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This is the fifth day this month. On only four other days, I was home for the day. If you get up and go to work five or more days a week, you'll think I'm whingeing for no good reason, but this has been a grueling month for me. (And whingeing is a very good word - perfect for what it means.) Home for me is sanity and inner calm and the ability to handle all the little irritations and unexpected stresses and ordinary changes and chances of life -- handle them without straining my ability to be nice, that is. It's official. Ability strained. I'm up to the part where I have to think consciously to avoid saying things like, "Seriously? Damn, that's a stupid thing to say." Or, "Stop talking. It's evident that you have nothing to say." Or just, "Stop talking."

The evident part is interesting, don't you think? In order to find the words - the writing words - I need lots of time away from all the voices talking, speaking all the words. Do you suppose one brain can only process a certain number of words, and if I am going to have any for writing I have to avoid maxing out my system listening to them? (This is why writers often say writers are a selfish lot. It feels wildly selfish to desire unending days at home alone, but it also feels as necessary to sanity as freedom from water torture.)

And speaking of water torture, whothehell made the Columbia River Gorge into the carwash tube? I got a flat tire this weekend, which turned the fact of my nearly worn out tires into a task demanding attention (translation: four new tires purchased). I figure my guardian angel stuffed a nail into my tire so that I could no longer ignore the tire project. With the old tires on my car, the drive home last night would likely have ended up washing me off the highway and into the Columbia, and then out to sea. That was a lot of rain all at once, even for us.

But now that I am home, and all the speaking has stopped filling my ears and head, I have opened my eyes to see the mountain looming. The mountain of writing I have to do now. The mountain of writing I've been itching to get to, for the classes I've already paid for, and want to do well in. Sorta sucks out my breath to look at it.

Interdisciplinary Studies:
Reading: Tillie Olsen, “O Yes” and Moti Nissani, "Ten Cheers for Interdisciplinarity"
Writing: Finish mission statement, including learning outcomes
Draft Individual Degree Plan
First draft of short reflective paper.
Work on: Assemble as much of the Portfolio as is possible at this time; bring to class
11/21/09 to share with classmates and be reviewed by instructor.

Human Studies:
Reading: Through your continued reading and research this week, identify a model or models that best support your emerging "picture" of the aspect of the self-system you want to focus on. Find out a bit about what it's origins were--who was the creator, who has modified the model over time, and how is it used in the human sciences--get to know your tools! (Examples might include Erikson's developmental model, Maslow Hierarchy of Needs, Kolb's model of experiential learning, or a model from systems theory. All of these have been modified over the years to accommodate new perspectives, and are used for a wide range of purposes and environments.) (Make sure to keep track of your references and your thoughts in your Self Journal.)
Writing: a one to two page essay to turn in on 11/2, that is an overview of your reading/thinking/writing to date, and your focus as you develop your self model
Work on: organizing final paper and building the model of the Human Self for final presentation in four weeks (I'm going to use these artist models as props for my final project)

Prior Learning Assessment:
Essay #1: ILS 300 (Children's Lit, a course taught at Southern Connecticut) -- writing for 5 credits, which is 20-25 pages, plus documentation
Essay #2: PSY 222 from PCC - writing for 4 credits, which is 16-20 pages, plus documentation

I have about five weeks to be done with this. I ... um ... well, I think I've used all my spare time already. I may have borrowed some spare time from next quarter. You know that "time turner" Hermione uses for a year at Hogwarts? Yeah. I need to borrow it.