My fellow Wildcats! With the government shutdown I have only one thing to say, Carpe Diem––seize the day. Right now there are no rules, only anarchy! (Just kidding please don’t actually do anything against the law, you will get arrested.) To start off this Deck I am going to share a little secret with you faithful readers (and if you are a first-time reader thanks for taking the time to read this little column).

The secret is that I love taking classes for fun. I am a journalism major and a French minor and I completed my GenEd requirements my sophomore year. However, I have taken classes outside of my major and minor several times. I have dabbled in jazz dance, anthropology and currently I am in a beginning ceramics class. Whenever I tell people that I like to take classes for fun I always get the same weird look. Most people can’t understand why I would willingly take more classes than I need.

Well first off, they are free classes. As long as I stay within the 12 to 18 credit limit, I don’t get charged extra and if I am signed up for all the classes I need, then why not take another subject that I am interested in. Second, they are fun. Yes, they make me worry about whether I will get the homework done for all of my classes. And sometimes I have to make sacrifices with those extra classes in order to get my more important homework done. However, I am learning new skills and information that I wouldn’t have the chance to get if I only did what was required of me.

My favorite GenEd class was botany which I took it to fulfill a requirement, but I loved it so much that it has influenced what I want to do in the future. The class inspired me to want to write for gardening magazines and even begin my own garden—granted I still have a lot to learn but it’s a start.

The same goes for the ceramics class that I am currently taking. This class is one that I am taking for fun and not for a requirement. Working with clay has been both fun and frustrating because I am a perfectionist but also a beginner. There have been times that I want to give up but mama didn’t raise no quitter.

I guess what I am trying to say is not to let the idea that your major determines the classes you can take while you are here in school. Take an art class or even just a PE class or something you wouldn’t try normally. Take dance for example; it is a great way to stay fit and if you are in a beginning class odds are that you will not be the only one who looks like a fool (I still have no sense of rhythm but I try).

College can be tough and in this world where we have a list of classes we have to take, sometimes you need the little break. Beginning-level art classes offer a great way to learn a new skill (or improve one you already have), make something that you can be proud of (or give to your parents to hang on the fridge) and give you a new appreciation for artists who make their living off what they make (trust me, that shit is difficult).

Those are my thoughts for the week, see you next Thursday! Until then, take a look through these pages and read all of the stories we are bringing to you. In this issue we will be covering the climbing challenge in the Rec Center, the music trio who will be performing and a profile in news about a CWU almuna who won the Teacher of the Year award for Washington state.