Universities.

My college days were quite interesting. The story truly begins with my graduation from High School. Through much of High School I lived with my parents in a city called Longmont; an hour’s drive away was my school, in Louisville, called Monarch K-12. However, when I graduated I moved out, in with a friend who lived with his parents in Louisville; because all of my friends lived in Louisville or Boulder, a near by city, it made sense to live near them. For the whole summer I just worked as a swim instructor, and skateboarded. My friend and his parents were very gracious, I was allowed to use space, use their internet, and even eat their food, and all for only a small amount of money. However, this idle life was not satisfied. I tried to picture myself living the same life for the rest of my life and thought I would be unhappy. I remembered how much I loved to learn. So I decided to set myself to learning the only way I knew how: school.

My first two semesters were at Front Range Community College in the city of Westminster. Before I started school I moved into a new room I sublet (rented) from a lady who used to be a teacher but was now disabled. I paid $400 a month. The house was in Superior, only five minutes from Louisville and thirty minutes from Westminster. To pay for my living expenses I continued to work as a lifeguard in Broomfield (which is five minutes from Westminster). To pay for my school I took $1,300 in school loans. I only lived with the lady for three months, which was the first semester of school, but they were hectic times for me. I spent a lot of time with my friends in Boulder who were attending the University of Colorado at Boulder. We spent a lot of time on the CU Boulder campus, drinking (alcohol), and meeting people, but we also went to house parties and raves (very large, wild dances).
My second semester I moved back to Longmont to live with my parents because my aunt had offered to let me visit her in Mongolia and to do that I needed to save money. Although living with my parents was challenging because I lived much farther away, it was still cheaper because I did not have to pay rent. During this time I worked much more. I usually woke up at 4 am, then drove an hour to work, worked until 10 or 11 am, then went to school, before returning to work and finally going home. At a Community College you can only get a two year Associates Degree. After getting an Associates Degree most people then transfer to a four year University (like the University of Boulder at Boulder, aka: CU Boulder). While I did very much enjoy the art classes at community college, most of the classes were very easy and quite boring. Because I was becoming more and more interested in Chinese culture and philosophy I decided that when I returned I would study Linguistics at the CU Boulder. That way I could study both Chinese, and Philosophy, because Linguistics combines many disciplines.

When I returned from my three month trip to China and Mongolia I was to begin school at the CU Boulder. (You can find pictures of my trip at http://sainlog.blogspot.com .) For the whole year I was attending the Community College most of my social life had been spent with them on the CU campus, and before I left on my trip I actually lived in my friend’s dorm room for two weeks. So, when I returned from my trip I decided not to live in the dormitories for two reasons: it was too expensive (I didn’t have the money, and didn’t want the waste the money), and because I had already experienced the dorms, and thought the whole thing was silly. Instead I lived with my brother. We shared a room and I rode my motorcycle to work and school for the first two months; but honestly, I only slept and cooked at his house: When I was not at school or work, I was studying in the library or rock climbing at the climbing gym.
After buying a large van from my step-mother, I soon moved out my brother’s house into the city of Boulder. I easily acquired a job at a sandwich shop and began taking yoga classes at Corepower Yoga. Every morning I woke up at 5:30am, went to yoga at 6am, went to class all morning, then went rock climbing or took another yoga class, and finally worked or studied. Because I had eaten so much food in China I had started to exercise a lot. By the end of the half way through the semester I was rock climbing every day for three hours and by the end I was climbing six days a week for two hours, and doing yoga every day. My exercise regimen allowed me quite a diet: I would drink a half gallon of milk with protein shake after yoga and before class ($3). Then I would eat a sandwich from the restaurant I worked at for lunch ($2.50), I would have a small glass of milk with protein shake before rock climbing, and finally I would either eat a large burrito ($10), or another sandwich (this time for free) for dinner. Meanwhile I was taking Chinese 1 (part 1), Introduction to Linguistics, British Literature, and General Psychology.
That first semester at University passed well but I decided that my time spent rock climbing was wasted because I was not actually interested in becoming a professional rock climber. I was more interested in general physical fitness, martial arts and performance. So I dropped my membership at the climbing gym and added a Dance major. That next semester I took three Dance classes, Chinese 1 (part 2), Phonetics, and American Literature; but these classes did not satisfy me, I also enrolled in a class with another University (Naropa University) on prose writing. Throughout this time I continued to do yoga, and dance, but changed my diet. I stopped drinking milk and instead ate copious amounts of yogurt with cereal ($6). For lunch I ate canned fish with rice ($6), and for dinner I either ate a large burrito ($10) or peanut butter and jelly sandwiches ($5).
What was ironic about the classes I was in was that I learned so much from them but they ultimately convinced me that to continue taking classes was a waste of time for me. From my classes I learned many things. In Improvisational Dance I saw that creativity is one of the hardest things in the world, but probably the most satisfying. Rhythms and Accompaniment made me realize that almost anything can be learned with committed practice. I also took African dance, which reminded me that I was actually interested in martial arts, not dance. The most important thing I learned from the dance department, though, was that you must be committed to what you are studying if you plan on paying money for your studies. I realized that Universities offer amazing resources but if you are not focused enough to take advantage of them you are not only wasting your money but your time. In writing classes I learned saw the bad side of Academia: my teacher’s favorite author was the philosopher Thoroue, whom he taught but did not believe. Because I was concurrently enrolled in another writing class I found myself wishing that I could write more creatively and less critically in my American Literature class; I also found it discouraging to find so many apathetic classmates. I would hazard (guess) that in the average American University up to half of the students are only at University because their parents want them to be, and so, are not honestly interested in learning. I found that, while I was interested in learning, I was not interested in learning precisely what could be learned in university. First I wanted to learn other things.
So, I decided I should study Chinese by coming to China. I decided to use my Linguistic knowledge and love of teaching to teach the ultimate subject: communication; interaction. It took me a year to finally make it here but in the mean time I also began many new studies: of music, dance, cooking, art and friendship. I also continued to attend some university classes despite not being enrolled (Chinese 2, and Morphology and Syntax). What I have had the most trouble with is cultivating discipline with regard to independent study. Teaching does not make learning: action makes learning, not university study. I came out of the affair with 9 grand in debt and an understanding that I needed to learn how to do what I wanted to do.