Week 1: Introduction

Hello everyone! 

    My name is Cadence, and I am a 3rd-ish year arts student majoring in Psychology. I say ish because I originally spent my first 2 years here at UBC working towards a Bachelor of Science in biology, but, after stumbling upon some psychology courses that I liked a little too much, I decided to make the switch. In my spare time, I enjoy watching documentaries (if you have any recommendations please send them my way), taking my dogs to Spanish Banks, travelling, and spending time with my family. 

    I'm at the point in my degree where I have completed the core psychology courses and am now working through the prerequisites needed to get an arts degree in general, and that means literature courses. To be honest, I felt (and still do feel) worried about taking literature courses in general. It is not that I don't like or appreciate literature, but the idea of reading it the right way feels intimidating. But, after stumbling upon this course, and the drink pairings, I feel like this is the perfect intro into the world of literature classes for me. 

    In terms of expectations for this class, I hope to gain insight through listening to different perspectives (both of those within books and within discussion spaces), to increase my confidence in both written and verbal discussions, and to discover some really great books along the way. In 2018, I spent three months backpacking across South America, so the idea of reading literature that was created within places I have been sounded really interesting, and I hope that some of these books bring back memories of my time there, and teach me about things I have not yet learned. My boyfriend and his family are also from Chile, so I'm looking forward to reading authors that him and his family are familiar with. I also hope to rediscover, in some version, the love of reading I used to have. 

    Hopscotch. The last time I played hopscotch was probably around the same time that I last read a book for fun. I like this idea of being able to play with literature, finding light and joy within the expectations that we place on ourselves, and playing with our perspectives and opinions we draw. Being able to jump between stories and connections, and viewing each book as a chalk-drawn square, apart of something bigger than just a book. 

    My question for discussion... What was the last book you read for fun? And how long ago was that?