Last Wednesday I sat at home sweating profusely with the windows and doors thrown wide open in hopes of a breeze blowing my way. Last Thursday the heat finally broke, and Dallas was privy to one of the most beautiful and glorious snow flurries in years. Such is the weather in these parts. Needless to say, I’ve been fighting a sore throat for the past week.

I have finally completed all my papers and final projects and have graded all my final exams. This term about killed me, but mostly because I make my work much more difficult than I need to by doing far too much research and writing too much. The hardest part of completing my assignments is to cut and edit everything down to a manageable (and acceptable) size. I’m hoping to take it a bit easier in the spring semester by taking one independent study and choosing my third class among those that don’t require a lot of busy work. I wish I could just skip over all the course requirements and get to writing the damn dissertation already!

A collection of statements I wrote on my course evaluations this semester—and I meant every word:

The role the professor has played in my education and development as a scholar is immeasurable. The only criticism I have at all is toward the university’s—and more specifically, the program’s—policy of open enrollment. You would think that a basic requirement to be a graduate student would be a developed vocabulary and acceptable use of English grammar, especially if English is one’s native language. That is simply not the case here. The quality of my classmates’ work is appallingly bad. Paris Hilton shows more intellect and insight than these losers! And I’m only referring to the one’s who actually stay awake throughout the entire class period and try to participate in the conversations the professor and I have. The idiots who fall asleep on either side of me every Thursday afternoon need to be kicked out not just of the classroom, but off campus, and out of the program altogether. It is time to raise—if not to initiate—standards of work and behavior; otherwise, my degree from this university is worthless.

I’ve barely had time to look forward to leaving the country Thursday: we’re off to Wiesbaden, Germany, for about ten days. I’ll post from the trip, if time allows.

Last Wednesday I sat at home sweating profusely with the windows and doors thrown wide open in hopes of a breeze blowing my way. Last Thursday the heat finally broke, and Dallas was privy to one of the most beautiful and glorious snow flurries in years. Such is the weather in these parts. Needless to say, I’ve been fighting a sore throat for the past week.

I have finally completed all my papers and final projects and have graded all my final exams. This term about killed me, but mostly because I make my work much more difficult than I need to by doing far too much research and writing too much. The hardest part of completing my assignments is to cut and edit everything down to a manageable (and acceptable) size. I’m hoping to take it a bit easier in the spring semester by taking one independent study and choosing my third class among those that don’t require a lot of busy work. I wish I could just skip over all the course requirements and get to writing the damn dissertation already!

A collection of statements I wrote on my course evaluations this semester—and I meant every word:

The role the professor has played in my education and development as a scholar is immeasurable. The only criticism I have at all is toward the university’s—and more specifically, the program’s—policy of open enrollment. You would think that a basic requirement to be a graduate student would be a developed vocabulary and acceptable use of English grammar, especially if English is one’s native language. That is simply not the case here. The quality of my classmates’ work is appallingly bad. Paris Hilton shows more intellect and insight than these losers! And I’m only referring to the one’s who actually stay awake throughout the entire class period and try to participate in the conversations the professor and I have. The idiots who fall asleep on either side of me every Thursday afternoon need to be kicked out not just of the classroom, but off campus, and out of the program altogether. It is time to raise—if not to initiate—standards of work and behavior; otherwise, my degree from this university is worthless.

I’ve barely had time to look forward to leaving the country Thursday: we’re off to Wiesbaden, Germany, for about ten days. I’ll post from the trip, if time allows.