RBOC on the first full week of classes

• Apparently, I assign a lot of work.
  
• I do not think a 15-20 page research paper in an upper division course is an undue amount of work.
• Apparently, my students disagree with me.
• Students here register for a lot of classes, show up the first day to look at syllabi, and then drop the classes they don't want to take. This is the cultural norm here.
  
• This is not so bad, in that it makes my grading load lighter.
• TAs are like little angels sent from heaven.
  
• I think I am making friends with some of the other new faculty.
• Saying that makes me feel like I am in junior high.
• Apparently I think Fukuyama's The End of History is the worst thing written ever, judging by the comments I wrote all over my copy.
• The student sitting next to me at the table saw my copy of the article and asked if "PBBBBBBT!" was a technical term of criticism.
• I am not used to teaching three classes back to back. My voice starts giving out about half way through the third class. I need to do something about that.
• I used a cartoon in class for an assessment tool. If they laughed when they read it, it meant they understood the lecture.
• If you take a bite of hummus, and it turns out to be beandip, it doesn't matter how good the beandip is, it will still not be a good bite of food.
• My international students are leaving my domestic students in the dust. I'm not sure if that's a commentary on the American educational system, or that students who go to foreign countries are a self selected group of overachievers.
• I haven't walked into any more closets, but the roads still aren't surfaced.
• Apparently I say apparently a lot.