a better thing... remix!: 09.11

Thursday, September 08, 2011

I live the real life "Community".

Or at least it seems like I do.

Now, as I was saying, I think I am Jeff. I first identified with him when I decided to go back to college (sorry, I mean "a polytechnic university"). Then I said to myself "Haha, it's so funny that I'm so old and back in school." I know there are "mature" students in schools all over the world, so don't think that I'm hating. And school is fun to some extent, challenging to other extents and downright annoying for any extents left over. It's a path I chose and I am happy about it. Mostly.

I should have seen the signs of my school actually being the reality of Greendale Community College in my first semester. Every day, I would pass by an office that had a huge sombrero hanging on the wall that made me think of Senor Chang's office. I didn't dare look to see if there were any tigers. I took a class on comic books. Not really anything I can directly relate to Community, but I don't know ANY other school that had offered that back when I took courses the first time around (P.S. I loved that class). I was also easily one of the oldest students in my class. In one class, I'm pretty sure one of my profs was my age or younger. Despite these small signs, I went through my classes smoothly.

The reality of this tv show hit me today. I am taking a class that I will call the Carpe Diem class. It doesn't really focus on seizing the day, but it absolutely reminds me of that class in the episode titled "An Introduction to Film". Remember, I do not hate learning. I do not hate school. I do not hate education. But this class caught me waaaay of guard.

We started the class by listening to our breath, paying attention to when our breath stops in between the exhale and the inhale. Then we tried to focus on the spot between our thoughts when our thoughts change from one thing to something else. We meditated. Normal, right? Then, we rolled around the classroom on our chairs. There are 50 or so of us. Less normal? Then we rearranged our chairs into a huge circle where we were to introduce ourselves then make a gesture or sound that represents us. So...

Yeah, one guy in my class reminds me of the hacky sacking, green tea loving, small nippled (ex)boyfriend of Britta. I don't know his name, but his gesture was this wacky dance. It lasted about 5 seconds.

It sort of looks like the dance move at about 3:38 of this clip, minus the hand behind the head.

I am not joking.

Another student, a woman, made that sort of monkey shrill you'd hear in a film panning over a jungle landscape. I don't remember her name either. No, I will not post a sound clip... you can look for monkey cries yourself.

The best part of class is the Tai Chi that we end it with. We were taught how to "part the wild horse's mane" today. Our homework? Teach that move to our mother.

Again, I am not joking.

I do appreciate this class, but I am honestly intimidated. If you are my friend, please let me know that I'll be ok. And that I am not on the bizzaro real life version of Community.