Stuffing stuff in your unstuffed brain

It's been four years since I graduated from college. Four years. Sometimes I'm so jealous of Paul because I want to be back in school, stuffing my brain full of knowledge-y goodness.

I still spend time reading ... a lot of time reading. During the day, it's legal notices and real estate deeds. At night, it's Digg and Slashdot and CNET and SA and Bloomberg (which I read online and occasionally force Paul to watch on TV). ::grins::

In all of that reading, I pick up lots of random information. Today, I learned the ins and outs of a commercial syndicated mortgage. More importantly(?!), I learned that Nintendo's next console has been named Wii. Learning about real estate AND video games all in the same day? Now THAT'S what I call a well-rounded education!

Oh, who am I kidding? Did I mention I miss being in school?

There is some hope, though: I've discovered Berkeley on iTunes. The University of California-Berkeley has released a bunch of audio courses you can stick on your iPod or listen to at your desk. Physics. History. Electrical engineering. It's all there ... free. Even cooler, you can download UCB guest lectures, symposiums, and roundtables. I've picked up a few journalism-related lectures, including "The (Real) State of the Union," and "Being Opinionated in America." Interesting stuff.

It's nice audiobabble for the commute. (Certainly beats talk radio!)

In the same vein, B&N University's next session starts May 1. If you haven't taken one of their online courses, give it a shot. Most of them have a textbook (guess where you can buy it?), but most of the time, you can navigate the online readings and discussions without the book. Oh, and again, the courses are free. There are, like, 30 classes this session, including "Forensics with Court TV," "Understanding Islam Today," and "Learn Wine Basics with Morrell & Company."

Man, I am so going to be a smartypants.