Three hours later, and I'm already second-guessing my course-selection decisions. I think I should have registered for User Instruction instead of Database Management, because Database Management will probably be offered in the spring and User Instruction probably won't. And I'm thinking I'm going to finish the program before next fall, so I won't have another opportunity to take that course. But User Instruction is in the afternoon, which would mean I'd have to tweak my work schedule around it, and I'll already be doing that for Digital Libraries. Eh. I'll straighten it out in September. Or maybe I should put myself on the waitlist now. I'll talk to my boss, maybe.

Woot! I have registered for classes for the fall. I will be taking Digital Libraries and Database Management -- how techie of me! Digital Libraries I really wanted to take because it's with the professor I'm with right now, who I like lots, and Database Management, well, it meets in the morning. And it's potentially spectacularly useful, and I've always like databases, ever since I was a small child. (You know, that's actually true, although I'd forgotten about it until now; I used to spend hours on the old Apple iic making databases in AppleWorks or whatever it was called. I don't remember what the databases were of, besides books, obviously, but I loved them.) Both these classes require a prereq I haven't taken, but the prereq's only been offered once (new requirement) and the computer let me register, so I'm going to assume it will all work out. Plus, the prereq was taught as a one-week short course this summer, so I can't imagine there's anything in it I won't be able to teach myself if absolutely necessary.

I kind of really dig cataloging. I already knew I liked the course, which is the first one I've taken at Simmons where the professor is teaching to the smart people rather than the many brain-dead people who seem to find their way into library school (or at least Simmons (obviously, I do not mean any of the librarians and/or library students on my flist(even the ones at Simmons))). But now I'm actually kind of liking the cataloging itself. It's like doing little puzzles. I get sucked in like it's some kind of addictive word game -- I'm sitting here doing my homework and I'm thinking "I can squeeze in one more classification number before I go! Really!" when actually I totally do not have enough time to do that. But Cutter numbers are fun! Well, annoying and fun.

I'm not sure whether I would continue to find this fun for long periods of time, though. Hmm. Still, it's interesting; I hadn't really seriously considered becoming a cataloger before, but I kind of am right now.

Today there was a LISSA (student association) meeting right after my class, so I went and was social for a few minutes, and I ate a slice of free pizza. Now. I have been making an effort to eat more healthily lately, but I still eat all kinds of disgusting things all the time; indeed, this weekend was a regular orgy of PMS-induced junkfood eating, with the chicken tender, brownie, quesadilla, and soft-pretzel-stick food groups all more than adequately represented. And I never, ever suffer any ill effects from eating all this crap; I have a true iron digestion.

Or so I thought. That slice of pizza made me feel like I was going to die. Upon being swallowed, that slice of pizza immediately tried to claw its way out of my stomach. In short, that slice of pizza had it in for me. Others were eating the pizza with no apparent ill effects. I do not know why my body so forcibly renounced the pizza and all its works, but damn! That hurt. I will probably go to another LISSA meeting if they continue to meet right around the time I have class, but I will not be eating any more pizza. Ow.

OMG!!! RAGE!!!

We had to do this group project thing, and it was due today, and I gave the guy in my group who was supposed to be compiling it all together my portion of it yesterday, and he basically cut all my part out and produced this document that makes no sense and MISSPELLED THE BIOGRAPHEE's NAME!!!! And changed all of my APA citations (as mandated by the professor) into misnumbered footnotes OMG.

WHY ARE PEOPLE SO STUPID!!!!

( This is not an excerpt; this is the whole thing. Honest-to-god, that's how the thing begins. )

Would it be a very bad thing to order my cataloging books from Amazon and then return them when I am done with them? There are five more weeks of the class, and I have 30 days from the day I receive the books to return them. If I neglect to return them, I am out $160-some-odd, although I might be able to resell the books, so let's call it $80-some-odd plus the work of having to resell the books. Hmmm. If I'm going to order them, I should do it ASAP.

Never mind, I've done it. Must remember to return them, is all. I didn't go with the free shipping, so at least they're getting some money out of me!

Happy Summer, everyone! (Except for you Southern-Hemispherians, in which case Happy Winter!) We actually had a lovely summery day today, which was nice.

I started my summer class today; I am taking cataloging with Candy Schwartz, who is supposed to be the best and also the toughest. I have high hopes -- I have only heard good things about this class and professor (well, good things and things about how hard it/she is, but considering how unsatisfied I've been with the rigor of the GSLIS program up until now, that's not necessarily a bad thing). Candy is a Canadian Tolkien fan who's taught at Simmons for 25 years but still spells cataloguing with a U. She's a bit eccentric, but her eccentricity doesn't seem like the self-obsessed kind that gets in the way of the learning (as with SOME professors I could mention), so I'm cool with it. Besides, how much can anyone annoy me in just six hours a week for six weeks?

Anyhoo, I should be working on my first assignment, but look! I'm not. Two more minutes, then I'm starting, I swear. I'm actually a bit concerned about taking this class in the summer, since it means that it will be extra-super-concentrated and all the assignments will be coming fast and close together, but I figure it also means I'll have less time to burn out on the subject matter.

OK, my two minutes are up, and then some, so I will go do my assignment like a good girl.