no really

one of the classes i am currently taking is ecological economics.  in terms of a graduate level class, it is one of the bigger classes i've had.  in total, 41 students are in the class.

i think this has more to do with the function of the class.  in all, it counts for agricultural MBA grad students, natural resources management grad students, and us community development kids.

i am definitely the youngest one.  that being said, i'd estimate that about 35 of the students are between the ages of 23 and 26.  about 4 are between the ages of 27 and 30.  and then we have one lady who is about 50 years old.

now don't get me wrong.  i have nothing against middle-aged people who decide that they want to go back to college and earn a more advanced degree.  i think it's actually pretty cool.  plus i understand that most people choosing this path are looking for a job promotion or to perhaps increase their income/salary.  i think that's a smart decision if you can find a way to make it work.

recently the professor decided to split us up into small groups.  each group has roughly 6 individuals.  as all luck should have it, the 50-year-old lady is in my group.  one of our small group assignments was to collaborate and write a paper.  so, the six of us each chose one part of the paper to write.  rather than meet in person to go over our rough drafts, we just decided to e-mail them to each other in order to avoid the time and hassle that it takes to coordinate our schedules and meet in person.

shortly after i e-mailed my group my portion of the paper, i received this reply from the 50-year-old:

"andrew, i have to go through way too many hoops to open a word 2007 document on my computer.  i'd appreciate it if you save your attachments in word 97."

ummm, what?

i'm sorry that 13 years ago when you were finishing your degree that was "top-of-the-line" computer technology.  i also apologize that you are still using the same technology i used while in second grade.  

i really didn't want to waste any of my time politely apologizing for my obvious mistake.  so i just decided to copy and paste my entire portion of my paper into the e-mail.  the way i figure: if you and your computer are capable of reading an e-mail, i'll just e-mail you the stupid thing instead.