Nostalgia

I loved writing this first essay in Advanced Composition because I love going back to old stories, whether from TV, movies or video games, and applying my analytical skills that I've developed as an adult to them. For the essay, I did the TV show Digimon, and while I was doing research into it I was thinking about how a year ago or so I remember hearing a story about how science is currently working on something very similar to that show. Essentially, in the show, a bunch of computer programmers made computer programs that were programs of artificial intelligence. They weren't simple push button, pull leaver, medial tasks that most programs run - these were actually sentient. Thus, on the TV show, they achieved these programs, and called them Digimon, short for digital monster. Now, I know many science groups are working on creating software that is sentient - capable of thinking and acting on its own. The primary problem posed by the TV show was that the digimon project's funding was cut, and they were forced to delete the programs, despite them being sentient, or even consciously aware of themselves.

Despite the programmer’s efforts, some digimon survived somehow. It never really explains how, but their base programs survived by the effort of the team leader who re-wrote their programs into what is now called an MMORPG (massively multiplayer online Role playing game), giving these digimon a whole world - the world of the video game - to live in. Inside the game, however, as the information was transferred through wireless connections and frequencies around the world, the sentient digimon managed to develop a way to "cling" to but a single piece of bio-matter as simple as a protein or germ floating in the same air as the wireless information that is being transmitted, and digimon were capable of creating biological forms for themselves in the real world. The government caught wind of this and created a top-secret government agency to prevent these "breeches" between worlds, and was moderately sucsessful until, using a program called "juggernaught," this agency attempted to destroy the digital world as a whole, wiping out all the digimon programs all together, including those digimon whose consciousness had taken a biological form (something about the networking of the biological brain still using the digital information). Even as an adult, this part of the series is highly interesting and morally complex. I'd say more, but if you honestly care about any of this, I don't want to ruin any surprises in the story for you.

The Power of a Sour Mood...

Okay, so I wrote that previous blog entry like, not 20 minutes ago, and, if you couldn't tell, I was getting quite mad at myself and my situation. However, after going to the seat of epiphany for a little while (otherwise known as the toilet), I constructed a to-do list for this week. When I did that, I checked all my syllabi and double-checked the information... and I have NO clue where some of that was coming from in my last post. I want to say I heard the professors say something along the lines of 15 page paper or whatnot, but I'm not entirely sure. Either way, here's my to-do list now for the next week:

TODAY
- Register for OGET
- Renew FAFSA
- Finish Taxes
- Fill out shift-switching form for work

Due Tuesday, March 25
- Southern Women Writers: 3-5 page response to either A Still Moment OR At The Landing
- Foundations of American Education: 41 Study Questions
- Ethnic American Literature: Read Dreaming in Cuban
- Southern Women Writers: Read Petrified Men, A Curtain of Green, Why I Live at the P.O., Clytie, Flowers of Marjorie, A Still Moment, AND At The Landing
- Ethnic American Literature: At the very least, come up with Research Paper Topic

To Work On Over Spring Break (Due at end of semester)
- Southern Women Writers: 10 Page research paper over Common Themes in Welty’s work
- Ethnic American Literature: Write a 9-15? Page research paper over a work read in class

Due Sunday, March 30
- Advanced Composition Paper (850 words): Critique a show that you watched when you were younger, exploring how you felt about it then, and how you feel about it now, looking at it from a logical point of view (pointing out fallacies, stereotypes, etc.)

See the difference? If you want a fine example of the power of a sour mood, just go see what I somehow got out of these things in my previous post. This isn't that much related to class, but I just felt like posting it.

For some reason I thought our first essay was March 23rd, not 30th... needless to say that alone has saved me a ton of worry.

A New, not-so-great, Start

Well, I think I can say this week had dragged on and on only to end up at a horribly blunt, painful end. I started off very excited about my new online class, not really thinking about much else, but then the slow reality that is the week before Spring Break dawned on me. For the next week, here is what's on my plate:

Write a 3 page (ish) paper for Advanced Composition
Read the novel Dreaming in Cuban for Ethnic American Literature
Read 6 short stories by Elizabeth Whelty
Write a 3-5 page response over one of these short stories
Write a 10 page research paper over a common theme in all of Elizabeth Whelty's work
Write a 15 page research paper over any work read in Ethnic American Literature
Answer the 50+ study questions for my Foundations of American Education class
Finish Taxes
Renew FASFA
Register for OGET
And work... in a kennel... that boards animals while their families go on vacation (already over booked all week)

That's not even the saddest part. I honestly don't remember when the last time I had a real Spring "Break" was. For at least the past three years I've spent all Spring Break working and writing papers.

Anyway, I just had to get that out of my system... rant over.

The primary reason I'm upset right now is just with myself. I completely missed that part in Advanced Composition about having your moderated discussion topic up and running by Wednesday... I don't know how, I just did, and I felt like slapping myself for that. I can only hope that this is officially the worst of it - like I've been sinking to this point all week (heck, all semester), and once I can manage to dig myself out of the nightmare of Spring Break I'll be past the worst of it and maybe, just maybe, have a somewhat smooth ride to summer.

I've officially spent enough time here and need to get started on that to-do list. Wish me luck.