What to expect on your first day of Launchcode LC101

Getting there:
I live in Belleville, IL 26 miles east of Launchcode St. Louis.  I found that traffic was smooth although I am traveling at rush hour ~5pm to get to my destination at 5:30pm. Mostly highway because Launchcode is not far from a highway (Kingshighway) exit.  So, smooth travel! +++

Parking:
One word, HORRENDOUS!.  Parking was tight even with half of the Launchcoders parking in the wrong parking lot.  There is some free street parking and paid parking.  The good news is that the paid parking is free after 7pm.  However, paying for an hour and a half+ twice a week for 20 weeks can add up.  I did get a good parking spot...barely! --+

Inside:
Launchcode takes the lion's share of a space it shares with the NAACP.  Cohabiting with the NAACP scores major cool points with me.  The setup consists of LOTS of chairs and tables with a huge pull-down screen.  There are also interior offices.  This entering Launchcode class consists of 150 people.  So, there were a lot of people in a big open space, yet no feeling of crowding.  +++

Introductions:
A lot of people introduced themselves, from engagement managers to teaching fellows and out of all of them I only remember three or four; Nick, engagement manager, a guy with the last name Sharp who now works at Centene because of Codecamp, Paul, my teaching fellow, and a guy named Will Farrell, yes that's his real name.  So, there are many people to help you succeed in this place.  +++

Format of the course:
Yearly: You should be in a job.  Why?  20 weeks of coding + 8 weeks of a personal project, + 13 to 26 weeks internship + 4 weeks vacation = 45 - 58 weeks.  So about a year until your dream job and about a half a year before you are being paid SOMETHING.  Not bad for free.
Weekly:
You do the homework before you hear the associated lecture in-house, then you do the studio with your group of 10-12 people with a teaching fellow.  You do that twice a week and repeat for about 20+ weeks before the 8 weeks Liftoff personal project.  +++

Lecture:
Will Farrell conducted the lecture.  It was pretty simple.  We had to make it print "Happy Birthday, You are (a certain age) old.  It was fun.  +++

Creation of mascot:
Each group on the first day create and draw a mascot and name it/the group.  What my group came up with is a mantis shrimp with the group name of Coding Crustaceans.  Lame, I know but it works.  -++

Studio:
After we broke off into our groups, after finding what group we belonged in on Canvas, we started a studio which is just coding the same exercise while having a teaching fellow to help us learn.  In my opinion, this is the best part of Launchcode.  +++

Goodbye:
There is no formal goodbye.  At 8:30p, leave.  I love it! +++

So, that is your first day in a nutshell.  Painless.  You got this!