Friday, March 8, 2019

recent reality

Re-ality, all over again!

I read The Brothers Karamazov (777 pages), by Dostoevsky.  Then, Why Buddhism is True, by Robert Wright.  Now, I'm reading SuperBetter, by Jane McGonigal.

Up next, is a triple shot of psych!:
Authentic Happiness (Seligman), the Yale happiness course (free, online), and Freud and Beyond (compilation of readings on the history of psychoanalytic thought)

fun with chemicals-
interesting discovery: champ (coke heroin acid meth pot), vs. runner's high, sex.  dose: (4 happiness chemicals): Dopamine, Oxytocin, Serotonin, Endorphins

I worked at Mission San Jose (in Fremont) today, with Sr. Barbara, took Bart, brought my bike, got rained on, got a ride to and from Warm Springs station, had lunch, earned some cash, weed-whacked, and painted a basket (and my hand) black.

I didn't see Sr. Rose Marie (my aunt: mom's sister), she was at a priest's funeral.  My mom's brother (jim), my dad's brother (tom), my godfather (richard), and friends Barry and Mike Rankin, have all bit the dust, in the not-too-distant past.

I just bought a new computer!   an apple laptop, on amazon, $799 (list price $1149).  Sara and Pierre took $150 off for my birthday/ last xmas, plus no sales tax in Oregon.  So 349 + 60 + 150, free!  I bought Augie a slinky, and 4 pair of ear-candles, for everybody.   They're going to Vietnam shortly, and I'll be sitting for their 2 dogs, Banh Mi and Poutine  (3 walks/day).   I'll play with my new toy there.  They have an Alexa, too.  I'm gonna check out the Main Library, public transportation, the Ymca, branch libraries, restaurants...

I researched Reed a bit.  I'm going to hang out at their library.  Visitors are welcome, and wifi is free there.  My hs guidance counselor recommended Reed to me, but I didn't apply. I know one Reedie.  They don't assign grades!  I bet I would have loved it.  Maybe I can be a part of their community somehow, age 47 (!!).  "crate" (challenging rigorous and transformative education)

Reed numbers-
2018-19 $ cost 
     (6 categories: tuition, fee, room and board, 
     books/supplies, personal expenses, transportation)
   tuition: $56,030. 
   fees: $310. 
   r+b: $14,210. 
   b/s: $1050. (71,600)
   pe: $900 (personal expenses). 
  Transportation: $200-2000. 
           Total: 72,700-74,500 (1 year) x4= 298k  (@72-74k/yr).  
     67% 4 yr graduation rate (reed class of 2013), 6 years? (79.3%)

 about $8.50/hour, 24 hours/day, for 4 years (!),
51% receive financial aid.
4 years= (8,760 hours x4)=35,040 hours .

other numbers! :
   28 acres of woodland, 1400 students, 40 majors/programs (plus 1 master's deg), half a million books in the library, adding 15,000/year.   altitude 135 feet ("higher education" lol), 9:1 s:f ratio (student:faculty).   Library hours: 8a-2:30a (!)

My blog got 300 page views (exactly), yesterday, which makes me happy.

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