I didn't watch the Oscars...

What's happening? I've stopped watching TV and now I've actually NOT watched the Oscars for the first time in at least a decade. I was talking to the principal of the school I work at when I'm not taking a year off for grad school and he was talking about Rick Mercer. I haven't watched one Rick Mercer this season!!! I don't even watch the last season of Corner Gas (Although I will by the DVD in Oct/Nov when it comes out.) The time for the Oscars came up, I looked at the clock and decided I wasn't interested. I haven't watched any of the Best Picture nominees this year, although I'm sure "Slumdog Millionaire" deserved the honor. I know just from reading about the movie that it was the one to root for - anything about an underdog is fantastic to me. I was miffed at the exclusion of "The Dark Knight" for nomination. I knew Heath Ledger would win for the Joker, but it should have been at least nominated for original screenplay and director.

That wasn't the reason I didn`t watch and it wasn't because I was too busy with school work. The stuff I've been reading in grad school is actually changing the way I think. The way I view things and I'm not sure what to think about that...

Back to School....Again...

I'm beginning my Masters degree on July 3. I'm 42 and I'm finally beginning my next degree. Where will it lead? Who knows...well...God does. I just discovered a fantastic quote from William Shakespeare: "We know who we are, not what we will be." I just feel that way now: stepping off into the unknown.

It hasn't been without its hitches, though. I found the registration process to be a bit confusing. I received a note of welcome into the Masters of Arts program in Inderdisciplinary Humanities from Trinity Western University . It's a degree that is more for me. I can't conceive of teaching all day and talking about teaching all night *shudder*. (If you haven't noticed, I'm getting kind of tired of education - same old problems in the same old cycles...) Anyway (I'm American and so I say 'anyway' not 'anyways' like the Canadians do.) the note says that "Incoming graduate students are not required to pre-register for courses."

"Even easier!" I think (incorrectly)

I start asking for pre-reading lists in March, thinking I can get a head start during Spring Break. I get e-mails of puzzlement and head scratching over what to do with this kid who's so anxious. At the end I get the syllabus for each course (2 courses) - would that be syllabi for plural? I get the books from Amazon (used of course) and get to it.

Well, that's that, right? Wrong!

I get an e-mail a couple of weeks ago saying that I haven't registered for my summer courses, so I better do it. I thought I was registered. I go to the website, which I'm convinced is out to get me, and find out how to register. Then I need to pay. They don't take credit card. What's with that?

I finally call a human being and figure out how to pay. Then I get to thinking:
"Do the teachers even know that I'm registered for the courses?"

Turns out to be a good question. The philosophy prof doesn't know that I'm registered and he's changed the syllabus. I have the wrong book!

Well, I ordered the books - there's 5 books, it turns out. I had one already. (used on Amazon - I'm not paying double through Trinity! Yes, it's literally double the price!) and, hopefully, I'll have the books before classes begin.

Maybe it's because I'm an old fart and the younger ones are so intuitive with computers they just know what to do. Oh, well..back to reading...

BIG PS - Ok, I'm an idiot - I just discovered that since I registered, I have a new e-mail at Trinity that has most of the info I've been missing.