i was never particularly good at paying attention in class. in fact, the moment i first realized that college lectures were essentially, "optional," it became progressively more difficult for me to show up on days the syllabus did not indicate a midterm was scheduled. it is truly a mystery how i managed to do well in school.
but it wasn't always like that.
i remember the weekend before entering school. i walked down to the local rite aid with a few orientation buddies and bought 4 fresh new notebooks and a pack of BIC ballpoints. i attended every lecture and every discussion with great enthusiasm, furiously scribbling down everything that was said verbatim.
but the novelty of the college education experience quickly wore off. the professors, the huge lecture halls, and even the scoping of cute girls from the back of the room lost it's appeal. needless to say, the diligent note-taking became a half-assed effort at best, and the half-assed effort became no effort soon thereafter. my notes were useless anyhow, as i'd fill the pages with hundreds of different versions of my signature instead of the contents on which was being lectured. and so i decided i needed a different method of learning. osmosis.
the inspiration came from my high school AP chemistry class. i don't know why i hadn't thought of it sooner, but it was truly a failsafe plan. i'd sit there slouched in my seat with my arms on the armrests and fingers spread out like little antennas. the idea was to sit as still as possible and absorb everything that was being said through the very pores of my skin.
the whole absorption thing certainly appeared to work, that is, until finals week came around. by then, all the information retained throughout the course of the ten weeks had already diffused back out. and so in a great panic, i'd burrow myself in some corner of the library for an entire week of cramming, surfacing only to eat and/or take a shit. and even then i'd keep my face buried in a textbook. really, it was no way to live.
so after emerging from my last final with raccoon eyes and terrible hygiene, i'd make a firm resolution NOT to make the same mistakes the next quarter. i would keep up with the readings, i would have perfect attendance, and i would pay attention in class. but alas my resolution-keeping was quite unreliable.
you see, from the very first day of undergrad i developed a habit of picking up a school newspaper next to the vending machines on my way over to class. it was a great way to pass time during those especially unbearable lectures. and so i'd read everything from front to back (even the classifieds), and take a quick stab at the crossword puzzle (from the NY times).
but by the winter quarter (the quarter of the firm resolution), i'd become a crossword puzzle addict. it was by chance that on the very first day of macroeconomics, a girl i vaguely knew through a friend of a friend's friend sat next to me. as the professor droned on about the contents of the syllabus, i was doing my usual cursory scan of the crossword puzzle clues when the friend of a friend's friend's friend reaches over and fills in 21-across. from that day on, the middle(wo)men were cut. we quickly became friends. we continued to solve the daily crossword during lectures for that entire quarter, and i'll never forget the euphoria i felt the first time we managed to complete an entire puzzle. i was hooked.
after macroecon i continued to do the crossword everyday. and i got quite good. in fact, the sole reason i began to read more books, watch more movies, and keep up with current events was to expand my crossword-puzzle-vocabulary. so it took some time, but by senior year i was consistently completing Monday's, Tuesday's, Wednesday's, and Thursday's puzzles. but Friday's... man, Friday's was tough. i'd always leave some blank. in fact, throughout those four years i managed to complete only three friday puzzles without cheating ask.com-ing.
old habits seem to have returned now that i'm back in school. i'm not any better at paying attention during lecture, but i've reacquainted myself with my crossword (and more recently, sudoku) addiction. although, unformately my brain seems to have deteriorated. instead of wisening with age, i find myself barely able to get even half of a Tuesday's done.
i'm not sure why i'm boring you with this, but i had some time to kill. sorry, i'll go home now.
oh, and in case you were wondering, Korea and Nepal were fantastic! stories about the motherland and himalayas to come.
