Separated Classes

One day each week, my first class begins at 9AM but the second not until 12:45PM.  That creates a two-and-a-half-hour unscheduled block of time which I have used in different ways.  It does not pay to return home and then return to OLLI, so I pack a few things to bring with me.  The site provides coffee.  There is also a catering service that offers lunch for purchase.  One of my favorite pizza/hoagie places is a short drive away, though parking not always at hand.  Thus far I have made my own lunch.  Usually a sandwich, either PBJ or cheese, a snack, a fruit, and a bag of herb tea, for which OLLI provides hot water and a clean recyclable cup.  I eat in the cafeteria, usually by myself at a round table just before the midday classes let out.  I pack my laptop and a cheap plastic portfolio.  I also take a microcassette recorder.  While my smartphone has a recorder, flashlight, and electronic level, none of these surrogates are really as good as a real tape recorder, flashlight on keychain, or for serious carpentry, a level made by Stanley.  Don't do any carpentry at OLLI.  

Some weeks I work on projects from my Semi-annual list.  I've practiced a long Torah reading obligation.  That day of the week, I always read weekly Parsha commentaries and tackle a New England Journal article, each available to me during those 2.5 hours.  I can plan my upcoming vacation or ponder a more remote one that I aspire to.  

Other weeks, I leave my things in the backpack.  I sit at a table and create a conversation with one or more people at the table.  It helps that the early morning class is devoted to a video and discussion on contemporary controversies.

I try not to surf the web, whether my email or social media.  I've been mostly successful at avoiding that time sink in favor of things I cannot get elsewhere, primarily proximity to other people, or dedicating myself to things that require my mind to focus in a place that has few distractions.  

The challenge of keeping this segment of unstructured time fulfilling, if not actually productive, has been a gratifying one.  Sometimes Me at my best, or at least a Decent Me, one very respectful of this Me Time.  

This part of my weekly schedule lasts less than two months and will be hard to duplicate without the separated classes bookending the pluripotent 2.5 hours.  I have found it a weekly focus, at least while it lasts.