Conundrum

I've loved this word ever since I watched Natalie Portman and Zach Braff in "Garden State."

My conundrum is this:

I love taking classes. Strange, that. That an unschooling mama that wants her kids home and wants to have her kids learn within the bounds of their own curiosity (which is boundless!) and yet loves the going to school. Except that college isn't really school. (hee hee) I mean, it is ... but not like grammar or high school. There is so much more room for personalities to shine and courage to develop. You can question without looking like a dope, or the rest of the adults in the class glaring at you for ... well, whatever teenagers glared at me for.

Of course, this is only true of certain college classes. And I think that is determined by what kind of learner you are and where your interests lie. If you are in college for a degree program in writing, the algebra classes suck. But if you are just taking adult continuing ed classes because you want to practice your pottery skills or have your writing sharpened by a short story class, what joy!

So back to the conundrum. I was looking through a community college catalog this morning and discovered a summer class that looks right up my alley. Intro to Permaculture. Covers all the basics I want to learn about in nine weeks for only $83! (I've seen more intensive courses that I've been interested in for three or four hundred dollars.) I'd really like to go to this class, but it is on Monday nights -- right during my writer's critique group.

It is true that one of our members switched our Tuesday night group to the current Monday night group because of a class he wanted to take, and so I might get away with switching it again (at least for the nine weeks that the class lasts), but since then we've added a wonderful member that drives in from out of town and wouldn't be able to meet if we switched it to Tuesday again.

So.

I could just go to the class and ditch the group for nine weeks. I do have another theater group that I could write for on Thursday nights (but ... it's not the same).

I'd feel like I'd be, well ... ditching my comrades if I went to the class.

I thought about still writing and emailing or sending along my essays in other ways to the critique group so they'd have something to critique, but it is better for me to hear what they are saying about a piece, rather than just reading notes in the margins.

Bummer. I'll probably just stick with the critique group, but what an opportunity. An urban homesteading mentor! For $83! Just when I'm starting my own. I've got the garden and the chickens, just barely. It sure would be nice to have a hand to hold while starting out.

( ... and for $83 ... )