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February 08, 2005
Another Sunny Day in South Africa
I had my first class this morning, and I'm very glad to be back in the world of math, where there's a right and a wrong way to do a lot of things. It turns out that my course is only a term course, so I'll be taking Introductory Combinatorics this term and then Intro to Number Theory half way through the semester. My professor is interesting and keeps the class engaged, which is important. Note to self, though: don't fall asleep in class if you're tired, as a piece of chalk will promptly be chucked in your direction... Unfortunately, I cannot evade the definition of "American student", and I was asked to rehearse part of Martin Luther King's speech when we were talking about axioms being "self-evident". To my embarrassment, I don't know Martin Luther King's speech any better than the professor did, so we didn't get very far with that train of thought.
In reference to the food situation, it is reaching somewhat of a crisis situation. I don't know how long the body can healthily live on peanut butter, bread, biscuits, dry cereal, bananas, and granola bars, but I don't really have any other options at the moment. We still have yet to see the presence of the refigerators and stoves that we were promised, and since the dining hall doesn't cater towards vegetarians, I am constantly borderline starving. Also, the grocery store is a good 45 minute walk off campus with a friend, so I don't really have the option of running to the store to grab something to eat. That's okay, though: I don't think I'll die anytime soon, and hopefully the promised kitchen appliances are on their way.
With the start of courses and getting some things done on campus, I am finally beginning to settle into life here at UWC. We still have a lot to get sorted out and I have some routines to establish, but the campus is beginning to seem more familiar and I'm starting to learn the names of some of the other students here. Unfortunately, I'm not very good with names, especially South African names that I can't even pronounce, let alone remember. The other students understand, though, and I generally feel very welcome. We met with our group doctor last night, and as he pointed out, South Africans know a lot more about American culture than we do about theirs, as most of their entertainment industry comes straight from the states. However, that also means that they have certain strong stereotypes ingrained in their subconscious as a result of our media pollution. Needless to say, it will be a very interesting semester.
Posted by rgutwin at February 8, 2005 03:18 AM
Comments
Yay for an interesting math class! And no yay for falling asleep. Bad Becca. Bad. And no yay for not knowing very much of the speech. Do you know who Gandhi is yet? Here is the speech, not that you care anymore.
Don't die of starvation. Otherwise, okay.
Have they learned your name, or do they think it's funny too? Good for you for getting routines. I hope that will make lots of things better for you.
Posted by: Diana at February 8, 2005 09:27 AM
To clarify, I was not the unfortunate student who fell asleep in class. Actually, I have never been particularly drowsy in class, if you don't count that time that I was on a lot of pain killers and couldn't really keep my eyes open. And I also think that the professor was wrong when he tried to get me to recite Martin Luther King's speech, as he was probably thinking about the speech made by the Founding Fathers...
Posted by: Rebecca at February 9, 2005 04:04 AM
If your professor confused Martin Luther King, Jr. with the Founding Fathers, then I am glad that you are in South Africa to set these people straight.
Admittedly, his speech quotes them: "I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: 'We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal.'" But he is different. He was not around for the founding. Like the time I was thoroughly convinced that Martin Luther was born in the 20th century. No, that was someone different.
I am glad it was not you that fell asleep; that seemed terribly uncharacteristic of you, especially on the first day of a class that you had looked forward so much to having!
Posted by: Diana at February 9, 2005 04:24 PM
Just as a side note, sorry i'm a little late to post, but as a studier of biology, i believe that the human body can consist on such a diet as you have discribed. Although you may feel the lack of variety in your diet, i think that you are getting at least some of the correct nutrients, as long as you keep up the daily intake of caloric stuff and do not expend more caloric energy than you would utherwise consume. Ok, that's enough from me :P love ya and talk with ya later
Posted by: yo - one who does not like periods at February 11, 2005 09:02 PM
First a note: combinatorics rock!
I have this great metal picture of you, in a combo class where right and wrong are mapped onto a bipartite graph, being asked to quote Martin Luther King for a bit of color commentary. Either your professor is very profound, or he's a little "off plumb", but either way, it's gotta be facinating. King was a radical - there was a clear right and wrong, especially in the south. He wanted to change the definition of those things. Defining things is power...never forget it.
Posted by: Paul Gutwin at February 12, 2005 09:52 AM