Book Covers: A Dying Art

September 28, 2011
255 days until graduation

Pictured is the Barnes and Noble double bound edition of Neil Gaiman's American Gods and Anansi Boys. Despite the fact that I already own two copies of this book, I bought this one because I'm an honest to God bibliophile. I love books; actual, physical books. 

This may come off as shallow but I genuinely judge books by their cover and appreciate good covers as works of art. One of my major gripes with the growing popularity of e-books is that books no longer need beautiful covers to attract customers. Book covers like these, depicting mythological struggles in the modern world, may be on their way out. 

The classic image of a library full of thick, leather bound books is slowly being replaced with a single e-reader and starchy, silver leafed pages are being blown away and forgotten. 

American Gods is a thrilling and compelling story that I'm sure will be sold for years to come but most likely they'll be sold in pdf form or as an e-reader file. With newspapers in their death throes and magazines following suit, how long before books disappear altogether? 

Words, Words, Words: What Do You Do With A BA In English?

September 28, 2011
255 days remain

I for one am tired of the pandering, patronizing looks that the phrase "I'm an English Major" earns. People cock their heads and look at you as if you had just said "I'm a Polynesian Dance Major."

The phrase that always follows is some variation on, "And what are you going to do with that?" That, being the perceived useless degree that I have apparently spent my life working towards. The Bachelor's Degree in English is an academic punch line. The subject of ridicule, derision and Broadway musical numbers.

English Majors are, in popular opinion, good for either teaching English or brewing coffee at Starbucks. Higher education has been turned into a commodity that yields capital gain and students enter into majors they think will lead to the most profitable career.

But the question remains; what do you do with a BA in English?

At first glance, English degrees seem hard to translate into a career. Engineers engineer, Lawyers practice law, Doctors practice medicine and English Majors...practice English; a skill more valuable than most people give it credit for.

English majors are in the business of words. They are in the business of reading, synthesizing and analyzing huge quantities of information in a short amount of time. English majors are in the business of communicating information effectively. An English Major can, with little time or preparation, formulate an argument and defend it intelligently.

They are in the business of persuasion. They have learned the power to capture an audience and hold their minds in thrall. With words, they can change a person's way of thinking, make a person want to buy a product or irrevocably destroy a person's reputation. The right words at the right time can change the world.

Employers need to stop thinking of English Majors as self-satisfied poets and artists and start seeing them for their true potential; masters of communication, persuasion and rhetoric. By the same token, English Majors need to stop seeing themselves in the limited terms of teachers and promote their gift with words. Convince potential employers of your skill with language and career opportunities will present themselves to you.

What do you do with a BA in English?

Anything you damn well please.

The Cliffs of Eternity

Today is September 28, 2011. Approximately 253 days from now I will have completed my Senior year as an English Major at Santa Clara University.

In 36 weeks I will join the thousands of college graduates across the country in what can only be described as a frantic race to find the limited number of jobs available to a recent Bachelor's Degree.

I have roughly 6083 hours and counting before I must decide what I am to do with the rest of my life or be forced to move back home to a black-hole town with no future and no job opportunities.

I will spend the next 365,005 minutes doing everything in my power to make something of myself and gain my independence from a dysfunctional family that is slowly imploding on itself.

And in the time I have left, I will be talking to you. I don't know who you are or why you're reading this blog. Perhaps you're a college student like me. If you're looking for wisdom, I suggest you look elsewhere; I lack the experience needed to be wise. But, for what it's worth, I am grateful for the company.

It is now 12:40 on September 28. I have 255 days to plot my future. Time starts...

Now