It’s 8th Week Already??

Since Carleton works on a trimester (10 week) system, things get a little hectic after week 5 (midterms). Carls find “it’s week ____” as an acceptable answer to the question “how are you doing?” Fortunately, as the workload increases, so does the temperature!

Here’s a peek into last week:

Okay, my week 7 was crazy. On Thursday, I got my Covid shot, and it absolutely took me out (yay for vaccines, boo for side-effects!). Because of this, I had to ask for several extensions from my professors. I felt super bad about doing this, but they were all happy that I reached out and was taking care of myself. Taking care of your health (be it mental or physical) takes just as much precedence as school work. I really appreciate that professors understand that!

Apart from this, I spent most of the week outside in the arb. It’s been absolutely beautiful out, and I haven’t been able to resist laying around on the Bald Spot or fields in the Upper Arb instead of staying in my room. (Note: it’s much more fun to procrastinate outside than it is inside!)

My assignments look like this…

For PHIL 122 (Philosophy of Identity and Leadership) taught by Eddie O’Byrn:

Read Surviving Trans Antagonism by Hil Malatino and start Reading Exile and Pride: Disability, Queerness, and Liberation by Eli Clare. (I really recommend both of these books!)

I am leading a discussion on Monday (each student in Eddie’s class does this twice during the term), so I’m also writing up my questions and responses for that class period over the weekend.

There is also a response paper analyzing Surviving Trans Antagonism due over the weekend, but I chose to write mine on Clare’s work instead (so it’s due a week later).

SOAN 335 (Politics and Public Art) taught by Colin McLaughlin-Alcock:

Colin assigns bi-weekly readings (his class is every Tuesday and Thursday evening). This past week we read the book Sound, Space, and the City: Civic Performance in Downtown Los Angeles by Marina Peterson, and I’m looking forward to learning more about redlining and socioeconomic issues in our reading for next week.

We also have a group project due at the end of next week, which requires researching an art organization in Minnesota or around our area. It’s great to get to know other people in the class (our group was able to meet in-person!).

POSC 122 (Political Science of Liberty and Equality) taught by Krissy Lunz-Trujillo

This is the first asynchronous course I’ve took at Carleton: we meet in-person one day a week, and complete assignments on our own time. A typical week’s assignments consist of a few articles (about public policy, gridlock in congress…) to read, two chapters of our text book, By The People, and watching two or three of Krissy’s prerecorded lectures. This week, we also have an outline for our final paper due.

Though it’s been hectic, I’m sad to be leaving soon! It’s crazy to me how quickly Carleton became my second home.

Erin grew up catching salamanders, recklessly climbing trees, and running around barefoot in the Appalachian Mountains in a small town in North Carolina. This is her first year at Carleton, and she’s looking forward to meeting new people, exploring campus (especially the arb!), and experiencing her first Minnesota winter. She is currently interested in studying psychology and gender, women’s, and sexuality studies. Meet the other bloggers!