conquer calculus

because I really want to do it. Not be an expert, mind you, but be able to get through my college calculus book (which I did not sell back out of spite.) It’s more of a puzzle challenge than a necessity since I don’t really see a reason for my knowing calculus.

It would have been nice, though, to have been able to get my degree in geology. High school guidance counselors are unsupportive and useless, at least in my area.

This will be a secondary goal, something I do when I feel like it. Then when I’m 90, I can strut…or shuffle…over to the college blackboard, do some fancy calculus type thingies, and give them all the finger. Then have a nice cup of tea.

My first foray into your arena was ill-advised and I was unprepared, I admit. Transferring into a class three days after it started made it impossible for me to know what was going on…the class was on the third chapter already! And the professor refused to explain anything because “that’s what tutors are for.” Bloodied and bruised, I dropped it before more damage could be done.

My second encounter with you was cocky revenge. Taking a subject you don’t really understand in an online class, where you teach yourself, plus have to learn new “calculus reading” software to take quizzes? Ugh. Even my Calculus for Dummies couldn’t save me from that slaughter.

It reminds me of high school, my math quest. I was told I should be in honors algebra, but the class was full, so they put me in honors history instead.

(Momentary pause to let you soak that one in.)

You see, girls aren’t supposed to be good at math, and the class was 99% male (only our eventual class valedictorian and future doctor was the only girl.) That’s not all though. They gave me my door prize of honors history and put me in….REMEDIAL MATH. To help the teacher TEACH.

I’m still waiting for my paycheck.

And since then, I’ve had a math phobia. Girls aren’t logical enough for math, I hear. If I had conquered calculus, I could have been a geologist like I wanted to. But without the math, forget a science degree.

Watch out calculus. I’m coming for you. And when I am victorious, I’ll put on a pink dress, just to make you suffer more.

Someday I will!

of course it is now i’ll pass my exam! :)

in the calculus topic to do then i’m marking this done. :)

overall it’s about half an hours work away from being marked done. :)

There are a few things i need to work on but overall i’m actually getting somewhere and it feels great! I am no longer blindly stumbling around in the dark and taking bad guesses.

I have a little way to go until i’m there finally but hopefully i will be marking this goal done within the next week or so. :)

i am actually making some progress!

At LAST! Everything seems to be working for me and things are getting a bit clearer. :)

Still a little work to do before i can mark it done, but i’m nearly there! :)

yesterday i learnt to find the area in a graph using integration. Really basic stuff which i’d never quite gotten. :)

I did a page of problems in my maths textbook and got them all right. :)

calculus test in about ten minutes time and i’m nowhere close to this! Luckily i’ve got another ten weeks until the exam for it. :)

failed the calculus paper in my math exam i thought adopting this goal could be a little helpful. :)

i’ve only got a few months to get there :0