S17’s donation went very well. I am so happy it was the day before the storm. He is here for two more weeks and is in the middle of his online j-term class. He wound up with a 3.17, awesome given the awful drafting class. All of us are very happy.
@JenJenJenJen I want to bulldoze the room as well!! it looks like she still lives here! @itsgettingreal17 how in the world did she get tickets! i know if I had some, would have been tempted to sell. Meanwhile S19 was suppose to go back to school , but on the premise of “weather” its cancelled (its really all about the game). D17 is actually nearby, but not home, helping refugees for Alternative Breaks, so we said our goodbyes last Friday. She is rushing when she gets back. I hope that turns out good for her.
Left home at 4AM EST yesterday to take S17 to the Airport. He arrived at school around 4PM MST after waiting for a floormate whose flight was landing 20 minutes after his. Lightrail worked out fine to get back to school from the airport. Break was nice - if not short. His classes start tomorrow. It looked like a lot of parents dropping off for those early flights yesterday. It was -11 F when we arrived back home around 6:30 AM. Nice to see some warmer temps this week.
S17’s break is till MLK day so his break is a month long. It snowed twice here in Texas, but now it is back to 60s.
@itsgettingreal17 Bet your dd had a blast last night even though they lost. What a game!!
Drove my daughter back to school yesterday. Her classes started today. She came home on a chartered bus for break but wanted to avoid going back Sunday before her friends were back. Was nice to talk and listen to music together on the trip down. Got everything moved into her room and then had lunch near campus. Drove back home by myself. Was a great day.
On Monday, she built a snowman in the front yard. We had plenty of snow but it was too cold to pack. She was so excited. When we passed the drop-off exit for the charter home, I said she could have been there two days earlier. She said she wouldn’t have gotten to build the snowman had she taken the bus. Made me smile.
S has been back for a week–had a bit of a “planes, trains, and automobiles” experience with the trip back to school, but he figured it out with the help of some texting with me, and made it back only ~2 hours later than originally planned.
2nd semester classes seem to be going well in this 1st week, but he has a tight schedule on a couple of days to make it between his French class on one side of campus and a lecture for his major class on the other side in 20 minutes. He wants to get a bike, but I’m not sure how that will work in the winter in MI… I’m letting him work it out.
He’s already off for a mock trial tournament this weekend in cruddy, snowy weather, but at least he called to say they made it to their destination safely. Mock trial is definitely his niche and his favorite activity by far this year–his after Christmas spending sprees were mainly on wardrobe enhancements for mock trial–better shoes, ties, tie tack, belt, etc… I guess there are worse vices. 
Good luck on all who are back in classes already and those who are traveling soon. I still have S15 home for another week, so I’m savoring that time while I can.
DS’s classes don’t begin until 1/23. He’s getting SO relaxed and comfy, and I’m starting to think I shouldn’t make it too good for him. He does need to go back. lol
The long break takes a chunk out of the winter weather, so it is probably a good thing. Still he’s packing the pants for the return trip!
Wow! I haven’t been on here in sooo long. So glad to hear all the success stories from everyone’s first semester. Ds is loving school, did well first semester and is back on campus and started classes last Wednesday. It really was great having him home for 3 weeks for break but it was hard saying goodbye again. Definitely think he made the right choice in schools but having him 13 hours away from home is harder than I thought.
Classes started for DS last Wednesday! So far likes them all - class size ranges from around 30 to over 150 it seems!
Subjects range from Listening to Music - over 1000 Years to Computer Systems, Digital Audio, and Solidworks. Definitely will be an interesting semester - hope he settles into a routine a bit more quickly this time. Good luck to all the students starting a new term!
In today’s taunting news, D’17 Skyped and said it was hot at the beach yesterday, but the water was cold.
Meanwhile, we are due a few inches of snow and single digit temps.
She’s never coming back, is she?
First day of second semester for WashU and the son said the weather wasn’t too bad-if 10 degrees Fahrenheit is considered ‘not bad.’ He was actually looking forward to seeing snow for the third time in his life. Go figure-he would have been happy going to college in Boston. He didn’t want to stay in California for college which was a mystery to the parents, but St. Louis for some reason agrees with him.
He had a pretty relaxing break but was actually looking forward to suffering with his friends over General Chemistry at 2:00 in the morning. Or so he says. He’s pretty happy-made Dean’s List and got an email from school asking him to be a math tutor since he did well in Calculus 3.
@Dave_N maybe you’ll see start thinking of moving to a warmer climate yourself?
@Dave_N Depends on how much (if at al) she likes snow. My daughter likes sandy beaches. But she totally loves the snow. Her classes were canceled yesterday and my wife and I got a text at 5:30 am saying “Snow Day!!” She lived for those in grade/high school. Didn’t really think she would get one in college but she is quickly learning in the “south” cold/snow creates very different reactions than it does up north. Classes resumed today so she is back at second semester.
Son started back yesterday. He moved into the frat house over the weekend. He likes his new roommate. TINY room. No desks in the room. There is a quiet library downstairs for studying. It has a fireplace and looks nice. It was 0 this morning when he headed off for classes. There is snow all over the ground. He is loving it, but a little cold. He went to a really good basketball game last night. He has had all his classes except one lab. He seems to like them from the minimal text I received. Well he doesn’t like physics but hopes to survive it. Apparently the teacher was so bad they removed him from teaching the class but he is back at it. He hoped to put the class off but it was the only open option for him. So with Chem 2, Physics 1, 2 Animal science labs, speech, and World Geography (15 hours) he will be busy.
The following is supposedly a letter than was written by a principal in Singapore and sent to parents and is making its way around the internet. It has a great message that puts exams, grades and life in perspective:
“The exams of your child are to start soon,” the principal wrote. “I know you are all really anxious for your child to do well.” The principal continued:
“But, please do remember, amongst the students who will be sitting for the exams there is an artist, who doesn’t need to understand Math… There is an entrepreneur, who doesn’t care about History or English literature…There is a musician, whose Chemistry marks won’t matter…There’s an athlete…whose physical fitness is more important than Physics… If your child does get top marks, that’s great! But if he or she doesn’t…please don’t take away their self-confidence and dignity from them. Tell them it’s OK, its just an exam! They are cut out for much bigger things in life. Tell them, no matter what they score…you love them and will not judge them. Please do this, and when you do… watch your children conquer the world. One exam or low mark won’t take away…their dreams and talent. And please, do not think that doctors and engineers…are the only happy people in the world.”
What are the expectations from the candidate in the interview?
Interesting! Artificial Intelligence ranks colleges.
https://mfeldstein.com/college-rankings-revisited-might-artificial-intelligence-think/
I like the AI approach, but their writeups do ignore the subjectivity in what information is on the College Scorecard (which prioritizes things such as earnings for a somewhat limited set of graduates). Basically, I’d argue that their results are a really, really good measure of which colleges do capitalism best.
My D has her first final for Fall Semester today. Finals end next Friday and then we get her back for another week. She’s planning an ambitious Spring.