Today is another tiring day of revision. I woke up at 8 a.m as usual, dressed up and got my breakfast. Before coming back to my bedroom, I wanted to take a look at Al Jazeera and have an idea about what's going on in the world. It was a bloody and terrifying scene that caught my eye. Its events were taking place in a flared up district in my country Tunisia, called Sidi Bouzid. People's wrath and protests were roaring and thundering despite police deterrence efforts. Scenes of burning tires and public properties were so common on the TV and in some Facebook video sequences. My parents were in the sitting room as usual watching the TV, so I had some chatter with them on the topic before I quickly went upstairs to my bedroom.
When in my cozy and silent bedroom, I decided to begin the day with the last lesson of Learning theories that I already started yesterday, but didn't finish. My plan was clear; to spend the whole day revising that lesson and memorizing some important points. Around 12p.m, my mother asked me to bring her some bread and another thing I don’t remember it right now, from the shop nearby.
At about 1:30 p.m mom called for me from downstairs with her lovely and vivid voice "time for lunch".
After lunch, which was a piping hot and delicious vegetable and dried bean recipe, called Tchich, I got a 20-minute break before I resumed my struggle with that boring subject.
At around 5p.m, I wet downstairs to run some errands for my mother. She asked me to buy bread for dinner, and 500g of Sohleb. Well Sohleb wasn't for dinner, but to prepare in the morning as a porridge for breakfast. I bet you're wandering about this dish. Ok, Sohleb is a kind of pudding prepared with a spoonful of sorghum powder added to a big glass of water. the mixture should be stirred while on fire. When ready, serve it in a small dish.
After that small break, I resumed about 5:30 p.m, and continued until 8 p.m.
That's all, good night and have a pleasant tomorrow.
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Friday, December 24, 2010
Friday, a holy day
Today wasn't very special; revision and confinement to my bedroom make part of my constant suffering. People may think that education is simply limited to the few hours you spend at your department. And when you go back home, all you have to do is put your feet up, and get much rest. Well, I may have to make it clear that things don't exactly go like that. If I study for about fourteen hours a week, their equivalent at home should be multiplied, at least, by four. I guess the image is clear in your head now.
So, let me move on now to talk about what I’ve done today. I woke up at about 8 am, washed up and got my usual yummy and balanced breakfast. It was basically made up of dates to dip in Bsisa, baked salad and Turkish coffee that I can drink with biscuit.
After finishing with my breakfast, I went straightway to my bedroom, and decided on carrying on with the revision of Pedagogical stylistics that I left unfinished yesterday. I spent about an hour trying to understand the final part dealing with Systemic Functional Grammar and searching it on the net. I was really surprised when I found out it was a bit complicated and that it would take me more than two hours to go through Michael Halliday's theory in detail. So, I suggested stopping there and going to the Conceptual metaphor summary I made yesterday. There were many rules I had to learn by heart concerning ontological, orientational and structural metaphors. I spent a little more than an hour an a half when it was 12:30p.m. Today is Friday, so I had to have my lunch quickly, perform ablution, and get ready for going to the mosque with my father.
When I went back home from Al-Jumu'ah prayer, I resumed with Learning theories. It was the last and lengthiest lesson I had to go through. However, I did manage only with eight pages from about a total of twenty-four pages!
That's all I have done today.
Good night.
So, let me move on now to talk about what I’ve done today. I woke up at about 8 am, washed up and got my usual yummy and balanced breakfast. It was basically made up of dates to dip in Bsisa, baked salad and Turkish coffee that I can drink with biscuit.
After finishing with my breakfast, I went straightway to my bedroom, and decided on carrying on with the revision of Pedagogical stylistics that I left unfinished yesterday. I spent about an hour trying to understand the final part dealing with Systemic Functional Grammar and searching it on the net. I was really surprised when I found out it was a bit complicated and that it would take me more than two hours to go through Michael Halliday's theory in detail. So, I suggested stopping there and going to the Conceptual metaphor summary I made yesterday. There were many rules I had to learn by heart concerning ontological, orientational and structural metaphors. I spent a little more than an hour an a half when it was 12:30p.m. Today is Friday, so I had to have my lunch quickly, perform ablution, and get ready for going to the mosque with my father.
When I went back home from Al-Jumu'ah prayer, I resumed with Learning theories. It was the last and lengthiest lesson I had to go through. However, I did manage only with eight pages from about a total of twenty-four pages!
That's all I have done today.
Good night.
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
A tiring but funny day
As usual, I’m still slightly puzzled about where to start. I’m trying to arrange my ideas and make sense of them through logical chronological sequencing.
I’ve waken up this morning at 8 am, dressed up and got my breakfast. In the meantime, I was a little bit worried and confused about what subject I should start with first; Pedagogical stylistics or Psycholinguistics. Well, to say the truth, these are the two most tiresome subjects for me, as they need great efforts and much of my ‘precious’ time to go through, and frequently stop at the technical and scientific terms worth learning by heart. After much thinking, I considered beginning with Learning theories in the hope of finishing with it by the end of the day. Well, this wasn’t exactly what I wished. Since everything in it was almost purely scientific, I couldn’t manage with a simple reading and a conclusion to draw or a small summary to make. The difficult terminologies and the facts that need to be memorized about cortical development, together with the role of environmental stimulation in forming cortical interconnections have taken almost all the day in order to stick in my dull and slow-processing mind!
Finally, I was done only with one short chapter, while the remaining one is very damned lengthy and needs, at this slow pace, about two days to finish and get totally convinced with my work.
At about 3 p.m, I suggested taking a 1-hour break for a haircut at home. Well I may need to tell you it’s my father whom I always go to and not our neighbourhood barber. At the beginning, everything went as I was expecting; my father was at home and available, and the weather outside was suitable for an open-air haircut. I was set ready in the chair, but, to my disappointment, my father told me he didn’t have a good blade and it was for me to fetch him a new one from the neighbourhood shop. My answer was in the positive when he suddenly changed his mind suggesting that I should get him one from our next-door neighbour instead. When I didn’t see of it a good idea, he simply went to him by himself, and left me painfully waiting for his return. However, I was once again disappointed when he remained there more than I was expecting. So, as a matter of fact, I decided to go and look for him. It was clear now the reason why he spent much time there. It was not because the procedures were very complicated or the neighbour was trying to convince him not to use a blade for a good haircut! Rather, it was simply because he accepted another neighbour’s request of pruning his orange tree. So, it was only for me to help him with that, so that he wouldn’t take much time and finish quickly. Finally, and after wasting more than an hour, he made me that haircut.
Immediately afterward, I got a refreshing shower and resumed my revision. Pedagogical stylistics is much easier than Learning theories, as I believe it won’t take me much time. Nevertheless, the only inconvenience lies in the fact that there is no clear plan to follow, and that I only need to read the papers and make some research on them, without knowing much about the points that could be included in the exam.
Now, I’ve come to an end with today’s events
Good night.
I’ve waken up this morning at 8 am, dressed up and got my breakfast. In the meantime, I was a little bit worried and confused about what subject I should start with first; Pedagogical stylistics or Psycholinguistics. Well, to say the truth, these are the two most tiresome subjects for me, as they need great efforts and much of my ‘precious’ time to go through, and frequently stop at the technical and scientific terms worth learning by heart. After much thinking, I considered beginning with Learning theories in the hope of finishing with it by the end of the day. Well, this wasn’t exactly what I wished. Since everything in it was almost purely scientific, I couldn’t manage with a simple reading and a conclusion to draw or a small summary to make. The difficult terminologies and the facts that need to be memorized about cortical development, together with the role of environmental stimulation in forming cortical interconnections have taken almost all the day in order to stick in my dull and slow-processing mind!
Finally, I was done only with one short chapter, while the remaining one is very damned lengthy and needs, at this slow pace, about two days to finish and get totally convinced with my work.
At about 3 p.m, I suggested taking a 1-hour break for a haircut at home. Well I may need to tell you it’s my father whom I always go to and not our neighbourhood barber. At the beginning, everything went as I was expecting; my father was at home and available, and the weather outside was suitable for an open-air haircut. I was set ready in the chair, but, to my disappointment, my father told me he didn’t have a good blade and it was for me to fetch him a new one from the neighbourhood shop. My answer was in the positive when he suddenly changed his mind suggesting that I should get him one from our next-door neighbour instead. When I didn’t see of it a good idea, he simply went to him by himself, and left me painfully waiting for his return. However, I was once again disappointed when he remained there more than I was expecting. So, as a matter of fact, I decided to go and look for him. It was clear now the reason why he spent much time there. It was not because the procedures were very complicated or the neighbour was trying to convince him not to use a blade for a good haircut! Rather, it was simply because he accepted another neighbour’s request of pruning his orange tree. So, it was only for me to help him with that, so that he wouldn’t take much time and finish quickly. Finally, and after wasting more than an hour, he made me that haircut.
Immediately afterward, I got a refreshing shower and resumed my revision. Pedagogical stylistics is much easier than Learning theories, as I believe it won’t take me much time. Nevertheless, the only inconvenience lies in the fact that there is no clear plan to follow, and that I only need to read the papers and make some research on them, without knowing much about the points that could be included in the exam.
Now, I’ve come to an end with today’s events
Good night.
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
My first day introduction
Well, this is the first time I try to write a diary that puts on paper almost all the events that happen to me on a daily basis. Honestly, being the first time to sit at my desk, turn on the computer, and decide on typing things about myself in English, I don’t feel completely at ease. But, anyway, I shall bear with this bloody feeling. The opportunity I’ve got to pour out my heart to my readers has a rewarding effect that surely will make up for the trouble I’m getting through right now. Actually, my head is full of many things worth mentioning, which, unless for the sake of arrangement and clarity, I shall type them all once at a time. This is crazy, isn’t it? Anyway, I’m kind of man who hates chaos as it won’t get me anywhere beyond much confusion and complete loss!
Now, let me move a step further to say something more useful. I want to make it clear that this small introduction acts as a warm-up writing trial to set me in the mood of this awesome decision, and to set the stage for subsequent things to say in my future diaries. My diaries shall reflect much about the hardships and troubles that, I hope, will culminate in success. The efforts that I expect to make through hard and perseverant work shall reflect much about a whole way of life I’m following.
What I’ve just said may reflect a great deal of optimistic expectations, emanating from a successful person very much committed to a clear plan that will inevitably lead him to absolute success. Well, I may need to stop here and tell you that none in this world, no matter how rich or successful he is, enjoys absolute success throughout a whole lifetime! There should be some trouble one comes across from time to time, which make him reshuffle his papers and follow different ways to achieve a desired goal.
Having finished with some thoughts I couldn’t help mentioning, I feel ready now to wrap up with the promise that I’ll make it a necessity to write something about whatever thing that happens to me on a daily basis, be it a special event, a turning point in my life, or simply a trivial experience that makes part of my monotonous stable life as an English student.
Now, let me move a step further to say something more useful. I want to make it clear that this small introduction acts as a warm-up writing trial to set me in the mood of this awesome decision, and to set the stage for subsequent things to say in my future diaries. My diaries shall reflect much about the hardships and troubles that, I hope, will culminate in success. The efforts that I expect to make through hard and perseverant work shall reflect much about a whole way of life I’m following.
What I’ve just said may reflect a great deal of optimistic expectations, emanating from a successful person very much committed to a clear plan that will inevitably lead him to absolute success. Well, I may need to stop here and tell you that none in this world, no matter how rich or successful he is, enjoys absolute success throughout a whole lifetime! There should be some trouble one comes across from time to time, which make him reshuffle his papers and follow different ways to achieve a desired goal.
Having finished with some thoughts I couldn’t help mentioning, I feel ready now to wrap up with the promise that I’ll make it a necessity to write something about whatever thing that happens to me on a daily basis, be it a special event, a turning point in my life, or simply a trivial experience that makes part of my monotonous stable life as an English student.
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