I'm not sure if it applies to today's efforts, but I couldn't help but muse that on the back of the fortune the "Learn Chinese" was "to catch a cold" since I've been getting my ass handed to me by a pretty aggressive cold for over a week. (It's găn mào for those who are curious)
Last night (read: around 3 this morning) I signed off of SL way later than I expected and proceeded to finish the two chapters of Spanish homework I'd been avoiding. What can I say? I haven't done homework since grade school (remember when your parents had to put their initials at the top of the page that they'd supervised or checked your homework? Yeah, that was the last time I did homework.) and it has been so damned hard to get used to actually doing school work when I get home. [Shrug.] I'm still shocked that I bought textbooks this semester. Must be getting rusty in my old age.
I opened up my music playlist, cranked the volume, and started cranking out the español. I scribbled rough, disorganized drafts of my compositions on a legal pad before stapling a clean copy to the finished pages, and just kept writing. My cold was kicking my ass, I was tired as hell, and my back was protesting, but I kept going. Before I knew it, it was 6:30 a.m. I looked at the clock and gasped, "I have a final in 6 1/2 hours!" I crawled into bed with my cat and had a hard time drifting off to dream land. Of course, it seems like the moment after sleep came, the alarm rang, and I popped up out of bed to shower. Thankfully there was enough hot water and some good steam for me to inhale, and I eventually made it to class.
As I was sitting there hacking my throat to pieces (I was told I was ashen pale... awesome.) I found I couldn't get my thoughts together. Yet somehow I slipped into gear and while la profesora was repeating the listening comprehension portions of the test for the rest of the class, I worked my way through the rest of the test. I thought, at this rate, I'll be finished long before everyone else.
Nope.
I was one of the last 2 people in class. Why? Because my damned foggy head wouldn't let me write 2 compositions (at least 10 sentences each.) I struggled to think of what to write, how to describe things, people, and places. I just about gave up and handed it in half complete, but instead, I sat back down and forced myself to think. I wrote a few more sentences and handed in my paper. La profesora graded it in front of me and said, "Cien por ciento." (100%.) Effin' a.
I stayed and we briefly spoke about her upcoming trip to Guatemala to deliver children's books written by her next-level Spanish students (I'll be writing my own books next semester) and the possibility of my joining the Peace Corps and going to a Spanish-speaking country. I'm not sure why, but when her eyes widened and she enthusiastically nodded as if to say, "yes, you should do that" (she was eating candy at the time), I was a bit surprised. I dunno. Maybe someday. I just don't know if T will want to live in an impoverished country where everyone speaks a language he doesn't know. Ha.
Okay, kids. I'm off for now...
