Is this seat taken?

Little tykes with backpacks and new tennis shoes, and Ballard High School students in revealing mini-dresses and brand new sub woofers to shake my home throughout the day aren't the only ones hitting class this fall.  That's right, yours truly is taking a night class.  Just one, yes, but I am feeling pretty cool with my 30 lb text book, highlighter, and college ruled notebook.  It's as if the world makes sense again, even if only on Monday and Wednesday nights for two and a half hours.  I get to feel like a grown up.

I'm taking a psychology class at a community college because I'm trying to become a therapist when I grow up.  I managed to take 11 Psychology classes at PLU during my undergrad, but somehow Lifespan Psych missed my radar, and it's one of the three classes I need to get into the program I'm applying for. 

On Monday, my first night, I packed everything I thought I would need into my huge Louis Vuitton bag (BHS students have taught me that nobody, and I mean nobody, uses backpacks or messenger bags anymore... it's all about the over sized purse.) and headed for my new campus.  I really hate not knowing where I'm going, or where to park, or what staircase to climb, or which door stands between me and the one person I need to like me so that I can coax a letter of recommendation from her in the next 11 weeks.  No pressure.

My professor is a young woman, maybe 35, named Ann.  She's the type who only owns black clothes with a few hints of dark purple here and there so that nobody thinks she's a witch or something.  Ann is peppy, chatty, and clearly passionate about Psychology.  I sat in the very front row.

Next to me sat my new college friend, Kristy.  She hadn't bought the book yet and was really torn if she should even buy it because she really needs new leather boots for fall and hears the books are "like, totally expensive."  She is 30 and working toward her Associates Degree at night while she works as an office manager in the day.  I think she told me at least seven times that she received a 4.0 last quarter because she worked so closely with a friend from her class.  Ok, I thought,  good for her for going back to school and stating up front that she's a hard studier.  Maybe she should think about getting the book, since that's the only thing we will be doing this quarter, but it's cool, I need a new friend and her outfit is ok.

On Wednesday, the second class, Kristy sat next to me and told me that she was out too late the night before with this guy she is seeing and she may have to leave early because she's not wearing makeup and her hair is greasy and her dog is in her car and she didn't do the reading (shocker) and she'd call me on Saturday to see what she missed.  Great.  Just what I need.  Someone else to look out for.  Did she mean to say that she got a 4.0 last quarter because somebody else did everything for her?

I have this huge problem that I had totally forgotten about until sitting in my new college class.  I turn bright red if I have to speak in front of the class.  On a stage - I'm a natural.  Speech in front of 500 people - where's the microphone and is it loud enough.  Put me in a room with 30 people and ask me to raise my hand to discuss something I know about, and I turn the color of the bowl of tomatoes I just picked from my plant this morning.  I was so scared of turning red in college that I rarely raised my hand, which damaged my grade since almost every class was based on participation.  There's no time for this nonsense anymore.  I need a good grade and a letter of recommendation.  I do not need to be scared of speaking, nor do I need Kristy sitting next to me applying makeup during our second class, Ann shooting glares.  Not off to a great start.

Our first assignment is due on Monday and while Kristy has no idea what she's supposed to do, I think it will be a breeze.  PLU provided learning opportunities that involved 300 pages of reading each night only to have to write 12-15 pages about it.  I hated it.  Our one page, double spaced, numbered response to why we think an online article is bullshit will be nothing... and yet I'll be scrambling to get it done because motherhood has made me narcoleptic and sitting down at a computer has become as rare and pleasuresome as sleeping in.  There has been a lot of "if only I'd known in college what I do now..." regarding study habits and delcaring a major before the second semester of my senior year going on this week.  But then again, college was just as much about breaking up, hooking up, throwing up, and looking up spark notes as it was about hitting the books.  It feels great to be back in an educational setting... especially without the throwing up.

I'm happy to be challenged.  I'm happy to have two and a half hours where someone is teaching me and I'm listening.  I'm thrilled to get the ball rolling toward my future.  I am very entertained by my new bff Kristy and can't wait to see what will happen next week.

Better go study...