrolled through the list of English classes, I suddenly thought of my Uncle Hector, who was a professor of English and Linguistics in New Mexico. I missed him, and the opportunity to share my grad school experience with him.

It was a sad moment. I'd told Andrew, "I miss my uncle." He said, "Do this for him!" to which I responded, "I'll do it for me, but I'll keep him in mind."

And then I saw it . . . a class that looked really interesting - one that my uncle would've encouraged me to take - "Native American Literature." Here I was, thinking of my uncle, and voila! Here's a class he would've enjoyed talking about with me.

The computer, by the way, indicated it was still open!! Woo hoo!!

Andrew and I hurriedly finished our paperwork and literally ran over to the registrar's office to add our classes; I wanted to hurry up and sign up for the "Native American Literature" class before it filled up, because I'd found out there was one opening left.

Here's where we ran from one building to the next (from right to left).

Unfortunately, once we got to the registrar's office, I found out the class was full!  

Really?! In the few minutes it took us to run from one building to the neighboring building, the class filled up?!

Ugh. The registrar said I needed to get the slip signed by the professor, and that next week, I could head back to the registrar and see if anyone had dropped it, leaving a spot open for me. She said that if I had time today, maybe I could go to that professor's office and have him sign it now, then I wouldn't have to worry about it next week.

So Andrew and I did just that.

But this is where my second disappointment of the day happened - we found the professor and he said he couldn't sign it this week. I'll have to go to the first class on Tuesday, and if there are people who've dropped the class, he'll sign it then.

Ah, well. If it's meant to be, there'll be a space for me on Tuesday morning, when the first class is held. I'll be disappointed, but hopefully I'll find another class that is just as interesting, right?

The "R2 D2" Building

This is part of William Penn University's College for Working Adults at 6000 Westown Parkway in West Des Moines, IA. I took a photo of this building because Livie likes it. She says the dome looks like R2 D2's head (R2 D2, of course, is a Star Wars character).