Still Learning

SIGN/HOUSE REVERSAL
Right now, at least here in New York, every sign sits in the House that plays host to its opposite. If that was too confusing, I'll give an example. Libra, the 7th Sign and natural in the 7th House is in the 1rst House, while Aries, the 1rst Sign and natural in the 1rst House is in the 7th House. Make sense now? Everything's reversed. What does this mean for the world? Not much without the planets to give us some kind of direction. Then why bring it up? It's fun and quirky and, to those in the know, it looks odd.

College is over and college is gone.
I graduated and had to move on.
School was the base that I built dreams upon,
And I'm still learning...

It was six years ago today that I graduated from college. That's right: I'm old (stop nodding in agreement). This time, six years ago, I had just taken one of the biggest steps of my life into adulthood and I had absolutely no idea what to do next. I ended up performing in A Chorus Line, getting a job waiting tables in Center City Philadelphia, moved to Indiana for 9 months for a season of theatre, and then gave myself culture shock by moving to New York City a week after returning. That's where I've been for the past four and a half years.

College. It's such an influential time in our lives and it's been gone for six years now. Interestingly enough, I'm back in the scholastic environment, having started graduate school this semester and this week, I have finals. Five of them. Ah, the joys of academia. I have to admit, though, that I thrive in such a setting. I'll bitch and complain and moan about it, but on some level, I always enjoy the world. Granted, graduate school is not the same as undergraduate. I attended two different undergraduate schools - two years at Rider University to be followed by two years at Muhlenberg. I had a double major - English and Theatre (Unemployment and Lying) and I unofficially minored in Dance. This time, six years ago, I had two degrees, a bright-eyed outlook, and no clue as to what it meant to be an adult.

Six years later, I have a hint of a glimmer of a whisper of what it means to be an adult. Boy, it sucks. Princeton, Kate, and Nicky are right when they say, "I wish I could go back to college." Graduate school is not going back to college; it's going on to college. Again.

In the same theme of this blog, I just got notice of my high school's ten year reunion. Now, if I thought I didn't have a clue leaving college, I was truly lost leaving high school. I started as an Elementary Education/Psychology double major. That lasted until October of freshman year. And I changed schools soon after. (My parents LOVED me for both moves.) Now, I'm ten years out of high school, six years out of college, a semester into grad school, and what have I to show for all of this schooling? Not a whole heck of a lot. I had bigger dreams of what I would be when I hit 28 (I'm not quite there yet; don't rush me).

Still, I can't help but feel that all of this was laying the groundwork for the 30s. Everyone says that 30s are the new 20s. I'm actually looking forward to the 30s (again, don't rush me). By that time, I'll be 13 years out of high school, nearly ten years out of college, and just finished graduate school (if all goes according to plan). I have a novel in the works to be published (if you haven't checked out the site yet, go! it's linked on pretty much every post! no excuses!), two more in my head, an educational career in the works, years of theatrical and varying work/life experience, and pretty awesome support. Far from Romy and Michelle-ing, I am excited to go to my high school reunion. It'll be cool to see where people are in their lives. Let's be honest: none of us are really where we thought we'd be. I'm betting that's true of most people, regardless of age.

For now, I'm enjoying the odd reversal of astrological weather; it's quirky and interesting. Six years later, quirky and interesting is the best way I can describe my college experience.
...and my life.

School's Not Just For Kids

SUN IN TAURUS
The sun enters Taurus at exactly 6:46pm today for the East Coast. We're leaving the wild initiative of Aries and heading into the steady, grounded energy of Taurus. Taurus is a stabilizing influence, very dependable, to the point of being stubborn. With the sun's energy behind it, this sign will push a focus on financial issues and working through projects.

Are you a Sun in Taurus? Find out what that means here.

Having just started graduate school for special education, I look forward to this kind of energy. I forgot that school is hard! My enthusiasm for school is still strong, but it has mellowed to the dedication towards schoolwork, a stubbornness that drives me towards high grades.

School has changed for me. Oh, sure the grades are there, and the tests are there, but the information seems ever more valuable because I realize that even in my general education classes are tidbits that will help me later in the career. I don't think I realized that the first time I went to college. It's an odd system that forces children of 16 and 17 to decide what they want to do for their careers. Those few that know what they want to do, that have that passion, are lucky. Many of us are stuck in limbo, trying to figure out varying career paths throughout our entire lives. I've traveled many paths myself and frankly, it's highly expensive to get educated! In an ideal world, higher education would be the norm, but education is a business and a commodity. The irony being that though every profession requires education of some kind, teachers are wildly underpaid and undervalued. I challenge anyone to think of a profession that does not require some kind of education. We are a society that values escape more than preparation. We want to watch TV, go to the movies, play video games, etc. Now, having come from the entertainment field, I'm not knocking this, but how can we expect children to value education when we don't?

For that matter, while calculus and physics are important to many professions, I could have definitely used a class on balancing my checkbook, basic tax laws, budgeting, nutrition, proper exercise, etc. We teach people how to make a living instead of teaching them how to live. I don't believe I've needed algebra nearly as much as I've needed budgeting skills. Perhaps, with better monetary skills, we would be better handling this economic crisis. Not necessarily a given, but who knows what could happen if we taught life skills in school? Then, those who would wish to go into professions that require calculus or physics can access those classes and maybe we wouldn't seek escape as much. But don't worry, entertainment will never go away. We will always have a need for it. Just as money is an integral part of our lives.

Which brings us back to Taurus, the sign of money. Hopefully, its dependable nature will help our world in this tumultuous time.