Dear Prof. Haugeland,

My paper, as you can see, is late. But! for good reason.

When you passed out the final, I protested after class because I was going camping. I spent that Thursday afternoon through Memorial Day evening in Chilicothe, Illinios, dancing in a field. I attended Summer Camp, a music festival 10,000 hippies strong where mind-expanding experiences were had by all.

In short, while I did some reading (and ridiculous heurmenetics) by the campfire, I wasn't able to begin this paper until after classes on Tuesday. And by "begin this paper," I mean finish up all the reading I'd skipped before starting to write.

There's more to my tardiness than that though. Why didn't I just sit down and write the whole thing on Tuesday evening? For one, I am a busy woman who dares to schedule so much into one life it sometimes appears as if I'm consciously planning to be overwhelmed at least once a quarter.

More importantly, though, for two, I wanted to give this paper the time it deserves. As I'm sure you're aware, I didn't do so hot on the mid-term. There are many reasons why this is so, but none of them alters the fact. Not wanting to fail, I also needed to take the time to sit on my porch, drink a beer, and mull over notes and such, a luxury I didn't have the last go round. I've also learned recently that I write much more cogently when I'm not on all sorts of cough medication.

Is this paper worth all that time, effort, thinking, off-handed excuse writing? Possibly. Hopefully. Whatever the outcome of this scholastic endeavor, I want to thank you for your course. I feel I've come out of the experience with a better understanding of some of the overarching ideas presented by Heidegger, and a deep sense of how much I don't yet know. I have been inspired to continue my pursuit to understand Heidegger further because I now understand the reward his work has to offer. Thank you for making Heidegger both accessible and awe-inspiringly difficult.

I hope you have an enjoyable summer.

• Mia