Jo's POV - Grade Two.

Jo is my sister. One of them. She's 6 (and a half she'll have you know).

Today was Jo's first day in the second grade. Her class is on a different floor than last year apparently.
When I picked her up I ask "Jo! How was day one of grade two?" she says, "There are more stairs."

Back to School Shopping and University Budgets.

Staples Business Depot ads aren't entirely wrong - however I wouldn't classify "Back to School" time as THE most wonderful time of the year, it certainly isn't a terrible one.
I think this has to be the first year I am genuinely excited about school though, whereas recent past years excitement have come from the feeling I get when I think about shopping and new fall-wear.
     Last night, I experienced a sort of sad realization. My boyfriend called me but instead of our usual chat we held up our phone "conversation" in mostly silence because we were both too distracted to speak - by our online window shopping. When we did speak it was mostly about our mutual longing to break out our assortment of fall jackets and maybe buy some new shoes. The realization we came to though, wasn't that this was the saddest phone conversation in history, but rather that we are university students, with university fees and university textbooks to pay for.
     No matter how much I tell myself that I must reserve my budget for silly little school things like violin maintenance, new strings, theory textbooks etc, my dreams are still filled with an array of jackets and thick knit socks and beautiful new boots - namely the Jeffrey Campbell Lita in black calf leather....

Hmmmmm, we'll see how long my will power holds on these beauties... Under $200 including shipping..... not great but not the worst. Can you really put a price on love though?

ROSI

I have yet to set foot in a university class (however that day is coming up fast), and I already have a tainted U of T view - Thanks ROSI.
I'll give you the nub:
     ROSI is the website where students do everything from signing up for classes, to paying their tuition fees. Seems like a nice, efficient idea right? Course enrollment opens at a set time for different departments giving everyone a fair and equal chance to squeeze themselves into their required classes (if they're really smiled on by God they'll get an elective or two as well). However, this summer, I woke up at 5:30 in the morning 3 times to learn that the site was down, or the system had crashed or something equally beyond my tech comprehension and frustrating.
     Just thinking out loud here but hey - if they use this service for all departments and for all course enrollment every year, don't you think they could maybe hire a couple IT guys to keep it running long enough for more than 4 students to pick courses? The mornings they open the site to the first year faculty of music students, I found myself wondering why they bothered isolating the enrollment by department if the site can't even handle one of the smallest faculties! I mean, if 250(ish) of us freshman music nerds are too much for ROSI to cope with, how do the arts science and humanities students get anywhere?
     The best part? Don't worry, they always get the site up and running - by 9am, when I'm already at work and without internet. Fair and equal chance my ass. I am now wait-listed for 3 courses and going to be stuck taking a first year course I am required to have in second year.

     I am just crossing my fingers that after I have actually attended a class or two I will have nothing but lovely things to report. School starts in less than 2 weeks!
Just think, in 6 years I could be getting ready for my first day back at high school. What have I got myself into?