Saturday, December 01, 2007

Royal Road Warrior

I'm now two weeks into my residency at Royal Roads University. So what can I say that I have learned? A lot. So much, that nothing comes to mind. Ummm...

Okay, I'm really burned out. They are working us like dogs here. Well it could be that now that I'm an old student (I don't like the term "mature student" as anyone who knows me will attest that mature is certainly not a word to describe me) I'm taking my studies extremely more seriously than I ever did during my undergrad. Here's a description of how far I have fallen:
  • Lame: all my readings are pretty much done ahead of class
  • Sad: my essays are largely completed at least a day ahead of class, so that I have time for proofing & revising
  • Odd: I get up earlier than I need to so I can polish up assignments, get ready, etc.
  • Pathetic: I pass up opportunities to go drinking, so I can stay on top of my work
  • Frightening: I'm starting work on assignments due a month from now
  • Unbelievable: I opt for fruits & vegetables instead of eating my supply of Kraft Dinner

Aside from the rather brutal workload and my overly-serious attitude - and of course, missing my family incredibly much, the residency has been pretty great!

The instructors are amazing, the campus is probably the most beautiful in Canada, and my classmates are very friendly and interesting. Living in res these last two weeks felt like stepping back in time to my undergrad res years: the gossip, the drama, the late nights, the procrastination!

So what have I learned that I can share with you dear Webslinger readers? Ummm...

Semiotics isn't that bad. Don't climb the ladder of inference. Some academics are obsessed with grammar, while others can't write worth shit. APA style is fussy, but fine. Peacocks crap all over the place. The Participatory paradigm seems to fit. Halle Berry isn't very nice (X-Men was filmed here, staff have stories about her; Hugh Jackman, though, is very nice). Semicolons combine two independent clauses. We're stuck in a hermeneutic circle of life. I can use big words almost-correctly now. Everything somehow fits into Communications.

How this all relates to the Internet? Not sure.

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