Common Ground

Whether it’s been coded in my DNA to be a grammar stickler or whether it’s a socialized skill, I do not know.  What I do know is that when given another piece of writing, my eyes will immediately spot mistakes.  Since I’m used to reading the writing of many college students who were neglected by their poor high school educations, my eyes usually have a field day.  It’s almost like a crazy game of Duck Hunt — my eyes see so many targets, they start to go crazy.  Usually this does not aggravate me too much, as I know 1.) some people simply possess skills that have nothing to do with writing that I both do not and will not have in my life, 2.) there are learning differences out there that could lead to these understandable errors, and 3.) they’re still learning.

What does kill me, though, is when an “expert” on a specific topic repeatedly misspells a word that is vital to any discussions on the matter.  The one word prompting this post is “millennial,” as in a person born between the years of 1982 and 2000, and the generation known to demonstrate increased engagement with our political system through teamwork and enjoy Secret Service-like protection from their parents.  When I see “millenial,” I cringe inside.  Seriously.  I don’t do it because I suddenly hate the person writing it.  It’s not spiteful.  I do it because there’s little else this person could do that would do more to harm their credibility on the topic.

I don’t usually see this word in students’ writing, so rarely is there an opportunity to misspell it.  I do see it in blog posts of those professing to be experts or interested in millennials.  What would be considered good, solid writing surrounds it, but there it is — the one “n”-ed word, one right after another.

Yes, “Millennium,” the root word, is probably on one of those “50 Hardest Words to Spell” lists.  People spell it incorrectly many a time.  But, again, in order for one’s words to mean as much as they can, it’s imperative to pick the critical words in one’s field and ensure they know how to spell them.

I have no clue why, but I’m currently in the middle of a no-sleep spell.

Well, maybe I do know why.  I am about to commence one of the bigger transitions in my life thus far.  My stop in Erie is swiftly coming to a close, and while I am going to miss many people here, my mind is already focused on my future.  I am so excited it’s ridiculous.

For one thing, I am eager to get back in the classroom.  After getting my feet wet in student affairs for the last three years, I can’t wait to apply my practice to newly-learned theory (which doesn’t get to happen too often, usually it’s the other way around).  I am looking forward to discussions on topics I like to talk about that take place nearly every day.  Yes, I realize I’ll get tired of them at some point.  But right now, I’m looking forward to it.  I also know I’ll be writing way more.  And with the blogging gig at Future Majority already on my plate, my writing will drastically improve from practice.

Another large reason why the idea of grad school is so exciting is the youthful environment.  I enjoyed time at my current institution because I got to watch people older than me live grown-up lives.  But now, I am looking forward to being the older person in conversations, while still being around people much closer to me in age.

Getting to be with Molly every day is also going to be a major plus.  Much of our relationship has taken on the theme of distance, whether we’re 30, 300, or thousands of miles apart (we’ve been all three).  But even if just for a year, settling down and seeing her each day for an extended period of time is sure going to be nice.

I hinted earlier that this is keeping me from sleeping.  Over the past couple days, I’ve come to realize that I am not feeling any heavy feelings of sadness at the beginning stages of this transition.  Perhaps this is related to knowing grad school is the next step, and knowing that I got into a great program surrounded by at least two people I already know very well.  And while I will surely miss my friends I have made here, I know I’ll be seeing them in the future.

But I don’t want to seem like some heartless bastard who doesn’t appreciate their feelings, either.  I think I’ll probably need to spend some time this week writing a letter or giving them a card with my goodbyes inside.

Either way, this transition is going to be instructive for me.  I need to be able to balance my enthusiasm for grad school with my understanding that I’ve developed strong friendships here with people who are going to be very sorry to see me go.  I’ll be sure to update you on my progress.

Hmm, maybe I can sleep better now that I have that out of me.

Seth Godin had some advice yesterday for unemployed college graduates.

How about a post-graduate year doing some combination of the following (not just one, how about all):

• Spend twenty hours a week running a project for a non-profit.
• Teach yourself Java, HTML, Flash, PHP and SQL. Not a little, but mastery. [Clarification: I know you can't become a master programmer of all these in a year. I used the word mastery to distinguish it from 'familiarity' which is what you get from one of those Dummies type books. I would hope you could write code that solves problems, works and is reasonably clear, not that you can program well enough to work for Joel Spolsky. Sorry if I ruffled feathers.]
• Volunteer to coach or assistant coach a kids sports team.
• Start, run and grow an online community.
• Give a speech a week to local organizations.
• Write a regular newsletter or blog about an industry you care about.
• Learn a foreign language fluently.
• Write three detailed business plans for projects in the industry you care about.
• Self-publish a book.
• Run a marathon.

Seth’s underlying message is simply the missed opportunity for many who would rather sulk when dealt the blow of unemployment. While those employed might have the steady income, those not employed do possess something their counterparts don’t have — time. And while it’s not time that can be spent vacationing per se, it is time that is still valuable, given the plethora of opportunities Godin provides above.

Of course, there are some who are unemployed who simply do not have the resources needed to do some of the above. But this is where community resources like the library come into play — it’s free, and it offers the resources needed to do many of the above (computers, books on foreign languages, how to write business plans, etc.).

While I hope the government realizes the poor plight of today’s college grads and delivers some helpful policy prescriptions, I also hope in the meantime that young people don’t give up on themselves and their potential. The extra time on their hands is a hidden treasure.

I just got back from a trip to Disney World this past weekend.  Thought I’d post a nice picture of Spaceship Earth in Epcot, along with the monorail in the foreground.