Pgh Lesbian Correspondents

Nearly every day,  I think “that’s science.” I wasn’t a science major or even a great science student. But as I use concepts like levers, gravity, chemical reactions, and so forth in my everyday life, I actually flash in my head to that “that’s science” commentary. Physics matters. It is something I use nearly every day. Same with algebra.

It would be pretty cool to take these classes in an adult format – convincing us that we have indeed put all of this useless knowledge to regular use in our everyday lives. I’m convinced that if I revisited physics, I could figure out even more wonderful applications to help me cope with the effects of age. Why lift with brute force when you can let the laws of nature do the heavy lifting?

So here’s my list of Adult Education classes that I would like to take maybe in 3-4 week refresher sessions.

1. Physics and Chemistry – from lifting to mixing vinegar/baking soda for cleaning purposes, this stuff is important to know. Now I really disliked biology, never a fan. But I suppose some refreshers would be okay. Maybe I could better understand those pesky bugs in my backyard and the mutant flu virus issue.
2. Algebra and Geometry – I constantly use basic algebra to calculate formulas such as percentages. I would grudgingly accept some trigonometry and calculus because I know that understanding change and volume is important. But I hated those classes which I took in high school AND college just because I wanted to master it. Those concepts just go where my brain cells refuse to follow. Still, we could all use a refresher on algebra no matter how fancy our phone calculator.
3. Philosophy – I’ve been in many a philosophy class and it never gets old. Exploring the nature of humans and the way that we organize ourselves politically is pretty fundamental. And it isn’t *hard* to learn if you have a talented instructor.
4. Economics – Do I really have to explain this one? I’m still pretty good on micro, but revisiting macro economics would be helpful.
5. Home Economics – I remember lots of things from my 8th grade class which lasted 4 months. I don’t want to learn embroidery or foodie cooking skills – I want to learn how to make a fucking awesome homestyle gravy and revisit the whole “sew on a button” lesson.

Then there are the classes that I never had, but would love to take now

• The Stock Market and Financial Industry. Ahem.
• Spanish.
• Art – to be honest, I did have an 8 week mini-class when I was in junior high and I do remember learning about perspective. That’s it. I’d love to take an art class to experience creating art, not appreciating it alone.

I didn’t list history, writing, grammar, or literature because those are topics one can continue to explore individually. While I could tackle a geometry textbook, I’m not confident how that would work out for me.

My vision is sort of Sofie Amundsen meets Azar Nafisi.