Today is class meeting day "A6."
On the agenda for me is the following:
- Teach "Mass Media Systems Around the World" (Time: 0800 - 0915)
- Sit in on the Global Studies core course that the entire ship "shuts down for" daily - it is held in the Student Union area of the ship with the lecture being broadcast on the closed-circuit TV system of the ship to the various satellite classrooms on the ship for those students who can't fit in the Union (Time: 0920 - 1040)
- Teach "Intercultural Communication" (Time: 1045 - 1200)
- Faculty/Staff/Life-Long Learners Talent Show (Time: 2100 - 2300)
Update:
The other night I was in the computer lab on the ship and there was a girl sitting next to me and a guy sitting next to her. Before the girl sat down, the guy had been asking people around him if anyone had gone to the Bioluminescent Bay trip in Puerto Rico...because he had to write a paper about it and he didn't go to it. A few people just said no to him, but when this girl sat down next to me, he asked her and she had gone. She said "yeah, it was great...oh, you didn't go?" - to which he said no, but he needed her to tell him about it so he could write his paper. At that point, I just sat and listened to them. The girl would say things like "Ok, so YOU got in the water and when you moved around you saw a glow." He would eagerly write down the lines she was feeding him and say things like "that's good - what else?" I listened for a few minutes thinking how stupid these kids were doing this when a professor was sitting right next to them. When I was ready to leave, I stood up and said to them "Here's a hint for you - you might not want to be doing that when there is a professor sitting RIGHT NEXT TO YOU" (pointing to myself). The guy didn't say much and I just said "Because you obviously didn't go on the trip" and then I walked away. Theoretically, I could report him (and the other student helping him) as being in violation of the University of Virginia Honor Code...which they gave big lectures about at the beginning of the voyage, indicating that a hearing would take place for all violations and that if you get found guilty by a jury of your peers, then you won't get any academic credit for the voyage. When I made my presence known to the students, a lot of other students at the other computers heard me and kind of looked up at me and smiled as if to say "yeah, that kid is REALLY stupid." I guess my age prevents me from being super-conspicuous as a faculty member (as it always does - people invariably think I'm a student if they don't know me already at different places I go). When I stayed at the hotel in the Bahamas with my parents for the night before I got on the ship, the hotel clerk asked them if I was over 18 (because you get a wrist band that indicates you get the all-inclusive meal package and drinks are included). I feel like an undercover agent. I should go into high schools and pretend to me a student and do drug busts just like on "21 Jump Street." Yeah!
I digress...
Tonight was the faculty/staff/lifelong learners talent show and a portion of the students came to it (enough to fill up the Union). One of the professors (Rocky) sang a John Mayer song while playing the guitar and then he did something with his harmonica.
professor Rocky performing at the Faculty/Staff/Lifelong Learner Talent Show in the Union on the ship
Two people sang (Mary, the religion professor and Lynn, the field office coordinator). One of the lifelong learners (a woman in her 80s) just stood up and did a little prose about enjoying life, etc. The conduct officer played the piano as did another lifelong learner. The kids of Toni, one of the psychology professors, did a lipsync and dance routine (they are around 8 and 10 I think). Lesley, one of the resident directors, is from Hawai'i and she did a poi ball dance where she swung poi balls around on strings to music.
After the talent show I went up to the faculty/staff lounge and a bunch of the 20 and 30-somethings were kind of hanging out up there and ordering some drinks (I guess they congregate up there more than I realized so I guess I will try to join them more often). They were getting ready to play a game that is similar to "Password" but it's an electronic CD-player type thing that gets passed around and it beeps faster and faster until the team who gets stuck with it when it stops beeping gets a penalty point. I was up there from about 10:00 pm until 11:00 pm (the bar is only open up there from 9:00 pm until 11:00 pm every night) so once it closes down, people tend to go back to their rooms. The bar is also open between 5:00 pm and 6:00 pm as well for a happy hour so I have been going up to the lounge during that time because there seems to be a good amount of people up there. I tend to just order drinks like margeritas and pina coladas, but they have wine, beer (Corona and Guinness), a menu of a bunch of other mixed drinks, etc. It's a lot more variety than what students have - they can only either order wine or beer to drink during dinner and during the time from 9:00 pm until 11:00 pm (I think) that is served on the back deck of the ship. They have to buy drink cards and are limited to how many they can consume during that time as well and they have residence life people guarding all the exits and searching people's bags before they leave that area so the drinking is all contained to the pool deck and no one leaves with any alcohol. So far, it seems to be working relatively well. I haven't seen any students drunk (with the exception of those who got on the ship the last day in Brazil who had obviously just drank prior to getting on the ship).
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