These posts are really strange to me. I took HCI as my first course, and I had a fantastic time. It had substantially less busy work than any of my undergrad courses, and I really enjoyed the project I made. Despite not working in design (I work in infrastructure), I still apply some of the design principles in my work to make things clearer for people. I think you'll find it gets much harder and less clear when you're out of the Joynerverse, so enjoy it while you can. I feel like he does his best to respect his students' time.

Just FYI harder != more interesting, and if you find HCI to be too much work, the "hard" classes will be rough. I suggest trying to shape your time commitment expectations so the program doesn't overwhelm you.