bounce. also, bounce!

[aamcnamara]

Today is a Good Day. I started exploring the Mandelbrot set for math class: so. cool; our physics demonstration accidentally started to combust during lecture; I finished reading Privilege, Power, and Difference (a book recommended by someone, forget who, on the comments in one of jimhines's posts); started my Classics reading for tomorrow; and this afternoon I get a friend-prospie to show around campus and introduce to people.

I am also practicing boundary-setting, since I shaved my head again recently and people like to pet me when it's this short. I am not, on the whole, against being petted. It feels nice, and physical contact is sometimes quite reassuring. On the other hand, sometimes I don't want to be touched, and I'd really rather that people asked first--even nonverbally--whatever mood I'm in. (Some people have an Understanding with me wherein they can pet my head at any time, but they know who they are.)

Which, I mean, okay, having to set boundaries is kind of a not so great thing, but I am in a very cheerful mood today and actually setting boundaries instead of just subsiding and allowing it to continue = plus.

I saw two bunnies this morning, one of whom kept trying to sidle up innocuously to the other one, who turned (making the sidler leap away as if in slow motion) and glared--it was sort of adorable, but of course in the boundary-setting mode I look at that in a slightly different light. ... Still cute, though. Um.

On the Writer's Block thingy of childhood fears: I was afraid of school buses as a child. Still am under some circumstances. See, I was homeschooled, and school buses (so my thinking ran) try to snatch you and take you away to some terrible place with people who aren't interested in fascinating geeky things, where you just have to do pointless worksheets all day.

I am pretty sure this is a valid fear. School buses are scary.

Comments

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

I have recurring dreams that I'm back in grade school and they're making me do grade school worksheets again. And in the dream, I always start patiently explaining to them that I shouldn't have to do this, I know this stuff already. And then there's always the horrifying realization that I did that the first time around and it didn't work.

[aamcnamara.livejournal.com]

I feel ridiculously fortunate sometimes that I did not in fact have to put up with that kind of thing until middle school. Probably it would have strengthened my character or something, but I feel fortunate anyway.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

Everything builds character. It's a question of which direction it builds it.

I think the most important thing I learned from grade schools is not to trust institutions to be working for my benefit instead of theirs. Which is a good life lesson, but as I watch my godson learn it now, I think maybe people could wait until they are older than 7 to do so.

[aamcnamara.livejournal.com]

My unfamiliarity with that concept led to me switching schools about seven times during grades 6-8, but I agree with you anyway.

[actourdreams.livejournal.com]

The first time I was on a school bus (I think I was about seven, at JCC camp), I spent the whole time clutching the seat in front of me and trying not to shake because there were no seatbelts, and I was convinced we would Crash And Die because of this.

[aamcnamara.livejournal.com]

Sometimes when I haven't been on a bus in a while I still do a minor version of that. Yeah.