How often do you get to use those words together? I answered a post on freecycle yesterday for two mega packs of size 4 diapers. They are Wal-Mart brand (the kind I use anyway), but they couldn't be used by the poster as they gave her kid a rash. The pickup was 30 minutes away, but luckily I was running errands just a few minutes from there. Gotta love that freecycle - it's about $30 in free diapers.
I posted some old jewelry (worthless stuff) on freecycle today and already got a taker - someone who will take it apart and reuse the beads and charms.
I also have been cleaning out a bit more around here. I am constantly surprised that I can find more things everytime I clean. I have a stuffed bag to go to the Salvation Army already. I also am getting rid of about 30 pounds of paper - all notes and papers from my academic years. For some insane reason, I kept my notes, tests, and papers from middle school on, thinking that if I ever needed to know something about chemistry, trig, microeconomics, social psychology, or an assortment of other topics, I would be able to refer back to my folders. As if. Like I wouldn't just hop onto the Internet to find out what I needed to know, if I was ever in the predicament of needing to know some obscure fact from my 6th grade science class.
Which brings up another point...as I was quizzing DH from the aforementioned 6th grade science class final that I found, I realized how little of the information I retained (yes, I would have had trouble acing my 6th grade exam...what's a tracheophyte anyways?). Same thoughts when I looked over my college ecomonics and philosophy notes...my calculus handouts...my English summaries...Why spend all this money on an education when all I retained is the information that is useful to me in daily life (very little falls into this category) or that which I actually found intriguing (my evolution class comes to mind)? I know that answer is to "get a job", which I will admit my college education did do for me. But it's so pointless to learn the things I was required to "learn" (read: memorize) in high school and college when NOTHING pertains to real life or making a living. Why not teach budgeting and money management? Conflict resolution? Job skills like how to interact with other, with superiors, etc? Basic cooking? All of the skills I need to work at my job I learned at my current job or a past job, not at college. No wonder so many of the younger generation are so ill-equipped to live in the real world (not attacking anyone here, I am the younger generation but was lucky enough to have parents who taught me what I needed to know). Enough ranting.
I decided to keep most of my writing - I find it interesting to read over my past papers - and all of my major subject paperwork (sociology). Everything else is gone and now I have a half-shelf that I didn't have before. Tomorrow: attack the remainders of the shelves to see what else can go. Pack rat no more!
Diaper windfall/college rant
January 21st, 2007 at 01:56 am
January 21st, 2007 at 02:53 am 1169347991
Phew! Ha ha. I'm tired.
January 22nd, 2007 at 03:34 am 1169436865
January 22nd, 2007 at 04:25 am 1169439928
As for why the stuff you study in school is not useful in the real world, well, there is a huge difference between "getting an education" and learning. The educational system is designed to churn out docile, unquestioning automatons, a working class of people not striving for much more than bringing home the next paycheck. If you actually happen to learn something by mistake along the way they'll bore it out of you. Learning is using critical thinking and they just don't teach that in school because if you think critically you find it much harder to not question authority or not toe the line and heaven forbid you step out of line at school.
My husband and I are forever saying we learned despite the system, not because of it. And we make sure out kids are learning too, not just "getting an education."
January 23rd, 2007 at 06:31 am 1169533870