Sometimes the most interesting odysseys occur while traveling from point A to point B, and other times while you’re sitting in your psych lecture listening to a McGraw Hill representative. This woman was quite a journey all on her own.
Naturally, as I entered the three-quarters filled educational amphitheater, the seat in the corner of the back of the hall caught my eye. It was perfectly placed; at least 10 feet from the nearest stranger, leaving me without distraction and ample leg-resting room.
Just like in any first class, the anticipatory chatter from the estimated 150 young adults ricocheted off of every surface, like an audience before a play.
The curtain rose and the lights dimmed (non-metaphorically speaking, the professor came in the door). Talking diminished within seconds, isolating a few chatty students who didn’t realize the class was starting.
After the professor spoke about typical first day topics, she introduced a woman (who will be referred to as Gayle for anonymity) who was going to speak about Connect, a McGraw Hill learning system used by Baruch. We, the students, had no idea that this seemingly average lady, sporting capris and and a snazzy new pair of Danskos, would give one of the most spontaneously theatrical and persuasive speeches about a learning program we’d ever heard.
I realized early on that what was about to happen would be movie-role-worthy. Gayle said quite loudly to the crowd “how are we doing ladies and gents” and proceeded to hold the headset microphone out as if she was the lead singer of a band shouting a crowd’s city name. Her enthusiasm and confidence were almost palpable. There was complete silence with a side of awkward glances toward each others’ neighbor and a sprinkling of hesitant, low-volume “good”s. Gayle was the perfect mixture of a stereotypically embarrassing mom, the Target Lady from Saturday Night Live, and Hilary Clinton, in the most interesting way possible; gesticulative, incorporating millennial lingo into her sentences, and trying oh so hard to evoke a passionate response from us. This program is her baby, she has to show it off; make sure everyone understands its beauty.
As Gayle went on with the presentation, she tried to hype the crowd up by picking volunteers to answer her questions, taking the initiative to achieve full control of the professors computer, and telling us to check out the newest and coolest features of the program like email and, wait for it, get this… a personal profile. Behind her, the program in all its glory, the jelly to her peanut butter, complete with our Professors name and colorful interactive buttons.
I sat back and took in the sight of young adult faces trying to act at least half-excited, and Gayle putting in A-plus worthy effort toward getting us pumped for this spiffy technological homework platform.
What did she do to top it off, you ask? Catching him off-guard, she ever-so-boldly fist-bumped the teaching assistant on the way out.
Gayle made my day.
I like how you took a perfectly average moment in every Baruch student’s life and turned it into something so humorous and interesting. Your use of vocabulary was something that drew me into the story even more. The way you describe your experience and the structure you use is super easy to follow while at the same time allowing for some breathers. I also found your comments in the parenthesis really interesting since they kind of broke the flow of the narrative but still worked with the story and offered more information. Your humor is also very evident, as I’ve state before. You definitely had me chuckling a few time throughout your work.
Hi Regina,
What I like about this piece is the way in which it reveals the speaker’s (and the class’s?) shifting attitude towards Gayle, without explicitly stating what the attitude point A or the and point B. Though not an odyssey in a literal sense, there is a journey here. The shift from detachment and embarrassment to enjoyment and even admiration is handled subtly, but structures the piece clearly. Well-done.
Prof Kolb
I really enjoyed reading your piece. It reminded me a lot of the Pearson presentation that I received during my Intro to Psych class last Fall. I loved how you described exactly how the events were transpiring around you in your voice. You did not focus on how they affected you but rather simply told us about the events in your own unique and personal way. In reading your account I understood that no other student the class would have been able to give an identical account of the presentation. The way that you express your personality in your writing is both refreshing and entertaining!