gsuberland, was randomly thinking about my English teacher in secondary school who was a miserable prick and an utter discredit to the art of teaching. something I didn't appreciate until at least a full decade after leaving school is that most subjects - even those whose classes were near-universally bemoaned as dull - are fairly interesting to study if they are presented well. there's something fundamentally compelling about understanding things, no matter how superficially dull the topic.