A Post
Well, I've begun my second semester at Notre Dame, and I am also in the second play of my ND dramatic career. It is A Man for All Seasons by Robert Bolt. I am playing Cromwell, the main villain (although Richard Rich is perhaps more memorable). The show is being produced by the Orestes Brownson Council for Catholicism and American Politics, of which I am not (yet) a member. The cast consists of individuals with experience ranging from none to medium-high. I must say that I am certain how this will affect the show, whether it will render it moderately Blame or not really matter. It will be performed on April 26-28, A. D. 2007 at the Lab Theater of Washington Hall.
I am currently somewhat under the weather, a situation which I do not enjoy. I am also both bored and LOed.
I had a fairly enjoyable night yesterday, playing board games with some people in Knott Hall, several of whose acquaintances I had made in the past. (Also, one of them is in AMfAS with me.) We played an overwhelmingly complicated variant of RISK called Godstorm. Each player has at his disposal a pagan pantheon (Babylonian, Egyptian, Greek, Celtic or Norse). Other than that, I will not attempt to explain the convoluted and interminable rules of the game. I came to the conclusion that I prefer regular RISK.
I have 5 or 6 classes, depending on whether P. E. is counted as a class (although it gives me 0.00 hours of credit).
1. Logic
2. First Year Composition
3. Reading and Writing Latin Prose
4. Beginning Greek II
5. Genetics, Evolution, and Society
6. Physical Education
1. Logic is somewhat interesting, although one can definitely understand why it is a Math class. Taught by a graduate student, who is rather humorous, as well as lefthanded.
2. FYC is, I am sure, going to be useful, but really: does it have to be so demanding and boring?
I guess I can understand demanding, but I just don't have much interest in the American dream, which is what the class is about. Ah well, I think I'll live through it.
3. Reading and Writing Latin Prose is my favorite class this semester. We are reading the Pro Archia Poeta Oratio of Tully, and it is interesting, mainly because of the information about Latin we receive from our knowledgeable and interesting professor, David Ladouceur. (For instance due to Prof. Ladouceur's interests in ancient medicine and Egyptian hieroglyphs, we have been treated to discussions of the xyphoid process or gladiolus, as well as an explanation of the various voices of Ancient Egyptian.) We are also using an book originally published in the 19th century called Bradley's Arnold Latin Prose Composition. It is extremely informative and actually pretty interesting for a grammar. Go Classics!
4. Greek is even more boring than last semester, but I think that is mainly because we are focusing on a certain class of verbs called -mi verbs. Apparently both our textbook, Athenaze, and Prof. Baron think that we have to learn 5 very similar verbs separately before we understand or are able to use them. We are going to be learning the subjunctive this week, which (I hope) will not mean simply more extremely boring (and I do mean extremely) exercises. I can't wait until we actually start reading Real-greek, which we are supposedly doing this semester (specifically Xenophon's Anabasis).
5. Genetics will presumably become more interesting once we leave what amounts to review behind. So far we have covered basics such as cell structure, mitosis, meiosis, and Mendel's basic discoveries and laws. The teacher, Dr. Harvey Bender (for whom a Cherry Coke is a big bet) constantly says "in this case," by which he does not mean to infer the subjectivity of all reality, but whenever he does say it I am reminding of such a Weltanschauung.
6. P. E. is Volleyball this rotation, and I find it fairly enjoyable, probably about as much as Racquetball last semester. I am going to be doing Contemporary Topics after this, which will be both boring and (I think) demanding, ergo something like FYC.
I am still working at the South Dining Hall, doing pretty much the same things as last semester: Kitchen Prep, Pizza, Dishline, and Grab 'n' Go. Pizza is cool because it includes the delivery of Family Ties, food, etc. (especially cakes and enormous cookies) which people (usually parents/families) cause to be made for and delivered to students at Notre Dame. Kitchen Prep is also fairly interesting.
For me, true friendship is hard to find. I have hopes that both AMfAS and the Classics Department will yield some results in this connection. I wonder how much I need to do to form friendships. In the previous segments of my life, I have basically fallen into friendships (whether close or not), sort of like falling in love, I guess you could say. The circumstances of my life have formed and maintained (to a certain extent) my relationships up till now. How does one effect this sort of change of attitude, when one is flung into a completly new set of individuals? Ah well, I still have something like 3 1/2 years to make friends, and I think at least some seeds have already been planted. (At least I like to believe that they have.)
Ceteris paribus, I miss my friends from home. Why was it fated that I should attend Notre Dame while everyone else I know should not? It would have been wonderful if at least one of my friends had been able to and/or really wanted to come here. But all this is proverbial spilt milk. The present is a different story.
I have much to look forward to, and much to look back on. Each is a solace in this period of my existence.
Vita, dulcedo, spes.
I am currently somewhat under the weather, a situation which I do not enjoy. I am also both bored and LOed.
I had a fairly enjoyable night yesterday, playing board games with some people in Knott Hall, several of whose acquaintances I had made in the past. (Also, one of them is in AMfAS with me.) We played an overwhelmingly complicated variant of RISK called Godstorm. Each player has at his disposal a pagan pantheon (Babylonian, Egyptian, Greek, Celtic or Norse). Other than that, I will not attempt to explain the convoluted and interminable rules of the game. I came to the conclusion that I prefer regular RISK.
I have 5 or 6 classes, depending on whether P. E. is counted as a class (although it gives me 0.00 hours of credit).
1. Logic
2. First Year Composition
3. Reading and Writing Latin Prose
4. Beginning Greek II
5. Genetics, Evolution, and Society
6. Physical Education
1. Logic is somewhat interesting, although one can definitely understand why it is a Math class. Taught by a graduate student, who is rather humorous, as well as lefthanded.
2. FYC is, I am sure, going to be useful, but really: does it have to be so demanding and boring?
I guess I can understand demanding, but I just don't have much interest in the American dream, which is what the class is about. Ah well, I think I'll live through it.
3. Reading and Writing Latin Prose is my favorite class this semester. We are reading the Pro Archia Poeta Oratio of Tully, and it is interesting, mainly because of the information about Latin we receive from our knowledgeable and interesting professor, David Ladouceur. (For instance due to Prof. Ladouceur's interests in ancient medicine and Egyptian hieroglyphs, we have been treated to discussions of the xyphoid process or gladiolus, as well as an explanation of the various voices of Ancient Egyptian.) We are also using an book originally published in the 19th century called Bradley's Arnold Latin Prose Composition. It is extremely informative and actually pretty interesting for a grammar. Go Classics!
4. Greek is even more boring than last semester, but I think that is mainly because we are focusing on a certain class of verbs called -mi verbs. Apparently both our textbook, Athenaze, and Prof. Baron think that we have to learn 5 very similar verbs separately before we understand or are able to use them. We are going to be learning the subjunctive this week, which (I hope) will not mean simply more extremely boring (and I do mean extremely) exercises. I can't wait until we actually start reading Real-greek, which we are supposedly doing this semester (specifically Xenophon's Anabasis).
5. Genetics will presumably become more interesting once we leave what amounts to review behind. So far we have covered basics such as cell structure, mitosis, meiosis, and Mendel's basic discoveries and laws. The teacher, Dr. Harvey Bender (for whom a Cherry Coke is a big bet) constantly says "in this case," by which he does not mean to infer the subjectivity of all reality, but whenever he does say it I am reminding of such a Weltanschauung.
6. P. E. is Volleyball this rotation, and I find it fairly enjoyable, probably about as much as Racquetball last semester. I am going to be doing Contemporary Topics after this, which will be both boring and (I think) demanding, ergo something like FYC.
I am still working at the South Dining Hall, doing pretty much the same things as last semester: Kitchen Prep, Pizza, Dishline, and Grab 'n' Go. Pizza is cool because it includes the delivery of Family Ties, food, etc. (especially cakes and enormous cookies) which people (usually parents/families) cause to be made for and delivered to students at Notre Dame. Kitchen Prep is also fairly interesting.
For me, true friendship is hard to find. I have hopes that both AMfAS and the Classics Department will yield some results in this connection. I wonder how much I need to do to form friendships. In the previous segments of my life, I have basically fallen into friendships (whether close or not), sort of like falling in love, I guess you could say. The circumstances of my life have formed and maintained (to a certain extent) my relationships up till now. How does one effect this sort of change of attitude, when one is flung into a completly new set of individuals? Ah well, I still have something like 3 1/2 years to make friends, and I think at least some seeds have already been planted. (At least I like to believe that they have.)
Ceteris paribus, I miss my friends from home. Why was it fated that I should attend Notre Dame while everyone else I know should not? It would have been wonderful if at least one of my friends had been able to and/or really wanted to come here. But all this is proverbial spilt milk. The present is a different story.
I have much to look forward to, and much to look back on. Each is a solace in this period of my existence.
Vita, dulcedo, spes.
posted by P. Vergilius Maro | 2:18 PM
1 Comments:
If I were to explain myself, things might get complicated.
...I'll explain myself anyway. At least partially. I'm here because Coyote just joined 'ChesterTeens,' a blog that I'm part of, and I followed Coyote to 'Good Reasoning's" (why IS there an apostrophe?) which led me eventually...here. The more confusing part is why I am sitting here merrily blathering when I could be eating my dinner or reading a book or doing something vaguely more useful. And the grand part--is that I really don't know. I guess the classics sucked me in. Anyone who mentions Latin and Greek and Sanskrit and says 'excessively dude' so solemnly simply warrants a comment. (you're using Athenaze? How...depressing. I barely dabbled in it, and that was in a Greek club made up of five hard-core nerds, but it didn't really seem like something they'd use for a college textbook. It was just like Ecce Romani in Latin. ...hm.) So anyway, you have now used up nearly one good minute perusing this nonsense. I'm terribly sorry. With my luck though you never read this anymore and my chili is getting cold in vain. But I will say that...uh, I think you're pretty cool, and I hope (I really do, I'm not just saying this to scuttle away on a good note) that you find really good friends at Notre Dame. I'm about to make the big college move myself, so I can understand your worry. Or, at least, the worry you had in February. Why AM I still talking? I'll be off.
Post a Comment
<< Home