Returning to the classroom.

I registered today for a six-week-long seminar on the personal essay.

The class will be held at Chicago's Newberry Library, which has a strong adult education program. A writing coach who has her master's in creative writing and has published a book on the subject is teaching the seminar.

I've considered taking this seminar for weeks, but I needed nudging from family and friends. I solicited their encouragement mainly because it's hard to think about spending $155 -- for fun -- when you're unemployed. But with their help, I came up with a number of reasons to sign up:

1. You have to spend money to make money. It's quite possible I could make connections in the class who could help me land a job. At this point, I'm not really picky about what that job might be.

2. Most likely I will finish the seminar a better writer.

3. It gives me something to do -- if only for two hours a week.

4. A publishable essay or two might result from it.

So in two weeks, class begins.

It was during my senior of high school that I last took a creative writing class. I had a full roster of journalism classes during college, but writing an article using the inverted pyramid style isn't the same.

Wish me luck. I think I need it.