I'm five years old again. I had my first day of school. First two days, actually. I've decided I'll take four classes while I'm here, and I'm very excited about them. They don't seem horribly demanding, and they actually sound interesting, which is a completely foreign concept to me.
I started out yesterday at Czech Republic: Two Decades of Social Change, knowing that there was a good chance I'd be dropping it (which I just did). It's not that it wasn't fascinating. It just didn't seem nearly as worthwhile as other classes, and I don't feel any compulsion to take it. Instead, I will be taking Introduction to Philosophy of Psychiatry. I feel adventurous. It's something I would never take at home. But I feel that I'll learn a lot, particularly about myself, and why I think the way I do. Why I'm so anxious all the time. Why I'm a pessimist. Why I have a constant need to be liked. And even if it doesn't answer all of life's questions, at least I'll seem super smart because I'm taking a philosophy course and that's real deep. It's a small class, and it seems like everyone's got a lot of interesting things to say. Our professor is very dry, but I can't help but want to listen to him. Sarah likes his arm veins. I think they're heroine-y.
I'm also taking Jewish History, since it not only counts towards my International Affairs minor, but also because there's a rich Jewish culture in Prague and that culture is certainly relevant to me. I'm happy that I know a number of people in my class, and we can all study together and have heated debates about what type of hamentashen is our favorite.*
Finally, perhaps the class that I am most looking forward to is my Central European Film class, which compares a search for identity between Nazism and Stalinism. Today we watched a great film called The Shop on Main Street, a 1960s Slovak film about a man's inner dilemma when his morals clash with his responsibility as an Aryan controller for a Jewish woman and her shop. I can't wait to watch more of those. I'm becoming quite the cultured young lady I think.
*This is an example of jewmor. It's like humor. For Jews. Patent pending.
Your Dad just sent me your blog - sounds like you are having a great adventure. Your classes sound cool - if you find out the answers to why you feel anxious, need to be liked and are a pessimist let me know -- those are various characteristics of Gutharts (including me!) Miss you!
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