Optimism

Looking out into a sea of alert, interested faces, I made a mental note to store this in the memory-box. They all start this way: little first day angels who range from benign to actually excited about learning the material. As a student, I always loved the first day of class and as a TA it feels just about the same, only with some responsibility for the outcome. The students are a little nervous but also know that nothing serious is going to happen. They spend the hour watching the professor: what is she going to be like, how does she dress, does she seem hard core or laid back, funny or dry, smart or stupid, hot or not hot (that seems to be the category on all the "rate your professor" sites so I'm assuming that must be one of the 5 most important criteria nowadays)?

So with all this in mind, I show up airing on the side of well-dressed, funny, smart and hot. I'm never sure exactly how to play the hard core/ laid back divide, so I try to blur them as much as possible, since truth be told, I'm not always consistent. And its working... for now. So in my inaugural posting on adjunk, I will memorialize the first day that works. The moment of possibility where the unfolding semester will be nothing but mutual lovin', hard workin' and participatin'. It's a nice thought while it lasts.

On Monday, I will return for the first day teaching Voltaire's "Candide: Optimism" and watch what happens to mine.