Okay Children Gather Round.

I'm going to tell you how to play a very fun game. It's called "Chase the Add Code." It has been occupying my time over the last several days as we have now reached the end of the second week of classes.

See, you spend all four years of college looking forward to the quarter you are a graduating senior. Why you ask? Because that's when you have the highest priority when crashing a class. If a class is full, especially in the econ department, they generally close it after a certain number of days from the beginning of the quarter, and then the ONLY way to add it is via a four digit add code. It doesn't matter if there are spaces on GOLD, our registration system, unless you have a code. The codes are turned over from the department to the professors, who can then at their discretion add the people they want. In most cases, the people are prioritized by number of units, so that those seniors who need the class for graduation are able to add it first, and those freshmen who will have years to take it another time get shafted. However, you might get really lucky. You might have say, 171 units, and be only 9 units off the required total for graduation. You'd think with that total, you'd have an exceptionally high priority. You'd figure most classes would have plenty of add codes to give out, and you'd be safe getting any class you wanted. You'd of course, be wrong. I made the mistake of thinking I was going to be able to add a course on personnel economics, the one I was looking forward to taking because the professor was actually coherent. As it turned out, he wasn't going to add anyone over the fifty person limit for the class, because he uses two labs for the midterm and final which are computer based, and there are only fifty computers. Thus, he only had two add codes he was going to give out. Still I attended a few more classes, expecting to be one of the two, before finding out on Tuesday that the two unit totals receiving the codes were 213 and 208. I was under the impression they kicked you out after 200 units. Apparently not. So, for two days I scrounged around for basically anything that was upper division econ that I could add so I could graduate. Eventually I went over to the Phelps labs to actually check out the computer situation for myself, and discovered there were in fact 26 computers in each lab. Armed with this information, I eventually tracked down the professor's office hours, and sat outside the room for an hour waiting for them, as they happened to be the same day. "Not all of them might be working on test day" was what he told me. So I notice that he is also teaching 100C this quarter, and ask him if he's adding people to that. All too willingly, he gives me a code immediately. I'm at first ecstatic, but decide this is a little strange. I log on and check the syllabus. "This course is aimed at students with a serious interest in economics (as distinct from business), who may be considering graduate study in that field." Uh oh. That is so not me. I read more. "Some of the material we will be reading is very advanced ... economic research in its original form of journal articles ... everyone will be called upon and expected to participate since the class size is small ... thursdays I will randomly call on you to present your answer to the discussion questions or to discuss the supplementary reading" Basically worst case scenario here in my book. Luckily after a few days of e-mails, I manage to get an appointment with another professor who teaches 106 and 114 for today at 10am. I show up and basically give him a partially true story about how I was enrolled in his class, and then dropped it, and later tried to readd but couldn't because it had been closed. In reality it was because I tried to add 152, and got shut down. He asks if I'm a graduating senior and when I'm graduating, and then gives me the predictable line of how he's had literally dozens of people he's had to say no to. Then however, to my utter amazement, he pulls a sheet out of a drawer and says that one person who he was going to give one to didn't show up, so he has one last code to give out, and might as well give it to me.

As of about 11am this morning, I am finally enrolled in 20 units. Of course I had to go get a refund for the 152 book, and by the 106 book for the second time (which was a little more expensive) but it's a small price to pay. Friday has been a very good day. Thank goodness. Now all I have to do is get some decent grades. Oh by the way, I've heard from inside sources that basically no one gets below an A or a B in 106, so it's nice that 106 was the one that I ended up with. That's now three classes that should be automatic B's or better, with the other two looking fine as well. Eight weeks to go.

Some Shoutouts.

This'll be fun. Some shoutouts to those I know, in completely random order. If you can guess which one's you, huge amazement points.

Shoutouts...
To the blue jean baby.
To the luscious lips.
To my polar opposite.
To the retard.
To a great mind.
To the star.
To the one I miss.
To big red.
To the dreamer.
To the blinks.
To my partner in crime.
To the late night rendezvous.
To the old one.
To the older one.

And no, I'm not telling.
While I'm at it, a shoutout to myself...
To the dork.

Sunny, but DAMNIT WIND!

These past few days I've been getting my sunbathing on, but unfortunately the wind has made it more difficult than I'd like. I actually never did talk about the trip I took to the beach the day after I got here, which was a lot of fun. Although I was forced to show off the interesting tank top shaped tanlines I have from hiking last summer, it was the beginning of trying to get back to a monochrome exterior. Four of us ended up making the fifty yard or so walk that takes you from my front door to the water's edge, and took a tennis ball so we could all destroy most of our arm muscles trying to show each other up, and then whine all through the day following about what's sore. I eventually had the pleasure of being buried by two fine young women, a rare opportunity I of course took advantage of. Reminded me of the ol childhood days. The only thing I didn't do was dig a huge hole, but the sand was packed pretty hard with water not too far under, so a significantly deep hole wouldn't have been possible. Unfortunately much of the recent attempts at sunbathing have been thwarted by the gusting winds, which tend to slam the sand into you like thousands of tiny needles while you like there not bothering it at all. The gusts actually got up above 35 mph one of the days last week, which is impressive enough to make it pretty rough biking back and forth, especially in a crosswind as you try to avoid the retard freshmen on their cell phones.

They also finally opened up the pool here in the complex, which should be quite nice. Already invaded the place a few times, and it's nice not having to go all the way to the RecCen to get my swim on. Yeah seriously, how spoiled am I, half a mile via bike is too far, fifty yards is the maximum effort I'm willing to put out. Sad. I actually have been following some periodization schedules put together by a fitness trainer and incoming Officer Trainee who frequents one of the OTS forums I keep up with, which have been good for keeping me on track for hitting my goals in the running and strength events. Now I just have to keep with it, and watch the reps pile on and the minutes pile off.

Darn, was gonna post this before midnight, I flunk!