Back to school!

Back to school! It seemed so far away and unlikely while I was doing my internship; but now that it's begun, it's very real. Oh, yes.....very real indeed!! A bit too much....it was rather overwhelming attending school for the first time in over three months yesterday. I hopped onto a UT shuttle, the bus itself making me feel that I was back in academia for the first time in a long time. The shuttle went through the streets of campus -- streets that had been deserted as little as two weeks ago, and now teeming with students. It finally halted at 23rd near the Littlefield fountain, and I got off.
I walked over to Taylor Hall, which is the administrative building for the Computer Sciences building, and into the graduate lounge. It was like coming home. The three terminals at the table opposite the door, the rows and rows of mailboxes, the couches and lounging chairs strewn about the room, the chipped and cracked foosball table, even the microwave and coffee maker in the corner -- all old and familiar. The internship was already starting to look like a distant (and pleasant) dream.
I walked out some time later for my first class, Artificial Intelligence. I'm not registered for it, but we can take classes -- "audit" -- at least till the 12th class day to make up our minds as to what courses to take finally. The outside world was a profusion of white teeth, shining hair and tanned limbs -- the undergrads were back. I was almost taken aback at the sheer volume of people on the streets -- though I was expecting it. They all laughed (hence the white teeth), talked, argued, or walked along silently, some even glowering, the tell-tale white wires of the iPod earphones trailing from their ears. The squirrels ferreted about for nuts, and scrambled nervously past the numerous thundering feet. School in all its full glory!
The first course was AI in Welch Hall, which is across the street of Speedway from Taylor. I walked in, dodging a bunch of giggling undergrad girls, and boisterous young men trying their hardest to land punches on each other -- interesting greeting ritual. The classroom was across the great hall of Welch, in a rather small room. I entered, and found a bunch of first-years looking around nervously -- first-year grads, that is. I love how important I feel around them! The class in itself wasn't bad. The professor cracked a lot of jokes, most of which were too sad to be laughed at, but I laughed hard, all the same, if nothing, then at the sheer absurdity of them.
The next thing on the agenda was the "tea party" in Taylor's Faculty Lounge. This tradition, which began I don't know when, is highly cherished by us grad students. We get free coffee, donuts and samosas, which are a great favorite. Often, it is the Americans who polish off the samosas, while we're left looking! It's fun seeing the sight when the box of samosas is delivered. The moment the box is lifted, there is a sudden explosion of hands around the box, and in under five seconds, the box is completely empty. I once almost broke a nail grabbing a samosa. I've pioneered the term "strategic positioning" -- sitting at the table where the samosa box is kept, so you can block the others while you grab as many as you want, even thought the rule says you can take only one. It's great fun.
The next class was undergrad Programming Languages. It was, for some obscure reason, in the Pharmacy building, in a tiny, dingy classroom with no windows and narrow doors -- and too many students. It's a popular course -- there are 30 students on the waitlist for it, the professor offering the course informed us -- but I didn't enjoy it much. For one thing, it is way below my level -- the only reason I had to take it up was because UT didn't accept the programming languages courses taught at the University of Mumbai, my undergrad institution. I was almost gasping for air by the time the class came to an end.
And, that was how the first day back at school ended. It's nice to be back at school, and I'm enjoying the atmosphere; but there is tension simmering in the atmosphere, and I know in a few days I'll be gasping for breath, wondering why on earth I ever took such-and-such course!! But, while it lasts, I'm gonna enjoy it to the fullest!