Seriously, this month has been hellish. Taking three classes that are usually a semester long taught in five weeks is HARD. I know it was unavoidable, but MAN. I am going to be so happy for July to get here. Advanced Expository writing was surprisingly easy, considering we had four papers in one month; the professor says I have an "artful style of writing." Environmental Policy was tough, considering I don't have much of a background in environmental studies or politics, but it was interesting enough. I think I did well on my presentation, and as long as I do well on my essay test I should be fine.
The one class I'm nervous about is the one I thought would be easiest: online intro to American Politics.I have come to discover that online classes are an awful idea. For one thing, we only had three multiple choice tests. This sounds easy, but considering the questions are based on the reading we did, they were actually a nightmare. Each chapter was SO dense, and we had to get through one a day. I know that doesn't sound bad, but considering how long they are, how many terms, concepts, and examples are packed into each one, and having to juggle the workload for two other classes at the same time, it was tricky getting through them in time and actually absorbing what I was reading. The only other "assignment" we had was to respond to the questions the professor posted on the discussion board. She only posted three, so that doesn't provide a lot of cushioning for my poor test grades.
She hasn't posted my grade for the last test (which is stupid because it was multiple choice and the online program the class is posted on has the ability to automatically grade tests for her), and I'm super nervous. I don't THINK I failed, but I didn't think I'd fail the last one either, and I did. I don't know what to do if I did fail the final test, because I need this class to graduate. At worst, I think I could appeal to the dean or something, since I've never failed a class before, I've gotten consistently good grades, and I'm THIS close to graduating, so clearly I'm not a slacker or I wouldn't have made it this far. For now, though, I'll just have to keep my fingers crossed that it doesn't come to that.
In addition to my academic frustration, I'm a little bummed that I have to miss my family vacation to Park Rapids this year. In twenty-one years I've only had ONE summer that I haven't gone there, and that was so long ago that I barely remember it. Unfortunately, the trip is the same week that my first week of my last class starts, which I can't miss. On the bright side, I'm going to Milwaukee with a friend this weekend, so at least I'll have some sort of vacation.
Don't get me wrong. Life does not totally suck right now. It's been really nice spending the summer in Winona so far. I've gotten to know my roommate and have had a lot of fun hanging out with her; we've gotten lunch together a couple times at this great cafe downtown, drunk margaritas and played cards on the porch, and stayed up until 1 AM going over old poems we wrote (she was originally an English major too, so she likes writing as much as I do).
The Great River Shakespeare Festival started last week, so I went to the preview of A Midsummer Night's Dream. It was phenomenal.I read the play in high school and college, but this was the first time I'd seen it performed (besides the movie version that came out in '97 or '98, and that doesn't count; Callista Flockhart should stay away from Shakespeare). They're also performing Henry IV, and while I'm a little hesitant to see a history play (I had to read Henry V for my class last year and hated it), I've heard really good things about this one, and the preview video they posted on their site looks really promising.
Wow. Sorry about the rant. I'm sitting in the science building (again) with an iced coffee, so I'm fueled by caffeine, sugar, and slight panic right now. Also, sorry to the maybe three of you who actually read this for not updating more often. I'll try to write more this next month, and I'll definitely post pictures from my Milwaukee trip as soon as I get back.
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