Up and atom

Image via WikipediaMy mood brightened this evening following a long day of mixed results and responses to various  matters.

At three o' clock I felt anxious and overwhelmed. My day had been devoured by non-school business. I was considering dropping the biology class, frustrated by how long it takes to read the books and do the review questions. "Where the Hell am I going to fit income-producing activity (otherwise known as "work.") into this?"  I ask aloud.

An hour later, disappointment over my failure to read tonight's assigned chapter is superseded by determination nipping my heels. I pick up my pride, my coat and my bag and head out the door. Arriving on campus a half-hour early tests an idea I had. Finishing up the reading steps from the classroom instead of doing it at home and then driving like a maniac is far more relaxing. The idea worked.

Chapter 2 covers atoms, molecules, elements and their behavior. Tom, the instructor, gave a quick run-through on the topic to the twenty or so pairs of glazed eyes staring back at him. No, we don't have to become atomic scientists. This atomic stuff will all make sense when he relates it to cellular biology next week. That's what he promises us.

Lab time. Complete the last exercise of Thursday's lab. The exercise centers on measuring the volume of a test tube. At first, the memory of last week's methodology for calculating mass - using a ruler - persists.  Somebody grabs a ruler from the tray. I exclaim that there was no difference between this inquiry and using measuring cups in the kitchen. Lightbulbs go on. We're back in business.

Everything worked out so well that we finished ahead of most the other groups. Then, all four of us thought we heard the instructor say to do the next exercise, so we dove into it. But we couldn't concentrate because the group next to us was discussing their back to school stories. I was more interested in hearing the back to school stories than doing the assignment. Then, we realized we weren't supposed to do the exercise until after another lecture. Oh, well. Such overachievers.

I listened to two men in their mid- to -late twenties discussing being bounced out of their careers. They were choosing nursing as a second career. Two gals, near the same age, chimed in with their stories.

So it comes to this. What a boon for the education business. Two of the kids hadn't even paid off their school loans from their first bachelor's degrees. They all agreed that job prospects in the health sciences field look very good. Cognizant that the health science courses are filled within the first 30 minutes of registration, I did some math in my head.  I wonder, just how many millions of us graduating from these programs will be looking for jobs at the same time. . .

###

Driving the speed limit for the first time in weeks.

All I could think of was food, all the way home.