Errand done

[cjsmith]

The rain let up just long enough for me to visit three offices at DeAnza. At the third one, the guy behind the desk admitted that "unfortunately" not only was I in the right place, I was talking to the right person, so "it's just not your day" he said with a grin. He looked at my transcript and entered into the Grand High Assessment and Placement Computer the fact that I am allowed to attempt English Writing 1A.

"I'd rather see you do this one again," he said, pointing. "It'd be more interesting."

I tried to look at his finger on the sheet. "Differential eq -- I will NEVER, there is NO WAY --"

"No, this one."

Writing Science Fiction. That one was taught by Joe Haldeman! No lie. And I was such a complete fumblethumbs at the time that I barely got anything out of it, either. Ah, memories!

Anyway, I can now register for a writing course. Given how little writing is necessary at my beloved alma mater, I would be wise to take a few of those, just to make sure I meet all the prereqs.

The rain resumed as I climbed back into the car. :-)

Comments

[selenite.livejournal.com]

I loved Joe's class. Hopefully some day I'll pull out those stories and get some more rejection slips for them.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

What an opportunity for college kids, to have someone like that as a writing teacher! Isn't it amazing?

I think I may have burned my stories from that class. I may be a terrible writer now, but that's not a patch on how bad I was then. Frightening.

[meep.livejournal.com]

I know what you mean.

My ouevre has always been non-fiction, but jeeeeez, some of the crap I wrote back then. Makes my eyes bleed.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

And my belly knot. Bad writing shouldn't be physically painful, but it is!

[lesliepear.livejournal.com]

So are you taking writing and not science the next semester?

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

I'm still on the waiting lists for the two science courses. If I get into those, I'll prioritize those with gusto. But if I don't, well, at least I can do SOMEthing.

[ladyqkat.livejournal.com]

Writing Science Fiction. That one was taught by Joe Haldeman!

*envy* *envy* *grump* *envy*

*sigh*

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

It's criminal how I wasted that opportunity. *sighs right along with you*

[ladyqkat.livejournal.com]

Just gives me one more thing to pick your brain about when we do meet.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

I wish we could just go over there and take the class (again, in my case) instead. What a waste.

[ladyqkat.livejournal.com]

Well, between sordak and I, we have 100 years of being faithful readers of the classic SF and more than that invested in The School of Hard Knocks. But we have both gotten good feedback on the stories we are writing and puting into our blogs, so we may yet realize our childhood dreams of becoming actual writers.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Excellent! Good writing is a treasure. Me, I probably don't have that potential, but I can appreciate it in others.

Education is wasted on the young

[katestine.livejournal.com]

I took the class the one semester he didn't teach it.

But I also feel I could say the above about far too many classes at the 'tute.

Re: Education is wasted on the young

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

It was wasted on me, that's for sure.

[wcg.livejournal.com]

Did I ever tell you about taking Differential Equations in a five week summer semester? Didn't get much sleep those five weeks.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

No, you didn't. That sounds to me like the world's worst nightmare. I took a whole semester of Russian in three and a half weeks once, but that was a language. I can't imagine what you must have gone through.

[ckd]

He's still teaching it, too.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

That is beyond awesome.