Why 89 is one of the worst numbers….a tangent rant

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I know this is sort of random, but hear me out.  The other day I was making dinner; I was rinsing some spinach and found a 3 leaf clover.  I thought “Wow, that’s pretty weird.”  And truth be told, it was quite a lovely specimen, I truly wish I had photographed it before it shriveled-up on my counter.  Anyhow, I then thought “Hmm…this has got to be at least worth some luck.  I know it’s only a 3 leaf clover, but come on, thats a rare thing to find in your salad.”  The more I pontificated on the subject the more I realized that finding a 3 leaf clover in your salad is kind of like receiving the “89″ of luck.  It’s not quite the traditional and accepted standard of luck, but its knocking on Luck’s door.

All of this reminded me of a college art class I took, DESIGN I.  This class was focused on studying the fundamental concepts in art.  Composition, Color Theory, Replication, blah, blah, blah, etc.  This class was a lab class taught by a TA (teachers assistant).  Ours happened to be some chick in her early 20′s, complete with hippie wardrobe and nose ring.  None of this was a problem; the problem was that this chick graded with an interesting rubric which included: (1) How much do you suck up to her (2) How often do you compliment her disjointed outfits (3) If you were male (or who knows, maybe female too), how often did you flirt with her, etc.  Since I was unwilling to do any of these things, the woman seemed to give me an “89″ on almost all of my projects.  An 89!!!!!

Here is the problem with an 89.  It is a B+ and a step ahead of all the other “B” grades, an outcast if you will.  And yet, it is just barely not an “A”, just enough to estrange it from all other “A” grades.  So not only is it one of the worst numbers, it is also the loneliest.  Back to the matter at hand; yes, I did make B’s and even a few C’s in college, but never in an Art related subject.  I knew what I was doing and I was good; every project I turned in to this infernal woman was worth AT LEAST and “A.”  Hmph!  I always found her grading infuriating and frustrating.  I would rather have had a true “A” or an “85″….but not an “89,” which was simply saying “you’re not A material, but your close.”  I am sure she felt she was really an inspiration to us, and pushing us to the ‘next level’ and all.  Whatever.  I would rather have it ‘all or nothing;’ not a silly grade that sashays between a B and A.

Permalink | January 17th, 2010

2 Responses to “Why 89 is one of the worst numbers….a tangent rant”

  1. MarathonMom Says:
    January 18th, 2010 at 12:13 pm

    ugh. I had a freshman english teacher like that too. Except she always gave me 80′s on my papers. To me it always said ” I really don’t like you. But your paper is OK so I can’t justify giving you a C but I would hate to have to admit I like your work, so I am not going to give you an A”

    But where are they now? Yeah, they aren’t quite the badasses we are and I know they were no where near as hot as we are at this age.

    Bad teachers just ruin it for the few good ones there are.

  2. Jenny Says:
    January 24th, 2010 at 8:28 pm

    Pontificating did you well – you are so right 89 stinks. But you are a genius and you have a degree. :)

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