Venting Thread Beta

[iamafish]

it provides a greater means to education.

access to the internet and a decent knowledge of the Engish language (or any other language spoken in the West) it is possibly to access a mind-boggling amount of useful and practical information.

sure, it's also easy to access a lot of bullshit, with a guiding hand, that can be safely navigated past.

If everyone in the world were able to access the internet, it would change millions of lives

[Alja-Markir]

There's also something to be said for passive education.

Modern American school systems fail, in my mind, because they don't consider students capable of learning on their own. The notion is that youth are stupid or lazy or just won't learn unless you force them to. And because we treat students that way, they eventually start to behave that way. Why go out of your way to learn something on your own when the school system isn't going to give a shit? They just want you to jump through their hoops - it doesn't matter how bright or talented you really are, you have to jump through the hoops until they say you can stop. So what can you do? You jump for them, and fuck it if you actually learn anything.

This is why I want to work in libraries. This is why I want to help reform public access to data. This is why I want to pursue the democratization of knowledge.

All the most meaningful, inspiring, and beneficial things I have ever learned in my entire life have been learned through the process of exploration, through passive education - the fact that I had the chance to pick up something that I found challenging and exciting on my own, and to learn on my own, at my own pace, for as long or as little as it interested me.

I can't think of a single significant thing I learned from formal schooling before college, or after kindergarten. American History, maybe, being one of the few things I didn't explore on my own until much later on, but even that I can't say I learned anything accurate about because the course material turned out to be so flagrantly wrongheaded and propagandic that even as an elementary student I had serious doubts about the drivel they were forcing on me.

Mathematics. Geometry. I had good teachers there. But then again, how can you really fuck up mathematics? It's numerical patterns, they either work or they don't. Can't say I've really used any of my mathematical training ever since high school, but I will admit I've retained it and could put it to use if necessary. Furthermore, it's a great way to interest budding scientists and mathematicians in the field, and hopefully rear the next generation of brilliant minds for productive lives as researchers and theorists.

~Alja~

[JustAName]

Modern American school systems fail, in my mind, because they don't consider students capable of learning on their own. The notion is that youth are stupid or lazy or just won't learn unless you force them to. And because we treat students that way, they eventually start to behave that way. Why go out of your way to learn something on your own when the school system isn't going to give a shit? They just want you to jump through their hoops - it doesn't matter how bright or talented you really are, you have to jump through the hoops until they say you can stop. So what can you do? You jump for them, and fuck it if you actually learn anything.

So much this. I lost my enjoyment of school at about the same time they stopped teaching us anything, and just had us learn by rote. I miss the excitement, the spark of taking a hitherto unknown piece of knowledge and actually *learning* it, understanding it and how it fits into all the other pieces you've picked up here and there. Something's wrong with education when learning changes from a fun and engaging occupation to a chore. I've actually been writing about it lately, in my loose, disjointed way, but as usual, you've summed it up far better than I most likely could have.

[sdhonda]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5RJ0XtN-2o

[iamafish]

Modern American school systems fail, in my mind, because they don't consider students capable of learning on their own. The notion is that youth are stupid or lazy or just won't learn unless you force them to. And because we treat students that way, they eventually start to behave that way. Why go out of your way to learn something on your own when the school system isn't going to give a shit? They just want you to jump through their hoops - it doesn't matter how bright or talented you really are, you have to jump through the hoops until they say you can stop. So what can you do? You jump for them, and fuck it if you actually learn anything.

So much this. I lost my enjoyment of school at about the same time they stopped teaching us anything, and just had us learn by rote. I miss the excitement, the spark of taking a hitherto unknown piece of knowledge and actually *learning* it, understanding it and how it fits into all the other pieces you've picked up here and there. Something's wrong with education when learning changes from a fun and engaging occupation to a chore. I've actually been writing about it lately, in my loose, disjointed way, but as usual, you've summed it up far better than I most likely could have.

that's actually pretty well written and very interesting.

[theDreamer]

Well fuck.

5:30 in the morning, and I'm awake.

And sick.

And I went to bed at midnight.

And tossed and turned all night.

And I don't even have class today.

Fuck....

[Mad Madam Mimm]

FUCK OFF, WORLD

You know what's making me mad today? It's how often people refuse to just accept taht they're having problems and it's entirely their own fault. You didn't do this thing at this time, so you didn't know tehre was soemthing else to be done. You wore this item of clothing, which is unusual, and people commented on that. You said this thing, which had repercussions because you said it to the wrong people. The world is rife with it, and I'm sorry, but enough is enough. I will give you advice, of course I will. If you come to me in emotional turmoil, worried about whatever's going on, of course I will comfort you. But please, please, for the sake of your own sanity, jut own up and admit that you made things bad for yourself in the beginning. If you can't do the time, don't do the crime, as the saying goes. If you go with the outlook of "I'm gonna do this, consequences be damned", then good luck to you. But don't then get pissy about the fact that there are consequences, because that makes you a person resembling human genitalia with shockingly low IQ.

If you're gonna do something, feel free to do it. If you decide not to do something, then feel free to not do it. But please just own the fact that it was your decision, so everyone can move on with their fucking lives.

[Metcarfre]

Got bit by a rat. Ouch.

[GreigKM]

Why? Really? Why? Am I just unlucky? Or being punished for some moral sin by a malevolent God? Did I do something horrific in a past life? The pain was going, for what reason is it suddenly so much worse? What justifies it? Damn it, damn it all to hell...

[WBAGNR]

Got bit by a rat. Ouch.

Rabies jab?

[Metcarfre]

Meh.

[empath]

No, you are not being ingratiatingly chummy with me by commenting that it's so dirty in my store, due to the renovations. I'm cleaning the windows on the the display cases - do you not notice how the white paper towels I'm wiping over the windows are coming away DARK BROWN with dust? Did it not occur to you that that is a completely redundant thing to say to someone who spends twenty times as long as you in this place; that that might POSSIBLY have already occurred to the employee you're talking to?

And complaining about how hard it is to breathe in the store? Again, really not earning any sympathy from someone who is in said store for a fraction less than a quarter of his life in this oh-so inhospitable environment.

If it's REALLY such a damn hardship, why not patronize one of the other three supermarkets within ten minutes drive of here? We're not holding a gun to your head and forcing you to shop here; plenty of people have given up on us because of the noise, dust, everything getting moved around, etc. Why not make than number one greater?

Of course, if you had one IOTA of genuine interest in your demeanour, you might not tick me off so much, but you really don't give a shit what I think, and insincerity is oozing from every pore in your body so why interrupt me from my necessary duties for chit-chat neither of us is interested in?

I have no problem with someone who just asks me to serve them while I'm doing something else (provided I can actually stop, which is ninety-nine percent of the time). You know, cause it's kinda my raison d'etre (or would that be raison d'employ?) - you buy stuff and the store takes some of that money and pays me wages; win-win.

But passive-aggressively trying to manipulate me into doing what you want is not only blatantly unnecessary and a waste of both our time, but actually counterproductive to your goals; you're just lucky I had a co-worker who was twiddling his thumbs with nothing to do, because I wasn't going to stop cleaning those windows until you actually ASKED something of me instead of engaging in banal small talk.

[Darkobra]

That's the end for me, then. My breathing's going... Hospital in 6 hours. No idea how long they'll make me wait. They told me in December that I wouldn't be able to drum anymore and if I kept going, it'd get worse. Can't accept that.

I've actually lost my voice now. I burned my hand yesterday, went to scream in pain and nothing came out. It's a temporary thing, I'd imagine. All the coughing has done some damage. My chest is on fire, I can't sleep and sometimes my throat actually seizes up for a few seconds.

I can still drum. Not as long as I used to but that will go.

But even now, I can't accept that the doctors believe that I can't drum or be out and about. I came too far, have too much and I will sacrifice everything just to get that little bit further. Hell, I'm now good enough to teach in schools. 5 more years and I'll be qualified to teach in universities.

But the worst part, 6 weeks left. 6 weeks and I have loads of work to do or I don't even get the diploma to get the work to be a teacher. Even at perfect health, I had my 6 weeks squeezed into what I needed to do and when I could do it. This recovery period just hurts more than helps. I say recovery period because even if they tell me it's never gonna happen, I'll show them that it will.

Just wish they'd stop jumping from one diagnosis to another and get me a damn remedy. The only thing I have in my life is music and I've only got one chance.

[Deedles]

Your determination, to say the least, is inspiring ...

[Alja-Markir]

Where there is life, there is hope.

Nothing is ever a person's final chance. Even when things fall apart utterly, the world won't really end. As long as you are still alive, you can still keep fighting. But you have to stay alive first. You can't do anyone any good dead.

I've personally witnessed people lose everything. I've seen them topple from positions of wealth, fame, and respect - and then watched them laboriously struggle to achieve things you and I take for granted every single day. I once lost my mind in shame and guilt when a blind friend asked me to describe a sunset to her. And suddenly she was there for me, supporting me in my moment of weakness, telling me everything would be all right. And I couldn't believe her. But she slowly proved me dead wrong.

~Alja~

[Mister Fiend]

Never stop rocking, Darkobra, not even when Death itself is banging on the door and yelling to keep the noise down.

[NohbdyImportant]

Now let me preface this with, I love my job. And the people I work with are great. It's the customers I have an issue with. See, I'm a courtesy Clerk (read: Bagger) So I have a lot of communication with the people whom shop at our stores. And I do enjoy it. But I have some aggravations. And if you want to piss off the person bagging your groceries, just do every one of these. Presented in three parts, one per major job I do.

Bagging
[*] Please, refrain from coming in a 9 PM and buying $100 dollars worth of stuff. Mostly because past 8:30 my job is to bring in all of the carts from the lot.
[*] If you see the bags piling up on the belt, please take them and put them in your cart. I know it's a part of my job, but I also have to bag the shite. And you standing there staring at nothing, while I'm struggling to bag and pack your stuff is just rude.
[*] If your bagger is obviously sick. Don't try to strike up conversation. I might throw up, and that's not good for anyone.

Cart-Gathering
[*] We have two lanes in our corrals for a reason. Small carts go in one side, big carts go in the other. I honestly don't know how people can't get this on their own.
[*] After 9:30, there should be two areas inside the doors with carts in them. One have a whole lot of 'em. and the other has two rows. Use the one with the two rows. Because now I'm trying to bring in every cart on the lot. and you constantly taking them out makes my job harder.
[*] If there is a sign saying that you shouldn't go through the doors, don't. If I'm not done with the lot clearing by 10, I'll put one up to help me out. The doors will still automatically open, but that's for my convenience, not yours.
[*] And please, if you take a cart out of the building after 10. Bring it back. That way the managers won't have to go get carts, and I don't have my ass chew'd out.

Bathrooms
[*] Men, you're doing great. I rarely have to pick up after you. Good job.
[*] Ladies, What the hell... Please, clean up after yourselves. There is no reason to have paper towels on the floor next to the toilets, nor wads of toilet paper on the ground. I mean you're already sitting there, put it in the tank. I mean, honestly, the guys are better kept then you. Way to play against stereotype, and all that, but can't you do it elsewhere?

There, rant complete... And I know this sound petty. But these are the things that aggravate me and a daily basis... Thanks for reading.

[sdhonda]

Never stop rocking, Darkobra, not even when Death itself is banging on the door and yelling to keep the noise down.

I was thinking of that metaphor a few hours ago (as it's used in War And Peace). That makes it all the better.

[Metcarfre]

Darkobra... I want to hear your music. Damn the Man, Save the Empire.

[empath]

DK, by the time you read this you should be feeling the mojo I'm sending you; use it, revel in it, thrill in it and give Azrael the finger with it. You WILL boon the world with your music; we both know it. A dithering medical community that can't take a chance on being wrong isn't going to stop you; six weeks isn't going to stop you.

Everyone else? Take a moment to really CONCENTRATE about Darkobra, and really deeply think about him being stronger, and more able and less ailing. You'd be surprised at the effects.

[GreigKM]

"Yes, dad, things change. I no longer want to be a Physicist, I want to go into Political and Historical studies. No, no, I'm not giving up on my dreams, they're changing, evolving. Yes, I know you hate people who ignore math and science, I wanted to study them, I'm not ignoring them. Yes, I know I need to go to school to do that, but I'm kinda sick... Yes, I know quite well that it's been 5 years, I WAS THE ONE IN PAIN FOR THEM, but I still managed to get this far! No I'm not depressed..." And so on and so forth is something of the conversation that happened today. or yesterday. Damn 1:30 AM... You know what, maybe I AM depressed with all this shit... Sorry, I know I rant too much... and my dad's a great guy... still thinks I'm straight even though I told him I wasn't... but a great guy, great doctor too. Just surprisingly enraging at times...

[Alja-Markir]

Ahh, the bane of having a doctor as a parent. I know the feeling.

~Alja~

[Deedles]

*Raises her hand* I feel your pain there. My mum is a doctor, and part-time politician.

[MotorWaffle]

I spent every moment of free time Monday hunting down every person who I had to give some kind of reference form to in order to go study abroad, including my RA, who I am not entirely convinced isn't a mental illusion that I only think I see once in a blue moon. By 2:00pm the day before everything was due, I had contacted everyone and I had thought everything was under control.
Then I got an email from the secretary of internation programs saying that the form I gave my RA has been lost. Initially I thought he had just forgotten, and that my odds of going were down the toilet.
I talked to the head of my specific program, and he said that being a day or two late due to a form lost in the red tape should not harm my chances. After around a dozen email conversations this morning, I have worked out that the paper was sent to the initial secretary the day before spring break, and that it has really been were it was supposed to be this entire time. I'm glad, but it still caused me boatloads of grief, seeing as my planning for next school year all kind of depended on this.

Also my internship application tp the local paper was rejected with a bright red "you suck" stamp. That was fun.

*EDIT* I should clarify that I had already given them these reference sheets more than a week before, and was just making sure that they had turned them in to the right people.

[Metcarfre]

You wouldn't believe the amount of paperwork I've had to fill out over a rat bite.

...

Oh, hey, carbon paper!