Success!

First day of new semester. I always feel that I must be crazy, doing this academic thing. I lugged the already too heavy bookbag out to the car and set off, first to get my non-fat latte, my first-day-of-the-week treat, then to the downtown mall, where I was relieved to see the familiar signs directing me to our designated parking place, meaning that, yes indeed, the shuttles are running. I found my first class, major accomplishment because it is in a new building that I had not explored yet, then sat there sure that I was in the wrong classroom, since it was American History, but this looked like a science-type classroom. The sink in the counter is a dead giveaway. It was, however, the right place. Our professor is a truncated little guy, very puffed up on top, neckless and kind of toadlike, but despite gruff exterior, funny and droll. We did some fun exercise that tested our knowledge and intelligence by selecting a person, place and event from the period we are studying, up to 1877. Some of us were pretty much not present, with answers like Ronald Reagan and Battle of the Bulge, but hey, it's early in the semester. Also, I always thought old RR was a fossil, anyway. Next, I hiked over to my familiar territory for the Western Civilization class. Mr. Diaz is a kind of fluffy young Hispanic, very mild-mannered and also rather droll in an endearing way. He gave us a quiz, right off the bat, and I am happy to say I got a couple of the questions right, like "where is Stonehenge and who built it" and "who was Julius Caesar". The other eight I just guessed, and it is good we are studying this stuff, because I don't know very much at all. Things I learned today: I have enough time to get from my 9 AM to my 10:30 AM and pee in between, too. And bless Prof. Diaz, I will be first onto the shuttle at lunchtime, because he will let us out early. These are the really important things to know.